Going For 2 fanbase my name is @TheBLeagueSays and in this week’s ‘Gameplan for the Week’, I will give to you some plays to make for seasonal and daily roster construction, prop bets, and dynasty evaluations. Before you make any start and sit decisions this weekend make sure you check out our weekly rankings also.
Thank you, and enjoy!
Slant Route
I’m a survivor. I’m gon’ make it. I will survive. Keep on survivin’:
On a scale from one to ten: when Le’Veon Bell was released, how many people who picked up Myles Gaskin – OFF WAIVER WIRES MIND YOU – were freaking out because they fell ass-backward onto a 6-month rental running back goldmine see it all flash before their eyes into a puff of smoke when the rumor mill of Bell to the Florida outfit started to heat up once he was released by the New York Jets? It’s ok to admit you were scared I would be too. Gaskin is currently cruising as the RB16 (but only the RB23 on a ppg basis) and had outworked veterans Jordan Howard and Matt Breida to near virtual oblivion as both get the bare minimum work, and saying that is pretty generous too.
Now I’d say that every man, woman, and their donkey is on Gaskin ($5400) this week at home against the Jets who have given up the fifth-most ppg to running backs which goes along with the second-most rushing touchdowns and the eighth-most rushing yards. A big performance this week could also help you sell high, as the next month ahead looks tough for the position. If moving him on isn’t on the cards for you, at least knowing that Bell isn’t the ‘Phins latest depth chart should help you sleep well enough through the next 10 weeks at least!
Flat Route
The pasture is clearly not Green-er on the other side:
Because it is clear that A.J. Green unless in a positive matchup is not worth a starting spot on your rosters moving forward. I have been over this many, many times before this offseason during ‘draft season’ that the outlay for Green was just too high considering that he hadn’t played in nearly two seasons. Ironic, that he and T.Y. Hilton were both in the same ADP range in that mid-fifth to the mid-sixth round range and here we are confirming that it was indeed a bad idea because both have really produced next to nothing.
What this means is that if you do believe that the Bengals are a team that is moving in the right direction, trying to add someone from this team is imperative as this team gels while Green fades out. I’d suggest that the window for Tee Higgins is probably closing and one big fantasy week will slam that door shut for some time. Joe Mixon may be a bit harder to acquire also after his massive Week 4 performance but Tyler Boyd is as solid of a possession receiver as you’ll find and is generally attainable without breaking the bank too. There’s still John Ross, Drew Sample, and Auden Tate more often than not on waiver wires unless they have that one big week and someone blows their FAAB. A team on the up and up, with players who are generally more accessible than not? Again, they’re worth an ask.
Comeback Route
It’s like Christmas, except you’re happy to see them:
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Welcome back Deebo Samuel and A.J. Brown, it’s great to see you both looking fit and healthy which was great. And seeing Andy Dalton take the field, albeit in unfortunate circumstances was nice also. But it was the surprising return of Alex Smith – who makes the Comeback Route section two weeks straight, as Kyle Allen hurt his shoulder early in their Week 5 matchup. Allen looks set to get the start in Week 6 against the New York Giants, but again, it was awesome to see Smith not only play just one snap but virtually most of the game was nothing short of inspiring. It’s great for the ‘Football Team’ coaching staff who had a difficult question answered, and yes, Alex Smith can get through a game, and take hits. My stance again remains the same as last week: go and get Alex Smith.
Screen Route
It seemed like a harmless thing to say at the time:
A few weeks ago on the Monday Night War Room, we were asked about ‘pretenders and contenders’ and I said the Buffalo Bills are pretenders. Was their win in Week 2 against Miami by three points that convincing? Did their near collapse and lucky escape thanks to some poor umpiring against the Rams give you that much more confidence? Was their ability to not shake the inconsistent Raiders a surprise or was it the absolutely random hammering on the road at Tennessee? For me, all of that bothers me. But you can only beat who is in front of you and that my friends I can only praise them for it.
Now, this week they do get to face the Kansas City Chiefs and both teams are, oddly enough, coming off losses in Week 5. But zooming out a little the Bills have a somewhat tricky month ahead of themselves. They do meet Kansas, the Patriots, and Seattle at home in Weeks 6, 8, and 9 respectively, but they also travel to face the Jets and Arizona as well. The Bills have the ability to go 5-0 in that span, they really do, and that would have them close the division out pretty much, and if that’s the case, you could unload on the short odds of them winning the AFC East (currently at $1.48) and even as much as winning the AFC Championship (currently at $10.00) and no one would blame you for it. But, if you didn’t like what you just saw against the Titans, and think maybe this upcoming schedule isn’t that great then you could fade them for their division rivals in the New England Patriots and get on them for the AFC East ($2.75) and/or to win the AFC Championship ($16.00) as well.
Out Route
I just… I just don’t care:
Where Le’Veon Bell lands now that he and the New York Jets arranged for the mutual termination of his contract. Bell’s season, and to an extent his time with the Jets as a whole, is one big bunch of ‘meh’. We can talk about Adam Gase ruining careers and how great the plethora of talent he let go has gone on to be. But the difference between Bell and the rest of those guys that Gase has ruined is that Bell was the known quantity before he went to New York after he sat out the 2018 season. We can talk about how talented he is (he is), and how patient he is behind a solid O-Line (he is), and all the rest. But the reality is his best years are behind him, and he’s about to land on a squad that is likely going to throw him into a committee and stifle any upside he has. I’ve seen Miami and Kansas as teams that could be interested in him but even if he landed on either team it does absolutely nothing for me. Once he lands on a roster, sell. You don’t want to be on this Le’Veon Bell rollercoaster for another offseason, do you?
****Le’Veon Bell has signed a one year deal with Kansas. I still don’t care. If you want to get on this bandwagon be my guest – but I’m happy to cash out on this one. I wanted to leave this in. I stand by it regardless of the landing spot****
The 9 Route
Fulgham? More like fulcrum, amirite:
It is awfully hard to argue with this one considering the plethora of receivers that have played for the Eagles in recent seasons and if we are being honest, not many aside from Zach Ertz and Alshon Jeffery (and even his name is debatable) have consistently performed. So saying something like ‘even though he has only played two games, Travis Fulgham is probably the Eagles’ best-receiving option right now’ seems borderline asinine in theory. But against Pittsburgh last week? Woah, boy!
There is a huge chance that Jeffery returns soon, and Jalen Reagor will take his place on the throne also. And I’m also expecting a quieter game this week from Fulgham as they get the Ravens at home. But as we know all too well, the best ability is the availability and right now, he and Carson Wentz are connecting which at this stage of the season where the Eagles have only the one win for the year but are still in playoff contention? I’m ok with rolling him out in seasonal and DFS ($4400) until we see otherwise.
Hail Mary
Even I’m not sure about this one:
But I’m going down the list of teams who have areas of opportunities for someone to come out from the bottom of the depth chart and provide something different. Jeff Smith from the Jets is a name from last week, Travis Fulgham broke everyone’s FAAB this week from out of nowhere too, even James Robinson to an extent was a name that wasn’t really recognized until Leonard Fournette was let go by Jacksonville. This brings me to the 0-5 New York Giants. Now the Giants, they’re not very good, this much is very true. But the Giants have the 10th most passing attempts in the league right now and that’s with Evan Engram out of form, no Sterling Shepard, and no Saquon Barkley. That’s an awful lot of work available and dished out for a team that’s done an awful lot of nothing.
So this week, staring down the bottom of the barrel, I see that the Giants have promoted Austin Mack off their practice squad after they released Damion Ratley, who was playing about 40% of snaps as it were before his demise. Austin Mack is a UDFA out of Ohio State and was one of the plethora of receivers the Giants claimed after the draft. Washington has given up the third least amount of fantasy points to wide receivers (and that could be for a variety of reasons), but the Giants schedule lightens up over the next month or so. Again, it’s just a name to keep an eye out for in a team that needs to try something different.
I want to thank you for checking this article out! As always you can follow me at @TheBLeagueSays and feel free to check out my @BackRowGiants podcast out (https://linktr.ee/TheBLeagueSays) – subscribe, rate, review, share, and listen.
Let’s all get better together!
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