0:00Well, it is that time of year again. Training camps are underway.
0:03Fantasy football season. Let's declare it. It has begun.
0:06This is the beginning of the fun. And we welcome you to Fantasy Football Today here on CBS Sports Network.
0:12We haven't been on the network for a while, so we're really excited to get this going.
0:16And if you need help with your fantasy leagues this year, you've come to the right place.
0:21I am Adam Azer. Let's bring in my distinguished colleagues.
0:24Be very proper today. Hello, Sir Dave Richard. How are you?
0:27I'm doing good, but Sir is a little too far.
0:30A little weird for the first show of the 2026 season to be so formal.
0:34You know what? I just thought this is, I think you're 20 of fantasy football today.
0:38Sounds about right. That's what ChatGPT said. So I'm going to go with that.
0:42I just thought maybe we'd do something kind of nice for our 20th anniversary, even though I haven't been here for all 20 years.
0:49No, but here's his Royal Highness, Jamie A. Eisenberg, if we're going to be formal about things.
0:54So we're all here. And I mean, can we talk about football?
0:57This is kind of strange. Okay, but I'm going to take some guests.
1:01I'm going to take one guest per segment at Jamie's middle name.
1:04If his initial is A, I'm going to take one guest per segment.
1:08I'll get back to you on that. Jamie, first question.
1:11Running back or wide receiver with the number one overall pick?
1:14I think it should be running back. You know, there's certainly different ways you can go.
1:18We're talking superplex leagues. Could be quarterback. But Jameer Gibbs, for me, is the number one player.
1:23You know, I think what we've seen from him when David Montgomery has not been there.
1:28I don't think Isaiah Pacheco is going to do a lot of the things that David Montgomery did.
1:33The offense has a chance to still be special once again, you know, when you have most of the casted characters back.
1:39Revamped offensive line a little bit, but Jameer Gibbs could break fantasy.
1:42I mean, he's got that much upside. We saw the end of the 2023 season when David Montgomery missed time.
1:48It was over 30 PPR points per game. 2024, same thing.
1:51He had a huge, you know, amount of production when Montgomery was there.
1:54We didn't see it last year that much because Montgomery didn't miss any time.
1:58But we saw Montgomery get phased out. So the upside for Jameer Gibbs is just off the charts.
2:03Love B. John Robinson. Also, I think it's a one and one A, but I would take running back or receiver with the top overall pick.
2:11How about you, Dave? Same exact thing. I mean, we saw last year how close they were, Gibbs and B.
2:16John. We know that Gibbs lost David Montgomery, replaced by Pacheco.
2:19Completely agree with what you're saying. Pacheco isn't going to do what David Montgomery did.
2:24Jameer Gibbs is going to pick up on that.
2:26And this Lions defense, by the way, not as good as it's been in years past.
2:31So there could be some track meet factor that goes into this for the entire Lions offense, but especially for Jameer Gibbs.
2:37He's so versatile, so explosive, so good, so worth the 101.
2:40Yeah, I love what you're saying about how he could break fantasy, Jameer, Jamie Eisenberg, because he's been as good as he
2:46has been leading the position in fantasy points per touch in PPR since he came into the league while not even beating
2:52the goal line back with David Montgomery having the second most goal line carries in the NFL over the last three years.
2:58All right, so that's our answer to what to do at 101.
3:02But on this segment, we're going to talk about undervalued players using average draft position in PPR leagues on fantasy pros right now.
3:08Who are some undervalued players? And we're going to go to Dave's list first.
3:12He has Patrick Mahomes. You talked about recently as a sleeper.
3:15He's going 102nd. Chase Brown going 19.5. 20th overall basically for Chase Brown, who has averaged over 20 fantasy points per game
3:21each of the last two seasons when he's been the starter and Joe Burrow has been healthy.
3:26Parker Washington going 79th and Isaiah likely going 122nd on fantasy pros.
3:30All right, so yeah, Chase Brown. I mean, that's a pretty early ADP, 20th overall, 19th overall.
3:34But how early do you think Chase Brown should be going?
3:37I wouldn't have a problem with Chase Brown being a first-round pick, and it's because we've seen him play at a high level with and without Joe Burrow.
3:45Obviously, it's better if Joe Burrow's there. Adam, you mentioned it, the double-digit PPR points that he offers.
3:50It's there. There's a potential for it. And we still haven't seen the Bengals consistently give him 75% of the snaps.
3:56I think that could happen this year. I think he's earned it.
4:00And just given the status of this entire Cincinnati offense—and by the way, you want to talk about defenses changing?
4:05Cincinnati's defense has changed, too. They're going to be better this year.
4:09It might mean better game scripts specifically for Chase Brown.
4:11So I don't mind him with the idea that he could reach 17 PPR points per game.
4:16That's somebody who's worth a late first-round pick. Yeah, honestly, I really think that when you look at—I think it's been 13
4:22games with Joe Burrow over the last two years where Brown's been the starter.
4:26It's more than 20 fantasy points per game. I think you have to at least accept that possibility of his ceiling being truly elite.
4:33Parker Washington, though. You know, Dave, I know that you did some research.
4:37You found some guys who had big finishes to certain seasons and didn't really come through the next year.
4:42And I found the same exact thing. Most of the guys who've been really good the last six weeks or so of
4:48the season—and who weren't already really good, right? Guys who boosted their ADP because of strong finishes, most of them were busts the next year.
4:55Why do you think Parker Washington is different? I think it's because of what he showed Jacksonville in the second half of
5:01last year and how he can become a reliable short and intermediate area target for Trevor Lawrence.
5:06And I think it sticks. I think he's absolutely one of the best receivers that Jacksonville could ask for based on the
5:12strengths of Trevor Lawrence's game, getting the ball out fast, looking for somebody who can make a play after the catch.
5:18He's not Brian Thomas Schooner. He's not going to be in the highlight reels.
5:22And he's not Jacoby Myers. He doesn't have the same type of experience.
5:26But he's going to get a lot of targets because of all the different things he can do in this offense.
5:32And there's questions about how this Jacksonville run game is going to turn out.
5:35Basial Tootin, the coach is talking him up. We know that he's exciting, but if he can't get it going, Chris Rodriguez
5:42is kind of more of a plotter than an explosive back.
5:45It just means more passing for Jacksonville. I think they're going to lean into Trevor Lawrence even more.
5:50That's a good thing for Parker Washington, who from week seven on last year was just as good on a per game
5:56basis in PPR as CeeDee Lamb was. I'm not saying it's going to be that way this year, but I am saying
6:02that there is potential for Parker Washington to be a round six or round seven pick and perform like a round four or five pick.
6:09Somebody I'd love to get in all my PPR leagues.
6:12I think the nice thing about Washington is the slot receiver for Liam Cohen has been fantastic almost everywhere he's been.
6:18Tampa Bay, it was Chris Godwin. We saw it last year with Washington in the second half of the season.
6:23We saw the Wondell Robinson at Kentucky. You know, that position has just been something that's been so successful for him.
6:29The problem I have with all of these guys, and I totally agree, he's undervalued.
6:34I think almost all the Jaguars receivers are undervalued.
6:36I think that's a good thing. There could be four guys competing for targets, and we have Travis Hunter coming back yesterday
6:42running the fastest time that he's run maybe in his entire life, you know, over 22 miles an hour coming back from knee injury.
6:49So that's great to see that he looks healthy.
6:52But he, to me, is the biggest problem with all this, because if you're going to force him on the field to
6:58justify the draft selection from two years ago, the 2024 draft class, 2025 draft class, excuse me, to make him an offensive player, who's going to benefit?
7:05And more importantly, who's going to lose? Because I think if we're getting all four guys in a rotation, the target numbers
7:11are not going to be to a point where you're like, okay, this is a guaranteed starter.
7:16So I think that's kind of where the hesitation comes into people drafting Washington, because you know Myers can play in the slot.
7:23We've seen him do that before. Obviously, Brian Thomas, to me, is the one that's not coming off the field, because he
7:29still has the most high-end potential and changes the entire defense of how you play them.
7:33The thing that I love about this the most, it makes Trevor Lawrence really attractive.
7:38Because, like you said, the run game could be suspect, nine rushing touchdowns last year for Lawrence.
7:42Liam Cohen also gets good running production from his quarterbacks.
7:45I love Trevor Lawrence this year. But honestly, Jamie, the case you just made, the way you talked about the Jacksonville receiving
7:51core, it doesn't really feel like these guys are undervalued.
7:54If anything, it feels like they might be overvalued.
7:57I actually haven't found myself drafting the Jacksonville guys, not because I don't like them individually, but because all the things you just said.
8:03So how could that be true and Parker Washington still undervalued?
8:06Undervalued at 79th overall. Well, I think where he's going, just the fact that he could still be the best of the group.
8:13And I also think that, you know, we are in a little bit of a bubble still because of we're drafting ahead of where the market is.
8:20And so we are trying to get, you know, I want to be the guy that gets Parker Washington.
8:26You want to be the guy that gets Parker Washington.
8:29I want to fight over it. I want to be the smart guy that got the guy that has a chance to
8:35break out and build off what he did last year.
8:38We do this with all these type of players all the time.
8:41And then, you know, unfortunately, probably 50 percent or more.
8:44We look stupid because they don't perform the same way the next year.
8:47But I think the thing, if you want a piece of the Jacksonville passing attack, Lawrence to me is one.
8:53And then it's almost like we used to say about the Patriots receivers, for example, like just or the Patriots running back.
8:59Take the last one that's there. So if you don't want to reach for Washington, if you think that that's too soon, Adam, which is fine.
9:06Thomas will probably either go slightly before or slightly after.
9:09We'll see where sort of his ADP settles. To me, Myers is the one that you're just looking to take a swing at a great price.
9:17Myers is great because, again, he can play both spots inside, outside, could do a variety of things.
9:22And we know his resume is, at least right now, the best of anybody on the team.
9:2699th overall for Jacoby Myers. Okay, that's a look at Dave's undervalued players.
9:30Mahomes, Chase Brown, Parker Washington, Isaiah Likely. We're not going to get to every player in depth today, unfortunately.
9:35But we have about a gazillion podcasts before the season starts.
9:38So Jamie's undervalued list. Kyler Murray, QB 19. Real quick, Jamie, Kyler Murray or Mahomes?
9:43I would still take Mahomes. I think if he's right, he's better.
9:46But Kyler Murray, just a great value right now.
9:49Yeah, QB 19 on Fantasy Pros. Rasheed Rice is wide receiver 11.
9:52That's, yeah, if he's right, if he's healthy, if his knee is fine, he's going to be better than that.
9:57T. Higgins as wide receiver 17 in ADP. Emeka Buka, wide receiver 19.
10:01His teammate, Chris Godwin, wide receiver 40. Josh Downs, wide receiver 47.
10:04Jordan Mason at running back 41. And Jalen Naylor at wide receiver 63.
10:08And Jordan Mason is potentially a starting running back that we don't really talk about a lot.
10:13But the reports seem to indicate, Jamie, that we're going to have a nice role for Jordan Mason this year.
10:19What do you like about him? And he's going 123rd overall.
10:22That's round 11. When would you take Jordan Mason?
10:24I would probably look for him as early as round 9, which is kind of where Aaron Jones is going.
10:30He's going ahead of Jordan Mason right now. And like you said, the reports, again, nothing official from the team.
10:35But the guys that cover the team are saying it should be Jordan Mason.
10:39This is a guy that averages five yards per carry for his career, was great last season in the three games that
10:45Aaron Jones missed early in the season. Then Jones missed some time later in the season.
10:50But he's the better rusher right now. Aaron Jones is 31 years old.
10:54He just doesn't look like the same guy. I think if you're looking at it, Jones the better pass catcher.
10:59Jordan Mason does not profile as a guy that's going to be fantastic catching the ball in the backfield.
11:05And I think when you look at it as, okay, what can we do to take pressure off of Kyler Murray and maybe get a few extra yards?
11:12That's where Jordan Mason, I think, has a little bit of an edge over Aaron Jones.
11:17So this isn't a game-breaking type of guy. There was one of the beat writers for the Vikings that projected 1,100 rushing
11:23yards and nine touchdowns for Jordan Mason. If you're getting that at this cost, it's unbelievable.
11:28But I think you can get a guy that can get you 800 to 1,000 yards rushing depending on exactly what his
11:34role is and how many games Aaron Jones may miss.
11:36But he should be a guy that works at the goal line.
11:40This offense should perform on schedule much better this year than it did last year because of Kyler Murray being a veteran and obviously the way that J.J.
11:48McCarthy struggled last season. I just think Jordan Mason is one of those guys better in non-PPR and half-PPR than full-PPR, but
11:54a guy that you can get that could be a potential flex option for you.
11:58And if he stays at this cost, it's an auto-pick for me anytime he's on the board.
12:03They also have a great schedule overall, but certainly to begin the year, a lot of favorable matchups for that run game.
12:09So, Rasheed Rice, Jamie, as wide receiver 11. If you look at his last 17 regular season games, excluding the one where
12:15he played four snaps and tore his knee and left for the season, he's averaging 18.7 PPR fantasy points per game.
12:21And this includes his rookie year. And in both half and full PPR, what he's done over his last 17 regular season
12:27games is basically wide receiver 5 or 6. It's incredible.
12:30So, why do you think he's going as wide receiver 11?
12:33And do you have any concerns about Rasheed Rice?
12:36I mean, you have to have concerns about Rasheed Rice just given the off-field stuff.
12:40The fact that he spent time in jail, had another knee procedure.
12:43You know, the things that we always talk about with him.
12:46Is he a suspension waiting to happen? Is he an injury waiting to happen because of what we've seen the last two seasons?
12:53But like you said, when he's healthy, when he's on the field, he's one of the most productive receivers, not just in fantasy, but also in reality.
13:00And you look at what this passing game looks like for Kansas City.
13:04The 36-year-old Travis Kelsey. Unproven and maybe not very good Xavier Worthy.
13:07Taequann Thornton right now is their number three receiver.
13:10And he's what we like to call the sacrificial X.
13:13A guy that's going to run a lot of routes down the field.
13:16Not going to get a lot of target opportunities.
13:19Rasheed Rice is their guy. And so, the biggest question is, A, can he stay healthy, active, all those things?
13:24Is Mahomes going to be healthy, active, all those things?
13:27Because he's coming back from the ACL tear, the knee injury that he suffered last year.
13:32And then the fact that they're just going to be a more run-heavy team.
13:36There was a report that I read today where you're getting Andy Reid saying that he's got his next Brian Westbrook and Ken Walker.
13:42So, you know, we'll see just how that goes in terms of the run game for the Chiefs.
13:47But obviously, Rice is the alpha of this receiving core.
13:50And when you start to compare him to some of the other wide receivers late round two, which is where he's going
13:56right now for me, is a late round one pick.
13:59I would take him over A.J. Brown. I would take him over Nico Collins.
14:03I'd take him over George Pickens. Those are guys that are all going ahead of him right now based on the Fantasy Pros ADP.
14:10I think just if Rice plays a full season, we could be talking about a potential top three receiver.
14:15You said top five or six based on his production over the last 17 full games.
14:20You don't have to draft him in that range.
14:22But I think just the upside for Rasheed Rice as that guy for Patrick Mahomes, what we've seen and what we could
14:28see, makes him worth taking at the end of round one.
14:32Just real quick, two-word answer at most. Who's a better value, Emeko Abuka at wide receiver 19 or Chris Godwin at wide receiver 40?
14:38Value Godwin upside Abuka. I would say Abuka. That was seven words total.
14:42Did I get your middle name right, Aaron? No.
14:44Okay. It's not Adam. I think I would have known by now if it were Adam.
14:49That's true. I have another A word to call you on tomorrow's podcast, so we'll get that.
14:54So we'll be right back to talk about some overvalued players.
14:57Who's going too early in drafts right now? That's up next on Fantasy Football Today.
15:01Welcome back, everybody. This is Fantasy Football Today on CBS Sports Network, and we don't want to reach for players.
15:07We want to get good values. So here's a list of some players that we think are going a little bit too
15:13early, some from Dave, some from Jamie. While they talk about that, I'm going to try to figure out Jamie's middle name, which begins with A.
15:20I have Googled A names. So I don't think it's Arlo or Asher or Archer, but those are very popular baby names,
15:26apparently, that begin with A right now. But we'll get back to that.
15:30Dave, let's talk about your list. Jaden Daniels, you think, is overvalued.
15:33And I disagree, sir. He's QB5 right now. He was QB3 last year.
15:37He's going about 60th overall, which is about twice what his ADP was last year.
15:41He was going about 30th overall. You also have Brees Hall on the list, Jamison Williams, and Kyle Pitts.
15:46Let me make my Jaden Daniels argument, please. Thank you.
15:49He played four games, four healthy games. Four games were played 100% of the snaps.
15:53In those games, he was good enough to be QB6.
15:56He averaged 23.1 fantasy points per game and six points per passing touchdown leagues.
16:00And in less than ideal circumstances with the Terry McLaurin situation, and he didn't even have a rushing touchdown in those games.
16:06So I think he was better than people realized last year.
16:09I think Jaden Daniels is appropriately priced, good sir.
16:12I think he's just barely overvalued. I'm not calling him a bust by any stretch of the imagination, but I can find
16:18five quarterbacks I'd rather have than Jaden Daniels in my fantasy draft.
16:21Jalen Hurts being the one that's probably the most controversial.
16:24But we've seen a good track record from Jalen Hurts for years.
16:28With Jaden Daniels, it's one year as a stud in his rookie year, and then he was figured out and then got hurt last year.
16:35Only one game with more than 24 fantasy points in six-point leagues last season.
16:39And now this year, it's a different offense. Commanders didn't really add a ton to try and spike his passing numbers.
16:44He's going to have to run a lot and score a lot in order to come through as a top five or better fantasy quarterback.
16:52Either that or else the position just falls off, and I don't think that's going to happen.
16:56I think he's good. I don't mind taking him as the QB six or seven, somewhere in that range, but not somebody
17:02who's a round five picker sooner in a one QB league.
17:06Okay, so Bruce Hall, Jamison Williams, Kyle Pitts. Hall's going 31st in Fantasy Pro's ADP.
17:10Jamison Williams is going 53rd. And Kyle Pitts is tight end five.
17:13Jamie, do you think these guys or anyone in particular you want to point out, do you think they're also overvalued?
17:19Hall, J-Mo, and Pitts? J-Mo for sure. You know, again, when we talk about what he did last season with Sam Laporta,
17:25without Sam Laporta, it was just under five targets per game when Laporta was healthy.
17:29And that number significantly spiked when Laporta missed the final eight games of the season with the back injury.
17:35I think in the case of Pitts, it's just a matter of when you get past really what should be the top
17:41four tight ends, Bowers, McBride, Loveland, Warren, that next group of guys you can almost mix and match whoever you like the best.
17:47You know, so Laporta, Tucker Craft, Kyle Pitts, Isaiah Likely, Kittle, Kelsey, those guys are all in that tier, or two tiers
17:53depending on how you want to break it up.
17:56I don't have a problem with Pitts at the top of it.
17:59I just wouldn't do it, but I can understand why Dave would consider him to be overvalued.
18:04And I would prefer to get Brees Hall in round four.
18:07I think you just look at it as what the situation is for the Dez.
18:11How many games will they win? Will he finally get an opportunity to be the touchdown guy as what we hope for for workhorse running backs?
18:19And really, can he get back to being involved in the pass scheme?
18:22You got the report that Isaiah Davis is going to be the second guy.
18:26I think that's a benefit to him versus Braylon Allen being the second guy, because Allen could probably steal a few more touchdown opportunities.
18:33But I think 31st is just a little bit too soon for Brees Hall.
18:37Yeah, Dave, I think that's one of the worst values on the board.
18:41Yeah. We're talking about a guy. The head coach has come out for the second year in a row and said that
18:47Brees Hall is going to be part of a three-headed monster in the backfield.
18:51Last year, with that being the case, he averaged 13 PPR points per game.
18:55That's not a round three pick. He had 10 or fewer.
18:58He had under 10 PPR points in eight of his games last year.
19:01He played 16 games. Half of his games he didn't even get to double-digit PPR points.
19:06This scares me. I love the talent. It's great that he got paid.
19:10But the Jets are a team, I know they added Geno Smith.
19:13I don't think they're going to score a ton of points.
19:16They added a bunch of pass catchers in the draft.
19:19I don't know if they're going to necessarily be guys that take away from him.
19:23But look at Frank Reich's track record as a play caller.
19:26He's the new OC in the Jets. He's always used a running downs back and a passing downs back.
19:31And there might be two running downs backs between Brees Hall and Braylon Allen.
19:35It sounds stupid. We wouldn't do this. We would want Brees Hall to be the guy on every play.
19:41I don't think the Jets are going to do that, though.
19:44And it makes me nervous that we're drafting him way too close to his ceiling if he's a round three pick.
19:50Would you guys rather have Kyle Pitts or Harold Fannin Jr.?
19:53Fannin. Easy. Pitts easy for me. Wow. Go ahead, Jamie.
19:5630 seconds. Why Pitts over Fannin? Oh, I'm just concerned Fannin with Deshaun Watson starting.
20:00He's not been good for his tight ends. And then you look at the additions that they made of Casey Concepcion and Denzel Boston.
20:06I think that's just going to crush what Harold Fannin did last year because he led the team in targets.
20:12He was awesome at the end of the season.
20:15Shadir Sanders loves to check the ball down. He did it with Fannin.
20:18He was the number one guy in terms of target rate to his running backs.
20:22I know we had the discussion the other day that Tua was first.
20:26Actually, for 2023 to 2025, highest target rate percentage to running backs, according to Fantasy Points, was actually Shadir Sanders throwing to his running backs.
20:33And he was up there for tight ends as well.
20:36I believe it was third. So Fannin obviously is going to get his chances.
20:40I just think they come way down by comparison to where it was last year.
20:44Whereas Kyle Pitts in this Stefanski offense, which is what we were getting from Fannin last year, Kyle Pitts could be an absolute monster.
20:51Fannin was outstanding for the Browns last year. I don't see how they get away from him.
20:56Todd Monken, the new head coach and play caller for the Browns, consistent track record of using tight ends in this offense.
21:02He's going to be top two in targets in that offense.
21:05Whereas Kyle Pitts, awesome in five games last year without Drake London.
21:08Can't take it away from him. 19 PPR points per game.
21:11When Drake London was healthy, that was 12 games.
21:14We're talking about 9.6 PPR points per game. That was about as good as Brenton Strange was last year.
21:19You're telling me that he's going to be as good with Drake London healthy as a replacement level tight end?
21:25That's somebody I'll wait till the double. And Stefanski's offense, which is where Fannin just played.
21:29Yes, Pitts will be much better than Brenton Strange.
21:32I don't know if that's going to be better than Harold Fannin.
21:35No. All right. Well, let's take a look at some overvalued players from Jamie Albert Eisenberg.
21:40Right now, Jamie's got. Did I get it? No.
21:42No. Jamie's got Christian McCaffrey, who's going sixth overall as RB3.
21:45Devon Achan is going RB7, 13th overall. Malik Nabors, 32nd overall as wide receiver 14.
21:49Tenderal McMillan, 38th overall. Devontae Adams, 46th overall. Bucky Irving, 48th overall.
21:53Remember, these are players that Jamie thinks are going too early right now.
21:56Travion Henderson, 50th overall. DK Metcalf, 69th overall. McCaffrey, Achan, Neighbors, Tenderal McMillan, Adams, Bucky Henderson, and Metcalf.
22:01Jamie, who's the most overvalued player on that list?
22:04You know, surprisingly, it might be Metcalf. You know, I know he's getting drafted the lowest.
22:08But I think just with the addition of Michael Pittman, that's going to really be a negative for what Aaron Rodgers is
22:15going to want to get out of DK Metcalf.
22:17Because it doesn't have to anymore. Last year, Metcalf was the only show in town.
22:21Now, I know Mike McCarthy's offense should be better than what Arthur Smith's offense was last year in terms of throwing the ball down the field.
22:29But that's just not what Rodgers is going to be capable of doing at this point.
22:33He wants to get the ball out quick. Metcalf is not going to be the guy, I think, that even leads the team in targets.
22:40I'm so close to moving Pittman ahead of Metcalf.
22:43And you can get Pittman significantly later than you're getting him.
22:46But in terms of probably the names that stand out at the top, I mean, McCaffrey, we're nitpicking here a little bit.
22:52At least I am. 6th overall. The earliest I would take him is 9th overall.
22:56I just hate the fact that he's going ahead of Imam Rao St.
23:00Brown. And I would actually take Jonathan Taylor and James Cook ahead of Christian McCaffrey.
23:04Devon Achan at 13th overall to me is even too soon.
23:07When you look at the numbers with Tua Tunga-Vailoa the last two seasons, 21.5 PPR points in 25 games with him is
23:13what Devon Achan averaged over those last two seasons.
23:1610.5 PPR points in the eight games without Tua.
23:18You can nitpick in terms of what the games were, when they were, how it all unfolded.
23:23That's a pretty glaring number when you talk about a 15-point-per-game difference.
23:26Now, obviously, Malik Willis is going to do some different things than the backup quarterbacks did when Tua wasn't there.
23:32But you know what Tua helped Achan do, which would be a significant factor in the passing game.
23:37I don't think we get that from Malik Willis.
23:40Again, target rate to running backs. Tua, number two over the last two seasons.
23:44And Malik Willis, last in the NFL over the last two seasons.
23:47And neighbors is the injury. Ted Rowe and McMillan, we talked about this on our podcast.
23:51Jalen Coker outscored him over the last five games.
23:54Adam, I can go on and on. So you start to get the point here.
23:58I just think some of these guys are going a little bit too soon with the expectations of them taking a step forward.
24:05I think almost all the guys on this list are going to take a step backwards from what they did last year.
24:11Well, not Bucky, though. I mean, Bucky's a guy that probably can't take much of a step backward, I would think, especially
24:17when you look at what he did after he came back from his injury.
24:21But he's going 49th at RB20. So he's a guy that is going pretty significantly lower, Bucky Irving, than where he was going in 2025.
24:28I don't know. He's the one I would look at on this list and say if he just starts playing better, you
24:34know, and he's healthy, he could crush this ADP.
24:37We've already seen that from Bucky Irving. Why did he end up on this list for you at RB20?
24:42Yeah, I'm sure if we talked about every player, if they just played better and stayed healthy, they would be in a much better situation.
24:49He's still, by all accounts, going to be healthy coming into the season with a shoulder injury.
24:54Will he stay healthy? That's the biggest question. I think Kenneth Gamow is going to be a factor.
24:59You know, and we saw last year what he did in Pittsburgh in the passing game.
25:03Zach Robinson, the new offense coordinator, is going to involve his running backs in the passing game.
25:08Hopefully that is going to be Bucky Irving. And we're looking at this Bucs receiving core and saying Abuka's going to do
25:14this, and hopefully Godwin's healthy that, and Jalen McMillan and Ted Hurst.
25:18A lot of question marks when you lose Mike Evans and knowing that Godwin has a hard time staying on the field.
25:24Abuka didn't exactly perform well in the second half of the season.
25:27He also struggled with injuries played through it. I just think we're going to see a mix of all three guys, at
25:33least based on what the expectations are going into the season.
25:36Hopefully Sean Tucker just sort of saves, you know, in a backup role, and we get Bucky Irving work at the goal line.
25:43I think RB20 is the range for him, but you see some of the guys going after him.
25:48I'd rather have Quinchon Judkins, based on the Fantasy Pros ADP.
25:51I'd rather have DeAndre Swift, who's going four spots after him in terms of running back rankings.
25:56So for me, he's at the back end of the number two running backs at 24th.
26:00I just don't want to take him in round four.
26:03I'd rather take him in round five or later.
26:06Okay, so Bucky Irving, spoiler alert, is not going to appear on the bounce-back candidates lists, especially for Jamie, that we reveal in our next segment.
26:13Stick around. Who's going to be much better than they were last year?
26:16We'll tell you after this on Fantasy Football Today.
26:19Bounce-back candidates can give you the best value in fantasy.
26:22Think about Travis Etienne, Travis H. Ann, pardon me, going into last year.
26:25We didn't even know if he's going to be the starting running back for the Jaguars.
26:30He was incredible value. Christian McCaffrey came off an injury-plagued year.
26:33He was a great value. If you took him first overall, he still would have been a good value.
26:38He was that good last year. So who's on this list for 2026?
26:42Let's go to Dave's list of bounce-back candidates. Justin Jefferson was a top six wide receiver, four straight seasons per game, and
26:48he was wide receiver 30 per game last year.
26:51Emeka Abuka, first five games, he was the third best receiver in fantasy.
26:54Last 12 games, number 58 per game. Jalen Waddle is a bounce-back candidate for Dave, and Terry McLaurin, who went from wide
27:00receiver 16 in 2024 per game to wide receiver 36 per game in 2025.
27:04So I said, Dave, Justin Jefferson, four straight years, top six per game.
27:08Is it going to be five out of six?
27:11Do you think he'll get back to those heights?
27:13I don't think he'll get back quite that high because we were talking about somebody who's 18-plus PPR points per game in 2024 and 2023.
27:20And to me, it has nothing to do with Jefferson, super talented wide receiver, one of the best in the league.
27:26I'm a believer that Kyler Murray is better than J.J.
27:29McCarthy was last year, but I don't know if he's going to be as good as some of the other quarterbacks that Jetta's worked with previously.
27:36And that's why I'm kind of toning down expectations just a little bit, but a bounce-back is still absolutely in order.
27:42He didn't even average 12 PPR points per game last year.
27:45And so Kyler Murray should be competent enough to get him the ball.
27:49We know he's going to get close to double-digit targets every single game.
27:52He should fall into solid fantasy production. There's a fine line between solid or good fantasy production and then one of the elite receivers in fantasy.
28:00I think he falls just short of that elite tier.
28:02He's in that second tier for me because of Kyler Murray and the shortcomings we've really seen from Kyler Murray ever since he tore his ACL.
28:10Would you guys rather have Justin Jefferson or Drake London?
28:13Jefferson. Jefferson. She-Rice or Jefferson? Jefferson. Jefferson. It's going to be a scoring issue for me.
28:17If it's full PPR, I'll take Rice. Last one.
28:20Chase Brown or Justin Jefferson? Jefferson. Brown. Okay. Oh, boy.
28:22I'm really hopeful. That fourth NFL season for DeAndre Hopkins, he was so bad.
28:26954 yards, four touchdowns in 2016 after 1,500 yards, 11 touchdowns a year before.
28:30And he bounced back. And this is bounce-back candidates are the best.
28:34He bounced back with 1,378 yards and 13 touchdowns on 174 targets.
28:37It was the Brock Osweiler year. Maybe J.J. McCarthy will be the Brock Osweiler year for Justin Jefferson.
28:42Also on your list, we've got, I'm sorry, Abuka.
28:45Yeah. Let's talk about Abuka. Again, wide receiver three per game in the first five games, 58th per game in the next 12 games.
28:51Who do you think has better value, though? Mecca, Abuka, or Jalen Waddle?
28:55Abuka is going a little earlier than Waddle. He's going 38th.
28:58And Waddle is going 45th. I love both of these wide receivers, obviously, but I'd rather have Abuka because I think he
29:04does have upside to be a top five fantasy wide receiver.
29:07And we did see that at the beginning of last year.
29:10And then he hurt his hamstring, tried to play through it.
29:13And by the time he was even remotely close to where he was to begin the year, Baker Mayfield was beat up.
29:20And the whole Bucs offense was really in bad shape.
29:22Could that happen again this year? Of course it could.
29:25It's the NFL. People get hurt all the time.
29:28But if he's healthy, Mecca Abuka has the top five potential that I'm looking for.
29:32Lots of target volume, especially in an offense where he was already getting it when Mike Evans was there.
29:37Now Mike Evans is on the other coast of this country.
29:40That means that Mecca Abuka could be in line for upwards of 18-plus PPR points per game.
29:45I'm super excited about his talent. I think Tampa's going to be in a lot of shootouts as well.
29:50This is somebody I'm targeting in all my drafts.
29:53And I'm not afraid to go into late round two to get him.
29:57I can't remember the A names, I guess, for Jamie's middle name.
30:00One was Aaron, one was Albert. Why would you help him?
30:03Albert and Aaron. Okay. Jamie Eisenberg, who are some of your favorite bounce-back candidates this year?
30:08Jaden Daniels, we discussed him a couple of segments ago.
30:10You have Ashton Gentey and Saquon Barkley. They were pretty similar.
30:13They were both around RB15 per game last year.
30:16Who do you like better, Gentey or Barkley? I like Gentey.
30:19I think just the opportunity to get a better offensive line and better play caller is going to be huge for him.
30:25So, you know, bringing in Linderbaum from the Ravens, getting a healthy Colton Miller at left tackle is going to be important.
30:31Really, the question is, will he share touches with Mike Washington Jr., who's the rookie running back that they drafted?
30:37I don't think so. But that's Clint Kubiak, the new head coach, coming from Seattle, where you saw him work in both
30:43Ken Walker and Zach Charbonnet relatively evenly, especially in certain roles where Charbonnet was the goal line guy.
30:48I just hope we don't see that for Gentey and Washington.
30:51And I don't think that's going to be the case.
30:54So, extremely talented prospect coming into the NFL. Did not live up to expectations.
30:58Still had a decent rookie season, given the circumstances.
31:01And, you know, I really just the poor environment around him.
31:04But in the case of Barkley, look, hopefully the offensive line stays healthy.
31:07We had a lot of missed time last year.
31:10Lane Johnson being the key, not being on the field.
31:13New play caller, I think, is going to help with his role in the passing game.
31:17There's 120 targets that are available without A.J. Brown on the field.
31:21We know Barkley has the ability to be one of the best pass-catching running backs.
31:25Had a 90-catch season in his rookie campaign. Really have not seen that much from him since.
31:29Certainly have not seen that in the two years in Philadelphia.
31:33But I don't think we're getting a 2,000-yard rushing season from him.
31:36So, just keep expectations to check. Can he be a 40-catch guy?
31:39Can he hopefully be a 12- to 1,500-yard rusher?
31:42And we know he's going to lose some of those goal line opportunities because of Jalen Hurts and the tush-push.
31:47I still think a good pick at the end of round two.
31:51But I'll take Gentey over him. I do think both these guys, though, play better than we saw in 2025.
31:56Jamie, you have A.J. Brown and Ladd McConkie on the list as well.
32:00Okay, let's say you have the 10th pick in the draft.
32:03What are you more likely to do? A.J. Brown in round two or Ladd McConkie in round four?
32:08What's a better pick? I would rather control what I can control, and I can take A.J.
32:13Brown in round two if he's there. I'd have to wait to see if Ladd McConkie's going to be there.
32:19So, I would take A.J. Brown. I think there's a higher ceiling for him, clearly.
32:23What we saw from him, even last year, look, it was a terrible season across the board.
32:28The middle of the season, week nine to week 16, or middle to the end of last season, week nine to week
32:3416, he was averaging over 19 PPR points per game.
32:37He was still a very good fantasy receiver, and that's high-end production.
32:40So, we're going to a situation with him in New England, a lot of uncertainties.
32:44But we said this. Stephon Diggs, at 30 years old, coming off an ACL tear, had a 1,000-yard season and was very
32:50good and didn't play a full snap share for what a typical alpha wide receiver is.
32:55A.J. Brown's still an alpha. So, have some questions about the knee situation that the Rams are maybe a little bit concerned about.
33:01I think that's more long-term than short-term. For 2026, he could challenge to still be a top-five wide receiver.
33:07So, early round two is a perfect spot if you want to be aggressive in drafting A.J.
33:11Brown. You guys can both answer. A.J. Brown or Ashton Gentey or Saquon Barkley?
33:15I would have a running back sandwich. I would rather have Gentey than Brown than Saquon.
33:20I would go Brown and the running backs. Dave, we go through this all the time.
33:24That is a wide receiver sandwich. The running backs are the bread.
33:28You don't say, I'll have a bread sandwich. The thing in the middle is the sandwich.
33:32Okay. All right. I guess I'm going to have a wide receiver sandwich then.
33:36What did I just guess? Alfonso or something? Yes.
33:39That's incorrect, right? Totally. It's not Andrew. I would know if it were Andrew, right?
33:43It's not Andrew. Is that two guesses in one segment?
33:46Yeah. Yes. You're breaking your own rules. I am breaking my own rules.
33:49Man, this is tough. Do you know my middle name?
33:52No. Scott. Damn it. How did you know that, Dave Richard?
33:55You knew that? I know so much useless information.
33:58It's unbelievable. Geez. Yeah. Except sandwich information. We'll be right back.
34:01With, are they the same guy? That's our next segment.
34:03And I'm going to say it in that annoying tone every time on Fantasy Football Today on CBS Sports Network.
34:09Well, for those of you expecting, who has more?
34:12I thought about it, but I think that's more of a regular season game show.
34:16So let's play the number 128 most popular fantasy football related game show.
34:19Let's play, are they the same guy? Not even really a game show.
34:23But let's take it. That's why it's so unpopular.
34:26Let's take a look at two players with similar profiles.
34:28And we'll see if you guys can guess it.
34:31I think you'll be able to at least two of the three comparisons here.
34:35All right. Player A is 31. They're all wide receivers.
34:38Gotcha. Player A is 31 years old this season.
34:40And player B is 29 years old. Player A has...
34:43Who? Mike Evans and DJ Moore. Incorrect. Okay. One of those is correct.
34:47One of the... Player A has... The 31-year-old has two seasons as a top 20 receiver per game.
34:52Terry McLaurin and DJ Moore. Yes. They both have struggled.
34:55They both have two seasons as a top 20 wide receiver per game.
34:58Terry McLaurin has more than five touchdowns in only two of seven seasons.
35:02DJ Moore has more than six touchdowns in two of eight seasons.
35:05A couple other clues. Terry McLaurin has a new offensive coordinator this season.
35:09DJ Moore kind of has a new offensive coordinator this season because his new one is an old one.
35:14And the target per out run rate. For McLaurin, his target per out run rate is 21.5% for his career.
35:20And it's almost always right around there. That's not great.
35:23It's fine. It's not great. And for DJ Moore, his target per out run rate has declined four straight seasons.
35:28I think they have a lot in common, guys.
35:31And I wonder who you like better, Terry McLaurin or DJ Moore, Dave?
35:34I like Terry McLaurin better. And it has nothing to do with the quarterback.
35:38They both have great quarterbacks. And I would almost argue that the system that we don't quite know in Washington could be
35:44better for wide receivers than the system we definitely know in Buffalo.
35:48When we've seen Joe Brady, as soon as he took over as the play caller for the Bills, this is two seasons
35:54ago, he ran the ball a lot. And I don't see any reason for them to change that.
35:59DJ Moore is certainly going to attract attention by defenses.
36:02He's also going to be the top targetter for Josh Allen.
36:05Could be in that neighborhood of six and a half to seven targets per game.
36:09But you mentioned it, his metrics really haven't been great over the last couple of seasons.
36:14Whereas we're two seasons removed from a healthy Terry McLaurin, putting up huge numbers, scoring a ton of touchdowns, meshing with then-rookie Jaden Daniels.
36:20And I think the new offense and the fact that the new play caller wants to get Terry McLaurin the ball as
36:27much as he can, and he's going to line them up all over the field, which is different than what he did
36:33under Cliff Kingsbury, is going to be a good thing for Terry McLaurin.
36:36So mark me down for McLaurin over Moore. I would also take McLaurin over Moore, but just one thing in terms of
36:43when Joe Brady took over as the play caller, that was the year after Stefan Diggs was gone.
36:48So they didn't really have a receiver to focus on like a DJ Moore.
36:52This was... Well, he came in mid-season. He actually, the last seven games of 2023, he took over.
36:57So three seasons ago. Okay, I was wrong. Stefan Diggs, though, was on pace for, in the last eight games of the
37:03season, seven of them with Brady, he was actually on pace for 134 targets.
37:07But he was really bad with them. But go ahead.
37:09Yeah, and understandably so why they had the divorce.
37:12So I think you're looking at DJ Moore, hopefully.
37:15Look, he had a 163 target season with Joe Brady, and we don't know how much Sean McDermott was holding back Joe
37:21Brady or forcing things for Joe Brady to do.
37:23But I would still take Terry McLaurin. And I think there's less target, at least as of now, less target competition for
37:29McLaurin versus what DJ Moore still may have because of Dalton Kincaid, because of maybe still Keon Coleman and obviously Khalil Shakir.
37:36Plus the run game is much stronger in Buffalo.
37:38All right, let's go to our next one. We have to go a little faster, guys, just to make sure we got
37:44all these in, because the people just, they love this game show.
37:48So are they the same guy? Let's take a look at these two old receivers.
37:52Both are 33 years old or will be 33 years old this season.
37:55So Evans and Adams. Yeah, Evans and Adams. Yeah.
37:58Evans and Adams. This player A is Devontae Adams.
38:01He had his lowest receiving yards per game since 2015.
38:03Player B is Mike Evans. He had his lowest receiving yards per game of his entire career.
38:08Player A has nine seasons with eight or more touchdowns.
38:11That's Adams. Player B has eight seasons with eight or more touchdowns.
38:14And unlike the last two guys who had lower target per outrun rates, McLaurin and DJ Moore.
38:19Devontae Adams had the seventh highest target per outrun rate last year.
38:22And Mike Evans had the eighth highest target per outrun rate last year.
38:26Jamie, who do you like better? Adams or Evans?
38:29And again, let's be a little briefer here. Sorry.
38:31I like Evans. I think he's heading into a season where he could be Devontae Adams, you know, where he could have a double digit touchdown season.
38:39He's done that six times in his career. We've had over a thousand yards and 10 plus touchdowns.
38:44You're looking at replacing a Jawan Jennings type of player.
38:47I think Evans is better at this point in his career than Jennings was last year, who had nine touchdowns in the season where Brock Purdy missed.
38:54A good portion of the year last year. So you got Kittle coming off the ACL tear.
38:59You have an inconsistent and injured Ricky Pearsall. You have a, you know, older, inconsistent receiver in Christian Kirk and an unproven Deshaun Stribling.
39:06I think Mike Evans could have a complete bounce back season and be absolutely awesome.
39:10So I like him better than Adams by one spot.
39:13I think Devontae Adams could score six fewer touchdowns and still be better than Mike Evans this year.
39:18And that might just be because of total points scored.
39:20Because we know that Mike Evans has a hard time staying healthy.
39:24We've seen that for several years. Devontae Adams, he can still get open in the short area.
39:29His quickness is still good. His long speed, it's not that great.
39:32But it's not that great for Mike Evans either.
39:34So I'll take the receiver that can stay on the field and is still playing in an outstanding offense where he's the locked-in number two wide receiver.
39:42There's no question about a tight end or a rookie or an older veteran coming in and taking even a little bit of work away from Mike Evans.
39:50I think I'm going to take Devontae Adams and hope those touchdowns still stay strong.
39:54Just not as good as where they were last year.
39:57Admittedly, they won't be double digits. Okay, we've got about a minute left for this last one.
40:02And I don't think you guys are going to get this.
40:05But if you do, kudos to you. All right, Player A and Player B are both entering their fifth NFL season.
40:11Player A averaged 12.9 PPR fantasy points per game last year.
40:14Player B averaged 13.2 PPR fantasy points per game last year.
40:17Both of them have been top five in yards per target two straight seasons.
40:21Both of them are very efficient receivers. And Player A averaged six targets per game last year.
40:26Player B, 5.5 targets per game last year. Is Jameson Williams one of them?
40:29Yes, Jameson Williams. Is Alvin Kirk the other? No.
40:32Wait a second. Am I wrong about this guy being in his fifth year?
40:36I could be wrong. He might be in his fourth year.
40:39Am I that stupid? Christian Watson? No. Fifth year.
40:42Fifth year. Yep, it's Christian Watson. Jameson Williams and Christian Watson.
40:45And I would say the profile is pretty similar with Watson has a much higher ADOT.
40:49But Watson going 64th overall. Jameson Williams 54th overall.
40:52So it's about a round later. Maybe a discounted version.
40:54Who's the better value? Watson or Williams? Jamie? I'd rather have Watson.
40:58I'd rather have him if the value was the same.
41:01I think you're looking at a guy that could clearly be the number one option in the passing game.
41:06And it's going to take a lot of injuries for that to happen for Jameson Williams.
41:10So Williams' numbers popped again last year when Laporta was injured.
41:13It started the two games after their bye week.
41:16So you could say maybe that was when Dan Campbell started to give Jameson Williams more opportunities.
41:21But really it was Laporta's back injury when he missed the second half of the season.
41:25So love Jameson Williams. I think when he is on his game, he will be better than Christian Watson and better than
41:31a lot of receivers in the NFL. But I think Watson will be more consistent.
41:36And removing Romeo Dobbs, removing Dontavian Wicks, hopefully some more volume in the passing game for Jordan Love.
41:41That should help Christian Watson two years removed from his ACL tear.
41:44So I like both these guys and the ranges that they're going.
41:47But I think Christian Watson can be a top 20 wide receiver.
41:51I think Jameson Williams is more of that boom bust number three wide receiver that you probably get burned by more weeks than not.
41:58I agree 100%. And think about this. 13.2 PPR points per game for Christian Watson.
42:02That was on five and a half targets per game.
42:05If he even gets to six and a half targets per game, that number could cut close to 15.
42:10And that's somebody that would just be an outstanding value.
42:13Okay. Dave, great job. Jamie Anthony Eisenberg. Tremendous segment from you.
42:16When we come back, your tweets. Did I get it?
42:19No. Your tweets after this on Fantasy Football Today.
42:21All right. We'll answer some of your tweets. Here we go from Esper.
42:25Tyler Shuck is currently at a betting line of about 3,600 yards on the season.
42:29I think the Saints offense is being slept on.
42:31Would you agree, Jamie? Yes. I think the Saints could be fantastic with Kellen Moore.
42:36All right. Let's get our next tweet here. And it is from, we have one.
42:40Here it is from Marone. What up, fam? What's going on tomorrow?
42:43Anything special? Jamie, I'm going to throw this one to you again.
42:47Oh, there is something special tomorrow. Let's go. Happy birthday to the Hall of Famer.
42:51Was this the same room that the Hall of Famer?
42:54I think it was. I think it was this room, too.
42:57Big 5-0, baby. Big 5-0, baby. Saints, God's birthday tomorrow.
43:00Wow. I love it. It's a cookie cake. And what's the colors?
43:03Orange and green for the cake. There you go.
43:05And we got all the brain trust from CBS Sports to be here today.
43:09All three of the most brightest and intelligent people.
43:12The most important people at CBS Sports Network. This is awesome.
43:15Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. Thank you so much.
43:17It was good. There you go. All right. For those of you listening to the podcast and not watching, tomorrow or Friday is Dave's 50th birthday.
43:25You want some? Later. No, come on. Let me give you some.
43:28I can't eat orange and green. You know that.
43:31I'm not giving you some. I'm giving you some orange.
43:33Come on. Let me do it. He's eating cookie cake.
43:36Here, buddy. I want you to enjoy it. There you go.
43:39There you go. Oh, my goodness. Give me any advice for a 50-year-old.
43:43Dave, you ask me a question. Oh, do I have advice for a future 50-year-old?
43:47No, no. Jamie, do you have advice for him?
43:50He's not 50. I'm not 50 yet. Oh, I'm sorry.
43:53Don't worry, though. We're doing this again in October, and it's going to be awesome.
43:57Good stuff. Cookie cake is so underrated. What a terrific, terrific treat.
44:00Dave, happy birthday. We love you, man. You are the man.
44:03And big thanks, everybody, for watching and listening. Thank you so much.
44:07That is it for Fantasy Football Today here on CBS Sports Network.
44:10Check out our Fantasy Football Today podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts.
44:13Thanks to Dave, Jamie, and all of you again for watching and listening.
44:17I'm Adam Azer. We'll talk to you next time on Fantasy Football Today.
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44:26We from Chicago. It's my home. From Emmy Award winner, Lena Waithe.
44:30There are two types of people in this world.
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44:39The Shy. The final season now streaming. Only on Paramount+.
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