ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly from training camp through the Super Bowl with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them: Which nobody will be somebody in the fantasy playoffs?
JASON WOOD
I think this weekend we unfortunately saw quite a few teams quitting on the season, if not consciously then subconsciously. At running back, you have to think hard about Michael Carter following Bam Knight's injury. Carter played the majority of snaps over Demercado and is especially helpful in PPR formats. And his next two matchups (Atlanta and Cincinnati) are advantageous. At receiver, let's call attention to Jayden Higgins who played 72% of the Texans snaps this week despite having the full receiving corps healthy and available.
Wood is Senior Editor at Footballguys.com and has been with the company since its start in 2000. For more than 20 years, Footballguys has provided rankings, projections, and analysis to help fantasy managers dominate their leagues.
SCOTT PIANOWSKI
Do we dare trust Michael Carter in Arizona? He's basically fourth or fifth string, but the Cardinals offense has been useful since Jacoby Brissett took over. So much of fantasy value with running backs is figuring out where the touches are going. And if you'll accept an outside the box answer for this question, I suspect Colby Parkinson can keep scoring touchdowns in LA, especially with star receiver Davante Adams set to miss time.
Pianowski has been with Yahoo Sports since 2008, covering a variety of sports. On the rare occasions when the computer is turned off, he enjoys word games, poker, music, film, game theory, and a variety of condiments. He lives in suburban Detroit. Pianowski was inducted into the FSWA Hall of Fame in 2021.
IAN ALLAN
If the Eagles sew up the NFC East this weekend, I could see them shutting down Saquon Barkley (or at least reducing his playing time). This might make Tank Bigsby a viable option at running back. Bigsby this year has done well with his limited opportunities.
Allan co-founded Fantasy Football Index in 1987. He is a member of the FSGA Fantasy Sports Hall of Fame and the Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame.
SCOTT SACHS
Gardner Minshew is stepping into a tough situation as Kansas City plays out the string without playoff hopes. This is uncharted territory for many KC players, but vets like Minshew and a number of others are, in a sense, in their own playoff drive --trying to catch the eye of NFL GMs and talent evaluators by flashing some quality production. Minshew still has some talented targets to work with and faces a floundering Titans team this week, vying for the No. 1 pick again. In Fantasy championship week 17, KC faces Denver, who may start sitting out regulars, provided the Broncos clinch home field advantage week 16. If you roster Mahomes, Tua, or have another crisis at QB, guys like Minshew (or maybe Philip Rivers) can plug in and keep your season alive.
With 2 perfect seasons and multiple league championships to his credit, Sachs runs Perfect Season Fantasy Football, featuring LIVE Talk & Text Advice. He is a 3-time winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Auction League, as well as a previous winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Poll. Follow on X: https://x.com/ffbcoach
ANDY RICHARDSON
Gardner Minshew is a colorful dude, working out in his underwear and living out of his car while at training camp one year. Kansas City is disappointingly playing out the string, but Minshew I suspect will bring the same devil-may-care effort as always, and this week he faces a Titans defense which has gotten better against the run but worse against the pass as the year has worn on. I also think there's some chance Audric Estime has a good game for the Saints this week, splitting time with Evan Hull yes, but facing a Jets defense that's been horrific of late, to the delight of those who started any Jaguars last week. If you're in need of a Week 16 running back, consider Estime (who faces the Titans in Week 17, should Kamara and Neal be unavailable).
Richardson has been a contributing writer and editor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and www.fantasyindex.com since 2002. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual experts draft and auction leagues since their inception. He writes a weekly gambling newsletter, Index Bets, during the NFL season and also previews all the games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays.