Pat Fitzmaurice#8 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 26, 2026
Fitzmaurice gave rest-of-season positional rankings for several Chiefs and other skill players, including Mahomes as their QB10, Kenneth Walker as RB4 behind Gibbs, Bijan and McCaffrey, Kelce at TE8 and Worthy down at WR50, and they picked Tampa Bay to beat Minnesota 21-20.
Said on air or in an interview · FantasyPros Fantasy Football Podcast (podcast)Hear the original
What Pat Fitzmaurice said
our reading, beside the words we read it fromRunning back four, behind the big three of Gibbs, Bijan, and McCaffrey.
- Where it was said
- FantasyPros Fantasy Football Podcast (podcast)
- The episode
- FantasyPros - Week 3 Fantasy Football Key Questions: Best Matchups, Rankings & Lineup Decisions (Ep. 2221)
- The original
- Hear the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- SaidSep 26
- PlayedSep 27
- GradedSep 28
- 1Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21 — Vikings 20“So I'll take the wounded, desperate Buccaneers here, 21, 20, and I'll go with Bucky Irving as player of the game.”
- 2Travis Kelce to finish top 8 at his position, by fantasy points“Travis Kelsey at tight end rest of season. Where is he at for you, Fitz? TE8.”
- 3Kenneth Walker III to finish top 4 at his position, by fantasy points“Fitz, where is Kenneth Walker for the rest of the season? Running back four, behind the big three of Gibbs, Bijan, and McCaffrey.”
- 4Patrick Mahomes to finish top 10 at his position, by fantasy points“Where are you ranking Patrick Mahomes rest of season amongst quarterbacks? ... QB 10, which might be too low”
- 5Xavier Worthy to finish top 50 at his position, by fantasy points“Yeah, I've got him at four. I've got him at 50. (rest of season Xavier Worthy)”
Box score
HitCloseMissWaiting| Verdict | Call | Kind | What happened | Score | Naive | Skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21 — Vikings 201 | Score Predictions | Vikings 23–16 | 35.71 | 34.45 | +2.39 | |
| Travis Kelce to finish top 8 at his position, by fantasy points2 | Positional Finishes | — | — | — | — | |
| Kenneth Walker III to finish top 4 at his position, by fantasy points3 | Positional Finishes | — | — | — | — | |
| Patrick Mahomes to finish top 10 at his position, by fantasy points4 | Positional Finishes | — | — | — | — | |
| Xavier Worthy to finish top 50 at his position, by fantasy points5 | Positional Finishes | — | — | — | — | |
| 5 calls · 1 miss · 4 waiting | 35.7 | 34.5 | ||||
Game calls show that game’s closing betting line under their grade: a dated fact from nflverse, for context and never part of a grade. MissedTakes takes no bets and earns nothing from any sportsbook.
How each call scored
a naive guessbetter than naive5 checkable claims — 4 positional finishes and 1 score prediction — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
It names 6 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
1 of 5 have settled so far, averaging 35.7 out of 100, against 34.5 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Of the 4 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the rest of the room on every one.
Each call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same calls; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.
Where this call stands in the room
Patrick Mahomes · 2026 season · positional finish3 calls from 3 pundits between 5 positional finish and 10 positional finish. Pat Fitzmaurice said 10 positional finish. the room's median is 5 positional finish. not settled yet
Every dot is a call somebody published on the same question. Where the dots land says where this take sits, not whether it is right — nothing here is settled yet. Hover a dot for the name and number; click it to read that take.
1Score PredictionsTampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 21 — Vikings 20
What happenedVikings 23–16called Buccaneers by 1 · lost by 735.71Miss · naive 34.4535.71this call−34.45a naive guess=1.26better than naive×1.89difficulty=+2.39skillClosing line (Sep 27): Vikings by 1.5, total 42.5 · this 21–20 calls a Buccaneers win (by 1; the line gave the Buccaneers 50%) and fewer points (41).
Think this is wrong?How this was scored
- score:
- 23-16
- skill:
- 2.39
- they picked:
- TB
- season:
- 2026
- accuracy:
- 35.71
- baseline:
- 34.45
- difficulty:
- 1.89
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- actual margin:
- 7
- weeks left when called:
- 16
- naive home margin:
- 0.47
- predicted margin:
- 1
2Positional FinishesTravis KelceKansas City Chiefs
Travis Kelce to finish top 8 at his position, by fantasy points
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
3Positional FinishesKenneth Walker III
Kenneth Walker III to finish top 4 at his position, by fantasy points
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
4Positional FinishesPatrick MahomesKansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes to finish top 10 at his position, by fantasy points
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
5Positional FinishesXavier WorthyKansas City Chiefs
Xavier Worthy to finish top 50 at his position, by fantasy points
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
The game in this take
every pundit’s pick on eachWho this take is about
Others on the same people
Gilberto Manzano · Trade and Signing Calls · Josh Downs · Hit 100
Previewing the trade deadline, he expects Justin Herbert to stay in Los Angeles despite the Chargers' 0–7 start, thinks the Jets will keep Garrett Wilson and pair him with their young weapons, expects a receiver-hungry Kansas City to be aggressive with Josh Downs the likeliest target, and suggests expiring Eagles contracts Moro Ojomo and Riq Woolen could be dealt for mid-round picks.Joshua Poniatowski · Trade and Signing Calls · Josh Downs · Hit 100
Poniatowski names several trade targets, predicting Malik Willis underperforms this week against New England, that Omarion Hampton could become a viable RB2 if Adam Gase takes over play-calling, that Josh Downs gets traded (ideally to Kansas City, where they'd be a top-24 WR), that Brian Thomas Jr. could be dealt to the Rams or 49ers, and that Travis Kelce remains a consistent weekly TE.Jordan Dajani · Trade and Signing Calls · Josh Downs · Hit 100
After reporting that Colts receiver Josh Downs requested a trade, they identify five clubs as plausible landing spots for them: the Rams, Patriots, Falcons, Chiefs and Raiders, and suggests Las Vegas could also give them a long-term extension.Mike Kadlick · Trade and Signing Calls · Josh Downs · Hit 100
Kadlick names the Chiefs, Patriots and 49ers as the three best trade landing spots for Colts wide receiver Josh Downs ahead of the Nov. 10 deadline.Brandon Carney · Trade and Signing Calls · Mike Evans · Miss 0
Carney predicts Geno Smith signs with the Vikings and starts for them, that at least four of the fringe veteran quarterbacks (Tua, Kyler, Cousins, Fields, Geno) will be starters next season, and that Mike Evans stays with Tampa Bay. They also rank their top fantasy wide receivers and comments on running back landing spots and trade values.
More positional finishes
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Nick Wright · Positional Finishes · Puka Nacua · Close 75
Nick Wright picked the Ravens to beat Houston this weekend even with Lamar Jackson possibly out (leaning on Derrick Henry and Cooper Rush), the Chiefs to win in Jacksonville, and the Rams to beat the 49ers on Thursday night. They also laid out an AFC playoff field of Bills, Steelers, Chiefs, Chargers and Colts, projected the Chiefs' receiver pecking order once Rashee Rice returns, and called Justin Jefferson the best receiver in football with Puka Nacua a top-five receiver.Rich Hribar · Positional Finishes · Matthew Stafford · Hit 100
Hribar published their 2023 fantasy football quarterback tiers, ordering 41 quarterbacks into eight tiers that reflect how they prioritize drafting the position, with Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes in the top tier as the trio most likely to finish as the overall QB1.Chris Brockman · Positional Finishes · Jaxon Smith-Njigba · Hit 100
Brockman argued Jaxon Smith-Njigba is already the best receiver in the NFL and deserves to be the highest paid, called their shot that three quarterbacks (Mendoza, Ty Simpson, Carson Beck) go in the first round with Mendoza first overall, and suggested New England is headed for a 7-10 season.Pat Gustavson · Positional Finishes · Bijan Robinson · Close 75
Gustafson picks the Patriots, Bills, Seahawks and Bears in the divisional round with a Seahawks-Patriots Super Bowl, predicts Mike Tomlin and Matt LaFleur stay, Aaron Rodgers returns to Pittsburgh, and lays out their own coaching landing spots.Rich Eisen · Positional Finishes · George Pickens · Hit 100
Eisen called the Rams-winning-it-all take an overreaction but expects Los Angeles to win the NFC West, said they don't see how Myles Garrett fails to win Defensive Player of the Year, and called George Pickens perhaps the third-best receiver in the NFL this season.