FANTASY FOOTBALL RULE NUMBER....

September 26th, 2015
Saturday

Fantasy Football Rule Number...

When in doubt, Thursday's Out. 

No, this is not my rule, but it happens to be one that I am strongly endorsing. It's always a tough start in any fantasy format playing on a short week, so unless you are starting those typical fantasy studs that are locked into your weekly lineup, you are safer staying away from those Thursday night matchups.

First of all, no one wants to go into the weekend with a couple of fantasy duds already locked into your lineup. It's just too much time to languish in the misery of second guessing and wishful thinking.

Where's the evidence? I don't know if there are any hard numbers to support the coined phrase, but just looking at this past Thursday's matchup is enough to convince me.

Even an elite receiver like the Giants Odell Beckham Jr provided little to excite the average fantasy owner. Now he did have a nice night with 7 receptions for 79 yards and a score, but considering where he was drafted and his current salary on the DFS sites, that bar is a little too low.

The Redskins tight end Jordan Reed also turned in a nice effort with 6 catches for 96 yards, but the lack of a score hurts those owners in leagues where touchdowns are heavy (especially the DFS sites). And if you were like me believing the hype around the Redskins rookie running back Matt Jones, his 38 yards rushing with a fumble and zero catches were costly in those lineups you played him in. Wide receiver Pierre Garcon, with DeSean Jackson out was a disappointing 5 catches for 64 yards and no score.

The best plays of the night were the Giants quarterback Eli Manning with 2 touchdown passes, 279 yards passing, and no turnovers, and wide recevier Rueben Randle with 7 receptions, 116 yards receivng, and a score.

When breaking it down, you had a division rivalry, so the teams are very familiar with one another. Playing on a short week it's tough to expect a traveling team to play big. You have an 0-2 Giants team, that could easily be 2-0, playing at home; you have to expect a better effort. It just reads as a risky play to count on much offensive output from the road team.

I think next time, if there's any dobut, Thursday's out.

That's my take.

~David G

SUNDAY SLEEPERS

September 13th, 2015
Sunday

Sunday Sleepers

I am not going to go through too many, so I will offer just a couple of Sleepers to consider for week 1.

In Green Bay with Nelson out (ACL injury) and James Jones only having been with the team for less than a week, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be looking to utilize his full compliment of weapons this week. Running back Eddie Lacy will likely carry the load on the ground, but when the team enters the red-zone, I am expecting Rodgers to really open things up. One weapon that is not getting a lot of noteriety is tight end Richard Rogers. In his second season, the former Cal Bear is a big target at 6'4" and will face a Bears defense that was worst versus tight ends last season (standard scoring), allowing the second most touchdowns. I expect the Rodgers connection at least once today.

Another Sunday Sleeper I am targeting is wide receiver Rueben Randle. Over-shadowed by his teammate Odell Beckham Jr, Randle brings something to the table and has had success with quarterback Eli Manning in the past. With Victor Cruz ruled out, Manning is going to have to look other places beside OBJ in the pass game. Randle finished strong last season with back-to-back 100-yard receiving games and should be a lock for a couple of red-zone targets at 6'3".

Rodgers and Randle could be very successful plays in week 1.

Just my take.

~David G