The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast

An unprecedented Week 12 is still rolling along, with Ravens-Steelers looming on Wednesday afternoon. We have plenty to break down after this wild week, however, and Nando Di Fino and Chris Vaccaro dive into it all on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. What do you do without Will Fuller for the rest of the season? Can Deebo Samuel keep up his unconventional style of production?...

Week 12 was one of the stranger NFL slates any of us has seen, from what happened during the week leading up to Sunday, to the historic performances and surprising duds turned in once the games started. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston are here to break it all down and look forward to Week 13 on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. How back are Austin Ekeler, Raheem...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 12 DFS slate. They discuss Dalvin Cook chalk, a willingness to pass on high-priced receivers, the desire to get invested in Chargers-Bills and Chiefs-Buccaneers, and more. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through the slate from a gambling standpoint, highlighting their favorite picks agai...

Thanksgiving Week is here, and with it comes not only a full plate of food, but a full slate of NFL games. With all 32 teams in action, start/sit decisions could be a bit more taxing than they've been with fewer options in play. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston are here to help you make the right ones on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Can you trust Carson Went...

We know we'll have two games on Thanksgiving, and we could have a third, pending decisions that have to be made regarding the scheduled nightcap between the Ravens and Steelers. Nando Di Fino and Chris Vaccaro look ahead to those games, and the 13 that follow them this weekend, on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. What can we expect from the Lions' offense on Thursday? Could b...

Was there any quarterback news in Week 11? Specifically, anything about a much-maligned, little-used pseudo-quarterback who made the most of his opportunity to start, proving once again that it is the man in the arena who counts? Ah yes, indeed there was. But there was more to Week 11 than Taysom Hill, and his effects on the Saints' offense and the fantasy football landscape. Joe Burrow tore his A...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 11 DFS slate. They discuss Alvin Kamara and Dalvin Cook reaching CMC territory, the Jameis Winston free space, Keenan Allen as the WR1, the lack of meaningful tight ends, and more. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through the slate from a gambling standpoing, highlighting their favorite p...

With three weeks left in the typical fantasy football regular season, and the bye-week portion of the schedule nearly behind us, there's no better time to check in on all 32 teams in the league than the present. That's exactly what Nando Di Fino, Jake Ciely and Eric Moody do on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football podcast with another edition of 32 teams, 32 questions. Is there a clear le...

Jake catches up with Chargers running back Austin Ekeler about his role as a team owner in Fan Controlled Football, Thanksgiving side dishes, video games, chaos in the Chargers' backfield while he's been sidelined, why fantasy players should trade for him now, and more. Follow Jake on Twitter: @allinkid Follow Austin on Twitter: @AustinEkeler Check out Fan Controlled Football at www.fcf.io Hosted...

Week 11 rankings day has arrived on The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, and with it comes a whole host of start/sit questions. Jameis Winston is back in our lives. Should he be back in our lineups, too? Will Washington's pass rush wreck Cincinnati's offensive line, and thus Joe Burrow's fantasy day? Is Pittsburgh's offense trending away from James Conner in a dangerous way? Are both of Arizona'...

Go check the roster of the team at the top of your league's standings. Chances are good that it features Kyler Murray. The Arizona quarterback has been one of the biggest stories this football season, no matter if we're talking fantasy or the actual game. He's also Chris Vaccaro's favorite topic. Vaccaro and Nando Di Fino discuss Kyler, of course, on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football P...

Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins put the capstone on what was a crazy Week 10, but don't let the play of the cloud the rest of the big stories of the day, included but not limited to... D'Andre Swift's breakout; new-look offenses for the Buccaneers, Steelers and Patriots; real reasons to worry about the Ravens; the emergence of Michael Pittman Jr. and Salvon Ahmed; and Kenyan Drake's triumphant re...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 10 DFS slate. They discuss Rams-Seahawks and Bills-Cardinals, the Mike Davis free space, a trio of attractive cheap quarterbacks, the diversity of high-priced receivers, and more. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every Week 10 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the sp...

Early in the season, conventional wisdom holds that fantasy managers don't need to worry about securing their starting running backs' real-life backups. You want to maximize every spot on your roster when so much is unknown. At this time of year, however, when the picture has come into focus, those real-life backups become must-have pieces to finish putting together a championship puzzle. On this...

Week 10 could ease some running back concerns in the fantasy world, with Nick Chubb back, Joe Mixon likely back, and Miles Sanders potentially back. All three of them will be highly ranked, assuming they play, but that just scratches the surface of Week 10 rankings. Who wins the first NFL battle between Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert? Can you trust their draft classmate Joe Burrow against the S...

Week 10 ushers in the final third of the fantasy football regular season, with the playoffs starting to come into focus. This year, it brings a number of fun developments that Nando Di Fino and Chris Vaccaro dive into on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Jerry Jeudy's Week 9 breakout is a sign of things to come in Denver, right? How excited should we be about the return of nic...

From Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins upsetting Kyler Murray and the Cardinals, to heroics from many of the fantasy world's biggest stars (hello, Patrick Mahomes, Dalvin Cook and Josh Allen), Week 9 was one of the most exciting slates of the season. So exciting, in fact, that it was hard to keep track of it all in real time. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston are here to help you run it...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 9 DFS slate. They discuss Dalvin Cook chalk, the appeal of mid-tier backs and cheap receivers, a possible Lamar Jackson bargain, and more. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every Week 9 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the spread (begins at 30:02). Who wins—or, more...

At this point of the season, we typically have to take players and teams at face value. With that in mind, fantasy values can still change on the margins, or in even bigger ways, and those changes could make the difference between winning a championship and getting booted in the first round of the playoffs. On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Er...

We are now into the final third of the typical fantasy football regular season, marking desperation time for some managers, and moving time for others. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston have you covered, no matter which group you're in, on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. The guys discuss about 50 players from a rankings standpoint, breaking down the toughest sta...

Teams generally are what they are at the halfway point of the NFL season, but many are still undergoing change that will be felt in the fantasy football world. Whether due to a quarterback change, injuries, a new addition, or some other force, these teams could look different in the second half of the season than they did in the first. On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Mich...

There are more than a few backfield headaches across the league that fantasy managers might be better off avoiding than trying to decipher. The Ravens and Bills may seem like they're in that group, but their approaches in Week 8, while diverse, actually bring some clarity to their respective pictures. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston discuss J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards, Devin Single...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 8 DFS slate. They discuss Alvin Kamara chalk, the appeal of Titans-Bengals, the enduring bargain on Keenan Allen, and more. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every Week 8 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the spread (begins at 29:39). Can the Dolphins spring the upset...

Halloween is Saturday, sandwiched in between the beginning and end of Week 8. What better way to celebrate than with a graveyard smashup of fantasy football and our spookiest holiday? Are Darrell Henderson and Baker Mayfield great pumpkins? Is Daniel Jones destined to send you to a nightmare on fantasy football street? Do JaMycal Hasty and DeeJay Dallas have your roster looking like Frankenstein's...

Week 8 brings four more teams—the Cardinals, Texans, Jaguars and Washington—going on bye and more injuries than we've dealt with at any point of the season. That's going to create complicated start/sit decisions, as well as some opportunities for some players who typically find themselves on fantasy benches to step up. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston dive into those tough decisions...