Week 6 certainly was a weird one. Me and AGD combined for nearly 200 points in the Matchup of the Week but only had two RBs/WRs put up double digits, one of whom was Tim Patrick. Gutman had his long awaited breakout week, however he got no support at all from his shiny new QB. Levine moved to 6-0, with no player breaking 16, but his entire offensive lineup scoring between 11.04 and 15.9. And then we wrapped things up with an MNF blowout that somehow led to heartbreak for Weissbard relying on the Cardinals and victory to Esco relying on the Cowboys.
After all that, we had a blockbuster trade!
Trade Grade 10
Billy receives Le'Veon Bell, D'Ernest Johnson, Marquise Brown, and Corey Davis
Marco receives Christian McCaffrey
Honestly in shock on this one. Billy is perpetually hard to trade with because he has two studs and a bunch of flex-at-best players, so when those studs get injured, it makes things even more complicated. I'm sure he's been getting garbage offers since Week 2, but I figured with CMC on the mend, he wouldn't actually accept one of them.
The goal with a CMC trade should have been to get two above average starters or three average starters. Several teams had the depth to provide this, so I'm not sure if they weren't making offers, or if Billy was holding out hope for a fast recovery, but somehow the trade he accepted gave him four more players that still wouldn't start for over half the league. Obviously the Saquon and CMC injuries tanked Billy's season, but he could have done better than this. Even if CMC doesn't play a down, this is a great bit of business from Marco.
Grades:
Billy: F
Marco: A-
Trade Grade 11
Alan receives Dalton Schultz
Levine receives Justin Herbert
Not the most consequential trade, but one that makes sense for both teams in the short term. Levine has slowed the QB trade requests for at least one week, without having to trade from his RB/WR depth. Alan was actually able to unload one of his QBs to fill a short term need, though once Goedert comes back he's back in the same place he was in during Weeks 1-4. Both of these players were free agent additions, so well done on both sides getting value from FAAB, and if Marco catches a stray as a part of this deal, all the better.
Grades:
Alan: B
Levine: B+
I'll go back to the standard Power Rankings format this week, before the starting the Trade Deadline and playoff push as we move into November.
Week 7 Power Rankings1. Weissbard (Last Week: 1st)
For a team named after their Tight End, it really continues to be the one glaring weakness on this team. Every single other starter on your team has been top 10 on a points per game basis, which is both extremely impressive and wildly unsustainable. Your big decision will be whether to trade an RB for a TE if/when Ekeler gets healthy, but until then, you can enjoy the ride and hope you avoid any injuries.
2. Levine (Last Week: 2nd)
I assume you have only received more QB trade requests this week after seeing Dalton's abysmal MNF performance (guilty!). Your team's ceiling is not quite as high as Weissbard's, but you have a massive edge in high-upside depth, making a trade to upgrade QB or TE easier to absorb, along with injuries. I worry about sustainability here as well, with Ridley, Thielen and Robby all wildly outperforming their draft slots.
3. AGD (Last Week: 4th)
I feel like this team can be penciled in at 3rd or 4th every week barring injuries. I don't see them taking the top slot, but the core here is just so solid that their floor is 90+ each week. Not a lot to say beyond that.
4. Esco (Last Week: 7th)
Esco is basically the opposite of AGD. Ceiling is incredibly high, especially with RoJo finding the endzone and the Lions (possibly? maybe?) committing to getting Swift the ball. However, the bottom can fall out for any of these players other than Kamara in a given week. I would love to see an AGD/Esco playoff matchup with the Bucs and Lions playing on MNF. Esco could be up by 10 and lose, or down by 60 and win.
5. Kumpf (Last Week: 3rd)
It's embarrassing how much my team relies on Jonnu Smith, but here we are. At least Tannehill looks like a QB1 and maybe Henry Ruggs is a thing.
6. Gutman (Last Week: 5th)
I think last week was the start of Gutman's playoff run. Henry and Jefferson (The Founding Fathers might be a good team name, though not sure if Gronkowski and Dobbins signed the Declaration of Independence. Anywho!) won't approach 75 each week, but Rodgers will likely break 5 most of the time. Gut's roster is deep, and has some upside, as well as matchups with Billy, Nick, and Barnard still to come.
7. Zacherman (Last Week: 6th)
Not sure I've ever seen byes wreck a lineup more than Zacherman this week, and of course he's facing Barnard! At full strength, this team can compete in any given week, but the cracks in the Baltimore passing game, Davante's health, and the low ceiling of his RB situation puts him a half step behind the teams above him.
8. Marco (Last Week: 11th)
Marco moves up on the heels of a close victory over Weissbard, and the renewed energy this team has with CMC now sitting in the garage. If this team ever gets fully healthy, it will skyrocket up this list, but given that we're talking about the perpetually questionable Keenan Allen, Hunter Henry, and Jamison Crowder trio, in addition to the questions surrounding McCaffrey, 8th seems like a safe spot for now.
9. Ajay (Last Week: 10th)
This team still looks fine on paper (and a Mike Davis trade with Marco might make sense now that Billy essentially dropped McCaffrey) but any big time performances feel like an outlier as opposed to the norm. A fully healthy JuJu barely cracking 10ppg is a massive disappointment, and I'm chalking Drake's big night up to the abysmal Dallas D more than anything else.
10. Alan (Last Week: 9th)
Alan's season has pretty closely mirrored that of Josh Allen, and we're now left with even more questions surrounding Michael Thomas. I don't know that there's an obvious move to make here other than hoping Thomas gets healthy and someone emerges at RB2.
11. Barnard (Last Week: 12th)
It's truly shocking how mediocre or worse Barnard's team has been the last two seasons while maintaining a record above .500. He should be able to beat Zacherman this week without breaking 80 thanks to Mahomes, Julio, and Waller, but the rest of this team is a mess.
12. Bennett (Last Week: 8th)
While he tried to drive down the price of Boston Scott due to his own lacking FAAB dollars, Bennett really needed to win that auction with the Vikings on bye. Injuries have hit this team hard (that's what you get for basing your strategy around "get Eagles"), but it's not a completely lost cause like the two teams below it.
13. Nick (Last Week: 13th)
On the bright side, CEH and AJ Brown both had big days last week, giving this team some cause for optimism. On the down side, you still didn't break 80 and Mostert got injured yet again. I'm not putting this league on "Nick Quitting Watch" just yet, but I can't say I'd blame him after the last two years. At least he gets to face Billy this week?
14. Billy (Last Week: 14th)
I don't know that there's a move you could have made to get yourself out of 14th, but I do know that the one you made didn't move the needle. The three active players you traded for are projected for 20.8 spots, which is likely what CMC will be projected for next week, while only taking one lineup slot. See you in 2021.
Matchup of the Week: Gutman vs. Weissbard
We're at the point in the season where record starts to matter a little bit more than team quality, so even I rank these as two of the top 6 teams in the league, there's a decent chance that they are both under .500 after this week. Both teams have a chance to take the division lead with wins, while losses would make the 6th seed (NiJo spot) look like the best path forward.
It kicks off with a bang Thursday night, as both defenses plus Freeman and Engram are playing. A defensive TD would be huge, and offensive TDs unexpected, so tune in for Giants/Eagles on NFL Network!
Outside of that, these are two pretty even matchups. Gutman gets the benefit of McKinnon as a lead back, but loses Jefferson and Parker as flex options. Weissbard's biggest concern might be Diggs only playing the first half. While I expect a big bounce back game from Rodgers, the prospect of a shootout between the Cards and Seahawks benefits Weiss slightly more. Sorry Gut.
Pick: Weissbard
MotW Record: 4-2
Gambling Corner
Eagles (-4) vs. Giants
Saints (-6.5) vs. Panthers
Browns (-3) at Bengals
Bucs (-4) at Raiders
Chiefs (-7) at Broncos
49ers (+3) at Patriots
NFL Bets
Last Week: 3-2
2020 Record: 16-16-1 (-2.23 units)
Historical Win Percentage: 54.40% (+18.83 units)
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