September Headlines
(Nothing in this post was created using any sort of generative AI)
It has been a fantastic start to another fantasy season. We have had last second upsets, incredible performances, and big trades. I am here to talk about the biggest headlines from the month of September in our fantasy league.
Rookies Showing out, and Rookies Disappointing
Since our league hinges on the incoming rookies playing well for our teams, I like to highlight a few that have shown out early, and some that haven't done as well.
I talked about Kaelon Black in the Week 1 Overreactions article, but he has been very solid for the 49ers. He isn't getting a ton of opportunities because he plays behind Christian McCaffrey, but he has been good enough to help CMC get some rest. In previous seasons, CMC has been given the entire workload, and that has taken a toll on him by the end of the season. With Kaelon Black being solid enough, he has taken some of the rushing work as a way of helping CMC rest, and might even carve out more of a role in a post-CMC world for the 49ers.
Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion have both been quite productive for the Browns giving the team life at the wide receiver position. Boston has 9 receptions for 195 yards and 2 touchdowns through three weeks. He has been a reliable deep threat for the Browns with both touchdowns coming on 30+ yard plays. Concepcion has been productive in the intermediate part of the field with 12 receptions for 80 yards. These two guys compliment each other quite well where they fill different roles on the offence so they don't interfere with each other too much. They can both be productive in this offence. Boston gets those deep passes and is a touchdown threat, while KC will have more receptions and be a 'ppr merchant'.
Kenyon Sadiq was a player I was very high on, due to his great route running and athleticism at tight end, but also because he was an Oregon Duck. Sadiq was drafted into an offence with several questions and many of those being at wide receiver. After Garrett Wilson, people were wondering who would be the next top target. Currently, it seems like Adonai Mitchell could be that guy for them, but after week 3 it might be Sadiq. Sadiq had a breakout game with 7 receptions for over 100 yards. He also had a spectacular touchdown catch where he went parallel to the ground in the air and still somehow came down with the ball. Sadiq looks to be breaking out for the Jets and could be a very valuable player in fantasy.
There are a few rookies that have been solid but I can't really get a full paragraph out of them. Caleb Douglas has been solid for the Dolphins with 7 receptions through two games but is out in week 3. Antonio Williams hasn't been able to get on the field much for the Commanders but showed out in week 1 with 4 catches and a touchdown to keep the game close. Emmett Johnson has been behind the elite Kenneth Walker but in his few touches he has looked quite good. Small sample for all of these guys, but hopefully they can continue to show out. Lastly, Dominic Zvada is a rookie kicker for the Giants that has had a perfect start to his career. 6 for 6 on field goals with one being beyond 50 yards, and 4 for 4 on PATs. He seems to be a reliable kicker for the Giants.
Carnell Tate was supposed to be the main guy in Tennessee with Cam Ward, but that has not been the case through two weeks. The Titans have struggled to pass the ball in the first three weeks of the season and that has hurt Tate, but in week 3 he nearly doubled his production. Went from 7 receptions in 2 weeks to 13 after week 3 and added 58 yards to that total. That is more of what we should be seeing from Tate. He should be a reliable target for Ward, but if Ward doesn't improve on his play, it doesn't look good for Tate's future.
Jadarian Price was a 1st round pick from the Seahawks but hasn't been given the RB1 touches that were expected. Price has had 28 rushing attempts through three weeks and has 119 yards for a pretty good 4.3 per carry, which is better than Emanuel Wilson and George Holani. So why isn't Price getting more opportunities? Fumbles. Price has two fumbles in three weeks, and has been benched after both of those fumbles. Price could still take a majority of the touches, but he needs to fix the fumble issue before that happens.
Makai Lemon and Eli Stowers were two highly drafted players by the Eagles and have been very disappointing so far this season. Lemon has 7 receptions for 38 yards in three weeks and just hasn't really connected with Hurts just yet. Doesn't help when Hurts plays like he did on Monday Night Football, but Lemon just hasn't been as advertised so far. I think if the Eagles get him on more in breaking routes in the intermediate portion of the field he would find more success but it's early. Eli Stowers hasn't even played a snap for the Eagles yet and he is currently on the IR with a hamstring injury. Even with the injuries, there was some talk during training camp that Stowers was struggling, and with Dallas Goedert also hurt, the Eagles signed Zack Ertz out of free agency. If Stowers were to find his way back he will have to compete against Ertz and maybe Goedert which will be tough for him. The Eagles do need receiving help so I would think Stowers does get some play time, but we will see.
Early Standings Update
The early standings are starting to form and there are a couple things to note. Reigning champion Boston a Nut on your Tuddies, has started 0-3 in a shocking start to the season. They have been absolutely ravaged by injuries, losing AJ Brown, Caleb Williams, and Devon Achane all in the first three weeks. In addition, DJ Moore (who started in week 2) was knocked out of the game with injury (returned in week 3), with 0 catches. The Tuddies are certainly hoping to salvage their season in any way they can but that seems a little unlikely with injuries to 3 of their best players. But with James Cook and Jamar Chase this team can win any week.
Only 1 undefeated team still stands. After three weeks our league is down to just 1 team that is 3-0. Tony Dorset has beaten AC/DC, PooShiesty9, and Layin' the T-Law for their three wins and putting up 445.2 fantasy points in total. The team looks to continue their dominance in week 4 against Boston a Nut on your Tuddies, in a championship rematch. Be on the lookout for that one.
Layin' the T-Law is one of three winless teams and they are not happy about it. After losing a record setting 14 games in a row (the entire regular season), they made some significant changes to their roster in hopes of having a different season. Through 3 weeks that just hasn't happened and the team is again on winless watch this season after they've lost 18 regular season games in a row (dating back to week 14 of 2024). The organization has already made some changes with two trades getting George Pickens and Treveyon Henderson which I will discuss a little later, in hopes of putting the team in a better direction.
Records being Set
In week 1 we were close to history being made. It was a clear offensive week with teams exploding for well over 200 points. Two teams managed to break into the top 5 for highest weekly scores in our leagues history. The Jeantymen scored 230.76 on the backs of Bijan Robinson, Kenneth Walker, Ashton Jeanty, and Amon-Ra St Brown (combined for 139.3/34.825 avg), which was good for 4th all time. It was a heartbreaker for the Jeantymen as PooShiesty9 managed to score 231.46 for 3rd all time.
A 0.7 difference in scores. PooShiesty9 was led by 3td performances from Derrick Henry and David Montgomery, but also 25+ point performances from Lamar Jackson and Isaiah Likely. These two teams both made history in the same week which was exciting to see but the Jeantymen will circle week 6 on the calendar as they look for some revenge.
Trade Season has started Early
After starting the season 0-3, Layin' the T-Law is already mixing up their roster trying to find ways to break their regular season losing streak. The first trade they made was sending KC Concepcion, a 2027 1st (via PooShiesty9), and a 2029 2nd (via Layin' the T-Law) to Mahomies over Mahoes, and are getting George Pickens in return. Essentially this trade is two 1sts (KC was the 1.08 in the last rookie draft) and a 2nd for Pickens. It might be on the expensive side but that is generally two late firsts and a 2nd that you can't project. Pickens is extremely talented and will get plenty of opportunities in Dallas. While he hasn't been as advertised this season, just the WR29 with 36 total fantasy points, he will get better. Offences can start slow, but the Cowboys are not an offence to worry about. Dak can sling it, and has plenty of chemistry with Pickens after last season. If you are worried about Lamb, Pickens averaged 18.2 points per game in games that Lamb played in last season. So Pickens should be a cornerstone piece for the T-Law franchise.
On the other side, the Mahomies stock up on draft picks. After having 3 1st round picks last draft, they currently have 3 1st round picks once again. The team will be stacked with young talent, or will push some chips in for some more established star power. KC Concepcion has been pretty good for the Browns as mentioned previously. He is leading the Browns in targets with 20 (just under 7 per game), which is encouraging for him. He could be a good wide receiver for this team in the coming seasons.
The second trade being made also involved the T-Law franchise. They traded away Cam Skattebo, Jaylen Waddle, Jameson Williams, and a 2027 3rd (via PooShiesty9) and received Treveyon Henderson, Stefon Diggs, Dontayvion Wicks, and a 2027 1st (via Tony Dorset). This was the second big deal that occurred just before week 3 and clearly shows that the T-Laws are looking to change things up this year. Treveyon Henderson is a supremely athletic and talented back that has the ability to take any run to the house which gives him a very high ceiling. His down-to-down consistency isn't there just yet but should come with time. They also received Diggs who is a very reliable receiver on a week-to-week basis, but with Marcus Mariota in for a couple weeks his production goes down a little bit. It seems like this team just wanted a solid player to start every week. The last, major piece, the 1st round pick, is always a good asset to have. The value of a first will generally only increase over time as the draft approaches, but the difference with this one is that it will likely be later than usual. With the expansion teams coming in just before the draft, all picks outside of the lottery will be pushed back two spots. This makes those picks outside the lottery a little bit less valuable. For this trade, this first is generally more worth it because this coming draft is very talented, much more than the previous one.
On the other side, Tony Dorset gets two significant additions in Cam Skattebo and Jaylen Waddle. Skatt does have some injury concerns with his style of play but is a very talented player that gets a large majority of touches for the Giants. Waddle has had an up and down season so far but is still that talented player I talked up in my hot takes article. It might take him a couple more games to get that chemistry with Bo Nix, but he will still have a good season for Tony Dorset. This trade helps out the wide receiver depth, which I noted as a weakness for this team which is funny to see my "influence" on the league. Not really, but I do believe that Waddle will be a good addition to this team and help them compete for a championship.
Fantasy Leaders
Players have been racking up the points so here are the #1s at every position so far this season.
QB: Josh Allen 97.4 points
RB: Jahmyr Gibbs 111.8 points
WR: Jaxon Smith-Njigba 112.1 points
TE: Trey McBride 64.1 points
K: Evan McPherson 42 points
D/ST: Minnesota Vikings 54.5 points
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