Zappe Hour is Back!

It’s do-or-die time for many this week. I’m in several leagues looking to secure a playoff spot, as I’m sure you all are as well. That or you’re glad the season is over for you so you can just watch football without worrying about fantasy score.

Well, may I interest you in DFS?

I kid, well, sorta. Try DFS out sometime.

The wife swept me this week, taking the victory on Monday and Thursday night.

On Monday, it started off well for me. For the Jaguars’ first play that is. Christian Kirk went out with an injury and Calvin Ridley didn’t step up in his place. I didn’t play Ja’Marr Chase because I didn’t believe Jake Browning to really carve up Jacksonville. That worked out well. Who had Chase as their captain? My wife did. And Mixon, Lawrence, and Zay Jones.

Then I kept telling myself Thursday would be a sluggish game and to play accordingly, but I had a weird gut feeling that the game was going to surprise.

Should have listened to my gut. I had one lineup I considered playing “just in case New England plays well” with Zappe, Henry, and Zeke at Captain. That lineup would have cashed in every contest I entered. The problem was I didn’t end up entering that lineup.

So a 15-point loss it is. She had Bailey Zappe and Mitchell Trubisky with JuJu Smith-Schuster because that’s her boy. I went more on the Warren, Pittsburgh DST approach, which did not work out well.

After being 11-5 at the end of last week, the record is much closer, 11-7. I need to watch myself now.

Thursday Night Fantasy Recap

Well, it certainly wasn’t the game we all expected. By halftime the game had hit the over Vegas had set for it. The second half was much closer to expectation, with New England being shut out and Pittsburgh only scoring eight points.

⚡️ Bailey Zappe ⚡️ played well in a game that didn’t feature heavy rain. I wouldn’t label him a streamer going forward but if you need a QB2 in a superflex league, he could work. Maybe not great but he’ll scratch the itch. For what it’s worth, the broadcast crew noted he is the first Patriot to throw three touchdown passes in the first half of a game since, you guessed it, Tom Brady. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Ezekiel Elliott led the way for the Patriots. Zeke’s workload should stay fairly heavy and consistent, so he’s a volume RB2 going forward. I’m not sure what to do with JuJu. I hope he gets past his knee injury and can put together a nice string of games to end the season. I was not surprised Hunter Henry had a big game with New England missing so many pass-catchers.

For Pittsburgh, Diontae Johnson feels like the only reliable downfield target with Trubisky at the helm. Jaylen Warren has PPR appeal, securing four passes for 29 yards, but he only managed 11 yards on seven carries. Najee Harris and George Pickens both had disappointing performances despite decent volume. It’s looking rough for Pittsburgh.

Things to look out for in Week 14

• Jonathan Mingo was the WR30 in half-PPR in weeks 12-13. In that stretch, he caught 10 of 16 targets for 129 yards. He has had six or more targets in four straight weeks and the second-most targets on the team over the season with 67. The bad news is from weeks 10-11 he caught only four of 13 targets for 26 yards. He has yet to finish a game higher than WR30 on the year, and his yards per route run stands at 0.9, which is not good. For reference, other guys who have similar YPRR are Quinten Johnston, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdez-Scantling, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Scotty Miller, and Braxton Berrios.

• Someone who’s been great in YPRR? Nico Collins! 🐄 He gets Tennessee twice in the fantasy playoffs who have given up the sixth most points to wideouts this season.

• 🏴‍☠️ After starting off the season looking like a very poor volume-only play, Rachaad White has turned it up a notch. Since week eight, White has averaged 4 yards per carry and 9.3 yards per reception, compared to 3.2 and 7.4 respectively to start the year. His end of

• 🐆 He may not play this week, but it’s worth noting that since his season hit a low point during a blowout loss to San Fransisco, Trevor Lawrence has been the QB1 in fantasy. If he does play, he’s a risky start against Cleveland. The Browns aren’t the juggernaut they were to start the year, but all Lawrence needs to do is look at his ankle wrong and he will likely be subbed out. It’s best to wait a week and see what happens.

• 🐏 Since week 6, Puka Nacua has been the WR24 in half-PPR formats (min 5 games played). It’s a dip compared to his early season start, but that is still better than Garrett Wilson, Calvin Ridley, Zay Flowers, and Davante Adams have been in that same span.

• Speaking of San Fran and surprising QB stats, did you know that in the past month, Brock Purdy has been the QB2 in football? Not a QB2, the QB2. Three top-six finishes and two top-2 finishes will do that for you. He gets Seattle this week who held him to just 11.5 points, but he gets them at home this time and I don’t think lightning will strike twice.

• 🤠 Brandin Cooks has caught a touchdown in four of his last six games. Do you remember how bad Washington’s secondary was on Thanksgiving and how well Cooks did? Philadelphia has been worse. The Eagles have given up the most touchdowns, receptions, and fantasy points to wide receivers in the NFL. Cooks should find his way into a lot of lineups this Sunday.

• 🏹 Rashee Rice has been the most consistent wideout for the Chiefs this season and his snap percentages are slowly trending upward. He’s caught fewer than four passes just once since week six and has four touchdowns in that same time frame. In his last two games, he has put up a 16-171-1 stat line. I don’t see how his usage doesn’t continue to trend upward, especially against Buffalo this weekend.

• 🧀 The consistency Jordan Love has shown this season is incredible. He’s had some bad fantasy finishes for sure, but he’s had only one game all season where he wasn’t at least a top-18 QB on the week. He has eight top-12 weekly finishes, as many as Patrick Mahomes and more than Lamar Jackson. The Giants are a below-average matchup for quarterbacks, but if Christian Watson can play, I think Love makes for a fine start.

• It looks like it’s Keaton Mitchell time in Baltimore, rendering Gus Edwards nearly irrelevant (unless the coaches decided to feature him again). He leads the NFL in yards after contact per attempt by a considerable margin. He is second in the NFL in broken and missed tackles per attempt with 0.31 and 0.14 respectively. There’s no doubt he’s explosive, but the upcoming schedule is brutal. The Rams, Jaguars, 49ers and even Dolphins are all bottom-half matchups for running backs.

• Trey McBride is the TE1 in fantasy since week 8. Jake Ferguson, Sam LaPorta, and Dalton Kincaid join him in the top 12 in that span.

That’s all for this week! Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you soon! Don’t forget to check out the Discord if you haven’t already! It’s a great group that is always talking football!