Week 3 Studs & Duds + Injury Reactions, Trade Talk | Fantasy Football 2026 - Ep. 1981

0:00Welcome to the Fantasy Footballers Podcast with your hosts Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright.

0:22Welcome in.

0:30Monday, September 28th, the Fantasy Footballers Podcast, Mike Wright, Jason Moore, Andy Holloway.

0:43I hate injuries.

0:45There are so many injuries.

0:49There are many.

0:50And I even hate them.

0:52I hate them extra.

0:53I extra hate them when they happen at the top of a game and not the bottom.

0:57You know what I mean?

0:58If you're going to get injured, at least respectfully, even if it happens early, score a touchdown first.

1:05Score a touchdown, then pull your hammy.

1:07You know, that's just the respectful way to do it.

1:09I mean, A-chan, beginning of the game.

1:11Terrence Ferguson, beginning of the game.

1:14Dude, he was going to be so good.

1:15Right after I tweeted.

1:16Oh, you and me both.

1:18Yeah, I saw you post it.

1:19I literally have him everywhere except our Dynasty Leagues.

1:22But Jason, why didn't you recommend Tyler Higby?

1:25Oh.

1:26We have news happening.

1:27Hit the button.

1:28Hit the button.

1:30Breaking news.

1:32The Giants are trading for a quarterback.

1:34Okay.

1:36Well, this is...

1:36Is this a big boy quarterback?

1:38From Minnesota.

1:39J.J. McCarthy?

1:39Oh, McCarthy.

1:40J.J. McCarthy.

1:42Did you see...

1:43What?

1:44They just paid Jameis.

1:46Well, yeah, but then they watched him.

1:49Fair.

1:49What?

1:50Did you see...

1:51So, did you see this thing yesterday?

1:53Joe...

1:54Is it Schmo?

1:55Yes, yes, yes.

1:56Schmo.

1:56We call him your Schmo?

1:57They're GM.

1:57So, did you see this thing where...

1:59Yes.

1:59Holy crap.

1:59He tweeted...

2:00Did you see this, Mike?

2:01No, I didn't.

2:02He tweeted what looked to be a private list.

2:06Joe Schoen?

2:07How do you pronounce his last name?

2:07I don't know how to say his name.

2:09I feel like that's something we should know.

2:11Joe Schmo, for sure.

2:13So, he tweeted a private list.

2:15I assumed it was fake.

2:16When I saw that post, I was like...

2:17Here's what it said.

2:18It said James Winston-Current.

2:20J.J. McCarthy?

2:22Need.

2:23Then it was a bunch of other names.

2:24Richardson, Flacco, Rush, Scadaboo.

2:26Why is Scadaboo not?

2:27I know.

2:27That was why I thought it was fake.

2:29And then Drew Brees said no.

2:31Russell Wilson, last resort.

2:32You sure this isn't fake?

2:35I think that was fake.

2:36Regardless.

2:37But the guy that they said need on the fake list is the guy they traded for.

2:40The 2027 fifth rounder is all it took.

2:42Yeah.

2:43It's just...

2:43Yeah.

2:44That is...

2:45Wow.

2:46It's bad news for Dart.

2:48That's where my brain immediately goes...

2:50Why is it bad news for Dart?

2:51Well, you just traded for a...

2:52It's a question.

2:53It's not a question.

2:54No, no, no, no, no.

2:55No, Dart is bad.

2:56I'm saying how bad is his knee?

2:59Well, he's out for the year, Mike.

3:01Yes.

3:01No, I know that.

3:02They want a chance to win this year.

3:04They're two and one, right?

3:05It's surprising.

3:07This just makes sense.

3:08Winston's not the solution.

3:09I agree with that.

3:09But to go to a developmental quarterback...

3:12Exactly.

3:12If you're saying, we're trying to win right now, we're going to go get a guy who got...

3:16For nothing.

3:17They traded a fifth round pick for a chance to win this year.

3:20This is just...

3:21This is like, hey, we want some upside.

3:23We don't want to go out there and get a garbage backup nothing burger quarterback to come in

3:28and be the same as Winston.

3:30We want some chance at going to the playoff.

3:32I'm surprised they didn't.

3:33On that list.

3:34It's hardball.

3:35I mean, this is a guy that played with his brother.

3:37So this is a bit of a...

3:39This one makes perfect sense to me.

3:41Yeah, it does.

3:42I don't think it's a dumb thing to do.

3:45It's blowing my mind.

3:45It is surprising.

3:47Yes.

3:47The fact that you have a young future, you know, you just drafted him.

3:52He is the future of the franchise in Jackson Dart.

3:55Trading for a young prospect who was also supposed to be the future of a franchise, a recent,

4:01you know, first round draft pick, is just surprising.

4:04I think it's smart.

4:05I think it's smart to go get someone that gives you a chance.

4:08And it will probably fail.

4:10We've seen McCarthy fail enough to know, like, eh, it's probably not going to be good enough.

4:14Jameis has looked terrible.

4:16He'll be better than Jameis.

4:17And he'll execute an offense.

4:18I feel like I would have rather gone and got Anthony Richardson and just tried to, like,

4:21create a running game.

4:22Yeah, not me.

4:23No, this is the best player you could have acquired in terms of...

4:27This is a third stringer now on Minnesota.

4:30Yes.

4:30You know what I mean?

4:30Like, this was not...

4:31This is a guy that's left for dead, which made him available.

4:36And now...

4:37And you're 2-1.

4:38We're actually not talking about the biggest impact of this, how good the Vikings are going

4:43to be.

4:43Their locker room is now freed of nine.

4:48And so, I think this is a real good morale boost for the Vikings.

4:53All right.

4:53And from what...

4:54Because their quarterback looked awesome on Sunday.

4:56Oh, gosh.

4:57Terrible.

4:57Terrible Kyler Murray.

4:58That's on the prior Sunday he did.

5:01For Carson?

5:01Yes.

5:02Wait, it's funny, because when the game started, it's like, why do they refuse to just use

5:06Wentz who's good?

5:07Yeah.

5:08I mean, it is a wild trade.

5:09No question about it.

5:10I don't connect it to Jackson Tharton anyway.

5:12But I will say that, like, that list was apparently very fake.

5:16Yeah.

5:17It was apparently very accurate.

5:19The fake list from Joe Schoen.

5:20Sometimes you tell a joke and it becomes the truth.

5:22And the joke ends up being right.

5:24And, I mean, look, here's what you didn't want to come in on Monday and talk about.

5:30That Malik Nabors has no future this year for your fantasy team.

5:33Oh, true.

5:34That you don't have Isaiah Likely, who seemed like a great draft pick, having any relevance.

5:38Isaiah Likely, who is number nine?

5:42Yeah.

5:42Yeah.

5:42Oh, yeah.

5:43Which means J.J. McCarthy.

5:44Get rid of that name.

5:44It's super good.

5:45He needs to get rid of his alter identity of nine.

5:48I hope it's not like 37.

5:50Oh, he has to pick the just most disgusting number.

5:54The most aesthetically unpleasing number you can find J.J. McCarthy.

5:57I will say that I don't think J.J. McCarthy will start this week.

6:00I know.

6:01Oh, no, no.

6:01I think there'll be some time to acclimate.

6:03But I guarantee you this was a little bit of the hardball.

6:05Hey, this guy can run.

6:05Oh, Brooksie, a double zero?

6:07This guy can run.

6:07Double zero.

6:08That's what we're talking about.

6:09I don't think it's allowed, but that would be awesome.

6:11He'll probably go 19.

6:12A friend who wore double zeros for a basketball team.

6:14Everyone called him boobs.

6:16Makes sense.

6:17He didn't like that at all.

6:18No.

6:19He did not like that nickname.

6:20Oh, players are not allowed.

6:22All right.

6:22There you go.

6:23Some breaking news to start the show.

6:24And I was complaining about injuries.

6:26Wow, man.

6:27You know who likes?

6:28That's wild.

6:29Is that a slight resurrection in Dynasty for J.J. McCarthy or not really?

6:33Well, for sure.

6:34Better than this year.

6:35Yeah.

6:36As of now, he has a chance to start NFL games versus he didn't.

6:41So, yeah.

6:42Of course, that's an uptick for...

6:44I did not assume that he was going to be traded for or traded away for that matter.

6:48But I think it makes sense for both parties.

6:50Hopefully, he can figure it out.

6:52I know Mike and I believed he was better than he showed in the NFL.

6:56Obviously, this was a guy who didn't start enough college games.

6:59You see Tyler Shuck after 20 years in college coming to the NFL.

7:04And it's like...

7:04Which happy birthday?

7:06Oh, yeah.

7:06To Tyler Shuck.

7:07Oh, is he 42 now?

7:09Yes, he is.

7:11Wasn't he...

7:12Didn't McCarthy pay a ton?

7:13I mean, I see 28 starts in college.

7:15Is that a ton?

7:16Yeah.

7:1728 starts is almost a year of them.

7:19Yeah.

7:1928.

7:20Still needed more.

7:21Look, I think that McCarthy...

7:24Once they made the decision, it was over in Minnesota.

7:28It was not going to happen.

7:29Yes.

7:29Once Carson Wentz is the second guy, this was a...

7:31I mean, a fifth-round pick.

7:32You might as well just...

7:34No sunk cost fallacy here.

7:36Let's get rid of this guy.

7:37That way, Kyler Murray can just run away with the job.

7:42The 3-0 Vikings, that is.

7:44I think that the...

7:45The team is so good.

7:46I think the playoff Vikings are going to be a force to be reckoned with with Carson Wentz.

7:53I think when the playoffs come around and Carson Wentz is leading this team...

7:57Carson Wentz is not that good either.

7:59No.

7:59He sucks.

7:59That defense is so good.

8:01You just need somebody to not turn the ball over, and both those guys turn the ball over.

8:05That's the wild thing.

8:06Wow.

8:07Look, we got so much to talk about.

8:09That's a hot start.

8:10We've got all the Monday pun day.

8:12We got to get into your reactions.

8:14And my goodness, it was hard to find somebody say something nice about somebody this week.

8:19I mean, it was difficult.

8:21The tight ends had a week.

8:23Yes.

8:23They did.

8:24The tight ends had a week.

8:25You see, it was the most touchdowns for the tight end position ever.

8:29I did not know that, but that adds up with the submissions you guys sent in here.

8:34Kyle, help me try to confirm that, but I saw a tweet about it.

8:36I'm not surprised.

8:37I mean, you had tons of guys.

8:38Like, in the Seattle game, I don't even know who that dude was.

8:40Saubert or whatever?

8:42We call him Sorbet.

8:44Sorbet went into the end zone.

8:45And the touchdowns for Shuck.

8:49Those were tight end touchdowns.

8:51Yeah, and they were mighty fine.

8:52I saw some poor souls that dropped Jawan Johnson in order to pick up Terrence Ferguson for the

8:58long-term value.

8:59I would have done that.

9:00Jason went through the whole emotional reaction.

9:01He goes, whoa.

9:03Yeah, I mean, I would have done that.

9:04I love Jawan Johnson.

9:05I can't imagine dropping him.

9:06I absolutely would have dropped him for Terrence Ferguson.

9:08Same.

9:09Which would have worked out based on Tyler Higbee.

9:12Raiders Saints had six touchdowns by tight ends because Mayer scored in that game.

9:15Bowers scored in that game.

9:17That's the most tight end touchdowns in a single game in NFL history.

9:19It's a tweet from Josh Dubow from the AP, it looks like.

9:23There were 20 touchdown catches by tight ends today, most of the day in NFL history.

9:29That's most of our positive on the Monday Punday.

9:31Here were your submissions and reactions to the weekend in the most sophisticated way possible.

9:37Starting with, of course, a tight end.

9:40Brock Powers.

9:42You had Mighty Diggins.

9:45Juin Johnson.

9:47My favorite new addition, the Grand Kenyon.

9:52He was great.

9:54Or Winyan Sadiq.

9:56Yeah, you had Tyler Higbee.

9:58Oh, classic.

9:59Yeah.

9:59A refined classic.

10:01Harold Manning Jr.

10:03Do we like Glock Purdy or Brock Tutty?

10:06They're both good and he is great.

10:09No weapons left.

10:10Jamiracle Gibbs.

10:12Anyone?

10:13What about driving in your Kittle Red Corvette?

10:16Kittle Red Corvette.

10:18Oh, no.

10:19It's Drake.

10:20May I drop you?

10:23Omari Yawn Hampton.

10:26Starvin Harrison.

10:27I also thought Omari and Hamper was very funny.

10:30I like that one a lot.

10:31Did you say Starvin Harrison?

10:32What about Michael Sitman Jr.?

10:34Yeah.

10:35Aaron Rodgers hates him.

10:37Or Oronde Batson.

10:39Oh, David Mont.

10:41Bummer.

10:42Re.

10:43Bummer.

10:43Yes, thank you.

10:44Finished it.

10:45Bad McConkie.

10:46Oh.

10:46Ted Arutro.

10:47Yes.

10:48McMillan.

10:48Oh, that one's good.

10:49Tyler Crapped.

10:51How about Emeka Egg Boo-ka?

10:56Or, if Gronk was saying it, Emeka Egg Big Poo.

11:01And we'll finish it out here with another rookie, Jadarian Yikes, or Jadarian Overpriced.

11:08Oh, boy.

11:09Uh-oh.

11:09There was a lot of Jadarian puns submitted.

11:14Yeah.

11:15About his fumbling?

11:16Fumbling?

11:17No, none about the fumbling.

11:18No.

11:19Just about like-

11:20Yeah.

11:21Playtime?

11:22I mean, that team.

11:23You know, I'm going to lose it, by the way, in the great League of Records super team.

11:27I'm going to lose.

11:28And a lot of it comes down to the Seattle DSTPP.

11:36Whatever you want to call it.

11:37It was-

11:38Trying to find it.

11:38Seattle was atrocious.

11:40Atrocious.

11:42Drew Locke looked a lot better than Sam Darnold did.

11:46Made some mistakes in the defense.

11:48Getting cooked.

11:49This was the lowest implied point total for a team.

11:51Washington going into the week.

11:52And they scored, what, 30-something points?

11:54I put that one more on the defense.

11:56Yeah.

11:56I mean, it was shocking.

11:57Like, what was the final score?

11:59Seattle had plenty of points.

12:02Yeah.

12:02Yeah, they did.

12:03What did-

12:03Wasn't Washington in the 30s?

12:06Oh, yes.

12:07They lost.

12:08But I'm saying-

12:08Seattle was in the 30s.

12:09Oh, come on.

12:10Where's the score?

12:1133-31.

12:12Yeah.

12:12If you put up 31, I'm not blaming the offense.

12:16No.

12:17And you know who-

12:18So, Seattle, defending champs, loses to Washington on the road, right?

12:21It's amazing.

12:21To a backup.

12:23So, what do you think?

12:24So, they're on the road.

12:25Now, they're coming home, right?

12:26You think they're going to have a chip on their shoulder?

12:28Probably.

12:28After losing on the road and getting up 30 points as the defense and the 12th man, guess

12:32who they play next week?

12:34At home.

12:35Please tell me.

12:36The Chargers.

12:37Oh!

12:38Oh, no.

12:38The Chargers get to go into Seattle after a loss.

12:42After a loss.

12:43Oh, no.

12:44Thank you for your submissions on Instagram, at Fantasy Footballers, on X, at the FF Ballers.

12:48We'll talk more news.

12:52News and notes from around the league.

12:55I apologize.

12:58I think I have a little too much adrenaline running through my system due to escaping the

13:03toilet trophy by five seconds before the show begins.

13:05Oh, it was very-

13:06We were literally doing a countdown from five because we were ready to start and you were

13:11still in the bathroom.

13:12And then you blockaded the door.

13:14Well, not we.

13:15Yeah, the Falcon did.

13:16Which was a pro move.

13:17Good job.

13:18But, yes, you overcame the garbage can blockade.

13:21Five seconds.

13:21You got here with about three seconds to spare.

13:24All right.

13:24Case Keenum expected to start tonight for the Bears.

13:26Tyson Bajent did clear the protocol but didn't practice much.

13:30So, they're going to go with the guy that practiced more.

13:32Case Keenum against Seattle.

13:35All right.

13:36We'll see if Ben Johnson can-

13:37Against Philadelphia.

13:39What did I say?

13:39Seattle.

13:39Oh, I'm sorry.

13:40You got Seahawks on the mind.

13:41I got, yeah, the Birds.

13:44Pukunakua.

13:45Also, on that injury, we got news that Caleb Williams is a grade two hamstring.

13:50It was originally reported that it was a grade one.

13:53So, give him a little bit more respect for his pain.

13:57But, that's usually like a four to six week injury if you're a skilled position player.

14:02They're saying they expect him to miss three or four weeks because, obviously, he's a pocket passer.

14:07But, that does mean I doubt he is scrambling as much when he first comes back.

14:13All right.

14:14Let's talk about the Pukunakua situation.

14:16He did not play again.

14:17They said he could return in week four, but he's dealing with an injury that's impacting his explosiveness.

14:24And, the, I mean, the Shefty, Schmefty tweet, the organization does not believe surgery in this situation will be needed.

14:32But, it's not off the table if Nakua does not show signs of improvement.

14:36Weeks ago, Andy was saying he was afraid of sports hernia.

14:39Then, after that, McVay comes out and says, he definitively said it is not a hernia.

14:46Then, after that, it is, it's being reported as a hip injury and a groin injury.

14:52And, it goes back and forth.

14:53It's his hip, it's his groin, it's his hip, it's his groin.

14:55Which sounds, I don't know.

14:56What's in between there?

14:57Exactly like a sports hernia.

14:59It looks like a core muscle injury that if he doesn't get his explosiveness back.

15:03Here's the problem with those injuries.

15:05And, this is red alert.

15:06And, maybe he's back next week.

15:08But, is he the same Puka next week?

15:11You know what I mean?

15:12Is he as explosive?

15:12Also, the longer you wait to rehab this, obviously the longer it will take to recover from a surgery if you need one.

15:21A sports core injury surgery is going to take some time to recover from and you're losing weeks.

15:28That's my biggest concern about the season.

15:30So, you know, it was a loss last night.

15:35It was a crazy game.

15:37It seemed like there was no chance for Denver to score.

15:39Then, they managed to figure out how to do it.

15:44And, they lose another game.

15:46I mean, they're 1-2.

15:47I can't believe they won.

15:48I know.

15:49Watching that game, it felt like the Rams were in complete control.

15:53Yeah.

15:53Even until the very end.

15:55When they were not.

15:56When they were losing, you're like, hey, no, the Rams, they're fine.

15:59They got this.

16:00Right?

16:00100%.

16:00I mean, it really seemed like they were in control of that game.

16:05Some of that is, you know, when you're on the road, it makes a difference.

16:09That kind of the vibe of the stadium behind you at the end of the game.

16:14It's so funny.

16:15I was watching that game and I was like, the Denver Broncos don't have a great offense.

16:21But, what they do have, genuinely, is they believe that they are a great team.

16:27They believe that they're going to win every game.

16:29You know what I mean?

16:30If they're in a game at the end, they have that winner's mentality that carries over to games.

16:38Even though you watch for a lot of this game, it was like, man, their offense just didn't look good.

16:43And, they figure it out in the end.

16:46So, the biggest news, Devon A. Chan out for the year with a torn ACL.

16:50It's a big one.

16:52Now, I actually think there's going to be some nuance and thought here as we get into waivers tomorrow.

16:57Because the initial knee-jerk reaction that I had because, you know,

17:03Ollie Gordon took over and played the rest of the game.

17:05Looked good.

17:06I think Ollie Gordon's a good player.

17:08I've thought that for a while.

17:09Ever since he's, I mean, every snap he's gotten, I feel like he has something better than the Jalen Wright.

17:14But, Jalen Wright wasn't, Jalen Wright's ahead of him in the depth chart, technically,

17:18and did not play in this game.

17:19He was out with a foot injury.

17:20So, I'm not saying you don't dump a lot on Ollie Gordon versus Jalen Wright.

17:25I'm just saying there's a chance and probably a likelihood that there's a committee situation in some proportion here.

17:31Yeah.

17:32They like Jalen Wright.

17:33And, you know, if you just think this guy's going to take over with the kind of market, you know, target market share, running back share in this offense, I'm, you know, as A-Chan, I don't think that's happening.

17:44No, of course not.

17:46A-Chan, over his two healthy games, was getting 81% of the snaps.

17:50That's an outrageous number for running backs.

17:52They don't play 81% of snaps.

17:54During that time, he was averaging less than 10 fantasy points per game.

17:59So, now you split that up on a bad offense between Ollie Gordon and Jalen Wright.

18:03Is it going to be the number one pickup?

18:07Yep.

18:07Maybe if you're a running back needy team, is it going to be a rest of season great fantasy asset?

18:13No.

18:14Yeah, that one's a tough one.

18:15I think there were some teams this week that kind of put up a little bit of a fight.

18:20Miami was one of them.

18:21I mean, they looked okay in stretches of this game, kept the game close.

18:24But huge bummer.

18:26We lose another player for the entire season.

18:29Baker Mayfield dislocated his thumb and was screaming on the field.

18:33Yeah.

18:34Also just on such a dumb play.

18:37Yeah, they didn't need to try to pick up a third and 19 with three timeouts and a chance

18:43to just let their defense go out and get them the ball back.

18:47They're expecting the last report two to four weeks with the thumb MRI today.

18:54More injuries.

18:56I mean, the quarterback injuries have been wild this year.

18:59Yeah.

18:59And they have such ramifications for everybody in those offenses, right, with Jaden and Dart

19:03and these guys going down, you know, whether it's Bucky Irving or Abuka's chance to surge

19:09back to relevance or whatever the case may be, just sucks.

19:13Agreed.

19:14Brees Hall left in the second half with a thigh injury, did not return.

19:18No, the quote was also not great.

19:20He said, quote,

19:20I felt something when I was running and then I got tackled and planted and then felt something

19:25else.

19:25So we'll see.

19:27Felt two things.

19:28Hmm.

19:29Hmm.

19:29Not great.

19:30Hmm.

19:31I didn't realize it was that bad.

19:33Who's got him in dynasty?

19:34Brees Hall?

19:35Yeah.

19:36I bet it's you.

19:36I only say that because let's talk about this next player.

19:38Travis H.

19:39And Jr.

19:39Oh, who's got two of my three running backs?

19:42Exited with a hamstring strain.

19:44Yeah.

19:45Yeah.

19:45It's been like survival right now in a lot of leagues.

19:48The issue with H.

19:50And Jr.'s hamstring strain is that he was on the injury report this week with a hamstring

19:54injury.

19:55So whenever you re-aggravate it, you're usually going to miss some time.

19:58And the running game of the Saints against the Raiders actually looked okay.

20:04Like, Adrian finished 13 for 57 and caught his two targets.

20:11I mean, it was, we were on path to a much better game for him.

20:16So this is a bummer.

20:17Yeah.

20:17Yeah.

20:18Yeah.

20:18I mean, my goodness.

20:20All right, Mike.

20:21What's next on the docket?

20:23Any good news?

20:24No, we got to keep going through the bad news first.

20:27Rashad White, he injured his shoulder.

20:29He did not return to the game.

20:31He was seen with an ice pack on his shoulder.

20:32And the Washington Commanders, they're awesome.

20:38Excellent.

20:39The first thing they did was they signed Austin Eckler, which that's fun.

20:43Shout out to Ed.

20:43We love Eckler.

20:44Yeah.

20:44Great friend of fantasy football.

20:46Great player in his time.

20:49Doesn't seem like good news for Rashad White if they immediately put a guy who would take

20:55over that job onto the team.

20:57So many more injuries to talk about.

20:59Jack Bass fractured his forearm.

21:01So that'll be a long time.

21:03And then Justin Jefferson, this one, this one is a problem because every medical person

21:09I saw break this injury down because he did not return.

21:13They're all correlating it to the same injuries we saw with AJ Brown, you know, high ankle

21:19sprain.

21:19Yeah.

21:20High ankle sprains last year were all one to three week injuries.

21:24This year they are surgery.

21:25They are six to eight week injuries.

21:28Apparently ankles are getting softer or something.

21:31Is that an official report?

21:32Yeah.

21:32That's an official report.

21:33Or more of a speculative?

21:34No, we don't.

21:34I mean, they have a week six bye.

21:36It looks like a high ankle.

21:37We'll see what the final report is.

21:40Mike Evans got carted off with a rib injury.

21:43He got smooshed.

21:44Yeah.

21:45I just, I just feel like it's always something.

21:50Yeah, it is.

21:50And what's crazy is usually it's his soft tissue.

21:53This was all of his organs.

21:55Yeah.

21:55I mean, he, this was, he got absolutely.

21:57Organs are soft.

21:59That's, that's true.

22:00Well, the ribs.

22:00I always say organs are soft.

22:01The ribs that protect the organs, they turn soft.

22:04And I mean, he got just smacked in the ribs.

22:10So other than Pearsall, Stripling, Demarcus Robinson, Christian Kirk, you know, Mike Evans,

22:15they've got everybody in the receiving game.

22:17It is tough.

22:19Like Brock Purdy's been amazing.

22:20Their leading receiver didn't have a catch.

22:22Did you know this, Jason?

22:23No.

22:24Yeah.

22:25Yeah.

22:25Yeah.

22:25Debo Samuel led the team in receiving.

22:27Oh, yeah.

22:2880 receiving yards.

22:29I did see that.

22:29Zero catches.

22:30Because of the, the hook and ladder?

22:32Yeah.

22:32Yeah.

22:33I mean.

22:34That's ridiculous.

22:35That's wild.

22:36Jalen Coker, quad injury, didn't return.

22:39You don't like that with a wide receiver.

22:41And apparently Ted Aroma McMillan is not him.

22:43Dude.

22:44Jalen Coker, I believe the, I saw it was one target after Jalen Coker left.

22:49And there was plenty of time.

22:52And they had a game script that they needed to throw.

22:55And they were not, Bryce was not throwing at McMillan.

22:57I mean, Bryce Young has looked very, very, very good when Jalen Coker's been available.

23:02Yeah.

23:03For your first round wide receiver, offensive rookie of the year, a 12% target share when

23:09you're having to throw is.

23:11Oh, it was Darren Waller in the flats.

23:13It was.

23:14I mean, I mean the pass rushing Mason Graham and company, like the pressures, I think there

23:18were like five players in Cleveland that had three plus pressures each.

23:23That was a big component to not being able to get it downfield, but it's feeling a little

23:26bit like the Coker, Coker, Michael Wilson comp and the Ted McMillan.

23:30Yeah.

23:31I don't.

23:31Marvin Harrison comp.

23:32I don't agree with that because Ted Rowe.

23:34It's a real extreme.

23:35I'll admit that.

23:35Marvin is bad.

23:37Uh, Ted Rowe is good.

23:38He is a good player.

23:39I mean, like, like Mike just said, he was the offensive rookie of the year last year.

23:42He had over a thousand yards as, as a rookie.

23:45Uh, that was a bad game.

23:46All wide receivers have down games.

23:48He should have been targeted more.

23:49We're surprised he's not.

23:50That's not prescriptive going forward.

23:52I mean, this is a player who as a rookie was targeted 122 times.

23:56So next week versus Detroit, who's got a very banged up secondary.

24:01I would be happy to start Ted.

24:03Yeah.

24:04I, I, uh, 94% of the routes and five targets for McMillan.

24:09You know what you said is true.

24:10Ted McMillan is good.

24:11I, I, is he great?

24:13Can he get to, can he get to great?

24:14I don't know.

24:15Jalen McMillan aggravated his knee injury.

24:17Terrence Ferguson on almost the first play of the game.

24:21Ankle injury.

24:21Then came back in, then hurt it again.

24:23Came back like a dog got that first down he needed despite jumping on one leg.

24:29And then he's like, I can't.

24:31That's crazy, man.

24:32There's add depth if you can, because you're going to need it.

24:37We haven't even gotten into bi-weeks.

24:39Nope.

24:40These are bi-weeks made by players.

24:43Also, I can't talk about anybody else that I like because it is not going well.

24:47You're killing guys.

24:48I mean, I liked HN a lot, guys.

24:50I liked HN a lot.

24:51And four of my other dudes are hurt.

24:53And Ladd McConkie is clearly not himself.

24:55If you watch him walk on and off the field, he's like struggling.

25:00Man, that team is in so much trouble.

25:03Oh, holy moly.

25:04I mean, we said it two weeks ago.

25:06The Chargers?

25:06The Chargers are in so...

25:08Five turnovers and you can't win?

25:10The Chargers?

25:12You know, you say like, oh, they're going to charge her.

25:15Like, that's a thing.

25:17And I've heard people that get really upset with that.

25:18Like, that's not fair to them.

25:20That's not a real thing.

25:22Here's a tweet from Evan Abrams.

25:24Since 2013, teams with five plus turnovers and a negative four turnover margin are three, 81, and one straight up.

25:36The three wins were the Bills over the Chargers.

25:38Oh, I'm afraid of these next two.

25:40The Jaguars over the Chargers.

25:41Okay.

25:42And the Broncos over the Chargers.

25:44The Chargers are the only team you can beat if you have five turnovers?

25:47I mean, dude.

25:49What?

25:51Are they cursed?

25:53I don't know, man.

25:54Well, now you have a discussion to have around a guy we'll talk about in the duds.

25:59Because the snap share for Amari and Hampton was not good.

26:03Nope.

26:04Let's take a break.

26:05Catch our breath.

26:06But there was some good.

26:07There was some good.

26:08We'll talk about them.

26:09Yeah.

26:09That's what we're doing next.

26:14All right.

26:18Let's bring some positivity to the show.

26:23This week's Fantasy Stud Muffins.

26:27Start of the week, Brock Purdy.

26:29Number one scorer at the quarterback position this week.

26:32Hyper efficient.

26:33Very good.

26:34Snap share percentage for Mr. George Kittle has risen immensely.

26:40One of the bigger stories of the week.

26:42He may be back.

26:44Two, 97 and four for Brock Purdy.

26:48It doesn't matter if all his receivers are gone.

26:52He is just slicing and dicing.

26:55Sam Darnold managed to bring.

26:58I mean, look at this list.

26:59Sam Darnold, Geno Smith, Jacoby Brissett, Bo Nix.

27:02You didn't hear me say Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Justin Herbert.

27:06You know, none of the guys that you thought were the guarantees this week.

27:12It was Darnold, Geno, Brissett, and Bo Nix from the grave at halftime.

27:18There was a name right under Bo Nix.

27:20And Tyler Shuck.

27:21Yeah, baby.

27:22Woo!

27:23Who won that game, Mike?

27:24The Raiders did.

27:24In our battle of the adopted teams.

27:28Yeah.

27:29You want to hear my prediction now?

27:31Sure.

27:33No.

27:33Raiders beat the Chiefs next week.

27:35Okay.

27:36Wow.

27:36All right.

27:37Oh, I've always been a lifelong Raiders fan for these last three weeks.

27:41It was an awesome game.

27:43That was a fun game.

27:44I mean, I did not know who was going to win at any point.

27:46I think what it proved was that both of these teams are legit.

27:49Yeah.

27:50Like, I just watched two good teams playing, and we're three weeks in now.

27:54I think Cousins has three touchdowns in three straight games.

27:57Kirk Cousins has been playing fantastic.

27:59I almost forget that they have the number one overall pick right now.

28:03Yeah.

28:03But Tyler Shuck.

28:05Yeah.

28:05Four more touchdowns.

28:07He is him.

28:08He's the QB three right now.

28:09He is him.

28:10QB three right now.

28:11Yeah.

28:12This is a week where we were putting to the test Bryce Young and Tyler Shuck, and one

28:20of them passed the test.

28:21And the guy who passed the test was also, everything I said about the defensive front

28:25of the Raiders held true.

28:27Mm-hmm.

28:27And he still produced.

28:28He was under pressure.

28:29That's what's impressive.

28:29And by the way, it doesn't seem like anybody can cover Chris Olave ever.

28:36He is always.

28:37Because he's awesome.

28:38He's always awesome.

28:39He always has been.

28:40This is just, like, they finally have someone in the team who can get in the ball appropriately.

28:47Like, the story of Chris Olave was so, it was on its way of just a wasted career, lost to

28:54injuries because Derek Carr and company keep giving him freaking hospital balls.

28:59But the fact that we're seeing what he's doing now, and he is elite.

29:03Like, he is an elite wide receiver, and he's an elite fantasy football option.

29:06And Jawan's now elite, and Tyson's elite, and Valle's elite, and everyone's elite that

29:12Chuck is throwing to.

29:13It's going to be great.

29:15What's funny is, when we're watching football, we're usually watching nine screens at once

29:20and trying to, you know, take everything in.

29:23We're watching it together.

29:25When an elite, when one of the greats, when Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase has some crazy

29:30sideline ball, you just know.

29:33You're right.

29:33Like, we just give him the benefit of the doubt.

29:35We're like, of course.

29:36Yeah, when Larry catches the ball, he got the feet down.

29:37You go, oh, there's no chance he got the feet down.

29:39With those guys, you just go, no, he got the feet down.

29:42You know he did.

29:42He's perfect.

29:43He's one of those.

29:44That's Chris Olave right now.

29:45Like, he had one of those sideline balls where it's like, no way he got that.

29:49No way he got his feet.

29:50And it's like, no, of course he did.

29:51He's Chris Olave.

29:51Yeah.

29:52I mean, the Saints are one and two, but both of their losses went down to the wire pretty much.

29:58Aaron Rodgers, 290 and three for the first time since week 14.

30:03Crazy.

30:03Had some downfield throws.

30:05Oh, no.

30:06He's bombing it out.

30:07Yeah.

30:07I mean, this was a good.

30:09I mean, that was one of the almost upset.

30:11Both of those games.

30:12Yeah.

30:12You got both almost upsets, right?

30:14Yeah.

30:14The Steelers and the Raiders.

30:17Where did the production go to?

30:19Does that make you three for four so far?

30:21Three for four.

30:22Yeah.

30:22That's pretty good.

30:2275% is pretty good with crazy upsets.

30:24But Rodgers, yeah, he got it done.

30:28I mean, it was very spread around.

30:30Warren was good in the passing game.

30:34Metcalf had a touchdown.

30:35Roman Wilson had points.

30:37You got Fryer Muth, Darnell Washington.

30:39No, Muth sucked, man.

30:41Oh, yeah.

30:42He hurt you on your prize picks.

30:43Yeah.

30:43He got two passes on the matchup against the Bengals.

30:48Here's some names that you do recognize.

30:50Top five scorers at running back.

30:51Gibbs, Bijon, Henry, Walker, CMC.

30:54I mean, just like that feels automatic.

30:58So the ones I actually want to talk about, Jeremiah Love and Jalen Warren.

31:01Yes.

31:01Those are the two.

31:02The Cardinals made a concerted effort to give almost everything to Jeremiah Love,

31:07which was awesome.

31:09And he had a big game, 21 for 90, and then scored in the receiving game again.

31:14If you didn't watch the game with San Francisco, the Cardinals were hanging.

31:18Yeah, 36-30.

31:19It was a very tight game that the 49ers, they're the better team,

31:24so they took it at the end.

31:26But making this transition and making Jeremiah Love, I mean, imagine.

31:31Imagine taking a top five NFL running back in the draft

31:36and then actually making him the engine of your team and good things happening.

31:39We did get a quick injury update on Baker Mayfield.

31:41The MRI came back, no fracture, no ligament damage, no tendon damage.

31:45Three weeks or so, max, for Baker being out.

31:48So that is good for the bad bucks.

31:53To give some numbers to Jeremiah Love being more involved,

31:58Jeremiah Love had 21 rush attempts.

32:00Tyler Algier had two.

32:03This is exactly what you want.

32:05You want to see a top five pick getting all of the work.

32:08And I would assume it probably won't be that crazy drastic, 21-2 going forward.

32:16Should be.

32:17Yeah, it should be.

32:18And I think this is prescriptive of, like, the change has been made

32:22and he's going to be close to a bell cow back going forward

32:25and Algier will spell him, not split with him.

32:28The routes were still very close between Jeremiah Love and Tyler Algier.

32:33Like, stop it.

32:35Trade for him.

32:36Stop it.

32:37Yeah.

32:37Trade for Jeremiah Love.

32:38The Cardinals have a good enough offense to keep up

32:41and a bad enough defense to never win.

32:42They're going to be in situations where you can't put Algier on there.

32:45Well, they've got a superstar wide receiver as well.

32:48Michael Wilson?

32:49You're darn right.

32:50Was it 17 targets?

32:5117 targets.

32:52Yeah, I played against him this week.

32:53Only turned it into 89 yards.

32:55And a score.

32:56Yeah.

32:5711 for 89 in the touchdown.

32:58Great game.

32:59Baseball Tootin, Javante Williams.

33:01Javante looked good.

33:02He did better this week than the other weeks combined.

33:05Yes, they finally had it going a little bit.

33:07And then Tootin with the donation touchdown.

33:10Did you see the talk after the game?

33:13I saw the brief conversation from Liam Cohen where he's like,

33:16he wanted somebody else to have the touchdown.

33:18No, did you see what – he's not wrong,

33:20and I think he might have even been maybe a little annoyed,

33:23but Trevor Lawrence said –

33:25Yeah.

33:26He said, I wanted to give Tootin the touchdown for the fantasy people.

33:30It's the dumbest thing I've ever seen.

33:31It – I'll tell you what, that smells bad.

33:35Like –

33:35That's – oh, like betting bad?

33:37I'm not saying that.

33:38No, I know.

33:38I'm just saying it smells – no matter what it is, it smells bad.

33:42If you didn't see it, eight-plus minutes left,

33:45wide open end zone for Trevor Lawrence,

33:47takes a knee up 35-6 or something, or 28-6,

33:52and then Tootin scores on the next play.

33:55You can't do that with eight minutes left.

33:56No, not with eight.

33:57If you're Lawrence, you go – what happened?

33:59But you go, total brain fart.

34:01I thought there was –

34:03Two minutes left.

34:03I thought the clock was much lower than it actually was.

34:06Which I assume that's what really happened.

34:10But for you to not just admit it is strange.

34:13It did seem tongue-in-cheek.

34:14You're probably right.

34:14That's probably what happened.

34:16Check this out.

34:17Bashaw Tootin –

34:18Because you look dumb no matter what.

34:19So there are –

34:20You should just admit it.

34:21Here are the top six players that have hit 15-plus miles an hour

34:24more than 10 times this year.

34:26Number one is Bashaw Tootin 15 times.

34:28He's fast.

34:29That's crazy.

34:29Gibbs, Walker, Bijon, Hampton, and then Keaton Mitchell.

34:33I talked about Tootin on the Sunday Live of –

34:38It was like, if you're going to trade for him, you've got to do –

34:41Like, people are –

34:43He's still kind of buried.

34:44The hype for Bashaw Tootin was very, very strong over the offseason.

34:47I loved it.

34:48I was fully in on it.

34:50And then you're looking at the snap shares, and you're like,

34:52Ah, well, Krod, which there still is some timeshare.

34:55I believe Krod had a touchdown.

34:57They're kind of splitting that work.

34:59But Bashaw Tootin is –

35:01He's getting the majority of the work, and he's a good player.

35:05And it's a pretty strong offense.

35:06So he is –

35:08I like the call to try and trade for love.

35:11I think that might be a little difficult.

35:14But Bashaw Tootin, it's possible you can still get him.

35:17Yeah, and then Jalen Warren, I mentioned him briefly,

35:19but he was everything for the –

35:22He was everything and looked great for the Steelers.

35:25Yes.

35:26Including a gigantic, huge run that then got called back on a dumb penalty.

35:33And then he fell.

35:34And then another huge one.

35:35Well, the reason was two plays later, he did the exact same thing,

35:39had a breakaway touchdown, and his legs were so tired that he tripped.

35:44Like, he couldn't get his foot up.

35:46He turfed himself.

35:47If you look at the slow-mo of that, it looks like he hit a landmine.

35:51No.

35:51On the way to – and he would have scored.

35:53Rico was out.

35:55So TBD, if this is still – if that's how they'll move forward with Warren,

36:00probably will.

36:01They might be.

36:02They might.

36:02Rico may be going the way of Crod.

36:05Might be.

36:06JSN, Drake London, Garrett Wilson, Michael Wilson, Jamar Chase.

36:11By the way, what is it?

36:12JSN, Olave, Garrett Wilson, the trifecta in Ohio State.

36:16Pretty good week for those guys.

36:18Yep.

36:18Also, pretty good week for the guy who actually plays for Ohio State, Jeremiah Smith.

36:22Oh, dude.

36:22Four touchdowns.

36:23Who was the other guy on the team with all those players?

36:27There was another one.

36:28Don't worry about it.

36:28Marvin.

36:29Marvin Harrison Jr.?

36:29Yeah.

36:30Which, to be honest, pretty good game for Marv.

36:3340 yards?

36:34Did you see the route where he caught the pass, too?

36:36He actually ran hard and stuff.

36:37Yeah.

36:38Good job, Marv.

36:39I think these days he'll be a real boy.

36:42JSN, London, Wilson, Michael Wilson, Jamar Chase.

36:46Chase was 9 for 98.

36:48Higgins was 6 for 90 with the amazing catch.

36:51Kristen Watson on Thursday Night Football.

36:52Matthew Golden both had big weeks.

36:55You had a big week for Kanata Mumfield, which will be an interesting conversation tomorrow

37:00on the Waver Show in light of the Puka situation.

37:04You know, Ferguson, it's not a hot swap for Higby.

37:08Ferguson has more athleticism and is more of a typical wide receiver style player.

37:14If it becomes, like if Ferguson's out for a while, I don't know, Mumfield's probably

37:17worth a fab or two.

37:19Could be.

37:20We'll see.

37:21CeeDee Lamb had a nice week again and then double digits for Pickens for the first time.

37:25Slow start for Lamb, but he got it together in the second half and absolute malpractice

37:31for the Cowboys to call the timeout with that much time left.

37:38They should have gone to overtime.

37:39It was, I mean, I can't even.

37:41I don't think anybody thought that could happen in six seconds and then they did.

37:44That was brutal.

37:45There shouldn't have been any time left.

37:45They screwed it up.

37:46I mean, they shouldn't have had six seconds.

37:48It's ridiculous.

37:48Absolutely.

37:48It was ridiculous.

37:49I agree.

37:49It was a complete mismanagement of the situation.

37:52Kittle Bowers fanning.

37:54Kenyon Sadiq with the boss diving touchdown.

37:57And Jawan Johnson with two touchdowns in this one.

38:00Higby, eight for 62 and one with the stat line we expected from Ferguson.

38:04Went straight to Higby.

38:06He could be an interesting temporary start if we find out Ferguson can't play.

38:11The Sadiq breakout was very fun.

38:16He caught seven of eight targets, had 105.

38:20He had the touchdown.

38:21And that was on just 58% of the routes.

38:25He still wasn't even a full-time player yet.

38:27So he will be a hot waiver commodity.

38:32Well, and it's nice to see, like, on an NFL field, him 15 yards a catch,

38:38over 100 yards, and a lot of that was just with the ball in his hands,

38:42running away from guys, which is what they hope they drafted

38:45when they spent that high of a draft pick.

38:48And they need him right now with some of the other injuries to their other

38:52wide receivers.

38:54He's going to be a hot pickup.

38:56Yeah.

38:57Anybody else we need to talk about there?

38:58Are we going to circle back to the duds?

39:02I guess that's what we're doing.

39:03It is.

39:04I mean, there are some important questions.

39:05Yeah.

39:06We've got to answer them.

39:07Let's take a break.

39:07We'll do it in a minute.

39:12This episode is brought to you by our friends at PrizePix.

39:15Football is finally back, and PrizePix is bringing its best offer yet.

39:21New users can get $150 in lineups if they win their first $5 lineup.

39:26And now, PrizePix is available nationwide.

39:29PrizePix is offering a new promo every day during stacked September,

39:34including guaranteed picks on Monday, profit boosts, and daily discounts.

39:39The app is simple to use.

39:41You pick two to six players, then choose more or less on projected stats

39:45like passing yards, rushing yards, fantasy score.

39:48Make picks across any sport all in one app.

39:51Lock in for kickoff because everyone and everything is on PrizePix.

39:55Josh Allen, is he the greatest player of all time?

39:59Is there a projection on PrizePix that he can't surpass the moron?

40:03We'll tune in on Sundays and find out.

40:05Download the app today and use code FOOTBALLERS to get $150 instantly in lineups

40:10if you win your first $5 lineup.

40:13PrizePix, run your game.

40:15See you Sunday on Paramount+.

40:18You're streaming home for the NFL on CBS all season long.

40:22That's right, football fans.

40:23Stream your live local CBS games every NFL Sunday

40:27all the way through the AFC Championship game.

40:30Follow the league's biggest stars, can't-miss matchups,

40:33and the season's biggest storylines.

40:35And catch additional coverage with NFL Today,

40:37NFL Today+, CBS Sports HQ, Fantasy Football Today, and more.

40:41So sign up and sign in to Paramount Plus today,

40:45and we will see you Sunday for another thrilling season of the NFL on CBS,

40:49streaming live on Paramount+.

40:51Pooped in his big boy pants.

40:58I don't know how to describe the quantity of poop,

41:09the size of the pants, but Drake May.

41:13Drake May, did you see the clip that I saw this morning?

41:16He was crying.

41:18Oh, really?

41:19I didn't see that.

41:20He was crying on the sideline when Mike Rabel had to come over and-

41:23And console him?

41:24And console him, like standing on the sideline.

41:26This was in the third quarter.

41:28I mean, he looked-

41:30He looked-

41:30He looks broken.

41:31He looked distraught.

41:33Well, is it because he was watching his play?

41:35Ah.

41:36I mean, he-

41:36Look, this is-

41:37He made some of the most boneheaded, ridiculous decisions.

41:43Again, a bad pass on a bad decision in the red zone.

41:47It's like, what's going on between the ears right now?

41:50Mike Rabel, after the 35-6 loss, said,

41:52my concern level is very high for this football team.

41:55Okay.

41:55Okay.

41:56And then Drake May, according to Doug Kloss in tweeting the stat out,

41:59Drake May, nine fumbles, ten picks since the start of the postseason.

42:02He is the first player with nine fumbles and ten interceptions in a seven-game span since-

42:07Jameis.

42:08Jameis Winston.

42:09Yeah.

42:09Since Jameis Winston during the 30-touchdown, 30-interception season.

42:12He was playing like Jameis in the sense that, like, balls that you should not throw,

42:16that you're taught in, like, Pop Warner.

42:18You don't-

42:19You know, if you're spun around and-

42:21Yep.

42:22You just don't throw that ball into nothingness and he's doing it.

42:25So, the problem here is, um, the Bo Nix we've gotten for the first handful of weeks has been

42:33pretty darn bad.

42:34And then you had a confident player in the second half last night after some throws went

42:38his way.

42:38What makes Drake May special or could make him special is going to come alongside the

42:45confidence to make throws.

42:47And right now he has the least confidence possible because he's made multiple end zone reads where

42:52he's throwing interceptions while he's on the run.

42:54I mean, he-

42:55He cost them a game.

42:56Mm-hmm.

42:57Because they were down three and he threw away a ball in the end zone.

42:59And then in this game he did it again.

43:01He has been the quarterback 23, 25, and 30.

43:04He has the highest interception rate in the NFL.

43:06AJ Brown is not coming back anytime soon.

43:09He does not have the weapons that they need.

43:11For goodness sakes, Kayshawn Booty would have made a difference because he's not doing anything

43:14in Houston.

43:16It's been mismanaged through and through and, uh, you, you're not even, you're not even

43:21utilizing.

43:21I mean, Travion had an awful week.

43:23He was 2.9 a carry, 8 for 23 and didn't get, he got one target.

43:27His success rate is very low.

43:29I mean, it's been abysmal through and through.

43:32When Matt Collins is a go-to receiver on your offense, I say all this to ask you the question

43:38and submit to you, is it time to actually be, be dropped the landmine?

43:43Yes.

43:44To say goodbye to Drake May, move forward with anybody else.

43:49Well, not just anybody else, but there are plenty of good options.

43:53And I think, I think it's fine to not just hold May on the bench, but to drop him.

43:57Um, I believe good days are ahead for Drake May.

44:00If you want to hold on to him for when AJ Brown returns and the schedule opens up, you

44:05know, it's, it's tough matchup this next week on the road in Buffalo.

44:08They're sure there's going to be a high over under.

44:10Maybe you can talk yourself into starting him, but I'm, I'm very skeptical that you're

44:15going to be happy.

44:16So yeah, I think if you drop him right now, it's a landmine.

44:18Now later on, you know, week seven, maybe you get, uh, AJ Brown back then and that's

44:25Chicago, Miami.

44:27You've got Detroit a couple of weeks after.

44:28So I do think there are bright days ahead, but I believe it's a month away.

44:32And so if you want to drop him and move on, you certainly can't, I would not be playing

44:36him.

44:37The hardest part is the bright days have to represent like top eight in the league.

44:43Yeah.

44:43That's just a tough thing to picture right now, but maybe we get it with some better

44:47schedule situation.

44:49Um, Herbert, I mean, come on, man, the chargers, come on, man.

44:56They got off to a strong start and look like, okay, the chargers are here.

45:00And then they just charged all over the bottom five and EPA per play among all quarterbacks

45:05with 50 dropbacks this year.

45:07Dead last Jameis Winston makes sense.

45:09I don't know why I didn't work a little pun into today since he might not be starting soon.

45:13Yeah.

45:13Uh, Aaron Rogers, Baker Mayfield, Drake May, Justin Herbert.

45:17I mean, it, I mean, you can't, you can't lose a game where your defense turns the other

45:24team over five times.

45:25Correct.

45:26You can't do it.

45:27Can't do it.

45:28They're so cooked.

45:29And speak of the cooked.

45:32I mean, Hampton is going the wrong direction.

45:35Snap counts 42% for Hampton, 38% for Mitchell, who is the more efficient runner in this one.

45:41Kamani Vidal, 25%.

45:4225%.

45:43Silky smooth is back.

45:46I don't like it.

45:49Yeah.

45:49I mean, this, this game.

45:50I saw the carries inside the 10.

45:52This was also a game where I think there were very few snaps for the chargers in the fourth.

45:57Um, I want to say Hampton had like four and it was about the same for, for Keaton Mitchell.

46:03So there were, there weren't a lot of opportunities.

46:05He's still got 15 carries on the ground.

46:09Um, you're certainly not happy with the, yeah, that three targets in three games is, uh, not the

46:17Mike McDaniel, H and script.

46:20You only ran six routes.

46:21Yeah.

46:21And that's the, that's the big issue.

46:22And Mitchell's better at that.

46:24Keaton Mitchell has been involved in the, the receiving game in a way that you would, you would hope, especially the way that it looked in preseason training camp and all that.

46:33Vidal was right behind Keaton Mitchell, one fewer route.

46:36Yeah.

46:36That, that Hampton would be involved in the passing game and then Keaton Mitchell would be used kind of in two running back sets also in the passing game.

46:44But until they get Hampton involved in the receiving game, which might not happen.

46:50They're going to go to Seattle next week.

46:51It's going to be, it's going to be tough sledding.

46:53He's still, he's still a good, I mean, you, you brought up earlier the, uh, you know, the, the number of fast runs in the NFL.

47:01Well, he was, you know, top of the list there or like number five or whatever.

47:05Him and Mitchell were tied.

47:06Yeah.

47:06So he still looked good, I think.

47:08And they're still giving the ball to him enough.

47:11It's a tough matchup.

47:13Seattle, Denver, Kansas city, the next three weeks.

47:15I don't like a game in which they were leading for a lot of it where he gets 42% of snaps.

47:21And again, we, we said at the beginning of the year, the differentiator between like HN and Hampton was like, well, HN is going to be on a crap team.

47:28Hampton's going to be on a great team.

47:29Right.

47:29Great offense.

47:30Yeah.

47:30Nope.

47:31So yeah, none of, none of that conversation is to say you drop somebody like Hampton.

47:35Oh no.

47:36That's not the context of it.

47:38It's just, you're going to be starting them every week.

47:40I mean, this was a guy that was going back to back or ahead of Ken, Ken bone in some drafts.

47:45That's all.

47:46And so it changed expectations.

47:47Bucky Irving was 15 for 46.

47:49Bucky Irving did not play the final 15 snaps of this game.

47:52He was seen with a heating pack on his back.

47:55Why do I know this?

47:55I looked into it very detailed this morning due to some transactions in our league of record.

48:00There might've been a Bucky Irving for Devon HN trade for playing for the future, playing for now.

48:06There may be.

48:07There may have been.

48:07There might have been one of those.

48:09Mike is.

48:09How are you feeling about that, Mike?

48:11Do we want to let the people know what happened?

48:13So.

48:13Because I would love to get some candid thoughts from Al Borland, who's my favorite commentator.

48:17Andy's super league of record team suffered an unfortunate Devon HN season-ending injury.

48:22Yeah, that sucked.

48:23We are a keeper league, so those guys moving forward, they still have actually a good amount of value.

48:30Because, look, HN should be back by the beginning of next year, assuming all of his surgeries and everything go well.

48:39And you put up the bat signals like, hey, I got this guy.

48:44You know, come trade for him.

48:45He's a great keeper.

48:46He's a great keeper, but, I mean, he's still not going to play in your team if you trade for him.

48:52And then Jason's like, hey, this Bucky Irving guy who's having a real strong start to the season.

48:57I'm just going to swap him just, you know, straight up for a very injured person.

49:03I'm not going to make you send a pick over or anything to help my team for next year.

49:08Get the camera off me.

49:10See, it's equal opportunity.

49:13Equal opportunity support, Al.

49:15Sure.

49:16I mean, I thought I made a compelling point in our league chat, which was that, like, this player is far more valuable than a second-round pick.

49:24Yeah.

49:24But are you 100% sure he's better than Bucky Irving for next year?

49:30No, not 100.

49:31I mean, I would say, like, if these players are both healthy right now, there's a world Bucky has a better rest of the season.

49:40That's why this trade is – the trade with no draft picks is very weird.

49:44You had to pay zero tax to get bailed out.

49:47Well, what was amazing was that I had, like – I put the bat signal out there, and then I went – and immediately my strategy – and I share this because it's a good strategy for people who want to make trades.

49:58It's week three, right?

50:01Trust the fact that people are going to have different emotional states on these teams.

50:04I went immediately to look at the teams that were winless and make offers to all of them because for them, they're looking for the future.

50:12And they also – you know, if you're winless or you don't have a good record, you want change.

50:16That's just what you want.

50:17Now, Jason's a very future forward team completely.

50:19Yeah, I started – I went into this year already playing for 2027.

50:22But I would have looked at two and four teams or, you know, whatever the case may be, and just – they just want change.

50:27They want to feel like they're doing something.

50:29So that's a general trade tip I would give people.

50:31It's like teams that you know are mentally unsettled by how the season has started, go target them for trades because they want to make trades.

50:39I feel like what you're saying is that you think I'm mentally unsettled right now.

50:43You did give him CeeDee Lamb and Bucky Irving.

50:47The context –

50:48No, no, no.

50:48I wasn't saying you were at all.

50:49The context is –

50:50I was saying teams that are going to try to win but are two and four or, you know, one and three.

50:54Our league is so different in the sense of our keeper system and how teams come into each year.

50:59There was a reason why Andy last year, his super team, he got wet in the draft because he was the –

51:04you were the worst record last year.

51:06I traded for Walker midway through the season and it paid off.

51:08I'm looking to be the 2027 super team.

51:10You're not at all the example I was talking about.

51:12I'm talking about a team that's actually trying to compete.

51:14You also got a bunch of picks, Jay.

51:16You didn't get any picks you could have extracted.

51:19It's week three.

51:20And he knows it too.

51:21He would have given you picks.

51:23Maybe.

51:23No, he definitely would have gave you picks.

51:25You never know.

51:26The only issue is in our league we have so many teams that are basically feeling like they're out of it playing for next year.

51:33And so the question is –

51:36and all colluding to help one team.

51:38No, no one's colluding to help –

51:40no one wants to help Andy.

51:41Do you agree with that statement, Jeremy?

51:43I sure do.

51:43Of course Jeremy agrees with it.

51:44Nobody's colluding to help me.

51:45As soon as Andy sends up the bat signal, there's a line of people waiting to help him.

51:49Listen, the thing is –

51:50The thing is, people want to help themselves, and I am happy to help them help themselves.

51:55If he wanted to help himself, he would have gotten a pick in the deal.

51:57Yeah.

51:57But he wanted to be the first to market.

51:59It's a race.

52:00It was a race.

52:00It is a race.

52:01I mean, he started the season bad, and now he gets to come back from an ACL injury.

52:03Let me tell you this.

52:04So I get the band.

52:07I did have two people DM me after I made the trade and told me I should have waited

52:13because they were cooking up some offers for Devon H.

52:16And does that make you feel any better?

52:18No, they weren't.

52:18You weren't one of those teams, were you?

52:20It doesn't surprise me.

52:21I mean, the fact that –

52:22What you're saying is you had three or four people fighting over the chance to help you,

52:26and I'm not shocked.

52:27But, you know what, Al has got some demons.

52:31Al is playing for this year, and he's very upset that Andy's team looks significantly better,

52:38and any time that something helps Andy's team, it will be a monster.

52:42I basically – I said this, and this is 100% true.

52:45This is 1,000% true.

52:47If I did this exact trade with anyone else in the league, no one would even bat an eye.

52:54But it is because –

52:55But the eyes are getting batted.

52:56Yeah, it's because your team is the super team that got hurt.

53:01And so, I don't care.

53:01Yeah, and then you just fixed it for me.

53:03Travion Henderson, Ramondre Stevenson, both had awful weeks.

53:07Targets went Ramondre's way, three versus one.

53:10We don't get this.

53:11Nobody understands this.

53:12If you want to take advantage of anything Travion does,

53:15space in the passing game would be part of it.

53:17I don't know why they're not involving him in the receiving game.

53:21They need him out there in space so much.

53:24Put both guys on the field.

53:25Yes.

53:25If it's a problem about pass blocking.

53:28Like, if you're running to Mario Douglas around and Matt Collins around and Williams and these guys,

53:33let Travion be a weapon.

53:34And then Jadarian Price, five for 15, got – he fumbled again.

53:38He got benched.

53:39So, this is going down, down for Jadarian right now.

53:43And the team lost.

53:44And the fumble played a big part.

53:46It was, what, 33-31?

53:47I mean, you cannot, as a rookie, come in – what was it, Jameer Gibbs that fumbled on his first play ever?

53:54I think that was it.

53:56Maybe.

53:57I know Kareem Hunt did.

53:58Yeah, I mean, you just can't do this as a rookie on a defending championship team.

54:02If you want to establish a role and you go out there and you fumble two times in three games –

54:06Kyle's saying it was James Cook.

54:07Oh, James Cook.

54:08That is who it was.

54:09But, like, you can't do it.

54:11They're going to give the ball to Salami.

54:13They're going to give the ball to somebody else.

54:15We'll say the metrics for Jadarian Price, though, among 39 qualifying running backs,

54:22he is 39th in EPA per rush, 32nd in rush success rate, 8th in yards after contact.

54:29Like, these are not – you're fumbling and you're not producing.

54:34I like the last one.

54:35I don't like the other two.

54:37Malik Nabors, what are we doing?

54:42Yeah, this was Jameis Winston.

54:44It was –

54:44But it's also, like, we haven't seen neighbors be neighbors yet.

54:47Yeah, but the –

54:48So is he going to be – like, if Jackson Dart was perfectly healthy, would we feel like

54:54that first week was enough for us to feel like he's the same dude or, like, changed expectations?

54:59What is your thought on him, like, rest of the season?

55:01It's very difficult in terms of, like, that game, the Giants versus Tennessee.

55:05It was 12-7.

55:07And it was 12-7 not because, like, the defenses were just juggernauts stopping the other – it was a storm again.

55:16Yeah.

55:16Like, this was a disgusting game.

55:18That's why I think part of the – like, the J.J. McCarthy trade, I get it.

55:22And I understand not wanting Jameis to be – like, everything's resting on Jameis.

55:28I mean, man, the ultimate goofball comments.

55:32The – well, he's like, we – 12.

55:34We scored 12 points.

55:35That's six times two.

55:36Jameis, the soundbites from this week were fantastic.

55:41But you can't – that wasn't a real offense for either side of the football team.

55:45Just like the Chicago and Minnesota game in week two, this is not – you need to throw that in the garbage.

55:53This is – so I don't actually know what Malik Neighbors is with Jameis.

55:56Yeah, I was surprised that Neighbors had five receptions in a game environment like that.

56:00But it was not good.

56:02I think bright days are ahead for Neighbors.

56:05The quarterback needs to get figured out for it to be really good.

56:09And I don't know if they've got – I mean, we can't –

56:12Might not have that answer.

56:12Exactly.

56:13We cannot assume at this point that J.J. McCarthy is just going to develop to become a good quarterback.

56:18I can tell you the sign-ups right now for next week's big dome meeting.

56:24Yeah.

56:25People are signing up?

56:26Oh, big time.

56:27A lot – you guys get a lot of new followers?

56:29Big time.

56:29Your socials are blowing up?

56:31Yeah.

56:31Big dome?

56:31Yeah, big dome.

56:32We're having a meeting next –

56:33Usually this time of year we're not –

56:35I know.

56:35We're not doing so well.

56:36It's usually so quiet.

56:37And people are like, wow.

56:38Mike is getting on here on Sunday Live, which hopefully you guys caught.

56:42And he was – he's like, why do I have to talk about weather in week three?

56:46Freaking super El Nino.

56:48Get out of here.

56:49Two for 17 for Tett McMillan.

56:52That is a catastrophic line for a player that you drafted to be your – you know, a top-tier guy.

56:58So we'll see if he can do it against Detroit.

57:02But I think Jalen Coker is kind of important to both guys.

57:06Jalen Waddell, we've got one bad, one good, one bad.

57:09For this huge comeback, it didn't involve him.

57:12Two for 10 for Jalen Waddell.

57:16Where are you rest of the season?

57:18Like, Jalen Waddell, rest of the season will be the wide receiver.

57:20He'll still be a top 20 guy.

57:22I think that the Rams are – they're going to be a team that you're going to try to avoid.

57:29Like, I think that their defense is that level.

57:32Yeah, they traded for McDuffie.

57:33They're a very difficult matchup.

57:36I'm still pretty bullish on Waddell going forward.

57:40I would say, yeah, somewhere around wide receiver 15.

57:44Jameson Williams through three weeks.

57:45Four for 49 in this one.

57:46They got him involved early.

57:47And then they said no more.

57:50Nine targets, four targets, four targets.

57:53It was the Gibbs show.

57:55I mean, Amon Ra, by the way, Jason's green goblin pick for prize picks.

57:59That's supposed to be the layup.

58:01And he – before the episode, Jason comes in and he's like, guys, I got a line today.

58:06That feels like cheating.

58:08He's like – and I was like, oh, is it like when I had McCaffrey for like 16 receiving yards?

58:12He goes, yeah, might be better than that.

58:15It was.

58:15It was Amon Ra for 32 yards.

58:18For 30 – all he needed was 32 yards.

58:20He caught four passes.

58:21Yeah.

58:21How many yards did he have?

58:2319.

58:24Here's some numbers for you.

58:2556, 60, 161, 62, 73, 43, 193, 70, 60, 77.

58:31These all sound more than –

58:33Do they?

58:34Yeah.

58:35Oh, well, let me keep going.

58:3645, 115, 77, 70, 100, 45, 86, 97, 58, 54, 149, 92, 164, 54, 68, 139.

58:47Let me get to this year.

58:48Those are the last two years.

58:49I think we got it.

58:50Yeah.

58:50I think we got it.

58:51I think we got it.

58:51I think we got it.

58:51142.

58:52Okay.

58:52We're going to keep going.

58:53Green goblin of 33 yards.

58:5619.

58:58Okay.

59:01Oh, football.

59:02Well, Emeka Abuka still can't get to double digits, and it's probably not going to get

59:06better with undrafted free agent quarterbacks for the next three weeks.

59:10Godwin has not a lot left right now, and that team –

59:14I was going to say the Buccaneers are a team that looks like you do not want a part of right

59:21now.

59:21You're going to have a couple weeks without Baker.

59:23We don't know if Bucky was injured.

59:26I mean, I know he was injured in the game, but we don't know if it's anything serious,

59:29but that team is right now three losses.

59:34They haven't looked good, and now they're without their quarterback.

59:37So, you would imagine this team is probably going to start off at best like one and five,

59:43and at that point your season is over.

59:46Speaking of seasons being over, Brian Thomas Jr.

59:50Dude, speaking of careers.

59:53So, Brian Thomas Jr.'s snap count dropped to 37%.

59:56Brian Thomas Jr. had one target for one catch for eight yards in a game in which –

1:00:01there have been two games this year they've scored 35 points, 34 and 35.

1:00:06Nope, it's not happening.

1:00:08Parker Washington, that is definitely happening.

1:00:11Dude's so good.

1:00:12But, I mean, 37% snaps?

1:00:14What is this career ending?

1:00:16I mean, what is going on?

1:00:17You got to – the Jaguars have to trade him.

1:00:20Like, they have to get something for him.

1:00:21Oh, he feels like a trade candidate for sure.

1:00:23And if I'm any other team out there in the league, I'm trying to trade for him.

1:00:26This is a guy who as a rookie put up 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns,

1:00:29and now it's like he's the worst – like, he is uninvolved completely in this offense.

1:00:39BTJ was the Harrison year, right?

1:00:41Yes.

1:00:42Yeah.

1:00:42So both of those guys have gone from their best season is their rookie season.

1:00:46Yeah, and Ladd.

1:00:46And then decline, and then decline, yeah, even Ladd.

1:00:51Neighbors too, granted an injury.

1:00:52But routes-wise, it's Jacoby, it's Parker, it's Brenton Strange.

1:00:57Those are the –

1:00:58And who was the other –

1:01:00Josh Cameron.

1:01:01Josh Cameron.

1:01:02I mean, he's only at 28% of the routes.

1:01:05Yeah, but how much – what was his snap count, percentage-wise?

1:01:08Well, he had the same exact snaps as Brian Thomas.

1:01:12That's mind-blowing.

1:01:15Tucker Craft.

1:01:16Thomas was 47% of the routes.

1:01:19It was a week for certain tight ends.

1:01:21These guys didn't get it done.

1:01:22Tucker Craft, Sam Laporta, Dalton Kincaid, Kyle Pitts, Isaiah Likely, and Mark Andrews.

1:01:28It couldn't be more over for Andrews.

1:01:29That dude looks so slow.

1:01:31And then he's slow, and he drops the ball constantly.

1:01:34Yeah.

1:01:34He does.

1:01:35And, I mean, Kincaid, it was disappointing.

1:01:39He'll be fine.

1:01:40Fumbled, 2 for 38.

1:01:41Right?

1:01:41The Bills were –

1:01:43I mean, they were throwing to catch up the whole game.

1:01:46Yes.

1:01:46I don't think anyone was, like, great for the Bills.

1:01:51It was the weirdness of – we just talked on last week's show of, you know,

1:01:56coming off of the Thursday game where it's – where Josh Allen was like,

1:02:00how does anyone ever stop Josh Allen?

1:02:02He's the – this is the greatest player in football I've ever seen.

1:02:07But you know that people do.

1:02:09And then you go to the next week, and it's the freaking Chargers are slow.

1:02:12At home.

1:02:12They're slowing down Josh Allen and company.

1:02:15It's –

1:02:15Football is so weird.

1:02:16It's so weird.

1:02:18James Cook had an okay game, but literally nobody else did.

1:02:21I mean –

1:02:21Yeah, Cook was great.

1:02:22DJ Moore didn't get to 10 points.

1:02:25Keon Coleman was four points.

1:02:27Kincaid less than three points with the fumble.

1:02:30It was just nothing.

1:02:31I would not be surprised, those of you out there,

1:02:36if you see Josh Allen not practicing this week.

1:02:39There was a knee injury.

1:02:40You can go and review it, and then you can see the postgame speech from Joe Brady

1:02:44when they got the W.

1:02:46He was clearly limping in the locker room.

1:02:48Most medical analysts are considering this a contusion versus any type of MCL sprain

1:02:54or something like that, which would be good.

1:02:56But you could see limited practices, and you could see limited running for a little bit

1:03:01if he's banged up.

1:03:03But, yeah, the Isaiah Likely situation is unfortunate because that came –

1:03:07I mean, the number one guy that had the rapport with Jackson Dart in the offseason

1:03:11was Isaiah Likely.

1:03:12Again, that was part of that crazy bad weather game where you kind of have to throw

1:03:18that game out and that Minnesota-Chicago game out.

1:03:22I think it will be –

1:03:23Oronick Adston.

1:03:23I think it will be better for Likely.

1:03:25That one was –

1:03:26That was a goose, right?

1:03:27Yeah, that was very, very bad.

1:03:29The opportunity, the need.

1:03:31The Chargers are just absolutely broken.

1:03:34I mean, the Chargers are – who's – it's like they have so many good pieces.

1:03:41They've got a quarterback, which is basically the only thing you need.

1:03:45They've got a first-round running back.

1:03:47They've got two quality tackles.

1:03:50They've got a first-round wide receiver in Ladd, and their offense –

1:03:55Second.

1:03:55Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

1:03:56Second round.

1:03:57First is huge.

1:03:58Pick 34.

1:03:59Huge.

1:04:00First-round pick.

1:04:01But their offense scored 14 points in week one, 14 points in week two,

1:04:08and 16 points in week three.

1:04:11Seattle, Denver, Kansas City, two or three on the road before the bye week.

1:04:15I would bet they're 0-6.

1:04:21Is Mike McDaniel – what is going on?

1:04:24It's not just McDaniel.

1:04:25It's Harbaugh.

1:04:25Yeah, you can't do this at McDaniel.

1:04:27Because last year they didn't – I mean, this is three straight years with Harbaugh.

1:04:31Underwhelming.

1:04:33Hmm.

1:04:34It's a mystery.

1:04:35Yeah, I'm sorry, Chargers fans.

1:04:37It's not like we weren't rooting for you.

1:04:38Man.

1:04:39We like Ladd.

1:04:40We like Hampton.

1:04:40Two of the guys are my guys based on the expectations for Mike McDaniel

1:04:45to do what he's done with these guys.

1:04:46Yeah, the Chargers and the Patriots are the two teams that I feel like

1:04:51are broken right now.

1:04:55The bottom four scoring teams in the league, the Dolphins – yeah, okay,

1:05:01we saw that coming.

1:05:02The Titans –

1:05:03Yeah, all that checks out.

1:05:05And then the Patriots and the Chargers.

1:05:06That one's more surprising.

1:05:09Tampa's not far behind.

1:05:10And also, Houston's 0-3.

1:05:13Yeah, that's crazy.

1:05:15But, yeah, I mean, Tampa is – I'm trying to look at their schedule

1:05:19because I want to be a fair-minded, like, critic of different teams,

1:05:24not just the Chargers.

1:05:26Green Bay this week against Tampa.

1:05:28So, that's a tale of two teams feeling the funk.

1:05:31And then at Dallas, then Pittsburgh.

1:05:34Oh, quick Green Bay note.

1:05:37Nothing has been said.

1:05:39This is all speculation.

1:05:41But there was a video of Christian Watson on his last route.

1:05:44Yeah.

1:05:45Yeah.

1:05:46And it definitely looks like a guy who pulled up and reached right for his hamstring.

1:05:50So, Green Bay hasn't said –

1:05:51I wasn't sure how much you thought about that, Mike.

1:05:53Oh, it's very – a guy who has hamstring problems?

1:05:56Yeah.

1:05:57Grabbing his hamstring?

1:05:58Yeah.

1:05:58It was after the interception.

1:05:59Yeah.

1:06:00So, again, nothing has been said publicly about it.

1:06:03But I bring that up because tomorrow's waivers.

1:06:06And if you've got Watson and you haven't – like, they haven't said anything,

1:06:11you need to just be prepared for – you might have a Wednesday pop-up

1:06:15and they're like, oh, Christian Watson is not practicing.

1:06:18And just – you've got to be in front of these things.

1:06:21Yeah.

1:06:22Yeah.

1:06:22All right.

1:06:22We're going to say goodbye for today.

1:06:24Back with waivers tomorrow.

1:06:26If you need custom waiver wireless for every single one of your leagues,

1:06:29that's part of the ultimate dashboard at jointhefoot.com.

1:06:32Thank you for tuning in and supporting the show.

1:06:33We'll catch you tomorrow.

1:06:35Goodbye.

1:06:39Thank you for listening to another episode of the Fantasy Footballers Podcast.

1:06:44Join our fantasy football community on jointhefoot.com.

1:06:48And follow us on Twitter at the FFBallers.

1:06:52FFBallers Podcast.