Saquon Barkley’s fourth quarter heroics last night sealed my fate as I lost by four points after Barkley scored 14 of his 26.4 points in the final quarter of the game against the Falcons. The Giants didn’t win the game, but I’m sure my opponent couldn’t care less.
I won’t give my opponent credit for drafting the rookie running back because his team was drafted entirely by auto pick. He got Barkley with the sixth pick in the draft and Melvin Gordon with the 15thpick. Like I’ve always said, it’s better to be lucky than good.
What I will give my opponent credit for is the action he took shortly after Gordon was scratched from the starting lineup. Even though the game was an early start in London, he alertly picked up Latavius Murray off the waiver wire an hour before kickoff.
Murray, the backup for injured Dalvin Cook, was available, and the Minnesota running back rewarded the GM by scoring 22.3 fantasy points. The only reason Murray was available was because Cook’s owner hadn’t thought to pick up the handcuff.
Today, I still have the taste of defeat in my throat, and it’s a bitter taste. This is the first time that I have lost back-to-back games since the fourth week of last year’s season, and it dropped me to 4-3. There are six more regular season games, and I’m not panicking.
I’m not panicking, but I’m also not complacent. Still not content with my team, I traded DeAndre Hopkins, Tevin Coleman and Leonard Fournette today for James Connor, Le’Veon Bell and Doug Baldwin. Ironically, I have Bell back on my team.
The trade was a gamble. I was weak at the running back position with David Johnson underperforming and Jordan Howard a bust. Phillip Lindsay is emerging as a sleeper, but I needed more. Giving up Hopkins was hard, and I hope I made the right move.
Doubting Thomas' Fantasy Sports 