So can the Chiefs cut child arm-breaker Tyreek Hill now? The irony of seeing Tyreek in a sling on the sidelines should not have been lost on any of us. Though I’m not as all in on DeMarcus Robinson as I was last week on Marquise Brown and Terry McLaughlin. Kelce is still the #1 receiver in KC, and with Mecole Hardman and Sammy Watkins also splitting targets I feel like this is a situation where week to week some WR is going to get big numbers, but it’s near impossible to decide who, and that only gets murkier when Tyreek returns (and if you have an impatient Hill owner in your league who needs help now, see if you can pry Hill from them). Feels like the Rams; must be nice for those two teams, must be nice.
We have $100 crisp FAAB dollars to spend, who to spend it on? Let’s dive in the deep end and doggie paddle our way to the shallow end. It already looks to me like 25% of ESPN and Yahoo! Leagues are abandoned, so cut-offs are 50% owned (except for a couple)
*All ownership as of Monday 9/16
Wide Receivers:
$41 – Terry McLaughlin, WAS (51% Y!, 41% ESPN) He was the lede in this column last week so if you missed out you’re going to pay more now. The best WR in Washington and they know it. A crystal clear #2 until further notice. Add him up! (Same price for Marquise Brown, but he was way more owned so he doesn’t get his own specific mention, standards and all).
$19 – DeMarcus Robinson, KC (6% Y!, 1% ESPN) Big week; Mahomes likes him, so why don’t you? He’s a bye week fill-in for now but if you have the bench room he’s the perfect guy to stash (also if you didn’t spend any money week one).
$17 – Mecole Hardman, KC (40% Y!, 38% ESPN) Another big play guy mentioned in the lede. Same deal as Robinson.
$12 – DK Metcalf, SEA (49% Y!, 66% ESPN ) Looks like a solid replacement for Doug Baldwin, and Russ has targeted him 13 times over the first two weeks, with the potential for more. Yes, please.
$7 – Deebo Samuel, SF (14% Y!, 13% ESPN) Another guy who did well week two, and I like his upside much better than Marquise Goodwin (I hope you’ve noticed a theme about your bench. Better upside than floor guys. You shouldn’t be starting them until bye weeks, so why not take chances on upside, you know what I’m saying?).
$3 -DJ Chark, JAX (13% Y!, 22$ ESPN) and Chris Conley, JAX (4% Y!, 20% ESPN) – Solid week two for both, though too many decent WRs in Jacksonville and that’s before Marquise Lee returns.Â
$2 – Nelson Agholor, PHI (15% Y!, 4% ESPN) Depends on if/how long Jeffrey and DJax are out. He is always who we thought he is now its the version of playing time = fill-in WR3.Â
Running Backs: Injuries are already ruining some teams, but don’t fret, there are guys to go get.Â
$47 – Carlos Hyde, HOU (43% Y!, 45% ESPN) Hyde should be owned already in competitive leagues (and if you read last week I was not shy on him) but if not he needs to be on your team. Houston looks good this year so having leads and salting away the game is what Hyde does best.Â
$16 – Peyton Barber, TB (47% Y!, 64% ESPN)Â Barber had a week two like those who drafted him expected. Jones II did not (though that was swapped week 1). Still, Barber is the RB to own in Tampa. Would rather have him than the next two guys (which is apparent as Barber costs more, duh).
$14 – Raheem Mostert, SF (16% Y!, 11% ESPN): I just can’t get excited about the 49ers. They are a really, really poor man’s Chiefs or Rams. The man is just too poor! I’d pay for him if you have shares of Brieda or Coleman just don’t expect 20+ points consistently.
$11 – Frank Gore, BUF (8% Y!, 16% ESPN) If Singletary’s hammy injury is serious, then go in on Gore. The only reason he did well is because of Singletary’s injury as the Bills were chewing clock, but Singletary’s removal seemed precautionary. I’m passing on Gore because he wouldn’t start for my teams anyway.
$8 – Jaylen Samuels, PIT (35% Y!, 25% ESPN) If you’re in a PPR league Samuels should already be owned. Damper alert! Conner says he’s healthy and should go this weekend. He’s a bye week FLEX fill-in even with Connor starting there so if you have a Mike Davis or similar on your bench, go get Samuels instead.
$4 – Darwin Thompson, KC (18% Y!, 19% ESPN) An upside handcuff for now but I like KC’s WRs much more (if you couldn’t already tell). If you own Shady and/or DWilliams on KC, could go a few bucks more on him.
$2 – Chris Thompson (48% Y!, 52% ESPN) Don’t love him for non-PPR but if you need a fill-in, you could do worse. Can you feel my excitement?
Quarterbacks: Sucks for the Brees the Big Ben owners and now here are some guys to replace them with that won’t cost as much but remember that you are bidding directly against another team (unless you own both and in that case my condolences). Furthermore, these are prices if you need a starter; if it’s a backup then bid $2-3 less.
$8 – Matt Stafford, DET (35% Y!, 26% ESPN) He’s a backup on a lot of my teams but he now must be in the mix. The Lions are still airing it out. His ownership numbers are too low anyway.Â
$6 – Josh Allen, BUF (40% Y!, 30% ESPN) Liked him last week, like him this week too, don’t think that’s going to change next week either.
$5 – Jacoby Brisett, IND (12% Y!, 12% ESPN): He has juicy matchups the next three weeks taking on Atlanta, Oakland and Kansas City. His cost will rise each week, so why not get him now?
$3 – Andy Dalton, CIN (19% Y!, 10% ESPN): The constant tease, I am not a fan, but you do you.
$1 – Jimmy Garopolo (do not like his upcoming schedule), Marcus Mariota
Tight Ends: None for me this week, not even Will Dissly, who is a fine bye week fill in but not consistent week to week and I don’t carry Tight Ends on my bench.
$1 Defenses: Streaming defenses works well, and here are some to put in a waiver claim for a $1 this week:
DAL vs MIA
SEA vs Brees-less NO
TEN @ JAX
BUF vs CIN
SF vs Big Ben-less PIT
Exercise Time! Just for fun I am tracking how $100 could be spent over the season. Last week my bids were accepted on McLaurin ($26), Josh Allen ($3) and Golden Tate ($4). That leaves $67 to spend. This week I’m bidding on Demarcus Robinson, Deebo and TEN D. We’ll see how that goes.
As always, any guys I missed mention in the comments and they’ll get a value, and if I messed up, you can comment on that too, but I won’t like it as much. Good luck on your bids this week Razzballers & Razzballettes!
