We begin this week’s hot takes with some reflection. After a week like this you begin to think, “What could I have done differently?” This isn’t one of those times where you question roster moves for that week: Should I have started this guy over that guy, or if I had picked up this defense instead of playing so-and-so. It’s hard to gloat over the Odell Beckham injury. Did I draft him? Oh yes I did. I drafted him in two leagues, one of which being the Fantasy Alarm Staff League. But in both leagues where I drafted OBJ, who came out of training camp with an injury, I also drafted another steady WR1/WR2. But I understand not everybody is as fortunate to be ready for life after Odell. So I’m here to help…

 

How Do You Replace Odell Beckham Jr.?

The short answer is… You can’t. You won’t find a player of his caliber, talent, or athletic prowess on waivers. Accept that. With a guy like Odell you can think long-term. Without him? You have to think short-term and week-to-week. There is always a player to be found at the wide receiver position on waivers. Don’t think that you need a long-term replacement. You can target matchups going forward. Just looking quickly at the waiver wire on ESPN, Will Fuller, Devin Funchess, John Brown, Jermaine Kearse, J.J. Nelson, Cooper Kupp, and Nelson Agholor are all under 60% owned. You won’t be able to replace Odell going forward. Nor should you trade a high-end running back to replace him. Work the waiver wire. Trade for Demaryius Thomas (who is a “buy low” candidate by the way). The rest of the season is your chance to prove your fantasy football acumen. Here at Fantasy Alarm, we’ll help you do that!

What about the rest of the Giants WR’s? As you may have heard the Giants lost quite a few receivers today. Odell being the biggest name and most impactful of the bunch. It’s still too early to tell how the injuries to Sterling Shepard and Brandon Marshall will impact the team, but sure enough the waivers will be filled with potential replacements. Little-owned Dwayne Harris is done for the year after fracturing his foot. Sure there are targets that will be available, but this isn’t exactly an offense you want to target on the waiver wire.

 

Remember What I Said Last Week About Cam Newton? Forget It!

Throw it out the window and be done with it! Yes I recommended to stay loyal to him for the New England game, and YES, I also recommended selling high on him just seven days ago, but this offense is finally clicking. And it’s only Week 5. Look at his schedule going forward:

  • Week 6: vs. PHI
  • Week 7: at CHI
  • Week 8: at TB
  • Week 9: vs. ATL
  • Week 10: vs. MIA
  • Week 11: BYE
  • Week 12: at NYJ
  • Week 13: at NO

And then in the GLORIOUS weeks of 14, 15, and 16 the Panthers face the Vikings, Packers, and Buccaneers ALL AT HOME! This is the QB to own the rest of the year. Yes, this is coming just one week after saying to sell high on the man! And even with a short week coming up against Philadelphia (who has a terrible secondary) Cam Newton is a fantastic QB to have on your roster for the rest of the season.

 

Big Ben is a Worthless-Berger

Ben Roethlisberger has hit an all-time low. He’s thrown six touchdowns so far this year with seven interceptions (five of which came this past Sunday) with an additional fumble. Sure he finally had a 300-yard passing game, but it was almost out of necessity in garbage time. He’s not even a borderline starting QB. He’s just been awful. Sure he came into this season with some promise now that he would have Le’Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, and Martavis Bryant. Bell and Brown will continue to have value as premiere options at their own positions, but Bryant is suffering. The Steelers clearly want to get him the ball. He’s seen deep balls just barely out of his reach, and he’s seen running plays in his favor get called back due to holding penalties (thanks AB). Bryant continues to be a WR3/Flex option with WR2 upside, but his production is stinted by Big Ben’s inconsistent production.

Obviously you aren’t doing anything with Bell and Brown. Despite Roethlisberger’s poor play those two have been just fine. But what to do with Ben and Bryant? For Ben there isn’t much you can do. You might only get something for Ben in a 2-QB or Superflex league, but you’d have to sell very low on him. His name alone is probably the reason you aren’t dropping him just yet. In Week 10-12 he does get to chuck the pigskin against Indianapolis, Tennessee, and Green Bay. For Bryant? You might be able to get some value for him if you can afford it. It most certainly sucks that the targets have been there, but the yardage and touchdowns have been nonexistent for all but one week. If you can get anything promising for Bryant, explore those options.

 

Sell. The. Rams.

This was mentioned last week and it’s certainly worth repeating. Every sports media outlet hyped up the Rams offense and all their accomplishments that came against Indianapolis, Washington, San Francisco, and Dallas. On Sunday they finally faced a strong defense and put up just ten points. Jared Goff completed just 22-of-47 pass attempts for 288 yards and a pair of interceptions. Todd Gurley averaged 3.1 yards per carry on 14 rush attempts. Sammy Watkins caught ZERO passes on four targets. You sure you want to stick with this group going forward? Oh, you do? Okay then…

The Rams have a pretty difficult schedule going forward. They face the Jaguars, Cardinals, Giants, Texans, and Vikings over the next five weeks. They also play Seattle again on the road in Week 15. You sure you want to own the Rams during the fantasy playoffs? Best of luck! You might be able to still get value, especially for Watkins. The hesitancy to trade Gurley is understandable because running backs are hard to come by, but you could get a very nice return on arguably the best running back through weeks 1-4.

 

The Dolphins Have Put Your Team in an Odd Place

These guys have virtually no value outside of Jarvis Landry, and if he avoids serious injury, DeVante Parker. Even in their best matchup of the year against the Titans, the Dolphins put up just 16 points where one touchdown came on defense. Parker entered the game with one of the best matchups a wide receiver could ever imagine against a paltry Tennessee secondary. Sure enough he left the game due to injury.

Regardless of the positional players the focus is on Jay Cutler. He’s clearly a guy who is just trying to collect a paycheck. On Sunday he threw 12-of-26 pass attempts for completions for just 92 yards and a touchdown and an interception. He also rushed for eight yards, so if your league has decimal scoring… There’s that.

This is going to be a long season for the Dolphins. It’s not like they have a Bye week to pull themselves together. They lost that earlier this year. This team is in a marathon until the first week of January and the toxic Jay Cutler likely won’t last with his morose stat lines. Sure Miami pulled out a win, but eventually they’ll bench Smokin’ Jay for Good Guy Matt Moore. And when that does happen… Oddly enough better days could be ahead for the team fantasy-wise.

 

Austin Seferian-Jenkins Should Be Started Next Week

ASJ finally had his breakout game with the Jets to the tune of six catches on eight targets for 29 yards and a touchdown. It’s not overwhelming by any means, but the fact that he found the end zone was very nice. And next week the Jets play the Patriots. That’s not to say the Jets have a chance against the Pats. It’s a small chance, but a chance nonetheless! But the garbage time potential against a horrible defense in New England means that ASJ could see a very appealing workload that could make him valuable for one more week. New England has given up four touchdowns in five games to tight ends and at least 55 receiving yards in each game to the position so ASJ is in a very good spot in Week 6.