Fantasy Index

Fantasy Index Blackout

September 30, 2026

Purple Cobras Win Blackout

Pairing crowd favorites Garrett Wilson and Christian Watson with a return from the unlikely prodigal, Drake London, led Jason Duerr and his team, Purple Cobras, to the top spot. Only 9-percent of rosters included London, who finished as the top eligible receiver in Week 3.

Week 4 of the Blackout competition is LIVE!

To celebrate the beginning of bye weeks in Week 5 the Blackout theme will be: “No-1s Like Bye Weeks!” The top scoring WR1 from every NFL team will be unavailable in addition to the normal exclusions from the other positions.

Jason selected four of the top scoring players including solid outings from the Vikings Defense and the Ram’s second year kicker Harrison Mevis. Like London, Mevis was unheralded in this week’s entries, appearing on just 4-percent of rosters.

Those two selections really helped to differentiate Purple Cobras and get that top spot, which is the magic of the Blackout. Taking chances creates opportunities to get ahead of the pack. That’s offset by a kind of herd mentality around risk. When Ashton Jeanty has a mediocre outing (12.30 points) it affects nearly half the field so you can get by with that dud. A falling tide drops all boats, if you will.

In hopes of lowering selection rates and creating some parity in scoring I’ve changed things up in this week’s player pool. Rather than six Blackouts for QB, TE, PK and ST and eight for RB and WR, I’ve only allowed myself four and six respectively, leaving more top options to choose from. I hope you all find it fun and maybe a bit more challenging.

Take a look at Jason’s winning roster:

Week 3 highest score
Jason Duerr (Purple Cobras)
(Maximum-points picks in bold)
% StartedPosNameTeam Score
37.88%QBJared GoffDET22.05
57.27%QBDak PrescottDAL21.70
43.94%RBAshton JeantyLV12.30
37.58%RBChase BrownCIN8.90
30.00%WRChristian WatsonGB22.60
8.79%WRDrake LondonATL28.40
36.67%WRGarrett WilsonNYJ26.70
35.45%TESam LaPortaDET7.40
21.52%TETyler WarrenIND14.70
20.61%PKTyler BassBUF6.00
3.64%PKHarrison MevisLAR14.00
31.52%STMinnesota VikingsMIN16.00
26.97%STHouston TexansHOU10.00
Total210.75

The most popular roster did bounce back with 58-percent of the available points. Last week was a meager 43-percent. And while only two of the top scoring players made the cut, the were some strong showings at the top of the roster. Parker Washington provided a middling outing for 32-percent of rosters and the tight ends, Sam LaPorta and Mark Andrews combined for a cringeworthy 13.80 points. It will be interesting to see how things fall with an expanded player pool this week.

Week 3 Wisdom Of The Crowd Score
(Maximum-points picks in bold)
% StartedPosNameTeam Score
57.27%QBDak PrescottDAL21.70
37.88%QBJared GoffDET22.05
43.94%RBAshton JeantyLV12.30
37.58%RBChase BrownCIN8.90
36.67%WRGarrett WilsonNYJ26.70
32.42%WRParker WashingtonJAC13.00
30.00%WRChristian WatsonGB22.60
35.45%TESam LaPortaDET7.40
26.36%TEMark AndrewsBAL5.40
45.45%PKKa'imi FairbairnHOU5.00
30.30%PKEddy PineiroSF6.00
34.85%STSan Francisco 49ersSF2.00
31.52%STMinnesota VikingsMIN16.00
Total169.05

The perfect roster didn’t make things easy by blacking out eight of the top scoring players. However, only three top scoring players topped a 10-percent selection rate. Kudos to the 13-percent who bet on the TE1, Juwan Johnson. Michael Wilson was back to his gluttonous ways with a startling 17 targets, to the benefit of just 2-percent of blackout entries. The top scoring QBs averaged just a 5-percent selection rate and the RB just 4-percent. Here is the max points roster:

Perfect
% StartedPosNameTeam Score
n/aQBBrock PurdySF34.25
n/aQBTyler ShoughNO32.35
2.73%QBGeno SmithNYJ31.25
6.36%QBMatthew StaffordLAR28.80
n/aRBJahmyr GibbsDET41.40
n/aRBBijan RobinsonATL35.30
n/aRBDerrick HenryBAL21.90
2.42%RBJeremiyah LoveARI21.90
6.06%RBKyren WilliamsLAR21.80
n/aWRJaxon Smith-NjigbaSEA35.50
8.79%WRDrake LondonATL28.40
36.67%WRGarrett WilsonNYJ26.70
1.82%WRMichael WilsonARI25.90
n/aTEBrock BowersLV27.60
n/aTEGeorge KittleSF26.20
13.03%TEJuwan JohnsonNO25.30
2.73%TEHarold FanninCLE24.10
3.64%PKHarrison MevisLAR14.00
2.73%PKSpencer ShraderIND13.00
31.52%STMinnesota VikingsMIN16.00
4.85%STDenver BroncosDEN14.00
Total291.15

Purple Cobras has had a steady progression this season. They finished just inside the top 200 in Week 1, cracked the top 100 in Week 2 and brought home the top score in Week 3, moving them into 8th place overall. Last week’s winning roster, PRIMETIME, slipped to 33rd overall by finishing outside the top 250 in Week 3 (thanks to DeVon Achane). Week 1’s top scorer Brack Varnon bounced back into the top 100 at 58th place this week, he’s in 4th. The big news of the week though is the leader Matt G. who had a bit of a faceplant. He finished outside the top 200 despite some strong picks at QB and WR. His RBs and especially TEs let him down and while he’s still clinging to the top spot, his massive 39 point lead has dwindled to an entirely surmountable 11 points. The game is afoot! Let’s see what you’ve got in Week 4.

Top 25 Overall
RkTeam NameScore
1Matt G.597.85
2REcks Picks586.95
3Chevytruck576.30
4Brack Varnon570.10
5Alpha Wolves568.95
6Headbangers565.20
7Steve K.563.75
8Purple Cobras560.85
9AMARI 2600556.35
10Bandits26552.65
11Frosty Mugs552.35
12Coalcrackers551.50
13Relm551.15
14Cincinnati Buckeye549.55
15Sphynx-sters549.45
16Happy Harry 26549.30
17Pigskin Krazies548.90
18DawgsGoneWild548.15
19FISH ON547.85
20SEAN D.545.80
21Old Timer544.60
22Brian B.544.00
23Anthony P.543.80
24Locke & Loaded543.65
25The Crushers543.00

Here’s a look at the Top 25 from this week :

Top 25 Week 3
RkTeam NameScore
1Purple Cobras210.75
2Beaver Cleaver205.30
3Honest Injuns199.30
4DawgsGoneWild198.75
5Alpha Wolves198.65
6Natrone Means Business198.60
7Chevytruck198.00
8Benny Beaver197.20
9Roughriders197.15
10Headbangers194.55
11ToXicWaSte 2026193.10
12O Club189.70
13Blanda's Bombers188.95
14Old Timer188.00
15Rodeo Clowns187.75
16Math Mania187.65
17SHAMROCKS187.25
18The First Crowëll187.00
19Dallas Jerryatrics186.90
20SEAN D.186.35
21Flying Shoulderpads185.80
22Stephanie N.185.20
23Zed's Dead Baby185.10
24Texas Armadillo184.60
25Rogo go Bears184.55

Older
Newer

Fantasy Index