Ian Allan answers your fantasy football questions. In this edition. Weighing Jared Goff against more volatile options. Rankings for tight end premium leagues. The best kick returners. Jeanty vs. Josh Jacobs in a dynasty format. And more.
Question 1
Made it to the playoffs almost every year over the last 20 years thanks to your help! Do I start Mahomes over Stafford this weekend? I have to start 3 RBs, going with Ken Walker III and Bucky Irving in slots 1 and 2. Waiver wire pick ups vying for slot 3: R. Stevenson Patrick Taylor Jaylen Warren Tank Bigsby K Miller Thanks! Happy Holidays!
JON CLAUSSEN (Boca Raton, FL)
Sorry, I'm just seeing this now. I typically do the Mailbag during the middle of the week, then leave it alone until the next installment. I hope it worked out for you.
Question 2
Dynasty League, TD-only format. Currently have Jared Goff who tossed 36 TDs, mainly later in the season due to playing from behind. Unfortunately Goff doesn’t run and lost his OC to Chicago. Would you replace Goff with either J.J. McCarthy with better playmakers or Trevor Lawrence (despite his injury history) with a new HC who turned Baker Mayfield around?
Howie Fishman (Venice, FL)
I was going to call you out on the claim that Goff that Goff benefitting from playing from behind. But checking the numbers, there were a few more of those than I expected, including 7 in the home games against the Packers and Bills. Goff threw 20 touchdowns while leading last year, 14 while trailing and 2 while tied. Not as big a difference as I expected. Now, what was the question again? Yes, quarterbacks. You’re looking at three, and there’s not a lot of difference between them. Which one you take could be determined by the mode you’re in on that particular day. As me again next week, and the ordering could be reverse. Goff looks like the safest choice. He’s thrown 67 touchdowns over the last two years, 2nd-most in the league. He’s the only quarterback who’s started 51 games over the last three years. And with the Lions losing a couple of linemen (including a franchise center) there probably will be more of those games where they’re trailing. I wouldn’t rule out McCarthy. He’s completely unproven, however, but he’s got the best infrastructure around him in the league, with QB-friendly Kevin O’Connell, an upgraded offensive line and that Jefferson-Addison-Hockenson trifecta of pass catchers. He’ll run more than Goff. Lawrence is also right there in the mix. He’s also got a coach who was awfully impressive last year (with Liam Coen elevating Baker Mayfield). If Travis Hunter is as good as he’s supposed to be, they’ll have a hell of a pair of pass catchers. Lawrence is more experienced than McCarthy but will be playing behind a line that isn’t as good.
Question 3
The magazine tends to focus of Defense/Special Teams on Defense, who would you think are the top 5 teams most likely to return a punt or kickoff for a Touchdown?
Eric Scolnick (Redmond, WA)
KaVontae Turpin is the No. 1 kick returner, and it’s not even close. He’s the only guy who scored 2 TDs on returns last year (1 on a kickoff, 1 on punt), and I think there’s a chance he’ll do it again. With the rules changes on touchbacks, I don’t think teams will be banging kickoffs into the end zone anymore. Marvin Mims is my No. 2 returner. No touchdowns last year, but he’s been a first- and second-team All-Pro in his first two seasons. He scored a 99-yard touchdown on a kickoff as a rookie and has had 61- and 52-yard punt returns. He’ll also benefit from the touchback revisions. After that, it thins out. Kalif Raymond was really good last year, but he’s an older guy. Ihmir Smith-Marsette has scored on returns in back-to-back seasons for different teams. Kene Nwangwu has scored 4 TDs on kickoff returns in the last four years. Derius Davis looks above-average for the Chargers. And I heard Kansas City’s special teams coach talking optimistically about Xavier Worthy on punt returns; they pulled him off those units last year, he said, because they couldn’t risk him getting hurt after both Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice got hurt.
Question 4
Is there a way to set up TE premium (1.5 PPR for TEs only) in the custom scoring?
Aaron Vander Vorst (West Fargo, ND)
It’s not listed on the menu, but it’s possible. Sign in to the website and click on your name (in the upper right-hand corner). Drag down to “Scoring Systems”. At the bottom of the page, click on “Create a New Scoring System”. Drag down to the FFPC option. This will create a duplicate of the FFPC option, which you can then re-name to whatever you want. In FFPC leagues, an extra half point is awarded for tight ends. That will carry over. There’s no mechanism to change tight ends to 2, 2.5 or 3 points for catches, or to move them back to 1. It’s also not clearly listed what’s being awarded. (It could use some polishing in presentation). But with FFPC scoring (and duplicates of that format), tight ends receiver 1.5 points per catch, while other players receiver 1 point per catch.
Question 5
Ian and staff, offered the following: My Jeanty and Jameson Williams for Josh Jacobs & DeVonta Smith. All touchdowns are 7 pts with a full point PPR. It interests me. Thoughts from you fellas? Yes, a dynasty.
Don McCown (Port Washington, WI)
If we’re looking at just this year, I like the Jacobs-DeVonta pair better. According to my projections, they’ll score about 50 more points in 2025. But with this being a dynasty league, I would be more inclined to sacrifice some this year in hopes of being better in the future. Jacobs is 27 – in the second half of his career, given the nature of the position he plays. Jeanty is 6 years younger. I wouldn’t be considering moving him unless a lot more was thrown into the trade.
Question 6
Not a fantasy question but rather a subscription question. Paid up to get the magazine via mail ASAP. Haven't received my copy yet but it's already on my local newsstands! Guess I shouldn't pay for it to be mailed & just pick it up at the store?
Scott Anderson (Las Vegas, NV)
Typically with the magazine, it’s showing up on newsstands the week after the Fourth of July. I can’t recall it showing up in June anywhere in any previous seasons. Not sure how it happened in your area, and I wouldn’t count on it happening again.