When Matt Forte was declared active about an hour before yesterday’s
kickoff, I continued to push Bilal Powell on readers right up to the last
minute. Being active doesn’t mean
starting. It doesn’t mean
contributing. It simply means they’ll
play if needed. And Forte wasn’t needed,
except for some late-game mop-up duty. Powell
ran very efficiently, converting 27 touches into 15 fantasy points (26 in PPR). Not bad for a guy rostered in less than half
of ESPN fantasy leagues at the start of the week. And not bad for a guy whose RB-59 preseason
average draft position was, as many of you learned this summer, certifiably
insane: http://www.fantasyfootballforwinners.com/2016/07/bold-predictions-11-and-12-bilal-powell.html
This site also hit on Jay Ajayi, declaring Thursday to “expect plenty
of volume and not much else.” The Jets’
strong run D contained Ajayi (and Damien Williams) several times at the
goal-line, rendering Miami’s star RB fantasy useless. And as many of you know in Q&A, I’d been
pushing Robby Anderson and warning against Devante Parker all week.
However, I missed big on Miami’s out-of-nowhere breakout QB. A few days ago I stated that “Matt Moore and
company will struggle to sustain drives.”
The Jets’ D, I believed, would rise to the occasion and capitalize on a
journeyman quarterback who hadn’t started a game in five years and whose career
35/35 TD/INT split was a clear indicator of his ceiling. But never underestimate the ability of
mediocrity to overcome terribleness. It’s
why I’m so high on guys like Tyrod Taylor today.
Beyond the hundreds of predictions offered in the comments section, I’ve
made about 30 targeted predictions in the past few days’ columns. All are bold to varying degrees—unconventional
based on universal expert opinion. As I’ve
said many times, this site is worthless if it doesn’t provide value. We’ll find out today—in the heart of the
fantasy playoffs—whether it helps or hurts when it matters most to you.
Good luck today.