Starts of the Week, Wk 1 Matchups, Lev Bell Saga

Waterbed. Feels good to get the first in-season waterbed out of the way. And it's a sensational one at that. Mike, who you're rooting for in this one? I'm hoping very much that they both score zero points and you have to just water each other. If they both score zero, I accept. You get to water both of us. Let's talk about the more exciting fantasy side of the football here. Minnesota, the debut of Kirk Cousins.

Dalvin Cook back on the field. Let's get a temperature check on Dalvin Cook. How confident are you to start him this week? I have similar feelings to Dalvin Cook as I do to Rex Burkhead. Week one, why push it at home? Murray's been great. I don't see why Dalvin Cook needs a workload. Yeah, I agree with that take. I like Dalvin Cook season long, but week one, you got to have at least if you do not have hesitance.

playing Dalvin Cook this week, you haven't paid attention to the preseason. Then I have not paid attention to the preseason. I have a 101 degree fever because Dalvin Cook.

has been rested this preseason because they already know, of course they're going to rest him this preseason. This is real football. This is week one home opener. This is a heavy favorite at home against a weak defense. If you're not going to fire up your Dalvin Cook, guns ablazing, shirt riping off, you're a crazy person. You just gave, you gave really good reasons to not play him in that argument. What are you talking about? He's the home favorite running back. You're against a weaker team.

And you're a heavy favorite. The problem is he's the second round 10. Okay, but that's usually great for running backs. Of course. But I'm with Andy of the side of, okay, you're a heavy favorite against a weaker team. Let's ease him in. Let's think about what we're actually talking about here, though. Sure. If you drafted him, you're playing it. Of course. So, you know, we're talking about upside. Jason sees the upside as a top 10 guy this week. I see him more as an RB2. I see him more as an RB2 this week as well.

Stefan Diggs, Adam Thielen. Great. Yeah, I like this matchup for Minnesota. We'll talk about it in a little bit. Stefan Diggs and Adam Thielen are going to be fantastic to talk about in the matchups every week because you just go, yep. Yeah, I mean you're. Stefan Diggs, Adam Thielen, yep. All right, we're going to go through two more matchups on today's show and then get into the starts of the week. And let's talk about the Texans and the Patriots. The Patriots are six and a half point.

Home favorites to open the season. I'm not, I feel like that game's going to be closer. I really do. The Texans take on the Patriots, the Sean Watson's back, Lamar Miller, Hopkins, and company. Travel to New England. Yes, it's on the road. Yes, it's going to be tough. But you start the season, and it generally, the way I look at this is the Patriots in recent years, their defense has taken a little bit of time to acclimate, to gel. And Matt Patricia is not a,

part of it anymore. Right. So I don't think that Houston's going to have, I think that's why Vegas has this as a 51 point over under. I don't think Houston's going to have a hard time moving the ball against New England. And I don't necessarily think New England's going to have the hardest time moving the ball against Houston. I think this game's going to be closer. I think it's going to come down to the wire. I feel confident starting to Sean Watson, Lamar Miller, DeAndre Hopkins. The questions for me come down to whether you'd rather flex the guy like Will Fuller or give him some time. Will Fuller?

has just been dealing with injury, and I am not going to flex him this week. The reason Vegas loves Houston, last year, Deshaun Watson put up over 300 yards and two scores against the Patriots. He did throw two picks against them, and that was also perhaps just feeding into your narrative, Andy, of the slow start for New England.

That's when the New England Patriots were bad. And that's when everyone had to burn into their brain that the Patriots are bad defense last year. And then by the end of the season, they were one of the best Ds in the NFL. I'm not going to argue with the point spread on this one. It's Bill Belichick gets a chance to redeem himself after Watson, even though the Texans lost the game last year. Watson made them look the fool. And I think that Belichick...

No more Malcolm Butler. He's in Tennessee now. I think they still have the playmakers on the Patriots defensive side of the ball. I'm actually more concerned with Lamar Miller. I think running on the paths is going to be tough this year and this week. Houston's offensive line is atrocious. Will Miller get the passing work to sustain his value?

I think he will, by de facto, he is going to be a three-down back. I'm okay playing Lamar Miller in this game. Jason, would you play him over Burkhead in this game? I would play Lamar Miller over Burkhead. Would you play James White over? No, I'll play Lamar Miller. It would go Lamar Miller, Rex Burkhead, James White is how I view it. Now, I don't get one of them's fancy.

almost upsets of the week. But when I look at this matchup, this would be my almost upset. I thought about it. Which, of course, it should be no surprise with my hot take of the beginning of the end for the Patriots. But you've got a, you've got a Rex Burkhead being eased in. You don't know if Sony Michelle's going to be there. You know, they've got some. I'm not worried about the ground game. Yeah, I mean, it's hard. It's hard to run on you. It's going to be the quick.

So the Patriots are going to throw. It's going to be a quick, short passing game for the Patriots. You have to. Because the defensive line with Judavian Clowny and Merciless and Watt, you're going to have to get the ball out super quick. You don't have Julian Edelman. Well, Chris Hogan has never been that super quick out type of guy. Yeah, they don't have. I mean, James White. Sure. I'm just saying, I'm just adding to the point. It's going to have to be the passing game. I agree with you.

I'm going to bring this up, Mike. I know you've been against Jason and his take about the beginning of the end for the Patriots because it's ludicrous and it is. However, he may take a victory lap early this season because if they lose this game. They won't. Okay. Well, sure. That's nice enough. But listen. Listen, if they lose this game, they travel to Jacksonville next week. Then they travel to Detroit.

with Matt Patricia knowing the ins and outs of that team. It's one of those games. The former defensive coordinator is the head coach. Sure. And they're on the road. There's a world they start 0 and 3. Mm-hmm. But you think the Patriots take care of business here. 100%. All right. Well, look, it's still the right bet here. There are six and a half point favorites at home. You're going to play Deshaun Watson. The points are going to be flying here. Of course. Brady.

Burkhead and company, we've talked a lot about the running backs already. Wide receiver-wise, the confidence has to be in Chris Hogan above all else. But ultimately, it's going to be what, Hogan, Gronkowski, and White seeing the majority of the past catching work? Yeah, this is a Gronk special. I mean, he's just, he is so incredibly important for this game. They're going to have to get the ball out and be creative against that defensive line. Grong, I mean,

We don't really need to talk about. He's the number one tight end. You drafted him. You play him. I was just going to say, like DeAndre Hopkins for all the people out there. Why is you talking about Hopkins? Because you don't need to. Yeah, we're here trying to help me make a decision. You're playing Hopkins. I'll tell you the obvious. By the way, did you know what? He has never spent a dime of his contract money. Did you know that? What? He's never spent $1 from his salary. Just sponsored? Ever. All endorsement money. That's it. And he seems like he's one of those guys that is really.

concerned with the incentives in his contract. So that's why this last contract where they bumped it all up, like he wants to hit those incentives because he spends that money. He doesn't spend his contract money. Oh, I see. And so he has every dime that he's ever made from his contract plus investment, which, by the way, I looked up, that's $54 million. So the... He just needs one more. The size of his off-season parties are related to his gronks mashing. That is correct. Yes, that is correct. Woo!

Gras, get that big party. That's right. Invite me. You want to go to a grong party? Not really. You couldn't survive one of those. I can see. I'm like, do you really want to smash a bunch of cans on your forehead, Mike? I would show. Is that your scene? You know, the gift of Grandpa Simpson walking into the bar and just does the full loop? That would be me.

You want the invite and then you want to come up with an excuse why you can't go. You want to get in the door. You want to be like, turn around, take a selfie picture. That you were there. That would be great. All right. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers go to New Orleans to start the year. Congratulations. The Saints are nine and a half point favorites. The overrunners 49 and a half. Oh, so we're going to repeat that.

Yeah. Yes. The over under is almost 50 points. Yes. And the Saints are essentially 10-point favorites. Yes. That means Vegas is saying the Saints are going to score a lot. Oh, yes. Gilly. Gilly. Gilly. Gulley Gulley comes. Gilly. I will admit that Mike Gillisley is looking more and more attractive as a flyer. I don't know what that means, though. Like, you just draft it. You pick up Gillisley up the waiver wire.

Who are you playing him over? I'm... Are you playing Mike Gilsey over Rex Burkhead? No. I said this on a show last week, but I have him in my lineup right now over Carillon Johnson. What league is that? That's our listener league. So that's a 14 teamer. Yes. That's a bigger... It's a deeper... Bigger league. Well, Carillon's a full set right now. Yeah, agreed. But that's my point. He was a guy that you drafted. But Peyton Barber in this game. Oh, I'm playing Peyton Barber. I'm playing Peyton Barber over Guilessly. Uh, Blal Powell or Gillisley. Blal.

Powell. Yeah, blah plow. I think Powell. Jordan Wilkins are Gillisley. I'm playing Wilkins. I'm playing Wilkins. I'm taking the guarantee starter, no matter where they are over Gillisley. The only chance of me being a Gillisley player is if I'm in a 14 to 16 team league and I lost somebody or I don't want, I mean, I'd be rather rolling out, you know, would you rather play John Brown or Mike Gillisley? Let's go flex here. Gillisley. Here's a list of running backs that I would play Gillisley over. Carry on Johnson.

Tariq Cohen, Chris Thompson, Ty Montgomery, Matt Brita, and Alfred Morris. I would play Thompson over Gillisley for sure. Yeah, you've been, you've been very high on Thompson. But that's a lot of people who were, at least recently, you drafted those guys, and Gilly is undrafted. We don't need to talk about Michael Thomas and Mike Evans in this game. The mics are fine. Yes. Unlike this show. We're always fine. We're always beautiful people. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Both of these mics are more likely to be invited to a gronk party than you. Slightly.

How dare you. I've supported them all off season. You're super cool, though. You're super cool, Mike. Getting in. So Evans, Thomas, don't worry about it. If you have to pick between the or starters of Chris Godwin and Deshawn Jackson against the New Orleans Saints. Look, if anything, they're going to be down. They're going to be throwing the football. Godwin ended last season on fire, the last two games of the year. He flashed. He had a game over 100 yards. Deshaun Jackson, though, still there.

Who do you roll the dice within those two? I'm picking Chris Godwin here, and I think he is an actual flex option this week. He's the better player. I realize Deshaun Jackson has a great role, a great service for his team. He's fast, stretched the field, and you might need to throw deep to try to catch up. And he gets the stretch from the slot now. Right. Which is very interesting. I'm not anti-Dashon Jackson here, but I think Chris Godwin has the makings of a great player. And...

they're going to need to throw the ball. The second half, there's going to be like one rushing attempt from Tampa Bay because... If that's true, though, then your Peyton-Barber confidence has to go out the window, too, because DeQuiz, I think they're confident with him on third down. Yeah, DeQuiz is the third down back. So... But when you get down around the goal line... So are you fading Barber, not maybe relative to Gillisley, but fading him relative to everything else? Yeah, a little bit. I mean, I'm not sitting here saying Peyton Barber is a great start.

But he will be the starter. He'll get enough volume, enough carries throughout the game. And if they get down around the goal line, I think that's the guy they're clearly going to be using. Right. Peyton Barber in the Flex or Corey Davis. Corey Davis. Peyton Barber. Jarvis Landry. Jarvis. Jarvis. Juju. Juju. J. Howard, Cameron, Bray. Taking a shot here. I mean, everybody wants to be a Jordan Howard fan.

He may not let us be. O.J. Howard. What did I say? Jordan Howard. Well, I'm a Jordan Howard fan, too. But, yeah, let's go with OJ here. Until Jordan Howard plays tight-in for the Buccaneers, we'll go with OJ. And I will not pick him as a tight end. Not his specialty that. Jordan Howard? You're catching that ball. He could probably block. Oh, yeah. He's a great blocking tight-in there. I'll play OJ. Howard, sure. Over Ebron? Over Ebron, yes. Okay. On the other side.