Home Blog Page 110

Offensive Line Injury Updates | Week 2

Brad Wire
-
0
Offensive Line Injury Updates | Week 2

Our O-Line expert Brad Wire is here to give you the latest updates on injuries for guys in the trenches for you to consider when setting your fantasy football lineups.

Arizona Cardinals

Mason Cole – Out (Hamstring) – Cole played 36 snaps in Week 1 before going down with the injury and was replaced by Lamont Gaillard. Gaillard posted a 83.2 pass blocking grade in the remaining 46 snaps, but it very well could be a much different story in Week 2 against the strong Washington front. I have the Washington defense in my DFS lineups this week. Check out @2on1FFB other good D-Line matchups this week on Twitter.

Atlanta Falcons

Jake Matthews – Questionable (Knee) – Matthews sustained the injury during the Week 1 game against Seattle, but did not miss any time. He was limited in practice this week, but he’s another one I feel would’ve drawn the probable tag. This matchup against the Cowboys should be high flying so the Falcons will need him if they want to stay in it.

Baltimore Ravens

Ronnie Stanley – Questionable (Hip/Ankle) – Stanley suffered an ankle injury during Week 1 during the third quarter and did not return to finish the contest. D.J. Fluker replaced Stanley and struggled a bit against the Cleveland D-Line. Stanley turned in a limited practice on Thursday and a full practice on Friday so it seems he’ll give it a go on Sunday. Houston still has some good pass rushers so hopefully Stanley will be able to tough it out for this one.

Carolina Panthers

Dennis Daley – Out (Ankle) – Daley has once again been ruled out for Week 2. He was not able to log any practice of any sort and it seems they are taking it easy with Daley which shows they have confidence in the veteran Michael Schofield.

Dallas Cowboys

Tyron Smith – Questionable (Neck) – Smith has been ruled as a game-time decision for the Week 2 battle against the Falcons. He was not able to practice this week, but being a veteran makes that a little less important here. Head Coach Mike McCarthy said he was not alarmed by it yet. I would be surprised to see him not play this week, but in any case, it is always good to look at the depth here. The Cowboys are already without La’el Collins who is on IR. Cam Erving went down during a PAT and it has been determined that he sprained his MCL and will be out a few weeks. He had already lost the starting Right Tackle job to UDFA Terence Steele. This leaves the Cowboys pretty thin at Tackle. I would assume Connor McGovern would step in to play Left Tackle, but this line would be left decimated if that were to happen. I’m still starting Dak due to the prime matchup, but we might have to temper expectations on deep plays if Smith were to miss time.

Denver Broncos

Garett Bolles – Questionable (Elbow) – Bolles played through the injury last week and should be good to go this week against the Steelers. This Steelers defense allowed a -0.15 adjusted line yards in Week 1 to the Giants. This looks to be a tough matchup, but without Lindsay I’m still starting Melvin Gordon. He should at least be able to get some receiving work and maybe luck into a touchdown.

Detroit Lions

Halapoulivaati Vaitai – Questionable (Foot); Joe Dahl – Out (Groin) – Vaitai was able to get in some practice this week and has drawn the questionable tag. I would expect the Lions to be cautious with their new big ticket tackle and roll out Tyrell Crosby once again. He didn’t allow a sack last week against the Bears, but this week might be a different story against the fully healthy Smith Brothers. Dahl sustained the injury during practice on Thursday and has been officially ruled out for Sundays game against the Packers. Oday Aboushi should be the one to replace Dahl as he did for a few games in 2019. Luckily for the Lions Kenny Clark has also been ruled out so this softens the blow a bit.

Green Bay Packers

Billy Turner – Questionable (Knee) – After sitting out Week 1 and watching fellow teammate Lane Taylor go down with a torn ACL, Turner got in some limited practice this week. If he were able to play he would seemingly go back to his Right Guard spot from last year. Elgton Jenkins would once again be at Left Guard and Rick Wagner would play Right Tackle. The Packers are one team that has a luxury of depth for now as Lucas Patrick and Rookie Jon Runyan also got snaps in last week and could play Right Guard if they wanted to roll out Billy Turner at Right Tackle, the spot he won during training camp.

Houston Texans

Tytus Howard – Questionable (Ankle) – After watching Howard backpedal and get toasted on a pass set it seems fair that PFF game him a pass blocking grade of 49. He was able to practice all week albeit only limited each day, but that is a good sign. He would draw another tough matchup against the Ravens stout front. Watson will once again be scrambling a lot in this one regardless if Howard plays or not.

Las Vegas Raiders

Trent Brown – Doubtful (Calf); Sam Young – Doubtful (Groin); Richie Incognito – Questionable (Achilles) – Brown managed to play a whopping 3 snaps last week after missing a good chunk of camp with this calf injury. Young was the one to replace Brown, but also sustained an injury which took him out of the contest after only 15 snaps. This left Denzelle Good to play Right Tackle for the remainder of the game. The good news for the Raiders is that the MRI Brown had down revealed that he did not sustain any major injury and if Head Coach Jon Gruden has anything to say about it Brown will play the full game this week. They draw a much tougher matchup with the Saints and will need the power that Brown brings in order to sustain drives. Incognito popped up on the injury report with an Achilles injury. This might be something to watch as we get closer to Monday.

New Orleans Saints

Cesar Ruiz – (Ankle) – Ruiz has not been given an injury designation at this time due to the Saints playing on Monday, but he turned in full practice on Friday. This is good news for the rookie and he should be able to make his debut against the Raiders.

Philadelphia Eagles

Lane Johnson (Ankle) – Johnson does not have an injury designation for this Sunday. The Eagles are a meager 6-12 without him so you can bet they are relieved to have him back. They draw Aaron Donald this week, however, so this will once again be a tough matchup up front.

Pittsburgh Steelers

David DeCastro – Out (Knee); Stefen Wisniewski – IR (Pectoral); Zach Banner – IR (ACL) – Injuries have already ravaged the Steelers this year as they lose Zach Banner and presumably Stefen Wisniewski for the year. DeCastro also will be out this week as he was a late scratch in Week 1. With Wisniewski going on IR this will leave them to start Rookie Kevin Dotson at Right Guard. Chukwuma Okorafor will start in Banner’s place at Right Tackle. Their depth has been severely depleted already, but they did sign Jerald Hawkins and promoted Derwin Gray from the practice squad.

San Francisco 49ers

Ben Garland (Ankle) – I was surprised that Garland sat out Week 1 against the Cardinals. Maybe they thought it wouldn’t hurt them as much. Just one player may not have made a difference, but they will be glad to have him out there for Week 2 against the Jets.

For more from Brad, check out his comprehensive Offensive Line rankings. Brad will be making updates to the rankings regularly throughout the season. Don’t forget that you can also follow @TheUndroppables to catch all of the latest content drops to our site!

2on1 Fantasy Sports | Week 2 Who Dis?

Tommy Mo
-
0
2on1 Fantasy Sports | Week 2 Who Dis?

The Commish Tommy Mo is back with a solo pod to bring you an update on the 2on1 and feature some of the incredible content coming out every week from The Undroppables squad. This one is quick! As most of the new episodes will be. Digest this quick hitter on your lunch break, before the games on Sunday, or to prep you for the rest of The Undroppables podcasts.

Shoutout and much love to Zeek UC for providing the new intro music that will be featured on each new pod.

Beer Money Bets | Creating a Process for NFL DFS Pt. 2

Brian O'Connell
-
0
Beer Money Bets | Creating a Process for NFL DFS Pt. 2

The process is off to a great start. After playing three different competitions last week, the process cashed out in 2 out of 3 contests. While I would love to go 3 for 3, variance and luck are going to make it nearly impossible to be perfect. After a successful week 1, it’s time to identify what went right and what went wrong, refine the process, and move onto a new competition. If you’re new to this article, check out my first article in this series from last week. Before we dive back in, I want to again give the disclaimer that I am not a DFS expert and so use the players I talk about at your own risk. 

Reviewing the Process

If you want to see the process, it can be found in my article from last article in the link above)

  1. The process led me to enter contests in 3 games; MIA @ NE because of the low over/under and New England being heavy favorite, DAL @ LAR because of the high over/under, and TEN @ DEN because of the low over/under. The only game that didn’t follow the trend I was trying to aim for was the DAL @ LAR game so I would consider this part of the process a success and will continue to use it.
  2. Players selected based on the chart:
    1. MIA @ NE
      1. I played the maximum number of NE players, avoided Fitzpatrick, used the Patriots defense, and I played Edelman in the Captain position. Following the chart worked out well and the only change I wish I had done was playing Cam Newton as my captain, but I don’t see any reason to change the process from this competition.
    2. DAL @ LAR
      1. I made my lineup assuming it would be a shootout with the Cowboys as favorite and it turned into a slugfest with the Rams winning the game. Because they were favorites, I loaded up on Dallas players. I played Prescott as my captain, and filled the lineup with Zeke, Gallup, and Lamb. I also played Woods and included Gerald Everett as a cheap play. The optimal lineup also suggested playing the WR3 from the favored team, which really worked out with Lamb. Honestly I think I got lucky with this contest considering the end result of the game, but there was a solid foundation that led me to the right players.
    3. TEN @ DEN
      1. This is the one lineup I did not cash on. Despite the result, I think the process was correct, variance and luck just got in the way. I played A.J. Brown as my Captain because WR1 was the most Captained player on optimal lineups. I filled out my lineup with D. Henry, Tannehill, Fant, Titans defense, and Tim Patrick. This game fit the slugfest I was chasing, it had 30 total points, but A.J. Brown was not used as I expected. If he had caught the touchdown that slipped through his hands near the end of the game, I would have most likely cashed. 
  3. This third step is where I need to greatly improve. I did not do much analysis to fill my lineup and instead followed the chart and selected players that were historically most often in optimal lineups. Now that we have one week of data , I will look to build this area. 

New Process for Showdown Double-Ups

  1. Use Vegas lines to identify matchups that I think can be exploited. I will try and avoid games with no clear favorites and mid-level over/unders (between 40-50). Do not feel like you need to play every game, only play games you feel like you have an advantage. 
  2. Use the chart below to select a few players I want to be in my lineup and players to avoid. I added columns for the difference between the specific type of game and the total to make it easier to identify players to pay attention to and avoid. The only player I will be hesitant to add is DST as they have not performed well in my small sample size. (again this data is from this article by Kevin Cole)

3. Fill out the rest of the roster using personal analysis. I am going to focus on previous game usage, historical positional defense rankings, and recent matchups between the teams. I am not worried about start % for these cash games so it is not a part of my process.

4. Make sure to stay up to date with game time news in case of a late scratch. 

In a few weeks, I will circle back and see how this process has been working. 

Week 2 Strategy: Classic Double Up

For my next DFS competition, I will be trying my luck at the “Classic” Double Up, which is where you start a QB, two RBs, three WRs, a TE, a Flex, and a DST. There are three things I am going to try and focus on for this: implied totals, player usage, and price. Here is the first process I made:

The Process

  1. Look at implied totals, identify the teams with the highest totals, and select players from those teams
  2. Look at usage on those teams. Identify any players that have higher usage, especially redzone usage.
  3. I don’t have any specific way to work with price yet but at this point it will just look at cheap players that satisfy part two, have strong usage or specifically redzone usage, and could easily get a TD. Players that benefit from in-week injuries will also be strongly considered as they will most likely be under-priced. 

The Process in Action

For the first try, I do not want to dive all the way into a full weekend of games and I am going to enter the Sunday early only competition on DraftKings that only includes 10 games. 

  1. For ease, I used this article from Rotocurve to look at implied team totals. This data  shows me I want my lineup to include DAL, TB, GB, TEN, IND, or ATL players. 
  2. I am going to plug in Ezekiel Elliott and Davante Adams as automatic plays. Their usage and chance to score touchdowns just cannot be ignored. These players might be a little chalky but I am okay with that at this point in the process. Adding more players from the 6 teams above, I see Nyheim Hines from the Colts at $5,300 and then add Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage from the Falcons at $6,800 and $4,800 each. Again I really don’t care about ownership percentages because I am not trying to create an elite lineup, but one that scores more than most people. 
  3. Some undervalued players due to injury are Corey Davis at $4,000 and Chris Herndon at $3,400. Both these players will benefit from injuries in their teams with A.J. Brown and Crowder both out, and Corey Davis fits the process from part 1. I am left looking for a bargain defense with $2,800 left and that perfectly gives me enough for the Rams DST against the Eagles. I was going to try and get a defense that was playing against a team with a low implied team total but I cannot pass up Aaron Donald rushing against that injured Eagles OL. 

While I’m not extremely confident in this process, the point of this series is to make a quick process and I think this is a good start. Check back next week as I dive into what went right and wrong and learn from my mistakes to become a better DFS player.

A Few Flex Plays (Fantasy Football 2020 – Week 2)

Kayne Rob
-
0
A Few Flex Plays (Fantasy Football 2020 – Week 2)

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:

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!

Unleash The Feast | Buy the Dip

Beezy
-
0
Unleash The Feast | Buy the Dip

Week 1 is in the books and we are on to Week 2. One of my sayings is buy the dip. When a players value drops and you see an opportunity to buy low, you smash it. So we are going to buy the Buffalo Chicken Dip in this one.

Buffalo Chicken Dip – Recipe Details

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 30 min

Ingredients

2 8oz pieces of Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup half and half
1 12oz bottle of Frank’s Hot Sauce (For extra spicy, use 2 tbsp  of Hot Box gourmet sauce)
1 16 0z bottle of Ranch Dressing
1 1lb Rotisserie chicken
1 8oz package of shredded Monterey Jack  cheese
0.5 tbsp of garlic powder
0.5 tbsp Black Pepper

buffalo_chicken_dip
The finished product

Directions

Here we go. Super easy:

1)  Break down the Rotisserie chicken and cut the chicken into small chunks. Throw away all bones. (It sounds silly, but some dipshit will throw the bones in and get pissed at me.)

2) In a large sauce pan combine cream cheese and half and half. Set on low and allow the cream cheese to melt down so it gets soupy. You may need to add more half and half to get the consistency you like.

3) Add chicken, garlic powder, black pepper and mix real good.

4) Add the whole bottle of ranch. Mix and let continue to cook on low heat.

5) Franks hot sauce is next and this is on all about how spicy you like it. I go for the whole bottle. Lmao.

6) Continue to cook on low and add a little half and half if its looking thick.

7) Once its all melted down, pour the dip into a baking pan. Add as much cheese on top as you want. I’m fat so that whole bag goes on there. Spread it around on top evenly and bake it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 to 15 min.

8) Serve with warm chips. Its so easy but people go nuts over it. It also makes a Mean mac and Cheese sauce. Again, this is why I’m fat. Let me know if you have any questions and as always feel free to hit the DMs.

1...109110111...135Page 110 of 135

Popular Articles

Featured

Newsletter

Subscribe and become an insider!

© Copyright - The Undroppables