Pat Fitzmaurice#8 of 87 NFL pundits · Sep 4, 2026
Fitzmaurice plants their flag on Bucky Irving, Blake Corum and Brock Bowers for 2026, arguing Irving is being wrongly faded, Corum is a cheap high-upside handcuff behind Kyren Williams, and Bowers is worth a late-second-round price.
Published in writing · FantasyProsRead the original
What Pat Fitzmaurice said
our reading, beside the words we read it fromIt seems like everyone in the fantasy community is fading Bucky Irving, but I'm buying.
- Where it was published
- FantasyPros
- The piece
- 9 Fantasy Football Must-Have Picks: Flag Plants for 2026
- The original
- Read the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- 1Blake Corum to be 2nd on the depth chart“At worst, he'll spend the season backing up Kyren Williams in what should be an outstanding Rams offense.”
- 2Blake Corum to outplay his draft cost (his current ADP of RB34 and 96th overall)“Even so, a down 2026 season would qualify as only a small miss at his current ADP of RB34 and 96th overall... making Corum a bet worth taking.”
- 3Brock Bowers to outplay his draft cost (anywhere in the back half of the second round in 12-team drafts)“I think tight end is worth paying up for this year, and I'm willing to take Brock Bowers anywhere in the back half of the second round in 12-team drafts.”
Box score
HitCloseMissWaiting| Verdict | Call | Kind | What happened | Score | Naive | Skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blake Corum to be 2nd on the depth chart1 | Depth Chart Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Blake Corum to outplay his draft cost (his current ADP of RB34 and 96th overall)2 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Brock Bowers to outplay his draft cost (anywhere in the back half of the second round in 12-team drafts)3 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| 3 calls · 3 waiting | — | — | ||||
How each call scored
3 checkable claims — 2 sleeper calls and 1 depth chart call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
It names 4 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room.
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
Blake Corum · 2026 season11 calls from 10 pundits between 2 and 2. Pat Fitzmaurice said 2. the room's median is 2. 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.
Their call against the room
Their call against everyone else's, while this is still unsettled.
1Depth Chart CallsBlake CorumLos Angeles Rams
Blake Corum to be 2nd on the depth chart
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
2Sleeper CallsBlake CorumLos Angeles Rams
Blake Corum to outplay his draft cost (his current ADP of RB34 and 96th overall)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
3Sleeper CallsBrock BowersLas Vegas Raiders
Brock Bowers to outplay his draft cost (anywhere in the back half of the second round in 12-team drafts)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Who this take is about
Others on the same people
Colin Cowherd · Trade and Signing Calls · Matthew Stafford · Hit 100
Cowherd predicts Matt Stafford stays with the Rams rather than moving on, and says Travis Hunter may underachieve because they're being asked to play both ways — Cowherd doubts they're a No. 1 receiver and would slot them as a No. 2 receiver while being a No. 1 corner.Colin Cowherd · Trade and Signing Calls · Matthew Stafford · Hit 100
Cowherd believes Matt Stafford's public negotiation posturing means he ultimately stays in Los Angeles, and he flags Travis Hunter as a high draft pick who could underachieve because trying to play both cornerback and receiver full-time will hurt him.Chris Simms · Score Predictions · Los Angeles Rams · Hit 93
Simms gave a predicted final score for every Week 9 game, picking the Bengals, Chiefs, Broncos, Lions, Giants, Rams, Cowboys, Saints, 49ers, Patriots, Seahawks, Texans, Bears and Bills, and also said they wouldn't be shocked to see Jacksonville reach the AFC Championship Game.Connor Rogers · Game Outcome Picks · Los Angeles Rams · Hit 100
Rogers picked straight-up winners in every Week 9 game, agreeing with Simms on all of them, and gave a 24-20 Bills score over the Vikings on Monday night.
More sleeper calls
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Derek Brown · Sleeper Calls · Travis Hunter · Hit 100
Derek Brown ("Debro") laid out a slate of wide receiver breakouts — Ricky Pearsall, Jalen Coker, Egbuka, Jalen Waddle, Joshua Palmer, George Pickens, DeVonta Smith and Travis Hunter — while fading Xavier Worthy, Tyreek Hill and the cheap Cleveland/late-round types, and gave their own rankings well ahead of ADP for several of them.Chris Welsh · Sleeper Calls · Tyler Warren · Hit 100
Welsh drafted Christian McCaffrey, Breece Hall, RJ Harvey, Tetairoa McMillan, Travis Hunter, the Rams and Saints receivers, Justin Fields (a top-10 QB), Drake Maye (QB10-14), Travis Kelce and Tyler Warren, while passing on Joe Mixon, the Commanders backfield, Tyreek Hill, Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy.Joe Pisapia · Sleeper Calls · Tyreek Hill · Miss 0
Joey P (Joe Pisapia) played draft-or-pass on 2025 fantasy values: they passed on Christian McCaffrey at pick 7, Breece Hall, Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, Travis Hunter and Chris Olave, while drafting RJ Harvey, Tyreek Hill, Tetairoa McMillan, Puka Nacua, Tyler Warren and a late-round Joe Mixon.