Larejo is a mid-stakes tournament mastermind who specializes in outmaneuvering 150-max players with a small number of entries
As the NFL season progresses, the unrelenting news cycle pulls us in all kinds of directions.
Trey Benson is out, Michael Carter is a stud value play.
Bucky Irving won’t suit up, fire up Rachaad White and maybe Sean Tucker.
Chuba Hubbard will sit, Rico Dowdle anyone?
These are all just related to one position in the lead-up this week to Week 5 and on the heels of season-ending injuries to Malik Nabers and Tyreek Hill, as well as Lamar Jackson coming out of the lineup and Jayden Daniels coming back in. Not to mention the countless offensive line injuries, defensive player injuries, and sudden mid-season retirements. It’s a lot to handle, and it feels like we have to account for every news bit.
In this week’s Angles email, I talked about the power of “zooming out” and the value it brings to all forms of fantasy football. Recognizing trends as a bigger picture in order to “zoom in” to predict and think through the near-term. This helps us recognize things like when a team had a bad start to the season, and not if, but when they will bounce back (e.g., Chiefs). Or, when a certain player could be deemed a “draft bust” or “old and dusty” over the course of a month, and then they literally prove the contrary in their next game (think Jeanty, Hampton in the first category, Keenan Allen, even Derrick Henry in the second).
It’s this recognition that we all struggle with, but some are better than others. I have no ground to stand on to say I can do this with the best of them, but I challenge myself every week to ensure I am thinking about how each week, such as Week 5, will fit into the broader NFL season narrative and journey.
This week, I am charting that path forward in a few ways. First, the Ravens desperately need this game against the Texans. Sitting at 1-3 and without Lamar Jackson isn’t ideal, but they need this game against Houston if they want any chance at winning a now-less-imposing AFC North division. Second, the Jets and Cowboys come into their matchup at opposite ends of the riding high and feeling low spectrum, so there’s probably some sort of balance that will be achieved by Sunday night (Jets raised slightly, Dallas lowered slightly). Again, not guaranteed, I’m just preparing for it. Another one is the Colts and Raiders, which brings two teams together trying to change their narratives – the Colts as real contenders and the Raiders as non-celler dwellers in the AFC. Lastly, are the Eagles going to go undefeated in 2025? Probably not. Can the west-to-east traveling Broncos be the team to humble them? If that happens, and the Lions dominate the Bengals, what team will ESPN show as the NFC favorite come Monday morning?
I can go on and on, but it’s important to try to see these larger factors at play, as sometimes, just sometimes, they can help us predict what will happen when human beings play human beings on Sunday.
