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RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, KC (1 Viewer)

I had a dream last night that he played and fumbled, costing KC the win.

Fortunately for chiefs fans, I’m not psychic - probably just a undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of underdone potato.

Or they found out about your dream and they made him inactive. You may have altered the course of history. It will make for a great Inception sequel.
 
The crazy part to me is how well (no, not Barry Sanders, but seemingly very solid results) he's actually performed when he plays. Why is he all of a sudden inactive the whole second half of the season? I don't get it. "CLEARANCE! BUY NOW!" maybe?

He's slow and not elusive. He leaves tons of yards on the field. Look at what Pacheco has done under similar circumstances and Pacheco, quite frankly, isn't that good (to my eyes).
 
The crazy part to me is how well (no, not Barry Sanders, but seemingly very solid results) he's actually performed when he plays. Why is he all of a sudden inactive the whole second half of the season? I don't get it. "CLEARANCE! BUY NOW!" maybe?

He's slow and not elusive. He leaves tons of yards on the field. Look at what Pacheco has done under similar circumstances and Pacheco, quite frankly, isn't that good (to my eyes).
I will forever be grateful for your takes on CEH.

It led directly to my getting Bijan this year.

It may well prove to be the greatest upgrade in the history of fantasy sports.
 
I will forever be grateful for your takes on CEH.

:hifive:

Thank Football Outsiders.

Doing my best for the people that read the board. I'm often wrong, but this one had writing all over the wall. Getting dismissed as some sort of obscurantist stat head in this thread made me a little piqued. I mean, it was Football Outsiders and they had tons of data on BMI and speed scores and it was all red flags waving in a serious way. It wasn't just some random internet site or up-and-comer trying to make a name for itself. It was a cautionary article, and well done. Thank them.
 
I will forever be grateful for your takes on CEH.

:hifive:

Thank Football Outsiders.

Doing my best for the people that read the board. I'm often wrong, but this one had writing all over the wall. Getting dismissed as some sort of obscurantist stat head in this thread made me a little piqued. I mean, it was Football Outsiders and they had tons of data on BMI and speed scores and it was all red flags waving in a serious way. It wasn't just some random internet site or up-and-comer trying to make a name for itself. It was a cautionary article, and well done. Thank them.
It was shortly after you’re sharing those takes here that I was offered my own 2023 1st, in a league I was considering a rebuild. That was shortly after CEH putting up 2 solid games. He’s been a complete turd ever since.

I couldn’t hit “accept” fast enough on that deal.
 
Not only does Edwards-Helaire carry too much weight, his speed score is terrible for a back. Well, not terrible. Just an outlier. So he's an outlier in height, weight, and speed.

All three add up to HARD PASS.

I might be dumb, but there’s not much to think about. Rebuilt offensive line and GOATish passing game to leave huge holes for him. CEH is going to have a huge season. Good round 2 pick.
well well well if it isnt the consequences of my actions
 
Has he been dropped yet in your league?
Nope. It’s coming though.
CEH was dropped in a Zealots league in the middle of the season and it was ten days before anyone bothered to pick him up.
For awhile there will always be one
I'm a little surprised he was picked up at all. What a roster clog that was.
Kind of Jim Carrey “so you say there’s a chance “.
 
And so it begins…er, ends?

The Athletic's Nate Taylor writes the Chiefs are "expected" to decline Clyde Edwards-Helaire's fifth-year option.​

Taylor also speculates that this makes Edwards-Helaire a "logical candidate" to be traded. We're not sure what the market would be or who would even be interested at this point. It's a no-brainer for the Chiefs to shift away from Edwards-Helaire in their long-term plans and not guarantee him salary in 2024 given how the last three years have gone. How his fantasy value shakes out for 2023 depends more on who else Kansas City brings in than anything he does this offseason.
 
And so it begins…er, ends?

The Athletic's Nate Taylor writes the Chiefs are "expected" to decline Clyde Edwards-Helaire's fifth-year option.​

Taylor also speculates that this makes Edwards-Helaire a "logical candidate" to be traded. We're not sure what the market would be or who would even be interested at this point. It's a no-brainer for the Chiefs to shift away from Edwards-Helaire in their long-term plans and not guarantee him salary in 2024 given how the last three years have gone. How his fantasy value shakes out for 2023 depends more on who else Kansas City brings in than anything he does this offseason.
Obviously there was zero chance they were picking up his 5th year option, the question is really if he makes the team in year 4. I'm sure they would love to trade him for anything, like a 7th round pick would seal the deal and they'd get about $2m in cap savings. I struggle to see who would want to pay anything, at least before the season and injuries hit, and have to pay him $2m. I'd think most teams would rather just use a 6-7th round pick on a league minimum rookie they control for 4 years if he pans out.

But if he did have a market the teams that would make some sense are:

Washington. They don't have a need and really no idea if EB really likes him or not but if he does he might want to bring him in as someone who knows the system. A Gibson for CEH trade would be fun.

Cincy-if they cut Mixon, which I read yesterday was more likely then not, maybe they see value in re-uniting the LSU boys with idea they'd draft a RB to eventually replace Mixon but having CEH would allow them to not go into the draft with as big of a glaring need where they had to overly prioritize RB.
 
Washington. They don't have a need and really no idea if EB really likes him or not but if he does he might want to bring him in as someone who knows the system. A Gibson for CEH trade would be fun.
I guess we’ll learn a lot about how EB feels about CEH if nothing like this happens.

As a Pacheco owner I would not want Gibson in KC, though he’d probably be more the McKinnon role. I’m skeptical this happens though. Robinson looks like he might be a decent back.
Cincy-if they cut Mixon, which I read yesterday was more likely then not, maybe they see value in re-uniting the LSU boys with idea they'd draft a RB to eventually replace Mixon but having CEH would allow them to not go into the draft with as big of a glaring need where they had to overly prioritize RB.
Mixon had at times made Cinci’s run blocking unit look more competent than it is. IMO CEH would be a disaster. They’d be better off going with Chris Evans & re-upping Perine.

I haven’t heard a lot of chatter about Cinci releasing Mixon, but it wouldn’t be shocking.

ETA: breaking news:

The Athletic's Jay Morrison writes Joe Mixon could be a cap casualty for the Bengals this offseason.​

We generally take these reports with a grain of salt, but Morrison writes this sentence at the end of the capsule: "reallocating $7.3 million to more pressing needs feels closer to a certainty than a mere possibility." Releasing Mixon would save that much in cap space, and releasing Mixon with a post-June 1 designation would save $10 million. Morrison writes the Bengals could look to draft a running back this year. With Samaje Perine also a free agent, a Mixon release would make the backfield a blank slate heading into free agency.

I’d say both of these are long shot scenarios. I just don’t see any team going to this amount of effort for CEH’s services.

I also wouldn’t be shocked to see KC release him if they can’t get a deal done. If they aren’t playing him, why bother rostering him?

CEH may not be one of the biggest busts in NFL history, but in the context that a SB-winning / challenging franchise has rostered him, I think it’s fair to suggest he’s in the conversation. It’s remarkable that he couldn’t find a way to be useful in such a productive offense.

Not all his fault - the Chiefs never should have drafted him that high. But still, massive bust.
 
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As a Pacheco owner I would not want Gibson in KC, though he’d probably be more the McKinnon role. I’m skeptical this happens though. Robinson looks like he might be a decent back.
For the record I don't think any of these trades happen. Just speculation on what few teams might have some interest. Robinson looks like a JAG to me but then so does CEH. Gibson's a better pairing as he brings some juice, but again if EB actually was fond of CEH and wanted one of his "guys" it just makes sense, and that does not mean Gibson would be involved, was just spitballing.
Mixon had at times made Cinci’s run blocking unit look more competent than it is.
Will agree to disagree. Mixon looked like trash to me most of last year. They don't trust Evans and probably never will as anything more then a weapon. CEH would just in theory allow them more patience in the draft but the big connection is Burrow who you can say was just talking up a teammate but he raved about CEH coming into the draft. I think he called him the best player on the team. Making Burrow happy is the key here. If I'm still holding any stock on CEH this is the place I'd want to see him land.

I haven’t heard a lot of chatter about Cinci releasing Mixon
The Athletic made their beat writers contribute to an article that posted Friday predicting cap cuts. Here is what the Bengals beat writer said:

Potential cap cut: RB Joe Mixon

2023 cap hit: $12.8 million
Cap savings if cut before June 1: $7.3 million
Dead money if cut before June 1: $5.5 million

The Bengals can boost their cap savings to $10 million by designating Mixon as a post-June 1 cut, but the organization typically avoids kicking dead money down the road. Named a captain for the first time in 2022, Mixon brings more juice and energy to the field than anyone on the roster when he gets going. But he struggled to get going for much of 2022, and the Bengals got equal production from Samaje Perine at a much lower cost. Even with Perine hitting free agency, the Bengals can bring him back at a more affordable price and look for a younger back during — or after — the draft. The Bengals envisioned this scenario coming into play when they signed Mixon to a four-year, $48 million contract in 2020, and structured the deal so that they could get out of it two years early without much of a hit. And with the Joe Burrow extension dictating so much of what the front office will do this offseason, reallocating $7.3 million to more pressing needs feels closer to a certainty than a mere possibility. — Jay Morrison

I also wouldn’t be shocked to see KC release him if they can’t get a deal done. If they aren’t playing him, why bother rostering him?
He's not been awful, just disappointing and most of his contract is guaranteed, which is why I'm sure they'd love to trade him and clear $2m off the books. But cutting him does not save much money.Unless he's a big time malcontent over a reduced role I don't see them cutting him.
 
Will be on league waiver wires by the time the season starts and after the Chiefs cut him.
I'd bet you anything the Chiefs don't cut him, just no need with most of his money guaranteed.

I want to see who has the guts to admit you drafted him over Jonathan Taylor.

Me, and 3x but I was able to turn him into Walker and ETN so at least saved myself a little.

Even if I had not found nice exits I'd still never have a problem admitting when I was wrong and everyone who has been playing this hobby long enough has their share of misses or they are lying to themselves and others. I'm assume most people on this board have no issue admitting if they took over Taylor or not and a lot of us did, even excluding my picks of him in the rest of my leagues CEH went 1.1 the most, not all the time but the majority. Win some, lose some, best we can do is try to learn from it and try and do better the next time.

In my case with CEH it was not the draft stock that suckered me in, I was already extremely high on him before the draft but I did like the landing spot and firmed him up for me but I had been doing redrafts prior to the draft and taking him in round 5 every time. What really got me was the multiple times, even once in slo-mo, I watched the cut-ups from his game vs Alabama. Was an incredible game against future NFL defenders and it made me minimize his lack of size/speed combo, especially because he did have some testing traits I consider as predictive as the 40. I was wrong.

CEH was not even the biggest mistake that some people made that year. That would be drafting Reagor or Vaughn over Jefferson. Thankfully I don't own that mistake, in that case I was right, had no idea JJ was going to be like this of course, but he was firmly my player 8 and I drafted him the same amount of times I took CEH over Taylor. Like I said, win some, lose some. Also kind of did the reverse with JJ I did with CEH. Where I was able to exit out ok with trades of CEH, I actually ended up making two horrible trades were I gave up Jefferson. Horrible in that both times my big fish I landed was Michael Thomas.
 
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but I was able to turn him into Walker and ETN(2x) so at least saved myself a little.
I might want Walker/ETN over JT. Nice work.
Thanks but I just realized I messed up and one of those times I turned CEH into ETN was a league I took CEH in round two of the startup, not 1.1 of the rookie draft. That in fact was our sharkpool league and fwiw that pick was after CEH's rookie season when I took him in round two. Which is a whole other topic, ETN included in that topic, of how a lot of these highly pedigreed players give you an exit out if you don't like what you bought.
 
Which is a whole other topic, ETN included in that topic, of how a lot of these highly pedigreed players give you an exit out if you don't like what you bought.
And in ETN’s case, an example of how sometimes the 2nd chance on those early busts can work out as a buy-low-ish.

I dealt Pittman for ETN before he came back from injury and I’m very pleased with the return for my rebuild - having 1 solid RB (which I believe ETN is) gives me a lot of draft flexibility early.

Notsomuch for those who bought on CEH after year 1. 😬
 

CEH was not even the biggest mistake that some people made that year. That would be drafting Reagor or Vaughn over Jefferson. Thankfully I don't own that mistake, in that case I was right, had no idea JJ was going to be like this of course, but he was firmly my player 8 and I drafted him the same amount of times I took CEH over Taylor. Like I said, win some, lose some. Also kind of did the reverse with JJ I did with CEH. Where I was able to exit out ok with trades of CEH, I actually ended up making two horrible trades were I gave up Jefferson. Horrible in that both times my big fish I landed was Michael Thomas.
Speaking of 2020 draft mistakes. A contending team in my league lucked into the #1 pick through a trade early in the season, and desperately needed a WR. They took Henry Ruggs, because of his 40 time, perceived lack of target competition, and draft capital. The next 3 picks were CEH, Swift, and Taylor, and I happily ended up with Lamb at #5, and landed Higgins at #12.

That draft was an example of teams overvaluing landing spots, and reaching for meh players. How Vaughn went ahead of Jefferson, or Higgins, or even Pittman, is baffling. Reagor I can at least understand.

KC is an offense that can hum with basically anyone at RB. If it would have been Jones/CEH instead of Pacheco/McKinnon, I'm not sure it would have made much difference. I've never been a CEH fan, but I do still think he can be a solid #2 RB for an NFL team.
 
Notsomuch for those who bought on CEH after year 1
He was going in round two of startups after year one. 2 of those 3 trades I did with him was after year two was over, one during middle point of season two. He still carried some value after two full seasons.

I'll just add that I failed to exit out of one and only one league I drafted CEH. I still had a glimmer of hope, I'll admit it. Like I said earlier he'd not been awful, he'd just been very disappointing. He's had a way of providing just a few moments or excuses to pull me back in, like blaming 2021 on the appendectomy and weight loss. So I held in one place. Partly because no decent deals came to fruition but mainly because I was a little scared it would finally click for him and I'd be sore watching it all unfold. So I hedged a little. That's my fault but if you drafted him 1.1 you had a solid 2 years to get out ,maybe not for Taylor, but for a decent return.
 
I still had a glimmer of hope, I'll admit it. Like I said earlier he'd not been awful, he'd just been very disappointing. He's had a way of providing just a few moments or excuses to pull me back in, like blaming 2021 on the appendectomy and weight loss
I get it. It’s how I got my own 2023 1st back in what was the 1st domino of a complete rebuild.

He had those two solid games back to back early in 2021. I got that offer and couldn’t hit accept fast enough.

But I can see how that sort of tease of back to back 20 point games can lead owners astray. “Don’t believe your lying eyes seeing a slow JAG - believe the fantasy points and the KC offense he’s in - oh, the times we could have together!”

Like the snake in jungle book.

lol
 
I liked him a lot out of LSU. Fortunately never got him in dynasty.

I'm interested in buying now though. :devil:

Always chasing the next Thomas Jones, Cedric Benson, or Marshawn Lynch.

CEH is an interesting case because his 4.4 career YPC is solid, but he played in a stacked offense where he was never the focus of the defense, and his own team treated him like he was Ron Dayne. Absolutely no interest in getting him involved or feeding him the rock. That's probably the most damning part about his NFL career so far. The Chiefs show no confidence in his skills and no desire to manufacture touches for him.

Still, I'll kick the tires if the price is right. Not impossible for guys who flopped in one spot to fare better elsewhere, or under a different staff. Key is the entry price. Benson at his absolute nadir went for a random future 2nd in my 14 team mandatory 2+ RB dynasty, right before or around the time he went to Cincinnati. I wouldn't want to give up much for Clyde at all. Just table scraps.
 
I'm interested in buying now though. :devil:
There is no dead cat bounce. Save your capital. Lost cause.
I always try to keep an open mind in FF.

People get locked into concrete thinking and miss out on opportunities. Josh Jacobs just won me a league title a year after being written off.

It's an unpredictable hobby. I had Knowshon Moreno lead me to a title out of the blue one year. It was his 5th year in the league. Total scrap heap JAG.

Still kick myself for missing out on Lynch and Benson during the buy low window, though I did grab Thomas Jones on Tampa. That went well.

If the price is right, I'm always curious.
 
People get locked into concrete thinking and miss out on opportunities. Josh Jacobs just won me a league title a year after being written off.
Yeah, well, Josh Jacobs >>>> CEH

I agree with what you’re saying from a global perspective, but I’m being extremely specific here.

His own team won’t give him opportunities.

That equates to zero FF production. Never say never, but I would wait to spend your capital until after FA & the NFL draft. If they don’t draft or sign his replacement for 2023, you might be on to something.

For now you at least know he’s not on the Chiefs in 2024, which IMO already dings his value.

Best of luck. I’d never root against a Dubs fan.
 
For now you at least know he’s not on the Chiefs in 2024, which IMO already dings his value.

I'd say that's a pretty huge positive, since they clearly have no interest in using him.

Question then becomes where can he land where he might have value? Carolina? Atlanta? Miami? Denver? We know some of these spots are going to be occupied by high draft picks. Solid chance Clyde becomes a Gio Bernard, Chase Edmonds, or Ameer Abdullah type who just sort of drifts into obscurity as a bit player journeyman on random teams. That being said, there are probably some front offices who liked CEH as a draft prospect and will want to kick the tires. All it takes is the right fit for him to be playable in some formats. I'd bet against him at this point, but until he's out of the league, there's always a pulse. His per-touch production has been fine to date. You can interpret that as him being underutilized, or as him being a bad player who's propped up by a great situation. It may be 20%/80% split there. If the price is low enough, I'm willing to grab him off the scrap heap and find out.
 
I'm willing to grab him off the scrap heap and find out.
If that is or becomes his value, sure. I would never tell anyone to not throw “scrap heap” value at a dart throw hoping a bust turns it around.

But that’s not what I said - I said to save your capital, as in, don’t invest heavily.

So yeah - no beef with you trading a 5th for him or picking him up when someone drops him. That’s fine.

If you’re in a league with limited roster spots, he could be an inconvenient roster clogger.
 

CEH was not even the biggest mistake that some people made that year. That would be drafting Reagor or Vaughn over Jefferson. Thankfully I don't own that mistake, in that case I was right, had no idea JJ was going to be like this of course, but he was firmly my player 8 and I drafted him the same amount of times I took CEH over Taylor. Like I said, win some, lose some. Also kind of did the reverse with JJ I did with CEH. Where I was able to exit out ok with trades of CEH, I actually ended up making two horrible trades were I gave up Jefferson. Horrible in that both times my big fish I landed was Michael Thomas.
Speaking of 2020 draft mistakes. A contending team in my league lucked into the #1 pick through a trade early in the season, and desperately needed a WR. They took Henry Ruggs, because of his 40 time, perceived lack of target competition, and draft capital. The next 3 picks were CEH, Swift, and Taylor, and I happily ended up with Lamb at #5, and landed Higgins at #12.

That draft was an example of teams overvaluing landing spots, and reaching for meh players. How Vaughn went ahead of Jefferson, or Higgins, or even Pittman, is baffling. Reagor I can at least understand.

KC is an offense that can hum with basically anyone at RB. If it would have been Jones/CEH instead of Pacheco/McKinnon, I'm not sure it would have made much difference. I've never been a CEH fan, but I do still think he can be a solid #2 RB for an NFL team.

The talking heads go nuts after the draft because there is literally nothing to talk about for months after. I'd guess your average FFL GM doesn't keep up with it all year round, so come draft time there's a crap ton of recent articles after the draft giving hot takes on players and their landing spots. None of us are immune, either. I took Najee in the 2021 draft over Chase mostly because of the landing spot, thinking he'd be an epic bell cow.
 

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler believes "some teams have running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire on their radar as a potential trade option."​

He added, "I don't believe Kansas City is actively shopping him." Fowler also noted that the Chiefs would at least listen to offers. After scaling his work back in 2022 before making Ronald Jones active over him in the Super Bowl, it makes plenty of sense for the Chiefs to move on from their first-round bust. On the other hand, it's hard to see any other team making a run at one of the league's least efficient running backs. If Kansas City did manage to offload CEH, it would likely be for nothing more than a late-round pick. Any team taking him on would only be doing so as a long-shot reclamation project.
SOURCE: ESPN
Mar 5, 2023, 11:28 AM ET
 
Don't think he's a bad player, was never a great fit in KC as Mahomes doesn't dump off to his RB's much which is why was kinda of an odd pick. I guess they thought he could be more than he was. I could see him going to another team and having some ppr value.
 

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