Like a Back out of Snell

Has anyone else been up since Thursday night? This football stuff is a hell of a drug. My hundredth sleepless hour was marked by a somber event on Monday morning when we conducted a Viking funeral on a nearby pond for my Kerryon Johnson Fathead. The Jonathan Taylor Fathead was disturbingly excited to launch the flaming arrow into Kerryon's boat. When the police showed up to our fiery procession, I explained what was going on and they laughed at me for drafting Kerryon Johnson, again.

Monday night couldn't come soon enough.

Unfortunately the Steelers/Giants game had me wishing I was back at Kerryon's Viking funeral for most of the first half. The big story from that first game was Benny Snell who easily looked like the best running back in the Steelers backfield, rumbling for 113 yards on 19 carries. With James Conner appearing slow and also "being evaluated" for a mystery injury, Snell jumps to priority numero uno on my waiver claims list this week ahead of Nyheim Hines and Joshua Kelley; the Steelers' second year man has legit RB1 upside. Here's what I said about Snell when I ranked him #59 in my top 60 running back rankings, "It’s a crowded young backfield behind James Conner, but Uncle Benny is my favorite Steelers RB target this year. He looked great in his rookie season before getting banged up. Conner’s now been injured each of the last two seasons. Two plus two equals Benny. Someone please check my math there . . ." The interns did check my math and I guess it checks out. So open up your pocket books and Snell the coffee. Anyway, here's what else I saw yesterday for fantasy football:

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Hines Provides the Special Sauce

September 14, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Football | 48 Comments

by: Son

I'm not a condiment guy when it comes to food. Mustard and relish on my dog? Disgusting. Mayonnaise on my burger? Naw. Let me just savor the meat with egg, mushrooms, grilled onions, lettuce, and tomatoes. I know. I'm a freaking weirdo. Tell me something my wife doesn't say to me every day. I'm good with dipping my fries in ketchup and fish and chips in clam chowder, though, and hot sauce on my mexican delicacies. Is that cool? Anyways, when it comes to fantasy football, give me all the sauce, especially the hot stuff. I want flips crossing the goal line, hips gyrating in the end zone, and leaps into the stands. I want catches, yards, and first downs. Nyheim Hines provided plenty of sauce on Sunday, scoring two touchdowns on the day. Was this a one squirt occurrence or can we expect a steady flow all season?

Hines is 23 years old, 5' 9", and 196 pounds. He played his college ball at NC State and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, he rushed 85 times for 314 yards with 2 touchdowns while catching 63 passes for 425 yards and 2 touchdowns on 63 targets. Last season, the numbers dropped to 52 rushes for 199 yards and 2 touchdowns with 44 receptions for 320 yards on 58 targets, as Jacoby Brissett was thrust into the starting quarterback role due to the retirement of Andrew Luck.

Entering this season, Hines was slated for third down and two-minute drive duties. With Phillip Rivers signed to be the new quarterback, that role was going to be a prosperous one. Below are the number of targets that Rivers has given to the running back position over his career.

Josh Jacobs Jinglehammers the Panthers

September 14, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Football, Fantasy Football Daily Notes | 67 Comments

by: Donkey Teeth

Saturday was a momentus day for NFL contract extensions. It was like a scene from The Oprah Winfrey Show. You get a new contract! You get a new contract! And you, Mr. Fournette, get a signed copy of Oprah's new book Journey to Beloved! Free money giveaway for everyone but Leonard! It all really started last summer when Jerry Jones bent over and gave Zeke his 30 year, 10 billion dollar contract, completely resetting the fair market value for NFL running backs.

Christian McCaffrey was quick to cash in back in April, followed recently by Joe Mixon, Dalvin Cook and now Alvin Kamara. Rams' wide receiver Cooper Kupp dipped his paw into the honey pot too, signing a three-year 48 million dollar extension on Saturday. Heck, I even decided to hold out over the weekend and Razzball agreed to meet all of my contract demands by giving me one Chipotle burrito—WITH guac. Now we have another running back who's sure to want a new contract: Josh Jacobs took 25 carries for 93 yards, 4 catches for 46 yards and 3 touchdowns in the newly minted Vegas Raiders' opener. By my math, that's worth at least 800 billion dollars. The legendary Rudy Gamble Pigskinonator (only $17.99 for the entire season) projected Jacobs as the #4 fantasy running back this week, smart bot. Sign up for a 7 day free trial now! Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy football:

Week 1 Fantasy Football Primer: The Journey Begins

September 13, 2020 | Fantasy Football Gameday | 86 Comments

by: MB

It was a defining Saturday for the running back position heading into the first Sunday of the NFL season. There was huge news for three top 10 running backs. Two of those have a big reason to celebrate and another will be staying home on Sunday. Welcome to fantasy football in the year of our Lord Twenty-Twenty. There is never a dull moment.

Kenny Goes On Golladay

September 12, 2020 | Fantasy Football Injury Report | 39 Comments

by: Donkey Teeth

Did you see what's going on out in San Francisco? I'm sure you've seen, it's a pretty big story; that crazy pandemic sex party involving 8 emus, 2 wild boars, a bunch of "little people" and a fountain of semen. True story. Oh, and the whole surrounding bay area is on fire causing extremely poor air quality which has put the Cardinals and 49ers game in jeopardy of being postponed. Besides the tragedy of people's homes burning down, I also own Kyler Murray on 49 of my 50 fantasy teams. So I'm not crazy about this developing story. I mean the fires story, the sex party stuff was actually kind of intriguing. So stay safe if you're out west and keep tabs on the status of the Cardinals/49ers game if you own any of their players. And if you end up needing help finding last minute replacements, my week one fantasy football rankings will continue to be updated all the way up until Sunday kickoff. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy football:

Clyde Edwards Makes Houston D Look Helairious

September 11, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Football, Fantasy Football Daily Notes | 33 Comments

by: Donkey Teeth

I went to the doctor yesterday to request a procedure. No, not an enlargement, those are apparently on hold until post-pandemic. I was there to see if my doc would inject the Thursday night Texans vs. Chiefs game directly into my veins; I wasn't sure if ocular consumption would be enough to tide my cravings until Sunday afternoon. You wouldn't believe how rude the women at the front desk was to me. Here's a direct quote, "Sir, this is a Wendy's! Please stop talking to the Dr. Pepper dispenser and put your clothes back on!" Hey, lady, how bout a little compassion for an addict?!

Speaking of compassion, Clyde Edwards-Helaire had none of it for the Texans in the season opener. The hyped up rookie gashed the Houston defense by taking 25 carries for 138 yards and a touchdown. Granted there were times when it seemed the Texans had only 3-men in the box and Clyde didn't impress at the goal line, but even Edwards-Helaire haters have to admit he looked great otherwise. And the Mahomes led offense will yield plenty of light boxes throughout the season. I ranked CEH #11 overall in my 2020 fantasy football rankings, and looking to the rest of the season, I'd bump him up to #5 or 6 after this impressive week one workload. Anyway, here's what else I saw yesterday in fantasy football:

Week 1 Start/Sit: I Hope You Brought A Jimmy

September 10, 2020 | Start/Sit | 47 Comments

by: MB

Here comes your week 1 disclaimer! Individual roster talent has everything to do with how you use the information in this post. Different folks have different strengths and weaknesses on their roster. If I say that I don't like JuJu Smith-Schuster this week and you are in a 14 team league and your next best option is Sammy Watkins, that doesn't mean that you should take "sit JuJu" as gospel. It just means that I like other players in a certain player's tier more. I'll specify if I think a player is going to put up a donut. Let's sort through the rosters and find the plays for week 1.

The Shadow Coverage Report – Week 1

September 10, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Football, Shadow Coverage Report | 4 Comments

by: Bobby LaMarco

The Shadow Coverage Report – Week 1

Team: Minnesota Vikings

Opponent: Green Bay Packers

WR1: Adam Thielen

Shadow Coverage Match-up: Jaire Alexander

Historical Production vs. Shadow Coverage

Adam Thielen vs. Shadow Coverage
Opponent	Games	Rec	Yards	TDs	PPG
All Other Opponents	23	5.5	69	0.5	12.8
Vs. Shadow Coverage	5	5.8	76.8	0.6	14.2
Vs. Jaire Alexander	1	8	125	1	22.5

Season long Recommendation – Start

After a lost 2019 Adam Thielen looks to bounce back quick vs. division rival Green Bay and tier 2 shadow corner Jaire Alexander. Last season the Packers used Jaire Alexander to shadow Stefon Diggs, but with Diggs now gone Thielen will most likely draw coverage from the Packers top corner. The last time Thielen squared off directly vs. Alexander was in Week 12 of 2018. Thielen got the best of Alexander torching the Packers for 8-125-1. A big key for Thielen is he plays a lot of his snaps in the slot, and even vs. notable shadow corners like Marshon Lattimore he has shown he can win in these match-ups. This is why I got a Thielen that sitting him is a bad idea. Did you see what I did there...no...ok moving on.

Sexy Flexies, Week 1: “I’m Sony Ms. Jackson”

September 10, 2020 | Fantasy Football Strategy | 9 Comments

by: JB Barry

Well my friends, we are finally here! We have made it through months of gushing over rookie running backs, watching Russell Wilson post videos on social media as “Mr. Unlimited” and analyzing based off shirtless workout pics of DK Metcalf, Austin Ekeler and Kahale Warring. Finally, week 1 of the 2020 NFL season is upon us! Every Thursday, I will be posting the week's “Sexy Flexies” to give you a couple of players to consider starting in your flex spot. The objective isn’t to point out the obvious guys you’re starting in your RB or WR slots, but to take a look at a couple of players who are a bit more under the radar. These will likely be guys that you won’t start every week but will be good rotational pieces in the flex spot of your lineup based on match-up and opportunity.

Fantasy Football Podcast: Tight Ends, Not For OBJ

September 10, 2020 | Razzball Podcast | 2 Comments

by: B_Don

Week 1 is finally here! Are you ready for some football? Thursday night party! And by party I mean small gatherings of less than 6 people.

B_Don and Donkey Teeth have to talk about the recent Odell Beckham story to lead off the show. Then, we get into the tight end overview. Both of us have Kelce over Kittle and then we talk about DT's infatuations, Darren Waller and Rob Gronkowski. We give our case for why we are lower on Tyler Higbee than the industry coming off his strong 2019 finish. B_Don then tries to talk DT off Jonnu Smith's bum a**.

After the TE discussion, we take a look at some seasonal awards where we both give you our MVPs, draft values, SB predictions, sleepers, busts, breakouts, and ROY. We wrap up the show with a couple of fan questions from @AGrieke and @BensGotTweets as they prepare for week 1.

Teasers and Pleasers: Week 1 Best Bets

September 10, 2020 | NFL Gambling |

by: Aaron Pags

Welcome to Razzball's dedicated gambling column-Teasers and Pleasers! Each Thursday during the NFL season, at 11:00 am EST, TnP will post our top bets for the upcoming week. Please sit back and win some money with us in 2020.

Anticipation is an unstoppable force in humans. Our brains work 24 hours per day; one portion of our brain, the cerebellum, controls our automatic processes. For example, breathing (thankfully!) and the feeling of anticipation is housed there. In other words, we are always anticipating something! We naturally desire more dopamine, the neurotransmitter that helps prevent pain. Dopamine stimulation happens when we expect good things.

Enter the start of the 2020 National Football League season! America's dopamine receptors are on overload heading into the first NFL games of the season. Rudy Gamble's Razzball Membership Tools will fill all of your brain's receptors and more. Be sure to check out the FREE 7-day trial of all the tools.

No more anticipation. Let's get right to it! Week 1 picks for your betting pleasure.

Donkey Teeth’s Week 1 Football Rankings

September 9, 2020 | Fantasy Football Rankings, Weekly Rankings | 45 Comments

by: Donkey Teeth

I just snuck out of a court ordered gambling rehab facility to write this post, so I'll have to be brief. After I was arrested for stealing old ladies' purses from the retirement home down the block to fund my string of Arizona Cardinals' Super Bowl wagers (a 50:1 lock!), the judge sentenced me to 6 month's of in-patient rehab. Since I'll be releasing my weekly fantasy football rankings each Thursday morning for the duration of the season, I've decided to throw in some bonus bold Thursday Night Football predictions along with my expertly handicapped pick for the contest: