The Elite Eight! We’re reaching the point in the guillotine league season where everyone’s rosters are stacked. If you’ve been saving your FAAB, start spending on the talented rosters that are getting cut each week. Charch has begun identifying endgame players in his weekly waiver wire columns, and we’re doing the same in our weekly mailbag. 

It’s important to note that on guillotineleagues.com, bidding ends in Week 14, so you only have four weeks left to set your endgame roster, which needs at least eight elite, superstar players.

If you blew all your FAAB but are still hanging on, we’re here every week to help identify cheap, high-floor, replacement-level options to help you keep your head. With eight teams remaining, ground rules are that quarterbacks and tight ends will be outside the top eight, and running backs and wide receivers outside the top 16 in rostership. We’re also identifying underperforming but highly rostered flex position players you can drop in favor of a higher upside option.

The Giants and Panthers are on bye, which is only disappointing because you can’t start your good players against their defenses. Same goes for Tampa, but they actually have usable pieces on offense. We’ll also be missing all of our favorite Cardinals this week — especially Greg Dortch.

Quarterbacks

Last week:

  • Brock Purdy: 23.82 points – hit, and you can feel pretty good about rolling him forward into this matchup with Seattle.
  • Aaron Rodgers: 4.04 points – ginormous L, the Jets might be dead in the water.
  • BONUS Daniel Jones: 12.20 points – feels like he played worse than Rodgers but somehow scored more points. We’re done with Daniel Jones.

Week 11:

Bo Nix vs. Atlanta Falcons (27.2% owned)

Alright, I’ll admit it: Bo Nix is a downright useful fantasy asset. Over his last six, he’s averaging 20.3 fantasy points per game. He’s also much improved as a real-life quarterback as well. Over that same stretch, his EPA + CPOE composite is higher than those of Geno Smith, Matthew Stafford, and CJ Stroud (it physically pained me to type that sentence). Eight of the 10 quarterbacks to face the Falcons have posted 19.9 or more fantasy points; the only two that didn’t were Justin Fields and Derek Carr.

Russell Wilson vs. Baltimore Ravens (21.5% owned)

Opposing quarterback vs. the Ravens, welcome to my starting lineup. Baltimore has been jockeying with Tampa Bay for the league’s easiest matchup for opposing fantasy passers. They sit at second right now, having allowed big games to everyone except Josh Allen and Bo Nix. Russell Wilson hasn’t been too shabby himself — he’s scored 18 or more points in two of his three starts and overall looks like a different quarterback from his Denver days.

Running Backs

Last Week:

  • Tyrone Tracy: 15.40 points – hit, and definitely hold on to him through the bye week

Week 11:

Last week, I mentioned that there are no widely available running backs that I can recommend starting in good conscience. That’s going to hold true through the remainder of the season. By this point, you should have at least two of the top 20 or so runners plugged into your lineup weekly. Blake Corum, Ray Davis, and Jaylen Wright are extremely valuable handcuffs that are worth rostering, especially if your league’s roster size has expanded during the season.

If you have the roster space, I do think Audric Estime is worth a speculative add just to see where this goes. The Broncos offense hasn’t been all that conducive to running back production. Part of that could be a talent issue, but I don’t see Estime solving that problem. Dwain broke down his utilization in this week’s Utilization Report.

Also, Isaiah Pacheco is available in 56% of leagues. Go add him right this second.

Thank You for Your Service:

Alright, NOW you can drop Rico Dowdle… Also, I am once again asking you to drop Travis Etienne… Jordan Mason can go, too — this is Christian McCaffrey’s backfield. He’s not even that valuable as a handcuff anymore, given how his tenure as the starter ended.

Wide Receivers

Last Week:

  • DeAndre Hopkins: 9.60 points – at this stage of the season, that’s a miss. Still worth hanging on to KC’s WR1, though. Buffalo is a tough matchup, but Carolina is on the horizon.
  • Jauan Jennings: 16.30 points – hit, and Kyle Shanahan plans on letting him keep the X receiver role. Jennings needs to be rostered at minimum.
  • BONUS Andrei Iosivas: 4.90 points – not hitting 5 points in a game like that? Get ready to learn UFL, buddy.

Week 11:

Ladd McConkey vs. Cincinnati Bengals (64.7% owned)

The Bengals tend to lure opponents into shootouts with their spectacular offense and comparatively unspectacular defense. That’s great news for Ladd McConkey, whose primary drawback is the Chargers’ low volume passing attack. Vegas has this game’s total at 47 as of this writing, which I’d venture to guess is one of the highest for a Chargers game all season. McConkey is in a great spot to replicate the big days that Jakobi Meyers, Cedric Tillman, and the Eagles’ and Ravens’ receiving collective have posted against Cincy of late.

Jakobi Meyers at Miami Dolphins (60.4% owned)

One of the best ways to find value in a Guillotine League is scooping up guys your leaguemates forgot about because they were on bye the week before. In case you need a refresher, here’s Jakobi Meyers’ target shares in four games without Davante Adams this year:

  • 42%
  • 25%
  • 26%
  • 34%

He’s averaging 16.0 points per game during that stretch. Miami isn’t necessarily the easiest matchup for opposing wideouts, but Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua found their way to solid days in their high-volume roles, albeit with a better overall offensive ecosystem.

Cedric Tillman at New Orleans Saints (53.6% owned)

Speaking of guys your leaguemates forgot about because they were on bye the week before: Cedric Tillman! The Saints benefited from the New Boss Boost last week, but the Browns will benefit from another completely intangible and unquantifiable boon: a good old fashioned revenge game. Jameis Winston will absolutely be taking some deep shots back in the Superdome, and those tend to be directed in Tillman’s general direction. Despite the outcome last week, I’m not buying cornerbacks Alontae Taylor and Ugo Amadi’s play as sustainable.

Thank You for Your Service:

Brian Thomas should not be dropped just yet, but he should not be started until he proves 1) that he’s fully recovered from his chest injury; and 2) isn’t in a completely dead offense… It’s probably joever for Jaylen Waddle… Is it really worth holding on to Amari Cooper? You can’t integrate into a new offense if you can’t get on the field… Jameson Williams is too boom-bust for this format.

Tight Ends

Last Week:

  • Taysom Hill: 7.00 points – had me screaming SHEESH within 15 minutes of sitting down for RedZone on Sunday.
  • Mike Gesicki: 7.00 points – miss… but I feel like the process was there.
  • BONUS Grant Calcaterra: N/A – Dallas Goedert returned.

I’m going to write a book along the lines of How to Win Friends and Influence People, but it’s gonna be called How to Get Exactly 7.00 Points from Your Guillotine League Tight End.

Week 11:

Tucker Kraft at Chicago Bears (47.4% owned)

Similar to the running back position, you really need to have a high-end weekly starter at tight end at this point. But, if you’re missing Trey McBride or Cade Otton this week, Tucker Kraft is probably your best guy to turn to. Despite the crowded wide receiver room in Green Bay, Kraft ranks seventh in scoring among tight ends in our format. The Bears have allowed huge games to Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, and even Austin Hooper of late.