For years, Julian Edelman was a must-start wide receiver on fantasy football teams everywhere. Now, he needs some help figuring out who he should take off the bench on his own team.
The former New England Patriots star turned to Twitter for assistance with his Yahoo! fantasy team, and his group — heartwarmingly named “Ernie Adams Fam11y” in a nod to the team’s recently retired football research director — had some glaring issues.
Look, there’s always going to be that week midway through the season where you’re forced to accept a loss because of the amount of productive players on bye. That’s what Edelman is working with heading into Week 9, with Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans and running back Ronald Jones II still slotted in his lineup despite the week off.
He elected to use Patriots wideout Jakobi Meyers as his flex, and Indianapolis Colts receiver Michael Pittman Jr. remains on the bench. With a projected 16.98 points, Pittman would be a viable option at the position even if Evans was on the field.
But he really is at a loss at running back, considering his preferred RB1, Carolina Panthers star Christian McCaffrey, is on injured reserve. But he may be saved at the buzzer as Panthers head coach Matt Rhule on Monday said there’s a chance McCaffrey returns for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots.
Edelman, who currently has another Colt as his RB1 in Nyheim Hines, certainly has options.
There’s no reason Edelman should be carrying three (!) quarterbacks, though he certainly is doing a decent job of stockpiling viable starters — and probably annoying everyone else in the league — with Matthew Stafford starting and Patrick Mahomes and Kirk Cousins riding the bench.
If he was determined, he could package one of those players — preferably Cousins — to another team. After all, there may be some out there scrambling for a backup after injuries to Jameis Winston and Zach Wilson. And unlike the NFL, which had its trade deadline Tuesday, Yahoo! leagues can make deals until Nov. 20.
He also could try his luck on the waiver wire, where he might find Philadelphia Eagles running back Boston Scott. He should see more touches with Miles Sanders on injured reserve, and Scott only is owned in 22% of Yahoo! leagues.
Although Edelman is 2-6 and in ninth place in his league, so it doesn’t seem like there’s much he can do long-term, anyway.
