Fantasy Football Podcast 2017 - Old, Bland & Undervalued Players + Hitman Returns

Very excited about what we have there. The feedback's been great. Brooks bought two of them. I mean, Brooks is all about the ultimate draft game. Oh, yeah. Well, I love Brooks now because he's on my Piergarsons side. All right, let's talk about a running back, a starting running back. It's been in the news. A starting running back who's being drafted in PPR leagues in the 10th round. The 10th round behind players like Kenneth Dixon.

Isn't he suspended for a couple games? Three. Yeah. Wait. Four. De Martin has three. Behind a backup like Derek Henry. Behind a backup like Kevin Coleman, behind Smash Jackson himself. Jonathan Stewart. Now, if you had to categorize him as old bland or undervalued, what would you categorize him as? Old busted? Yeah. I think that would be what most people would say is old busted. Replaced. Old busted. There you go. I mean, when he looks like.

a player that has been replaced by the team because they used a top 10 pick on a running back. Jonathan Stewart is older, has dealt with injuries before, so the narrative can easily swing to the fact that he is done. And we are saying, that's not going to happen. Jonathan Stewart signed a one year $8 million contract this year to play.

for the Carolina Panthers. And this is one of those situations where the narrative doesn't match, in my opinion, from what I've seen, doesn't match the reality. The narrative is the fantasy football narrative that we all see. It's puzzle pieces. We're going to remove the Jonathan Stewart piece, and we're going to drop in a Christian McCaffrey piece, and you're going to get the electricity of Christian McCaffrey in the past catching, and we're going to just throw the other one aside. But in football, this doesn't...

work out that way. You have players that are favorites of coaches. You have players that have been productive. It's not like he wasn't productive last year. Well, it's not like we haven't seen this same coaching staff using multiple good running backs. You know, with this same running back with Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams. I mean, they have done it before. Why they would kick him to the curb is just not going to happen. I think the question, though, is what is the upside if he does, you know,

go into more of a 50-50 time share. Does that worry you? Because last year he finished, he missed three games. So you got to keep that in mind. Doesn't worry me at all with the 10th round. Yes, sure. That's the thing for me. And look, I said this on the show last week. I was going to ruin Jonathan Stewart's ADP. Like I said, I'm going to ruin it for myself. I saw Fantasy ADHD just post yesterday. He said, whoa, Jonathan Stewart's Mr. Popular all of a sudden in MFL 10 leagues.

because he's starting to get drafted a little higher. Well, duh, he's just starting running back. We can talk all we want about Terrence West over the first four weeks of the year. Jonathan Stewart, the propensity and reality that, you know, Ron Rivera's come out. They don't want Cam Newton to run as much. They want him to throw the ball quicker. When you're down around the goal line, I don't know why you would take the chance with Cam Newton, when Jonathan Stewart showed an ability to get in there last year. This is a blinders-on situation for fantasy owners for me.

And the blinders say Christian McCaffrey, Christian McCaffrey, Christian McCaffrey, I think McCaffrey can be fine in PPR leagues, running back too. But Jonathan Stewart is going to provide baseline, gore-like value for people from week to week. I think he's just a steal where he's at, and I'm going to probably ruin where he's at. I agree that I like him as a value. I'm not nearly as positive.

Though, as Andy... He dropped from the fourth round to the ninth round this year, by the way. Yeah, it's very strange. I mean, it's got to be all with... It's all McCaffrey. Because I was looking up, you know, running backs drafted in the top 10, and I believe it's... This is since 2000, running backs in the top 10. I think I'm counting 15 total guys, and 10 of those had well over 200 touches. So it's...

Then if all those touches are going to Christian McCaffrey, which history shows that that's what should happen, then how much work is there for Jonathan Stewart who is going to break down? He hasn't played a full season since 2011, which curiously enough, that's Frank Gore has played every game since 2011. So if you're looking at, let's say you've got to make the decision between the two, Andy, are you going Frank Gore or are you going Jonathan Stewart? I'll probably.

Go with Gore. Yeah, I think you've got to go with Gore. The competition there, Robert Turbin is no Christian McCaffrey. For me, I do agree that the 10th round is too low for Jonathan Stewart starting running back. I'm much more on the side of Mike in the sense that I don't really like Carolina's offense. I think they're going to take Cam away from his running game and focus on the passing game there. And I don't think that's going to work out well for them personally. I just don't think.

I mean, like, I don't really want any Carolina Panther, to be honest. Ooh. Yeah, I'm going to throw some shade out there. Oh, sorry. I don't necessarily have that approach, and I'm not trying to make Jonathan Stewart my starter. I'm just thinking that Mike has been the biggest advocate. Look, you fill your bench up with these running back opportunities that you have. He's a player that four of the last six weeks last year was an RB2, including had a number six overall week.

I think there's opportunity there for Jonathan Stewart. And if people see that opportunity in a guy like Derek Henry behind DeMarco Murray to still be a value, you know, Jonathan Stewart's going to be the guy getting the ball on first and second down to start this year, in my opinion. Yeah, I mean, Thomas Rawls is going right next to him. Oh, I mean, so that should show you. I mean, if you're at that point in your draft where your options are, you know, Thomas Rawls or Jamal Williams. Yeah, I mean, look, Jonathan Stewart is the better option.

really late in those double-digit rounds. All right. Another player, kind of similar in ADP right now. Terrence West is another old blend and undervalued guy. Forgotten player, somebody who, you know, Kenneth Dixon probably is, is he still being drafted ahead of Terrence West? I assume so. I will vet that. Yeah, vet that. I mean, Terrence West. Yeah, I like Terrence West quite a bit. Dixon's drafted two rounds ahead. Danny Woodhead's ahead of him. Terrence West has never been an inspiring.

football player and that sets you know fantasy players uh against them you know terence west has been the butt of too many jokes well when you have an opportunity and then you fail at it right and you get it you move to another team you've kind of been given up on but seven weeks last year he was inside the top 24 uh that's impressive in and of itself when he came out of nowhere to do that he was a player that we can all admit in preseason looked a little bit better than we had ever seen before yeah and they have some confidence in him so

We want to bring him to your attention because he's a player that's being drafted behind Thomas Rawls, the aforementioned. And the Ravens, we all know that the past two years, the Ravens have been just chucking the ball nonstop under Mark Tressman's offense. You have Marty Mornwig is the new O.C. He took over last year. I know things didn't really change, but to me, that's one of those things of the ship's already.

going full steam ahead. We can't implement a whole entire new offense. But the last five years, Marty has been an OC. His teams have averaged the sixth most rushing yards in the league. Things could drastically change for the play calling for the Ravens. I'm not guaranteeing that they will, but when your OC has that kind of pedigree. Track record. Right. For getting things out of the running game.

It hasn't been working. Going strictly to the passing game did not work for Baltimore. That's why Mark Trussman was booted out of town after just a year and a half as being the OC. So it would not surprise me at all to see the pendulum swing much heavier to the run game. And Terrence West is a starter for four weeks. At least. At least. Maybe it's not, maybe Kenneth Dixon takes over, but four weeks.

25% of your season, a free running back. The thing about the Kenneth Dixon is, you know, situation is that people are like, well, when Kenneth Dixon comes back, then Terrence West goes away. It's like, wait, Kenneth Dixon was there last year and Dixon was the starter with the exact same running back group. West? Yes, West. So I think West is going to be the starter through the whole season. Yeah, Dixon has the most to prove.

to this roster to have the opportunity. They spent the money on Danny Woodhead. They brought him in. I think Woodhead's role is fairly solidified in the third down position. It's going to be Dixon that has to break into the rotation. Philip Rivers definitely qualifies as an older quarterback here. We have him in our old Blaine and undervalued through a lot of interceptions last year. A lot of interceptions. But he can play, my friends. He can play. And he likes to sling it.

to me, he's one of those players that can have, you can put up a 5,000 yard season. He had such a new group of wide receivers to throw to, right? Because his Keenan Allen tried and true went away. So you had kind of year ones, really. I mean, not, that's not.

Not actually, but the first situation where Tyrol Williams was a go-to guy and Inman and Travis Benjamin coming over in free agency. When you've got that, you've got miscommunication on routes. Interceptions happen. Now you bring that whole group back for another year, Ad Keenan Allen, another year with Hunter Henry. You've improved the offensive line. You draft a top 10 wide receiver this year. Philip Rivers, you look at his consistency over his career and pretty much over the last.

decade, seven out of the last 10 years, he's been a QB1. I expect him to be a QB1 again this year if you're in six point per touchdown leagues. And he's, you know, he's older and he's unsexy. And so he's dropping in drafts. Also, he makes the worst faces in all of football. I put him against anyone. Eli? Yeah, Eli's up there. He would be, you know, if this was like tournament style, they'd be near the championship, but.

Phil Rivers. In six-point leagues, I have Philip Rivers with more fantasy points than Dak Prescott, Derek Carr, Cam Newton, and James Winston. Ooh. Whoa. So I'm burning down the house. I'm putting him in a category of wonderful weights because I get his weight through the draft and wait until some of these bigger names because probably all four of those are going to go off the board ahead of Philip Rivers. And that only has Philip Rivers about the 12 in my ranking. So he's...

basically going to end up either free or I'm going to get another value on a great quarterback. I just love the opportunity for a player like that with Keenan Allen coming back. Mike Williams being drafted. The offensive line, much improved, in my opinion. You have a guy in Melvin Gordon that can catch the ball out of the back field. There's a lot to like about Philip Rivers in this year moving to L.A. I have nothing more to add to Philip Rivers. I have nothing to say. All right. Last couple of tight ends here. See, the tight end.

There's the, you know, the movie, no country for old men. The tight end is. It is a country for the only. Saw that with Tony Gonzalez years ago. Lost some athleticism, still valuable on the field. Jason Witten, the eternal tight-in one. Don't understand how this is possible. Jason Witten's been a tied-in one for 10 consecutive years. Including every game. Last year, tight-in number 12.

Not that I'm impressed with week-to-week performance from Jason Witten, but Witten in Gates. Whitten and Gates. Gates is the guy that is just completely forgotten this year in drafts. I'm getting him in a lot of best ball, you know, play draft leagues because he goes so late and you think he's done. But, I mean, that's just ridiculous. If you look at when he played last year, he was, you know, as good as ever. He had so many top, you know, tied in one weeks. Seven of his last 10 weeks were.

tied in one numbers now do you still like Antonio Gates given it was reported out of not San Diego anymore the the Los Angeles staff it was actually reported they admitted they were force feeding Antonio Gates because they wanted to get him the touchdown record do you and there's the

the talk of, well, we're going to use them a little bit less, but between the numbers, but we will bring him in for goal line, red zone work. Do you still feel the same about Antonio Gates? See, I think there's something to be said about when they tried to throw in the ball in the end zone, he would catch it for a touchdown. Like that to me, year after year. Look, if there was a different quarterback, if Philip Rivers wasn't the quarterback in Los Angeles, I'd have far more concerns about Antonio Gates making.

actual contributions fantasy-wise this year. But it's hard to teach an old river's new tricks. What week did Antonio Gates get the record? I think he tied it the last week of the season. Oh, really? Yeah, he did. I just think that he's one of those undervalued players. Last year, his ADP was 906. Where is he this year? Do we, I don't know. Is he undrafted Brooks? Yeah, he's. I don't see that in there. Oh, he's undrafted. Undrafted in both standard and PPR leagues. So.