The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast

We're now more than halfway through the standard fantasy football regular season, and have been disabused of some of the notions we held back in draft season. The great, the good and the bad have been separated from one another, but what happens from this point forward will determine who wins fantasy championships. On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Nando Di Fino and Chris V...

Week 7 was inarguably one of the best of the season, highlighted by the Seahawks-Cardinals shootout on Sunday night. That game almost made it easy to forget that we had a number of other wild finishes, from Steelers-Titans to Browns-Bengals to Lions-Falcons. Oh, and we also had monster games from a couple of rookie quarterbacks, one of whom has turned himself into a QB1, one receiver who surpassed...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 7 DFS slate. They discuss ideal running back pairs, which typically include two high-priced backs, the abundance of attractive, mid-priced receivers, and budget savers at quarterback. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every Week 7 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the...

Nando Di Fino, Jake Ciely and Eric Moody go back to the vault, peering into the crystal ball to make predictions for Week 7, and then securing them behind lock and key, only to bring them back after this week's action takes place. Who catches more passes: Ezekiel Elliott or A.J. Green? Who scores more fantasy points: Andy Dalton or Drew Lock? Who totals more yards from scrimmage in Week 7: James R...

Week 7 marks the unofficial halfway point of the standard fantasy football regular season, which means it's moving time in fantasy leagues. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston do what they can to help you move in the right direction on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. The guys dive into Week 7 rankings, discussing more than 50 players you could be thinking about st...

A Monday night doubleheader featuring four teams loaded with fantasy-relevant players gives us the perfect jumping-off point for this Tuesday episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Nando Di Fino and Chris Vaccaro discuss the first start of the Andy Dalton era in Dallas, Kenyan Drake pushing back against the Chase Edmonds hype, Clyde Edwards-Helaire making the most of his last game witho...

Week 6 gave us more than its fair share of storylines at the running back position, and most of them were good! Is D'Andre Swift breaking out in Detroit? Is Darrell Henderson officially in control of the Rams' backfield? Can we finally trust Bruce Arians when it comes to Ronald Jones? Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston dive into those questions on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy F...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 6 DFS slate. They discuss ideal running back pairs, a desire to pay up at receiver, and attractive mid-priced quarterbacks. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every Week 6 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the spread (begins at 29:23). Can the Buccaneers possibly slow...

We're just about one-third of the way through the NFL season, and every team in the league, even the undefeated ones, have questions that need to be answered. That's what we're going to try to do on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Nando Di Fino raises a fantasy question for all 32 teams, and Jake Ciely and Eric Moody answer them. Included: Is Kenyan Drake sneakily underrated...

If it seems like we just put a bow on Week 5, that's only because we did. And yet, Week 6 is already upon us. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston help you get your fantasy lineups in order by running through more than 50 players from a rankings point of view on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Follow Beller on Twitter: @MBeller Follow Jake on Twitter: @allinkid Fol...

Week 5 is just about in the books, with the Bills and Titans set to put a bow on the week on Tuesday night. Nando Di Fino and Chris Vaccaro take a look back at the week that was on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Is Justin Herbert a better fantasy quarterback than Drew Brees and Matt Ryan? Is Zach Ertz's fantasy stock plummeting. Is there any role for Mike Davis in a world w...

Two big upsets dominated the headlines early, but it was Dak Prescott's season-ending ankle injury that ultimately turned into the biggest news in Week 5. On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston discuss how Andy Dalton changes the Cowboys' offense, and the best replacements for Prescott available on the waiver wire. Then, the guys ge...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 5 DFS slate. They discuss a lack of high-priced options at running back and receiver, and what that means for the slate as a whole. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every remaining Week 5 game, highlighting their favorite picks against the spread (begins at 29:19). Can the Browns...

Week 5 begins on Thursday with the Buccaneers and Bears, but the games have already begun on The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Mini-games, that is. What five words describe David Montgomery's ranking this week? How about five words for Devonta Freeman for the rest of the season? Who wins a theoretical Joe Mixon/Derrick Henry trade? Or one involving Adam Thielen and Miles Sanders? Nando Di Fin...

Believe it or not, we're one-third of the way through the typical fantasy football regular season. Week 5 brings the first planned bye weeks of the year (Packers and Lions), and another slew of challenging start/sit decisions for fantasy managers. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston help you get your lineups right by discussing more than 50 players in a Week 5 rankings context on this e...

On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Brandon Funston play a little game of Does This Matter? Bill O'Brien got fired. D.K. Metcalf ranks 33rd in targets per game. Zach Ertz has fewer than 20 yards in two of four games. Clyde Edwards-Helaire has been entirely dependent on volume this season. Does any of that matter? The guys answer those four questions, and si...

Week 5 is shaping up to be the lightest waiver wire week of the season, but there's still a whole lot to discuss coming out of Week 4. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston get into the injuries to Nick Chubb and Austin Ekeler, Sean McVay's backfield shenanigans, Kirk Cousins vs. Baker Mayfield, the abundance of intriguing receivers available on the waiver wire, and more on this episode o...

The weekend has arrived, bringing with it 14 more Week 4 games. On this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast, Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the Week 4 DFS slate. They discuss how a flat pricing week creates to a diversity of team-building options...but still find themselves targeting some expensive backs. Later, Beller and Vic Tafur run through every game, highlighting t...

Three weeks of the NFL season are behind us, and if your fantasy league is like many others, it's likely trade discussions are starting to pick up steam. Nando Di Fino, Jake Ciely and Eric Moody discuss some of the most interesting potential trade targets, including Joe Mixon, Odell Beckham and Allen Robinson, on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Rundown 1:38 Best practices fo...

Week 4 is here, which means we are about to be one-third of the way through a typical fantasy football regular season. Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston discuss more than 50 players in a Week 4 rankings context to help you get your lineups right on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Rundown 3:08 Do we still trust Drew Brees? 6:35 A quick Titans-Steelers update 8:51...

It wasn't even a month ago when Jordan Howard and Matt Breida were forming a sneaky fun backfield in Miami, Cam Akers was poised to take ownership of the Rams' backfield, and Saquon Barkley was challenging Christian McCaffrey for alpha status in the fantasy football world. Now, Myles Gaskin is in control of Miami's backfield, Darrell Henderson looks like a breakout star, and Devonta Freeman and Di...

Week 3 was thankfully a relatively quiet one on the injury front, but there are still a handful of standout players to target on the waiver wire. From Rex Burkhead and Myles Gaskin, to Justin Jefferson and Brandon Aiyuk, Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston break down the Week 4 wire on this episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast. Rundown 1:46 Russell Wilson's greatness 4:58 Re...

There are a few monster totals on the board in Week 3 (55.5 in Lions-Cardinals and Cowboys-Seahawks), and that always makes for interesting DFS and gambling weeks. Michael Beller and Derek VanRiper break down the DFS slate, then Beller welcomes on Vic Tafur to discuss their favorite picks against the spread, on this hybrid episode of The Athletic Fantasy Football Podcast and The Athletic Football...

The third week of the NFL season is upon us, and as we start to figure out some situations, other questions arise. Is Jacksonville's new starting running back, James Robinson, better than their old one, Leonard Fournette? Did people just waste a whole bunch of FAB money on Nyheim Hines? Can Jerry Jeudy be a WR3 for the rest of the year? Nando Di Fino poses the questions, and Jake Ciely and Eric Mo...

Week 3 has arrived, and with it a new batch of rankings questions. What's your concern level on Drew Brees, Carson Wentz and Tom Brady? Are all of this week's waiver-wire RB darlings must-starts? Is CeeDee Lamb going to be in the top two on the Cowboys in targets? Has any tight end made the "if-you've-got-him-you-start-him" leap? Michael Beller, Jake Ciely and Brandon Funston answer those question...