A player on your radar had a big game. Do you pick him up? This is where we decide whether their forecast is fantasy or fools gold.
Mike Davis RD Baltimore Ravens
In his first action as a Raven, Davis had 5 carries for 22 yards and 1 touchdown in the Ravens first preseason game against Tennessee. In his second preseason game against Arizona he had 6 carries for 18 yards. There is also talk out of the Ravens camp that Davis is in line for the bulk of carries early on in the season. Gus Edwards is going to miss at least the first four games of the year and the team is trying to ease J.K. Dobbins back into the lineup as he recovers from an ACL injury. So the speculation is that Davis stands to potentially help fantasy teams at the start of the season.
Do not forget this is the same Mike Davis that lost his job to a converted WR (Cordarrelle Patterson) on a Falcons team in desperate need of playmakers last year. He finished the season with a pedestrian 3.6 YPA (Yards Per rushing Attempt) and three rushing touchdowns. Even if he gets the bulk of the carries at the start of the season I expect the results to be ungood.
Let someone else waste a pick or waiver priority on Davis. Unless you have an empty spot on your bench to pick him up just to see what happens then I would let him stay on the waiver. You will not be able to depend on Davis to start and that is why he is Fools Gold.
Isaiah Likely TE Baltimore Ravens
Let us stay with the same team and look at what TE Isaiah Likely has done this preseason. In two preseason games the 4th round pick has caught all 12 attempts for 144 years and a touchdown. Reports out of camp are that Likely is likely to play significant snaps in the regular season. The Ravens are tops in the NFL in targeting tight ends and their TE1 Mark Andrews consistently produces elite TE numbers.
So what do you do with Likely? If you drafted Andrews then it makes a lot of sense to stash Likely at the end of your bench. Should Andrews get injured then you would have a solid replacement for his production on your team. He will not duplicate Andrews’ numbers but he would likely be far better than anything hanging out on the waiver wire. Likely should be picked up in premium TE leagues as well where teams start two tight ends. When opposing teams target Andrews in coverage then Ravens QB Lamar Jackson may start finding Likely open. If that is the case then Likely is likely to be Fantasy Gold.