Ian Allan answers your fantasy football questions. In this edition: will Melvin Gordon be a starter in 2022? Josiah Deguara vs. Dan Arnold. Dalvin Cook's off-field issues. Chase Edmonds' high-ankle sprain. And more?
Question 1
Do you see Melvin Gordon in Denver next year? It seems like Melvin is staying involved and getting TDs vs. weaker opponents.
Jonathan Gertner (Saint Joseph, MO)
That’s a one-two punch backfield, with Gordon and Javonte Williams sharing the work pretty evenly. Thus far Gordon is averaging 53 rushing and 18 receiving yards, while Williams is at 52 and 15. Gordon holds a 6-2 edge in touchdowns, while Williams has finished with more total yards in five of nine games. I expect Gordon will be playing somewhere next year; he’s 28. But I’m not sure that it will be in Denver. His contract expires at the end of the season, and I’m not sure if they’ll be eager to bring him back. I’m expecting they’ll have a new coaching staff, new quarterback and new offense, and I’m not sure Gordon will be part of their plans.
Question 2
I picked up Deguara after Tonyan went down but I see Arnold ranked higher in your Redrafter. I guess I'm a little gun shy when it comes to Jaguar players because, well, they're bad. I guess there are not a lot of options in the Jacksonville passing game, and Green Bay has 3 or 4 solid options before Deguara sees a ball, so maybe Arnold's the better player to take up a roster spot. Your thoughts?
David Hogshire (Plymouth, MN)
I would go with Dan Arnold, playing for the catches. The tight end is a significant player that offense, catching a healthy number of balls. I remember James O’Shaughnessy catching 6 passes in their opener; then he got hurt early in Week 2. They traded for Arnold, and he’s caught 20 passes in their last four games – he’s gone over 60 yards in three of their last four. Since DJ Chark got hurt, Arnold averages more receiving yards than any of their three wide receivers (Jones, Agnew, Shenault). If you’re going with Deguara, it would be with the thinking that the Packers might put up a bunch of points against the Seahawks, with him perhaps catching a red zone touchdown at some point.
Question 3
Given the Cook issues, should I add Mattison and cut Singletary or Pollard? I am strong at RB, as I also have Zeke, Jacobs, Damien Harris and Coleman.
Patrick Mahoney (Chesapeake Beach, MD)
A former girlfriend has filed charges against Cook. Apparently, there was some kind of altercation between them in November last year. But it will take time to sort out exactly what happened and who’s to blame. At this point, there are no criminal charges. That being the case, I don’t think the league will get involved until after the matter has been resolved (either in court or with some kind of settlement), and that almost certainly will occur after the conclusion of the season. Consider Deshaun Watson; he’s got 22 civil cases pending against him, and the league thus far has made no move to suspend him. Maybe there’s some adverse effect of Cook having to multi-task – trying to play football and attend to off-field legal problems at the same time – but I don’t see any reason right now to believe he’ll be suspended anytime soon.
At the same time, Mattison should be rostered. Cook has had a lot more durability issues than Ezekiel Elliott, so it would make sense to roster Mattison before Pollard. And both of those guys have a lot more upside than Devin Singletary, given the structure of Buffalo’s offense. You also mention Tevin Coleman, and I can’t envision a scenario where you would want to put him in a fantasy lineup. Mattison-Pollard-Singletary-Coleman, I think, would be the bottom 4.
Question 4
Chase Edmonds’ high ankle sprain tells me out four weeks minimum. Eno Benjamin looked fast and explosive in just a few touches. Please share any thought/advice. Current RBs: Edmonds, Swift, Montgomery and Carter (12-man PPR)
John Casani (Blue Bell, PA)
With Edmonds, maybe he can come back in Weeks 15-18, catching some passes. He was averaging almost 4 catches per game when he was healthy. But for the next month-plus, it should be Benjamin as their second running back. He was impressive in the 49ers game, running hard. They haven’t used him yet in the passing game, but that might happen (Benjamin caught 77 passes in his final two seasons at Arizona State). I would think they’ll be rotating him in their upcoming games rather than asking James Conner to do it all on his own. If there were to be a Conner injury in these next few games, those who picked up Benjamin will be sitting pretty.
Question 5
I have Henderson as one of my four keepers (am out of playoffs). I have been offered a 2nd-round pick for Henderson by owner of Akers (out with an Achilles injury). What do you think the future holds for both RBs?
John Brower (Chapel Hill, NC)
If I could pick Henderson or Akers (for 2022) it would be Henderson. He’s healthy, and he’s showing he can do it. With Akers, he’s trying to work his way back from an Achilles injury, so he’s more of a speculative choice at this point (definitely not someone today who would be kept with one of the four keeper spots in your league). Achilles injuries can be tough. Marlon Mack had an Achilles injury, and he hasn’t been the same. Devonta Freeman also had an Achilles injury and has slipped to be just a lower-level guy (though he did play well on Sunday). There’s also the issue of it being a little unseemly to make a trade that might result in another team winning the championship in 2021. I’m not sure I would want to do that. If I were making this trade, I would want to be sure – positive – that it would help my team in 2022. Maybe this trade is good enough, but off the top of my head, I’m not sure. I guess that would involve weighing the value lost by moving from Henderson down to the new player you would be keeping against the value of adding a second-round pick (which I’m guessing would be about the 20th pick of the draft (perhaps pick No. 68 overall if you have 12 teams each protecting 4 players).
Question 6
Would you drop Calvin Ridley for Elijah Moore?
Ed Gruber (Faribault, MN)
I think it can be debated. Ridley might not play at all this year. They’ve placed him on the non-football injury list, so he’s definitely out until Week 12. Moore, on the other hand, has been coming on. He’s caught 13 of the 14 passes thrown his way the last two weeks, for 151 yards and 2 TDs. Make sense to bring in Moore to see if he can continue to produce. But if you’re in relatively good hands at wide receiver (with the luxury of being able to wait) Ridley is probably the safe choice. He’s the best wide receiver in Atlanta, and if he makes it back, he’ll be able to help your team. Back in Weeks 2-4, he caught 7-8 passes for 61-80 yards in three straight games.
Question 7
I've been using your magazine for nearly a decade and in that time I've accumulated four championships in my league and I owe a lot of it to your magazine. I'm a bit of a crossroads right now at mid-season wondering whether to add Jacksonville wide receiver Jamal Agnew, or Baltimore wide receiver Rashod Bateman and releasing either NY WR Corey Davis, Arizona WR Rondale Moore, or Jacksonville wide receiver Marvin Jones. I keep going back and forth on this. Corey Davis has his upset is downs and so too does Marvin Jones and Moore seems to be utilized very little with a lot of weapons out in Arizona but I know how things can change very quickly throughout the season. Hoping you can shed some insight. I'm currently in the second place with a 6-2 record hoping to bring a fifth championship home this year.
Emerson Snee (Waynesburg, PA)
Rondale Moore is the first guy I would give up on. He’s got a nice future, I think, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen this year. They’ve got four contributing wide receivers down in Arizona, and it looks like he’s the fourth of those guys. I’m not giving up on Corey Davis yet. He’s their best wide receiver, and that offense has been coming on some – over 250 passing yards in four of their last five games. I want to see what Corey Davis can do when he’s healthy. After they play Buffalo this week, four of the next six are against Miami, Jacksonville and Houston. Agnew and Bateman have both shown some potential recently, but I think it would be fair to call it a lateral move to replace Marvin Jones with one of those guys.
Question 8
I’m 7-2, but my running back room is a mess. Already lost Derrick Henry. Still have Kamara and Damien Harris, but as I write this Wed., both are dinged and may not play Sunday. I have Rhamondre Stevenson, but he’s in concussion protocol with Harris. I have David Montgomery, but he’s got a bye. What’s left? Nyheim Hines, AJ Dillon and Adrian Peterson. Need to start 2. What would you do if the worst happens? TD-heavy scoring.
Eric Pryne (Vashon, WA)
The Saints rank No. 1 in run defense. I wouldn’t be interested in putting Adrian Peterson on the field against them. I would be more inclined to take a chance on AJ Dillon. He’s a good back, and he seems to be emerging. He’s averaged 50 rushing and 19 receiving yards in his last six games (albeit with just 1 touchdown). In those six games, Aaron Jones has averaged only 10 more rushing yards than Dillon. It’s a one-two punch backfield now, and I think the Packers could win pretty easily on Sunday against Seattle. The Seahawks rank only 25th againt the run.