FFGB: Week 6

For the year's that this site has been in existence I've kept it about Fargo area sports as close to 100% of the time as I could. Did I mix other things some times and make parallel's that extend beyond the field, court & track? Absolutely, but only when the comparisons and inclusions made sense to me. Until now that is.

I'm quite certain that talking Fantasy Football will still be relevant to many of you but I admit that it has little to do with the prime directive.

I've talked Fantasy ball for almost half my life but being able to talk about something does not as naturally translate to the keyboard as you may think. Now that the season is under way, I've decided to lock in on the four key aspects of running a Fantasy team. There's a bit of tongue in cheek with the four categories but each are my personal recommendations for this week. All player considerations will be based on ownership and usage in Myfantasyleague leagues

"Trade scenario - 12 team, 1/2 PPR. Team A gets: OBJ; Team B gets: Kenny Golladay and Stephon Diggs. Who wins?"

Beckham is the most talented of the three but with the Browns being who they have been going back a LONG time, the possibility of getting two starters makes it an easy decision. Team B all day.

"Who do I start this week, Lamar Jackson vs Bengals or Patrick Mahomes vs Texans?"

I have this exact dilemma to decide upon so I'm glad to answer! As you have likely realized, you have a no-lose situation at the highest point-scoring position. Showtime may bust out of his minor slump against Houston and I'm hoping I start him when he does go off again but Jackson versus Cincy is too juicy to pass up this week. In all five games this year they've given up at least 18 points with Murray hanging a 28 on them this past weekend. Lamarvelous is better than Kyler right now so that 28 could be passed with a quarter to play on Sunday.

"Should I trade Julian Edleman for Evan Engram?"

If you're strong at wide receiver and need an upgrade at TE, then yeah, make that swap. More to the point, the only way I wouldn't do that deal is if I had a combination of Waller, Ertz &/or Kelce with basically no wide receiver depth.

"Should I drop OJ Howard for Gerald Everett? Have Waller on bye."

With two double-digit scoring weeks in a row and 19 targets over that span, I get the appeal. This week has LAR hosting San Fran which is a step up in class, statically speaking. Everett could be developing into a possible regular option so just to play keep away you may want to add him but I'm not sure this week will pay off the same that the past two have.

"I need a TE. I’ve been given the offer of Andrews or Ertz for QB Watson, which TE should I take? I already have Dak as my starter at QB."

The appeal to address the TE position is understandable but giving up the better of the quarterbacks to do so is not something that I can advise. As soon as Watson is able to get on the same page with Hopkins & Fuller at the same time, Houston will take off, pun intended. Dak has had a good start but I would move him before moving Watson and maybe you could get Andrews plus someone else for him.

His data sample size is still small but off what he was able to do against one of the league's best defenses, Darius Slayton is the flavor of the week. The only way he could have made a better impression is getting more targets. Thing is, Jones has already shown that he likes the rookie so as they continue to work together that may improve.

*In seven % of leagues Saquon Barkley is a free agent. I know there are all sorts of new-fangled league types out there now but there is no excuse for that much non-ownership of one of the league's best running backs.

I said it a couple of weeks ago and it's all the more true now - Latavius Murray is not worth owning in Fantasy Football.

Jimmy Garappolo has had fairly pedestrian fantasy totals so far this year but I think that could change in a major way this weekend as they face the Big Horns. I think his floor could still be his best performance of the young season, 25 points.

I've long thought that defenses and kickers were just as valuable as every other position on the fantasy roster. That may have never been more easy to say than now since New England and Philly have had two of the greatest defensive performances ever. They can also just as unpredictably sink your team with a zero from a kicker or worse, negative points from a defense but with some thought, those results should be avoidable more often than not. Which brings me to my point - The Kansas City defense is not the sieve that it was even last season but going up against a Texans offense that just put up 53 is a very poor spot to gamble that they'll finish with even a zero this week.

LOOK ELSEWHERE

"I firmly believe the dedicated TE slot in all leagues should die a swift death. TE should only be in a WR/RB/TE flex spot and, preferably, as a second flex spot."

I've been on this wagon for years now. Even as a happy Kelce owner in a dynasty league, I think it should not be a mandatory start position. There are just not enough players at the position to merit the force. Everybody should be able to put their best possible lineup out every week so as to have the best chance to remain competitive for as long as possible. Forced TE start spots don't allow that to happen.

But that's all for now.

Until next Tuesday, happy Fantasy hunting!