X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Join the Best Live Fantasy Chat Community!

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Are You For Real? Surprising SP Starts (Week 20)

Welcome to our surprising starts series. Every week we’ll be going over a few surprising starting pitcher performances around the majors to determine whether these starts were smoke and mirrors or something more.

This week we're looking at another of the Rays' pseudo-starters, a brand new Yankee, and a surprising second half from a Ranger.

Yonny Chirinos is back after a long absence from the majors due to injury and extended time at Triple-A. Lance Lynn has been dominant since coming to the Yankees, having unseated Sonny Gray permanently. Yovani Gallardo has pitched his way to a 2.78 ERA in the second half.

Featured Promo: Get your MLB Premium Pass for 50% off the regular price with any full-season pass. Exclusive access to our Draft Kit, Nick Mariano's #1 accuracy rankings, Ariel Cohen's #1 accuracy ATC projections, customized advice in the Team Sync platform, Live Draft Assistant, 15 in-season lineup tools, customized rankings and much more! Go Premium, Win More!

 

Real Deal or Mirage?

Yonny Chirinos, Tampa Bay Rays

2018 Stats (prior to this game): 41.1 IP, 3.70 ERA, 3.59 FIP, 2.8 K/BB ratio

08/09 vs. BAL: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K

This wasn’t technically a start for Chirinos, but he will serve in a long-relief, pseudo-starter role for the Rays presumably for the remainder of this season. Chirinos had been pitching well earlier this season, posting a 3.71 ERA in April, but a forearm strain and trip to the minors cost him three months. He had a bit of a rocky start coming back, but over his last two appearances Chirinos has allowed two runs (one earned) over 10 innings with 10 strikeouts. He is only one percent owned in Yahoo leagues as of writing this, and Chirinos could be a valuable piece as an RP eligible starter that also doesn’t count towards weekly start totals in leagues that have limits on starts every week.

Chirinos gets the job done primarily with a three pitch mix, consisting of a 94 MPH sinker, 87.7 MPH slider, and a 86 MPH splitter. He occasionally throws a four-seamer, but Chirinos mainly pitches off his sinker as a fastball and has a dominant breaking pitch, making him a rarity in today’s game. Chirinos has a little more zip on his pitches than the average sinkerballer. Chirinos’ two-seamer has some wicked horizontal movement away from lefties and in on righties. Here’s an example from this game.

The sinker isn’t a pitch that induces a lot of whiffs or strikes in general, but Chirinos has a 9% whiff rate on his sinker, which may be below average compared to breaking pitches, but 9% is high for a two-seam fastball. Batters have a decent average against the pitch at .318, but they only have a .102 ISO. Chirinos’ two-seamer allows him to suppress power and get the occasional strikeout, at least at a higher rate than a traditional sinkerballer such as Brad Keller.

In addition to the sinker, Chirinos has an excellent splitter that is great at inducing whiffs and groundballs. It’s performed as an elite breaking ball for Chirinos this season. Here is one of the splitters from this game.

That is pure filth from Chirinos, and poor Tim Beckham is left flailing at air. Chirinos’ splitter has a 22.6% whiff rate this season, and batters are hitting .082 with an .082 ISO against the pitch. Between his splitter, sinker, and slider Chirinos has an above average 12.4% whiff rate, which would rank 16th among qualified starters if Chirinos had enough innings to qualify. He is just above Luis Severino and Cole Hamels. Chirinos only begun getting more than 8 K/9 this season between Triple-A and the majors, but his swinging strike rate suggests room for strikeout growth. He has a 22.2% strikeout rate this season, but that rate could certainly climb as the season progresses. He has the stuff for it.

The biggest negative with Chirinos is innings. With an opener pitching the first one or two innings, it seems unlikely a start would ever go longer than six innings. Most appearances probably won’t even reach six innings. He isn’t a great option in quality starts leagues either, because Chirinos isn’t technically making starts. He may have an easier time getting wins than the average short-leash starter. Since he is entering as a reliever Chirinos doesn’t need to go five innings to get a win, and when he leaves a game it will be closer to the end than a traditional starter. When Chirinos leaves after five innings the bullpen only has to get through two or three more, compared to four or more if Chirinos had started the game.

Verdict:

As a pseudo-starter Chirinos will have decent value in mixed leagues, although his overall upside is capped by his role. A good three pitch mix between his sinker, splitter, and slider should allow him to find success and may lead to more strikeouts. He is best used in leagues where his role with the Rays takes advantage of league rules, such as leagues with weekly start limits or leagues with dedicated SP and RP spots. That being said, he is still a good pitcher and worth adding in deeper leagues or using as a streamer. It's a little tough to stream him since he is never listed as a probable starter, so owners will probably need to backtrack to figure out when he should be used. That or check the Twitter accounts of Rays beat writers. They usually say who the expected long man will be in upcoming games.

 
Lance Lynn, New York Yankees

2018 Stats (prior to this week): 106.2 IP, 4.89 ERA, 4.56 FIP, 1.7 K/BB ratio

08/06 @ CWS: 7.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 9 K
08/11 vs. TEX: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 8 K

Lance Lynn was floundering in Minnesota, but he seems to have what it takes to pitch in New York after these two starts. Between these starts and one long relief appearance Lynn has an 0.54 ERA in 16.2 innings with the Yankees. A Tommy-John survivor, Lynn primarily throws four pitches: a four-seam fastball, a two-seam fastball, a curveball, and a cutter. He throws a show-me changeup about 2% of the time, but those other four pitches are his primary arsenal. Lynn got 30 total swinging strikes between these two starts, with 19 of them coming from his two fastballs. He has always thrown his two fastballs between 75-80% of the time and his pitch-mix hasn’t changed much this season. In the start against Texas Lynn threw his cutter a little more at 23% of the time, but it’s too early to call that a trend.

Lynn’s fastballs are impressive offerings, and like Yonny Chirinos Lynn gets an above average whiff rate on his four-seamer and two-seamer. His four-seamer has a 13.5% whiff rate, while his sinker has an 8% whiff rate. The sinker especially has some nasty side-to-side movement that make it look like a breaking ball at times. Here’s an example of a good one from Saturday.

It moves in on righties, which can be dangerous when the pitch catches too much plate, but the pitch in that clip was perfectly executed. It is a hittable pitch when near the zone, evidenced by the .300 AVG against Lynn’s sinker, however batters have a -1 degree average launch angle against the pitch. That means most of these hits are groundball singles and batters have just a .118 ISO versus Lynn’s sinker. His two-seamer is a good compliment to his 95 MPH four-seamer, a pitch that induced 10 whiffs in the start against the White Sox. It has late movement that can be deceptive to hitters. Here’s an example of that from his start against the White Sox.

In this instance it freezes the hitter on a full count, a count which is normally a fastball situation and one where Lynn throws a fastball about 75% of the time. The pitch initially looks outside and moves back in just in time for a strikeout looking.

Lynn is also getting the best season out of his curveball that he’s ever had. It gained about a half-inch of drop and batters are hitting .128 with an .043 ISO against the pitch. It also has a 61.5% groundball rate, and along with the sinker has helped Lynn post the highest groundball rate of his career at 50.1%. Better production out of his curveball coupled with an effective two-fastball mix is a good enough combo to consistently get batters out.

The biggest problem Lynn has had this season is with control. He has a career high 12.4% walk rate, the second highest among qualified starters. He has also walked at least four batters in eight of his 22 starts. This have been a little better for him after an atrocious start he lowered his walk rate to 9.9% over his last nine appearances compared to a 13.9% walk rate prior to the last six weeks. Lynn also has a career low 36.6% zone rate, third lowest among qualified starters. His cutter has been a problem for him, as it has only a 31% zone rate (10% below his career mark) and a meager 24.7% chase rate. He can neither throw the pitch effectively in the zone or get batters to chase the pitch. Lynn was never a control artist, but the control he has displayed this season is untenably bad for a starting pitcher. He only walked one between his two outings against the Orioles and White Sox, but walked three in five innings against the Rangers.

That leads us to the next issue with Lynn’s little Yankee hot streak. Look at those opponents. He faced the Orioles, White Sox, and Rangers. Three below average offenses in terms of wRC+, and the former two are two of the bottom eight offenses against right-handed pitching. These three teams are also all in the top six in strikeout rate against right-handed pitching, all striking out at least 24% of the time. The good news is that as of writing this Lynn’s next three starts are against the Rays, Marlins, and White Sox. The Rays are the only team of the trio that could pose a formidable threat, but even then they are middle-of-the-road at best against righties.

Verdict:

Two good fastballs and improvements to his curveball should make Lynn an effective back-end starter in mixed leagues. A 10.2% SwStr rate is the best of his career and he may be an effective source of strikeouts going forward. Control issues aren’t going anywhere, and he could walk his way into trouble in any given start. He also dominated some bad, bad lineups. With more good matchups ahead Lynn is a good pitcher to add for the stretch run. He’ll get plenty of wins and strikeouts, though he will be a negative in WHIP.

 
Yovani Gallardo, Texas Rangers

2018 Stats (prior to this start): 47 IP, 6.51 ERA, 5.28 FIP, 1.3 K/BB ratio
08/08 vs. SEA: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K

Gallardo has been the anti-Jacob deGrom this season, owning a 7-1 record despite a 6.11 ERA. And he’s doing it on a team that is only three games better than the Mets. Much to the surprise of everyone, including the Texas Rangers’ front office that signed him, Gallardo has a 2.78 ERA in the second half, encompassing four starts. He uses a five-pitch mix consisting of a four-seamer, a two-seamer, a changeup, a slider, and a curveball. None of these pitches are effective, but there sure are a lot of them. Gallardo’s best pitch has been his slider, which batters are hitting .212 with a .308 SLG against. It does have a .249 xBA and .383 xSLG against, but this is his best offering. The slider also has a measly 9.79% whiff rate, which is lower than Lance Lynn’s fastball. Overall Gallardo has a 5.5% SwStr rate, which is the third lowest among pitcher’s with at least 50 innings this season. Fun fact, four of the bottom five pitchers are on the Rangers. Gallardo, Bartolo Colon, Doug Fister, and Martin Perez. Get it together, Jon Daniels.

During Gallardo’s supposed hot second half he has a 5.54 FIP and 5.56 xFIP, both higher than his first half marks in the same categories. He also accomplished the dubious feat of having more walks than strikeouts with a 0.92 K/BB ratio in these four starts. His success has come from the baseball gods, who have so graciously blessed Gallardo with a .212 BABIP and 89% strand rate in the second half. To his credit, Gallardo has been limiting hard contact with a 30.4% hard contact rate in the second half, but the effects of that are negated by a 22% line drive rate. Expected stats confirm Gallardo’s results thus far, as he has a .273 BA vs. 280 xBA, .459 SLG vs. .465 xSLG, and .351 wOBA vs. .362 xwOBA. There isn’t really much hope that he can last in the majors, much less on our fantasy teams.

Verdict:

Nolan Ryan today, Bryce Harper’s dad, a pitching machine, myself, Lucas Giolito. That is a list of people or things preferable to Gallardo in a major league game on our fantasy teams. Rarely are there no redeeming qualities to a pitcher covered in this article, but it’s hard to find anything to like with how Yovani Gallardo. This is a flat no in any circumstance. In fact, merely saying the name Yovani Gallardo aloud causes your ERA to go up half a run.

 

More Fantasy Baseball Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Zac Gallen3 hours ago

Gets Opening Day Nod
Nolan Schanuel3 hours ago

Injury Isn't Serious
Isaiah Stewart4 hours ago

Injured Against Boston
Duncan Robinson4 hours ago

Doesn't Return On Monday
Jackson Chourio5 hours ago

Makes Opening Day Roster
Anthony Davis5 hours ago

Cleared To Meet Atlanta
Blake Snell5 hours ago

Heading To The Giants
Onyeka Okongwu5 hours ago

To Return On Monday
Bryce McGowens6 hours ago

Unavailable For Tuesday
Tyus Jones6 hours ago

Won't Play On Tuesday
Deni Avdija6 hours ago

Unavailable For Tuesday
Nick Martinez6 hours ago

To Open The Year In The Rotation
OG Anunoby6 hours ago

Set For Multi-Game Absence
Kyle Kuzma6 hours ago

Uncertain For Tuesday
Luka Doncic6 hours ago

Considered Probable For Tuesday
Matt McLain6 hours ago

Scratched With Shoulder Soreness
Bilal Coulibaly7 hours ago

Ruled Out For Rest Of Season
Kenley Jansen7 hours ago

Scheduled To Make Four More Spring Appearances
Jackson Chourio7 hours ago

"In The Mix" For Roster Spot
Rudy Gobert7 hours ago

Ruled Out For Monday
Scoot Henderson7 hours ago

Returns To Starting Unit Without Restrictions
Matisse Thybulle7 hours ago

Available Again On Monday
Jerami Grant7 hours ago

Remains Sidelined On Monday
Lauri Markkanen7 hours ago

Returns To Action On Monday
Alex Caruso7 hours ago

Ready To Roll Monday
Coby White7 hours ago

Ruled Out For Monday
Kristaps Porzingis8 hours ago

Returns To Celtics Lineup
Jaylen Brown8 hours ago

Ready To Go On Monday
Jayson Tatum8 hours ago

Won't Play Against Detroit
Teuvo Teravainen8 hours ago

Misses Second Straight Game
Joshua Dobbs8 hours ago

49ers Reach Agreement With Joshua Dobbs
TOR8 hours ago

Mitch Marner To Miss At Least Two More Games
Jacob Markstrom8 hours ago

Could Return This Weekend
Rico Dowdle8 hours ago

Staying With Cowboys
Mikhail Sergachev8 hours ago

Skates On Monday
Dustin Wolf8 hours ago

Between The Pipes Monday
New Orleans Saints9 hours ago

Saints Expected To Sign Chase Young
Alexander Mattison9 hours ago

Signing With Raiders
DJ LeMahieu10 hours ago

In Danger Of Missing Opening Day
Buffalo Bills10 hours ago

Taron Johnson Re-Signs With Bills On Three-Year Deal
José Urquidy10 hours ago

Jose Urquidy Has Forearm Strain, Will Begin On Injured List
Justin Verlander10 hours ago

Expected To Face Hitters "In The Next Day Or Two"
Corey Seager10 hours ago

Takes Batting Practice Monday
Aaron Judge10 hours ago

Likely To Play In Four Of Final Six Spring Games
Garrett Crochet10 hours ago

Named Opening Day Starter
Nolan Schanuel10 hours ago

Scratched With Back Tightness
Dallas Cowboys11 hours ago

Leighton Vander Esch Calling It A Career
DJ LeMahieu12 hours ago

Still Pretty Sore
Aaron Judge12 hours ago

To Return On Wednesday
Jhoan Duran12 hours ago

To Begin Season On Injured List
Bryan Battle12 hours ago

Bout Ends in Controversy
Ange Loosa13 hours ago

Fight Ruled A No-Contest After Accidental Eye Poke
Ovince Saint Preux13 hours ago

Wins Split Decision In A Back-And-Forth Fight
Kennedy Nzechukwu13 hours ago

Suffers Split-Decision Loss To Ovince Saint Preux
Gerald Meerschaert13 hours ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Shohei Ohtani13 hours ago

Cleared To Begin Throwing Program
Bryan Barberena13 hours ago

Submitted In The Second Round
Kyle Manzardo13 hours ago

Sent To Minor-League Camp
Jackson Merrill13 hours ago

Wins Center Field Job
Denny Hamlin14 hours ago

Emerges Victorious For Second Bristol Win In A Row
Alexander Mattison15 hours ago

Visiting With Raiders
Dak Prescott15 hours ago

Cowboys Restructure Dak Prescott's Contract
Dmitry Orlov15 hours ago

Collects Four Points In Big Win
Tyler Toffoli16 hours ago

Dominates Against Columbus With Three Points
Lucas Raymond16 hours ago

Pots Pair Of Goals Versus Penguins
Kaz Grala16 hours ago

Finishes 19th At Bristol Motor Speedway
Bo Horvat16 hours ago

Scores Twice In Losing Effort
Brad Keselowski16 hours ago

Exceeds Value In DFS At Bristol Motor Speedway
Pavel Buchnevich16 hours ago

Delivers Three Assists In Sunday's Win
Ryan Lindgren16 hours ago

Suffers Leg Injury Versus Islanders
Kyle Larson17 hours ago

After 5th at Bristol: "I Hope I Never Have To Run A Race Like That Again"
Chase Elliott17 hours ago

Earns First Top 10 Finish Of 2024
Justin Haley17 hours ago

Earns Best NextGen Short Track Finish for Rick Ware Racing
Ty Gibbs17 hours ago

Has Dominant Day at Bristol but Fades Late
John Hunter Nemechek22 hours ago

Found Speed At Bristol
Chris Buescher22 hours ago

Secures Top 10 At Bristol
Alex Bowman1 day ago

Late Charge to Fourth Masks Early Race Struggles
Christopher Bell1 day ago

Ran Well, But His Teammates Were All Better
Martin Truex Jr1 day ago

. Matches Career-Best Finish At Bristol
Ryan Blaney1 day ago

Fades to 16th at Bristol After Handling Struggles
Russell Wilson2 days ago

Still Considered The Starter
William Byron2 days ago

Is One Of The Top DFS Options For Bristol
Ty Gibbs2 days ago

Starts 19th At Bristol After Damage In Practice
Justin Haley2 days ago

Scores A Starting Position Of 32nd For Bristol
Denny Hamlin2 days ago

Should Compete For The Win At Bristol
Brad Keselowski2 days ago

History Indicates Brad Keselowski Being A Favorable Bristol Play
Joey Logano2 days ago

Should Be Rostered With Caution At Bristol
Tyler Reddick2 days ago

Is Tyler Reddick Worth Rostering At Bristol This Week?
Martin Truex Jr2 days ago

. Could Work As A Tournament Play At Bristol
Alexander Nylander2 days ago

Totals Three Points In Saturday's Win
Sebastian Aho2 days ago

Leads Hurricanes To Victory In Toronto
Owen Tippett2 days ago

Delivers Three Assists In High-Scoring Loss
Steven Stamkos2 days ago

Extends Scoring Streak With Four-Point Performance
Nick Schmaltz2 days ago

Records Three Assists In Win Over New Jersey
Artemi Panarin2 days ago

Racks Up Five Points In Saturday's Win
Brady Tkachuk2 days ago

Sinks Islanders With Third Hat Trick
Pannie Kianzad2 days ago

Drops To .500 In The UFC
Macy Chiasson2 days ago

Gets First-Round Submission Win
Isaac Dulgarian2 days ago

Suffers First Career Loss
Christian Rodriguez2 days ago

Overcomes Early Adversity At UFC Vegas 88
Tai Tuivasa2 days ago

Suffers Fourth Straight Loss
Marcin Tybura2 days ago

Gets First-Round Submission
Justin Fields2 days ago

Traded To The Steelers
NHL2 days ago

Lukas Reichel Will Be In The Lineup Sunday
Cale Makar2 days ago

A Game-Time Decision Saturday
Zach Parise2 days ago

Likely To Return Saturday
Michael Gallup3 days ago

Panthers Bringing In Michael Gallup For A Visit
Mike Williams3 days ago

Panthers To Host Mike Williams On A Visit
New York Jets3 days ago

Jets Expected To Sign Tyron Smith
AJ Dillon3 days ago

Officially Re-Signs With Packers
Van Jefferson3 days ago

Steelers Signing Van Jefferson
Jakobi Meyers3 days ago

Raiders Restructure Jakobi Meyers' Contract
Jimmy Garoppolo3 days ago

Rams Agree With Jimmy Garoppolo On One-Year Deal
Gerald Meerschaert3 days ago

To Fight In Main Event Of UFC Vegas 88
Bryan Barberena3 days ago

In Dire Need Of Victory
Kennedy Nzechukwu3 days ago

Looks To Get Back In Win Column
Ovince Saint Preux3 days ago

Set For 27th UFC Appearance
Bryan Battle3 days ago

Looks To Extend His Win Streak
Ange Loosa3 days ago

An Underdog At UFC Vegas 88
San Francisco 49ers3 days ago

De'Vondre Campbell Heading To San Francisco
Dallas Cowboys3 days ago

Leighton Vander Esch Being Cut By Cowboys
Michael Gallup3 days ago

Cowboys Releasing Michael Gallup
Kenny Pickett3 days ago

Steelers Sending Kenny Pickett To Eagles
Pannie Kianzad5 days ago

Looking For Redemption At UFC Vegas 88
Macy Chiasson5 days ago

Ends Layoff At UFC Vegas 88
Isaac Dulgarian5 days ago

A Favorite At UFC Vegas 88
Christiaan Bezuidenhout5 days ago

Looking To Put It All Together At TPC Sawgrass
Eric Cole5 days ago

Rebounding Well In The Sunshine State
Brian Harman5 days ago

Playing The Dark-Horse Role Again At The Players
Matt Fitzpatrick5 days ago

Searching For Answers Thus Far In 2024
Sahith Theegala6 days ago

One Of The Tour's Fastest Risers To Start The New Year
Sam Burns6 days ago

Brings A Stellar Run Of Form Into TPC Sawgrass
PGA6 days ago

Sungjae Im Trending Up After Arnold Palmer Success
Jason Day6 days ago

Facing Iron Hiccup Heading To The Players
Tom Hoge6 days ago

Brings Strong Form And History To Sawgrass
Min Woo Lee6 days ago

Ready For Second Trip To Sawgrass
Will Zalatoris6 days ago

Working Toward A Win
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
Russell Wilson - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Free Agency Tracker - Updates On Every Free Agent Signing (2024)

The legal tampering period for NFL free agency begins on March 11 at noon EST, so news of signings will be flying in all week. Veterans like Russell Wilson and Jonnu Smith were released before their contracts expired, meaning they got a head start on free agency and have already reached agreements with new organizations.... Read More


Rome Odunze - College Football Rankings, NCAA CFB DFS Lineup Picks

Coach Knows Ball: Rome Odunze NFL Draft Film Breakdown of Washington WR

Welcome to Coach Knows Ball, an NFL Draft series analyzing the top prospects in the 2024 class. I'm a college football coach with nine years of NCAA experience and have been scouting NFL Draft prospects for over 15 years. This series will give a deep dive into the film of some of the top players... Read More


Kirk Cousins - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Winners and Losers of 2024 NFL Free Agency (Teams)

Well, strap in, folks, because the first week of 2024 NFL Free Agency was a rollercoaster ride. Some teams made power moves while others seemingly snoozed at the switch. The Houston Texans, for instance, came out swinging, pulling off some of the savviest deals that could very well tilt the scales in their favor this... Read More


George Pickens - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Next Gen Stats Review: 2023 Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

A while back, we covered the Next Gen Stats for running backs, including rushing yards over expected and the percentage of plays with eight or more defenders in the box. Check out the running back review of the Next Gen Stats, as it adds a layer to player analysis. We love the advanced stats for... Read More


Keenan Allen - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Keenan Allen Traded To Bears: Fantasy Football Impact

Star wide receiver Keenan Allen has been one of the more underrated players in the NFL over the past few years. He spent the first 11 years of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers, playing for the franchise since their days in San Diego. However, the team reportedly asked Allen to take a pay... Read More


Marquise Brown - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Marquise Brown Signs With Chiefs: Fantasy Football Impact

Veteran wide receiver Marquise Brown signed a one-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday. Brown hopes to follow JuJu Smith-Schuster’s footprints by playing on a one-year deal with the Chiefs and earning a multi-year big-money contract the following offseason. The former Oklahoma star spent the first three years of his career with the... Read More


Justin Jefferson - Fantasy Football Rankings, DFS Lineup Picks, NFL Injury News

Will The Vikings Trade Justin Jefferson? 2024 NFL Outlook

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson is one of the top players in the NFL. The superstar was part of an impressive 2020 NFL Draft class. Yet, he was the fifth wide receiver off the board. Jefferson has been a superstar since his rookie year, making three consecutive Pro Bowl teams and All-Pro rosters to... Read More


Marquise Brown - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Top Free Agency Fits For Marquise Brown – 2024 Free Agent Outlook

Free agent wide receiver Marquise Brown is one of the more explosive players in the NFL. The veteran wide receiver ran a 4.27 40-yard dash at his Pro Day coming out of Oklahoma. He was a first-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2019 NFL Draft. Brown has spent most of his career as... Read More


Nico Collins - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Rankings For 2024 Best Ball Leagues (Tiers 4-9)

We have now entered the process of free agency, which is providing pathways for some wide receivers to seize significant roles in their new landing spots. The player movement that has ensued will also decrease the stock of other receivers whose roles will decrease within their reshaped depth charts. Participation in the best ball draft... Read More


Cade Otton - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Early 2024 Best Ball Tight End Sleepers

Top tight ends such as Sam LaPorta and Travis Kelce are bound to put up quality fantasy football numbers weekly, but most tight ends are unpredictable. The top tier of tight ends are reliable for fantasy football purposes, but most tight ends are boom-or-bust type of players. Even though it is hard to hit on... Read More


D'Andre Swift - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL DFS Lineup Picks

D'Andre Swift Signs With Bears: Fantasy Football Impact

Newly signed Chicago Bears running back D'Andre Swift has been one of the most promising, but also underperforming running backs across the NFL and the fantasy landscape in recent years. After three injury-riddled seasons in Detroit where he showed flashes of greatness but didn't quite live up to the hype, Swift was traded to the... Read More


J.J. McCarthy - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Rookies, Draft Sleepers

Top 50 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings After the 2024 NFL Combine

With the NFL Combine in our rearview mirror, now is a logical time to put out an up-to-date rankings for this year’s NFL Draft. Below, you will find my top-50 players who have declared for this NFL Draft. Below those ranks, you will also find several fantasy-relevant notes I have on this class, and on... Read More


Calvin Ridley - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Calvin Ridley Signs With Titans: Fantasy Football Impact

The Tennessee Titans made a huge move once NFL free agency officially opened. They signed wide receiver Calvin Ridley to a four-year, $92 million contract with $50 million fully guaranteed. Ridley was the top receiver on the open market. The Titans swooped in out of left field and signed him to give second-year quarterback Will... Read More