Week 5 Quick Slant - Cowboys vs. 49ers | Fantasy Football Live
The FFL team discusses Sunday Night's matchup between the Dallas Cowboy and San Francisco 49ers.
Video Transcript
JASON FITZ: The Sunday night one is a gem. It is a delight. We've got the Cowboys, at 3 and 1, taking on the 49ers, at 4 and 0. And when you look at this game, there's so much on the line. Andy, what are you looking at from this game? What's one thing you got your eye on?
ANDY BEHRENS: Yeah, well, I think we have to start with McCaffrey, right? And maybe-- I don't know. He's not even an open question in fantasy anymore. He finds the end zone every week. He's marvelous every week. It's just more an appreciation. He's played at least 85% of the snaps in three of four games this year, which is very much like the Carolina years and not really at all like his usage in San Francisco last season.
At his current pace, he would break Chris Johnson's single-season record for scrimmage yards, which is over 2,500. It is a ridiculous total. So this is like an old-school LaDainian Tomlinson, Priest Holmes, Arian Foster sort of season that is underway right now in the year 2023, in the year of the committee.
If he can just stay healthy, he's looking at 20 to 25 touchdowns. I'm not sure that 400 regular-season touches is in the actual best interest of the Niners this year or McCaffrey himself. But that seems to be where we're headed.
JASON FITZ: I don't disagree with you, and it brings me to something that I've seen out of this that just I just want to change the discussion point on. In general, not even from a fantasy football standpoint, but just from football in general, let's stop talking about Brock Purdy like he might be the answer and just start acknowledging that he is. And I love this qualifier everybody seems to have of, well, it has nothing to do with Brock Purdy. It's everything to do with the coach.
Well, OK, last time I checked, they still lost in the AFC Championship game last year, right? They did not advance to the Super Bowl because they didn't have a capable quarterback. Brock Purdy looks better than Jimmy G did in this offense last year. And frankly, it no longer matters why he is who he is. He is who he is.
At some point, it feels like Voltron to me. This is the analogy I keep making. Voltron was about none of the one robots. it was all of the robots together to make one, big, ginormous, ass-kicking robot. So maybe Brock Purdy on his own is just a robot. But Brock Purdy in this system, with these weapons, which is his reality every single day, is part of Voltron. And there ain't no way to beat Voltron, unless you're into Transformers, which I was.
The point being, let's stop talking about Brock Purdy for being the last pick in the draft, like this is something that's not going to sustain, and start acknowledging that the 49ers have their franchise quarterback. They have their guy for the next 10 years. They are going to be great with that quarterback that they have because they will put the right offense and weapons around him. I think it's time to change that entire conversation. Matt what do you have on your mind?
MATT HARMON: Yeah, first of all, can we just thank the football gods that this is the Sunday night game? I mean, we've had to mess around with a lot of Giants in primetime lately. I mean, yikes. This game, though, super excited. The thing I'm most excited to see in this game is I think we're finally going to get a glimpse of the Dallas Cowboys offense in a normal game.
I mean, three out of the four games here, they have just completely wiped the floor with the aforementioned Giants, with the Zach Wilson New York Jets in his first start, and whatever the hell they got going on there in New England at this point. We did see them with the Arizona Cardinals, but that was a weird, classic Cowboys game where they go on the road and they disappoint.
Weird stat here with the Cowboys. They have run an average of 7.6 plays per drive, and they have the most time per drive. Both those figures, obviously, lead all NFL teams. Yet they've had the second-best average field position in the NFL because their defense continues to get them good field position.
So again, all these weird factors with the Cowboys offense right now. I want to see if CeeDee Lamb can have a monster game, can Tony Pollard punch in a couple of touchdowns. I think whatever we think about the Cowboys offense going into this game, we will feel very differently-- and I think something closer to the truth-- coming out of this game.