A Silver Lining to Patrick Mahomes' Injury?

I had my first big take of the Kansas City Chiefs 2026 season.

This would formerly be known as Dirk's Big Thing on Amateur Hour. However, now that I'm a father of a two week old, this is more of a Dirk's Useless Thing Dangling Between His Legs.

I was thinking about how Patrick Mahomes' injury might change his game in 2026...

[buzzes in]

Me: Mahomes will look to run less this year (ohhh good answer, good answer)

Steve Harvey: "Top answer on the board! Would you like to pass or play?"

Me: What kinda dumbass question is that Steve? Who would ever pass? Why you even asking?

Which got me to thinking about Mahomes in 2025, when he ran more than he ever has before. The reasons for this are abundant:

The Evolution of the 2019 Kansas City Chiefs

If you’ve heard me on Amateur Hour, or followed me on Twitter, or frequented my LinkedIn profile -- you’ve probably heard me mention the 2019 Chiefs at least a time or two.

For the un-OG’s, this idea originated roughly 30 months ago, early in the offseason of 2017...

The Kansas City Chiefs are winning the Super Bowl in 2019.

This proclamation, this prediction, this prophecy came to me following yet another Chiefs playoff disappointment, staring down another year of Alex Smith at QB with very little cap room in the coming years to provide the perfect supporting cast that he needed to win a championship.

The premise of the 2019 Chiefs was a 4-way intersection where everybody knows their turn and traffic flows seamlessly:

1. A rare collection of young talent entering their primes at very little cost, combined with superstars at the tail end of their primes
2. Veteran contracts coming off the books opening up cap room
3. The inevitable demise of the powerhouse Patriots
4. A quarterback entering his second (playing) year under Andy Reid

2017 NFL Preview: Looking at Improvement vs. Regression

***NERD ALERT***

So I was starting my research for the 2017 NFL Over/Under Challenge - Get in on this - only $30! - when somebody on some podcast who's probably smarter than me (proof: I already forgot who) was talking about regression - they said there were two statistics that most often vary from season to season (meaning: hardest to repeat from year to year): Turnover differential and records in close games. I was intrigued.

As American hero, Dr. Steve Brule would say ... Lets check it out!

2015 Turnover Differential:

I went back to 2015's numbers to see if those teams with the best turnover differential did, in fact, regress in 2016. Here are the top 5 teams, with their win differential from 2015 to 2016:

1. Carolina Panthers: -9 wins
2. Kansas City Chiefs: +1 win
3. Cincinnati Bengals: -6 wins
4. Arizona Cardinals: -6 wins
5. Tie: Seahawks (Even), Patriots (+2 wins), Giants (+5 wins)

2016 NFL Predictions

AFC East
1. New England Patriots 10-6
2. Miami Dolphins 8-8
3. Buffalo Bills 6-10
4. New York Jets 4-12

AFC North
1. Pittsburgh Steelers 12-4
2. Cincinnati Bengals 8-8
3. Baltimore Ravens 6-10
4. Cleveland Browns 5-11

AFC South
1. Houston Texans 11-5
2. Jacksonville Jaguars 10-6
3. Indianapolis Colts 10-6
4. Tennessee Titans 6-10

AFC West
1. Oakland Raiders 12-4
2. Kansas City Chiefs 9-7
3. San Diego Chargers 7-9
4. Denver Broncos 6-10

A Historical Look at KU and One-and-Done Players

The ball is tipped. And here we are.

The calendar has flipped from the consequence-free National holiday of Leap Day over to March 1st, marking the unofficially official start to the College Basketball season.

To celebrate, I wanted to do a historical study consisting of the few debatable topics surrounding Bill Self's tenure at the University of Kansas: NCAA Tournament success and one-and-done players.

The premise of this statistical look is simple: Was there a one-and-done player on the roster vs. how did KU fare in the NCAA Tournament? For shits and giggles, as well as a bit of a control group, I threw in another factor pundits often point to when it comes to success in The Big Dance -- senior leadership.

Lets start with Bill Self's first year at KU, the 2003-04 season, which will be referred to as 2004 in this article, for clarity's sake. I've also simplified the following chart to read "Senior" for what I'd consider sufficient senior leadership, and "Freshman" for the presence of a one-and-done player on the roster. If neither are present, I simply put "None." The final number in the chart is how many games KU won in the NCAA Tournament that season.

• 2004 - None - 3
• 2005 - Senior - 0
• 2006 - None - 0
• 2007 - None - 3
• 2008 - Senior - 6
• 2009 - None - 2
• 2010 - Senior - Freshman - 1
• 2011 - Senior - Freshman - 3
• 2012 - Senior - 5
• 2013 - Senior - Freshman - 2
• 2014 - Freshman - 1
• 2015 - Freshman - 1

Another look:

• NCAA Tournament wins under Bill Self: 27 = 2.25 average wins
• NCAAT wins with a One-and-done player: 1, 3, 2, 1, 1 = 1.6 average wins
• NCAAT wins without a One-and-done: 3, 0, 0, 3, 6, 2, 5 = 2.71 average wins
• NCAAT wins with Senior leadership: 0, 6, 1, 3, 5, 2 = 2.83 average wins
• NCAAT wins without Senior leadership: 3, 0, 3, 2, 1, 1 = 1.67 average wins

Notes:

• I declared no senior leadership for a few teams that people might disagree with: 2004 (Jeff Graves), 2006 (Jeff Hawkins + Christian Moody) and 2014 (Tarik Black). I didn't consider any of these players among the top on the team. Also it helped balance out the study.
• I gave Ben McLemore the one-and-done label for 2013, even though he was technically a second year player, having redshirted the season before.

Statistical Analysis:

Self's most accomplished teams have come equipped with senior leadership and no one-and-done players, reaching the National Championship Game twice out of four such instances, while losing in the Elite 8 and first round in 2004 and 2005, respectively.

Over the last six years, the only time KU's season didn't end in (what I would consider) disappointment was 2012, the one year without a one-and-done. Furthermore, every Bill Self team with a one-and-done player at KU has bowed out to a lower seeded team in the NCAA Tournament.

In fact, throughout his time at KU, Self has only lost to a higher seeded team three times - Georgia Tech in 2004, Michigan St. in 2009 and Kentucky in the 2012 National Championship Game. This serves as both a testament to KU's shortcomings in the NCAA Tournament, as well as how good KU has been in the regular season, earning top seeds year after year (KU's seedings under Self: 4, 3, 4, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2, 2).

Arguments:

I think it's obvious to say every coach would love to have senior leadership up and down their squad, but that's not really a task that is easily controllable, so case closed on that one.

But what about the recruitment of potential one-and-dones? You may look at this data and already be convinced it's for the worse. Or you may dismiss this data due to sample size and happenstance.

However, at what point do these results become an undeniable trend? Or will it never reach that point, given that a championship team with a one-and-done and no senior leadership would more than likely balance the scales?

For transparency's sake, I've never been in favor of having one-and-done type players, a personaly philosophy dating back to before the beginning of this case study. I had an irrefutable argument up until Carmelo Anthony (or maybe, Gerry McNamara, to be more accurate), a pretty strong case before Anthony Davis, and finally, something resembling a case until Jahlil Okafor last year.

My stance has since lessened slightly, but I still argue those are generational type players, and for whatever reason, they haven't panned out at KU, even including a #1 draft pick like Andrew Wiggins.

But why would that be?

My arguments, outside of the first 1,500 words of this article: 1. It's easier to sustain greatness and build team chemistry with three and four year players. And 2. I don't trust the motives of one-and-done players, who I believe are generally more focused on their draft stock than winning games in March (don't hate the player for this, hate the game).

The initial counter-argument is clear and simple: You never turn down talent. You want the best basketball players you can find and you figure out the rest later. Additionally, the players reaching the NBA are reaping dividends for the program throughout their careers.

Conclusion:

The goal of this article wasn't to sway you one way or the other, but rather to supply the data and the arguments for both sides of what I consider a great debate that is getting more and more interesting over the years.

I wouldn't consider this highly scientific study to be anything conclusive. We're still talking about a small sample size, given the single elimination nature of the NCAA Tournament.

Obviously, the much better barometer of Self's career at KU would be the 11 straight conference titles, one of the more impressive achievements in the history of sports. However, nobody debates the greatness of Self or KU as a regular season titan. The questions begin to surface when it comes to late March.

So the only question that remains now is how the 2016 Kansas Jayhawks, armed with senior leadership and a potential one-and-done player, will affect this debate?

His Dirkness

FanDuel NFL Week 14: Fuck, Marry, Kill

I hope last night a sweet taste in the mouth of all the "bad football" truthers out there.

One of my biggest bugaboos of this NFL season is the onslaught of media members who constantly race to their Twitter accounts to comment on all of the "bad football" being played.

I'm not entirely sure when this supposed golden age of "good football" took place. Or what even constitutes bad football: Parity in the league? Poor coaching? Poor QB play?

It annoys me because while these people groan and complain, I'm over here begging for the NFL season to slow down so I can soak in my 17 favorite days of the calendar year (16 Chiefs games + Festivus).

Or maybe, if last night couldn't sway them, Will Smith can: Hey. You. TELL THE TRUTH.

Regardless, last night's game was spectacular. I enjoyed every minute of it. And I came away pretty impressed with the Vikings for sticking with my Super Bowl favorites every step of the way.

Why do I like the Cardinals as SB favorites? For beginners, all of the attention is on the 12-0 Panthers right now. The Bird Gang is flying under the radar a bit, but will still earn the all important bye.

Carson Palmer appears to be on a mission, coming off of his surgery. Bruce Arians is the best coach in the NFL who hasn't put his hands on a female ref in the past week. They have playmakers scattered all over the defense. They have a young RB with fresh legs for the home stretch. And they're aggressive on both sides of the ball. Now lets FanDuel.
On to the Week 14 FMK's (find an older post for FMK explanations)...

***If you've never tried FanDuel and you're interested, this is a great time to try. I've got great deals from now until the end of the season, get at me on Twitter or Facebook OR simply follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 14 on FanDuel

Quarterback

Fuck - Alex Smith ($6800) - My guy. My quarterback. How bout rushing yards his last 5 weeks: 23-35-33-33-78 with two TD's sprinkled in there. San Diego offered little resistance in the last meeting, with Alex going 20-25 for 253. He just didn't get any scores. That'll change this week.

Marry - Drew Brees ($7900) - A situation worth monitoring with Cooks and Snead banged up - BUT - Breesus hung up 38 on the Panthers last week and then had his price drop. Mark Ingram is out and the Bucs have a stout run defense, so the Saints will definitely be marching through the air. Lots of QB's to choose from this week though. Spread the wealth.

Kill - Johnny Football ($6400) - Don't necessarily hate him as a play but here's a fun prop bet from Bovada: Johnny's status for Week 1 of 2016:

• Starting QB - Browns: +250
• Backup QB - Browns: +250
• Backup QB - other team: +300
• Starting QB - other team: +500
• “None of the above” +200

Those odds for none of the above me surprise me a bit. I don't think he falls out of the league just quite yet. It does feel like he's done in Cleveland though. I think they ship him off and draft another QB in the first round. And I think he catches on somewhere. So I'm going with "Backup QB - other team" at +300.

Facebook pokes - Russell Wilson, Ben Roethlisberger, Andy Dalton, Jameis Winston, Eli Manning, Tyrod Taylor

Running Back

Fuck - Shaun Draughn ($6500) - Not the homerun I was hoping for last week, but he was still a decent fuck. The rushing output isn't all the way there, but he has 22 catches in his 4 starts. And he gets the Browns, who already have their sights set on that #1 pick. Also, his last name autocorrects to Dragon on my computer. That's gotta be worth something.

Marry - LeSean McCoy ($7900) - Revenge game, baby. Honestly, I think he’s an idiot, which is 84% influenced by my love for Chip Kelly. He got shipped off for legitimate reasons. He went to an undesirable location. He was frustrated. And he took the easy way out by using his race as a crutch to air those frustrations, while tarnishing a man’s name in the process. All one man's opinion, but I say that's some bullshit.

Kill - Devonta Freeman ($8700) - He has 59 rushing yards combined in his last two complete games. He hasn't scored a rushing TD since October 15th. And the Panthers have been shutting RB's down lately.

Facebook pokes - Matt Forte, Thomas Rawls, Deangelo Williams, Lamar Miller, TJ Yeldon, Ronnie Hillman or CJ Anderson (if one is out), Ryan Mathews

Wide Receiver

Fuck - Allen Hurns ($6600) - Was producing right alongside my guy, A-Rob, until injuries kept him in and out of the lineup over the last month. He's supposedly 100% now. The Colts' only good CB, Vontae Davis, should chase A-Rob, alongside everybody on FanDuel who wants to cash in on his 3 TD performance last week. Hurns might be my favorite play in a week with no home runs.

Marry - AJ Green ($8500) - His last four games against the Steelers: 11-118-1, 8-82, 11-224-1, 9-93. It could be a shootout on Sunday. And Pittsburgh is solid against the run, terrible against the pass. Good team to attack.

Kill - DeAndre Hopkins ($8700) - I've held to it all season long: The Belichick Effect. He singles out the opponent's top weapon and gameplans to stop him. That's clearly Hop for the Texans.

Facebook pokes - Odell Beckham Jr, Antonio Brown, Mike Evans, Alshon Jeffrey, Jarvis Landry, TY Hilton, Devante Parker, Brandon Coleman (watch Cooks/Snead)

Tight End

Gronk - Austin Seferian-Jenkins ($5500) - A bit of a risk but TE is tough this week. ASJ only played 21 snaps last week but saw 6 targets. This week he gets the gold mine of the Saints defense. High risk, potentially high reward.

Marry - Greg Olsen ($6600) - Plug and play. Every week. His salary never rises and he's been way more consistent than Gronk this year.

Kill - Delanie Walker ($6100) - He's been eating lately. And he was great on Highly Questionable this week. But the Jets have the 2nd best defense against TE's. 

Facebook pokes - Tyler Eifert, Travis Kelce, Will Tye

Kicker

Fuck - Cairo Santos ($4700) - Team MVP at $4700 alert.

Marry - Graham Gano ($4900) - Double digit points on FanDuel in 5 of his last 6 weeks.

Kill - Matt Bryant ($5000) - A super contrarian play because he isn't playing on Sunday.

Defense

Fuck - Lions ($4700) - The Chiefs cost only $100 more, but that's an obvious play. Detroit gets St. Louis, who has scored 36 points in their last 4 games combined.

Marry - Seahawks ($5300) - This is really odd. Matt Schaub is questionable for Sunday and Jimmy Clausen is his backup. He's started one game this season, with the Bears, against Seadderall, in the infamous 11 drive - 11 punt game. And in both games, all of his skill position players were out. Odd season for Jolly Ol' Saint Jim.

Kill - Patriots ($4900) - Defense hasn't been the same since Donta Hightower got hurt. Sorry folks, up against it this week, and no good ideas for Goodell Got It Right. We all lose.

Facebook pokes - 49ers, Packers, Chiefs, Jets

My #1 FanDuel Lineup

QB - Drew Brees

RB - Shaun Draughn

RB - Lamar Miller

WR - Odell Beckham Jr

WR - AJ Green

WR - Brandon Coleman

TE - Greg Olsen

K - Cairo Santos

DEF - Seahawks

***If you've never tried FanDuel and you're interested, this is a great time to try. I've got great deals from now until the end of the season, get at me on Twitter or Facebook OR simply follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 14 on FanDuel

Just one thing, Dude - do you have to use so many cuss words?

His Dirkness

FanDuel NFL Week 13: Fuck, Marry, Kill

Come with me. Hail Mary, run quick see.

Just a quick recap: This season the Detroit Lions nearly lost to the Packers via an onside kick recovery and a Hail Mary. That would've been deserving of its own award. One that only Detroit and Cleveland are capable of competing for.

But can we cool down on the Rodgers da Gawd talk today? He wasn't good for a majority of last night, just as he hasn't played up to his standards for a majority of this season.

Look, Rodgers deserves plenty of praise for lots of different things, but last night wasn't really one of them. It's just an easy thing for people to say, who don't really have an opinion, but still want their voice to be heard. It's sports small talk. It's a single serving conversation about the weather.

Last night he was bailed out by a lateral play, a facemask call, and a Hail Mary. Essentially, the Illuminati. That isn't clutch, as many have suggested. Clutch, atleast in my opinion, is the ability to come through when there is pressure to perform.

There's no pressure on a Hail Mary. It's just dumb luck. It's like winning the lottery. You wouldn't call somebody who just won $10 on a scratcher clutch ... or would you?

Regardless, this is exactly why my picks for this week will be so clutch. Because FanDuel is a game of skill. Not luck. Suck it, Jeb.

On to the Week 13 FMK's (find an older post for FMK explanations)...

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 13 on FanDuel

Quarterback

Fuck - Marcus Mariota ($7100) - I like a number of QB's in this price range, but Mariota is my favorite because he'll be low owned, has a high ceiling, and the only way Tennessee will be able to move the ball on Jacksonville is through the air.

Marry - Cameron Newton ($9000) - Chalkity, chalk, chalkkkkk. Cam will be the highest owned QB by far this week, so I won't have too much of him. However, every week I expect Newton, and the Panthers offense in general, to come back down to earth, and it just hasn't happened yet. It'd be funny if that were to finally happen against this putrid Saints defense.  

Kill - Tom Brady ($9400) - You want to know what was clutch? Tom Brady's drive to tie the game in Denver with one NFL quality receiver on the field. This is an interesting spot because the Eagles gave up defense for Lent or Hannukah or whatever witchcraft Chip Kelly believes in. But I can't spend this much on a QB of such a battered team - No Gronk, no Edelman, no Dion Lewis. No Brady.

Facebook pokes - Eli Manning, Matt Ryan, Jay Cutler, Alex Smith

Running Back

Fuck - Shaun Draughn ($5900) - My favorite play on the board this week. He played every snap last game. He catches passes. He hasn't produced huge yet, but he's played the Seahawks, Cardinals and Falcons (good run D's). Meanwhile, the Bears have the 29th ranked run defense. And he comes from Running Back University - (No, not UNC) Kansas City! Where every backup RB flourishes. 

FUCK - David Johnson ($5900) - That's right, my first ever double fuck. Marriage seems like kind of a sham these days anyways. Chris Johnson and Andre Ellington are both out, which means Dave John should play nearly every snap for a potent offense in a game they are likely to be winning throughout.

Kill - Todd Gurley ($8400) - TGIII is probably wearing down. His yards per carry hasn't been pretty the last 4 weeks. And he only played 29 of 74 snaps last week. He's an absolute stay away.

Facebook pokes - DeMarco Murray, Darren McFadden, DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart, Javorious "Buck" Allen

Wide Receiver

Marry - Alshon Jeffrey ($7700) - All of the elite WR's are in play this week, but Alshon is cheaper and on the same tier IMO, so he earns the headline. Here's how I'd rank the Big 4:

1. Julio Jones - TB can't stop WR's, this one's almost too obvious
2. Odell Beckham Jr - NYJ shuts down the run and Revis is out
3. Antonio Brown - Huge bounce back potential with potent offense
4. DeAndre Hopkins - Will certainly be the lowest owned, is he losing steam though?

MARRY - Allen Robinson ($8000) - Double marry! Mormon alert! I'll try and keep this cleaner than BYU players have as of late. You save on RB's this week, so you can spend on WR's. This one is simple. Allen Hurns is out and A-Rob has had 100+ yards or a TD in every game since Week 5.

Kill - Sammy Watkins ($7000) - Don't chase the points. Don't do it. Last time Sammy went off like he did last week, he put up 3-14 the next game. He is not reliable.

Facebook pokes - The ELITES, AJ Green (no Eifert), Danny Amendola (if healthy), Brandon Lafell, Eric Decker, Kamar Aiken, John Brown

Tight End

Gronk - Travis Kelce ($6200) - The league's second best TE (sans Gronk) against the league's third worst TE defense. Check.

Marry - Greg Olsen ($6800) - The league's best TE (sans Gronk) against the league's worst TE defense. Checkmate.

Kill - Scott Chandler ($5300) - Yes, he ate up targets last week (sans Gronk), but surely the Patriots come up with something better for Sunday. He doesn't save you enough money and he'll be highly owned.

Facebook pokes - Gary Barnidge, Delanie Walker, Jordan Reed, Jacob Tamme

Kicker

Fuck - Robbie Gould ($4600) - My new strategy with kickers: If you fade a team that's in a favorable spot, then use their kicker. I love Cutler and Alshon this week, but if I'm using a lineup without them, I'll slide in Gould.

Marry - Cairo Santos ($4800) - Can you believe a team MVP costs only $4800?

Kill - Greg Zeurlein ($4500) - He's probably not playing. So don't play him.

Defense

Fuck - Redskins ($4400) - Remember, you're not necessarily playing Washington's defense here. You're playing against Matt Cassel.

Marry - Patriots ($4800) - Coming off a loss, big favorites, at home, Sam Bradford. Yup.

Kill - Goodell Got It Right! Nobody's favorite segment returns once again due to zero demand. This week? Roger's revenge on the Patriots! Hey, he finally won an appeal, you guys. It only took him 13 weeks to get there. So why did I like this when it led to a Broncos victory? Because people are all over Brock Osweiler right now and he's going to fail spectacularly in the playoffs this year. I'm already excited to watch it.

Facebook pokes - Steelers, Jets, Chiefs, Bengals

My #1 FanDuel Lineup

QB - Marcus Mariota

RB - Shaun Draughn

RB - David Johnson

WR - Julio Jones

WR - Allen Robinson

WR - Alshon Jeffrey

TE - Greg Olsen

K - Cairo Santos

DEF - Patriots

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 13 on FanDuel

Just one thing, Dude - do you have to use so many cuss words?

His Dirkness

FanDuel NFL Week 11 - Fuck, Marry, Kill

Scott Freakin' Overfield.

In case you didn't know, he's the dude from Lawrence, KS who took 2nd place on #NotFanDuel and won $438,000 last week. 

When I heard the news, I immediately thought this dude was my new hero! An amateur daily fantasy player from the heartland who hit it big, shoving it in the face of everybody who said only professionals and robots win the big tournaments.

But then I listened to him on 610 with Parkins and C-dot. And I learned this was his first time playing. And he wasn't even tracking his lineup on Sunday night. And he's in last place in his season long league. And his strategy going forward was to play the same lineup that he just won big with. BITTER BEER FACE! (always remembered this as a Foster's commercial, but it's actually a mid-90's Keystone ad.)

The great news for chumps like us? His lineup wasn't even that great. He had Tyler Eifert (3-26) and Marvin Jones (4-44) on his squad. A good reminder that your team doesn't have to be perfect. You just need to hit on a few guys that not many people will be on. And that's my ticket to buying my own island.
On to the Week 11 FMK's (find an older post for FMK explanations)...

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 11 on FanDuel

Quarterback

Fuck - Mark Sanchez ($6400) - It's an NFL backup QB world, we're all just renting space. Sanchez, Brock Osweiler, Alex Smith and Case Keenum are all viable plays this week (I got jokes). But I expect Sanchez to be better than Samuel Bradford. He definitely was last season, when he was the 8th best fantasy QB after taking over for an injured Nick Foles.

Marry - Derek Carr ($7700) - Last week, I was almost exclusively Brady/Rodgers. This week, the top QB's all have question marks. And, unfortunately, the best QB in the NFL isn't playing this week (because the Saints defense won't be taking the field). Meanwhile, Carr has averaged 306 yards and 3.25 TD's his last four weeks, against much better competition than the Lions.

Kill - Tom Brady ($9200) - Interesting spot, but I think I'm staying away. When the Patriots played the Bills in Week 2, Brady dropped back 61 times, while they ran it only 10 times. But New England has now lost their LT, slot WR, and passing game RB. I fear it's possible we see a shift in strategy, but I still might squeeze Brady in a lineup or two.

Facebook pokes - Matthew Stafford, Alex, Case Keenum ($4800!!!)

Running Back

Fuck - Darren McFadden ($6800) - Great chance for a bounce back week here. McFadden burned a lot of people in a surprisingly tough matchup with the Bucs last week, so he might be low owned this week. Run DMc still played 44 of 50 snaps, while the other 6 went to Christine Michael, who just got cut. The Dolphins have the 31st ranked run D, and Tony Romo returns to open up even bigger holes for the league's best OL.

Marry - Adrian Peterson ($8900) - He's heating up! AP has torched the Raiders and Rams the past few weeks, both of which have/had decent run defenses. Now he gets a more favorable matchup in a huge game at home. However, the more shrewd move may be Gurley or Devonta Freeman, since they'll be less owned. Something I always look for on Fridays is ownership %'s from FanDuel's Thursday night leagues. It gives you a good idea of what to expect on Sunday. I used this dude's at Daily Fantasy Cafe and this dude's at RotoCurve. Big help for tournament plays.

Kill - DeMarco Murray ($7600) - The Buccaneers have allowed 3.2 ypc and 0 TD's over their last 4 weeks. They join my list of run defenses to shy away from - Jets, Falcons, Broncos, Jaguars, Seahawks, Steelers, Patriots and now the Bucs.

Facebook pokes - Gurley, Freeman, Chris Ivory, Charcanye West (heavy dosage), Jonathan Stewart, Latavius Murray

Wide Receiver

Fuck - Danny Amendola ($6000) - Curious to see his ownership this week, but he's almost a must start. The Patriots' gameplan last meeting with the Bills was quick, short passes. That meant Dion Lewis and Julian Edelman (combined for 17 catches), but both are both now injured. Amendola is the next Wes Welker Type up, which is essentially the Patriots' new mantra.

Marry - Calvin Johnson ($8100) - The Raiders' pass defense is a joke. Not much more to say here. If I'm not playing McFadden in a lineup, I'll probably be on Dez Bryant.

Kill - Julio Jones / DeAndre Hopkins / AJ Green ($8200-9100) - Some touch matchups for the elite WR's of 2015. Julio draws Vontae Davis. Hopkins draws Darrelle Revis. Green draws Patrick Peterson. Julio is a possibility, but I wouldn't touch the other two.

Facebook pokes - Dez, Mike Evans, Brandon Lafell, Davante Adams (21 targets last week!), Michael Crabtree (heavy dosage), Kamar Aiken, Stevie Johnson, Chris Givens (still the minimum!)

Tight End

Gronk - Jacob Tamme ($5300) - 22 targets over the last two weeks. No, I didn't know he was still in the league either.

Marry - Gronk ($8400) - Oh, that 76 yard TD was glorious last week. Won me some $$$. Again, without Edelman and Lewis, the remaining Patriots are all strong plays this week.

Kill - Antonio Gates ($5900) - Still banged up and the Chiefs have allowed the fewest fantasy points to TE's in 2015.

Facebook pokes - Greg Olsen, Jordan Reed, Eric Ebron, Crockett Gillmore, Martellus Bennett

Kicker

Fuck - Dangerous Dan Bailey ($4600) - Two weeks in a row I'm spending the extra $100 on my low-level kicker. You wanna get nuts? LET'S GET NUTS.

Marry - Steven Hauschka ($5000) - 2+ field goals in 7 of 9 games. Seahawks should run through the 49ers, leading to plenty of chances.

Kill - Matt Prater ($4500) - Missed two XP's last week, which almost kept the 24 year winless streak at Lambeau intact, in the most Lions way possible.

Defense

Fuck - Chiefs ($4400) - FanDuel continues to Rodney Dangerfield KC's defense. Points allowed last 5 weeks: 18, 16, 13, 10, 13. Fantasy points scored last 5 weeks: 11, 7, 12, 14, 19. Giddy up.

Marry - Jets ($4700) - Everybody will be on the Seahawks at home against the 49ers. I'll save my $700 and take the Mean Green against TJ Yates. 

Kill - Goodell Got It Right! Goodell Got It Right! Nobody's favorite segment returns this week due to zero demand. This week? I dunno if I'd say Goodell got it right, per se. But I'm tired of the generic complaint of 2015: "Nobody knows what a catch is anymore." Just about every sports personality has tweeted that at some point this football season. We get it. Shaddup. It's almost as played out as the MJ crying face (ok, not even close - PLEASE STOP). And nobody ever offers a viable solution. Two feet down with possession isn't the answer, because then everything would be a catch. It's a pure judgment call, which is weird, because most judgment calls aren't suitable for replay. But this one is. And it's tough. All that being said, Dez caught it.

Facebook pokes - Bucs, Ravens, Panthers, Eagles, Seahawks

My #1 FanDuel Lineup

QB - Derek Carr

RB - Charcandrick West

RB - Darren McFadden

WR - Calvin Johnson

WR - Michael Crabtree

WR - Danny Amendola

TE - Rob Gronkowski

K - Dan Bailey

DEF - Jets

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The Milhouse League for Week 11 on FanDuel

Just one thing, Dude - do you have to use so many cuss words?

His Dirkness

KU Basketball Thoughts

College Basketball in November is a little bit like eating a bowl of hot chili outside in July. However, yesterday's bowl of chili was super delicious.

If I were to continue with this analogy, then Michigan St's Darnell Valentine would have to be considered head chef. He was incredible last night. Better than Billy Ray Valentine slingin' pork rinds to Clarence Beeks.

Admission: Point forward types are my favorite basketball players to watch. Royce White. Boris Diaw. Blake Griffin. Anthony Mason back in the day. Georges Niang today.

My guys, Parkins and C-Dot led off their Monday show with how College Basketball is lacking quality. It sure wasn't last night. And a lot of the rule changes seemed positive as well. Shorter shot clock. A fewer timeout. Shorter timeouts. An evolved take on commercials. Everything sped the game up.

On to Kansas. They lost the game, but I thought they showed well. They have enough talent to cut down any and all nets in March, even without The Mali Popper, Cheick Diallo.

Experience in the backcourt + Talent in the frontcourt = Recipe for success in March.

Backcourt

Devonte' Graham - Went 1-9 last night and I still loved his performance. No need to ask Granny, this kid is spry. He's very heady, always calm and in control. Exactly what you want from a point guard. And the best part? He should be a four year player, which means three more seasons with him. My favorite player.

Frank Mason III - The second PG in the starting lineup, a strategy I think I like. KU can continually swing the ball around the perimeter and still have a natural PG running the show. This is a dynamic duo that should lead to an entertaining brand of basketball this season.

Wayne Selden - He's never done it for me. This coming from a guy who never stopped loving Tyshawn Taylor or Elijah Johnson. So this isn't your typical KU fan angst. Selden is kind of average at everything, which makes him a natural role player (I could see him being a better pro than college player). He's a 4th or 5th option on offense, who should be a better defender. Honestly, I'd prefer to see Brannen Greene in the game at crunch time to add spacing, unless there's a bigger guard who only Selden can match up with (and even then, ehh).

Svetlana Mele Kalikimaka - That dude has....a lot of confidence? Not sure what to make of him yet.

Frontcourt

Perry Ellis - A monster who gets a bad wrap. I guess he's kinda soft and is capable of getting intimidated. Can freeze up. But appreciate him for what he is - a relentless scorer down low. I've never seen him more aggressive around the basket then he was last night. Reminds me of Pau Gasol (with the way he's perceived) and Darrell Arthur (with his ability to get buckets). Also, good to see him developing his outside game, which is his ticket to the NBA.

Carlton Bragg Jr. - That boy gangly. Has the body type to develop into a lockdown defender (who could take Selden's place, in my scenario, if he's quick enough to hang with small forwards - remains to be seen). Banged a few jumpers too, he's a guy to keep an eye on.

Jamari Traylor and Landon Lucas - Just a couple of guys, who can eat up space, rebound, play solid defense, and utilize 10 fouls. They are interchangeable, in my opinion.

Honestly, I didn't care much about the loss, but I'm not nearly as hardcore as I was when I went to KU. And I prefer to take a laissez-faire attitude with them, because KU fans can be a little...how should I say this -- Self-serious? Get it? Because of Bill, you guys.

I tend to watch KU non-conference games with one eye open, and the other eye on the future. I have no problem dropping a few games before New Year's if it helps the team's development come March -- Or even conference season, to help the team extend one of the more impressive streaks I've seen in sports in my lifetime.

All praise Andrea Hudy,

His Dirkness

FanDuel NFL Week 10 - Fuck, Marry, Kill

The FMK's are back!

We've been MIA the last few weeks, but in case you didn't hear, Kansas City won a real life professional sports title!

However, apparently I was way off on what kinda party you're supposed to throw when your city wins a championship - This is all so new to me. So while it's somewhat embarrassing to be 1 of only 3 people arrested during the ensuing melee, yanno, no ragrets, YOLO, etc.

On to the Week 10 FMK's (find an older post for FMK explanations)...

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The MILHOUSE League for Week 10 on FanDuel

Quarterback

Fuck - Eli Manning ($7400) - Anybody else feel like Giants v. Patriots might be the best rivalry in the NFL right now? New England has owned the last 12 years of the NFL. The Giants are the one team who's stood up to them, winning the last three, two of which were Super Bowls. The Patriots' last win came in their 16-0 season finale clincher. They've played big time games that are always close. And Belichick, Brady, Coughlin, Eli are all still sitting at the heads of the table.

Here's a fun one for you - The last two times the Patriots and Giants played in the regular season, they ended up meeting again in the Super Bowl. And here we are, with the Patriots sitting at 8-0 and the Giants leading the NFC East. Just saying.

Marry - Aaron Rodgers ($9200) - If you missed his 4th quarter last week, you basically missed How Stella Got Her Groove Back 2. Your loss. This feels like a week where he might go off. The Lions are terrrrrrible. I'm calling my shot. The now less likable A-Rod throws 5 TD's this week.

Kill - Alex Smith ($6000) - I wanted to draw attention to the QB's who cost more than Alex on FanDuel this week - Kirk Cousins, Nick Foles, Josh McCown, Matt Cassel, Landry Jones, Johnny F. and Zach Mettenberger. Whew. I actually don't mind the play. I'd much rather spend the $6000 than $17M per.

Facebook pokes - Bom Trady, Mathias Stafford, Brian Hoyer, You Like That Cousins - good, cheap options this week

Running Back

Fuck - LaGarrette Blount ($6900) - Two FD strategies strong at play here. Taking advantage of an injury (Dion Lewis). And cashing in on a potential shootout. I'd say a good chance Blount plays the majority of the snaps and finds the end zone atleast once. Darren McFadden at $7000 is a close second, I love them both this week.

Marry - Todd Gurley III ($9200) - I like the elite plays this week. TGIII gets the Bears on a short week, at home, against a soft run defense in a must win game. Don't worry, I'll save you some money at WR in a bit.

Kill - Justin Forsett ($7100) - I expect a lot of people on him this week - coming off a bye, against a weak opponent at home. Here's my stat for you - The Jags lead the NFL in ypc allowed (by a wide margin actually) at 3.2 ypc. Very hard to run on them, just ask Chris Ivory, who ran 23 times for 26 yards last week.

Facebook pokes - DeMarco Murray, DeAngelo Williams (questionable), McFadden, Jeremy Hill (tournament)

Wide Receiver

Fuck - Chris Givens ($4500) - Ohhhh yeah, a Dirkness living in your parents' basement salary special!!! This one needs to be monitored, mind you. But Steve Smith is done (gold jacket, green jacket - I give a shit). The Ravens are down to Kamar Aiken, Marlon Brown and Givens at WR. The Jags shut down the run, but can't stop the pass. There are stories in Baltimore this week about Flacco's growing chemistry with Givens. The Ravens' website promoted Givens to starting WR. Put me down for 100 yards or a TD from Givens, or everybody reading this gets their money back (from this article, not their FanDuel league).

Marry - DeAndre Hopkins ($8900) - I love me a nice 21-3 deficit at halftime for a WR I'm playing. Makes for a ton of garbage yard opportunities against soft coverages. Texans at Bengals bodes well for Nuke. Calvin Johnson is in a similar situation this week - IF he's ruled 100% healthy.

Kill - Odell Beckham Jr. ($8800) - I know. It seems so tasty. Nice and buttered up for ya. But Belichick has this thing. He likes to take away the opponents' top weapon. I'd almost expect a straight double team on every snap. Which means, he's gonna make Rueben Randle or Dwayne Harris or Shane Vereen beat them. I expect one of those three to go off, and will be playing mostly Randle from the NYG's.

Facebook pokes - AJ Green, Randall Cobb, Allen Robinson (if Hurns sits, a must play), Jarvis Landry, Michael Crabtree, Brandon Lafell, Kamar Aiken (safer than Givens)

Tight End

Gronk - Jordan Reed ($5800) - Fell victim to the Belichick shutdown last week. Great spot for him. The Saints allow the 2nd most points to TE's. There will be blood (points scored).

Marry - Gronk ($8000) - HOW YA GET THE BEANS ABOVE THE FRANK? Listen to me. Play Gronk this week. He was quiet last game. They're headed for a shootout. The Giants allow the 3rd most points to TE's. Gronk if you're ornery.

Kill - Every other TE - I could see Olsen or Eifert. I think Kelce catches a lot of short passes against Denver. But I'd highly recommend Reed or Gronk this week.

Facebook pokes - No soup for you.

Kicker

Fuck - Mike Nugent ($4600) - Admission: I love the $4500 kicker. I'm always trying to spend all of my salary with one. But I'm spending up this week, baby. Lets get crazy!!!

Marry - Stephen Gostkowski ($5100) - Connected on 2+ field goals in every game since the season opener. He hasn't missed an extra point either.

Kill - Nick Folk - What kind of a kicker gets hurt before actually kicking anything? I trotted this dude out in daily and season long leagues last week. Calculated out, he owes me like 8 bucks.

Defense

Fuck - Chiefs ($4300) - Allowing 14.3 ppg their last four games, best in the NFL. And, at this rate, Peyton is gonna break the career INT record (89 more) before he breaks the record for career passing yards (2 more).

Marry - Bengals ($5000) - Allowed 10 points each of their last two games. Getting Brian Hoyer at home on MNF. Good spot.

Kill - Roger Goodell. It's time for Goodell Got It Right! I've already covered NFL Overtimes and Thursday Night Football. This week, it's the London games! Sign me up for 8:30am kickoffs every Sunday. I'd much rather watch that then hear NFL analysts discuss the trials and tribulations of domestic violence. I'm totally down with the NFL going to 17 games, with every team playing a game overseas. Takes away the disadvantage of playing a home game in London, expands the game globally, and hey, an extra week of football! Lets do this, Rodge.

Facebook pokes - Bucs, Panthers, Packers, Rams

My #1 FanDuel Lineup

QB - Aaron Rodgers

RB - Todd Gurley

RB - LaGarrette Blount

WR - Allen Robinson

WR - Rueben Randle

WR - Chris Givens

TE - Rob Gronkowski

K - Mike Nugent

DEF - Chiefs

***If you're new to FanDuel, follow this link and click the yellow tab in the top right corner, and put in promo code DIRK to get special savings and make me monies***

Enter The MILHOUSE League for Week 10 on FanDuel

Just one thing, Dude - do you have to use so many cuss words?

His Dirkness