Squish (252)
e-roc (119)
Jeff (53)
Mal (45)
Tommy (45)
Ken (42)
Amir (37)
Tj (29)
Here are our waiver wire candidates for week fourteen. As usual, you’ll find players who are either [Startable], a [Stopgap] to get you past a BYE or injury, [Worth a look] and spot on your bench, or [One-week-wonder]s who don’t warrant a roster spot, so you make your roster moves accordingly. You’ll also see the percent owned in parenthesis. This week we start off with a few quarterbacks who’s play has improved dramatically over the next few weeks. Early in the season, did you ever imagine starting Alex Smith or Vince Young (or Bruce Gradkowski?) in the playoffs? Me neither.
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The Wire - Week 14: Who's Starting Vince Young in the Playoffs?
Brandon
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The Wire - Week 12: Bottom of the Barrel
Brandon
Here are our waiver wire candidates for week twelve. As usual, you’ll find players who are either [Startable], a [Stopgap] to get you past a BYE or injury, [Worth a look] and spot on your bench, or [One-week-wonder]s who don’t warrant a roster spot, so you make your roster moves accordingly. You’ll also see the percent owned (in Yahoo! leagues) in parenthesis. All I can say about the cast of characters on this week’s list is that hopefully you don’t have to rely on them too much…otherwise you’re in big trouble.
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Top Five at Five: Week 3
Matt
Kill me. Now. I was almost done with this post, and then an errant click on the back button wiped it out because I hadn’t thought to save it as a draft yet. Sigh.
The following are my top five picks for the week at the five positions I give a crap about – i.e., everything but the kicker.
Quarterback
- Drew Brees (@BUF) – He’s in a league of his own, and will occupy this position in the weekly rankings regardless of the matchup until I’m given a good reason to change my mind, which doesn’t seem likely to happen.
- Tony Romo (vs. CAR) – He’s the A-Rod of the NFL: He saves his biggest performances for the weakest opponents. (Oh, and he plays for the flashiest team in a shiny new stadium, has dalliances with pop singers, and is alternately exalted and skewered by both the local and national media.)
- Peyton Manning (@ARI) – Arizona’s been good against the pass so far, but their opponents (JAX and SF) don’t have aerial attacks anywhere close to the same class as Indy’s. This will almost surely be a shootout. Speaking of which…
- Kurt Warner (vs. IND) – If it’s a shootout you’re selling, Warner’s buying. If he wasn’t slightly bothered by a shoulder injury, I’d like him a little bit more than Manning this week.
- Tom Brady (vs. ATL) – Rust, the Jets, and Welker’s absence are all valid excuses. But one more off week and he won’t make this list again until he looks like the Brady we used to know. I’m guessing here that the recent Moss injury reports are just a Belichick game of some sort since he was fine all week.
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Brandon
Looks like Brady Quinn has won the Mangini Starting Quarterback Sweepstakes in Cleveland (not that anyone ever really thought Derek Anderson would be the starter anyways.) He still does not make a good play on your fantasy team though and should only be used as a backup QB if necessary.
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Brandon
It’s looks like Brady Quinn will be the starting quarterback in Cleveland this season and if he puts up another decent performance in week two of the preseason, you can almost guarantee it. I’ve already adjusted the quarterback rankings accordingly.
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Week 12 Wrap-Up: King of the Cassel
Brandon
Tom who? It’s amazing the job that Matt Cassel (415 passing yards, 4 TD – one rushing, INT) has done this year to keep the depression in New England over Tom Brady’s injury to a minimum. To his credit, the games are a bit more exciting now and as long as they still make the playoffs, you have to give him props for playing his ass off and earning the big contract that is sure to come his way in the off-season. Anyways, let’s dive into the action that took place this weekend, starting with the big Patriots victory over the Dolphins…
- New England 48, Miami 28: The second straight 400 passing yard performance from Cassel also paid dividends to the dynamic receiver duo, Randy Moss (8 catches for 125 yards, 3 TD) and Wes Welker (8 catches for 120 yards.) Over-shadowed by his team’s loss and the play of the opposing quarterback though, you can’t forget to mention the great effort from Chad Pennington (341 passing yards, 4 TD – one rushing, INT), who’s numbers were nearly as good. (More …)
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The Wire: Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 12, 2008
Brandon
Here’s a look at the players to target on your league’s waiver wire this week. This list is ordered by the percentage of ESPN leagues in which the player is available, but even if you’re not a ESPN user, it’s a decent indication of how likely you are to find the player on waivers in your league. We also note here how strongly we feel about this pickup with three categories: Instant Starter, Grab ‘n’ Stash, or Desperation Pickup.
J.J. Arrington, RB, Cardinals (1.8% owned, Grab ‘n’ Stash) – Rookie Tim Hightower just hasn’t gotten it done the past two weeks and we’re starting to wonder if he’s really starter-material. With Kurt Warner opening the field up dramatically with the passing game, Hightower should have all the room in the world to run the ball, but the numbers just aren’t there. On Sunday, J.J. Arrington was able to weasel some carries from Hightower (including a touchdown) and did fairly well with them. If Hightower continues to struggle, look for Arrington’s carries to increase steadily.
Deion Branch, WR, Seahawks (9.2% owned, Grab ‘n’ Stash) – Branch finally played another game this season…and survived! He ended up the game with over 50 yards and as he gets more playing time, he should get more comfortable in the offense and put up decent numbers down the home stretch. He’s probably not worth starting right away, but you might pick him up and hide him on your roster to see what he can do. (More …)
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The Wire: Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 11, 2008
Brandon
Here’s a look at the players to target on your league’s waiver wire this week. This list is ordered by the percentage of ESPN leagues in which the player is available; even if you’re not a ESPN user, it’s a decent indication of how likely you are to find the player on waivers in your league. We also note here how strongly we feel about this pickup with three categories: Instant Starter, Grab ‘n’ Stash, or Desperation Pickup.
Mark Bradley, WR, Chiefs (2.4% owned, Desperation Pickup) – Over the past three games Bradley has really developed some good chemistry with quarterback Tyler Thigpen (see below) to the tune of 18 receptions for nearly 190 yards and two scores. While you probably don’t want him starting for your team come playoffs time, he makes a decent injury fill-in until that point.
Tatum Bell, RB, Broncos (7.0% owned, Desperation Pickup) – With the team running out of options at tailback, the Broncos have signed Bell and with the injury to Selvin Young, he could see touches immediately. I still don’t like the Broncos running game though and wouldn’t recommend you use anyone wearing orange/blue/white in your RB1 or RB2 position at this point, but if you’re REALLY desperate… (More …)
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Week 10 Wrap-up: Keepin' up with the Jones'
Brandon
What a week 10, huh? The Jets and Ravens break the 40 point mark, Brady Quinn makes his big debut…and the Bills drop from first to last in the AFC East! The biggest achievements of the week though by far came from some of the league’s running backs, primarily Thomas Jones of the Jets, and Maurice Jones-Drew of the Jaguars, who both had three touchdown games. In addition to the Jones’, I think an honorable mention is also deserving of Adrian “All Day” Peterson, who broke the 200 yards from scrimmage mark in the Vikings exciting, last minute victory over the Packers. (By the way, all three running backs were on the Hit list this week!) Anyways, let’s jump into the action that took place in week 10…
- New York Jets 47, St. Louis 3: While I predicted a solid game from Thomas Jones, I was not prepared for what transpired Sunday afternoon when he dominated the Rams defense to the tune of 149 rushing yards and three touchdowns. What’s nearly as amazing as T-Jones’ performance was the fact that Brett Favre, Laveranues Coles nor Jericho Cotchery really contributed much of anything to this slaughter. Rookie tight end Dustin Keller had the biggest game of his short career with 107 yards receiving and a score, but the player who paid off the most for fantasy managers (besides Jones) was kicker Jay Feely, who had five extra points and four field goals, which equated to 21+ fantasy points in most leagues.
- Jacksonville 38, Detroit 14: My question is how many people started Maurice Jones-Drew this week? MJD has been extremely frustrating to own in fantasy football this season and has really only been worth playing three out of nine weeks the Jaguars have had a game so far (week 3, 6, 10…every third game actually…do I sense a big game in week 13 against the Texans?) So when he goes for 91 combined yards and three touchdowns, how many of you were screaming in joy? And how many in regret? In other news, Lions rookie running back Kevin Smith had a solid game with over 90 rushing yards and a score and is becoming a guy you can feel semi-confident starting as a RB2 or flex play against mediocre or worse defenses. Also, what is going on with Detroit’s quarterback situation? Nevermind…I just remembered that I don’t care. (More …)
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The Wire: Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 10, 2008
Brandon
Here’s a look at the players to target on your league’s waiver wire this week. This list is ordered by the percentage of ESPN leagues in which the player is available; even if you’re not a ESPN user, it’s a decent indication of how likely you are to find the player on waivers in your league. We also note here how strongly we feel about this pickup with three categories: Instant Starter, Grab ‘n’ Stash, or Desperation Pickup.
Sage Rosenfels, QB, Texans (1.3% owned, Instant Starter) – It looks like starter Matt Schaub will be out for at least a month, so if you were counting on him to lead you to the fantasy football playoffs, you might want to rethink your strategy. Rosenfels will fill in for Schaub in the meantime and while he’s prone to turn the ball over every once in a while, he’ll still put up decent fantasy stats for your team in this pass-happy offense.
Jamaal Charles, RB, Chiefs (8.6% owned, Grab ‘n’ Stash) – With Larry Johnson already out, the Chiefs also lost backup Kolby Smith for the season with a knee injury. This means that Mr. Charles and his 106 yard effort on Sunday will be the starter for the rest of the season (or until he also gets hurt.) He still plays for the Chiefs though, so I wouldn’t be too eager to jam him into your lineup right away! (More …)
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Tight end Kellen Winslow suspended one game
Brandon
In case you hadn’t heard, Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow has been suspended for one game after making critical comments towards the team regarding how they handled his injury/illness two weeks ago. For those of you who took Winslow in the draft (I did in multiple leagues!) hoping he could repeat his stats from last year, you’ve been rewarded with nothing but headaches so far…and I don’t expect it to get a whole lot better anytime soon. The offense has dropped off dramatically since last season and it seems the team is reaching the end of the rope with Winslow as he was apparently on the trading block before the deadline, but they couldn’t get enough in return to warrant a trade. While I can’t recommend dropping Winslow from your squad (he’s got too much talent…and maybe Brady Quinn will take a liking to him if/when he gets to start), I CAN sympathize with you and pray that he can get back on track come fantasy football playoffs time!
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Mid-season keeper league prospects
Brandon
Now that we’ve completed five weeks of the season, there are probably a few of you in keeper leagues who are nearing the point where you already chalk this season up as a loss and move on to preparation for next year. Maybe your team of Jon Kitna, Ocho Cinco, Ryan Grant and Braylon Edwards just isn’t doing it for you (and there’s not a whole lot of reason your luck is going to change anytime soon!) Anyways, as we get closer and closer to the fantasy trade deadline (if your league has one) or the point where teams start clinching the playoffs, it might be time to start considering some names that you’ll want on your roster come next season, so here we go…
(Note: I didn’t include players such as Chris Johnson, Steve Slaton, or Matt Forte, who are already contributing in a big way for their teams and are almost guaranteed to be on a fantasy roster already this year…but by all means you’ll want to keep them too!)
Running Backs
- Felix Jones, Cowboys: I’ll admit, if you’re in a keeper league where everyone is not completely brain-dead, Jones is probably already on a fantasy roster. However, that shouldn’t prevent you from trying to pry him from the unsuspecting grasp of an owner who is focused on winning this year. Jones looks like the real deal and as he’s averaging 9.0 yards per carry at this point, there’s no way the Cowboys can have him riding the pine as much as he has, even with Marion Barber on the team. Next season the team will probably name Barber the starter again, but I expect a pretty even split in the number of carries and they should both put up serviceable fantasy numbers. (More …)
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The Wire: Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 5, 2008
Brandon
Here’s a look at the players to target on your league’s waiver wire this week. This list is ordered by the percentage of ESPN leagues in which the player is available; even if you’re not a ESPN user, it’s a decent indication of how likely you are to find the player on waivers in your league. We also note here how strongly we feel about this pickup with three categories: Instant Starter, Grab ‘n’ Stash, or Desperation Pickup.
Mewelde Moore, RB, Steelers (0.6% owned, Desperation Pickup) – With Willie Parker already out with an injury, the Steelers lost backup Rashard Mendenhall for the season with a fractured shoulder in Monday’s game. Mewelde Moore will most likely become the backup to Parker, but if Fast Willie is to miss another game or two with his knee injury, Moore would get the start. Keep in mind though that running back Carey Davis was splitting carries with Moore after Mendenhall went out with the injury, so it could become a committee situation.
Lance Moore, WR, Saints (1.5% owned, Instant Starter) – I guess he should have made the list last week after seven receptions, but now he’s for real (at least until Marques Colston makes his return.) With seven more receptions, 101 yards and two touchdowns, it appears he’s Brees’ favorite target for the time being…and should be on your roster if possible. (More …)
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Giants pound the Browns, 37-34
Brandon
Alright, so maybe the score doesn’t show that the Giants pounded the Browns, but if you watched the first quarter and a half, it was definitely a lopsided match. With all the “starters” in (I use the term loosely because the Giants were missing Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer and Steve Smith, while Cleveland was without Braylon Edwards), Eli Manning showed that maybe the Superbowl victory was no fluke as he bombed two touchdown passes to receiver Domenik Hixon in the first quarter. Hixon, a third year receiver out of Akron who had only one reception for a measly five yards all of last season, looked like a Pro Bowl player in this one (4 catches for 63 yards and 2 TD), dragging his feet in the endzone on both touchdown grabs and also torching the Browns special teams for a kick off return touchdown. Even with the great game, at this point it doesn’t appear that Hixon will be a relevant fantasy player this year…but if injury strikes one of the top three receives on the team, keep his name in mind as a possible late season sleeper. (More …)
