The Dynasty Aftermath: Week One

Ken Kelly

Welcome to DLF’s Dynasty Aftermath. This staple article is our longest running signature piece as we have a little fun after a tough week at the Dynasty League Football office. You’ll find this article will review the week’s happenings in a variety of ways and help set you up for the coming weeks as we spin around the league in the way we know best. Expect it each and every week on Tuesdays or Wednesdays.

I’ve written this column for the past decade and I forget how much I truly enjoy it. I love combing through the stats of the week, putting together ridiculous lineups, finding waiver wire gems, picking MVPs/LVPs and discussing things to worry about.

That’s not all.

I also really love sharing little bits of my life with the community of DLF and picking a theme for this column each week. This year, I’ve decided to focus on movies or TV shows I love. I grew up in the 80s and to me, it’s the golden age of entertainment, loaded with cult classics – expect to get your fill of them this season.

We start the year off with one of my favorite movies of all-time: The Goonies. I grew up not far from Astoria, Oregon and remember the excitement when the movie came out. It certainly didn’t disappoint, either. In fact, one of my favorite moments as a Dad was talking my kids to see the original “Goonie House” before it was closed to the public not too long ago.

Not only do I love the movie, it’s fitting for week one. After all, we all feel like we have a map to dynasty league treasure and are each on a long quest to “get the loot.” That, in itself, is “good enough for me.”

Week One Fantasy MVP

Hello, Kareem Hunt. When you set the NFL record for yards from scrimmage for a player in their first game, you likely win the best prize – a mention in this article! Hunt was phenomenal in the Chiefs’ surprise win against New England as he posted 148 rushing yards, 98 receiving yards and scored three touchdowns. Hunt was already creeping up into the top five or six on rookie draft boards and all the hype was justified in one night. While we need to see more to ensure this wasn’t a total anomaly, Hunt looked great and when you add him to the other rookies in this class, it has the look of one of the best crops of rookies we’ve seen in quite some time. Andy Reid can work some fantasy magic with running backs and Hunt might just be the back you need to win you your league. “$100 dollar bill! $100 dollar bill!”

Week One Fantasy LVP

It would be easy to pick Allen Robinson here but it’s also not quite fair since he tore his ACL on his first catch of the season. I could also mention David Johnson as he’s gone down, too. Instead, we’ll focus on Le’Veon Bell who made his triumphant return and promptly posted 32 rushing yards, three catches and 15 receiving yards, good for a whopping 7.7 points in most PPR leagues. That anemic point production was less than the likes of Kerwynn Williams, Charcandrick West, James White, Marlon Mack, Mike Tolbert, Shane Vereen, Chris Thompson, Mike Gillislee or Tarik Cohen posted this week. It’s just one game and likely his worst of the year, so there’s no need to panic. Still, that was a bitter pill to swallow for teams counting on a vintage Bell performance.

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Lineup Fun

The Unbeatable Lineup of the Week

QB Alex Smith KC = 368 passing yards, three rushing yards, four touchdowns
RB Kareem Hunt KC = 148 rushing yards, five receptions, 98 receiving yards, three touchdowns
RB Leonard Fournette JAX = 100 rushing yards, three receptions, 24 receiving yards, one touchdown
RB LeSean McCoy BUF = 110 rushing yards, five receptions, 49 receiving yards
WR Antonio Brown PIT = 11 catches, 182 receiving yards
WR Tyreek Hill KC = Seven catches, 133 receiving yards, one touchdown
WR Stefon Diggs MIN = Seven catches, 93 receiving yards, two touchdowns
TE Jason Witten DAL = Seven catches, 59 receiving yards, one touchdown

The Underdog Lineup of the Week

QB DeShone Kizer CLE = 222 passing yards, 17 rushing yards, two total touchdowns, one interception
RB Tarik Cohen CHI = 66 rushing yards, eight receptions, 47 receiving yards, one touchdown
RB Mike Gillislee NE = 45 rushing yards, three touchdowns
RB Chris Thompson WAS  = Four rushing yards, four receptions, 52 receiving yards, one touchdown
WR Kenny Golladay DET = Four receptions, 69 receiving yards, two touchdowns
WR Nelson Agholor PHI = Six receptions, 86 receiving yards, one touchdown
WR Cooper Kupp LAR = Four receptions, 76 receiving yards, one touchdown
TE Jesse James PIT = Six catches, 41 receiving yards, two touchdowns

The Disappointing Lineup of the Week

QB Andy Dalton CIN = 170 passing yards, four interceptions
RB Eddie Lacy SEA = Three rushing yards
RB Derrick Henry TEN = 25 rushing yards
RB Le’Veon Bell PIT = 32 rushing yards, three receptions, 15 receiving yards
WR Jamison Crowder WAS = Three catches, 14 receiving yards, one lost fumble
WR Mike Wallace BAL = 
One catch, eight receiving yards
WR Brandon Marshall NYG = 
One catch, ten receiving yards
TE Tyler Eifert CIN = One catch, four receiving yards

Gut Checks

I’d be worried if I owned Latavius Murray. That job is long gone, folks.

I’d be worried if I was expecting to see Patrick Mahomes any time soon.

I’d be worried if I had a deformed human being chained up under a deserted restaurant and didn’t have a serious stock of Baby Ruths to calm them down.

I’d be worried if I was counting on any Saints running backs in the short-term. It’s going to take a while to shake out here but there isn’t a lot to like from a short-term consistency standpoint as all three of their backs are going to get touches. The line for Mark Ingram is clearly inflated by the Vikings allowing the Saints to just dump off passes to him in the final minute and the great Adrian Peterson played nine snaps. Nine.

I’d be worried if I owned Jordan Howard. He’s a great young running back. The problem is it sure looks like Tarik Cohen is as well and while that could extend his career, that’s going to eat into his potential.

I’d be worried if I had kids who found a treasure map and knew their parents were in financial trouble. It’s going to get real, folks.

I’d be worried if I thought I had this whole Patriots running back thing figured out. Yes, it looks like Mike Gillislee is going to be the short yardage back. And yes, I still don’t trust them.

I’d be worried if I believed last season’s numbers from Adam Thielen were a fluke.

I’d be worried if I thought Tyreek Hill was going to take some time before being a real threat as a full-time receiver.

I’d be worried if I didn’t have a friend with a boatload of ways to avoid booby traps.

I’d be worried if I was banking on anyone on the Seahawks offense at the moment. That offensive line was terrible and Seattle has a lot of work to do before they can be trusted. On that note, Eddie Lacy looks awful.

I’d be worried if I thought anyone other than Ty Montgomery is going to carry the ball for Green Bay in the short-term.

I’d be worried if I just completely ignored Jermaine Kearse. No, he’s not great. Yes, he’s going to get targets.

I’d be worried if I didn’t respect “One Eyed Willy.”

I’d be worried if I owned Laquon Treadwell. He was seventh in targets this week with one. Look, they want him to succeed. Still, it’s going to take a lot to take anything away from the top three targets in Minnesota.

I’d be worried if I ignored what Austin Hooper did on just two catches.

I’d be worried if I owned Joe Mixon. I’m not really concerned about the pedestrian nine yards on eight carries or 15 yards on three catches. I’m more concerned that he had 11 touches, Jeremy Hill had seven and Gio Bernard had eight. There’s just no lead back in Cincinnati at the moment. His ceiling in great but this looks like it’s going to take some time.

I’d be worried if I owned Danny Woodhead. At age 32, any injury is a significant one.

I’d be worried if I owned Vance McDonald. Admittedly, I felt the addition of McDonald was going to spell doom for Jesse James but that didn’t exactly happen, at least not this week.

I’d be worried if I was on the wrong side of the Fratellis.

I’d be worried if I owned Kevin White. Wow.

I’d be worried if I had given up on Corey Coleman. There’s still health concerns here but it’s clear he could have real value if he could grow along with DeShone Kizer.

I’d be worried if I’m all of a sudden treating Kenny Golladay as anything other than a rookie who has promise. Remember, he had done very little until the last few minutes of that game.

I’d be worried if I owned Carson Palmer. We were hoping for vintage Palmer and instead we got the 2016 version this week.

I’d be worried if I was all of a sudden throwing Jacksonville wide receivers in my starting lineup.

I’d be worried if I forgot my inhaler.

I’d be worried if I’m overreacting to one game from Nelson Agholor, with much of that coming on a broken play.

I’d be worried if I was relying on any Colts player before Andrew Luck returns. Yikes.

I’d be worried if I didn’t count on my childhood friends. They’ll always be the best!

I’d be worried if I thought I still needed to hold on to Tom Savage.

I’d be worried if I was really counting on Rob Kelley.

I’d be worried if I owned Dez Bryant. There are just way too many clunkers over the past two seasons for a player who is this talented.

…and finally

I’d be worried if I missed out on some of these rookies this year. Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook, Kareem Hunt and Tarik Cohen all looked fantastic this week and I expect more coming from Christian McCaffrey here soon. Corey Davis was also surprisingly solid after not playing at all this preseason. You can go right down the list here but it was a very promising first week for a host of rookies, solidifying a lot of hype they’ve had over the past few years.

I’d be worried if I’m overreacting to absolutely anything this week. Scoring leaders are going to look off as some players likely had their best day of the year. Le’Veon Bell isn’t going to be terrible. Tom Brady isn’t destined for a retirement home. Bennie Fowler isn’t going to lead the league in touchdown receptions. Patience needs to be applied in your leagues so you don’t make a you move you’ll regret come October.

Fun With Numbers

Alex Smith is on pace for 5,888 passing yards, with 64 touchdown passes and no interceptions this season. If he was to achieve that, I’d bet he’d probably win the MVP.

Andy Dalton is on pace to throw for 2,720 yards with 0 touchdowns passes and 64 interceptions this year. I feel like he’d be benched before he made it quite that far.

Kareem Hunt is on pace for 2,368 rushing yards, 80 catches, 1,568 receiving yards and 48 touchdowns. That would be great but certainly disappointing as he’d add 16 lost fumbles.

Dalvin Cook is on pace for 2,032 rushing yards with no scores. Disappointing.

BJ Goodson had a nice start with the Giants and is on pace for 288 tackles.

Antonio Brown is on pace for 176 catches and 2,912 receiving yards. These were all funny until we got to this one and actually stopped to wonder if it’s possible.

A Look Ahead to Hot Names on the Waiver Wire

Remember, we focus on the lesser names here. There’s really no need to be telling people of your skill level to pick up players you undoubtedly have like Tarik Cohen, Marlon Mack, Chris Carson, Allen Hurns or Kenny Golladay already rostered.  Pay close attention because we tend to be ahead of the curve.

Jesse James, TE PIT

Perhaps the Vance McDonald trade was the wake-up call he needed.

Mike Tolbert, RB BUF

Unbelievably, Tolbert looks like the handcuff to won in Buffalo. With the workload of LeSean McCoy looking huge, he could conceivably hold value if McCoy was to go down.

Kerwynn Williams and Andre Ellington, RBs ARI

I’m in squarely in the, “I’d sit anyone other than David Johnson” boat when it comes to Arizona running backs as I believe this is going to be an ugly committee. Still, that doesn’t mean these two don’t have value.

Orleans Darkwa, RB NYG

I just can’t quit you, Orleans Darkwa! Paul Perkins just isn’t great.

Buck Allen, RB BAL

With Danny Woodhead going down, he looks like he’ll have some nice value.

Tommylee Lewis, WR NO

Call me crazy but I think Lewis carves out a role at some point this season.

Markus Wheaton, WR CHI

Somebody has to catch the ball in Chicago and that’s Kevin White’s job only five times out of 48 games.

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ken kelly