Here we stand at the precipice of greatness. After eight long, excruciating, painful, and repetitive months, we finally have fantasy football back in our lives!!!
I think we all deserve a pat on the back…go on, pat yourself on the back; I can wait.
Bring on the ecstasy of trade negotiations! The jubilation of projected wins! The self-satisfaction of snagging a player off the waiver wire for $1 FAAB more than your rival!!!
Alas…alongside the addictive highs come the harrowing, anxiety-inducing, and even sleep-depriving lows of the weekly start-sit decisions!!!
It’s time to forget the past trauma; you are in luck this season. I am writing a weekly article to help you decide on some of those spicy Flex considerations we are all agonizing over.
I will comb through the matchups each week and bring you a few players I think you should throw in the flex or avoid like the plague. We will use the Fantasy Pros Weekly Expert Consensus Rankings as a guideline (PPR, of course). The players will be selected from among wide receivers outside the top 36 and running backs outside the top 24. This makes it more realistic for our flex conversations and hopefully more helpful to you, the reader.
I will give you a little insight as to why I like or dislike said player each week, and you will vanquish your foes. Sound like a plan? Excellent!
Be sure to follow our other start/sit articles and authors; they contain great advice to help you each week.
Changing the Call (QB): Jayson Snyder
The Cutback (RB): Jake Oliver
Slant Pattern (WR): Tristan Cook
12 Formation (TE): Ethan Wyatt
Flex on ‘Em (FLEX): Evan Brown
IDP Start/Sit (IDP): Jon Glosser
Now that we know where we stand, let’s talk about flex!
Kadarius Toney, WR NYG WR41 ⬆️
Toney has been battling health concerns all off-season, but the latest reports suggest he is good to go for week one against the Tennessee Titans. The Titans recently lost Harold Landry to a season-ending injury, and they may not be able to get pressure on Daniel Jones as quickly as they would have liked. Tennessee does not have a particularly strong secondary, and with a revitalized Saquon Barkley taking some pressure off, Toney could smash in week one!
Isaiah McKenzie, WR BUF WR 57 ⬆️
I know what you are thinking, “Isn’t Gabe Davis the only wide receiver to play for the Buffalo Bills?!” Contrary to urban legend, this “taek” has been officially debunked! If you have not been paying attention this off-season, McKenzie has been named the heir apparent to Cole Beasley’s slot role for the high-powered Bills offense. Beasley generated almost 100 targets out of the slot last season, which was top-10 in the NFL. Vegas seems to think we are in for a shootout and is currently backing a generous 52.5-point over/under for the Bills/Rams. In any deeper league, I think you could do much worse than throwing McKenzie in the lineup and having something to root for on the opening night. (Don’t forget to take him out of the “flex” spot since it is Thursday Night Football.)
James Robinson, RB JAX RB 45 ⬇️
The semi-shocking news is that Robinson is expected to suit up for the Jacksonville Jaguars in week one against the Washington Commanders. This announcement feels barely short of miraculous, considering Robinson tore his Achilles less than nine months prior. This injury would have been a death sentence to a running back only a few short years ago. Thanks to the ever-evolving miracle of modern medicine, Robinson is now one of several NFL athletes looking to bounce back within a year of the horrific injury.
I know that these are exciting times. Especially if you have been riding the J-Rob Express for the last couple of years, sadly, I must seriously urge you to leave Robinson on the bench this week if at all possible. I am more than happy to take the L if he comes out and dominates this week. I am super excited for Robinson, but I need to see it first with an injury like this.
Tyler Lockett, WR SEA WR 40 ⬇️
It sounds crazy to talk about benching Lockett, but here we are. The Denver Broncos are in town for this season’s first edition of Monday Night Football against Lockett and the Seahawks. In case you had forgotten who is leading the Broncos, it is the one and only Mr. Unlimited, the former long-time Seattle Seahawk Russell Wilson. Let’s ride!
More importantly, the man who will (potentially) be throwing Lockett the ball is Geno Smith. While it is a very small sample size, in weeks six through eight last year with Smith at the helm, Lockett only managed 5.50 and 3.20 points before a monster 26.20 in Week 8 against Jacksonville.
Tyler Lockett has 189 yards on receptions without Russell Wilson in his career.
Statmuse
Factor in the Broncos being a top-10 defensive unit in many statistical categories last year. I am less confident throwing Lockett in my flex spot for my opening weekend matchups. Vegas is only giving the match a 42.5 over/under, so not exactly expecting a barn-burner. No doubt Lockett is a talented wide receiver, and you may not have a choice. If you can, I would try and bench him this week and get an idea of how the Smith-led offense will shake out before throwing Lockett back in the lineup.
In Conclusion
There you have it, folks, a few picks to help you on your way for week one! I hope you all get a glorious opening weekend W in all your matchups (unless you are playing me, of course!) Remember, the first week is always tricky, and we will be surprised by some results.
You can find me on Twitter @FFEvanlution if you want to chat about anything dynasty fantasy football. I look forward to helping you win some championships this season!
Did you hear the big news? The Dynasty Nerds YouTube channel is up and running. Now you can see the podcast straight from NerdHQ!! Smash that subscribe button. Sign up for the DynastyGM tool to keep that edge over your league mates. Manage all of your dynasty teams, use the trade calculator, and we just added a player shares tool so you can see all players you roster in one place.