Hello everyone, and welcome to what I hope will be the first of many Thursday Therapy sessions with Evan Sather. Each week, Evan will get to unleash some of his inner fantasy football-related thoughts that I imagine many other managers can relate to. Buckle up and strap in for Thursday Therapy Week 9.

Thursday Therapy: Fantasy Football Week 9 with Evan Sather

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I have a lot of beef with American sports media that covers the NFL. It’s nothing new, it results in successful engagement on the Internet, and it’s inherently human. I hate the overreactions that come from a variety of figures in and out of mainstream sports journalism. If you’re hoping that I will be naming names, then you’re going to be sorely disappointed with the rest of this piece. For me to do so would not be fair, considering how many figures in sports journalism (as well as fans) do it.

Caleb Williams did not have a great game against the Ravens this past Sunday afternoon. He completed 25 of 38 passes for 285 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception caught by Nate Wiggins. Caleb’s performance was good for 13.8 fantasy points, which provides sufficient low-end QB2 value. Being a lifelong Bears fan, Caleb’s performance was not even close to the worst I’ve ever seen from any of our past starters. After all, I survived the Cade McNown and Henry Burris eras. Even before the Bears-Ravens game ended, a variety of people online were already talking about how “bad” Caleb Williams is for the Bears.

I have been avoiding the articles and YouTube videos posted online about having an “honest” conversation about Caleb because I know it’ll be quite the opposite. It is understandable to point out how he struggled against the Saints and Ravens, who suck at defending the pass. These games happen in an offense that is still developing under a brand-new coaching system, which is taking time to integrate among the players. The self-inflicted penalties were unpleasant to witness, once again. Blaming the quarterback for the entire team’s performance is a problem, and Caleb Williams is no exception, especially from within the Bears fan base.

Jordan Love had a much better game against the Steelers this past Sunday night. He completed 29 of 37 passes for 360 yards, 3 of which were touchdowns. That was good for 29.3 fantasy points. The Steelers’ defense is atrocious, allowing the Packers’ offense to do pretty much anything they wanted. It was an impressive road win for the Packers (as much as I hate to admit it) against a badly-managed, poorly-disciplined Pittsburgh Steelers team.

During the broadcast, the Sunday Night Football cast couldn’t stop gushing over Jordan Love, as if he were already on the same level as Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. There was even a graphic that pointed out how Favre and Rodgers were 27 years old when they won their respective Super Bowls. Love will be 27 on November 2nd, hinting at a pattern without concrete evidence. I found it interesting how nobody seemed to care about the lower-productivity games Jordan Love and the rest of his Packers team had against the Browns, Bengals, and Cardinals.

I would like to see overreactions, like the two examples I mentioned, be left out of sports media for good. Like I said in the beginning, it’s inherently human to get emotional about what you’re witnessing in the moment and react to it accordingly. The reactions often do not reflect the bigger picture, and it would be better for sports if we could not make large claims based on one game.

If you would like to accuse me of bias because I used the starting quarterbacks for the Bears and Packers, respectively, then go right ahead. I would gladly do the same for players who play for teams outside of the NFC North.

Well, that’s all Evan has for you guys this week. I hope you enjoyed the first iteration of Thursday Therapy with Evan Sather. Tune in next week to find out what rants he has in store for you!