Week 17 Matchups + Wheel of Shame, Win or Go Home - Fantasy Football Podcast for 12/31

I am really glad you brought that up, though. Stay tuned, ladies gentlemen. Make sure you don't miss the end of the show, the drafting segment where one of us will be spinning the wheel of shame. It's not me today. Oh, it's not me. Yeah, it's finally me, all right? It's been a long time. I don't know why I came back to the office. Can it be Al? Can Al take it by like? He was shamed earlier this week. Oh, that's true. By his fantasy football team. You get a dress up in an Ian Buck jersey.

Before we move on to the next matchup, I want to thank today's sponsor. Fantasychamps.com. It's time to shine. Ladies and gentlemen, you get that title, that hashtag Footland title, and you let people know that you are the best. You are the champion of your fantasy football league. And Fantasy champs, that's where you do it. Go get the gear, the trophies, the rings, the belts, whatever you need to bling and to shine out. Fantasy champs has it covered. You need all that.

Yeah, I mean, yeah, to be fair. You want to go into your draft the next year with the belt of your shoulder. Just dripping. Rings on your fingers, a trophy in your hand. Heck yeah, man. And if you want a title shirt. If you want to have the trophy and the ring, you can get that ring for free right now. Fantasychamps.com put a trophy or a belt in the cart at a ring. And that ring that was once $59 is now.

$0 with the promo code free ring. Again, fantasychamps.com, put the trophy or belt in the cart, then add the ring and the promo code free ring. Check out, free ring, trophy, dripping, sweat. Yeah, fantasychamps.com. Thank you. All right. By the way, Sean Mannion is the backup.

for Kirk Cousins, but he is not... Is he on the COVID list? He's not off the COVID list yet. Okay. That was the concern about Cousins is when Mannion got put on there. It was like, oh, Cousins probably hangs out with him. Yeah. And so the playoff, the playoff hopes for Minnesota. Dwindling. Dwindling. They rushed with me. Mom on.

All right, the Texans at 4 and 11 with Mike's favorite player Rex Burkhead. Yeah, maybe. Taking on the 8 and 7 San Francisco 49ers with Mike's favorite player, Trey Lance. Oh, what a game it's going to be. General Mills, Trey Lance. This is going to be great when General Mills out plays Trey Lance in this one. He may do that, but he will not score more fantasy points. I guess we'll find out. Houston, San Francisco, 49ers, still in a hunt for a playoff spot.

Mike has Trey Lances at start of the week at quarterback. Jimmy Garoppolo still said yesterday he thinks he can play. I know my two colleagues don't believe that's going to happen. It is important to say because we have been emphatic that it ain't happening. I believe that to my core. But there was an interview with Jimmy Garoppolo where he said he thinks he can play. He played through it the second half. It's just a matter of, you know, so.

Don't be prepared, right? Like that's all we're saying is don't just lock in Trey Lance like you don't have a pivot option and you're not even worried about the potential that it doesn't play. I still can't imagine Trey Lance does not play here. Does not play. Okay. Yeah, I think it's that's your philosophy right now anyway. If you have a quarterback, you need another quarterback in your mind because of the COVID list because suddenly Kirk Cousins can happen. In this matchup though, Rex Burkhead.

22 for 1, 49, and 2, that was very out of bounds for Houston running efficiency. That hadn't really happened all year. And so is he in play against San Francisco? I don't think he's a, he's a volume play in the Agublewale-Jarrett Patterson category. I think I would take Rex over those two guys. I'm just like the Texans, I think the Texans will be able to put.

Points up where Washington, I don't know, Jacksonville. I don't think they will. So I would go with the team that I project an overall higher score for the team, more opportunities for Rex. What about Brandon Cooks who put up 100-yard games in weeks 14 and 15 and yet went to the COVID list? Coming off the COVID list. I think the Tyree Kiel News scares everybody. Yes, it does. When it comes to like a.

Deep Threat Wide Receiver running these routes. Not just that. Also, Tyler Lockett. Well, Tyler Lockett played last week, though. Right, poorly. Oh, okay. Also, Mari Cooper. I thought you meant Tyler Lockett coming into this. Oh, no, no, I'm saying like these wide, these Speedster wide receivers. Yeah. That's a high demand. Yeah, it's, they're not performing. And I don't know. You know, we don't know the, the.

actual real health status of Brandon Cooks. If he were fully healthy, this would be a smash play. He probably would have ended up as somebody started the week in this game because the 49ers are bleeding points to fantasy wide receivers. He's still in consideration for a flex play, but it is, it's risky business. Yeah. I agree. I would be looking to Benjam if possible. So.

Another wrinkle on the other side at the running back position, Elijah Mitchell has been limited in two practices. He has not had a full practice yet. He hadn't practiced in 26 days. Saw a little bit of video of him. You know, let's say he's working the rust off. We don't know if he's going to be active right now. I mean, yesterday you said you thought he wasn't Jason.

That's still how I lean. I do not believe he is active. I think it'll be Jeff Wilson as the main guy. Now, they're going to bring back Tracerman this week. I think what will be scary, we have said from the beginning of the week, if Elijah is ready to go, I would start Elijah. If it's Jeff, without Elijah, I would start Jeff. This is a great smash matchup. The Texas have been the second worst against running backs over the last six weeks, the fourth worst over the course of the season. This is great. The worry is...

If Elijah is active but doesn't get in a full practice, do you have the confidence to start Elijah? Probably, because I don't think you're going to, with him fighting for a playoff spot and the fact that he's come off of injuries multiple times this year to 20 plus carries. Yeah. I feel like the only way you bring him back is if you're going to give him everything. Yeah, okay, I agree. Now, is there any concern with, okay, Jeff Wilson doesn't play every third down. Trace Herman is going to be activated from injured reserve before the game.

Kyle Eustech plays on third downs. You have Jemichael Hasty. Is it, should you really be confident in Jeff Wilson? Because you may be seeding goal line carries to Trey Lance. That is my only worry is whether or not a goal line carry goes to Trey Lance. And that isn't a big enough worry for me to be able to project where I'm not going to play Jeff Wilson. I think that this is a game where the 49ers. I'm leaning away from him.

Really? Yes. They're favored by 12. I think there are multiple rushing touchdowns in this game, and I think one of them is Jeff. He will not catch passes. No. And his odds of the goal line, maybe it's Jeff, maybe it's not. But 13 for 50 is, I think, a really strong possibility for Jeff Wilson. And I guess I just have some concerns about the myriad of options there. Sure. Maybe you picked up.

I mean, he was 14 for 45 last week. His week was saved by a touchdown. Yeah. And that was without Trey Sermon and Trey Lans. I'm not concerned about Trey Sermon. Trey Lans, that's a fair argument. But scoring opportunities should be up for the 49ers overall in this game. So I'm still with Jeff. But maybe you were able to scoop up Daryl Williams off of the waiver wire. Would you play Daryl over Jeff? I would. Okay. Yep, I would. Debo.

Concerned about a change of quarterback? No. No. Brandon I. You. More so. I mean, a secondary option that is really a, you know, he's behind George Kittle as well. He's not someone I'm looking to play. He's just like, okay, you can, you know, if you're looking between Zay Jones and Brandon Ayuk, maybe you go the Brandon Ayuk side. I think the story with San Francisco is great matchup, but variables kind of throughout because when you have.

When you change a quarterback and you have running backs that you don't know who's going to be active, there's some questions. But they should score a lot of points because the 28 point implied point total. The Cardinals are 10 and 5. They're taking on the Dallas Cowboys who are 11 and 4 now. Cowboys coming off a big win. They're 6.5 point home favorites. The overrunners 52. Arizona is in the playoffs. Dallas is in the playoffs. Kyler only has four passing touchdowns in the last five games played. Gross.

Um, Dak had three straight weeks of quarterback 21 before last week's boom half and or three quarters, whatever we want to call it. Saw something yesterday about Zeke getting up to his fastest run speed since week six, although it was still well behind week six. He's feeling good though. And I think what you look for here is, is the game competitive. Because if the game is competitive and close, I think you're going to see a lot of Ezekiel Elliott in this game and not as much Tony Pollard.

I would agree that it's going to be more Zeke than Pollard, but I think it's going to be more passing than running for the Cowboys. The rush defense for the Cardinals has been pretty good. Outside of one big play, they shut Jonathan Taylor down, and their cornerbacks are a little bit depleted right now, and they've been pretty bad. Over the last...

Three weeks, they are the worst in giving up fantasy points to wide receivers over the last six weeks. They're the third worst on the course of the season. They're still like a bottom eight team. So you see that they're missing a corner now? Yes. Wilson got put on the, I think the COVID list. So Amari Cooper, C.D. Lamb, I think they are very good starts. And I, you know, I would be, I would be targeting them. You know, if Amari Cooper or.

Obviously, everyone's starting CD-LAM. And Amari Cooper, thankfully, had a big week last week. I think that gives managers kind of that push already to put them in. But I'm not afraid of starting either of those guys. And if there's a question in your lineup, I would lean towards the Cowboys side. Mike, Dalton Schultz has been good for a couple weeks in a row. Yep. I mean, he's in play just simply based on the status of the tight end. Nine targets, eight targets.

He's catching almost everything. He's caught what looks like 16 of 17 targets the last two weeks. Two touchdowns. He seems really strong. Yeah. The problem is the Cardinals have really been good against the tight end position. They're number one on the course of the season. That's because wide receivers are doing everything. Exactly. So that's where.

You worry a little bit. I would rather start on the other side of the ball, Zach Ertz over Dalton Schultz. Zach Ertz has been awesome. Yeah, I agree with that. While he hasn't had massive boom games, I mean, the targets have been there for him. He's sitting here at 11 targets, 13 targets, seven targets in the last three weeks. He's far more necessary to the team. Yeah, he's back to a full practice. James Connor is not. He didn't practice Thursday. We had a report in the morning that he was back.

It was a pump fake, and he's going to be a game time decision, which he was last week in which he didn't play. Right. And so you're looking at Chase Edmonds from that 2018 draft class and saying maybe he's the guy again. And he looked so. He was the bright spot of the team, in my opinion last week. Everything between the tackles, everything on the outside, he looked great. Yeah. And it's so necessary. He's going to be very involved in the offense. I don't expect James Connor to play based on the way that the practice has.

gone this week. So if it's Chase Evans by himself, I think he's, it's not the greatest matchup, but like you said, he's too necessary in all parts of the game. Is there any hesitation to play the Dallas defense the way they've been playing with Arizona on the other side? No. Okay. And Kyler. Kyler has been a hotly debated player this week. People want to know the Trey Lance, Kyler Murray, Joe Burrow, Kyler Murray, Tom Brady, Kyler Murray. Um, um,

Tray Lance and Joe Burrow, I am playing Kyler Murray over him. Tom Brady, I am playing over Kyler Murray, but I would play Dak Prescott over all of them on the other side of the ball. All right. I'm not looking forward to facing Dak in the championship. I don't think he's going to be good for me. It would be great for him. I'm not looking forward to facing Chase Edmonds. We'll hold hands. Carolina, 5 and 10, New Orleans, 7 and 8. Games in New Orleans.

The Panthers have a disgusting 15-point implied point total. The Saints are six and a half point favorites on Draft King's Sportsbook. The overrunners 38. Taysam Hill's been activated from the COVID list. 38. Taysom Hill has not been that great. And if Mike's Tyler Huntley narrative is true, then you have the same one with Tassum Hill off the COVID list. Sam Darnold's going to start for Carolina. I want to believe that that is a better thing for DJ Moore.