What’s up, everyone? How was your week 5? I did well in DK cash, not so great in tournaments, but I did happen to win the Reignmaker dfs tournaments where I won two Reignmaker prize packs valued at $1k each! Turned those into a Mike Evans and a Chig Okonkwo valued around $5k total. I was pretty happy with my process especially in cash making sure I had Chase, LaPorta, and David Montgomery in there winning 90% of my entries. On to week 6 we go but first let’s talk about week 5!

Hmm. Where to begin for summarizing week 5? Let’s start at the top — the 49ers are absolutely the best team in the league as they should be. I’ll give my rundown of the top 5 squads but here are the tiers from someone far more educated and data-driven than me — benbaldwin on X. Give him a follow if you like this type of stuff as I do!

Basically, my hunch was correct before seeing this chart — the 49ers are elite. I still think Philly is #2 at least until they figure out how to stop the “Brotherly Shove”. Then it’s the Bills but admittedly, the Bills have had a tough schedule. That said, wtf were they doing flying to London on Friday, two days before the game?? Even if it’s only a 5-hour flight and a 5-hour time difference — jet lag will have an effect! Having everyone’s sleep schedules in disarray has to have an effect on people’s play! I know I get ornery if I get less than 5.5 hours of sleep. I blame that loss is on their poor logistics team! But beyond that, the Bills are a really good squad.

It’s the Chiefs and then the Dolphins for me. The Chiefs haven’t looked particularly dominant this year aside from that Bears win and every win hasn’t been very decisive. Still, there’s been some hiccups with Kelce missing and the gaze of the Swifties. Like last year, they’ll get it moving in the second half.

The Dolphins offense still looks otherwordly. Achane runs like there‘s a forcefield around him. That said, he no longer has the fastest speed in the NFL this year — Tyreek Hill does! If it’s not one guy, it’s another. Unfortunately, Achane had to go on IR this week for a knee issue but they are getting Jeff Wilson back soon and I will be rostering Tua and some version of the Dolphins offensive playmakers in dfs henceforth. You simply can’t risk not having them when there’s actually a close game. Against the Panthers this week? Probably not — but it’s still football and you never know when the opposing team may keep it close!

So that’s my top five:

1.49ers
2. Eagles
3. Bills
4. Chiefs
5. Dolphins

Obviously, it’s a long season and there’s always going to be some tough injuries along the way, but I presently have to put the 49ers as the odds-on favorite to win the Super Bowl. I could see the Lions (4–1) inching up into the top 5 with another big win or two, the Ravens (3–2) once they figure out how to stop their WRs from making those egregious drops that plagued them in week 5, and weirdly enough the Saints (3–2) could put it together. Why the Saints? I think their defense is quietly very good and they have a soft division. They have played every team pretty tough and I want to believe Derek Carr will start looking a lot better once he gets acclimated with the full offense now that Kamara is back and heals from his injury after their bye week. We shall see!

Week 5 Crushers:

Jamaar Chase & Joe Burrow: Was really happy to see Jamaar finally erupt like we all thought he would. The same with Burrow who finally did look a lot healthier this week. His calf injury should be in the past. A calf injury generally shouldn’t be a huge deal since he doesn’t run that much but he is really good at maneuvering inside the pocket. So when that’s his specialty, not having full capability of your calf could definitely be an issue. But all that is now in the past! And they get a juicy matchup this weekend in @ the Seahawks. The 45 point o/u is surprisingly lower than I would have expected but even so, I could see this game being a shootout if things line up well. Seattle’s pass d is currently 25th in DVOA and pretty good against the run. And Cinci is 24th against the pass. These are green flags for a shootout.

Honestly, most of the games on the slate, I could see going off. It’s interesting for week 6 because there is only 1 game with an o/u over 50, the MIA/CAR at 51, but yet there are a number that have lots of upside.

George Kittle: He finally went bonkers on Sunday night! That’s how it goes with him. He’s boom or bust these days but since he’s a TE, he can really break a slate when he booms. Three catches, four targets, 3 TDs for 67 yards. Talk about efficiency! The good thing about his boom/bust type of style is the TE position generally isn’t great to begin with so when he goes for 5 pts, it’s somewhat expected, and you aren’t losing too much against the other TEs for the most part aside from Kelce, Hock, and Andrews. Maybe LaPorta now too. So less floor, higher ceiling is fine with me.

De’von Achane: He is the real deal! Last week was the make-or-break week and he immediately ran for a 70-yard TD in the first half. Could this be the next Chris Johnson?? Everyone seems to be comparing him to CJ2K! As I stated earlier Achane’s now on the IR for the next four weeks but trade for him if you are off to a good start in a season-long league. I don’t mind taking some risks on trades if I can finish the season strong.

Travis Etienne: Finally, we saw his explosiveness on display! Against the Bills defense, Etienne went off for 39 DK points. I wouldn’t say it was quiet but it was a little forgotten about because it was a London game that wasn’t on the main slate. Etienne is the clear #1 in Jacksonville and has the potential to end as RB #1 on the season — okay maybe #2. Mccaffrey has been too damn good this year!

Justin Fields: Very important to recognize Fields has been looking great the last two weeks and he’s done it mostly through the air. Such a great sign for someone who we all think of as a rushing QB. DJ Moore has looked incredible too with his 3 TD 52-point fantasy game. It’s no longer a buy-low spot but be excited for when he does break a run or two for a TD and puts up 40 fantasy points. It will happen!

Good Buy-Low Candidates:

Rashee Rice: He didn’t blow up this week but he did catch a red zone TD. I still think he will eventually command the second-largest target share on the Chiefs but we aren’t there yet. Buy before it gets there!

Jordan Addison: With Justin Jefferson going on IR (RIP my season-long squads), this pass-first offense will need to throw it somewhere. While his routes run % was still well below KJ Osbourne, he’s done a lot with those routes catching 3 TDs in 5 games. You can definitely expect everything to rise and with a prime matchup against Chicago this week maybe he gets over 100 yards too! Yes, I get everyone knows him now bc of JJ gone but I still think there’s a chance for upside and for him to really breakout.

Josh Downs: It doesn’t seem to matter if it's ARich or Minshew under center, he’s getting targets and making the most of those looks. He has yet to hit paydirt on the season but is quickly becoming their 2nd favorite target with 33 targets, 23 catches and last game he went 6 for 97 on top of an 80% route share through 5 games. Impressive for a rook who wasn’t really hyped.

Kendre Miller: In his second game he caught 4 balls for 53 yards, albeit in garbage time, but they did not feel the need to use another back besides Kamara. And if AK starts losing a step later in the season, Kendre’s role could increase.

Tyjae Spears: 14 receptions on the season and his snap rate has been consistently around 50% with Henry healthy. They clearly like him and you can expect him to be in there on 3rd down when they need to pass. Judging by how the Titans have looked this season, I’d say they are going to need to pass a lot. And if Henry happens to get injured, that could hit 80%!

Week 6 DFS Crushers

Roschon Johnson ($4600) — he was already looking good before Khalil Herbert went down and he is very cheap on DK ($4600). Now, he still needs to pass through concussion protocol but it’s leaning that he will. Being the lead back at home in a good matchup against Minnesota when you haven’t really had that opportunity yet as a rookie? I want that guy in my lineup!

Bijan Robinson ($7200) — Bijan simply looks too damn good out there for me to keep fading him. Now he’s at home and priced down to $7200 on DK. Of course, the Washington DL has looked a lot better since getting Chase Young back after playing zero games last year, but overall the Washington defense has been allowing a ton of points. So if Bijan gets stopped between the tackles, he may be called upon as a pass catcher and I would not want to be a defender attempting to tackle him in the open field.

Marquise Brown ($5300) — Mr. Hollywood as been pretty good this year. While I think his absolute ceiling is somewhat capped because of Josh Dobbs not having the top-end arm you need, Brown could easily break a big one like he did in Baltimore or even better, have a two-TD game. His routes run on the season is 94%, he has 3 TDs already, averaging 8 targets per game, and is the clear #1 WR in a condensed offense. Also, with James Conner going down last week they may have to be more pass-oriented. The matchup against the Rams is decent but nothing incredible. Given his role in the offense, the $5300 price tag is simply too cheap. Also the early Establish The Run projections love him too. Fire him up!

Cooper Kupp ($9000) — The Rams alpha WR and god tier route runner is back and made an impact right away on the first drive after he got peppered with three targets and catches last week. He finished with a cool 8 catches for 118 yards in his first game back. Matt Stafford looks so much better than last year and with Puka now a threat on the other side of the field, I expect Kupp to have some slate-breaking upside. Sure $9000 is steep but his role is going to be one of the best in the league.

Chris Olave ($6700) — Last week he had a slow game going 2 for 12 with 1 TD but after the Saints got up early, the game was out of hand shortly after halftime. He wasn’t needed and this week he is priced down to $6600. His start to the season has been pretty good up until the Derek Carr injury in week 3. Week 4 Derek Carr could barely throw the ball so his 1 catch for 4 yards stat line makes some sense. The matchup against Houston on the road is good but Houston’s pace is one of the highest in the league so more time means more opportunities for Mr. Olave to cook.

Alvin Kamara ($6800) — After two weeks of being back from his suspension, Kamara looks a bit better than he did at the end of last year and he also looks like he is an integral part of this offense. I thought maybe week 4’s 13 catch game was an anomaly, but it wasn’t, as he received 24 carries in their blowout win against the Patriots. If this bellcow-type usage continues he’s going to need to be priced up a bit more. $6800 seems pretty good against the up-tempo Houston squad. I may contemplate a Derek Carr/Kamara/Olave stack this week as that should do a pretty good job of capturing most of that offense. We shall see!

Calvin Ridley ($6700) — The hype on Ridley seems to have died down a bit after a few mediocre performances weeks 2–4 but after returning to form in week 5, Ridley is in a prime spot to return to his week 1 stat line of 8 catches, 101 yards and 1 TD. Why am I bringing up week 1 you say? Well, that game was against the Colts and they have their second matchup of the year at home this week. I remember thinking week 1 people were mildly disappointed with that stat line and his price was $6500. So why are we not excited for another prime matchup when he’s at $6700? Fire him up and maybe we get a 30-point game from Calvin.

Garrett Wilson ($6000)— Seeing as the Eagles run defense is elite, their team has turned into a pass funnel where they keep giving up lots of points to WR1s. Sure it’s not the easiest matchup for Zach Wilson but I think he’s turned a corner — a very small angle of a turn, but a turn nonetheless. So if Zach can be poised at home against Jalen Carter and this vaunted Eagles D-line, Garrett Wilson could be in for a big day. Garrett is an alpha WR and was being taken around the 1/2 wheel in drafts before the season. With 43 targets no the season and only 23 catches, let’s hope that lack of efficiency has some positive regression soon.

Trenton Irwin *if Tee Higgins sits* ($3300) — quietly went 6 receptions for 80 yards and had some burst of output last year too. Maybe he’s earned the WR3 position over Boyd moving forward. Keep an eye out as he’s only $3300 this week.

Kyle Pitts $3500) — finally a good game by Mr. Pitts! 11 targets, 7 receptions for 87 yards. This is the type of signal we needed to feel comfortable rostering him moving forward. He was priced at $3300 and is still at $3500 this week. It’s always tough at TE but this week it could be worth a gamble against a Commanders defense that has given up an obscene 160 points in 5 games.

T.J. Hockenson ($6500)— with Justin Jefferson on IR, the targets have to go somewhere and TJ was already getting a lot of volume prior. Could he reach Kelce-level target share? Possibly! With the options being him, rookie Jordan Addison, lackluster KJ Osbourne, and dart throw Brandon Powell I think at $6500 Hock is worth rostering wherever you can fit him. He’s probably my primary Viking to stack with Kirk this week.

That’s it for this week! Good luck to everyone! Let’s get it 🔥🔥🔥.

Follow me @Roothlus on Twitter. friend.tech/roothlus if you want to ask me some FFB questions directly. Cheers!

What’s up, everyone?! Hope your fantasy squads crushed it this week. For me, I figured something out about the DFS slate late Saturday evening realizing the MIA/BUF game was going to be way under-owned for its O/U. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a big enough stand on the game to make a big profit but after seeing the DraftKings ownership come in so low for the matchup, I was happy with my process for the week. My cash lineup crushed posting nearly 200 points and winning 124 out of 126 entries. Impressive haha. For Reignmakers, I didn’t have a big win but did have a lineup that was live for 2nd place in the big Core contest with 15k entrants. If only Josh Jacobs or Keenan did a little more! My DFS tourney lineups did alright but nothing to write home about. Regardless, it was a decent week overall profiting about $500 on $1k in entries between the 3 styles of fantasy.

And I hope of the probably four people who happen to read this, you found some of the info helpful! Rather than highlighting every single team which turned out to be like 10 pages in length, I figured I’d highlight some of the players and teams that stuck out to me after week 4 and leading into week 5. Maybe every so often I’ll do a team-by-team rundown to update y’all.

Alright, here we go.

Russell Wilson: I never thought I’d be in this position after how last year started for Russ but I have become a Russell Wilson truther in all my group chats. Russ is cooking! Another solid game from him. This Broncos offense seems better than last season and Russ has legitimately been good. In Russ’ last 9 games going back to last year, he has had a QBR over 100 6 times, threw 3 TDs in a game 5 times, and threw for 300 yards 4 times. I got news for ya’ll — Russ is cooking!! Fire him up in good matchups and maybe even stream him when your QB is on a bye week.

Jake Ferguson: He has the most red zone targets in the league — tied with Davante Adams. We already know Davante is an alpha WR, but Fergy Ferg at the top? That’s unexpected! He quietly went 7 for 74 last game and something that makes this red zone stat even crazier is, they won in blowouts 3 out of 4 games so even if he was in during the 4th quarter, it was mostly run plays being called. If he’s on waivers, pick his ass up!

Anthony Richardson: He is off to an incredible start. He has played 10 quarters of football so far, ran for 4 TDs, thrown for 3, and impressively only thrown 1 INT. Sure it’s going to be a bumpy ride — evident in the 1st half against the Rams after being down 17–0 but he’s still a rookie after all. I still think he could be an incredible talent judging from what we’ve seen thus far. I believe it so much that just yesterday I traded away Jalen Hurts because I had ARich on the bench. Actually, it was quite the haul tbh but I have no problem riding Richardson the entire season all the way to a fantasy chip.

The Buffalo Bills: they are the best team in the NFL right now. That’s my take — you can argue the Eagles or 49ers are right there with them but if you think any other team is worthy of the top 3, you’re fooling yourself. Their defense looks like one of the best, just like Dallas and the 49ers. Josh Allen returned to form, Diggs has been great, James Cook is a nice upgrade over Devin Singletary from last year and Gabe Davis looks pretty healthy after being hindered by a nagging ankle injury most of last season. ESPN has the Bills at +750 to win the SB and I’m buying there at a small edge.

The Carolina Panthers: their offense will be tough to depend on all season. I prefer to avoid all parts of this offense until I see some progression from Bryce Young or there’s value that pops up due to injuries. Adam Thielen is probably the only player you can routinely depend on here.

CeeDee Lamb: Buy “low” on him. I put the quotation marks there because it’s not like he’s having a bad season but he still has a bit of upside for his first-round ADP. Like Ferguson, he hasn’t had to play a full complement of relevant snaps because when Dallas has looked good, they have completely annihilated the other team. Now, Adam, I know you’re thinking why aren’t you putting them in the top teams? Well, that Arizona loss was not a good look. Check back a few weeks from now. If they are 7–1, then yes they’re contenders. Okay, back to CeeDee — he has 309 yards on the season, good for 12th but only 30 targets and 1 TD. 7.5 targets per game is simply not enough for an alpha WR but don’t worry, this weekend Dallas plays @ the 49ers and you know they will have to depend on Lamb a lot even if it’s a tough matchup. So when you consider that he hasn’t played all of the expected snaps and a good chunk of the game was run-first, his stats are pretty respectable.

The Arizona Cardinals: they aren’t a bottom 5 team anymore. Josh Dobbs has been impressive compared to our expectations. Arizona did a good job hanging with the 49ers until CMC did CMC things. I wouldn’t say it’s a buy low like CeeDee but Marquise Brown feels a little underrated. This offense has been better than expected and Marquise is getting lots of targets, like he did last year. Also, there’s always a chance he gets traded to a legitimate offense.

The Cincinnati Bengals: I’m a little worried about this squad. Burrow clearly isn’t himself and now Tee Higgins goes down with a rib injury. I doubt he plays this week and Mixon, as I expected, has been mediocre at best. Sure, he may have some crazy 50-point game like he did last year, but so did Kamara and he was losing snaps to Mark Ingram towards the end of last year who is no longer in the league. I’m not as worried for Jamaar Chase since he gets the boost with likely no Higgins this week. The good news for this Bengals squad is week 7 is their bye week so if they can let Tee recover, Burrow rest his half calf for two weeks, and they can head into it being 2–4, they can still recover from this sluggish start. Also, after finishing this, a report came out that Burrow practiced in full for the first time all season today. Burrow also said he’s feeling better and better. Good sign!

Alvin Kamara: His usage was wild last week. 13 targets for…31 yards. How’s that possible?! Well, Derek Carr probably should not have played which turned into Checkdown City for the Saints and they lost as expected with Carr and his lack of arm strength. That said, if you are in a full PPR league, this is positive for Alvin. He had 11 rushes for 51 yards — respectable after coming back from his 3-game suspension. I do think 13 catches is a bit of an outlier and won’t be an every-week thing but if Carr is targeting him even half that, that’s great for his rest of season outlook.

Zach Wilson: He looked good last week! I swear I wasn’t hallucinating. He threw some great balls to his wide receivers and if not for a fluky fumble, he could have led the Jets to victory. I’d say maybe this impressive game by him was a fluke too, but we can hold off on that take because he’s playing the Denver Broncos this week who seem to have a bottom 3 defense all around. I’m gambling on him this week in a 2 QB league because times are tough with bye weeks coming around there. Fingers crossed 🥶.

Bijan Robinson: He could be an otherworldly running back. He looks so damn good out there and hasn’t even had a ceiling game yet but it’s coming…soon. Maybe this week at home against the Texans. I think he’s too cheap at $7800 on DK this week and if you have the opportunity to trade for him, do it! He has been a highlight machine so far. I still think about that rush he made against the Packers where he managed to juke 3 defenders in a span of 5 seconds for a 19 yard gain. When playing poker, there are moments where you get so owned by your opponent you almost want to retire from the game entirely on the spot — that’s the energy Bijan made these defenders feel. I’m hyped on him!

Rashee Rice: The rookie breakout game is coming. It’s been brewing for some time and for the second straight week he’s ran 50% of routes. Couple that with this juicy matchup against the Vikings and I will be rostering him where I can, especially at $3600 on DraftKings.

The Detroit Lions: After their dismantling of the Packers at Lambeau, it’s safe to say this offense and team is legit. If not for an OT loss to Seattle, they’d be 4–0! Their RB tandem has looked good so far with Gibbs and Montgomery — kinda sounds like some yacht rock 80s band lol. Yes, Gibbs hasn’t had a breakout game yet but you’re seeing some promise. I think people expect more because of where he was drafted but he’s still a rook and is clearly being utilized. The big games will come. While Amonra is battling through his turf toe injury, you’d hardly notice looking at his game logs. Josh Reynolds and Kaliff Raymond have been good while waiting for Jameson Williams to return this week. Oh and then there’s Sam Laporta who has looked absolutely elite straight away as a rookie TE. And now they get Carolina at home? This is a good spot to gamble on a low-owned Gibbs breakout while everyone is drinking the tea from Montgomery’s primetime 3 TD game last week. Fwiw, DMont’s Core cards on RM are $14 and while I think he’s clearly a top 10 RB and on a great offense — that’s too high for me. Sell now imo. See if there’s a Lions truther in your league like there is one of mine and offload DMont to him!

Devon Achane: He’s been absolutely electric the last two weeks. 6 touchdowns and an increase in snaps and routes run. While I thought maybe it was a little flukey in w3, after last week’s usage and performance, I have to capitulate as Evan Silva loves to say. Also shoutout to Evan — glad he’s doing better and back at home. But yes, I was about Achane — not a fluke and he’s earned his RB1A/1B status on Miami. At home against the Giants this week?? It will be hard to avoid rostering him. He’s earned a starting spot in any season-long squad!

Puka Nacua: PUKAAAA. Sorry, his name is really fun to yell. He’s tied for the most targets (54) and has more completions than any other player in the league. We have never seen a rookie like this and as if he wasn’t already looking great, he catches the walk-off TD in overtime against the Colts for the win. Pretty awesome. Cooper Kupp is likely to come back this week or next at the latest so the offense will shift a bit but Stafford looks great, the OL is definitely playing better than last year so I don’t expect Puka’s stats to get hurt by too much. They also want to be careful with Cooper coming off a season-ending injury + a hamstring issue for at least the first few games of his return.

Romeo Doubs: Why the hate on him? I don’t get it. At some point, the masses also need to capitulate. His career arc: somewhat unknown gets hype during the 2022 preseason, flashes early in the season but misses some big throws by Aaron Rodgers. Then gets injured and for the rest of the season he just isn’t much of a threat on offense. 2023, everyone is down on him but the thing is, he’s still young! People always forget about a player’s progression. It’s odd to me.

This season, Christian Watson gets injured and Doubs is the WR1 with Jordan Love. How does he do? 20 receptions, 33 targets, 3 TDs and 7 RZ targets (2nd in the league). While I think his target share will go down with Watson, I don’t think his outlook will change much. If anything, I think Watson will complement Doubs well by being the burner and Doubs the possession/RZ threat. I’m buying — in fact literally as I’m writing this paragraph someone offered him to me for Drake London who was creating dust on my bench and yes, I accepted. #TeamDoubs

Godspeed and good luck out there in the fantasy streets this weekend. Let’s ship something!

Week 3 summed up in one picture:

Here are a few quick hits I realized in case you want the TLDR:

• Miami Dolphins are elite. The offense is top 3 at worst with generational upside and the defense looks pretty damn good too.
• The Vikings are throwing at a 75% pass rate which is 6% over expectation. That’s nuts!
• Michael Pittman is the only WR in the league with 8 receptions in all 3 games and half of those quarters were with rushing QB Anthony Richardson behind center. Impressive.
• CJ Stroud looks amazing so far and hasn’t really had a ceiling game yet but Houston plays fast. Plan accordingly.
• George Pickens’ depth of target is the 2nd best in the league right now. If Pickett can get it together, Pickens could have an impressive 2nd year.
• Marvin Mims Jr. has run 23% of routes thus far this year but has the top 6 longest plays for the Broncos as well. His yards per route run were breaking the chart, according to fantasy sharp Pattrick Kerrane. Sample size is small but hearing inklings of him being played more this week.

AFC EAST

Miami Dolphins (3–0)

I don’t even know what to say about this squad, completely speechless. Just an incredible offensive output on Sunday beating Denver 70–20. It doesn’t even seem like a real score. Achane’s breakout game with 4 touchdowns and Mostert with 4?! Even former NYJets QB Mike White and Robbie Chosen (formerly Anderson) with his newly minted last name got involved after Tua rested in the 4th quarter. Speaking of the Jets, the Dolphins total yards from this one game (726) is more than the Jets’ entire season so far (675).

Any WR can have a down game but Tyreek Hill is in prime form right now. He may need to hit $10k on Draft Kings to feel like he’s not value. He looks incredible out there and so does Tua who started the game 16 for 16. The Dolphins are operating on all cylinders with McDaniel at the helm and their defense humming. No Waddle, no problem!

Next week at Buffalo is going to be a true test and sure it could turn into a shoutout but I could see this divisional game being a chess match all the way through. Can they stop Tyreek? Can anyone??

New England Patriots (2–1)

Honestly didn’t get to watch much of their snooze fest of a game @ the Jets. Granted it was terrible weather and both teams have great defenses but aside from one long catch and run from a 3rd string TE taking one to the house, this Pats offense looked anemic.

Mondre got less carries than Zeke this game and didn’t look particularly explosive or anything.

Maybe we can give the Pats a pass just because of the weather but I’m not particularly interested in any player from this team outside of maybe Devante Parker if he’s in a prime matchup.

Buffalo Bills (2–1)

The Bills look good and really should be 3–0 but the Jets pulled a rabbit out of their hat to win in week 1. A complete dismantling of the Commanders offense today and Josh Allen looked good. Gabe Davis seems healthy and Diggs is due for an eruption game soon.
James Cook has been the main guy and has averaged 90 yards per game and a ridiculous 6.1 yards per carry.
Dalton Kincaid may have a breakout game one day but it’s time to jump ship on him for now. His depth of target is looking…rough and Dalton Knox is getting more reps.

Their defense was incredible. I want to state it was more of an elite defensive game than the Commanders playing terribly fwiw. 4 INTs and nine sacks is insane! It was a 16–0 game in the 4th quarter after all. Also, props to Tre’Davious White for that incredible pick in the end zone. I remember watching it live and thinking how nicely placed of a ball Howell had thrown, yet White had the foresight and athletic ability to beat the Commander’s wideout. Amazing.

New York Jets (1–2)

I was hoping maybe Zach Wilson would be a serviceable game manager but he is the same old QB we all grew to dislike. The matchups have been tough but it seems his rapport with the WRs is worse than last year somehow.
Breece Hall needs to get off this pitch count asap which should happen by week 6. Don’t lose faith! The Jets need a lot of help. Garrett Wilson is startable only in a good matchup.
Their defense is still good but that’s not enough.

I do want to note that after watching all of the highlights from this game, Wilson did have a good drive in the 4th quarter that ended up with a rushing td for the Jets. Romo even commented how well he thought Wilson played during that drive. It was the only time all game I saw some promise and precision accuracy from the young milf hunter himself. Mostly selling the entire offense here with a twinge of hope for my Garrett Wilson Best Ball bags.

NFC EAST

Philadelphia Eagles (3–0)

They looked elite this week against the Bucs. De’Andre Swift looks incredible out there. His burst and the ability to bounce off tackles gave him his second straight game over 130 yards. He’s earning the RB1 job. AJ Brown got online this week and it’s a 1A 1B situation with Devonta. Goedert was due as well. He didn’t hit pay dirt but he was more involved than the previous two weeks. Good buy low if you want someone with top 3 TE upside.

The defensive line has somehow gotten better with rookie Jalen Carter. It could honestly end up 49ers vs Eagles again in the playoffs.
The QB sneak Hurts seems to be executed with 99.8% success. It’s almost a cheat code.

Dallas Cowboys (2–1)

Outlier game @ the Cardinals a week after losing Trevon Diggs (shutdown cb) for the year. Dallas D clearly didn’t look the same but they’ll get it together soon. I think Dak throws up one or two dud games every year but generally he’s a good QB and this was one of them. Lamb doesn’t have a TD this year. This will change, plan accordingly. Pollard had a “bad” game and still had 20 DK points.

Small tidbit, when Cooks was out last week Jalen Tolbert ran 89% of routes. He’s a second-year guy who wasn’t ready last year according to Dallas but looked decent in the preseason. If Gallup or Cooks get hurt, he’s the next man up.

Expect Dallas D to get back on track this week at home against the Patriots.

Washington Commanders (2–1)

While I think Sam Howell had a bad day, this was his first time playing against an elite defense and he wasn’t ready for it at all. Sure maybe the rain but 37–3?! That’s a tough pill to swallow. Even so, Mclaurin had a serviceable day and Brian Robinson was efficient before they had to abandon the run. Next week isn’t much easier against the vaunted defense of the Eagles. I doubt Washington keeps up but do think they’ll keep it closer than this week and Howell will rebound after a turrible game.

I’ll probably gamble with a Howell stack in some large field tourney on DK with him being priced at $4,900. Antonio Gibson is droppable in all leagues after another fumble and bad game.

New York Giants (1–2)

Tough scene with no Saquon. You need him to make the defense softer for the pass or Daniel Jones scrambling for some yards. The pass catchers are mediocre and it looks a little like the same ole Darren Waller who gets targeted but can’t seem to haul in the important catches. We’ll see but if the Giants want any shot of making the playoffs, Saquon needs to come back asap.

That said, Giants at home vs. the Seahawks is a winnable game even without Quon. Good coaching from Daboll against a middling defense and an efficient game from Daniel Jones can get the job done.

AFC WEST

Kansas City Chiefs (2–1)

After their Kelce-less week 1, I said to buy KC futures as this will be their lowest point. Now after two games with Kelce back, they are 2–1 and handily beat the Bears after getting up 34–0 by the first half.

The WR situation is dicey. MVS has the most routes run but Skyy Moore is getting more looks. I could see rookie Rashee Rice commanding more target share as the year progresses. He’s looked decent so far and was within 6 inches of 2 touchdowns this game! In fact, I think he could end up being WR2 on this squad at the end of the year. I’m buying his stock low. Toney is always a liability. McKinnon is always lurking like this past weekend for two tds with only a few targets and rushes. They put him in for high-value targets. Don’t sleep on him but it is a high-variance play.

Pacheco looks solid and they are incorporating him in receiving. CEH will always be there to vulture some TDs but don’t worry, Pacheco’s lead back role isn’t in jeopardy.

Los Angeles Chargers (1–2)

Seeing Mike Williams go down is tough. He always has an injury but it’s never been a season-ender. 3rd year WR Josh Palmer will get a higher target share now but the consensus seems to be he’s just not that good. Still, being WR2 in a high-power, up-tempo offense is a nice spot. Rookie WR Quentin Johnston is going to be involved as well but still think he needs some time before he’s where we all want him to be.

If you want to roster Josh Kelley this week, do so at your own risk. I simply don’t think he’s particularly good and after two duds in a row, I’m out. While I really want to see Ekeler on the field for a number of reasons, the Chargers will very likely rest him until after their Week 5 bye. All that said, this is his last time to give him a shot before Ekeler returns. Trade him or gamble one last time!

Las Vegas Raiders (1–2)

Davante is backkk. I was able to get him in best ball season early second round while Establish The Run had him at ADP 8 and for good reason. He’s the same Davante and Garrapolo is feeding him the rock. Jakobi Meyers looks good and I like this 1–2 punch. Their target share combined is a ridiculous 76%!

Josh Jacobs has been having a tough go but do expect a breakout or too and it won’t take too much considering his involvement in the passing game.

Michael Mayer caught his first pass as a 2 point conversion woooo. The Raiders TE position is a bit of a black hole but maybe this guy gets it together way down the road.

This weekend the Raiders face the Chargers in LA. I’d love to see a good old-fashioned shootout here but Jimmy G did get concussed last game so he’s a legitimate game-time decision this week. We’ll see but if he does play, or if Josh Jacobs can do his thang, this game could go over — way over. Even so, both of these offenses are very condensed which is perfect for DFS!

Denver Broncos (0–3)

Tough scene over here after the loss to Miami. The funny thing is…Russ and the offense didn’t look that bad. The defense on the other hand?? Yikes! So there were two fumbles (both from Courtland Sutton) and a deflected int later on. Once Denver got down it perpetuated and the Miami offense kept pouring it on. Don’t get me wrong, this was an embarrassing loss but I didn’t think the Denver offense was anemic, just a bit unlucky early. Russ is going to cook at some point, maybe this weekend on the road against the actual worst team in the league, the Chicago Bears.

Sutton had two 2 silly fumbles and a terrible drop in the end zone that shaped the game and put it out of reach. He also had a TD called back after an offensive holding call on the other side of the field. Honestly, Sutton could have had 3 TDS in this game! Jeudy back-to-back 85% routes run is promising. Mims still not running many routes but he’s been effective when in the game and even took a kickoff to the house.

Javonte still working his way back from that ACL injury but looked decent on a few of his runs. Prime matchup against the Bears this weekend too.

NFC WEST

San Francisco 49ers (3–0)

Same old 49ers from last year. Purdy is coming along, Deebo looking like 2021 again and CMC may be the most valuable asset in all of fantasy. He ONLY had a 20-point game this week. Don’t forget about George Kittle either as he quietly went 5 for 90. Eli Mitchell did get some run but I believe it was mostly bc of it being a short week and soft matchup. Why run CMC into the ground?? Makes sense. Eli is a good stash in case of injury.

Their defense looks superb! It’s early in the season but I expect they will see the Eagles in the NFC Championship yet again.

Seattle Seahawks (2–1)

The week 1 loss to the Rams was indeed a fluke. After a convincing win against the Panthers, they are now 2–1 and Lockett and DK look just as good as last year. JSN is still a work in progress but it was always a later season play as he works his way into the offense. Roster at your own risk but also make sure you gamble on capturing his breakout game as you really wouldn’t want to miss it.

KW3 looked great out there against the Panthers with 2 rushing TDs and a couple nice grabs. He even lined up outside for a couple of routes which to my knowledge, was the first time I saw that. It’s clear he’s going to be an integral part of this top 5 offense moving forward.
Geno looked good as well. Even Zach Charbonet got in the mix for a bit and looked good. He may take a little bit away from Walker’s carries but the preseason worries he would take a large portion of them away isn’t happening.

Los Angeles Rams (1–2)

The Rams offense came back to earth against the Bengals in w3. Stafford still looks good out there, same with Puka and Kyren but with Cooper Kupp inching back I don’t want to invest too heavily in any particularly way until I see what it looks like when he hopefully returns next week. I’m not saying to give up on this offense at all but don’t make any rash decisions until we get more info in the next week or so. Puka could end up being even better with no Kupp!

Aaron Donald is still one of the greatest DLs of all time.
I’ve been hearing this a fair amount and I’d have to agree. It’s the Super Bowl hangover for the Rams. They played 21 weeks in the 2021 season and Stafford was dealing with an injury most of last season. Getting a full offseason to get as healthy as possible for a veteran QB like Stafford is big.

Arizona Cardinals (1–2)

As the former Cards head coach, Dennis Green, once said they are who they thought they were!! Actually, we definitely didn’t. It seems every year there’s a team or two that gets the “they are going to be horrifically bad” narrative and this year it was the Cards. But they are still an NFL-caliber team, regardless of their personnel, and have absolutely impressed us based on their expectations coming out and beating the Cowboys at home — the supposed #1 defense in the league. The Cowboys never really had a shot either.

Josh Dobbs looks like a game manager QB who can occasionally run the ball. Impressive for someone who was signed to the team a week before the start of the season. He actually throws the ball pretty well at times.
Marquise Brown will always feel like a dicey play but he’s good enough on his own to have a decent floor every game. There was a 3rd down where Dobbs tossed him the ball in a tight window and the way Brown positioned his feet to stay in bounds was pretty impressive.

James Conner is an every-down back right now and looks good out there.. his backup Keonte Ingram has barely sniffed the field in 3 games.
I wouldn’t fall for the Rondale Moore hype after he took a rush to the house this week. Unfortunately, he’s just a little too small to be a dependable option in the Cards offense but he can get there every so often on a rush or gadget play. In DFS I roster him when there’s a WR out or his price gets below $4k in a good matchup.

NFC SOUTH

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2–1)

We all thought the Bucs were overachieving, or at least correctly beating bad teams, but they came back down to earth against the Eagles. Mike Evans looks great yet again and will almost certainly hit 1k yards on the season barring injury for the TENTH time in his career?!
Raachad White is fine. He will only do well in good matchups. Chris Godwin is doing what he seems to do, possession catches. 13 catches for 140 yards total on the season. Not thrilled about that over 3 games but with a new QB who plays slower and throws less, he’ll eventually have a good game at a decent price.
I think the Bucs will be a .500 team that can find their way into the playoffs.

Atlanta Falcons (2–1)

Who knows with this squad?! Ridder did throw the ball a lot more this week but it was mostly because they were down 13–3 in the 4th and he did not look good at all. I was never a truther but I did think he would show some progress in his second year and that’s just not the case. Kyle Pitts did get 5 catches this week which is promising and could have a big game at some point. As long as he’s under $4500 I’ll be gambling with him at the TE position on DK. But man, it’s tough in season long to trust him but also you can’t drop him!

I was hoping for a big week from Bijan in w3 but Detroit held him in check nicely. He’s elite, I believe in that, and will eventually show that off. I’ll also be taking shots on him as long as he’s under $8k on DK.

New Orleans Saints (1–2)

Derek Carr narrowly avoided a season-ending injury in w3 but started off the game pretty hot until he got injured. I still am unsure how the Saints managed to lose that game up 17–0 deep in the second quarter. The RB situation is not grat but at least Kamara comes back this week rescuing the Saints. Kendre Miller made his debut at least but didn’t do too much. Keep an eye on him with Jamaal Williams on IR for at least a few more weeks.

It doesn’t matter who’s at the helm, Olave is going to get his catches. Same with Michael Thomas. Both have looked pretty good this year. Saints D looking good too. They have yet to allow more than 18 points to a single team.

If Carr can stay healthy and gets in a groove with two very good WRs and Kamara, this team could sneak into the playoffs as a division winner in a weak division and cause problems during the Wild Card round.

Carolina Panthers (0–3)

The Panthers may be the second-worst team in the league — nobody holds a candle to the Bears presently. While Bryce Young looked alright in game 1, g2 he looked a bit lost, and think the process for him will take a lot longer than other rookie QBs. Miles Sanders looked fine out there and in prime matchups, be ready for a good game for him. Adam Thielen drinking from the fountain of youth. Actually, I think his success makes a lot of sense. Rookie QB or Backup QB, they need to go to what works, a seasoned vet who is an elite route runner. Maybe Mingo or Chark/Terrance Marshall make some strides later in the season but for now, Thielen is going to be a target hog. Don’t sleep on ’em. And definitely make sure he’s rostered in full PPR against a bottom 5 defense this week at home vs. the Vikings.

AFC SOUTH

Indianapolis Colts (2–1)

Minshew Mania should only last one week with Anthony Richardson returning but the Colts are low-key good. They’ve now won vs. the Jags and at the Ravens.
Michael Pittman is the only WR in the league with 8 receptions in each game this season. This is especially impressive considering rushing QB Anthony Richardson has played 6 of those 12 quarters so far. As for Anthony Richardson who likely will be out of concussion protocol this week, he has looked better than expected. Remember he already had 2 rushing TDs before halftime against Houston in week 2. I’m excited to see what a ceiling game from him looks like.

Rookie Josh Downs has looked respectable so far as well. He’s basically WR2 already with Alec Pierce running most of the routes but barely catching any balls.

Regarded as one of the worst defenses in the league, Indy D came to play vs the Ravens this week sacking Lamar 4 times and limiting him to 202 scoreless yards. We will see if this keeps up.

There are no TEs worthy of rostering on this squad until Jelani Woods returns from IR. Keep an eye out as he’s a 6’7” 260lb beast in his second year.

Zack Moss has played 98% and 76% of snaps since he’s returned and honestly looked pretty good as a fill-in for Jonathan Taylor. Start him happily until we get some info on JT.

Tennessee Titans (1–2)

This team looks like a mess. Henry for the 2nd time in 3 weeks has played less snaps than Spears and Tannehill looks like he’s doing his best 2022 Matt Ryan impression. Against Chargers and their soft defense he had an 83% completion rate but against the Saints and the Browns, both tough defenses, he couldn’t manage better than 52%. You can’t win games like that. I don’t know how long he’ll remain under center.
Until Tannehill can be consistently good, DHop, Burks, and TE Chig Okonkwo will all suffer some too.

Their Rush Def is already referred to as the best in the league which makes them one of the biggest run funnels in the league this year. Attack them through the air and profit! This week Cincinnati gets them so that should be interesting to see with Burrow still nursing that calf issue.

Houston Texans (1–2)

CJ Stroud has been impressive thus far. And because he didn't go completely off last game with 275 yards and 2 TDs, no ints, he’s still nicely priced on DK this week at $5,600. Yes, it’s against a good Steelers defense but it’s at home and Houston operates as one of the fastest offenses in the league. $5,600 is value!

Rookie Nathaniel “Tank” Dell has been looking great so far this year. If he’s still on waivers, pick him up! With Nico Collins coming along, veteran Robert Woods seemingly healthy, Houston is randomly a good offense so far this year.

Dameon Pierce unfortunately hasn’t been that involved in this offense and I think they could use someone who’s better at catching passes but for now, him and Singletary will suffice. At least Pierce got in the end zone in w3.

Dalton Schultz is running most of the TE routes but he hasn’t connected yet for a TD and only had 1 reception for 6 yards in w3. Not great! I do expect he will eventually catch a TD or two in the next few weeks and that’s kinda all you need to roster TEs these days. $3,200 on DK is also a bit of a steal — albeit a high-variance play.

Jacksonville Jaguars (1–2)

I’m not sure what’s up with the Jags so far but their expectations for this year were very high. At first glance, it looks like some games just got away from them and that happened this week. And somewhat last week. I really believe it’s the lowest point of the season for them and will get things back on track this week against the Falcons in London.

Kirk and Engram had decent games but Ridley couldn’t really get it going. Remember last week there were also 4 catchable balls in the end zone that were caught out of bounds by assorted WRs. Jamal Agnew was the sub for Zay Jones and fumbled a catch on an important 3rd and 10 with the Jags driving down 14–0 late in the 2nd. This changed the scope of the game for them. Also a contrarian take but I do think they really missed Zay Jones this week.
Travis Etienne looked great as per usual and if he didn’t hurt himself in the 3rd quarter he would have gone off for a big game. Even so, he still had a nice game. Tank Bigsby actually looks pretty good but won’t get much run without Etienne going down.

Their defense looked out of sorts in w3 after doing a decent job in w2 against the Chiefs. I don’t think they are at the level where you want to target the Jags every week but definitely in the bottom half presently.

AFC NORTH

Baltimore Ravens (2–1)

We’ve now seen the Todd Munkin offense in action for 3 weeks and Lamar finally did some rushing this week for 2 touchdowns. Definitely a positive sign moving forward that Munkin will make designed runs for Lamar.

It’s important to mention the weather was not great all day in Baltimore so that may have dulled the upside a bit to this offense. Even so, Lamar was very close to breaking the Sunday dfs slate wide open. All he needed was another passing or rushing td to separate him from the other QBs. And we can all expect a game like this to happen sooner or later.
Mark Andrews looked respectable in his second game back.

Gus Edwards got concussed and Justice Hill was out so they were left with Melvin Gordon and Kenyon Drake. The RB situation in Baltimore is looking rough but it doesn’t seem like it matters too much since Lamar rushes a ton. It’ll likely be a committee with Gus or Justice occasionally having a 2 TD game.

Zay Flowers has looked great in every game so far. I can’t wait for his blowup game — it’s coming. Not sure how long Odell will be out but until he’s back with his 100% routes run(week 1) Nelson Agholor is a fine punt. Rashad Bateman is…out there and that’s kinda about it for now.

Cleveland Browns (2–1)

Deshaun Watson looked…a little better. The projections seem to love him every week. I don’t really get it but if he can return to form close to his Texans days, he does have slate-breaking upside.

Amari Cooper is the alpha here and Deshaun really seems to like him. Another big game for him.
Elijah Moore had a weird game with 6 catches for 22 yards in the first half and ended with 9 for 49. Not sure what’s up with his depth of target but promising nonetheless. Also, his routes run is pretty good to see as well. Eventually, he’ll get a good matchup and return to form like his rookie season in 2021.

Jerome Ford looked pretty good considering he was going up against the #1 rush d (Titans) in the league. A receiving TD and a rushing one later on in the game. Sure, Kareem Hunt will have some effect but fire up Jerome in this great rushing offense.

David Njoku is getting targets but hasn’t hit a TD yet. Rostering him right now as a TE in season-long feels dicey. I’d rather stream and/or pick up Musgrave, Ferguson, and a few others.

The Browns D looks stout. Myles Garrett and that defensive line is tough, the secondary too. It seems like most games will be a grind, rarely a blowout against them.

Pittsburgh Steelers (2–1)

George Pickens looks great but needs Pickett to…well, pick it up. Sorry, it really was the best way to describe it :D. Since Dionte got put on IR week 1, Pickens has been lights out with the ball in hand and his depth of target is pretty ridiculous at 18.3 over 13 catches on the season. Calvin Austin has also been doing a solid job as a year 2 rookie having not played a snap last year. He’s very small but a burner, like he did against the Raiders.

Allen Robinson is merely a body for WR3. He’s not going to do much and once Dionte is healthy, could see Austin taking over his role. At what point does the coaching staff give in to what we all see with Najee Harris?? It’s a matter of time before Jaylen Warren takes over the RB1 spot but for now Najee is busy doing his thing as the RB1 averaging 4 yards per carry. I think a lot of it is he looks so sluggish out there when he does get the ball. Friermuth finally got a few receptions and a touchdown after being dust his first two games. He’s always going to be a hot and cold play but gets enough of a target share that he’s tough to sit.

Cincinnati Bengals (1–2)

I love love love how Zac Taylor coached this game. He recognized how thin the ice was for the 2023 season. Burrow was truly a game-time decision where they brought up an extra QB day of just in case and on top of that, the Bengals were 0–2. It’s really tough to come back from 0–3. So Taylor decided to keep Joe in the pocket as much as possible. Not only did he do that but he made plays that had a fast release to keep Burrow out of harm’s way for basically the entire game.

Prime spot this weekend to go 2–2 against the run funnel Titans team but still have to tread somewhat lightly with Burrow’s injury.

I’m happy for all the Jamaar Chase holders. We needed a game like this last one to calm us down. I’m not sure what was up with Tee Higgins this week but it sure seemed like he had a good old-fashioned case of The Yips. Fire him up and don’t think twice.

Joe Mixon has been solid this year and every matchup so far has been a tough one. I expect him to have a blowup game in a soft matchup or two but even more promising for his outlook, he’s being involved as a pass catcher heavily!

NFC NORTH

Green Bay Packers (2–1)

There’s a reason the Packers have kept Jordan Love on the team for 3 years. He really looks good and impressed me with his poise mounting a comeback down 17–0 vs the Saints this last week.
Romeo Doubs looks great this year. He will come in the clutch later on in the year once they get back a healthy Christian Watson who can burn and Doubs who can be an option for important plays. His first year jitters completely appear to be gone.
Jayden Reed looks good too as the WR3. Even rookie Dontayvion Wicks has looked decent while Watson is out. AJ Dillon still does not look great and they started using a 3rd down RB (Taylor) while Aaron Jones is out who is progressing towards a return this Thursday vs. the Lions.

We’ll have to see how loose the reigns Matt LaFleur is keeping it but I’m buying this offense with Aaron Jones and Watson returning soon.

Detroit Lions (2–1)

Sam Laporta in contention for Rookie of the Year now. He’s the first TE in history to record 5 receptions in each of his first three games. Being a TE as a rookie is notoriously incredibly tough so seeing him come into the NFL like this is really great for his career outlook.

Jared Goff didn’t look particularly good but Atlanta is a scrappy squad and the Lions were mostly in control the entire game. Any home game in the dome you should be considering him.

Jahmyr Gibbs has looked reasonable so far but he only has 1 or 2 more weeks left with no David Montgomery for him to prove his 1st round draft value. It’ll likely be a two-headed monster with Gibbs pass-catching and DMont getting RZ touches but remember this was expected at the beginning of the year anyway. Could be a good buy low spot once DMont returns.

Amon-Ra had yet another good game going 9 for 102 after going 6 for 102 the previous week. With only 1 TD on the year, we can expect positive regression soon. He’s quietly doing great. I’m not going to say it’s coming this week @ the Packers on a short-week divisional game but keep your eyes peeled for a juicy matchup, perhaps week 5 against the Panthers.

I wouldn’t be too stressed about Josh Reynolds getting no receptions in w3. He’s still WR2 and that’s how it be sometimes.
Khalif Raymond as slot WR3 is going to burn a defense for a long td one of these days. He’s looked decent thus far.

Minnesota Vikings (0–3)

The Vikings are the best 0–3 team in the league lol. Like last year, every game thus far has been a one touchdown game. Instead of them being on the right side of the coin, they’ve lost all three of them. They were due for regression but they will get things going this week on the road against the Panthers. Their defense is not good at all but the Panthers are going through some growing pains with Bryce Young figuring things out.

Justin Jefferson still looks like the correct #1 pick three weeks in averaging 9 receptions and 150 yards PER GAME. Just wait until he has a multiple td game. It could definitely happen this week.

TJHock has had a great role so far. 23 receptions, 28 targets, 2 TDs, and 178 yards through 3 games. He’s on pace for top 3 TE numbers which is what we’re looking for.

Mattison finally looked decent vs. the Chargers but it was a soft matchup. Still, he’s involved in the passing game and I don’t think Akers will be as much.

Rookie Jordan Addison still working in there and does look good for his 3rd game, but his routes run % is still far below KJ Osbourne. Make sure you understand that when rostering him at least until we see a dramatic change in that stat.

Kirk Cousins is the QB1 after 3 weeks. Impressive since he barely runs the ball too. A good way to deduce how much an offense likes to pass is the Pass Rate Over Expectation (PROE) stat and this year their Pass Rate is an absurd 69%. But they are still 6% over that after three games!! This is wild to pass every 3 out of 4 times. Now, Minnesota hasn’t had a substantial lead in any of those three games yet so this makes some sense but it’s incredibly rare to pass at that high of a rate even so. I expect their rate will regress some but they are still going to have a pass rate way above 60% on the year, which appears to be the league average. I know I’m rambling but I never would have expected a 75% pass rate for any team after three games!!

I roster KJ Osbourne very occasionally and it happened to work out alright last week with him catching a touchdown. You don’t really want him on your bench either but he’s a fine pickup when you are in a bye week pinch.

Chicago Bears (0–3)

If you managed to make it through all other 31 teams, color me impressed. Justin Fields currently ain’t it. He looks sluggish and isn’t doing a good job of processing defenses. I don’t know what’s up. It’s still early in the season but also they don’t look particularly good besides that.

After the torching the Chiefs put on them this week it’s a tough scene in Chicago. That said, if ever there was an opportunity to right this ship it’s at home against fellow 0–3 team, the Denver Broncos. But I legitimately think the Broncos are a lot better than the Bears. I hope they figure something out, whether it’s the defense, Fields, or even a breakout Roschon Johnson game.

I do think this is the lowest point for them on the season. If they lose it’ll actually be a good game.

Random Musings:

I saw this happening with the BUF/WAS and HOU/JAX games and wanted to try to get it down on paper about how NFL play-calling can go and how games that once appeared within reach can really get out of hand.

Let me take a minute to articulate how NFL games can work.

0–0, anything can happen but usually early on the coaches want to feel each team out.

3–0, okay mild risk for the other team, gotta get moving.

7–0 oh, we got some work to do but nothing insurmountable.

Anything 10–0+ and the game plan way riskier. So game plans can seesaw based on the score very wildly.

Instead of running a 3 TE set that’s a clear run play and very low risk, it’s a 5 WR 0 RB set that is only used in the riskiest of situations (down 3 TDs+ or 4th quarter down multiple possessions) So while the Jags did not look great w3, there were a few plays that really hurt their momentum like the Jamal Agnew fumble down 7–0. It just didn’t work out for them and then once they were down, they had to ramp up the game plan which then led to a defensive td off of an int further putting the game out of reach. This is how it foes when you have to keep pressing with risky plays. This is how the Commanders got blown out after being down 16–0 until halfway through the 4th quarter. This isn’t how the Bears got blown out, they were just outclassed in every way haha.

Hope you enjoyed this and I’ll do my best to get these out each week! Good luck this weekend!

After a 1.5 year hiatus from poker where I tried to live like a normal human, I have been inevitably drawn back into the poker world. I started streaming on Twitch in early April and found that it reinvigorated my love for the game. So much so that I decided to make a trip to Vancouver for SCOOP, the Spring Championship of Online Poker, held annually on Poker Stars. I ended up minimally down with over $10,000 in buyins and $9,300 in cashes. Not great but not bad for an online poker series. Also, I deliberately kept my buyins down after such a long time away as I had a lot to learn! I ended up grinding 14 of 16 possible days during SCOOP. You might be saying, man, I respect his grind! But what I realized was this was the reason why I didn’t make money. Like any part of your body, the brain needs time to recharge. Take your stomach for example. It needs 12 hours at the minimum before it can start regenerating from all the work it had to do from that Shake Shack (not In-N-Out) burger you just had to have late last night. What about your body after you work out? You’ll need a day or two off. Well, your brain needs rest too. This is a very simple concept but one that I have never adhered to. Why? Because I am compulsive and have rarely been in tune with my own self.

The point of this article is to highlight that you can be your own worst enemy when it comes to poker. You could meditate, work out, eat well, study hard, everything in your power to make you play well but if you aren’t realistic with your own capabilities and you can’t control oneself WHILE in a session, all that stuff you did beforehand will be irrelevant. Luckily I did not get annihilated but I should have.

I do want to point out that we are all built differently. I can try to be like Chris Moorman playing 10 hour days every day 10–16 tabling the entire time but I’m not and you’re not. You’re you. I tell myself, stick to 6 tables maximum, take a day off after a day you played, and yet I find myself doing exactly what I did during this SCOOP, playing TOO MUCH. Yes that’s a thing for most of us but for someone like David Peters who is a cyborg from the future, it doesn’t matter. But yet again, I am not David Peters. You can do your best to be as good as someone but we are all built differently. To expect oneself to be capable of doing certain things the way others can is foolish. Know yourself.

Now I am back up in Vancouver instead of playing all these WSOP events in Las Vegas. The way I see it is if I jump back into the WSOP and play 20–25 events over the summer all my mental issues will compound and I will fall back into this bad feedback loop. To avoid this I have written a schedule out of the days I will play, the days I will take completely off and the days I will designate to study. I have made several limitations to keep myself from devolving back into my compulsive ways. One limitation is playing a maximum of six tables at once, another is registering tournaments within a four hour window.

I just wanted to highlight an underrepresented part of poker. I think a lot of the mental game aspect deals with eating healthy, exercising, meditating, studying etc, etc. I could do all the mental preparation prior to playing a single hand but once I start playing if I do not set limitations or parameters to follow inside the session, then eventually I will give into the easier route of playing for too long or playing too many tables. It’s just my nature. And I’m not saying I can’t do it for an hour or two but as the day progresses and each tournament gets more and more important the more focus is needed to play optimally. If I’m 6-tabling, I will usually have 2–3 tough spots at once periodically. If I’m 12-tabling, there could honestly be 4, even 6 spots at once that are crucial to that tournament’s existence. That’s a lot of decisions to make with precision with large amounts of money on the line. It’s disappointing to me that it’s taken me this long to recognize my own capabilities but in the past, maybe it wasn’t as necessary because I could still win from just being decent at poker. Now it definitely takes more than that and accepting that is the first step on the road back.

1. Mister Roger’s Neighborhood is streaming 24/7 now in case you need a real pick me up or a blast from the past. https://www.twitch.tv/misterrogers

2. Naturally I found something from Silicon Valley you might have missed. The SeeFood app, Not Hotdog, is actually a real thing. Love the attention to detail by HBO going through the process of getting it in the Apple app store. https://itunes.apple.com/app/not-hotdog/id1212457521

3. Here’s a helpful chart I found called the Keto Pyramid that will help keep you on track if you are curious about what to eat, what not to eat.

4. How hardcore of a festy-goer are you?? Well, if you really are that hardcore you can now get a festival passport for $799 and attend any of 90 music festivals around the world! Literally if you are going to two of these it practically pays for itself.

Live Nation to Offer $799 All-Access Pass to Over 90 Festivals Worldwide

5. And on a bittersweet note, here’s a truly phenomenal Chris Cornell cover of “Nothing Compares 2 U” that popped up on my feed today.

Hope you found something cool out of this to keep you ahead of the curve and definitely let me know if you would be interested in seeing more in the future.

It’s somewhat unnecessary for me to rank them specifically but all these tracks really got me grooving at some point this year. I think this is an overall good, versatile list. I’m sure there are tracks I missed but it spans a lot of genres and sounds. Also, I don’t really have any credibility aside from having some damn good ears. Enjoy.

Note: While Lee Foss didn’t make the list, I need to point out how savvy he is. There are SIX tracks on the list that I first heard during a Foss set and that’s just remarkable.

Here’s the playlist if you want to give it a listen straight through. Cheers!