RADIO
Every once in a while, the schedule gods look down and gift us exactly what we need, exactly when we need it. After a grueling 15 weeks and a rollercoaster filled with ups and downs, and even more downs, it's time for all of the league's biggest losers to put up or shut up in their bid for the number-one pick in the 2020 draft. The four worst records in the NFL play each other in Week 16, with the Washington Redskins versus the New York Giants on the undercard. Both teams have just three wins and are equally terrible but one of them is probably going to pick up that elusive fourth win. This means we're set up for another "winner leaves town" match, as the unlucky victor will not only fall behind the foe they vanquish but will also certainly fall behind the 3-10-1 Lions, who are currently on the outside looking in due to tiebreakers but who should have a good look at losing out, with a road game at Denver, followed by the Packers at home, remaining on the docket.
That brings us to the main event, as we've finally arrived at the date that all of us here at Tank Watch 2019 have had circled on the calendar for months, as the Cincinnati Bengals (1-13) go on the road to face the Miami Dolphins (3-10). It might be easy to look at the game-in-hand that Bengals hold and assume they'd be safe even with a loss but don't discount the fact that Bengals will still have to take care of business at home in Week 17 against a Browns team that certainly won't be motivated to win. On the other hand, the Dolphins will have an automatic loss in New England to end the season, not to mention the loser of the NYG/WAS matchup and Detroit should also end their season with easy losses. Add in that Andy Dalton will likely be playing his red-headed, black heart out in a misguided attempt to save his job in 2020, we have all the making of a supremely exciting game in South Beach for the first time all season.
I can't take any more excitement, so let's have a look back at last week's action before taking a glance at some of the biggest risers and fallers in Fleaflicker leagues entering Week 16.
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Last Week's Recap
You're getting very sleepy...Jameis Winston has put his flaws behind him for now, look how good he's been the last two weeks! 72 standard league points, with over 1000 yards passing and eight touchdowns?! Now you're getting very, very sleepy...Tampa Bay is playing Houston in Week 16 and they're giving up the third-most points to quarterbacks this season, so there's no way Winston doesn't go off again. Those four interceptions in the last two games? Don't even worry about those little guys because all the goodness Winston is going to throw for will surely outweigh the little bit of bad he might sprinkle in. Slee-eepy, you're now very, very sleepy...Jameis Winston definitely isn't a fantasy cobra, lulling you to sleep, and waiting for the perfect moment to strike; so why don't you go ahead and put him in your championship lineup and then just lay your head down for a few minutes and maybe take a little nap-a-roo, hmm? How's that sound? Sleepy, so sleepy...
Wake up! Did you survive Lamar? Jackson continued to be a scoring machine in Week 15, throwing for five touchdowns for the third time this season. After scoring 35 points in a 42-21 win over the Jets and with an upcoming matchup against a Cleveland Browns team that is allowing the 15th-most points to quarterbacks - as well as the ninth-most rushing yards per game - anyone going up against Jackson in their championships must be absolutely terrified.
There's nothing like the last weeks of the regular season, when you get to say fun things like, "I lost in the playoffs because my desperate opponent started Breshad Perriman." After Chris Godwin went down with a hamstring injury, it was Perriman who got to eat those W's with Jameis Winston, with his 31 points on three touchdowns and 113 yards leading all wide receivers. And will you look at that? There was a bonafide Julio Jones sighting, as the Atlanta star came in second to Perriman on the fantasy leaderboard, scoring 27 points on 134 yards and two touchdowns. That was a welcome sight for Jones' owners who'd seen him score a total of 28 points in the previous five weeks. After a glitch in the matrix in Week 13 caused Michael Thomas to only score four points, he's gotten right back to regularly-scheduled dominance, scoring 20 points for the second week in a row. Given Thomas's love of repeatability - having already scored 19 points three weeks in a row earlier this season - I'm going to just science this up and go ahead and mark him down for another 20 points in Week 16.
Kenyan Drake has had exactly two productive weeks this season but boy, did he save the best for last, lighting up the Cleveland Browns for 137 yards and four touchdowns on 22 carries, leading all players with 39 standard league points. Drake has now scored 65 points in two of his games, and a total of just 47 points in his other 14. Todd Gurley continued to finish strong, scoring 17 standard league points, making it now four out five games that he's scored at least 16 points. And speaking of the Rams, remember they could stop any running game, good or bad? That occasionally still stands true but occasionally they get trucked over at will, like Ezekial Elliot and Tony Pollard did on Sunday, combining for 248 yards rushing, three touchdowns, and a combined 51 fantasy points. Rumor has it that owner Jerry Jones was so happy that one of his long-frozen facial muscles briefly twitched before locking back into carbonite.
Now, let's take a look at three of this week's biggest risers and fallers on Fleaflicker.com. A full list of the most added and dropped players on Fleaflicker can be found here.
Most Added in Fleaflicker - Week 15
Mike Boone (RB, MIN vs. GB), 1,728 Adds – 30% Owned
Back then those owners didn't want me, now I'm hot owners all on me...I'm Mike Boo-oone! That's right, the Mike Boone is the biggest pickup of championship week after scoring 17 points last week in relief of an injured Dalvin Cook. With Alexander Mattison inactive, it was Boone who stepped in as the lead back after Cook reinjured his shoulder in an eventual 37-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Boone only finished with 56 yards rushing on the day but also punched it in twice and finished with 17 standard league points. With Cook out again this weekend, Boone jumps into RB2 territory with the Vikings playing on the road against a Green Bay Packers Defense that's allowing the eighth-most points to running backs this season.
Denver Broncos (DEF vs. DET), 630 Adds – 51% Owned
That's right, defense talk! Are the Denver Broncos this week's fourth-highest pickup because they are an elite level defense capable of putting up a big number in any given week? Umm, not really. Are they playing a Detroit Lions team that is in full check-out mode, with an angry fan base that's back to wearing bags on their heads at games and are calling for the jobs of the general manager and head coach? A Lions team that given out 56 fantasy points to defenses over the last four weeks and features the quarterback/running back tandem of David Blough and Bo Scarbrough? Yes, they are. One of the biggest opportunities in the fantasy football playoffs is targeting teams that have obviously given up on the season. This is one of those times.
Ryan Fitzpatrick (QB, MIA vs. CIN), 406 Adds – 42% Owned
It looks like its time for one last ride on the Fitzmagic merry-go-round, with Fitzpatrick playing well and heading into a favorable matchup against a one-win Bengals team helmed by the Red Rocket himself, Andy Dalton. Fitzpatrick has been sneakily consistent over the last month, scoring at least 20 points in three of his last four games. Granted, those games have come against the two New York teams and Cleveland, so it's not like Fitzpatrick has been beating up on good defenses but he also won't be facing a good defense on Sunday either. The Bengals are not only allowing the ninth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season but could really step up their levels of bad against Miami, as they can lock up the number-one pick in the draft with a loss. Fitzpatrick! Dalton! For all the marbles. Kind of.
Most Dropped in Fleaflicker - Week 15
Chris Godwin (WR, TB vs. HOU), 281 Drops – 92% Owned
Farewell Chris Godwin; while all your owners certainly appreciate the monster year, they probably wish you could have made it just one more week. His 204 points are behind only the 218 points of Michael Thomas among wide receivers in 2019 and Godwin at least managed to score 14 points in Week 15 before leaving Tampa Bay's beatdown over Detroit with a hamstring injury. Ruled out for Week 16, if Godwin misses Week 17 as well, he will finish the season with 1,333 yards receiving and nine touchdowns on 87 receptions, making the third-year receiver one of this year's fantasy MVPs, as well as likely making him one of the first receivers off the board in 2020.
Josh Jacobs (RB, OAK @ LAC), 239 Drops – 87% Owned
Like with Godwin above, we're at the time of year where if injured, it doesn't matter how good you are or if you're likely to return in Week 17. If you're not active in Week 16, then you might just get cut. Such is the case with sensational rookie Josh Jacobs, who won't suit up for Oakland's game against the Chargers this weekend as he deals with his shoulder injury. Jacobs is currently the 10th-highest scoring running back in standard leagues, putting up 204 points in 13 games and rushing for seven touchdowns and 1,150 yards. His fantasy life may be depleted this year but Jacobs is a good fit in Jon Gruden's offense and should be a top pick in 2020 drafts.
Josh Gordon (WR, SEA vs. ARI), 227 Drops – 52% Owned
So, I guess that probably ends the Josh Gordon experiments? After playing just five games for the Seahawks - spending the first part of his season in New England - Gordon was suspended indefinitely by the NFL for another violation of the league's substance abuse policies. Gordon now has one for the thumb, with the suspension marking the fifth time in his career that the league has suspended the talented but troubled wideout. Even if eventually reinstated, Gordon meager 139 yards in his five games with Seattle probably won't have teams clamoring to sign him this offseason and at this point, we probably should think less about his future in football and more about his long-term well-being.
