In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter presented by GameBlazers:
A new QB joins the Jets
Fantasy Football Surprises: Zack Moss did what?!
Injury updates across the league
Buy, Sell, Hold: Itās time to trade away a Packers RB
Itās 9/27. Take it away, Peter Overzetā¦
The New York Jets are melting down.
After their pyrrhic, overtime win over the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, the Jets have been in a tailspin of epic proportions with two straight losses ā the latter of which featured multiple instancesof infighting on the sidelines.
In the case of the Chicago Bears, who are in a similar freefall, there are multiple places to point fingers. But in New York, the lionās share of the blame is falling firmly on QB Zach Wilson (and a front office who failed to solidify the backup QB position this offseason).
Joe Namath has seen enough. Fireman Ed has seen enough. And if you donāt mind me speaking on behalf of anyone who drafted Garrett Wilson or Breece Hall, weāve seen enough.
But could things be turning around?
š¤ Trevor Siemian to the rescue?
Well, itās not a bombshell trade for Kirk Cousins, or even Jacoby Brissett. Itās not even coaxing Matt Ryan or Philip Rivers out of retirement. But itās at least something:
The Jets will throw Wilson to the wolves on primetime this Sunday night vs. the defending champs and undoubtedly continue to work the phone lines for another QB with a pulse, but they need to shake things up soon. If not, they risk losing the locker room, the fanbase, and all of fantasy nation.
If you are sitting on Wilson and Hall, you need to hold and pray (mainly pray). You simply wonāt get enough value in return for them in a trade to warrant moving them right now.
Everyone else in this offense can be dropped, though.
Ok, now back to prayingā¦
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The 2023 NFL season is 16.6% done, meaning thereās still a LOT more football to be played, but we also certainly have a better idea of whatās going on relative to a few short weeks ago. Today, Ian Hartitz shares which players are surprising him the mostā¦
Small sample sizes be damned: Fantasy points leaderboards are looking WONKY after three weeks of action, leading us to question whether or not the production is smoke and mirrors, or a sign of more good things to come.
What follows is a breakdown of the most surprisingly good fantasy assets this season in terms of the discrepancy between fantasy points and preseason ADP.
As always: Itās a great day to be great.
š¬ Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert
Preseason ADP: RB48
Current rank: RB1
Thereās a new king atop the NFL RB leaderboard in yards per carry during the Super Bowl era (min. 500 career carries):
Mostert (5.42)
Bo Jackson (5.4)
Jamaal Charles (5.38)
Nick Chubb (5.26)
Gus Edwards (5.15)
Getting to run inside of Kyle Shanahan and Mike McDanielās ever-well-designed run schemes has certainly helped matters, but the veteran also deserves credit for still being among the leagueās fastest players at the ripe age of 31.
Mostert has already racked up 319 total yards and seven TDs this season; pretty much nothing other than the injury bug looks capable of slowing down this Dolphins offense at the moment knocks on wood.
Continue to fire up the speedy veteran as a legit top-12 option at the position, especially as long as Jeff Wilson (hand/midsection, IR) remains completely out of the picture.
š“ Colts RB Zack Moss
Preseason ADP: N/A
Current rank: RB13
Moss didnāt even play in Week 1, yet unironically finds himself in the Week 4 RB1 conversation after back-to-back sterling RB10 and RB5 performances. Overall, Moss has racked up 252 total yards with a pair of scores ā and hereās the wild part: Moss has objectively balled the hell out along the way.
Undoubtedly not helping teammate Jonathan Taylorās (ankle, IR) cause for a new contract, Moss is tied with none other than Christian McCaffrey for the league-high mark in forced missed tackles on the ground with 16 ā¦ AND HEāS ONLY PLAYED TWO GAMES.
Mossā early-season success is particularly impressive when considering he hasnāt even had a chance to benefit from Anthony Richardsonās (concussion) dual-threat impact when it comes to widening rushing lanes in the read option game. Even then: Credit to this offensive line for averaging a robust 2.3 yards before contact per rush ā the fifth-highest mark in the league.
Obviously, Mossā status as a borderline RB1 in Week 4 wonāt continue IF Taylor returns in Week 5 with no funny business, but as you probably noticed: Thatās a big if.
Even if JT returns to his usual full-time role sooner rather than later, Moss would still carry huge season-long handcuff upside on top of the potential to maybe even earn some semblance of standalone value should the 25-year-old talent continue to play so well.
Week 3 is in the books! Cooterdoodle is back to walk us through the fantasy landscape from a buy, sell, hold perspectiveā¦
š In a world full of Broncos and Bears, be a Bengal.
I bet some of you were considering trading away JaāMarr Chase these last few weeks in a moment of weakness, werenāt you? But this week, the Bengals taught us patience.
Donāt sabotage what is still salvageable!
We are only ā of the way through the season. So if youāre currently sitting 0-3, let the Bengals be a reminder that you sometimes have to be patient in fantasy football. And let the Bears and Broncos be a reminder that it really, truly, could always get worse.
Now letās get into some good old fashioned non-panicky buyinā, sellinā, and holdinā baby!
šBUY
š Tank Dell, WR - Texans
Has his yardage doubled every single week? Yes. Has he scored TDs in two out of three games? Yes. Does his name invoke fear in the hearts of your adversaries? It should.
Itās still early enough to jump on the Tank Dell Express, but the clock is ticking on his affordable Buy Now window. Your leaguemates might still have a sour taste in their mouth when they hear āHouston Texansā and that alone may make this deal affordable.
Stop waiting for guys like Jahan Dotson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba to be a thing when Tank Dell is right here in front of you.
Takeaway: Sometimes Tankāing can be a good thing.
š SELL
š AJ Dillon, RB - Packers
If you know me at all, you know this one hurts.
Iāve loved Dillon for a while now. But the numbers donāt tell a pretty story.
Many (read: me) thought Dillon would flourish as the lead back in Green Bay while Aaron Jones was out with a hamstring injury, but that never came to fruition.
While Dillon will always have a place in my heart, I donāt have a place for him on my roster anymore.
Takeaway: Itās not you. Itās me. <3
š HOLD
š Mike Evans, WR - Buccaneers
File this one under āplayers I somehow drafted really lateā.Evans has quietly scored a TD in every game this year and has 297 yards on 17 catches.
I donāt think you can trade for him at a reasonable price, but if youāve already got Evans on your roster, hold on tight. And be thankful that everyone overanalyzed his age this offseason and allowed him to fall in ADP.
But beware: Evans does have his big, annual āwill-he wonāt-he get ejectedā match-up in Week 4.
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