My profession is a technical trade. There is a mentor-apprentice relationship that guides someone to become a licensed professional. As you might imagine, some mentors aren’t very good at cultivating their apprentices’ skill sets. The impressionable student is left flapping in the wind, while the “expert” is either too lazy or ineffective to provide needed support. Sure sounds like an NFL coaching staff, doesn’t it?
The NFL has a bunch of terrible mentors, even after Shane Waldron was ejected from the Windy City on the steaming hate from anyone who has ever studied football film.
Caleb Williams‘ rookie season has already been railroaded by a complete lack of preparedness from his coaching staff. Waldron didn’t script plays… not that the route concepts and protections made any sense at all. The most talented unit in generations for Chicago was roadside rubbish. It still is.
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Last week’s predictions were headed in the right direction, but opted for the unpaved back roads and ran into the ditch. Bo Nix had a decent showing and led the Broncos down the field to set up a chip shot aimed to vanquish the unbeaten Chiefs. Blocked.
Jayden Daniels was serviceable in a shootout with the Steelers, but it was George Pickens and Russell Wilson who got the last laugh. Right idea, wrong stat line.
Tyrone Tracy rushed for more than 100 yards and scored a touchdown, but his overtime fumble set up another Panthers victory. Side note, I’m not worried about Bryce Young because Dave Canales is amazing. Spoiler alert: All of this week’s spicy predictions will involve an awesome quarterback who is well-supported. Here it goes.
Fantasy Football Hot Takes: Week 11
Mark Andrews Gouges Steelers Defense for 10 Receptions and a Pair of Touchdowns; Ravens Assume First Place in the AFC North With a Two-Score Win in the Steel City
How fitting that the first collision between the Ravens and Steelers is for first place in the division. Baltimore is 7-3, while the 7-2 Steelers have been winning with offense lately. The Ravens’ offense is the best in the NFL. Pittsburgh’s vaunted defense has shown vulnerability lately.
Mark Andrews is back, boys and girls. The Steelers allowed three rushing touchdowns last week and will have to sell out to slow down Derrick Henry. This leaves Mark Andrews and Zay Flowers to settle in behind the linebackers. Rashod Bateman is another weapon on play action. Lamar Jackson is having one of the best seasons ever from a quarterback.
The old battles between Baltimore and Pittsburgh will not resemble this one. Scoring will be easier. Baltimore’s pass defense is atrocious and likely to be even worse with Kyle Hamilton hobbled with an ankle injury. Fire up Russell Wilson and George Pickens again. This will be a shootout, but the advantage is ultimately with the Ravens.
New Lead Thumper Audric Estime Runs Over Falcons for 100 Yards and Is a Top-10 Fantasy Performance; Broncos Torch Falcons With a 35-Point Barrage
Sean Payton pulled a fast one. His hatred for Javonte Williams knows no bounds. Rookie Audric Estime, my top running back in this class, was the workhorse last week with 14 carries to Williams’ one. He is the clear lead dog for the rest of the season.
The Falcons’ defense has been really solid against opposing running backs, but lenient down the field. I’m smelling an overcorrection. Estime is a bruising runner and compliments the Sean Payton offense run by Bo Nix. Denver ran the ball effectively on the Chiefs, who were previously death to rushing attacks.
Nix is the real deal. I saw an arrival at Arrowhead. In my mind, he orchestrated a game-winning two-minute drive against the undefeated juggernauts and their nasty defense. Never mind the blocked Wil Lutz kick. The rookie from Oregon passed the test with flying colors. Atlanta isn’t a team you would expect to yield such a substantial total. The spicy footnote is that the Denver defense might also lock down a really strong Falcons offense.
Khalil Shakir Racks up 25 PPR Points Against Kansas City and Is a WR1; Bills Stomp Chiefs by Two Touchdowns in Orchard Park
This is not a dominant team in Kansas City. They have yet to draw blood in the loss column, but they are indeed human. In consecutive weeks, they were taken to the wire by good-not-great teams. Buffalo will stomp them. Josh Allen‘s mind meld with Khalil Shakir is the stuff of lore. The Boise State receiver hauled in six of his nine targets last week in Indy. That dropped his catch percentage considerably. He was tracking at nearly 95% for the season.
Kansas City has its flaws on defense, notably versus slot receivers. Shakir is also deadly after the catch. The Chiefs have been amazing at stuffing the run but gave way to power running late in the Denver game. Buffalo should combine James Cook‘s explosiveness with Ray Davis‘ physical style to keep Steve Spagnuolo from teeing off on Allen.
Can Kareem Hunt gash this Bills’ run defense? He will need to. Buffalo is very tough in the passing game and will give Patrick Mahomes all he can handle. I expect Andy Reid to have a similar approach as last week, keeping the chains moving with the short passing game. The difference might be how much more zone the Bills run, versus the two-deep, man-up approach the Broncos used successfully to hold Kansas City to under 20 points. I just don’t see how the Chiefs can keep up against a much stronger team.
Chargers Defense Snuffs Out Ja’Marr Chase and Holds Him to Under 10 PPR Points; Justin Herbert‘s 350 Yards and Three Touchdowns Lights up Snakebitten Bengals and Sends Them to 4-7
The whispers around Inglewood are that this is the best Chargers team since Marty Schottenheimer roamed the sidelines. That was the famous squad with the No. 1 offense and No. 1 defense that still managed to miss the playoffs. Jim Harbaugh is weaving a masterpiece in his first year back in the NFL.
The Chargers have the top passing defense in the league, while Justin Herbert is playing virtually flawless football behind a strong running game. Quentin Johnston is an upside pick, along with Ladd McConkey. I don’t know which running back will be the guy, so the pass-catchers will be the best bet for slate-breaking performances relative to projection.
I almost feel bad for the Bengals, whose schedule has been unimaginably difficult so far. We could see Herbert going even more ballistic than the above prediction against a consistently absentminded Cincinnati defense. Regression awaits Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase this week. They did everything they could to beat Baltimore, but Lamar Jackson was too much.
The Chargers’ defense is outstanding, whereas the Ravens have been among the stone worst in the secondary all season. I fear this is simply another terrible matchup for Cincinnati and one that won’t even let us enjoy ceiling performances from their offensive stars.
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