Week 3 Random Thoughts & Observations

[Tom Kessenich]

Here are some random thoughts and observations about Week 3 as I wonder if Dirk Koetter has figured out what to do with his final timeout of the game yet.

Call me crazy but as a Packers fan I’m more concerned about the team today than I was a week ago. Yes they’re coming off a division win but the pass defense got lit up again, Randall Cobb soiled the bed for the third straight game (this time against a suspect pass defense), the Jared Cook Experiment looks like a complete disaster and the team still lacks a competent No. 3 receiver it can consistently count on. I’m not exactly feeling wonderful about things in Titletown right now.

Plus, that Minnesota defense is … what’s the word I’m looking for Janet Jackson?

Oh yeah …

NASTY.

Someone asked me on Twitter a couple months back what defense could pull a Denver this season and it took me all of about one second to come up with my answer.

Minnesota.

I tried to get them in all of my leagues this year and got them in none. I did get the Chiefs in my top league, though, so I was feelin kinda giddy yesterday. Way to go me.

With Megatron gone Matt Stafford’s got a new favorite in Detroit and it ain’t Golden Tate. Matt and Mr. Jones got a thing goin on.

Somewhere in Los Angeles today Jeff Fisher is probably thinking his approach with Jared Goff is working because his Rams are 2-1. Sorry Jeff you’re still a miserable failure. All you have to do is look at the way many rookie quarterbacks are playing to see that, with competent coaching, rookie QBs can play at a quality level right now and lead teams to success.

So either Goff sucks or you suck. Or both. Those are the questions you have to ask yourself this morning. None of the answers reflect well on you or the Rams organization, do they?

Speaking of the Rams …

#THEKRAKEN.

Bury Todd Gurley all you want folks but after three games he’s on pace for 11 TDs without a quarterback to take any pressure off him whatsoever. Eighty-five yards rushing on Sunday against a defense stacking 52 in the box to stop him. Dude’s gonna end up putting RB1 numbers this season as long as he stays healthy because after a Week 1 disaster the defense is playing better and keeping the games close. Closer games means volume and volume will give him those valuable touchdowns because he’s a beast near the end zone. Book it.

Hold on Ryan Fitzpatrick just threw another interception.

Welcome back next week Le’Veon Bell. I’m guessing the Steelers are gonna welcome you like Journey.

With open arms.

Seriously, though Pittsburgh WTF?

WTF?

And you too Arizona.

WTF?

Carson Palmer’s 2015 season sure seems like a long time ago, doesn’t it?

The Bills threw for 119 yards and won convincingly. I have a crass joke I could make about Rex Ryan and nocturnal emissions but I’m not going to because I’m a gentleman.

OK, I think I just kinda did, didn’t I? Yeah who was I trying to kid.

If you gave Adam Gase a lie detector test and told him he could cut Ryan Tannehill today without any type of a cap hit whatsoever what do you think his answer would be? You know damn well he’d say yes.

Tannehill had an A+ matchup against the Browns so of course he found a way to bungle it and dropkick the game to overtime. It’s what he does. It’s what he always does. He finds a way to Tannehill it.

Hey, I gotta patent that.

To Tannehill something. When you have something really simple that you couldn’t botch it no matter how hard you try but you somehow find a way to mess it all up anyway.

To Tannehill it.

#Tannehilling

Yes.

I like it.

When the live scoring report said “C. Parkey is no good” after his missed game-winning field goal attempt for the Browns it was just reporting the missed attempt and not taking a shot at him right?

Right?

Throughout the offseason I begged people not to let Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders pass them by in drafts because of the Denver quarterback situation. Many ignored me saying it was going to be a problem. On Sunday we saw both let ‘er rip. So now I ask you – how many times last season did Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler have 300-yard/4 TD games?

I’ll wait right here.

I’m still here.

Still here.

Can’t find the answer?

OK it was zero.

What many people refused to accept was the fact was Denver’s QB situation was flat-out horrible last season. Peyton wasn’t Peyton and Osweiler was generally terrible. The odds of it being worse with Siemian (or even Mark Sanchez) was highly remote. So why bail on an elite talent like Thomas or a damn good player like Sanders? Especially if they were going for value prices which both were? That didn’t make any sense to me. And with C.J. Anderson off to a great start that meant more single coverage for both of them as defenses loaded up to stop Anderson and the running game. Single coverage on a player like Thomas is a death sentence for a defense like we saw on his TD bomb against the Bengals and Sanders will beat you to death plenty of times as well.

And just like that, the Broncos are back to being the best team in the AFC (and perhaps the entire NFL) again.

Speaking of Osweiler …

OK let’s just not. It’s probably for the best.

I love you A.J. Green but in a clutch situation with your team needing every play you gotta catch a ball right in your hands on third down. You just gotta man.

Speaking of elite talents, I hope you didn’t bail on Allen Robinson because he looks to be back on track. But the Jags are an absolute mess. What’s the over/under on how many games Gus Bradley has left? Does he have a one-way ticket to London next week?

Hold on Ryan Fitzpatrick just threw another interception.

Just when you think the Giants’ defense has turned the corner they soil the bed in a winnable game at home against a quarterback who couldn’t tie his own shoes the first two weeks of the season.

It’s Week 3; everyone knows Mike Evans is a star now right? I don’t have to keep saying it do I?

Please be OK Russ Wilson. Please be OK Russell Wilson. Please be OK Russell Wilson.

I know Jim Graham busted out but zero targets for Tyler Lockett against a bad team he lit up last season? Zero?

Zero?

Zero?

Really?

Zero?

WTF?

Zero?

Speaking of Graham, if that’s a sign of things to come and Wilson’s injury isn’t serious that just isn’t gonna be fair for defenses trying to stop Seattle. He looked an awful lot like Jim Graham for the first time since the Seahawks acquired him from the Saints.

Hold on Carson Palmer just threw another interception.

I’d like to officially break the news to all of you that Bill Belichick plans to start Uncle Rico at quarterback for New England in Week 4. Don’t laugh, that guy can throw the ball a quarter mile.

Hold on Ryan Fitzpatrick just threw another interception.

I have no idea who was playing quarterback half the time for the Browns on Sunday but dammit Hue Jackson props to you for making that a helluva lotta fun to watch.

T.Y. Hilton’s a bad man.

I looked up the word poise in the dictionary last night and saw a picture of Dak Prescott.

Hold on Ryan Fitzpatrick just threw another interception.

Carson Wentz was the second pick in the draft this year. How the hell did that happen? Seriously, how did that happen?

Darren Sproles has to be the best 4-foot-tall player to ever play in the NFL. Gotta be.

Justin Tucker from 50+ yards is automatic. Blair Walsh from 25 yards is an adventure. Kicking is weird.

And finally, RIP Arnold Palmer and Jose Fernandez. Taken from us far too soon. You will both be missed.

[BigBlueNation]

I always enjoy these Tom, let's mention Terrelle Pryor's line this week...

3-5 35 Yds, 21 Ru Yds, 1 Ru TD, 8 Rec, 144 Yds....32.25 FPts

That's a line we won't see often in FF, although I could see JEdelman doing this as a 4th Qtr replacement week 4..

[King of Queens]

How about this Week 3 lineup?

QB Ryan Fitzpatrick -0.4
RB Ryan Mathews -0.5
RB Matt Asiata 2.9
WR Kelvim Benjamin 0.0
WR Tyler Lockett 0.0
WR Eric Decker 4.1
TE Rob Gronkowski 0.0
FLX Randall Cobb 4.3
DST Pittsburgh 0.0
K Nick Novak 0.0
TOTAL: 10.4

And yes, these were all players that were STARTED by NFFC owners in Week 3.

[Tom Kessenich]

How about this Week 3 lineup?

QB Ryan Fitzpatrick -0.4
RB Ryan Mathews -0.5
RB Matt Asiata 2.9
WR Kelvim Benjamin 0.0
WR Tyler Lockett 0.0
WR Eric Decker 4.1
TE Rob Gronkowski 0.0
FLX Randall Cobb 4.3
DST Pittsburgh 0.0
K Nick Novak 0.0
TOTAL: 10.4

And yes, these were all players that were STARTED by NFFC owners in Week 3.

Other than Asiata and maybe Fitz I can't find fault with any of those options. I was thinking there was a real chance someone likely rolled out a Decker, Benjamin, Lockett trio either in season-long or DFS yesterday and what a kick in the stones that must've been. But despite the matchup Benjamin was a Must Start based on how great he had been; Decker is always money so of course you're starting him (and especially with a gimpy Marshall wasn't he going to get more targets?) and Lockett was looking fanfreakintastic going into yesterday's game. There is absolutely no way anyone could've predicted that the three of them combined were going to catch one more pass than I ended up catching on Sunday.

This game can be an absolutely cruel one sometimes.

[RC Techies]

Tom:

The first thing I look for on the boards each week is your Random Thoughts & Observations. Please keep them up. They are really appreciated.

Can't believe how many receivers laid an egg this week. If you had told me the score of last nights game was going to be 45-32, I would have played Julio and Cooks in a Fanduel contest. Wait, I did. Still can't believe Julio score 2.6 and Cooks beat him with 3.9.

[Tom Kessenich]

This was not a week for the Go Early WR approach. Whole bunch of them soiled the bed, rolled around in it and ate it hard. Pretty incredible the number of big-time WRs who didn't come through. As far as Julio, I'm 100% convinced he's hurt. Ryan never even looked at him on dropbacks about 98% of the time last night. That tells me he wasn't even part of the game plan. If you go into a game without Julio involved then he clearly isn't healthy. Nothing else makes sense. There is no other explanation.

[Coach JP]

How about this Week 3 lineup?

QB Ryan Fitzpatrick -0.4
RB Ryan Mathews -0.5
RB Matt Asiata 2.9
WR Kelvim Benjamin 0.0
WR Tyler Lockett 0.0
WR Eric Decker 4.1
TE Rob Gronkowski 0.0
FLX Randall Cobb 4.3
DST Pittsburgh 0.0
K Nick Novak 0.0
TOTAL: 10.4

And yes, these were all players that were STARTED by NFFC owners in Week 3.

Just looked at the OC - someone had:

Palmer / Forte / Charcandrick West / Benjamin / Julio / Sanu / Jimmy Graham / Houston / Novak / Will Fuller

Netted a total of 55 points. Jimmy graham was 40% of that. I'm sure he thought Julio and Sanu could get 55 combined if the Falcons put up 40+ points.

[Frozen Tundra]

Tom, thank you for this post. Like many, I look forward to your weekly thoughts and observations.

Bill Belichick is the best GM in the NFL (Brady is a great player, but growing evidence seems to suggest that perhaps Belichick made him great and not the other way). However John Elway is giving Belichick a run for his money. Talk about making all the right moves - Kubiak, building the best D in the NFL, Sanders. The jury on the QB choice Siemian/Osweiler is still out but early indications suggest a big W for Elway there too. I think the AFC crown will be mainly contested at Mile High or Foxboro for as long as these two are in charge.