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A trio of players every gamer should be targeting in their fantasy drafts.
Everyone has different opinions on where to rank players, whether they believe the ranking is too high or too low. We’ve identified three players that you want to have at all costs as mid- to late-round bargains this year.
The only question you have to determine is when do you feel comfortable pulling the trigger to land these three candidate players? Every round they remain on the board makes them bigger value picks.
A turbulent fantasy situation just became an even rockier ride.
The wait is over, folks. Former Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook has agreed to join the New York Jets and will improve an already talented backfield. It also further devalues Breece Hall as he’s returning from knee reconstruction and wasn’t expected to be 100 percent himself during the first half of the season.
Cook will play behind a surefire Hall of Fame quarterback in Aaron Rodgers and should be a versatile asset in fantasy leagues. The well-rounded Florida State product is no stranger to injury, however, so gamers should consider that when factoring him into their draft plans.
The biggest question here is what kind of role will Cook and Hall have together when they’re both healthy. Hall was having a fine rookie season before the injury and will be a full year removed from the ACL tear come October 23. From a physical standpoint, the knee currently is structurally sound, but regaining confidence and spring in his step may take until the second half of the season.
Are the Jets done adding offensive talent this offseason?
It’s a brave new world for the New York Jets following the acquisition of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. While the team didn’t acquire the four-time MVP to shy away from the passing game, New York’s ground attack should be much more viable in 2023 thanks to the threat of Rodgers picking apart the opposing secondary. That’s in contrast to whatever it was QB Zach Wilson and company did last year when the club ranked 26th in rushing at 99.2 yards per game.
Most of the principles from the group who posted that number return, including running backs Breece Hall, Michael Carter, and Zonovan Knight, who will be joined by rookie RB Israel Abanikanda. Where can fantasy owners expect to find value in this position group? Let’s find out.
Will Alexander Mattison slide right in as a fantasy RB1 replacement?
For the past six years, the Minnesota Vikings have leaned heavily on running back Dalvin Cook as a centerpiece of their offense. Despite playing every game of a season just once in six years, over the last four seasons, Cook rushed for more than 1,100 yards each time, averaged 43 receptions, and scored 46 touchdowns. That is a ton of production, but with a contract that called for him to get paid $10.4 million, the Vikings opted to release Cook. It wasn’t a move that was received well, but it was part of the franchise’s desire to rid itself of some large veteran contracts.
The Vikings made their intentions known months earlier when they re-signed Cook’s backup, Alexander Mattison, before he had the chance to test free agency (two years, $7 million) and did little else to shake things up in the running backs room. The message sent by the Cook release is that head coach Kevin O’Connell may want to replicate the Los Angeles Rams‘ pass-happy offense that won a Super Bowl when he was offensive coordinator.
For the first time since Adrian Peterson came to Minnesota in 2007, there are more questions than answers for the Vikings’ running game in the short- and long-term outlooks.
What does the star back’s release mean for fantasy football purposes?
In a long-awaited move, the Minnesota Vikings released standout running back Dalvin Cook, meaning he’s free to sign with any team of his choosing.
The release immediately elevates veteran backup Alexander Mattison into the starting lineup and opens the door for one of several packs — perhaps one of whom not currently on the roster — to slide into the top reserve role.
Mattison started his NFL career by averaging 4.55 yards per attempt over 196 carries spread over 26 games in the first two seasons. He filled in respectably a few times for the oft-injured Cook, though Mattison himself missed time in each of his first three seasons, which should be concerning when considering he was a backup. The Boise Stater has shown capable as a receiver out of the backfield, especially in 2021 when Mattison caught 32 of 39 looks for 228 yards and a score. He’s not quite the same caliber receiver of Cook, and it will be interesting to see if that’s the area in which Minnesota opts to spell him most frequently.
Second-year back Ty Chandler is an excellent receiver and should make a strong case for the No. 2 role. The 2022 fifth-rounder rushed only six times for a mere 20 yards last year, and he lacks open-field movement traits. As a positive, however, a blazing 4.38-second 40 time puts Chandler in the mix for two-down, change-of-pace work in relief of the much slower Mattison.
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The other two existing backs on the roster are return man Kene Nwangwu and seventh-round rookie DeWayne McBride. The latter has practically no collegiate experience as a receiving outlet, and his likeliest role in the pros will be as a direct, two-down replacement should Mattison miss time. At 5-foot-11, 215 pounds, McBride comes with average speed but has proven himself as a steady, productive rusher.
Nwangwu is more dynamic and could earn the third-down role with a strong offseason. The 2021 fourth-round pick has just 22 total carries and six receptions in this NFL career. He has three kickoffs returned for touchdowns. Few NFL players, regardless of position, rival Nwangwu’s 4.29-second 40 speed, which is even more remarkable given his 6-foot-1, 210-pound frame. As the saying goes, you can’t teach speed, so there’s an opportunity here for the third-year back to emerge as the primary backup.
Of course, there’s also a chance the Vikes turn to the wire and look toward the likes of Leonard Fournette or Kareem Hunt. Both are proven vets who can serve as third-down backs and also man the No. 2 role should something happen to Mattison. Hunt makes the most sense and has played in similar systems throughout his career. Ezekiel Elliott remains on the market, too, but it’s tough to see him signing given the expected cost in relation to what he brings to the table at this stage of his career. Minnesota also could explore less accomplished backs, such as J.D. McKissic, Kenyan Drake or Dontrell Hilliard.
As for Cook, he’ll look to sign with a contender at this stage of his career. Miami immediately jumps to the top of the list of potential landing spots, and Denver could be in play, too. His brother plays for Buffalo, but it’s already a crowded backfield, making the signing seem much less likely. One interesting spot could be Cincinnati, even with Joe Mixon on the roster. That’s a long shot, but it would protect the Bengals against his looming legal issues. The Kansas City Chiefs are the best spot if he wants a primary role with a contender. Whether there’s mutual interest is to be determined. Dallas could be a viable option, too.
For now, Mattison is a strong RB2 candidate, which is subject to change pending the team’s approach to the No. 2 spot with regard to his role on third downs. Whoever secures the top backup role will have handcuff value thanks to Mattison’s injury history.
The future for Cook is less certain until he finds a home, but as long as he has the bulk of the RB1 responsibilities, expect no less than No. 2 value in PPR. We’ll revisit the situation upon his signing with a new team.
Seven of the top running back tandems to handcuff in fantasy football drafts.
It’s common for fantasy football players to “double down” on running backs in whom they’ve made a significant investment by adding the backup late in drafts or auctions. The term for this practice is called “handcuffing” – having two running backs from the same team on your roster.
The key to executing a proper handcuff is in direct relation to the investment made in the first of the two running backs. The player almost certainly needs to be an RB1. There are exceptions to the rule – the first back can be an RB2 in the event there is a belief that two backs will share playing time.
The rationale is pretty simple – if the top guy gets injured, the “handcuff guy” can step in and closely replicate the production.
These are the top seven handcuff players you should consider.
It’s time to catch up on all of the NFC North’s fantasy-based changes.
The 2022 fantasy football draft season is starting to heat up now that we’ve gone through the height of free agency and all of the chosen rookies have been assigned to their professional home cities.
The landscape has changed a great deal for many franchises after a whirlwind offseason, and our divisional preview series will help you stay on top of all of the changes to date.
Fantasy football risers and fallers entering Week 2.
I was involved in a football roundtable discussion leading up to the start of Week 1 and the moderator asked, “What preposterous statement can you make about the 2021 season?”
I offered to go first.
“All four teams from the NFC West will make the playoffs.”
The rest were in unanimous agreement that my idea was preposterous. Last year was the first time such a concept was possible, but these are four teams built to win now. Russell Wilson has never had a losing season. Many project Seattle to finish last in the division. San Francisco has the personnel on both sides of the ball to make a Super Bowl run – their betting odds to make it show that. The Los Angeles Rams like to go all-in for a short-term run and felt all that was missing was a QB and traded for Matt Stafford. Arizona won eight games last year and is viewed by many as the trendy team to make the next big jump to relevance and dominance.
The new playoff format has four division champions and three wild cards in each conference. It can logically be assumed that Tampa Bay and Green Bay will be the prohibitive favorites to win their divisions. Someone has to win the NFC East crown. Beyond two-and-a-half teams, what team would you take right now over any of the four teams in the NFC West to make the playoffs in a head-to-head bet?
In Week 1, none of them played each other and they went 4-0. Three were on the road. Three were against 2020 playoff teams. And they won them all.
Thanks to the expanded schedule, what you do in the division has less of an impact if you have four quality teams than it ever has. Only six of the 17 games are played against division rivals. The other 44 games they collectively play will be against teams from other divisions (4-0 to start that slate), including the NFC North and AFC South.
Injuries may derail one of them, but it can’t derail all of them. Pay attention to the non-division games the NFC West plays this year. The only reason we won’t see more 4-0 weeks is that they’re going to start playing each other. It’s too early to be flying the “Mission Accomplished” banner, but we may be witnessing history that will be hard to replicate.
Here is the Week 2 Fantasy Football Market Report.
Injuries help make careers and the 49ers have made their share in recent years at running back because of injury. Mitchell, a sixth-round rookie, was supposed to be an afterthought on the practice squad. However, an injury to Jeff Wilson and a healthy scratch of third-round rookie Trey Sermon, left Mitchell as the next man up. He responded with 19 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown and made a case that he should be in the mix at a minimum and the lead dog at a maximum considering Raheem Mostert is out an expected eight weeks.
With so many weapons missing from the New Orleans offense, it’s insane that Winston threw just 20 passes in his debut as the front man for the Saints. He completed 14 of them and, of those, five went for touchdowns. While one game doesn’t a fantasy starter make, one thing seems certain: Putting the boots to Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers has earned Winston the designation as the unquestioned starter – something that wasn’t a guarantee heading into Week 1. Winston was on the field for 60 of the Saints 62 offensive plays. He’s the starter – for better or worse and can be had on the waiver wire.
There were a couple other mid- to late-round fantasy receivers I considered here (Deebo Samuel and Ja’Marr Chase), but Davis was a player who, despite being handed the No. 1 receiver job with the Jets, was an extremely modest acquisition for a fantasy owner. In his debut, Zach Wilson spent most of the day running for his life. Most of his completions were of the short slant variety, but Davis caught five passes for 97 yards (a 19.4-yard average) and two touchdowns. The Jets didn’t win, and Wilson didn’t look great, but it was obvious Davis is the clear-cut No. 1 guy for Wilson. They’re only going to get more comfortable with each other as the year goes by.
There are certain guys I seemed to end up with every year. One who comes to mind is Frank Gore of Indy vintage. He would be my third or even fourth running back because everyone else projected him to hit the wall. He didn’t … until about seven years after that chatter started. He was a draft-and-trade guy in late September. I’ve always loved Ingram. He was ready to bust out before Alvin Kamara showed up in the Big Easy, and they meshed nicely – although cutting into each other’s value. In Baltimore, he showed out before he was quietly shown the door. Any running back for Houston is a problem because they’re going to be behind a lot this year. But, in Week 1, he had 26 carries – 11 in the first half and 15 in the second half. Granted, he only had 85 yards (3.3 a carry), but scored a touchdown. When you’re looking for depth, he’s not going to maintain that workload, but it’s nice to know it’s there. At worse, he’s a 1-yard belly flop for a touchdown late. If Ingram played Jacksonville every week, he’d be a starter every week, but there is value here.
I will be the first to admit that I’m not a big fan of Hurts – he strikes me as a poor man’s combo of Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield. However, the Eagles thought enough of him to cut bait on Carson Wentz and stick with cribbage buddies Joe Flacco and Gardner Minshew. A lot of quarterbacks fatten their stats against Atlanta, but Hurts had arguably the best game of his career, all things considered. He completed 27 of 35 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns. He had an incredible target share for the seven players to whom he threw. He had three TD passes to three different guys and no interceptions. And he ran seven times for 62 yards. He hasn’t reached the point that you bench a pedigreed starter to put him in, but he’s getting closer.
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What makes Week 1 so troubling for those who used a first-round pick on Elliott was that the Cowboys were never in deep hole. Yet the Cowboys dropped back to pass 63 times and Elliott had 11 carries. Whether that was a one-game anomaly or not against a dominant run defense, it sure looked like an offense fully prepared to pass 50 times like it did when Dak Prescott was lighting up the NFL in September 2020. The fact Elliott had 11 carries for 33 yards and two receptions for six speaks unseemly toward his consistent role. The one takeaway was that, although the Cowboys had a chance to win Thursday night, they lost. That may have changed the tempo had they given Zeke a chance to do what he does.
The thing the separates great quarterbacks from good ones and good one from bad ones is the regularity with which they have an absolutely garbage game. Donning a man bun and looking almost disinterested, Aaron Rodgers had one of the worst games of his career against New Orleans. Considering it was his first game after his redemptive MVP award, he couldn’t have looked worse. He completed just 15 passes on 28 attempts for 133 yards, no touchdowns — throwing two picks — for a passer rating of 36.8. Nobody who has him is going to bench him, but it least it has to creep into consideration if anything close to this continues.
Often when Minnesota struggles, it is because they don’t get the ball in Cook’s hands often enough. That wasn’t the case in Week 1. He had 26 touches, which, for Cook, should translate into 150 total yards and a couple of touchdowns. He had 20 carries for 61 yards (3.1 per carry) and had six catches for 43 yards (7.2 yards per). The problem isn’t Cook. He still managed 100 total yards and a touchdown. But, his offensive line is hideous – maybe the worst in the league. Things aren’t going to get appreciably better until they have a starting five they can live with – and the left tackle (when he plays) is a rookie. Injuries kill fantasy players and sub-standard starters don’t do much better.
In his debut with the Titans, of the 36 passes targeted to receivers, only six came Julio’s ways. Two that he caught each went for 10 yards. One went for nine. And he got called out by his new coach for a stupid penalty. There is no questioning that Jones is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he is out of his comfort zone for the first time in his career. The early returns are brutal, which could lend to making a low-ball offer of magic beans to a Jones owner because things will get better, but he is known for lapses in production that string together. He will be benched more this week than perhaps any time in his career.
When CEH was drafted by the Chiefs, the dreams of huge things were running through Andy Reid’s head. Edwards-Helaire’s rookie season was supposed to be the making of legend. It wasn’t. In 13 games, he had three outings with 70 or more rushing yards and two games with more than 40 receiving yards. That was with Le’Veon Bell and Darrel Williams cutting into his time. He didn’t lack for opportunity in his second act. He had 14 of the 16 running back carries and had three receptions. They accounted for 72 yards – 43 rushing, 29 receiving. A trend becomes a trend when it continues.
