🏈 Return of the Quads

Mark Andrews gets paid, Myles Gaskin's stock rises, and why Steelers & Cowboys fans aren't happy.

Sep 7

Good morning and welcome back to the Morning Huddle. Eddie here, and it is officially Week 1, which means we now have NFL Football every single Sunday until February 2022.

What a time to be alive.

Mark Andrews secures the bag $

Mark Andrews signed a 4-year, $56 million dollar extension through 2024. This reiterates the Ravens commitment to the stud TE.

While Andrews finished 2020 with only 7 TD’s and 700 yards, he is in a great position to return to his 2019 form, where he had 10 TD’s and 850+ yards, especially with half the Ravens offence currently at the hospital (Dobbins, Bateman, Watkins, etc).

Plus, Andrew’s was not even that bad in 2020:

Evan Silva @evansilva

In Mark Andrews' 2020 "down year," he averaged 2.00 yards per route run - top 6 among 48 qualified tight ends - played a career-high 58% of offensive snaps, and afterwards earned a top-3 TE contract from one of smartest orgs in the league. I like betting on the #Ravens bet here.

Myles Gaskin wants to know: Did you buy the dip?

Myles Gaskin OUT vs the Jets - Miami Dolphins

Brian Flores came out yesterday and said Myles Gaskin is the guy the Dolphins can trust to be on the field for all three downs. While Gaskin was not someone I was targeting (there was always that one guy who reached for him), his current ADP of 64th overall is an absolute steal for a 3-down RB who finished RB27 despite only playing 10 games (if Brian Flores sticks by his word).

America’s Team

As if my Cowboys did not have enough question marks going into this season, our All-Pro Right Guard Zack Martin will miss the season opener against the reigning Super-Bowl champ TB Buccaneers after testing positive for Covid.

This is a massive blow for the offensive line, as Ezekiel Elliott and Jerry Jones dubbed Martin the Cowboys “best player.” While he may go under the radar, Martin is a 6-time Pro-Bowler and 4-time first-team All-Pro, making him a likely Hall-of-Fame candidate. This is not the way Cowboys fans wanted to start the season.

Brianna Dix @DixBrianna

Ezekiel Elliott on 6X pro bowl RG Zack Martin: “Zack’s the best player in our offense. Most runs they come back by him. Even last year we were battling through injuries and he moved to RT and he still excelled at RT. His talent— you can’t speak about him enough.”

From a fantasy perspective, I would buy low on Zeke after Week 1 (if he struggles). Tampa Bay was #1 against the run last year and they brought all 22-starters back. Also, it may take some time for the Cowboys offence to gel - so be patient if you own any Cowboys playmakers.

The Return of Saquads

E. Lundsten on Twitter: "Saqoun Barkley doesn't have quads, he has “octos”… " — Real Quads

Ian Rapaport reported that Saquon Barkley is almost fully cleared to play. The Giants will monitor how he looks in practice but expect him to suit up Week 1. It is still undetermined how many snaps he will get in his first game after a gruesome ACL and MCL injury, but we’ll get more information as the week goes on. If you are deep at running back you may want to consider sitting Barkley this week due to the uncertainty regarding his involvement.

Not WATT You Want to Hear Steelers Fans

T.J. Watt Stats, News, Bio | ESPN — F*** You Pay Me - Trent-Jordan Watt

Yup, T.J. stands for Trent-Jordan.

Anyways, ESPN reported that Steelers All-World DE T.J Watt’s status for Week 1 is in serious doubt due to ongoing contract negotiations. While Watt has reported to camp, he has only participated in individual drills and has not had any snaps with the defensive unit.

It is likely the Steelers work something out before Sunday, but this is something to monitor. Missing Watt makes the Steelers a more favorable matchup for all Bills offensive players and puts more pressure on the offense to maintain possession. Najee Harris SZN.

Quick Hits

Justice Hill tore his Achilles putting an end to his season. They brought in Le’Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman for a workout. Nothing to see here. Or is there… 👀
Sean McVay said Sony Michel is on track to suit up in Week 1. This is mostly due to Sony needing time to learn the playbook. Don’t expect Sony to be a factor against Darrell Henderson - this may actually help Henderson’s chances of not being run into the ground.
All my Javonte Williams fans:
Marvin Elequin @FF_MarvinE
With Gordon’s contract expiring, Javonte was expected to be their RB1 in 2022. It sounds like he could be their lead RB as soon as this season. 👀🚀 https://t.co/G5vQeGrEkW
Aric DiLalla @AricDiLalla
Vic Fangio on the faith the coaching staff has in rookie running back Javonte Williams: "He's earned that trust, and we're not at all against playing him in any situation, in any time of the game."
September 6th 2021
1 Retweet25 Likes

Don’t forget to take advantage of the free-money Underdog offer and sign up and make your first deposit with the promo code MORNINGHUDDLE and you’ll receive a free $25. I want you guys to take that free money. Bestball drafts won’t be available after Thursday…