Welcome to The Undroppables weekly “Flex” play article, keying in on the flex suggestions for your league. For the newcomers, I would like to point out this article is written in hopes to help with the tough start options. If you boast a very strong team full of star caliber players, do not overthink it and switch. Lock in your studs and go with the safe points. For those not as lucky, we got you covered.
Our consensus panel went 4 for 4 in Week 1 and are feeling good about Week 2. If you are looking for that direct fantasy help, I’ll be taking tweets on Tuesday-Thursday and gathering a consensus opinion from a panel of Undroppables to help you make the final say. To send your questions for future weeks, you can tag me @FantasyInAFew on Twitter.
Let’s get it started!
Flex Plays of the Week:
Shallow League Flex Plays (10 or fewer teams)
Calvin Ridley @ Dallas Cowboys
As we saw in Week 1, Ridley holds touchdown upside. Yet the most encouraging thing was receiving 12 targets from Ryan, continuing the trend of high usage since they traded away Sanu last year. Julio will always get his, but Ridley is as well. Against this fairly young Cowboys secondary, I would fire him up no questions asked. I anticipate he will see at least 8+ targets and two red zone looks.
Jonathan Taylor vs Minnesota Vikings
You have to go wheels up for Taylor. Though the Vikings defense did alright stopping Aaron Jones in the run game Week 1, Taylor presents as a truly elite runner. Also, if you look at the combined rush yards from the Packers last week, Green Bay put up 158 yards on the ground. Hines will garner several targets from Rivers, but the ground game should almost exclusively be Taylor’s. Behind the best O-Line in the NFL I would fire him up, no questions asked.
Standard League Flex Plays (12 teams)
T.Y. Hilton vs Minnesota Vikings
Sticking with the Colts, the Parris Campbell hype is strong but TY is still the alpha. TY saw the same amount of targets with a better YPC and had two bad drops. The drops are an anomaly in Hilton’s career, and he already came out and said it won’t happen again. I would definitely play him against the young and inexperienced Vikings secondary that just got torched through the air by the Packers. I anticipate Hilton will see at least one big play in Week 2. Those boom plays can be the difference between winning and losing your match-up.
Dallas Goedert vs Los Angles Rams
Normally TE would not be a flex suggestion, barring premium, but I believe Goedert is not being used as a starter in most leagues. Therefore I think he could be a solid weekly option. That doesn’t mean he has to be in your TE spot, but seeing 9 targets in Week 1 and securing 8 grabs for 101yds and a TD is definitely a solid week for any position. I think that the target numbers may sit around this consistently making him a go-to pass catcher in Philly, where he has normally been a Red Zone target prior. I like him most weeks moving forward, but especially this week since he won’t have to deal with Ramsey.
Deeper League Flex Plays (14 or more teams)
Jared Cook @ Las Vegas Raiders
Another TE I am willing to flex in (play two if you have a more solid starter) due to the Michael Thomas injury. The Saints offense has consistently targeted/involved TEs over the past few years but it was typically to multiple TEs. With Cook in town it seems he has been the main benefactor with little competition at his position, so I anticipate he actually may see the most uptick in big play opportunity with MT likely out for several weeks to come.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling vs Detroit Lions
MVS saw a great game in Week 1 vs a questionable secondary in Minnesota. Many are tentative to buy-in to the MVS hype, but facing yet another questionable secondary, I would take the shot in deeper leagues. MVS caught 4 of 6 on the day, but the two not caught were very easy catches that were dropped and one was another deep ball. His Week 1 could have, and should have, been even bigger. MVS seeing the deep ball opportunities is seeming to carry over in 2020, so this is a match-up I’m comfortable flexing him for upside.
Boom or Bust Flex Plays:
Malcolm Brown @ Philadelphia Eagles
My Week 1 Rams takeaway; Akers is going to take a few weeks to really get going. Enter Malcolm Brown who looked like the better RB on the ground and through the air. This isn’t an exciting start by any means, but if Peyton Barber could find some success in the Red Zone last week, then we could see similar attempts from Brown in Week 2. Without a touchdown he could bust, but I think there is a high chance he gets at least one with the upside for more.
Robby Anderson @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 1 could be a fluke for Robby Anderson, but he seems to be the deep ball role in the Joe Brady offense that saw a ton of success in LSU last year. That paired with HC Rhule bringing in his former player only strengthens his likely usage. Although I do believe DJ Moore is likely to get more involved; Anderson’s big play ability makes him a great boom bust candidate vs the Bucs, a game that I think could turn into a bit of a high-scoring affair.
Will Fuller vs Baltimore Ravens
Normally I would avoid playing against this Ravens defense, but Fuller is the de facto #1 option for the Texans and his target floor is nice. We already know he has the big play boom weeks in his career, and with the Texans likely playing behind early and often, I think he could land a big play TD. His floor may be more solid than I anticipated. Always remember, garbage time stats count just the same in fantasy as if they happen in the First Quarter.
The Undroppables Survey Says:
In Week 1 we went 4-for-4 with our consensus picks. We went to Twitter again asking for your hardest flex questions. Below are 4 of those options we received with a panel of 5 Undroppables bringing you our consensus votes for Week 2:
Gaskin, Swift, Cooks.
Pick 2
— A Long Way To Go (@snippaboii) September 16, 2020
The Undroppables Consensus: Swift (4 votes) Gaskin (4 votes) (Cooks had 2 votes)
Reason: Swift is having to fight touches with AD but he got the touches at the GL and that still holds a lot of value for me. –@Jman_FF
The Undroppables Consensus: Lazard (5 votes) Davis (5 votes) & Parker (3 votes) (Fournette, 2 votes, can serve as backup if Parker out)
Reason: Davis is the #1 option for TEN in the pass game right now. Lazard holds upside in the GB pass attack. Parker, MIA will need to throw to keep up with the Bills. –@MikeReedyFF
The Undroppables Consensus: Juju (5 votes) Taylor (3 votes)
Reason: Tannehill put up nearly 250 yards & 2 tds on this defense with a run heavy offense. Decastro is probably going to be out again which hurts their run game and will be forced to pass more. –@BradWireFF
The Undroppables Consensus: Mike Williams (4 Votes) & Julian Edelman (3 votes) (Preston Williams(1) and John Brown (2) held votes as well)
Reason: Edelman is still the guy in NE and should see plenty of volume. Mike Williams had a surprising amount of targets. They’re going to need to throw a lot and take some shots against KC. -@BpoFSU
In Summary:
To be featured and get your flex questions answered each week feel free to tag or DM @FantasyInAFew throughout the week.
See you next week!
