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Playoff Semi-Finals Recap

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Author: Steven Van Tassell

The Playoff Semi-Finals (aka Week 15) are all over now. We know which teams have qualified for their league Championship game and who will have the right to be called a Dynasty Owner League Champion. We also have a better idea of the teams realistically competing in the Chase for the Ring and the chance to call themselves the Best of the Best. Sadly, the Chase ended for a few teams including one of the teams in our Match-up of the Week.

This is our fifteenth and next to last Dynasty Owner weekly recap article. As usual, we’ll look at what happened in the Dynasty Owner Match-up of the Week, name a Dynasty Owner Player of the Week and a Value Player of the Week, and highlight a player at every position who should have been Active and one who should have been on your Bench.

All stats are based on the Standard Dynasty Owner scoring system as outlined in the updated Dynasty Owner Constitution. Standard Dynasty Owner scoring gives you .1 points for every yard rushing or receiving, .1 point for every 2 yards passing, 1 point per reception, 6 points for a rushing, receiving or passing touchdown and 2 points for a successful 2-point conversion (rushing, receiving, or passing). Interceptions or fumbles lost cost you 3 points, while a fumble that is recovered by the player’s team is a loss of only 1 point. Bonus points are available for 100-199 yards rushing (2 points), 200 yards rushing or receiving (6 points), 300-399 yards passing (1 point) and 400 yards passing (4 points). There is also a 3 point bonus for clutch scoring, which is a score that results in a lead change in the final two minutes of the 4th quarter or overtime. Kickoff and punt return touchdowns are worth 6 points for the player and kickoff and punt returns are worth .25 points for every 10 yards. Standard Dynasty Owner scoring for kickers gives you 1 point for every extra point, while a missed extra point will cost you 1 point. It’s 2 points for a field goal of between 0 and 39 yards, 4 points for a field goal between 40 and 49 yards and 5 points for a field goal of 50 yards or longer. A missed field goal of between 0 and 39 yards will cost you 3 points, while a miss of 40 yards or more is a loss of 2 points.

Dynasty Owner Players of the Week

Our Dynasty Owner Players of the Week are: Jameis Winston and Lamar Jackson

For the second time this season, we have selected two Players of the Week. The two QBs honored this week put up a virtually identical number of Dynasty Owner fantasy points. As the top two scorers this week, they likely led many of their Dynasty Owner teams into the league Championship game. For the second straight week, Winston put up 48.3 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (458 yards passing, 4 yards rushing, 4 passing TDs, 1 INT) to claim his first Player of the Week honor. Even though salaries are not charged for the Dynasty Owner playoffs, Winston would have been a cost per point bargain at his regular season weekly salary (based on his $6.34 million annual salary).

  • Week 15 Points: 48.3
  • Week 15 Salary: $452,701
  • Week 15 Cost per Point: $9,373

Jackson was just behind Winston with 48.2 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (212 yards passing, 86 yards rushing, 5 passing TDs, 1 fumble) for his second Player of the Week honor. Jackson has been a bargain this entire season for his Dynasty Owners as the top scorer for only $2.37 million in annual salary.

  • Week 15 Points: 48.2
  • Week 15 Salary: $169,137
  • Week 15 Cost per Point: $3,509

Congratulations Jameis and Lamar on sharing the Dynasty Owner Player of the Week honor!

Dynasty Owner Value Player of the Week

Because this is Dynasty Owner and we’re all looking for value from the players on our roster, we also have the Value Player of the Week. This week’s Dynasty Owner Value Player of the Week is: Kenyan Drake

Drake was touted as a player to have in your Active lineup in the weekly preview article (https://dynastyowner.com/2019/12/playoff-semi-finals-preview) and did he ever deliver on that recommendation. Drake got almost all of the touches by Cardinals’ RBs in their victory over the Cleveland Browns and rewarded his team with 4 TDs and his Dynasty Owners with 41.6 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (137 yards rushing, 1 reception, 9 yards receiving, 4 rushing TDs). Hopefully, his Owners got him in their Active lineup and were rewarded with a berth in their league Championship game. At an annual salary of $845,315 during the regular season, Drake would have only cost his Dynasty Owners $1,451 per point if salaries were charged in the playoffs.

  • Week 15 Points: 41.6
  • Week 15 Salary: $60,380
  • Week 15 Cost per Point: $1,451

Congratulations Kenyan on winning your first Dynasty Owner Value Player of the Week honor!

Players Who Should Have Been Active

Next, we look at those players who should have been in your Active lineups based on their performance in the playoff semi-finals. It’s the playoffs, so you should have been starting your stud players like Lamar Jackson and Christian McCaffrey because they helped get you into the playoffs and should always be in your Active lineup. Instead, these are players who might be Free Agents or on your Bench or Practice Squad, but likely weren’t Active in the playoff semi-finals when they should have been.

QB: Ryan Tannehill (TEN) – 30.0 points

Tannehill provided just a slightly above average fantasy performance this week for his Dynasty Owners. That’s because he was averaging 28.4 Dynasty Owner fantasy points per start in his first seven starts of the season and “only” scored 30.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points this week (279 yards passing, 10 yards rushing, 2 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD, 1 INT). Despite those gaudy stats, Tannehill was still not owned in 35% of Dynasty Owner leagues going into the playoffs. We don’t know for sure how many of his Owners had him Active this week, but unless his Owners also have Lamar Jackson, Jameis Winston or Drew Brees, he should have been Active for all of them.

RB: Tony Pollard (DAL) – 24.3 points

Since Kenyan Drake was our Value Player of the Week, we need another RB for this spot. Miles Sanders and his 37.2 Dynasty Owner fantasy points would have been the choice, but he should have been Active as one of the only healthy options for a banged-up Eagles offense going against the Redskins. Therefore, the choice is someone who was likely not Active for any Dynasty Owners this week – Tony Pollard. The Cowboys back-up RB got to play a lot in the Cowboys blowout victory over the Rams and put up 24.3 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (131 yards rushing, 2 receptions, 12 yards receiving, 1 rushing TD). Unless you had the foresight to know the Cowboys would blow out the Rams and Pollard would get to play as much as he did (or thought Ezekiel Elliott would go down with an injury), then you probably didn’t make Pollard Active.

WR: Breshad Perriman (TB) – 34.6 points

With Mike Evans out for the rest of the season, there were large shoes for the Tampa Bay WRs not named Chris Godwin to fill. Some people thought it might be Breshad Perriman who would fill Evans’ shoes, while others picked Justin Watson. Scotty Miller was also an option. However, it was Perriman who ended up stepping up the most with a total of 34.6 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (5 receptions, 113 yards receiving, 3 yards rushing, 3 receiving TDs). Perriman was available in all Dynasty Owner leagues for the playoff semi-finals, but after this performance and with the injury to Chris Godwin, a few Dynasty Owners might pick him up for their Championship game.

TE: Jonnu Smith (TEN) – 16.7 points

Smith had nearly an equal number of yards in the game against the Houston Texans running and catching the ball. That’s right, Smith had a 57-yard run on one carry as well as 60 yards receiving on 5 receptions for a total of 16.7 Dynasty Owner fantasy points. That was good for a Top 10 TE performance in the playoff semi-finals. Smith was owned in 54% of Dynasty Owner leagues, but with a ranking outside of the Top 20 among TEs, he likely wasn’t Active in too many playoff games this week.

Honorable mention to Ricky Seals-Jones. It’s no surprise that a TE playing against the Cardinals would have a big game. The surprise was that Cleveland TE David Njoku was declared inactive and Seals-Jones had the big game against his former team in Njoku’s place. Seals-Jones only caught 3 passes for 29 yards, but two of those receptions went for TDs (along with a lost fumble) for a total of 14.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy points. He was owned in only 26% of Dynasty Owner leagues, but even though the Browns were playing the Cardinals, it’s unlikely that he was Active in many leagues.

K: Dustin Hopkins (WAS) – 12.0 points

Hopkins was perfect on all five kicks in the Redskins 37-27 loss to the Eagles. He made 3 PATs and 2 fourth quarter FGs, a 43 yarder and a 53 yarder. Neither FG was clutch, so he didn’t earn the clutch scoring bonus. Not bad for a kicker who is now ranked #20 in Dynasty Owner and only owned in 11% of Dynasty Owner leagues. Based on those stats, it’s unlikely that he was in anybody’s Active lineup this week.

Players Who Should Have Been on the Bench

For every player who should have been Active but wasn’t, we have some players who probably were Active, but were better left on your Bench. Here are some likely Active players who should have been riding your Dynasty Owner Bench in the playoff semi-finals.

QB: Jacoby Brissett (IND) – 9.0 points

Several of the top QBs put up a lot of Dynasty Owner fantasy points this week (Lamar Jackson, Jameis Winston, Drew Brees, and Patrick Mahomes). While others got around 20.0 points or so (Dak Prescott, Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray and Aaron Rodgers), which is enough to not have hurt you too much and warrant a spot on the Bench. Brissett has the dishonor of appearing in this spot since he had only 9.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (165 yards passing, 7 yards rushing) against the Saints on Monday Night Football. This was just a week after the Saints were gashed by Jimmy Garoppolo for 39.6 Dynasty Owner fantasy points, possibly leading some Dynasty Owners to think having Brissett Active was a good idea. It wasn’t and he should have been on your Bench.

Dishonorable mention to Phillip Rivers who was the pick for Bench QB prior to Monday night. Rivers had four turnovers against the Vikings and only 10.4 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (307 yards passing, 1 passing TD, 3 INT, 1 fumble – lost). Rivers is owned in just over half (52%) of Dynasty Owner leagues and hopefully none of his Owners had him Active this week.

RB: Marlon Mack (IND) – 1.9 points

Mack hasn’t been the same since missing two games with injury as he followed up his 9.8 Dynasty Owner fantasy point outing from last week with just 1.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (19 yards rushing) this week. Before the injury, he was averaging 14.1 Dynasty Owner fantasy points per game and was a clear Top 20 RB. Now, he’s fallen just outside of the Top 20 (#22) and should have been on your Bench this past week.

Dishonorable mention to Phillip Lindsay who is still inside the Top 20 RBs, but just barely at #19. Lindsay had his worst game of the season with only 3.2 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (32 yards rushing) in the snow in Kansas City. However, he hasn’t been producing much recently as he’s scored less than 10.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points in four out of the past five games. That’s Bench production.

WR: Julian Edelman (NE) and Amari Cooper (DAL) – 2.9 points

None of the big name WRs went out and gave their Dynasty Owners a Blutarsky (0.0 Dynasty Owner Fantasy Points) this week, but Edelman and Cooper didn’t do much better. Both of them had just 2.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy points in blowout victories this week. Cooper caught only one pass for 19 yards, while Edelman had two catches for 9 yards. A spot on the Bench was likely not where most of their Dynasty Owners placed these Top 10 WRs with a berth in their league finals on the line, but it’s where they should have been.

TE: Hunter Henry (LAC) – 1.9 points

For the second time in three weeks, Henry had a disappointing outing. Back in Week 13 versus Denver, he only scored 3.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points and he did worse this week with just 1.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy points (2 receptions, 29 yards, 1 fumble – lost). He’s only averaging 2 receptions and 26 yards receiving per game since the Chargers Week 12 bye. If not for a TD against Jacksonville in Week 14, it would be three straight Bench-worthy games for Henry. Despite these performances and missing four games due to injury, he’s still the #8 TE in Dynasty Owner.  

K: Greg Zuerlein (LAR) – 1.0 points

Zuerlein made his only PAT attempt this week, but only one PAT attempt is definitely not what his Dynasty Owners expected from Greg the Leg and the Rams offense. While the Rams scored three TDs, they went for the 2-point conversion on the final two TDs. That’s two consecutive 1.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy point outings for Zuerlein who is also dealing with a muscle strain in his leg. Based on his season-long performance and reputation, Zuerlein was likely Active for a lot of his Dynasty Owners when he should have been on the Bench.

Dynasty Owner Match-up of the Week Recap

Day Drinkers – 150.9 vs. The Replacements – 145.1

The tough luck season continued for The Replacements in the Dynasty Owner playoff semi-finals. Armed with just a 8-6 record in their league, but ranking 12th in the Chase for the Ring, The Replacements have been scoring lots of points, but many times playing someone who scores more. That unlucky streak continued as the Day Drinkers outlasted The Replacements by a close 150.9-145.1 score. The Day Drinkers advance to their league finals and continue their Chase for the Ring, as they now sit in 13th place.

Both teams had one bad position player. It was Dalvin Cook for the Day Drinkers who got only 7.3 Dynasty Owner fantasy points before leaving with an injury, while for The Replacements, it was Amari Cooper’s terrible 2.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy point performance that really hurt them. In addition, both of their Active kickers (Jason Myers and Greg Zuerlein) underperformed with 4.0 and 1.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points respectively. It’s a testament to the rest of their lineups that they were able to score as many points as they did.

The Day Drinkers had tough decisions to make at WR and in the end, didn’t end up making the best WR selections. However, because all of his WRs played pretty well, it was still good enough for them to win. They ended up having Davante Parker (23.2 Dynasty Owner fantasy points) and Cooper Kupp (16.1 Dynasty Owner fantasy points) Active with Robby Anderson (12.6 Dynasty Owner fantasy points) and Tyler Lockett (26.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy points) on the Bench. They also had Anthony Miller and his season-high 26.8 Dynasty Owner fantasy points on the Practice Squad. It didn’t matter for their playoff match-up, but the extra 13.7 Dynasty Owner fantasy points the Day Drinkers could have had would have moved them up two spots in the Chase for the Ring.

If there was a prediction playoffs, I’d be out as I had The Replacements winning. However, I was very close in my points prediction for them (145.8). There will be one more playoff prediction in the last Dynasty Owner preview article of the inaugural Dynasty Owner season later on this week. Congratulations to the Day Drinkers and everyone else who made it to the finals in their league!

Steven Van Tassell is a freelance writer for Dynasty Owner.

Follow us on Twitter: @SteveVT33 and @Dynasty_Owner

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