Dissenting Opinions: Johnny B. Goode or Johnny Rotten?
Group-think can be an especially scary thing when it comes to fantasy football rankings. After all, the unpredictable nature of the NFL game is part of what makes fantasy football so popular, and why some people like to say that the NFL acronym stands for "No F****** Logic." But when one of our Yahoo fantasy football analysts veers particularly far away from the rankings consensus, our curious nature begs for an explanation. So, with that in mind, I've identified two players from our Week 15 rankings that our Yahoo analysts love/hate significantly more than the rest of us, and have asked them to explain their reasoning. And since a couple of my colleagues have polarized opinions of Johnny Manziel's first NFL start this week, I'll defer the leadoff spot to the great Johnny Football debate::
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BRAD EVANS
Love him: Johnny Manziel, Cle, QB - Evans QB rank No. 11 (Yahoo No. 15)
Similar to Tim Tebow and Terrelle Pryor before him, Manziel is a polarizing fantasy figure. His "midget" frame, suspect accuracy and brazen scrambling have led many to believe he will be a colossal bust. I am not one of those people. It's hard for owners to erase the memories of his laughable preseason, but Manziel now understands the system, one which should maximize his skills. He isn't the fastest guy around, however, he's an opportunistic, shifty runner spearheading a scheme that once masked Robert Griffin III's flaws, elevating the soon-to-be former Redskin into the QB1 class. Yes, Manziel will be rocky at times, but his ability to score points in variable ways is highly attractive. The weapons around him are too (Josh Gordon, Andrew Hawkins and, hopefully, Jordan Cameron). Really, the setup couldn't be better. Sure, the matchup is tough. Cincinnati has allowed a league-low 14 passing touchdowns, but like Tebow and Pryor, it’s his rushing potential that will make him relevant. Designed draws against a porous Bengals D-line will be commonplace. His passing numbers won’t jump off the screen, but something in line of a 260-270 combined yards (60-plus rushing) with a couple TDs would elevate him into the position’s top-12.
Hate him: Russell Wilson, Sea, QB - Evans QB rank No. 15 (Yahoo No. 13)
In many ways, Wilson is the QB Manziel should aspire to be. Similar to the rookie, he’s short, highly elusive and smartly takes what the defense gives him. However, this week, I suspect the veteran will play second fiddle to the youngster (Manziel) in fantasy. Yes, San Fran is the new dysfunction junction, but the Niners pass defense continues to execute at a high level. Perrish Cox and friends have given up 6.68 yards per pass attempt and only five 20-point signal callers on the season. My gut says, and history suggests, the Beast (Marshawn Lynch) will be unleashed in Week 15, relegating Wilson to a managerial role. Something around 250 combined yards with one touchdown feels right, an output that likely won’t help advance owners to the next round.
ANDY BEHRENS
Hate him: Johnny Manziel, Cle, QB - Behrens QB rank No. 21 (Yahoo No. 15)
We all see the upside here, of course. Manziel is a mobile quarterback, which generally works for fantasy purposes, and he's also the guy who gets to lob passes to Josh Gordon. It's a nice setup. But this week, he'll face a Cincinnati defense that's allowed only 14 TD passes all season, the lowest total in the league. What little we've seen of Manziel in the NFL has convinced me that he'll be responsible for a few negative plays, too. I'm not saying it was silly to add him. Let's just give it a week.
Love him: Martavis Bryant, Pit, WR – Behrens WR rank No. 18 (Yahoo No. 25)
The kid has seven touchdown receptions in seven games, he's seeing roughly six targets per week, and he's facing the pass defense that ranks dead-last in the NFL. It's a top-20 setup, without question. Bryant has proven his worth as both a deep threat and a red-zone weapon. For me, he's a no-doubt fantasy starter this week.
BRANDON FUNSTON
Love him: Donte Moncrief, Ind, WR - Funston WR rank No. 23 (Yahoo rank No. 32)
Moncrief has two games in his past six contests in which he's tallied 100-plus yards and a TD. And I think this week sets up well for the rookie to post another fantasy significant line. Last week, he played on 32 more snaps than Hakeem Nicks - his ascencion above the dead-legged veteran receiver was long overdue. And Reggie Wayne is dealing with a torn triceps that could cut into his workload, if not shut him out of playing this week altogether. So there's a very good chance that Moncrief becomes one of Andrew Luck's most prominent options (after T.Y. Hilton) this week. And facing a Houston defense that has allowed the second-most fantasy points to the WR position, such status in the Colts passing game pecking order should prove to be lucrative.
Hate him: LeGarrette Blount, NE, RB - Funston RB rank No. 28 (Yahoo No. 21)
Man, I'd really hate to be in a position of backing a Bill Belichick-controled RB in a fantasy semi-final playoff matchup. Sure, Blount had a nice game a few weeks ago against Detroit, but it was driven by the two touchdowns he scored. His rushing yardage in that game (78) and in the two subsequent contests has been mediocre (67.3 rushing yards per game). And, although Miami has been more generous of late to opposing running backs, it still has allowed just six TDs on the ground to RBs this season (sixth-best in the NFL). Blount has been a borderline top 30 RB the past two weeks combined against inferior run defenses (GB, SDG) to the Dolphins, so I'm leery about his prospects to deliver RB2-level returns in Week 15.
[Week 15 rankings: Quarterback | Running Back | Receiver | Tight End | Kicker | DST]
DALTON DEL DON
Love him: Jason Witten, Dal, TE - Del Don TE rank No. 5 (Yahoo No. 13)
He's admittedly been pretty terrible of late, but Witten has scored three times over the past six games, and the tight end landscape gets thin quickly. The Dallas/Philadelphia over/under is an NFL-high 55.5 points this week, so it's a ripe fantasy environment for Witten.
Hate him: Latavius Murray, Oak, RB - Del Don RB rank No. 32 (Yahoo No. 17)
The Chiefs have allowed a league-high 4.9 YPC this season, and it's hard not to like Murray's talent. But I fully expect Kansas City to bounce back after three straight losses and handle Oakland easily this week, really limiting the ceiling on Murray's touches.
SCOTT PIANOWSKI
Love him: Larry Donnell, NYG, TE - Pianowski TE rank No. 5 (Yahoo No. 9)
I grant you, Donnell hasn't done that much since his glorious three-touchdown tap dance on the Redskins in Week 4. That said, he's still been on the fringe of TE1 value over the last two months (it speaks to how mediocre the position has been in general), and now he get another crack at the crummy defense that put him on the map.
Has Washington solved its coverage problems, especially down the seam? Hardly. The Redskins are the No. 2 giveaway when it comes to TE scoring this year, and look what's happened recently: Coby Fleener (4-127-2) and Jared Cook (4-61-2) just went bonkers against Jim Haslett's leaky scheme. Fleener and Cook won't see the Pro Bowl without a ticket, and if anything the video was even more incriminating than the stats on the page - Fleener was wide open all day in Week 13 (he dropped what should have been a lengthy third score) and both of Cook's touchdowns were hardly contested. You want Donnell in your Week 15 plans.
Hate him: Chris Johnson, NYJ, RB - Pianowski RB rank No. 33 (Yahoo No. 23)
I don't mind picking on weak defenses for fantasy purposes (hello, Titans), so long as the offensive skill guys have their own merits. That's where the argument for Johnson falls apart.
Johnson has scored all of two touchdowns this season, on 147 touches. He's topped 70 yards rushing one lousy time, despite seven games with double-digit carries. He's averaging a meager 11.6 receiving yards per game. Chris Ivory figures to get half the work here, at least, and I'd bet on it being more of a 60-40 or 65-35 split, Ivory's favor.
You advanced to the Fantasy Semifinals because you know better than to trust Chris Johnson in 2014. You know better than to fall in love with a revenge narrative; heck, there's revenge on every frigging snap of the NFL season, for crying out loud. Don't start seeing patterns in the clouds, don't go chasing waterfalls. All of your anti-Johnson instincts (and anti-Jets instincts) should be followed this week.
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