Pittsburgh is a breeding ground for RB1s. DeAngelo Williams is a handcuff paying big dividends.

I Think I’ll Just Pick Up Where I Left Off…

Sometimes, “handcuffs” in fantasy football simply don’t work out. Alfred Blue is not the same as Arian Foster. But, in the case of DeAngelo Williams, could it be that within the context of 2015, Williams is actually BETTER than Le’Veon Bell? That seems absurd. Few would argue that Bell is an elite running back and none would argue that Williams is on the wrong side of 30 years-old. And yet, in the three games he has started, Williams has averaged 150 total yards and nearly 2 TDs. Is that because defenses don’t respect him? Two of the three defenses he torched are ranked top ten in least yards yielded on the ground. Speculation about why isn’t really the point here - the point is, if you handcuffed Bell with Williams at the beginning of the year, that one decision may be saving your season. Williams is running and catching the ball like he did in 2008 and if you have been playing long enough to remember that season, you’ll always remember the impact he had on fantasy championships in December. It’s an amazing story so far…we’ll see if it continues with Big Ben back on the shelf for a few weeks.

The Law Firm of Allen & Allen

It was mentioned last week in my mid-season awards just how surprising the duo of Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns has been. I sort of half-expected the recognition would be a precursor to both coming down to earth as the second half of the season began. If both putting up 120-plus receiving yards is coming down to earth, then give me some more of that topsoil. Both Robinson and Hurns have become must-starts, even in leagues that only feature two starting wide receivers. How many other teams possess two must-start WRs? Arizona? Pittsburgh? Maybe…truth be told, the closest thing we’ve got to Robinson and Hurns is (gulp) Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree. If you wanted to make the case that 2015 has been one of the most unexpected years in the history of the sport/hobby, this entire paragraph could be Exhibit A. Since Jacksonville’s defense isn’t stopping anyone, expect more of the same from the “Allens” moving forward. In the next seven weeks, they face four of the bottom quarter of pass defenses in the league.

Editor's Note: Keep an eye on Hurns's status for next week as he apparently has a sprained foot.

Get Well Ben…Soon.

Getting back to the Steelers for a minute, we simply cannot ignore the other player who completely ripped the Raiders defense to shreds on Sunday. Antonio Brown’s 17 catches and 306 total yards set franchise records and reminded his owners what he’s capable of with a great QB under center. That being said, he made his biggest play of the day with Landry Jones at quarterback, so does it really matter who is at QB for Brown to be successful? If you wish, I can take you back to Brown’s numbers without Ben and compare them to “with Ben”. I think it’s safe to say that Brown owners are hoping for a Week 12 return for Roethlisberger so they can count on him for the playoff run. About the only thing that would have made Brown’s incredible Week 9 more of a story would have been a touchdown. Aside from that, he was brilliant.

Bring On The Saints!

It is becoming abundantly clear by now that whoever plays the Saints each week is going to enjoy huge amounts of success in terms of scoring and moving the ball…and it’s also clear that the Saints have the firepower themselves to keep up. Such it was on Sunday with the Tennessee Titans coming in town. The Saints defense yielded 23 fantasy points (standard scoring) to Delanie Walker, over 100 total yards to Antonio Andrews and nearly 400 yards passing and 4 passing TDs to Marcus Mariota while Drew Brees put on another aerial assault trying to keep up. Unless it’s snowing or the wind is blowing 50+ MPH, your job moving forward is the find out who plays the Saints each week and exploit the matchups appropriately. The season of defensive futility in New Orleans has turned Ben Watson into a locked-in TE1 and Willie Snead into the most reliable WR3 in the business. Now, if it could just resurrect C.J. Spiller’s dwindling career…

Patriot Games

It has been an overwhelming offensive masterpiece this season in New England with Tom Brady putting up the best numbers of any QB in fantasy football and Rob Gronkowski doing the same at the tight end position. Throw in Julian Edelman's best season to date and LeGarrette Blount's recent surge and you've got lots of contributors. But, one contributor is now lost for the season leaving the Buzz to wonder what impact no Dion Lewis will have moving forward. Lewis fulfilled the “Kevin Faulk/Shane Vereen” role in New England better than anyone else ever had (even Faulk) through eight weeks, but Week 9 saw him suffer the same fate as so many other top running backs this season- a serious knee injury. Brady is Brady and he'll still have big games, but I will submit that Lewis's emergence was helping to fuel his success. Blount owners benefit the most from Lewis's injury, but aside from him, I look for the Patriots offense to experience a slight decline in the passing game. It's hard to recommend trading Brady when he's so steady, but if someone is willing to give up the farm for him, it might be worth consideration.

Passing The Torch?

The pre-game exchange between Adrian Peterson and Todd Gurley on Sunday didn't go unnoticed by photographers and cameramen and it didn't go unnoticed by this author either based on its tremendous symbolism. Both running backs are once-a-decade in terms of their talent and skill sets and while Peterson is still the gold standard as far as the position is concerned, Gurley is poised to be the best running back in football over the next 5-8 years. Peterson's 140-plus yards and a TD bested Gurley's 100-plus yards and a TD on this day, but the two pose the biggest threat moving forward in the chase to unseat Devonta Freeman as fantasy's best back of 2015. So, if you assume Freeman, Peterson, and Gurley to be fantasy's best backs moving forward, who rounds out the top five for the rest of the season? I would submit Mark Ingram and Marshawn Lynch will take those honors as Ingram has little competition for carries now that Khiry Robinson is done for the year and Lynch will be used mercilessly as Seattle seeks out a playoff berth. The question for all five: Can you avoid the injury bug that seems more like an epidemic than an illness?

Poor Man's DeAngelo and Antonio

While Williams championed the cause of the classic “handcuff” this week and Brown played the part of the uncoverable wide receiver, two impersonators were having their way with the Chargers defense on Monday night. Jeremy Langford provided for Matt Forte owners what Williams provided for Le'Veon Bell...on a smaller scale. Likewise, Alshon Jeffery played the part of super-receiver with 10 catches for 151 yards, but like Antonio Brown, no touchdowns. The Bears are actually playing good offense right now and Jay Cutler, Forte/Langford, Jeffery, and Martellus Bennett are players to own down the stretch as they try to overcome a bad defense much the same way as the Saints try to do. Bottom line: If you watched Langford last night, you'd be hard pressed to say there was much drop-off from Forte. That reality could make some owners very happy again next week.

Refusal

I simply refuse to spend more time here at the Buzz railing about the impact of Eddie Lacy upon the fantasy football universe. I won't do it. So, this is me not telling you what a complete dumpster fire Lacy's season has become. Glad I could restrain myself this time around.

Well, that will do it for the Buzz for this week. Only eight teams have not had their bye weeks, so we're almost to that point in time where you can line up the guys you want to go out and win you a title in December. Until then, though, keep starting Saints and players facing the Saints. If it ain't broke…

See you next week!