Monday Hangover: Week 14
The fantasy football community lost a great person recently when Mike Tagliere of FantasyPros passed away from COVID-19, despite being fully vaccinated against the disease. His shocking and sudden passing has left a huge void behind the scenes in the industry and he leaves behind a beautiful family, including Tabbie (Mike’s wife) and their children, Alyssa (18) and Jonathan (4). Many have rallied to support the Tagliere family and there’s a GoFundMe account set up to do just that. If any of you feel the calling to give, there are few people better to support than “Tags.” He will be missed!
I’m honored to write DLF’s traditional Sunday Six Pack series this year. However, it’s essential to go beyond predicting and discussing what will happen. Therefore, I will look at my storylines from the weekly Six Pack and summarize the results in these Monday Hangover articles. Occasionally, I will also add other important reactions from the week, whether injuries, breakouts, or busts. So let’s jump into it!
Rashod Bateman Warning Signs
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to make any long-term takeaways from this game for dynasty, as Lamar Jackson exited after four passing attempts with an ankle injury. However, Tyler Huntley performed adequately as his backup, completing 27 of 38 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown. The Ravens also trailed for most of their 24-22 loss to the Browns, forcing them to throw 42 passes compared to 23 rushing attempts. Huntley is a fine rusher and gained 45 yards, but he’s nothing compared to Jackson, removing an element of the Ravens’ offense.
But, Bateman had a strong game, catching seven of eight targets for 103 yards. He tied Marquise Brown in targets behind Mark Andrews’ 11, although Brown only had five receptions for 41 yards on his eight looks. Even though Bateman played well, I’m definitely using this game as a selling opportunity. Let’s use the DLF Trade Finder to examine a few deals I’d accept.
I like Brandon Aiyuk and Bateman, but I love DK Metcalf. Metcalf is one of my favorite buy-lows in all of dynasty, and George Kittle is a difference-maker at the tight end position. Even with a first-rounder on the Bateman side, I’d far prefer the Metcalf and Kittle package.
I have zero faith in Laviska Shenault, so he barely matters in this trade. While I have some concerns about Antonio Gibson, running backs are far more scarce than wide receivers. I’d rather have the running back in this deal easily.
There were plenty of trades in the trade finder that I didn’t like, selling Bateman for pennies. However, those deals occurred before this breakout game. Now, I think there will be a selling window to move on from Bateman. I don’t want to make high-priced investments in the Ravens’ passing game outside of Mark Andrews.
Trevor Lawrence’s Buy-Low Window
I won’t even bother to go into the Trade Finder after this week because those deals carry little relevance. Those trades all went through before this embarrassing performance, where the Jaguars suffered a 20-0 shutout to the Titans. Lawrence had an abysmal game, completing 24/40 passes for 221 yards, no touchdowns, and four interceptions. In this contest, the Jaguars also totaled eight rushing yards, so they accomplished nothing on the ground or through the air.
At this point, the Jaguars must fire head coach Urban Meyer immediately.
Urban Meyer must be fired immediately. Not at the end of the season. That still leaves 4 weeks of damage he can still cause. Right now.
— Tyler (@TylerFFCreator) December 12, 2021
I think that Tweet encapsulates my feelings on Meyer almost perfectly. He has demolished this entire offense, including Lawrence, James Robinson, and Laviska Shenault.
After this putrid performance, I bet you can acquire Lawrence at a deep discount in dynasty superflex formats. Try offering a 2022 first and second-round pick or something similar from the vaunted 2023 class. Lawrence remains every bit the generational talent he was coming into the NFL, and that isn’t easy to find in superflex leagues. Take this opportunity to acquire him cheaply because there might never be another.
Is Travis Kelce in Decline?
Unfortunately, Kelce did not push this storyline to the side this week. Even though the Chiefs had a fantastic game, beating the Raiders 48-9, Kelce produced little for his fantasy managers. He caught three of four targets for 27 yards, duplicating his receiving line from last week.
Travis Kelce has been outside of the top-12 FF TEs for the past two weeks.
That’s the first time he’s missed the TE1 range for two straight games since Week 9/10, 2016.
— Ryan McDowell (@RyanMc23) December 12, 2021
He has a ridiculous track record of finishing as a top-12 fantasy tight end, especially considering that Tweet. But now, I understand if dynasty managers are somewhat panicking. It’s the longest they’ve had to wait for usable production from Kelce in five years.
At this point, there’s no way that Kelce will come anywhere near his 2018 or 2019 production, let alone his 2020 numbers. I fully believe Kelce is now in decline, and he’s a contender-only asset. To me, he seems like he will continue to produce usable tight-end numbers as long as he’s healthy and on the Chiefs, but I doubt he’s ever the same Kelce again. I would bet against him ever finishing as the TE1 after this year, and Mark Andrews could even pass him this season. Considering I’m a massive ageist, Kelce will likely represent a no-go asset in dynasty startups or trades this off-season.
Russell Wilson’s Future
I don’t think this game had any impact on Wilson’s value. The Seahawks won 33-13, easily defeating the lowly Texans. Wilson had a good game, throwing for 260 yards and two touchdowns. While that’s a decent real-life performance, he certainly wasn’t a week-winner for fantasy football.
Instead, the Seahawks established the run behind Rashaad Penny of all players. Penny dominated with 16 carries for 137 yards and two touchdowns, including two long breakaway runs. The Seahawks had 29 runs compared to 28 passes, and Wilson did not indeed cook once again. He also failed to involve DK Metcalf heavily, who only had four receptions for 43 yards.
To me, it’s apparent that Wilson will find himself elsewhere in 2022. Despite potent weapons in Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll just doesn’t want to allow Wilson to thrive. It’s nice that he had a decent game against the Texans, though, as if he didn’t, he would’ve lost a significant amount of dynasty value.
Terry McLaurin’s Quarterback Problem
It’s impossible to grade McLaurin’s performance in Washington’s 27-20 loss to the Cowboys, as he exited early with a concussion. However, that injury occurred in the third quarter, and he failed to put up a single fantasy point in the first half. He had four targets, catching none of them, in yet another abysmal performance from Taylor Heinicke.
Heinicke completed 11/25 passes for 122 yards, a touchdown, and an interception, and he also lost a fumble. He also left the game with an injury to his knee, forcing Kyle Allen to step in as the replacement. Allen did nothing noteworthy either, with four completions on nine attempts for 53 yards.
Somehow, though, if the NFL season ended right now, Washington would make the playoffs in the weak NFC with a 6-7 record. But there’s currently a five-way tie for the final spot, and I have a feeling Washington doesn’t end up with a playoff berth come season’s end. Either way, Heinicke is obviously not the long-term answer, and they won’t have a premium draft pick to guarantee selecting a top quarterback in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Therefore, I think it’s time to move on from McLaurin’s talent and accept his dynasty value reality. He will turn 27 in September 2022, and he still likely will not have a legitimate quarterback. So let’s look at the Trade Finder for some trade options.
This trade was probably my favorite deal in the entire Trade Finder. Brown is worth far more than McLaurin, despite his injury issues this season. Getting a second-round pick with Brown is overkill.
I’m not sure if you can still get a return like this for McLaurin, but I’m fine pouncing if you can. I think the days where he’s worth two first-round picks are in the past, and he’s now more of a first plus type of player. If I were in a rebuild or a mediocre team, I’m fine taking the younger assets and getting out from under McLaurin.
As I mentioned in the six-pack, I don’t want this section to come off as even the slightest criticism of McLaurin’s talent. On the contrary, I think he could be an alpha wide receiver and a fantasy WR1 in the right situation. But unfortunately, given his career trajectory and age, dynasty managers don’t get the luxury of waiting for that situation to appear.
The Broncos’ Receiving Weapons
If I had a panic alarm on the Broncos’ receiving weapons before this game, it’s now a five-alarm fire. The Broncos demolished the Lions 38-10, moving to 7-6 for the season. However, Teddy Bridgewater only threw 25 passes, compared to 39 total rushes for Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams. Bridgewater only managed 179 yards on those attempts, putting up two touchdowns.
Jerry Jeudy led the Broncos with six targets, although he only had five catches for 47 yards. Noah Fant probably provided the most fantasy value considering the tight end position, catching all four of his targets for 51 yards. Unfortunately, Albert Okwuegbunam dropped a fantasy bomb all over the rest of the fantasy weapons, vulturing a touchdown along with his five receptions for 41 yards. Considering that Javonte Williams had a receiving touchdown, this game represented the ultimate nightmare for those who started primary Broncos’ receiving weapons.
At this point, Tim Patrick is barely worth a mention. He had two catches for 21 yards, but he’s just a guy. He will never have any startable value with Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, and Fant healthy. However, Sutton is a far more significant concern. Once again, he demolished his fantasy managers, finishing with one reception for nine yards on two targets. He continued his streak of finishing behind Jeudy in PPR points, and somehow he recorded his fifth straight game with five or fewer PPR points.
I could pull up the Trade Finder for Sutton deals, but I think that’s missing the point. Sutton is just a more expensive version of Patrick right now, and he will not produce with all weapons healthy. All of these players remain under contract for 2022 at least, and there’s no guarantee the Broncos acquire a veteran quarterback like Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson to revitalize the offense. I want to get Sutton off my dynasty team immediately, at almost any cost.
- Forgotten Dynasty Youth: Top Tier - March 27, 2024
- NFL Expiring Contracts In 2025: Tight End - February 25, 2024
- NFL Expiring Contracts In 2025: Wide Receiver - February 18, 2024
