Ian Allan answers your fantasy football questions. In this edition: Odell Beckham Jr.'s crazy end zone antics. What's up with Wendell Smallwood yo-yo act on draft board? Will Julio Jones ever score? And is it time to get rid of Melvin Gordon?
Question 1
I was watching Odell this week and I am curious what you think about behavior. If it’s a choice between a classy guy and a clown obviously go with class. But I actually downgrade a lot. These guys like Odell seem so out of control, I don’t trust him on the field, off the field, with PEDs or taking care of himself in the gym and at practice. It is one of the reasons I always rank David Johnson as #1 by a mile. His Instagram page is all family, he is as boring than my grandma. I have total confidence in him on so many levels. The guy looks like a coach's dream.
Yaesha Newman ()
I was at the dentist yesterday, checking out a Sports Illustrated in the waiting room, and there was a feature about the best conditioned athletes – the guys (in all sports) who work out the hardest to be in tip-top shape. Soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo was No. 1. They ranked Beckham 6th, I think, which was the highest of anyone in the NFL. Whatever problems he has, I don’t think they’re related to him not taking care of himself. I have been bothered, however, by his willingness to hurt his team with 15-yard penalties. Absolutely no remorse for the stunt in the end zone on Sunday. Antonio Brown is the same way. These guys just can’t help themselves. Nobody seems to be able to control them. If it gets much worse, coaches might have to give it weight when calling plays in the red zone – better to throw touchdowns to players who can be counted on to not hurt the team by giving away 15 yards. (But Brown and Beckham both regularly score touchdowns that other players can’t.)
Question 2
What is happening with the wild fluctuation in your projections for Wendell Smallwood? I drafted the guy as my final RB slot in both leagues based on your hunches that he might wind up as lead dog. In your 19 September re-drafter (PPR) he was ranked around #47. In your 12 September re-drafter he was down at #59 (PPR). In your 07 September draft update he was at #47 (PPR), the same place he was in your 31 Aug cheat sheet. Now in your 26 September re-drafter he's shot up to #14! I dropped him in both of my leagues two weeks ago (when he plunged to #59) and now I got beat out for my waiver wire pick to get him back. I was able to get him in my second league thank heaven. But what are you seeing that has him rocketing up like that? He still part of a time-share. Do you really think all of Sproles' production will go to Smallwood?
Andrew Napoli (Alexandria, VA)
Back in the spring, the Eagles signed LeGarrette Blount. That seemed weird – he doesn’t really fit their offense – so I was figuring at that time that Smallwood might be better. Then we get to camp and Blount is definitely starting, while Smallwood is hurt and not even practicing or playing. Corey Clement seemed to be running pretty well. One of the beat writers even speculated that Smallwood wouldn’t make the team. I won’t get out the week-by-week numbers, but Smallwood started moving down on my board. Later in the preseason, Blount looked old and slow, and there was some speculation of Smallwood being given a chance to become the No. 1 back. But when he got on the field, he didn’t do much of anything. End preseason. Then in first two games of the year, Philadelphia made no effort whatsoever to run the ball. Their running backs finished with under 60 yards in both of the first two games. Darren Sproles was playing the most of their backs. Blount not bringing much to the table, but Smallwood not doing anything to merit playing more – averaging about a yard per carry. The Eagles looked like one of those pass-crazy teams like the Lions or Giants that would just pass it on every down. On Sunday, though, they flipped it on, running for 193 yards against a good Giants defense. Both Smallwood and Blount had 12 carries for 67-71 yards. The team has a good offensive line, so I am figuring going forward that they will be more of an average-type rushing teams, and probably top 10 in rushing touchdowns. Now Sproles is out for the year, and where does that leave us? Blount is still a big, old, slow back. He’ll get some carries and score the touchdowns from 1-2 yards, but he doesn’t really fit the offense. He can’t catch passes. They used Corey Clement some against the Giants, but he’s their third-string back, and I don’t think he’s a good pass catcher either. We got a good look at Clement in the preseason, and I think he’s a college-type back. They re-signed Kenjon Barner, but I’m not sure he’ll do much more than return punts. Maybe he can help out some. So I think Smallwood is their main guy. I think he’ll get plenty of carries (10-14 carries in most carries) and I think he’s their best and only pass-catching running back. I think he’ll give you 25-plus receiving yards in a lot of games, and that’s why I have him moving well up my board. I will concede that getting him up to 14th among running backs in PPR seems a little high, but definitely a player whose value is massively on the upswing.
Question 3
What happened to Melvin Gordon in your eyes? On the 19th you projected Gordon 7th in terms of a re-draft (PPR league) and now he's 21st. That is a huge drop. Why?
TIM ZEUCH (Mason, OH)
I’m probably overreacting some, but I have downgraded that offense. A few weeks back, I was expecting the Chargers would have one of the top 10-12 offenses in the league. I had them at something like 40-41 touchdowns. But after three straight lesser outings, the reality is sinking in that they’re definitely finishing in last in the AFC West, with Philip Rivers throwing picks and a nominal commitment to the running game. When they brought in Anthony Lynn, I thought he was going to help Gordon’s numbers. It was Lynn, after all, who helped Buffalo lead the league in rushing last year. That hasn’t happened and doesn’t look like it will. They’re 27th in rushing right now – one of these teams like the Giants and Cardinals that doesn’t really even try to run the ball. So I lowered the overall team projection, bringing down all Chargers on my board. Gordon also has had problems with durability and had a knee issue last week that ended up severely limiting his playing time against Kansas City. But if you’ve got Gordon, probably best to try to just ride out the storm. I was rewatching some of that Kansas City game yesterday, and he popped off a few decent enough runs early in that game.
Question 4
Just curious when you will update the Fantasy Index Open standings (if before end of year)?
Darrell Sooy (West Chester, PA)
We’ll crown the champion in early January. I suppose we could considering posting scores at the halfway point to show people where they’re at. Maybe scores at the end of each month. I’ll talk it over with the guys. As the season progresses, I have noticed the unusually high number of injury replacements with kickers. That position has really been shot to hell. Point of the contest was to see who could pick the best players. At that position, it’s not a game of who did the best job of ranking Janikowski, Sturgis, Santos, Novak and Lambo the lowest.
Question 5
TD only league. Julio Jones disappoints every week. Last week I had Hogan on the bench and Julio in my lineup in accordance with your rankings. Is it time to demote Julio to the status of "bye week fill in" and start Hogan and Parker every week?
JOHN BENNETT (Chino, CA)
I think Brady might throw 40 touchdowns, and Hogan should get a portion of those. Gronkowski will lead them in touchdown catches, but Hogan might be next in line. I can’t say with certainty that Cooks will outscore Hogan. So in general, I would expect Hogan would be one of my top 2 each week. With Julio, let’s go big picture. (I got in a little trouble last week taking too much of a short-term view with Russell Wilson and Eli Manning.) In the last three years, Atlanta has thrown 87 touchdown passes in the games that Julio Jones has played; he’s scored 21 touchdowns. So in general, he’s catching just under a quarter of their touchdowns. So in weeks where you’re thinking Matt Ryan should throw 2 TDs, you should be budgeting Jones with about a 50 percent chance of scoring. We’ve seen enough of Jones and that offense to know that’s what he is. And Parker could be an up-and-coming star. He’s making some big catches, and Jay Cutler might have a willingness to throw up some high balls for him. You have a tough choice this week, with Hogan at home in a favorable matchup and Parker facing what might be a really leaky New Orleans defense. Jones is overdue but might also be slowed by a back injury.
Question 6
My question is about Detroit and the high rankings of Jones and Abdullah. Both are barely producing, but where they were ranked and where I drafted them I'm almost stuck starting them. I know Jones scored twice, but without those TDs he'd be nonexistent. Abdullah is reliant on breaking off long runs, but he's not done that. Is this what to expect going forward or is this a patience thing?
Bill Petilli (Harrison, NY)
With Abdullah, I see a quick, explosive back – probably more like Barry Sanders than any other back in the league right now. I believe he’ll break some long runs and have plenty of good games. I wouldn’t give up on him. But at the same time, it hasn’t happened yet. Detroit at times doesn’t seem real interested in running the ball. I wouldn’t want to be banking on Abdullah turning it around this week at Minnesota. With Marvin Jones, I think he’s really solid. Him and Golden Tate are the two big cogs in that offense, and I believe Jones will be a solid, productive receiver. Some of his struggles this far, have been related to the defenses they’ve faced. He saw a lot of Patrick Peterson in Week 1; Peterson just helped hold Dez Bryant to 2 catches for 12 yards. In Week 2 they played the Giants, passing for only 122 yards. I believe Jones will be fine.
Question 7
Please help settle a draft trade dispute within our league. This trade has caused serious issues within the league from one owner and we truly need an outside source to provide their opinion with some data if possible. It is a 10-team league, PPR, with 6 points per TD pass. Owner A with the 7th pick gave his 1st, 2nd, 8th 10th round draft pick. Owner B with the 9th pick gave their 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th round pick. Before the season began what were the values of each pick based off of your projections?
Keith Mason (Sumter, SC)
I don’t think it matters which side of the trade is more valuable. The question is whether either of the two sides was intentionally making a bad trade. Were they colluding? I don’t have any reason to suspect they were. To me, looks like a standard case of one owner preferring to have the two early picks, and the other liking the idea of having four picks between 29th and 52nd. Time will tell which guy is right. (Why are we having this discussion?)
Question 8
I can keep only Edelman or Greg Olsen on IR in a PPR dynasty league. Flip a coin?
Mike McGraw (N Chelmsford, MA)
Edelman is probably nearer to the end of the road. He’s 31 and lives on his quickness, working in the slot. They’ve got a bunch of other wide receivers. I don’t think he’s ever getting back to being a 100-catch receiver. With Olsen, you’re probably getting him back on the field this year, for whatever that’s worth. At the same time, wide receiver is the more difficult position to fill.
Question 9
In a TD dynasty league, I am having difficulty finding a complementary wide receiver to pair with Davante Adams. I’m looking at these four: Willie Snead (like the pairing with Brees), Will Fuller (struggling offense), Mike Williams (like the Rivers pairing when healthy), Corey Davis (like the pairing with Mariota when healthy).
HOWIE FISHMAN (Hermosa Beach, CA)
All have some value, I think. I’m not a big Snead fan; I’m not sure he’s better than Ted Ginn or even Brandon Coleman. So he’s down at No. 4 on my list. I would go with Corey Davis for now. He showed in the opener that he’s the real deal, I thought. Had 6 catches in limited playing time in that game, including one contested catch that was really impressive. Not playing this week, but he’s the guy I’d want long term.
Question 10
I am looking for a valuable WR2. My league has 2 WR spots, 2 RB spots, and a flex. My team is as follows. RB: Dalvin, Kareem, Gillislee, Ingram, Kelley. WR: Evans, E.Sanders, Pryor, M.Jones. I'm really looking to deal Gillislee, Ingram or Kelley. The kicker is that I can keep Gillisee next year as a 15th-round pick so there is extra value if I trade him. Would it be wise to try and trade Gillisee for Stefon Diggs? He was drafted in the 7th round. Let me know what you think.
Chris Clay (Long Beach, CA)
When Diggs is on his game, he looks like he could develop into another Antonio Brown. I saw it in a couple of games last year, and that’s the way he’s played in his first two home games this season. I won’t get into trying to measure the value of 7th- and 15th-round picks, but sure would be nice to have Diggs.
Question 11
I've got a trade offer pending: I receive Doug Martin and Davante Adams. I trade away Big Ben and Jay Ajayi. Full PPR. Brees is current starter. Mixon, Cohen, Coleman and Henry round out RBs. Green, Diggs and Parker at WR. What say you?
KW Song (Pittsburgh, PA)
I think you need Jay Ajayi, and it would be nice to have Roethlisberger when they get that offense tuned up and they’re pounding people at Heinz Field. Adams is a nice player, but I don’t see what he does for you – I think you’re fine with Green, Diggs and Parker.
Question 12
In a 2-QB league I have Carr, Dalton and Hoyer. Is it insane to consider Hoyer over Carr this week considering the bad match up for Carr and the lousy showing vs. the Redskins?
CHRIS HENKLE (Aurora, IL)
With me, all options are always on the table. I would start Dalton over Carr. I hate the matchup of Oakland at Denver. That Denver defense is so good that all quarterbacks tend to struggle to put up more than 200 yards and a touchdown at the stadium. But Hoyer is also on the road against a good defense, and he looked pretty feeble in his first two games – 193 and 99 passing yards against Carolina and Seattle, with no touchdowns. Probably best to just leave Carr in there and hope that he and the offense got a wakeup call from the beat-down they got from Washington last week.
Question 13
I'm in a 10 team PPR league. I have Russell Wilson and Dak Prescott as QBs, Todd Gurley, Dalvin Cook, CJ Anderson, Buck Allen as RBs. A trade was proposed, Tom Brady and Ameer Abdullah for Cook and Wilson. Thoughts? I could use the QB improvements, and likely still have a good RB situation. Thanks!!
Matthew Breslow (Pickerington, OH)
I don’t see it. You’ve got two top-10 quarterbacks already. In a rough sense, I believe Brady will average about 25 points per game, but I’ve got Wilson and Prescott at about 24 and 22. So you’re getting just a little there. At running back, I’m projecting Cook at almost 17 points per game – about 5-6 more than Abdullah.
Question 14
I am in a touchdown only league. We play 3 receivers. Who would you play if the matchup were comparable? Baldwin, Cobb, Hogan, Parker or Fitzgerald?
David Anderson (Ada, OK)
I think they’re all in the mix. I would be going with matchup-based decisions each week. That’s a hard game to play, of course. When you have five receivers of that ilk, there will be many weeks that one of the two you leave on the bench has a good game.
Question 15
I lost Greg Olsen. I picked up Fleener and Jesse James. I have a trade offer of Emmanuel Sanders for Jason Witten. My other WRs are Dez Bryant, Tyreek Hill, and Mohammed Sanu. I usually play Sanders, Tarik Cohen or Tevin Coleman in the flex. Is Witten enough of an upgrade to make this a worthwhile trade? My gut and the numbers say yes, but Sanders has way more upside than Sanu in my mind.
Andrew Napoli (Alexandria, VA)
I wouldn’t sell Sanu short. He’s playing a lot better this year than he did in his season with the Falcons. It’s early, but he’s on pace right now for 80 catches. Julio Jones tends to have issues staying healthy; should he be sidelined for a spell, Sanu should be really good.