Ian Allan answers your fantasy football questions. Special "Pulling The Plug" edition. When is it time to give up on Mark Andrews, Javonte Williams and Rachaad White? Is Derek Carr underrated? Sam LaPorta replacement options. And more.
Question 1
Is it time to pivot from Mark Andrews to someone on the waiver wire, like Ertz, Gesicki, or the Ball Boy? You know, someone actually getting some targets?
Gary Hamblin (Bloomington, IL)
Yes. It was troubling to see Charlie Kolar catch that pass early at Dallas, ripping up field for a 30-yard gain. I think Kolar will continue to be part of Baltimore’s offense. (He’s bigger than Andrews and Isaiah Likely, perhaps making him better as a blocker.) The Ravens, recall, actually drafted Kolar before Likely back in 2022. He’s a legit prospect. Playing with Brock Purdy and Breece Hall, he caught 157 passes and 20 touchdowns his final three seasons at Iowa State. Ertz seems to have a nice role carved out with the Commanders. Let’s go with Ertz over Andrews (especially this week, with Ertz and Kliff Kingsbury heading back to Arizona).
Question 2
I have Javonte Williams and he has been disappointing so far. Would you cut him for Chase Brown? Brown looks much more explosive.
Mike Conway (Nanuet, NY)
I would stick with Williams, hoping he can turn it around some. I don’t believe his struggles can be attributed to him just not being any good. They’re working on their offense, trying to get things dialed in. For statistical purposes, I like the way Sean Payton uses running backs in the passing games. Williams has caught 5 and 4 passes the last two weeks, and I think that’s going to be there all year. Now, 9 catches for 77 yards might not seem exciting to you, but in PPR leagues, it’s the same as rushing for 167 yards. Now, Tyler Badie came in against Pittsburgh and ripped off a 16-yard run. He came back against the Bucs and had a 43-yarder, with his other 8 carries going for 27 yards. Why Badie is having more success than Williams, I can’t be sure, but I am keeping my head in the sand, hoping Williams will turn things around. With Brown, he’s had carried 11 times for 93 yards the last two weeks, averaging over 4 more yards per carry than Zack Moss in both of those games. But there’s a difference between rotating in, running draws and whatnot, as opposed to being a starting back. As Troy Aikman pointed out during the broadcast, the hole Brown got on his 16-yard run in the Washington game was large enough that a truck could have been driven through it. I don’t think there’s consideration right now to Brown being promoted ahead of Moss. For the Mike Conway franchise, I think the play is to stick with Williams. (Maybe remind him that he’s in a contract year.)
Question 3
What do you make of Amari Cooper’s slow start? Should I have paid more attention to his splits with Watson vs Flacco last year?
Edward Oliver (Chaumont, NY)
We’re late to the party on this one now (this question was sent in late last week, before the Week 3 games). The Cooper Comeback is already underway now, with a pair of touchdowns against the Giants. He’s actually been fine all along with Deshaun Watson. In their five full games together last year, Cooper averaged 5.6 catches for 96 yards, with 2 TDs, going for 90-plus yards in all but one of those games. There have been some issues with drops. Since joining Cleveland, he’s dropped 25 out of 187 catchable passes, one of the worst rates in the league. He’s been particularly bad this year, with half as many drops (6) as catches (12). If not for the drop issues, he would have caught touchdowns in all three games this year.
Question 4
This is not a question but a bit of a back slap for Fantasy Index. I drafted strictly off of your sheets and you had Fairbairn the #1 rated kicker and I took him (after several kickers had been taken.) He single-handedly won me my game last week, 92.5-92.0. You guys catch a lot of flak when you get it wrong, I figured I needed to show I owe you at least 1 win.
Patrick LaMendola (Penfield, NY)
You were asking for trouble sending this one in, and sure enough, Fairbairn limited to only 1 point at Minnesota. You jinxed yourself. But thank you for the kind words. And I think he’s going to be one of the top fewer kickers this year. He’s one of the guys from Punahou (where Barack Obama went to school). Andrei Iosivas went there. Also DeForest Buckner.
Question 5
So when should I start to consider dropping Justin Tucker?
George Davis (Conroe, TX)
Let’s stick with Tucker. He’s been awfully good for so long. The team looks like it’s going to be fine, and that’s ultimately more important than whether he’s making 80 or 90 percent of his kicks. Tucker hasn’t been as good the last two years (making only 86 percent – low for him) but still scored 142 and 147 points in those seasons.
Question 6
I’ve been following you since LaDainian was a rookie, obviously, I value your opinion. What did you see to have Burrow rated so high, like 2nd or 3rd most of the preseason? Between the Chase hold out and wrist injury, I’m confused. He’s on 3/4 of my teams because I couldn’t avoid him, mind you, I got good value with him.
David Hogshire (Plymouth, MN)
He was dreadful in Week 1. I didn’t see that coming. And as poorly as they played in that game, I wouldn’t want to put him on the field this week. I expect he’ll get things going, and I’ll sleep better when he does. In regards to his preseason grade, I didn’t give any weight to him suffering a wrist injury last November. I don’t think it’s relevant. He’s healthy, as far as I know. They just need to get things dialed in (and I believe that will happen). He was about the best quarterback in the league in his last five healthy games last year. Over the last three years, he’s averaged the 5th-best per-game quarterbacking numbers in the league.
Question 7
Would you trade Bijan Robinson for J. Chase?
brian poisson (Livonia, MI)
They’re both good players, as far as I can tell. In PPR formats, I’ve got Chase projected to be 12 points better than Robinson for the duration. For standard leagues, my numbers suggest Robinson will be 20 points better.
Question 8
Why so low on Derek Carr? Ranked 20th in the Redrafter? The Saints offense looks like a machine. We rarely see anything like 15 scoring drives in a row. Small sample size, yes, defenses will adjust, but 15 in a row! Coming back to earth would still be above-average. I zigged when you zagged and grabbed him in my league as a free agent. Carr seems like a better Goff to me, good QB in a great situation. Carr behind Lawrence, Herbert, Geno, Richardson (injuries are coming). I'm incredulous.
Craig Rinne (Lake Worth, FL)
He doesn’t run at all; that won’t change. And I worry about how much he’ll be passing. I think they want to emphasize the run, with the ball in Carr’s hands less. He’s attempted only 23, 16 and 25 passes in their first three games. His stat line would have looked a lot better on Sunday had Rashid Shaheed not dropped what would have been about a 40-yard touchdown. Fair, I agree, to compare him the guys you mention. I think Goff and Geno will separate from him soom. With Richardson, he’s been dreadful, but I would keep him around in hopes of Shane Steichen pulling the right levers to turn him into another Jalen Hurts kind of guy, with rushing and passing. Lawrence, I can’t explain. Herbert is the most talented of these guys but runs a conservative, limited offense.
Question 9
I have Sam LaPorta who plays onMonday night, has an ankle sprain and a bye in week 5. I picked up Hunter Henry last week, who looks hit or miss. The best available TE's in my league are Noah Fant, who also plays Monday night, Tyler Conklin and Brock Wright if LaPorta doesn't play. I'm currently 1-2 in my 12 team PPR league. Should I role with Henry who plays at the 49ers or look at one of the other TE's?
Brian Boyd (Maple Grove, MN)
If you’re holding out hope of using LaPorta, then picking up Fant would make sense. If LaPorta is looking reasonably healthy on Monday, you would use him. If not, you would plug in Fant, hoping he can do something similar to last week (when he caught 6 for 60). But I think I would roll with Henry. He had that great game at Cincinnati, where he caught over half of his team’s completions. Jacoby Brissett has had a lot of success with tight ends over the years (Jack Doyle had an 80-catch seasons with him).
Question 10
I have noticed when a fantasy line-up goes off one weekend, the next weekend they sometimes are low down dogs, can you give me your reason why?
Dave Kendall (Shelton, WA)
There’s a natural fluctuation, I think. And I think when a player has a big game (maybe 3 touchdowns, for example) that gets the attention of the team they’re playing the next week – makes stopping him more of a priority.
Question 11
My RBs having been killing me every week. I have Rachaad White and Javonte Williams, also Nick Chubb in the IR slot. I’m tempted to package them up with a WR and cut bait, take what I can get for them. Am I jumping the gun or is the writing on the wall for these guys?
James Stewart (Waynesboro, VA)
They’re depressed assets. I don’t think you’ll find anyone willing to give up anything of note for them. So the play, I guess, is to hope they can turn things around (while keeping an eye on the waiver wire).
Question 12
Sam Darnold / Derek Carr / Jordan Love. Need to drop one?
Ray Phillips (Cornelius, NC)
Carr. Not even close. They’ve got a run-oriented offense, trying to save Carr from having to do too much. The less he has to do, the better. So far fantasy purposes, his game is then dependent on being able to hit on something long. That’s not sustainable.