Four consecutive days of Football, and then a game on Monday. I mean, It’s preseason, but it’s actual football. Fantasy Football draft season is a magical time of year. Everyone wants to win. Everyone wants to choose right. Who doesn’t want to beat those expletive deleted’s in that league?! That is why we are dedicating our services to those ends.

Below is a breakdown of Friday’s preseason games. The second week of the preseason gives us a look at what coaches are studying. This is something to keep in mind while watching preseason games, except for game 3. Coaches are not trying to win the game or give their playmakers the ball. They call plays, in the closest scenario to real game experience, to learn something about their players and the team at large. I watch the games through those lenses…and my glasses too.

Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes is young and bound to make mistakes. He should have a fantasy relevant season as a streamer, with potential weekly startability, but I am more comfortable drafting his weapons than him. His legs may get him in to the top 12 conversation at the end of the season. Touchdowns are worth 6, if they rush it in, nahmean?

Kareem Hunt started the afternoon slowly, but he showed us a few maneuvers before retiring for the night.

Tyreek Hill gets a lot of flak, and I can’t say I’m not part of it. I’m changing my mind on him though. I’m starting to agree with his 3rd round in 12 team league’s ADP, and it had nothing to do with his pop n lock skill. I swear!

Most people think Sammy Watkins is going to be the main Wide Receiver on the team, but I view Tyreek Hill as the 1a, and Watkins as the 1b. That is only because Sammy Watkins has yet to receive a pass. I am slightly concerned about that, but we have to see how the 3rd preseason game goes before jumping to conclusions about the talented Mr. Watkins.

Falcons

Matt Ryan was ok, as usual. He gets it done.

Tevin Coleman had a few nice plays. Freeman still has not played.

Calvin Ridley was being tested, but not by the Chiefs, by the Falcons. He did great! He’s making the case for a later round pickup with upside.

Austin Hooper is also making the case for a late round Tight End. He scored, but more importantly is the fact that he stayed in Atlanta during the offseason to work with Matty Ice. He sacrificed his time with family to make himself better. I can dig it.

Giants

Davis Webb looked ok as Giants backup Quarterback, but he’s not the future of the Giants.

Jonathan Stewart did not have a good night.

Wayne Gallman is the better handcuff to own, if you think you should draft one for Saquon Barkley Insurance. I don’t think you should, even though he’s being held out at the moment because he’s mildly injured. You can fill your roster with better potential, and there’s no guarantee that Gallman gets the workload or has the capability to perform the workload on this team, even if given to him. It won’t be. I don’t want either Gallman or Stewart, but Gallman has been looking better on the field.

Sterling Shepard is the fantasy value on this team. He’s going in the latter rounds, FantasyPros Consensus ADP #113, which is in the 10th round for 12 team leagues. Odell Beckham is going to see better coverage than Shepard, which should give this talented third year, future-better-than-10th-round draft pick a lot of opportunity to catch some big plays from Eli Manning, who didn’t play much in this second preseason game.

Cody Latimer didn’t get much play, but he showed the ability to contribute on this team if called upon.

Lions

Matthew Stafford has a rocket for an arm, but he was mediocre on his 5 passes. His backup Jake Rudock made an impression on me though.

I am going to have to move Theo Riddick up my rankings a bit more because he’s going to be utilized in this system, and he’s a capable back in both the rushing and passing game.

LeGarrette Blount had me worried early on that he lost a step, but he had a few plays that reminded us of his prior successes.

I’m not sure how to deal with the Lions Running Backs. Ameer Abdullah made me cringe a few times. By the end of the season, Abdullah is not on the lions anymore, and Riddick and Kerryon Johnson run the backfield.

Kerryon Johnson should be the starter of this team, but it will take a few weeks for the coaches to be forced to make the change between Blount and Kerryon. He wasn’t as impressive in this second game as he was in the first, but that may speak more to the Giants Defense this season than Kerryons talents, which we will get to witness in just a few short weeks.

Bills

AJ McCarron didn’t do so well, and fractured his collarbone. No matter, the positional battle is between Josh Allen and Nathan Peterman anyway.

Nathan Peterman was ok. He looked better last week.

I suspect that Josh Allen may have done enough to start this season. A lot of analysts are down on Allen, but my eyes tell me he’s going to lead the Bills to just as many, if not more victories than last season (9-7).

McCoy played enough to ready himself for next week, where he should see a heavier workload.

Running Back Marcus Murphy has been impressive, while Chris Ivory hasn’t touched the ball too much. I won’t read into that more than the coaches trying to evaluate their players.

Honorable mention of Nick O’Leary, who may be an active participant in this pass catcher needy offense. Charles Clay should be the number one on the team, when healthy, but that doesn’t mean O’Leary won’t have fantasy value this season. Or, that’s exactly what it means…or something in the middle.

Browns

Oh-Em-Gee, Josh Gordon is back! Coach says, he might be ready for week 1. Might?! Errr, ok. I wonder if that means he’s not going to play in the preseason at all?

Baker Mayfield has amazing pocket awareness, and presence. He will be the Browns future, but Tyrod (Teh-Rod) is pretty damn good too, just not in this game because he only tossed the ball 7 times.

El Guapo is consistently underappreciated and undervalued in draft rankings this season. I don’t get it? He was the 11th ranked Back last season on a bad 49ers team. I’ve said this too many times now, but Carlos Hyde is the pass catching one, two and three down back on this team. I was worried about Nick Chubb, initially, because he was a great College runner, but he is going to need some time to develop. Carlos is, and has been, ready to be the rockstar running back for his team. His career had a rocky start because of injury, but I believe that’s behind him now, considering he played all 16 last year. His #80 ADP is disgraceful! That’s the 7th round in 12 team leagues.

Don’t get me wrong, Chubb had a nice night, but he looks like a rookie. He will be a great bruising back one day, but today is not that day. The future will have to wait for Chubb, while Hyde helps everyone who drafts him win their fantasy championships.

Duke Johnson is good to go too, but He’s more involved in the passing game. It’ll be curious to see how he’s used in the third preseason game.

Dolphins

How did it get so bad in Miami? Ryan Tannehill is a better Quarterback than this, right? It is going to be a rough season for Dolphin Nation.

Kenyan Drake almost made me think he was good for a second. He might be better than I originally thought, but he’s on this very terrible offense that’s missing something. They have no mojo…no gusto!

There are reports out that say, Kalen Ballage was yelled at by Ryan Tannehill for missing a block earlier in the week. I wonder if that had anything to do with him missing this game?

Albert Wilson had a few nice catches. Maybe we’ll get to see Kenny Stills, and Devante Parker in the third Preseason game.

I doubt it will happen, but it would be nice to see rookie Tight End Mike Gesicki involved next week.

Panthers

The first half of Cam Newton’s play was atrocious. The second half of his play was more to form. He has got to figure out how to overcome the mindfuck that Kelvin Benjamin put in his head about his accuracy because its making it even worse.

Christian McCaffrey is Newton’s check down, and he’s a damn good one that always seems to make a play. I think he’s a bit overpriced in drafts (second  round). So, I don’t end up with him very often, but he should be a decent RB2 this season.

CJ Anderson was just ok.

Put second year Curtis Samuel on your radar. He might be a mid season waiver pick-up. I liked him coming out of college, but he was injured most of last season.

Greg Olsen was missing in action – I mean, I know he was on the field, but he didn’t catch a thing? He scares me, but his middle end ceiling and high floor make him fair at his price. He may even be undervalued. We’ll see. I think he’s perfectly priced, and I avoid him. I prefer other late round TE’s because during that part of the draft (6th round in 12 team leagues) I can get valuable Running Backs and Wide Receivers that I don’t want to pass on.

Saints

Mark Ingram, suspended for the first 4 games, with the Saints bye on week 6, will be heavily utilized when he gets back. He’ll have fresh legs to punish defenses in weeks 5 and 7 through 17.

Jonathan Williams is the most likely candidate to replace Ingram in his absence. Many believe Alvin Kamara will be the workhorse/Bell cow Back. I don’t think this is going to be the case. Watch out for Jonathan Williams. He looked great in this game and every time I’ve ever watched him carry the ball. Feed the man, dammit!

Michael Thomas is going to have positive touchdown regression this season, and Ted Ginn is still going to be boom bust relevant in fantasy in 2018.

Saints Defense is going to be just as good, if not better in 2018, but Brees and company’s fantasy output will be restored to the mean that existed prior to last season.

Cardinals

Sam, Samuel, Sammy Bradford is going to start the season relatively well, but he’s not going to finish the season. Only, this time it may not be due to injury.

I love Josh Rosen. He’s ready to start, if needed, but he can definitely benefit from being on the sidelines for a few weeks while the dust settles of being new to the NFL and the 2018 season starting.

How can anyone not want David Johnson on their team? He is just a crazy strong athletic running back that has been waiting, training, planning to silence all his critics with superior play. I want him if I can get him anywhere after 2nd or 3rd draft pick in any format. I’m still going back and forth in my rankings between him and Ezekiel Elliott.

I said it last week, and I’ll say it again, Draft Chase Edmonds if you draft David Johnson. He’s perfect handcuff insurance because he’s the clear cut, and extremely talented backup to DJ.

Brice Butler has been injured. So, we haven’t seen him play, which is disappointing because the word is he is more likely to be the two receiver, ahead of Christian Kirk, who looked great, again!

Two games in a row of solid performances has created warranted hype around Christian Kirk. I am bought in, in as much as the team can pull it together, which may not happen until Rosen is forced into action.

I think the Cardinals, in general, will be a value in drafts this season because of their poor fantasy output last season. Our recency bias is clouding the fact that the Cardinals organization is typically very fantasy friendly, and a winning franchise.    

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