Squish (252)
e-roc (119)
Jeff (53)
Mal (45)
Tommy (45)
Ken (42)
Amir (37)
Tj (29)
With Jacksonville cooking up a deal to get quarterback Tyler Thigpen from the Chiefs, I thought it was interesting to note that in our league last year (passing TD’s worth 6 points), Thigpen was the 9th ranked quarterback at the end of the season. He was ahead of names like Tony Romo, Eli Manning, Matt Ryan and Brett Favre. It helped that he had a receiving touchdown, along with almost 400 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns I guess, but now he’s now the third string quarterback for Kansas City?!!! I guess fantasy stats don’t always translate to real life.
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Brandon
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Hits and Misses - Week 15: Time for an encore
Brandon
In most of my leagues, week 15 means we’re two games away from a 2008 fantasy football championship, so the hits and misses this week are magnified dramatically. In some twist of fate, neither of my best fantasy teams were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs this year, meaning I’m right there with you in using my own advice to get to the next round.
In terms of the action this weekend, it’s not usually my style to piggy back on a player (or players) who had a great game last week, but this weekend when Carolina hosts the Broncos, it’s too good to pass up. DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart had a game for the ages in week 14 and while I don’t expect an exact repeat performance, something close would be nice! Anyways, let’s jump into the hits and misses for the week, starting with the Panthers two-headed monster…
Hits
- DeAngelo Williams / Jonathan Stewart, RB, Panthers (vs DEN): The new heirs to the Smash & Dash nickname played out of this world last week, with both Williams and Stewart breaking the century mark and scoring two touchdowns each against a Tampa Bay defense that had only allowed one rushing touchdown all season! While I don’t expect a repeat of those touchdown numbers this weekend, even against a worse defense, it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see them run for 100 yards and a score each against a Broncos team that is giving up nearly five yards per carry and almost 140 rushing yards per game (and that includes some teams that are MUCH worse at running the ball than the Panthers.) I also need to mention that I recommended to a couple people that they start Jonathan Stewart over Pierre Thomas this week…so let’s hope steps it up and makes me look smart! (More …)
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Hits and Misses - Week 14: A-Pete ready to hand out early Christmas gifts
Brandon
After taking a break for the holidays (although I still put up a brief hit/miss post for Turkey Day), let’s get back into the action for what is most likely week one of the playoffs in many fantasy football leagues out there. This week we kick it off with a regular on the “Hit” list, Mr. Adrian Peterson, who has a great match-up against the Lions. Last time Purple Jesus played Detroit he rushed for 111 yards and fumbled twice…but this time I think it’ll be a little better…
Hits
- Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings (@ DET): If the Vikings can beat the Lions this weekend they are a near lock to make the playoffs. Because of this, and the fact that it’s the Lions, I have a feeling that Peterson is in for a big game. The Lions are allowing 177 rushing yards per contest, which is the worst in the NFL. They’re also allowing over five yards per carry on the ground and have given up about two touchdowns a game to opposing tailbacks. As I have Peterson in my most important league, I’m hoping that he can rush for those averages without the help of partner-in-crime, Chester Taylor, stealing his thunder. (More …)
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The Wire: Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 13, 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 (11.6% owned, Grab ‘n’ Stash) – Tim Hightower still has a hold on the “starter” designation, as well as the goal-line carries, but with the team passing the ball so much and Hightower running so ineffectively, it’s Arrington who could have the most value heading into the playoffs. If you’re a Hightower owner, you want Arrington on your roster for sure insurance if anything.
Maurice Morris, RB, Seahawks (15.7% owned, Desperation Pickup) – He had a big game on Sunday, but with a short week ahead it could be Julius Jones that gets the bulk of the carries. You should not be relying on a player like Morris to get you into the playoffs, but maybe you are… (More …)
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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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Week 11 Wrap-Up: So much for that awesome Ravens defense
Brandon
Going into this weekend, the Baltimore Ravens were holding opposing team’s running games to a ridiculous 2.9 yards per carry. One week and a brutal beating by the defending Superbowl champs later, that number is up to 3.4 as they were manhandled in the trenches by Brandon Jacobs and crew. Let’s look at more from that contest and the rest of the action from week 11…
- New York Giants 30, Baltimore 10: The G-Men continue to show that they’re the team to beat in the NFC as they hand out a pretty serious beatdown to one of the better teams in the AFC. The Ravens were the team that didn’t let up 100 yard rushers…and I guess they can take pride in the fact that none of the Giants running backs hit the century mark. However, if you combine the stats of the three-headed-monster that they employ in their backfield (Jacobs – 73 yards, 2 TD; Bradshaw – 96 yards; Ward – 41 yards), it’s pretty apparent that as a whole (210 yards!), New York was way too much for the Baltimore defense to handle. (More …)
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Hits and Misses - Week 11: Turner the Burner ready to blaze!
Brandon
Last week I came through with my second great feature pick of the season (I know, only two through ten weeks is a little embarassing!), as Vikings running back Adrian Peterson absolutely torched the Packers defense to the tune of 225 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. I ended up the week with a respectable 15-5-3* record, helped out by stellar, three-score games from Thomas Jones and Maurice Jones-Drew, along with a solid performance from Tony Gonzalez and a predictable, lackluster showing by Steve Slaton (could he be hitting the rookie wall?) Although the Jets passing game proved to be non-existant in their demolition of the Rams and Peyton Manning had a huge game against one of the better defenses in the league (ironically, his two best games this season against the Steelers and Ravens…go figure!), I still finished with some fairly good predictions and I hope to do the same this week. For week 11, my sure bet is for Michael Turner “The Burner” to have a big game against a less than average Broncos defense in Atlanta this weekend, so get him in your lineup!
* Hits-Misses-Pushes
Hits
- Michael Turner, RB, Falcons: I admit, I tried to come up with some clever saying here that some how involved the Broncos, Turner the Burner, and the game being a potential barn burner, but I couldn’t come up with some all that witty, so I ended up with the title you currently see on the post. Anyways though, continuing the trend (big games against bad defenses…poor games against good ones) that he has followed all season, you can expect big things from Turner this weekend as he takes on an Denver defense that is allowing 5.6 yards per carry. This should turn into a barn burner if all goes according to plan…and expect Turner to be right in the middle of the action. (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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Week 9 Weekend Wrap-Up: Halloween hang-over
Brandon
While I wish I could write about something super-exciting that happened this past weekend in the NFL, there just wasn’t a whole lot going on worthy of it. The most interesting thing to happen was probably the Chiefs near-victory over the heavily favored Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so we’ll start there…
- Tampa Bay 30, Kansas City 27: While the final outcome of this game was pretty predictable (TB beats KC), the score was no where near what we all expected. I’m not sure which stats are more interesting: 1) a non-quarterback for both teams (RB Earnest Graham for the Bucs, WR Mark Bradley for the Chiefs) threw a touchdown pass (with the Chiefs quarterback Tyler Thigpen catching the touchdown from Bradley) or one of the top run defenses in the league let up over 100 yards to a rookie (Jamaal Charles) who plays for the Chiefs. Anyways, in the end it doesn’t matter what the score was, as the Chiefs couldn’t find a way to stop the Jeff Garcia to Antonio Bryant (8 catches for 115 yards and a TD) connection all day long.
- New York Jets 26, Buffalo 17: I’m surprised that the Jets even won this game, considering the play of Brett Favre (201 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT.) Either way though, as a Patriots fan I can’t complain about how bad either of these teams look these days. Honestly, even though they’re the only team in the division without a winning record, the Dolphins are the team that scares me the most to challenge New England for the division crown. (More …)
