Daniel Dopp and Liz Loza talk life, fantasy football, pop culture and everything in between in the weekly Fantasy Improv column, which runs every Friday throughout the NFL season. Joe Kaiser serves as the moderator and attempts to keep things on track.
Joe: I went 3/3 on with my playoff teams in the semi-finals. Lets goooo!
Liz: Congrats, Joe! I'm still licking my wounds after benching the Eagles defense in favor of the Broncos DST. And, yes, that move did cost me a chance at the big dance in the Fantasy Focus League, in which I was first place. Congrats to our colleague Eric Moody for beating me fair and square (and for not over-tinkering like yours truly).
Joe: Sorry to hear that, Liz. There's such a fine line between standing pat for the sake of name value like I've been doing with Mark Andrews for two months, and going outside the box and rolling with someone else who has performed better of late or has a better matchup. It's always hit and miss.
Daniel: I'm totally with Liz on the sentiment of playing your stars here. There are a few notable exceptions that are difficult decisions -- Mike Evans I'm looking at you -- but other than that this week is going to be about dancing with the ones that got you here and being fluid when big names like Derrick Henry and Tony Pollard were shut down for your fantasy matchups.
Still, there are some intriguing names that have come on late that give me some excitement. Drake London with Desmond Ridder under center is one of them. He's a low end flex for me this week but he's been playing well over the last four weeks to the tune of WR22 during that stretch.
Joe: One free agent pick up who saved me last week was Giants WR Isaiah Hodgins. Now, injuries forced me to have to fill a flex spot, so it wasn't like I had to start Hodgins over someone else, but it was sure nice to see him come through in the fantasy semi-finals. And that's kind of the theme this time of year. Surprising fantasy stars leading teams to victory. In a related story, Liz, I see you're getting some praise on social media for your preseason Cam Akers' hype!
Liz: Sean McVay and Akers have reminded us that love in not linear. (And, maybe, there is coming back from an Achilles injury.) Hodgins has been a fantastic find. Good on you for trusting your analysis and rolling with him in a big spot. You are correct. There is such a fine line between doing too much and not enough.
Have you seen this awesome article that Tristan wrote on the most common players on fantasy championship rosters? Justin Jefferson leads at the No. 1 spot while Alvin Kamara closes out the top-50 players carrying squads to FF finals.
Joe: This is always one of my favorite files of the season.
The one league where I had Jefferson I also had Jonathan Taylor so I felt like I didn't get to enjoy the Jefferson experience this season like so many with JJ did.
But what a draft! (It was a salary cap draft, by the way).
Liz: Outside of the injured QB Tua Tagovailoa, it's hard to imagine any of the players in the top-50 not delivering starting numbers this weekend. I do like Jared Goff vs. CHI (54% rostered) and Brock Purdy at LV (29% rostered) as potential streams for QB-nervous squads.
Daniel: Are there any dart throws that you like more than others in a win or go home Week 17 fantasy matchup? Jahan Dotson is another name that sticks out to me.
Liz: You know I'm with you on the London love, which you mentioned earlier. Was thrilled we were able to chat about him on the pod earlier in the week. We also talked about Dotson on that episode, who is another upside flex with tons of momentum heading into the championship weekend.
Daniel: It's really hard to trust those guys because we haven't had consistency from them, but they've both shown flashes of greatness. You definitely have to be a little more desperate to consider either of those guys, including Garrett Wilson, who gets Mike White under center again this week, but I'm excited to see if they can close out the season strong and help fantasy teams along the way.
Liz: For managers in a deeper league or someone looking for a Hail Mary play, I could be talked into Chris Moore and maybe even Parris Campbell. Moore has averaged 7.6 looks per game over the last three games and has a favorable matchup against a Jags defense that's allowed the third-most yards to slot receivers. Campbell is a deeper dig... but his speed and big play ability is something to consider. It's even more noteworthy when thinking about Foles need for a security blanket.
Both Jelani Woods and Campbell out-targeted Deon Jackson in Week 16. I have to believe Derwin James' ejection helped Woods' production. This go-around I prefer Cambpell's matchup against CB Darnay Holmes, who gave up 5 of 6 to for 46 yards and 1 TD to K.J. Osborn on Christmas Eve.
Joe: Great names to watch, Liz. Also, with Henry and Pollard both inactive for Thursday's game, many fantasy managers have had to scramble at RB, too. Any that stand out to you?
Liz: Ezekiel Elliott managers who stuck with volume > explosiveness have to be thrilled with having the option of putting in a back who was pretty much going to score when you needed him to. Not sure how many of them made it this far or if the 9.7 points were enough, but it beats throwing a dart on Sunday that might or might not hit the target.
It's hard for me to get "excited" about Chuba Hubbard but I do think he could provide sneaky value in PPR friendly formats. He was more efficient than D'Onta Foreman on the ground last week (125 yards on 12 touches). More importantly, he converted all six of his looks in the two games prior. His value as the team's preferred pass-catching RB might show up at The Pirate Ship, as the Panthers are 3 point underdogs and the Bucs have allowed the sixth-most receptions to opposing backs over the last four weeks.
Daniel: I'd be looking at London's teammate Tyler Allgeier if you need a RB this week. He's topped 15 FP in back to back weeks, he's had 40 touches in that span as well and that's in part due to Cordarrelle Patterson playing second fiddle in this RB rotation now. This is Allgeier's backfield now and I have him as RB22 this week against the Cardinals. He's currently available in 45% of leagues after being the third most added player on waivers this week.
Joe: Allgeier is such a hard runner. It's fun to watch him. That's a great call. I have Henry and Pollard on separate teams that are still in the running and I snagged Allgeier to start in one of them.
Shifting gears, which big-name players are you most confident in or worried about in Week 17?
Liz: The Travis Etienne Jr. journey brought big Disney animation feels over the course a year. His production was all sorts of chaotic. But for the patient and loyal (and lucky) investors he figures to pay off in a true fairytale fashion this weekend. Clearing 100 scrimmage yards in back-to-back efforts his momentum is as solid as his matchup at Houston.
The Texans are allowing 5.0 YPC to opposing rushers and have given up the most fantasy points as well as 21 total touchdowns to running backs. Etienne is a top-six play in Week 17... and I just wish Vegas would post a line on his total yards so I could hammer the over already!
Daniel: Etienne is a good one... The player I'm the most worried about is Mark Andrews. Lamar Jackson is expected to be out again, and Andrews recent game log leaves a lot to be desired.
Week 13: 4 for 53
Week 14: 2 for 17
Week 15: 3 for 31
Week 16: 3 for 45
You're starting him because he Mark Andrews and you likely don't have any other options, but I'm super nervous about it. Hopefully I'm wrong.
Follow Liz Loza (@LizLoza_FF), Daniel Dopp (@DanielDopp) and Joe Kaiser (@joekaisersports) on Twitter. Liz Loza and Daniel Dopp's fantasy football rankings appear every week during the season.