No king’s reign is forever. All kingdoms eventually come to an end.
Whether in the annals of history or books of tall tales or movies made to entertain, there are stories of the falls of kings in multiple catalogues.
And we have seen NFL running backs who rule the fantasy kingdom suffer their eventual production demise.
Some cling to relevance beyond their productive years, like Jerome Bettis. Some fight off Father Time for longer than seemingly humanly possible, like Frank Gore. Others hit a sudden wall, instantly turning into a shadow of themselves, like Shaun Alexander or Todd Gurley.
What eventually becomes of Derrick Henry we do not know. We have seen the talons of age clawing at his feet, trying to slow him down. We have seen this bull buck fewer riders than those with his glorious past. We have seen potential successors march onto his battle field.
But King Henry, thus far, has endured. The sword and shield that are his legs and his fury still rise to remind of their rule, even if not as often as in days of lore. And there will come a day when King Henry does not strike fear into an opposing defense, when his might does not make enemies tremble.
But that day is not this day. This day, King Henry shall rise again, flaunt his power and exert his will upon his foe — a foe whose profound weakness will allow the King to reclaim his ruling power of the fantasy realm, even if only for this day.
All but two teams who have gone to battle against the Panthers in this, the season of 2023, and have failed to send a running back to the end zone at least once. Five of the first six Carolina opponents feasted on RB touchdowns more than once in their glorious battles.
There were 11 total RB touchdowns scored against Carolina in that span. Alas, that frequently has dwindled in recent weeks — with just three yielded in the past four games.
But fear not, fantasy compatriots, for those foes had weak ground armies, unsuitable to compare to the great King Henry — the sluggish Texans tandem of Dameon Pierce and Devin Singletary, a not-yet-full-speed Jonathan Taylor coming back from an ankle injury, also-ran Bears backup D’Onta Foreman then a disappointing Tony Pollard.
No, this Carolina run defense hasn’t grown new claws, it has just benefited from clawing into mush. And King Henry will not be mush, not this day.
Quarterback Will Levis provides the basis for the Titans’ passing game, and it scares no one. After stunning the fantasy village with a four-TD, 238-yard debut, Levis has since averaged just 206.3 yards and has two total TDs with four interceptions.
The Titans know better than to rely on a prince who has shown he isn’t ready to defend the castle. Against a Panthers defense much more formidable against the pass than the run.
There will come a day when King Henry’s reign is no more. But that day is not this day.
Big weeks
Gardner Minshew QB, Colts, vs. Buccaneers (FanDuel $6,700/DraftKings $5,100)
To put this in perspective, Minshew is averaging fewer fantasy points per game than Zach Wilson, Bryce Young and Mac Jones.
But this week is a unique matchup — vs. a Bucs D that ranks fifth against opposing fantasy RBs, but just 29th vs. opposing QBs. Minshew did have blow-up game vs. the stingy Browns, which is proof he can blow up.
Rhamondre Stevenson RB, Patriots, at Giants (FD $6,800/DK $5,800)
His production and workload has improved slightly of late.
And with a comfy matchup against a bottom-tier Giants run defense, he stands a good chance to be effective, even with Ezekiel Elliott stealing carries.
Kenneth Gainwell RB, Eagles, vs. Bills (FD $5,700/DK $4,900)
The Buffalo defense is most vulnerable to ground attacks.
Lead Philly RB DeAndre Swift has been nursing an ankle issue this week. Gainwell could be in line for extra touches.
Isaiah Likely TE, Ravens, at Chargers (FD $5,000/DK $3,100)
With Mark Andrews out, Likely is the clear-cut next in line, and has done well in limited smash spots in the past.
The Chargers rank 30th vs. opposing fantasy TEs.
Small weaks
Bijan Robinson RB, Falcons, vs. Saints (FD $7,400/DK $6,500)
The Saints are the third stingiest defense vs. fantasy RBs — though they have been more generous of late. Plus, Robinson finally got his due workload in Atlanta’s last game. But one week doesn’t establish trust as broken as that between us and Atlanta coach Arthur Smith.
Kyren Williams RB, Rams, at Cardinals (FD $8,200/DK $6,600)
Great RB, great matchup. But he hasn’t played since Week 6. We’d like to see him in action first. If you found a suitable replacement, stick with that for one week.
Javonte Williams RB, Broncos, vs. Browns (FD $6,400/DK $5,700)
The Cleveland run D is better than it’s ninth rank vs. opposing RBs — three somewhat fluky TDs allowed in past two weeks. Don’t think the Denver run game is stout enough to win a trench war.
James Cook RB, Bills, at Eagles (FD $6,500/DK$6,200)
The Eagles give up 6.2 fewer PPR points to opposing team RBs each game than the league average — the fewest in the league. Latavius Murray, Ty Johnson and QB Josh Allen all threats to Cook workload.
Daily Duel
Drew Loftis and Jarad Wilk submit dueling rosters into a DFS contest:
Site: Yahoo
Slate: Sun. main (10 games)
Type: $10 tourney
Top prize: $8K
Pot: $40K
Drew’s Crew
QB: Kyler Murray — Ari (vs. LAR) $29
RB: Derrick Henry — Ten (vs. Car) $26
RB: Kenneth Gainwell — Phi (vs. Buf) $13
Betting on the NFL?
WR: Michael Pittman Jr. — Ind (vs. TB) $25
WR: Puka Nacua — LAR (at Ari) $25
WR: Tank Dell — Hou (vs. Jac) $23
TE: Dalton Kincaid — Buf (at Phi) $19
Flex: Rachaad White — TB (at Ind) $25
DEF: Broncos — Den (vs. Cle) $15
Wilk’s Warriors
QB: CJ Stroud — Hou (vs. Jac) $34
RB: Travis Etienne — Jac (at Hou) $31
RB: Jaylen Warren — Pit (at Cin) $26
WR: Jonathan Mingo — Car (at Ten) $10
WR: Tank Dell — Hou (vs. Jac) $23
WR: Josh Downs — Ind (vs. TB) $21
TE: David Njoku — Cle (at Den) $20
Flex: Rachaad White — TB (at Ind) $25
DEF: Panthers — Car (at Ten) $10
For late changes to Daily Duel rosters, follow @NYPost_Loftis on X
Season risked: $102
Season’s winnings: Drew $58, Jarad $9