Welcome to the quarter-pole edition of our fantasy football roundtable for the 2020 campaign. Who are the most overrated and underrated fantasy players as we head into the October slate? How do we view the rookie receiver hierarchy the rest of the season? Who has been fantasy football’s top feel-good story so far? Myself, along with colleagues Nando Di Fino, Jake Ciely, Michael Beller, Michael Salfino, Eric Moody and Ed Malyon (he of “Brit’s Picks” on The Athletic’s Fantasy Cheat Sheet — live at 11 a.m. ET on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook) weigh in on these topics and much more!
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Alright, buckle up and let’s get to it:
Q. If you could pick just one RB for the ROS among the combined backfields of the Patriots, Lions, Rams and Ravens, who would it be?
Funston: Cam Akers — If Akers hadn’t hurt his ribs in Week 2, I think he would have had the success that Henderson stepped up and enjoyed in his absence — the Rams’ actions of drafting Akers with their first pick (Round 2) in the 2020 draft despite Henderson and Brown being already in the fold still resonates strongly with me.
Di Fino: Damien Harris — I really want it to be Darrell Henderson, who can do a lot with a little, but with Cam Akers coming back, it’s too scary. So I’m going Harris based on what he did his first week back from the IR. The Pats sometimes tweak their offense; maybe this is the year they stick with one back!
Ciely: James White — White is the only one we can trust. Swift we’re just stashing until Patricia stops the madness. Akers is similar to Swift but more chance of hitting earlier. Dobbins would be an RB1 if Mark Ingram was cast aside.
Beller: Darrell Henderson — If I go down with the ship, so be it. But there’s no way anyone could’ve watched him in Weeks 2 and 3 and then say, “Yeah, that’s a complementary player, at best.”
Salfino: D’Andre Swift— I think the Lions have to make the move to Swift as — wait for it — swiftly as possible.
Moody: J.K. Dobbins — My pick would be Dobbins because the Ravens have demonstrated that they are committed to running the football.
Malyon: D’Andre Swift — Swift edges out J.K. Dobbins. Both have had concerning flags in recent weeks — underuse or big drops — but Swift’s path to weekly relevance is far easier and he’s a buy-low right now.
Q. In what order would you draft these rookie receivers for the ROS: Jerry Jeudy, Justin Jefferson, Tee Higgins, Laviska Shenault?
Funston: Jeudy, Jefferson, Higgins, Shenault — Jeudy is tops for me because I think he’s the most talented of the group and the return of Drew Lock should help “unlock” some consistency.
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Di Fino: Higgins, Jefferson, Jeudy, Shenault — The tie-breaker up top is the QB; Joe Burrow is showing a strong connection with Higgins and this is a team that is not afraid to throw it all day.
Ciely: Jefferson, Jeudy, Higgins, Shenault — Jefferson has a 30% target share past two games , which is insane.
Beller: Jefferson, Jeudy, Higgins, Shenault — This is an interesting one. I like all of them, but I think Jefferson is the one guy who has a real shot at being a big-time fantasy difference maker.
Salfino: Higgins, Jefferson, Shenault, Jeudy — It’s a combination of passing volume and faith in the quarterback that shapes this ranking.
Moody: Jefferson, Jeudy, Higgins, Shenault,
Malyon: Jefferson, Higgins, Shenault, Jeudy — So the most talented of the bunch dead last…
CONSENSUS: Jefferson, Higgins, Jeudy, Shenault
Q. Which tight end would you prefer to hitch your wagon to for the ROS: Robert Tonyan, Dalton Schultz, or Evan Engram?
Funston: Robert Tonyan — Shaping up as, perhaps, the No. 2 target among the Packers’ WR/TE group, and when that is paired with arguably the most talented QB in NFL history, who happens to be playing with a giant chip on his shoulder, I want to see where that Tonyan journey can take me.
Di Fino: Evan Engram — Engram may be my undoing, but Jason Garrett made a star out of Jason Witten; I think it’s just a matter of time until they get into a groove with that offense and he becomes a major part of it.
Ciely: Dalton Schultz — Though, as I keep saying, chase whoever you want at tight end.
Beller: Robert Tonyan — I was way out on Engram before the season, and I’m still afraid of Schultz’s weekly target floor. Green Bay’s offense is humming, and with Allen Lazard out for the foreseeable future, Tonyan can be the clear third option in the offense behind Aaron Jones and Davante Adams.
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Salfino: Dalton Schultz — Schultz has the highest floor and isn’t as touchdown dependent as Tonyan.
Moody: Dalton Schultz — I’d hitch my wagon to Schultz because the Cowboys will find themselves in a ton of shootouts with the abomination known as the Dallas defense.
Malyon: Dalton Schultz— Schultz! He’s getting the targets and Blake Jarwin isn’t coming back this season. Tonyan will be impacted by Marcedes Lewis’ return as well as that of Davante Adams.
Q. Who is the most overrated player in fantasy football right now?
Funston: Clyde Edwards-Helaire — He was my choice when the industry was taking him as an RB1 while Damien Williams was still on the roster, and he remained my choice when Williams opted out and the industry wanted to then crank CEh’s value up into the top half of the RB1 class. Don’t get me wrong, he’s definitely talented, but people got drunk early on the marriage with the KC offense, and now the hangover is setting in a bit.
Di Fino: Jonathan Taylor — Taylor is still going to get touches taken away by Nyheim Hines. So as much as I love him, I don’t think we’re respecting that system and scheme as much as we should be.
Ciely: Clyde Edwards-Helaire — Can we be honest and say CEH? He’s not Top 10 at RB, and he’s great, just not spectacular for where we were drafting him (RB5-7).
Beller: Clyde Edwards-Helaire — The volume is always going to be there, so it’s not like I’d be trying to give him away if I had him on any teams, but he has looked rather unimpressive with the opportunity he has had this season.
Salfino: Jonathan Taylor
Moody: Gardner Minshew — Minshew may have the Uncle Rico swagger, but he has a true passer rating of 72.2 and leads all quarterbacks in interceptable passes (16).
Malyon: Antonio Gibson — Not just because I’ve benched him for the past three weeks and he’s scored double-digit points, but because without a TD in each of those weeks he’s scoring 4-5 points and I’d be tilted AF if I’d actually started him. Tune in this Sunday for the next installment…
Q. Who is the most underrated player in fantasy football right now?
Funston: Chris Carson — Another RB1 level season underway, and once again he goes for a mid-to-late RB2 price — in drafts, he’s Joe Mixon at the generic brand price.
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Di Fino: D’Ernest Johnson — Maybe I’m crazy and reading the room completely wrong, but I unknowingly over-bid everywhere on Johnson, thinking that the Browns system is a two-back setup and he’d be primed for some big weeks. My backup answer is David Montgomery.
Ciely: Antonio Gibson — Not enough people realize the steady improvement each week, culminating in a Top 10 score last week.
Beller: Gardner Minshew — He has two games with three touchdowns, two games with 300 yards, three games with multiple touchdown passes, and three games with at least 19 rushing yards. Even with that stinker against the Dolphins in Week 3, he ranks ninth among quarterbacks in points, and 12th in points per game, yet people want to treat him like he’s a streamer.
Salfino: Amari Cooper
Moody: Robby Anderson — Anderson is underrated because nobody took his signing with the Panthers this offseason seriously.
Malyon: Terry McLaurin — Balls out every week and is WR10 despite atrocious QB play.
Q. The player whose September would make the best feel-good fantasy football movie pitch is?
Funston: James Robinson — This has got to be the chalk pick, as he went from a UDFA nobody (well, a nobody to everyone but Emory Hunt) to a Top 6 spot on the fantasy RB leaderboard after a month of play.
Di Fino: James Robinson — It has to be James Robinson, right?
Ciely: Aaron Rodgers — Life softened his harsh exterior and he’s remembered what it’s like to be a great player… and person (well, maybe not).
Beller: Aaron Jones — I’m assuming someone will get to Josh Allen and James Robinson, and I want to diversify our answers a bit. So how about Aaron Jones? The dude racks up more than 1,500 YFS and scores 19 TDs one season, and all anyone wants to say about him in the ensuing offseason is, “Eh, he can’t possibly do it again. Regression, regression, rabble, rabble, he’s not even an RB1.” And now look at him. Through four games, he has 509 YFS and 6 TDs — a 16-game pace that would smash what he did last year — and the only non-QB with more fantasy points than him is Alvin Kamara. I’d see that movie for sure, laughing all the way at the regression truthers and process-over-results zealots.
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Salfino: Aaron Rodgers
Moody: James Robinson — There is only one correct answer and it’s James Robinson.
Malyon: Josh Allen — From Wyoming to ‘Why am I playing him?’ to ‘how is Josh Allen QB2?’
Player Pick’Em
Dak Prescott or Josh Allen?
- Prescott 5 votes; Allen 2 votes
Joe Burrow or Justin Herbert?
- Burrow 4 votes; Herbert 3 votes
- White 4 votes; Edmonds 3 votes
DiFino says: “Man, I love Edmonds, but White gives me a floor that Edmonds cannot right now.”
Beller says: “White obviously has the floor, but he’s not winning you a fantasy league. Gimme the upside of Edmonds.”
Kareem Hunt or Chris Carson?
- Hunt 5 votes; Carson 2 votes
Beller says: “Hunt. He was almost Carson before the Nick Chubb injury, so he should comfortably outpace Carson for the next five weeks.”
Antonio Gibson or Devin Singletary?
- Gibson 6 votes; Singletary 1 vote
Odell Beckham or JuJu Smith-Schuster?
- OBJ 5 votes; JuJu 2 votes
Will Fuller or D.J. Moore?
- Fuller 4 votes; Moore 3 votes
DiFino says: “I feel like Moore isn’t part of this new Carolina system. We should’ve seen it coming!”
Ciely says: “Fuller. I cannot believe I just wrote that — ugh!”
Beller says: “Moore. Everything we’ve seen this year is telling me to say Fuller, but I can’t shake the extreme likelihood that Moore is just the better player, regardless of circumstance.”
Super Power: Teleportation or Mind Reading?
- Teleportation 5 votes; Read Minds 2 votes
DiFino says: “I can handle having to drive somewhere if the trade-off is I can secretly understand what everyone is thinking. “
Ciely says: “Reading people’s minds would drive you insane from hearing everything and the hurt it would cause you (unless people actually like you, unlike me).”
Salfino says: “Teleportation, because mind reading could be really upsetting. “
Beller says: “Teleportation, easy. Travel anywhere in the blink of an eye. Plus, some of the magic of being human would be lost if you could read everyone’s mind.”
Malyon says: “Teleportation. You don’t wanna know what everyone thinks…”
Q. In honor of the passing of legendary rock guitarist Eddie Van Halen, what is your favorite Van Halen song?
Funston: Jamie’s Cryin’ — My older brother’s cassette tape of Van Halen’s self-titled first album was, along with The Who’s Who’s Next album, my indoctrination into what is now termed the arena/classic rock genre. My Van Halen Top 5 would be: Jamie’s Cryin’, Panama, Runnin’ with the Devil, Feel Your Love Tonight, Dance the Night Away
Di Fino: Panama — Probably by a wide margin. I’m a David Lee Roth guy —”Califrornia Girls” and “Just a Gigolo” are two of my personal classics and I never actually knew he was in Van Halen until later in life.
Beller: Runnin’ with the Devil — With all due respect to Panama, Dance the Night Away, And the Cradle Will Rock, and Ain’t Talkin’ ‘bout Love, I’m giving it to Runnin’ With the Devil, narrowly over Unchained. Gotta give some love to Jump, too, which I will always associate with going to Cubs games in the 90s and early 2000s.
Salfino: Panama — Easiest question ever.
Moody: Ain’t Talkin ‘Bout Love
(Top photo: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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