FANTASY FOOTBALL ADD/DROPS
Week 16 working the waiver wire: Chase that championship
Dec 17, 2019, 4:43 pm
Mike Nowak/Chargers team site
Congratulations, if you're reading this article you've had a good fantasy season. Adding free agents should be easier with many teams already done for the season. Also, be aware that other owners that are in the playoffs will be looking to block you from picking up any players that can help you, so go all-in if you need a certain player this week. Owners in the consolation game might be looking to add players this week too, so don't just assume your opponent in the championship game is your only competition on the waiver wire.
Keep in mind the owner % mentioned is for 10-team standard ESPN PPR leagues. Good luck!
QB
Ryan Tannehill: He's still only 63% owned, and he continues to come through for fantasy owners. He plays the Saints this week, and they're a middle of the road matchup for QBs over the last 4 games.
Philip Rivers: He's only rostered on 43% of leagues and should have a great game since the Raiders are the 3rd best matchup a QB can face over their last 4 games.
Desperation play:
Ryan Fitzpatrick: You can use him against the Bengals if you're desperate. The matchup isn't as good as you might think. Don't look now, but the Bengals are the 5th worse matchup for QBs over their last 4 games.
RB
Adrian Peterson: Peterson was my top player to add last week, and he didn't disappoint. You have to love the volume he's getting and a home matchup against the Giants isn't scary. He's still only rostered in 55% of leagues.
Mike Boone: This is a tough week for RBs on the waiver wire. Hopefully, you're playing in your fantasy Super Bowl because you have good RBs. Boone could be a league winner if Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison sit this week, but there's no way of knowing that this early in the week. The matchup against the Packers is tasty, so keep your eye on the Vikings' practice reports. This will be tricky because the game is on Monday night, so add Boone and play him if he's the starter.
Kerryon Johnson: He could be back this week, but who knows how much work he gets. If you're in a keeper league, and he's out there, he might be worth picking up for next year.
WR
Breshard Perriman: You have to love his upside playing with Jameis Winston who will face a Texans secondary that can be exploited. He's only rostered in 9% of leagues. He has 3 straight games with 70 yards receiving or more, so he's worth a shot for sure. You can't expect another 113 yard performance with 3 TDs, but he should good again.
Darius Slayton: He didn't put up big numbers, but he did score again. His matchup against the Redskins isn't great, and we'll see if Eli Manning plays again this week. Slayton comes with some risk this week, keep that in mind. He's rostered in 65% of leagues.
Anthony Miller: I've been one of the last people to back Miller this year, but you can't ignore how good he's been lately. He's produced in fantasy for 4 straight weeks, but his matchup couldn't be worse this week, so be aware. The Chiefs have given up the least amount of points to WRs over their last 4 games. He's rostered in 25% of leagues.
Greg Ward: He's getting a lot of targets because Carson Wentz doesn't really have many other options. Ward faces the Cowboys defense this week, and they're a Top 10 matchup for WRs over their last 4 games. He's available in 97% of leagues.
TE
Tyler Higbee: He's only rostered in 39% of leagues, and he has 3 straight games with over 100 receiving yards. PICK HIM UP. Even if Gerald Everett returns, you have to love Higbee.
O.J. Howard: His matchup against the Texans is beautiful, and Jameis should target him heavily. He's rostered in 52% of leagues and should be owned.
DEF
If you need a defense this week, the Chiefs look like a good option against the Bears. Kansas City is playing a lot better on defense as of late, and they're only rostered in 34% of leagues.
Okay, that will do it. Be sure to check out my show MoneyLine with Jerry Bo on ESPN 97.5FM. We're on every Sunday morning from 10-noon, and we'll talk a lot of fantasy football and NFL gambling getting you ready for kickoff every Sunday. Good luck this week!
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Someone finally pushed back against media’s anti-Houston Texans agenda
May 23, 2024, 6:47 pm
The Astros need to whip up on the Oakland A’s this weekend in California as they did in sweeping four from them last week at Minute Maid Park. That was the start of a homestand which ended up with seven wins in 10 games. That goes down as a successful homestand, especially since it felt like the Astros’ prior winning homestand came while Donald Trump was President (it actually started in late July). Still, 7-3 doesn’t feel like a smashing success with it ending by dropping two of three games to the lowly Los Angeles Angels.
It is not exactly with bated breath that anyone should be waiting on Jose Abreu’s return to the lineup, but it’s coming. It should not be on this road trip. After the three games with the A’s the Astros move up the coast for a big four game set with American League West leading Seattle. The M's start all right-handed pitchers. That is no time to sit Jon Singleton to see if Abreu has managed to pump a few drops of gas into his tank while spending the better part of this month at the Astros’ minor league complex. It’s not as if Singleton has been stellar since Abreu’s departure, but by comparison, he’s been Lou Gehrig-esque. The series with the Mariners isn’t make or break but the Astros are strongly advised to get at least a split. That it should be Framber Valdez starting the opener Monday night doesn’t breed tremendous confidence, coming off his meltdown outing against the Angels. Another start, another opportunity.
The Mariners are at the Nationals this weekend, starting it a mere four and a half games ahead of the Astros. In four of the five other divisions the Astros' 22-28 record would have them at least 10 games off the lead.
One step forward, two steps back
Speaking of washed-up first basemen, Joey Votto should be a future Hall of Famer. The 40-year-old Canadian is trying to make it back to the big leagues via the minor leagues with the Toronto Blue Jays. Votto was an absolutely tremendous player with the Cincinnati Reds. As the Beastie Boys said, “Ch-check it out.” Over Jeff Bagwell’s first ten seasons with the Astros he hit .305 with a .417 on-base percentage and .552 slugging percentage, yielding a phenomenal .970 OPS. Over Votto’s first ten full seasons with the Reds: .313/.429/.540 for an exactly phenomenal .970 OPS. Where am I going with this? Read on!
Votto had phenomenal strike zone and bat control. He turned 30 during the 2013 season. That year Votto had 581 at bats. He popped out to an infielder once the entire season. Alex Bregman turned 30 the third day of this season. Bregman popped out to the shortstop four times in the Angels series. So much for Bregman’s “knob past the ball” epiphany that saw him hit three home runs over two games last week. Going into the weekend Bregman has one hit in his last 23 at bats. His season stats continue to be pitiful: a .209 batting average and .607 OPS. Bregman has only struck out once in the 23 at bats of his latest deep freeze. It’s that so much of his contract is feeble. There is a lot of season left for Bregman to build up to decent numbers, but one-third of the regular season will be complete after the Astros play the Mariners Monday night.
While Bregman’s season to date has basically been one long slump, Jose Altuve is in a funk of his own. Since blasting a homer Monday, Altuve is hitless in 12 at bats. Mini-slumps happen to everybody but Altuve’s woes trace back farther. Over his last 15 games, Altuve is batting .175. He last had more than one hit in a game May 5. He’s also drawn just two walks over those 15 games. It’s tough to ever sit Altuve, but he’s probably playing a little too much. Altuve turned 34 earlier this month. He has started 48 of the Astros 50 games at second base. Mauricio Dubon should be getting a start per week at second (and probably another at third given Bregman’s level of play). Over a full season not playing the field once per week still means 135 starts. Altuve should mix in some more at designated hitter (he has just one DH game so far this season). Wear and tear is a real thing, players don’t grow less susceptible to it as they get to their mid-30s.
King Tuck
On the flip side, Kyle Tucker! So far this season, he’s making himself as much money as Bregman is costing himself. Only Shohei Ohtani (1.069) starts the weekend action with an OPS higher than Tucker’s 1.060. The law of averages dictates that Tucker won’t finish as high as 1.060, but if he does, it would be the greatest full-length season offensive performance in Astros’ history. Jeff Bagwell posted an absurd 1.201 OPS in the strike-shortened 1994 campaign. Yordan Alvarez came in at 1.067 in his 87 games played rookie season of 2019. Lance Berkman’s 2001 was a monster. Enron Field was more hitter-friendly then than Minute Maid Park is now, but Berkman’s numbers were “Oh My Gosh!” spectacular. .331 batting average, 55 doubles (second in franchise history to Craig Biggio's 56 in 1999), 34 homers, .430 on-base percentage, .620 slugging percentage, and 1.051 OPS. And that was just Berkman’s second full season in the majors. Lance finished fifth in National League Most Valuable Player Award voting. Giant-headed Barry Bonds won MVP with his 73 home runs among other sicko stats.
* Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.