Couch Guy Sports Fantasy Football League Recap: Week 4

4 Weeks of the NFL season officially down. One of the most unusual weeks in recent NFL history. COVID made a dent on most of our Week 4’s, and threw some monkey wrenches in plans. Despite that, we had some HUGE performances, crushing injuries, major letdowns, and as always, SERIOUS fantasy implications.

The basic rundown of these weekly recap blogs is as follows: Recap the previous week’s matchups, analyze a smidge, and lastly, talk a bit of trash. Let’s get back into it. 

Week 4 Matchups and Recaps:

Wilson! Wilson! (Al Nahigian) over Small State Big Cakes (Gilli, aka me) 149 to 92.24

This one was never really that close, after OBJ made sure of destroying any chance I had. I don’t hate it though, because I never even got my hopes up in all honesty. Al’s team was hot and cold, but my team was lukewarm and cold. The higher average temp won. HOWEVER – I am fired up and feeling motivated following this defeat. Al and I wished each other luck before Sunday games got underway, which was fine and dandy. BUT THEN SOMETHING HAPPENED. 

When it was all wrapped up, Al said, to my FACE (via text) next week’s matchup against Waleed will show if his team ‘is a contender in this league’. WHAT AM I CHOPPED LIVER?!? Am I just the Washington Generals to his Harlem Globetrotters? Is that what I have become?? I was taken aback Sunday, and looking back on it – might be taken aback even more now. 

GILLI WITH THE CHIP ON SHOULDER

Honestly, it’s all business now. No more Mr. Nice Gilli. Time to show out or shut up. The chip on my shoulder has grown to the max level of growth possible without constituting a hospital visit.

Al’s WR Led-Domination

Yeah yeah, Al’s team did well. Blah blah blah. OBJ. Mike Evans. CeeDee Lamb. Woo-hoo.

In all seriousness, if Al’s Big 3 of WRs can put up 15-20 per game, and he has an actual RB2 emerge to be effective – he’s dangerous. DangeRUSS some might say, considering he has Wilson as his QB. Kamara is going to be rock solid, and put up about 20 per game, especially with MT still out.

Soulja Boy’s Reaction to Al’s RB2

What is wrong with Kenyan Drake? He’s been banged up, but has had pretty underwhelming production so far in 2020, given his draft position. Is he even a top 20 running back right now? Is he the Kerryon Johnson of 2020 who inexplicably loses it, and doesn’t get the red-zone looks to score the ball? Not sure. Maybe he’s on the trade block for Al? Might send him an insulting offer to retort for him hurting my feelings.

Mahomes – BENCHED?!

Listen, weeks from now when we forget what happened, this will look bizarre, but with the uncertainty of the Pats/Chiefs game, I had to bench Mahomes. I stand by my assertation that those teams should not have played, fully knowing Cam Newton was VERY unlikely to be the sole Patriots player to test positive for COVID-19. Either way, that benching worked out for your boy – and Matt Stafford, a free agent pickup, outscored Mahomes by 2.1 points. Weird week.

Matchup MVP: Odell Beckham Jr. (38.4 pts)

Absolute gargantuan fantasy week for OBJ. Right when those who roster him in fantasy were second-guessing their decision, he steps up BIG. 5 receptions for 81 yards and 2 TDs. Oh and he RUSHED the ball? 2 carries for 73 yards and a TD via the ground! Just insane week for OBJ. (PS the Browns are good.)

Matchup Letdown: Darrell Henderson Jr. (4.7 pts)

Henderson wasn’t even my lowest scoring starter (Marvin Jones Jr. was), but he’s my pick here. I benched Antonio Gibson for Henderson, and it backfired BIG TIME. Not sure if it’s even Henderson’s fault, as he only got 9 touches, and Malcolm Brown re-entered the fold as the top back. I have both Rams on my roster, but hate going week to week for touches like this. Not a great development for me.

The Click Baits (Connor Ryan) over Danvers Powderpuffs (Thomas “Powder” Cadmus) 161.62 to 62.24

Huge blowout here in the ‘Battle of The Defeated’. Both teams entered the ring 0-3, and one of them HAD to get their first win. Projected points said Connor would do it, and he did.

But, I know Connor pretty well, and I know for a fact that he was HUNGRY for that first W. Not only that, but he was probably gunning to win by triple digits. Missed it by .62 of a point.  Better luck next time, Connor.

Lineup Miscue

Tough break here for Powder. Not a lot going his way right now, and he forgot to update his lineup this week, following the postponement of the Titans-Steelers game. Considering he didn’t have an RB1, TE, or D/ST, he did solid.

All things considered, Powder probably would have outscored me this week, had he fixed his lineup with bench players. 6.9 (nice) points from Zach Ertz at TE, plus 22.8 points from Will Fuller, and lastly a great 14 point game for the Eagles D/ST. Don’t let the 60-point week fool you – I’ve got my work cut out for me this coming week against Powder!

Connor “The Bounce Back” Ryan

From tragedy to triumph! All within a week. Connor put up 90.2 last week, studied the film, did the research, got his sh*t together all to put up a whopping 161 this week! What a turnaround. How did he do it? Let’s take a peek.

Whistlin’ Tea Kittle

George “The Human Tea” Kittle returned in Week 4, and essentially made up for all the time lost, scoring 40.1 points. Tight end scoring 40? Must’ve been a lot of TDs, right? NOPE. Wrong. 15 targets, for 15 (YES, FIFTEEN) receptions. 183 yards, AND a touchdown reception. Kyle Shanahan said eff it, and even gave Kittle a carry, which he ran for 8 yards. Is he the entire 49er offense? I think so.

A Balanced Effort

Beyond the aforementioned Boy George, Connor’s squad had a balanced attack, without many weak performances. Dalvin Cook and Melvin Gordon III were great, and combined for over 50 points, which certainly helped. His WRs were okay, but not great. Julio Jones appears to be easing back into the fold for the winless Falcons, which is fine. But expect his target shares to go back up soon. DJ Moore was solid, in a week without a TD.

Double-TE Formation?!

Connor put TJ Hockenson in the FLEX over guys like Hollywood Brown, James White, and JK Dobbins. Kind of a bold move, but it worked out, I suppose. Hockenson outscore Dobbins, but Brown and White both put up 12, to TJ’s 10.9. Didn’t kill him, but I would be surprised to see Connor continue to roll with double TEs.

Matchup MVP: George Kittle (40.1 pts)

Easy pick. Already touched on this one. He MIGHT be the best tight end in the league. I’m still on the Kelce side of the debate, but if Kittle remains the pacifier for Nick Mullens, that take might need to change.

Matchup Letdown: Powder’s Sunday Morning Plans (3 Positions with Byes, 0 points)

Honestly, not sure what Powder’s #SundayFunday looked like, but I just hope he was 12 mimosas deep at a bottomless brunch.

*Honorable mention to AJ Green (1.3 pts), who somehow is still healthy, but just playing pretty terribly this season. 

CGS President Quags (Nick Quaglia) over Team Waleed (Waleed Jeha) 130.18 to 105.34

Quags with a big bounce back win here in week 4, and a respectable score to boot. At this point, I’m kind of hoping he runs the table, doesn’t lose again, so I am confirmed to be his kryptonite.

Good week for Quags’ squad, led by Dak Prescott, Aaron Jones, and Adam Thielen.

Trouble in the Big (Not so) Easy?

I’ve mentioned it before, but damn – is Drew Brees okay? I think he heard the haters talking down his arm strength, because he slinged some deep balls in Week 4, albeit for just 246 yards and 2 TDs and an INT. Nothing crazy.

All that being said, Waleed HAS to be considering other QB options at this point, right? Only 15.54 points for Brees against the Lions. He played well last week, but 3 out of 4 weeks he’s failed to eclipse 16 points score. Definitely something to monitor, ESPECIALLY if this continues when Michael Thomas returns.

Handcuff Magic

How / why did we all let Waleed pick up Mike Davis like no big deal? He lost CMC to injury. Devastating blow. BUT then he just picks up Mike Davis, who has been BALLING and slots him right in CMC’s spot. I’m so upset for not being all over Davis as soon as CMC went down. Opportunity missed.

Davis’ hot streak continues for the Panthers, as he scores 22.1 points on 16 rushes, 84 yards, a rushing TD, and 5 receptions. Pretty huge day, and the third straight week of solid production. Over the last 3 weeks, Davis has scored 60.7 points, with a pretty nice balance of rush attempts and catches. He might be a solid option for a team like Powder even after CMC returns. Waleed and Powder as potential trade partners?? Hm. We’ll see.

Dak At It, Again!

^ I’d never seen this vine until now, but I just had to include it. I was initially looking for a clip of the ‘Damn Daniel’ kid saying “Back at it again”. But this is better. 

But jokes aside, DAK IS BACK BABY. The Cowboys sort of suck (at least the defense is ATROCIOUS), but Dak Prescott is doing everything within his power to ensure he gets PAID on a long-term deal. 39.28 points, 502 yards, 4 TDs, just 1 INT. Monster game from the Dakster. Love to see it. The Cowboys losing, might be the best thing for those who roster Dak in fantasy (and worst for those that roster Zeke)… being down at the end of games, Prescott is SLINGING it.

His passing attempts in 2020: 39 attempts in Week 1. 47 attempts in Week 2. 57 attempts in Week 3. 58 attempts in Week 4.

Adam is Thielen Himself Again

After a couple of lackluster weeks, Adam Thielen is BACK. 26.2 points on 8 catches, 114 yards, and a TD. Nice way for him to assert himself as the WR1 for both the Vikings, and Quags’ squad.

 

Matchup MVP: Dak Prescott (39.28 pts)

The previously mentioned Dak-inator, is a LEGIT top 5 fantasy QB. No more slander from any of you, from here on out!

Matchup Letdown: Austin Ekeler (2.4 points)

Not his fault, but a hamstring injury limited Ekeler in Week 4, and will cause him to be out for a few weeks. 2.4 from an RB1 is brutal, and though it wasn’t the difference, his low point total is what prevented Waleed from being within a TD or two of Quags.

The Sharks (Fred O’Brien) over Team Chubby (Brent Buckley) 132.02 to 103.3

All business this week for Fred and The Sharks. They continue to look like the team to beat, on a week to week basis. Brent’s Team Chubby, lost their Chubb relatively early in Week 4, and struggled to bounce back from that.

Me Tweeting About Josh Allen Every Sunday

25.42 points this week, in his lowest scoring outing of the year. LOWEST OF THE YEAR. AND STILL 25 POINTS! Josh Allen’s haters were quiet this weekend, because he pulled off the win and had a great game against a very good Raiders defense. 288 yards through the air on 34 attempts, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, and a rushing TD. What a world we live in, where that performance is just a nice little quiet game for Josh Allen.

The dude is a PROBLEM. And we let him slide to the end of the 12th round. I just won’t shut up about it, because I physically can’t. I am going to LOSE IT. Fred’s team is just so loaded because of his patience in the draft. I have beef with all 9 other teams (myself included) for not drafting Josh Allen in a respectable round, even as a QB2.

All Hands on Deck

*Random Children’s book plug*

Fred’s Sharks were certainly feeling like they were in the ocean this week, because they were.. all hands on deck! Seriously, everyone contributed, and no one had a bad week. D/ST and kicker (Lutz) were the only positions to not eclipse 10 points. No one on his team surpassed 30 points score. This is balance of the purest form. We might be in trouble folks.

Broken Chubb At Wrong Time

Nick Chubb’s MCL injury was just devastating to Brent’s chances of making a mid-season run here. Granted, Chubb will be back, but like an actual chub after an injury, needs about 6 weeks to heal correctly before returning to form.

Brent could be okay, with Devonta Freeman, Josh Kelley, and even Raheem Mostert ready to shoulder the Chubb load. Also, with Carson and Devin Singletary, I’m realizing Brent’s backfield is just so stacked. He might be a great trade partner for Powder, who’s out of options and starting Dion Lewis.

Matchup MVP: Josh Allen (25.42 pts)

Could’ve gone with Ronald Jones II, or even Zeke, but Josh Allen led Fred’s team in points, and put up a super efficient stat-line. Gotta go with the homeboy.

Matchup Letdown: Julian Edelman (6.5 points)

I feel guilty giving the letdown to injured players, and already gave it to one this week, so going with Jules here. Edelman’s 6.5 points felt like a major letdown this week, as a Pats fan and observer of the Chiefs-Pats game. He struggled to get open, at all, and when he finally did, had 2 MAJOR drops. He had a couple of classic Edelman catches, but for a team that needed him to be the crutch for Brian Hoyer to rely on, Edelman was a major disappointment. 3 catches, 35 yards on 6 targets? To put it simply, he just HAS to be better than that.

Boston Antidote (Diego Galvis) over Fresh Prince Of Helair (Jared Scali) 143.32 to 140.2

Last, but CERTAINLY not least, the tightest and most exciting Couch Guy Sports matchup of the week. This one came down to the late Monday Night Football game, and let’s just say, it was a STRANGE outcome.

Italian voice: “THAT’S AMARI”

Massive game for Amari Cooper for Diego and Boston Antidote. Cooper has been very consistent this season, despite a history of being very boom or bust on a week to week basis. 12 catches, 134 yards, and a TD made for 33.4 points against the Browns. As Shrek would say, “THAT’LL DO DONKEY, THAT’LL DO.”

Mixon It Up In a BIG WAY

Phenomenal game for Joe Mixon to get Jared Scali in contention of this one. His 42.1 points led all players in Week 4. All in all, Mixon had 25 carries, 151 yards, 2 rushing TDs, as well as 6 catches for 30 yards and a receiving TD. Have a DAY, Joe! After a few weeks of middling production, but steady touches, Mixon came up BIG for Scali.

Jared Scali: Running Back Guru ?

As we know, last week Scali made the bold move to slide Mixon to the bench against the Eagles, while starting Kareem Hunt as his RB2. This week made for yet another fascinating Scali starting running back decision, which ended up working out AGAIN. I’m sure the uncertainty of the Chiefs-Pats game led to him benching CEH and playing Mixon and Calvin Ridley as the FLEX. But once again, a wise pick in terms of those RBs slots… otherwise? Not so much. More on that in a moment.

MNF Showdown

Going into Monday night, these two were in a dogfight, with a lot of points left to go. Diego still had Todd Gurley II and Russell Gage, and Scali had Matt Ryan, and Calvin Ridley. HOWEVER, each team had a couple of bench options on the doubled up Monday night football lineup as well. Diego had N’Keal Harry, who could had slotted into that WR2 spot taken by Russell Gage. As for Scali, he had Clyde Edwards-Helaire on his bench, perfectly aligned to slide in the FLEX for Calvin Ridley.

That start/sit decision ended up killing Scali, as Calvin Ridley dropped a GOOSE EGG. ZERO POINTS. Just an abysmal performance for the young star WR against the Packers. Gage had just 4 points for Diego, which ended up being the difference to pull him to a 3.12 point victory.

Scali had Matt Ryan put up a measly 12.4 points, which was outpaced by his running back TG3, who put up 19.3 for Diego. All that aside, Ryan’s inability to find Calvin Ridley was a double whammy, that handed Scali the L this week.

Matchup MVP: Todd Gurley (19.3 pts)

Kind of a bold pick here for MVP, but hear me out. Yes, Amari scored more points, BUT, the timing of Gurley’s points was CRITICAL for Diego to win this game. TG3 had 16 carries for 57 yards and 2 rushing TDs. If Gurley doesn’t perform as well as he did, not only does he score less, but Matt Ryan likely has to throw the ball to get those scores, leading to more points for Scali. Because of that, Gurley is our Matchup MVP.

Matchup Letdown: Calvin Ridley (0.0 points)

No other choice but Calvin Ridley here. ZERO POINTS. In the most crucial fantasy game of the week! I just don’t understand how the same guy could have reception stats of 9, 7, 5, all with over 100 yards through 3 weeks, and then have none! Bonkers, honestly.

Weekly Accolades:

Some random shout-outs and disses to acknowledge the best and worst performances of the past week.

The Galaxy Brain Award: The Click Baits – Connor Ryan (161.62 pts)

Congrats. You made all the right moves this week. A true galaxy-brain level performance that led to the most points scored.

Bravo to The Clickbaits – from rags (lowest scoring) to riches (highest scoring), all within a week.

The WAP (Weak Ass Performance) Award: Danvers Powderpuffs – Thomas “Powder” Cadmus (62.24 pts)

Super tough week for Powder, even with the lineup miscue. Never fun to be the lowest points scored for the week.

The Went Down Swingin’ Award: Fresh Prince of Helair – Jared Scali (140.2 pts)

He did nearly everything right (except for playing Ridley), yet it wasn’t enough. But even in a shootout between a couple of sharpshooters, someone has to lose. Way to go down swingin’ champ, better luck next time.

The Sneaky Snake Award: CGS President Quags – Nick Quaglia (130.18 pts) 

This person won with the lowest score total among all winners this week. A little luck goes a long way in fantasy, and this is symbolic of that. For now, congrats… but it let it be known that we see you slithering your way to a victory! So much of fantasy is playing teams on the right week, the fantasy gods are on your side, for now…

The Honey, We’re Going Streaking Award: Danvers Powderpuffs – Thomas Powder Cadmus 

4 losses in a row for Powder here. Tough way to start the year, and with the injuries he’s had. To be honest, he plays me this week, so I sort of hope he’s back in this spot next week, but then after that he can string off 8 wins in a row to make the playoffs. 

God, for his sake, I at least hope KFC is still open.

The If You Could Turn Back Time Award, Presented By Cher: Fresh Prince of Helair – Jared Scali 

What a song. In back to back weeks, Jared Scali wins the award sponsored by Cher! He wishes he could turn back time to Sunday morning and make a different start/sit decision, which would have resulted in a matchup win, not a loss.

If only he had made the Monday evening decision to start Clyde Edwards Helaire (12.1) over Calvin Ridley (0.0). By no stretch was this an obvious decision to make. Even still, it hurts leaving matchup-winning points on the bench, especially if a single move could’ve been the difference. Cher, play me out.

*Side note / General disclaimer: Fantasy Football leagues are totally screwed once we figure out time travel. Shit’s going to be defunct so fast when someone cheats, waits until Week 16, and then time travels back to the draft and picks the best performers of the year. 

Standings After Week 4

Fred remains the team to beat, 4 weeks into the 2020 NFL season. Due to points scored, Al has usurped Quags for the #2 spot. Somehow I have the same record as Jared Scali, who has outscored me this year by 113 points… Also, Connor surpassed me in standings due to points scored, which kind of hurts.

STILL, plenty of season left to turn it around and save your season, or to screw it all up and completely fumble the bag.

Song Expressing My Current Feelings following Week 4: 

Good luck to all in your respective leagues – may the waiver odds ever be in your favor. I’ll be back next week with another recap on the Couch Guy Sports fantasy league.

-Mike Gilligan (@BigGilli, @VerbalCommitPod and @SmallStateTakes Podcast) – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/small-state-big-takes/id1432138166 / https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/verbally-committed/id1516871465

Use Promo code “couchguy20” or “LLP” at Manscaped.com and grab some of the best tools in men’s below the belt grooming. Using the code will get you 20% off of your order AND free shipping. Help out the site and help out yourself by buying some products from Manscaped TODAY.