Real Fantasy

Who Will LaDainian Tomlinson Play For Next Year?

Wed, 24 Feb, 2010 08:23:32 GMT

The Chargers did the predictable and released the aging running back, LaDainian Tomlinson, earlier this week. Tomlinson's stats have been decreasing over the last few years as he has been fighting off foot injuries. However, the NFL would be foolish to believe that his days of impact are over. The fact of the matter is LT still has big play ability and would be a solid option at runningback for most teams in the NFL. The question is, who is going to land this solid back in 2010?

New England Patriots: The Patriots seem to be in the same breath of every veteran on the market. It seems like the Pats are always trying to give some lonely fingers one more chance at a ring. The fact is, LT would not have too heavy of a responsibility if he was in the same offense as Tom Brady and Randy Moss, and the Patriots would give him as good of a shot as any at finally hoisting that Lombardi trophy before his career passes him by.

Houston Texans: The Texans proved that they can throw the ball all day and that Andre Johnson is a stud, but they lost a lot of games in the final grinding seconds of the game. The reason is, because they did not have a solid running game to fall back on, their offense was too easy to figure out. Tomlinson would give them the variable that would make their offense more of a threat.

Green Bay Packers: This is a stretch, but it is essentially the NFC version of the Patriots idea. The Packers are not afraid of a crowded backfield, because they don't really need a backfield. While Tomlinson would rest easy knowing he is giving himself a good shot at playing Dallas for his last game. The problem is, Tomlinson would definitely not be the feature back in Green Bay and would have to be content sharing carries with Ryan Grant. If everyone can have peace with that, than maybe the Packers make sense for #21.

Brett Favre Coming Back Next Season?

Wed, 10 Feb, 2010 02:27:21 GMT

I know I know, it is way too early to even start asking these questions. We probably won't find out about Favre's status before week 6 of next year. However, a recent personal encounter leads me to believe that Favre may be coming back next year to play out the last half of his 2-year contract with the Vikings.

A friend of mine spent the weekend at a conference where he interacted with a close friend of Mike Holmgren's. Coach Holmgren, as we all know, was an old coach of Favres and remains a close friend to the aging quarterback.

It was reported that Favre and Holmgren were in close contact during the decisive days of his comeback signing with the Vikings last year. Anyways, Holmgren apparently told this friend of his that Favre is planning on coming back this year. This information made its way all the way back to me through my friend.

So there it is, the spreading disease of word of mouth. Whether or not it is valid or reliable is up to you. Here are some other factors to consider while you weigh whether or not you believe the Vikings will have #4 under center next year.

Pros

The Vikings need Favre back next year in order to be a contender at all within the next decade. As soon as the Vikings are at square one again at the quarterback position, their whole team might as well reset. However, if Favre comes back next year, the Vikings have one more year to build on the obvious chemistry Favre had with the Vikings offense, and one more year to put off and all together ignore Adrian Peterson's fumbling problem. The Vikings would obviously be in a group of favorites for next years playoffs if Favre returned. While Favre would give himself yet one more chance to go out on top, and put more legend behind the name that will be in Canton the second he steps away from the game for good.

Cons

The Vikings need to find a young quarterback to build their team on. It is becoming more and more obvious that they won't be able to build on Adrian Peterson. While the talented receiving corps provides a great learning ground for a young gun to come in and build up confidence. If Favre were to stay away from the game, he would be walking away on the top of his career, albeit not the top of the NFL. Favre had one of his personal best years ever, and it would be hard to top such an effort. He would be able to eventually find a personal peace with how the season played out, even though he yet again sealed his teams defeat with a final throw of the season resulting in an interception. Favre walking away now gives himself credibility and the Vikings an immediate future to start building.

Tim Tebow's Fantasy Stock Rising In Spite Of Focus On The Family

Mon, 8 Feb, 2010 09:41:56 GMT

The day after the Super Bowl may as well be doomsday for every NFL fan. For all we care, the world is over. Another 7 months till we can even think about watching an NFL game. However, if you are a true NFL fan, you have your sights set much closer; on the NFL draft in April. This is the time when you can find out if your team will finally have a chance, or if those morons in the front office are going to select yet ANOTHER running back they are going to release in 3 years. One of the most talked about players this year will no doubt be Tim Tebow. If you had an ear to the world at all this past week, you probably heard about the "PR Crisis" that was to be Tebow's commercial with his mom making an anit-abortion stand. Would this cause teams to shy away from taking Tebow? Would the potential for a church boy in the locker room put the so-called ax in every GM's hand? Well, the commercial came and went and we were all left scratching our heads wondering what all the fuss was about. Cheesy? Yes. Offensive to extreme left-wingers? not even close. So now that the "media risk" is cleared from Tebow's name, what other risks are looking a littler more sunny and giving 'ol Timmy a shot at a high draft pick and a promising start on your fantasy roster?

1. Improved Mechanics

Like any other rookie quarterback, scouts are over analyzing the heck out of Tebow's throwing mechanics, especially his long throwing motion which leads to a slow release. The good news is though, Tebow is getting better. After working with coaches during Senior Bowl practices, scouts say that Tebow's throw is looking better. If he can quicken up that release, that alone will make him a much more valuable asset. D-backs won't have near the field day they were planning on, and rolling out that big athletic body outside of the pocket will not lead to the disaster it make have earlier with the blazing athleticism of NFL linebackers.

2. Indestructible Frame

Coaches hate watching their prized quarterbacks take off down field. The threat of an easy fumble, or worse, a season ending injury is always on the mind of anyone wearing a headset. Tebow could be different though. At 6'3" and 240 pounds, it is as if he was bio-genetically engineered to be a quarterback. We all know that he won't have a problem seeing over the line (Not that that is a valid excuse anymore, thank you Drew Brees). However, the most notable part of his build is the fact that he has the body to absorb a few hits. Think Daunte Culpepper, only good. Tebow will be able to take those hard knocks that are promised for all rookies, and be able to get back up and keep on learning.

3. You Can't Teach Leadership

As much as I hate Phillip Rivers (I'm not going to take the time to emphasize the meaning of that word "hate") no one can deny his ability to lead a team. The emotion and fire he plays with is unmatched. I believe Tim Tebow is coming out of the gates with that kind of potential. He has the ability to draw from his emotion and make plays while inspiring his teammates to do the same thing. Even though we can all have a good laugh at the tears he shed during the Alabama game, we certainly can't question his desire. Coaches will definitely weigh the pros of that kind of leadership under center for their team.

So with all of that in mind, keep Tebow on your radar for upcoming fantasy leagues. If you are apart of a dynasty league, it definitely would not hurt to have taken Tebow in a prospect draft. If you are in just regular single season leagues, keep an eye on the free agency pool early. Tebow might be bound for more success than we have been imagining up to this point.

Super Bowl Quarterback Breakdown: Peyton Manning & Drew Brees

Tue, 2 Feb, 2010 02:18:16 GMT

Beyond the storyline of the two #1 seeds facing off in the Super Bowl, there is also the underlying power of two of the leagues top quarterbacks in Peyton Manning and Drew Brees. The comparison of their stats will be over-analyzed all week, but at the end of the game on Sunday, nothing will be of more importance.

Peyton Manning: The Leagues reigning MVP is more than worthy of the award. Manning is making a case for being considered the best quarterback to ever step between the hash-marks. The key factor that sets Manning apart from every quarterback to ever play the game is his mind. As fans, we have been entertained by Manning barking out signals and audibles every time he steps under center. However, the fact of the matter is, Manning is an absolute terrorist to every defense in the NFL. It is almost as if after a the first half, he knows his opponents defensive scheme better than they do. This makes Manning a second half quarterback, and the Saints will be well aware of that on Sunday. No matter how well the defense plays in the first half on Sunday, they will have to alter their scheme for the second half in order to prevent Manning from tearing them apart; flaw by tiny flaw.

Drew Brees: Without sounding like a Judd Apatow film, there is something very big about Drew Brees, and it isn't his stature. Standing only 6 feet tall, Brees has a rocket-launcher hanging from his right shoulder. Every time Brees takes a 5-step drop, Chris Berman starts drooling at the highlight possibilities. Brees has had more success taking shots down field over the past 5 years than any other quarterback. Even though his receivers might not sell a lot of jerseys from the pro shop, Brees still knows how to make them look good. Any safety has the potential to fall into the trap that Brees sets by looking them off short. This story will be no different on Sunday. Not to sell Brees short game short, but if the Saints are to win on Sunday, it will be on the wave of a few 40-plus yard passing plays. Brees will need to be spot on all day in this case in order to keep up with Manning this Sunday.

Edge: Peyton Manning. No matter how good of a season Brees and the Saints have had this season, the "Who Dat?" cheers will stop here. After Sunday, Manning will leave no question unanswered.

The Pro Bowl Sucks

Sun, 31 Jan, 2010 03:24:38 GMT

I am not going to sit here and say that all the other sports have better all star games than the NFL does, because they don't. The idea of an all star game sounds cool, except for the minor fact that no one cares.

Fans of the NFL don't care because their favorite team will not be affected by the outcome of the game. The players don't care because their career is already basically set once they have made it to a pro bowl.

Now the NFL proved they don't care after they switched the game to a week before the Super Bowl, basically stating that the Pro Bowl wasn't worth making America's most popular sport one week longer. The fact is though, the Pro Bowl is a tradition that will never go away and will continue to make the rich man richer.

With the Pro Bowl happening a week before the Super Bowl, it has essentially defeated it's own purpose. Let's break this down, shall we?

The Pro Bowl is a game consisting of the NFL's best players. In order to be considered one of the best players in the NFL, you have to win games. With that in mind, it could be said that the best players will win the most games during the season. So the two teams who win the most games in the season and make it to the Super Bowl would consist of the best players. However, if these players knew that the most important game of their lives was in one week, they would be crazy to engage in an exhibition, full contact game. The NFL knows this, the fans know it, I know it, You know it, My 18-year old sister who can't even spell N-F-L knows it. So therefore, the NFL has knowingly robbed its all-star game of its best players.

So how can the Pro Bowl be improved? Make it mean something, put pride on the line. Go back to the old format of the NFL all-star team (not the AFC or the NFC) playing against the Super Bowl winners. This means that the Super Bowl winners are out to prove that they are worthy of "Dynasty Status" and the all-stars would be trying to prove that their respective teams have a shot at being there next year. Plus, who wouldn't want to watch Peyton Manning destroy the entire NFL Secondary at once, just because he can...

Lost Theories Trying To Explain The Questions With Answers

Thu, 28 Jan, 2010 12:54:22 GMT

So, the fantasy football season is essentially over. I'll have to wait until NFL draft rumors kick in until I can start being wrong again. The NBA still tastes blah and as long as UNC is unranked, college basketball just breaks my heart. However, there is one thing coming up that should peak everyones interests, sports fan or not...the final season premiere of the TV phenomenon Lost. I am as devoted a fan as anybody, so I thought I would continue my streak of wrong and take a few stabs at what the final season will have in store for us.

Who Is The Man In Black?

At the end of season 5, we saw Jacob (wearing a white shirt) sitting on a beach talking to a man wearing a black shirt. This man in black is apparently Jacob's nemesis as most people have come to realize. I would guess that this Man in Black (MIB) is also the black smoke monster as well as all of the dead people we have seen on the island (Walt, Christian Shepherd, Crazy Dave, and now John Locke). This would appear that everything on the island has been manipulated by MIB in order to eventually kill Jacob via John Locke. Season 6 will hopefully include the Islands inhabitants realizing that they have all been played as pawns in this game between two gods. The question is, why did Jacob apparently bring these specific individuals to the island. Because as we saw in the last episodes of season 5, Jacob interacted with a lot of the main characters before they came to the island and was apparently trying to control fate and bring them to the island, only to have one of them kill him. John Locke (Possessed by MIB). Speaking of the gods taking human form, is there a chance that Richard...is actually Jacob in a different human form?

Why does time not make sense on the Island?

From time travel to the helicopter leaving the island in season 4 and arriving on the freight ship 30 minutes later, and yet on the Island it seems like a full day. Nothing on the Island makes sense with time. Most of this can be attributed to "The Incident" and the weird magnetic flow on the Island. Still though, why is it that time is what is affected? People like Charles Widmore and those associated with him apparently know something is different about the Island, ergo the Dharma project. There is also the case of Desmond, how could he see Charlie's death before it happened and why was he switching back and forth between present time and his past life when he was on the freight? Whatever it is that is in the Island that causes it to travel time must be connected to Jacob and his nemesis somehow, it is just hard to tell how it is going to be explained.

Did the atomic bomb really go off?

The last thing we saw on Lost was Juliet detonating the atomic bomb by hitting it with a rock. The bomb apparently went off as the screen flashed to white and the black lettering of "Lost" popped up (inverted from the usual black background and white lettering). The real question is, the bomb actually go off? If it did, did it in-fact reset all of the events that happened that led to Jack and company coming to the Island? However, if it was Jacob who brought everyone to the Island (or his nemesis) won't they just find another way to bring everyone together? Chances are the bomb did go off, and we are going to see Jacob and his nemesis work around that event which will hopefully explain more of who they are and what they are doing on the island. And why that statue with 4 toes was ever on the Island...

4 8 15 16 23 42

NFL Playoff Picks 2010: Ravens At Colts, Cardinals At Saints

Sat, 16 Jan, 2010 07:57:44 GMT

Baltimore Ravens @ Indianapolis Colts

Peyton Manning will need to stay at the top of his MVP season to secure a win against the Ravens this week. Ray Lewis and the daunting Ravens defense were outrageous last week and I would expect them to be just as good this week. Joe Flaaco was far from special, but with Ray Rice carrying the offense, there was no need for anything else. I think this game will come down to experience though, and that is where I think the Colts will shine. It will be a close, hard fought battle. However, in the end, The Colts will take away the win 30-26.

Arizona Cardinals @ New Orleans Saints

The Cardinals put up a ridiculous amount of points last week against the Packers. Unfortunately, the Packers nearly put up the same amount of points. If it wasn't for a last second fumble return for a touchdown, the Cardinals may have had one of the biggest meltdowns in recent playoff memory. The thing is, the Saints defense will play better than the Packers defense did last week. However, Kurt Warner might play just as well. This whole game will come down to the quarterbacks then. I think Warner is too hot to handle and the Saints have just been skidding too much last time we saw them. So here it is, a huge upset, and I am calling it. Cards steal it 42-35

2009 NFL Fantasy Football Awards

Wed, 13 Jan, 2010 08:38:41 GMT

We all know how the NFL chose to award it's players. Peyton Manning took home the MVP, Percy Harvin was the Offensive Rookie of the Year, and on and on. However, the world of Fantasy Football is sometimes farther from the gridiron than we realize. Because we care more about touchdowns and multiples of tens than we care about that players record at the end of the year. So, without further ado, I present to you the Real Fantasy 2009 NFL Fantasy Football Awards!

MVP: Aaron Rodgers

Lucky for us, most of our seasons were over before last weeks season killing fumble. Because that would have been at least -2 points for our team. However, Rodgers was more than consistent for the whole year. 30 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions meant that Rodgers was always giving more points than he was taking away. The 4,434 yards were also nice averaging out to 277 yards per game. Obviously he went over 300 in more than a few games which always equaled out to a nice bonus for his owners. The real clinching stat for Rodgers MVP award was his quarterback-leading 5 rushing touchdowns. Rodgers versatility provided multiple ways of point scoring all year for him as well as those in fantasy leagues who hit the jackpot with this young signal caller.

Defense of the Year: New Orleans Saints

Now granted, they did not necessarily allow the fewest amount of points, and we all know Drew Brees won the Saints their #1 seed, not the stifling D. However, the Saints D racked up a ton of points. This fantasy defense scored a whopping 8 touchdowns this year. The number of turnovers was also off the charts. The Saints finished the season with 26 interceptions and 13 fumble recoveries. They also did a decent job at getting to the quarterback with 35.0 sacks. So in review, the Saints D maybe didn't win New Orleans any games, but there were plenty of weeks where they saved the team that owned them from slumping offensive stars.

Individual Defensive Player of the Year: Patrick Willis

Willis had a groundbreaking year for all IDPs. His outrageous amount of fantasy points made him a viable draft option over even some mid-grade offensive players. Willis made his fantasy paycheck from his consistent amount of tackles. He racked up 114 solo and 38 assisted. Willis's nose for the ball kept him in every play, and every play usually led to more points for those who owned him.

Quarterback of the Year: Aaron Rodgers

See "MVP" above

Runningback of the Year: Chris Johnson

This is an absolute no brainier. His 16 total touchdowns can make about anyone jealous, but the real story here is of course the amount of rushing yards he racked up. Joining the 2,000 yard club, Johnson forever immortalized his name in the NFL history books. While no one was more thankful for his records than those who chose to draft him back in August.

Receiver of the Year: Andre Johnson

What made Johnson so good this year was the fact that there really wasn't anyone else for quarterback Matt Shaub to throw to. Johnson was targeted constantly and his sure hands never failed those which threw to him. Johnson went crazy on yards, totaling 1,569 during this season. He got all of that on 101 catches which led to 9 touchdowns for #80. Even with the injuries that seemed to nag him all year, Johnson still shone bright and rewarded all of those who took a chance on him.

Sleeper of the Year: Brett Favre

Oh it pains me to say this, but if we all remember Favre's status during the time when fantasy drafts were happening, his stats have been nothing short of shocking. I was on the Favre-hating bandwagon, and to be fair I am still on that bandwagon. Except now I have to bow to the fact that his reward this year for those who drafted him was something I never saw coming. By crossing over the Wisconsin/Minnesota border, Favre somehow turned into one of the NFL's most accurate passers this year. Throwing only 7 interceptions compared to 33 touchdowns. He was also almost always good for more than 250 yards a game because teams had a hard time shutting him down. This is due to the fact that he made all-stars out of guys like Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin. Favre became the Vikings main offensive threat, and for a team that boasts Adrian Peterson, that makes him some a heck of a threat, on the field or the computer.

Bust of the Year: Brian Westbrook

Now before you jump down my throat, be aware that I do feel sorry for Westbrook. Watching any athlete lose his season to injuries is never something to feel good about. However, Westbrook was a top 5 pick in most drafts, and he scored 2 touchdowns this year. He rushed for under 300 yards and caught for even less. The Eagles offense moved past Westbrook and on to guys like Desean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Lesean McCoy. With Westbrook being basically worked out of the Offense this year, this season should make fantasy owners wary about drafting him in any future leagues. Unfortunately, it would appear that the Westbrook era in Philly has come to an end on a very unimpressive season.

Maybe NFL Players Don't Get Paid Enough

Tue, 12 Jan, 2010 02:14:27 GMT

With all of the money professional athletes make in modern day sports, you probably just clicked on this article in sheer disbelief, but hold on baby birds...I'll feed you. The question is not a matter of if they can survive off of what they get paid, but rather if they get paid in a fair proportion for how much money they make the team they play for. Sure the kid bagging groceries only makes $8.50 an hour, but how much money is the grocery store really making from his "Paper or plastic?". Meanwhile, guys like Eli Manning and Julius Peppers are making over 15 million a year, but they are also working for multi-billion dollar franchises who have to make their money somewhere.
The average team can make up to about 10 million dollars during one home game. To save you some time, I crunched the numbers my self. Since paid NFL players will usually play 60 minutes in a game, that comes out to the team making $2,777.78 a second during the game. Now lets consider a franchise player like the Carolina Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers. Peppers made the most money playing in the 2009 season, making a cool 16.683 million dollars. Again, allow me to go on a bit of a math binge. That means that Peppers, the highest paid player for the season, made $1,042,687 a game. Which comes out to "only" $289.64 a second during the games (keeping in mind that most NFL players will practice 4-5 days a week as well).
Again, I am not going to sit here and say that we should pity the NFL players or vouch for them to be paid anymore. However, I think we should think twice before we complain about how much money they are making. If we really hated their salaries so much, then we would quit signing their paycheck by buying that ticket or turning on that TV every Sunday. The NFL is a money making business, and one that has continued to thrive in this struggling economy of ours. So my suggestions to the common man? Instead of Cash for Clunkers or Health Care plans, we need to tell President Barack Obama to start funding expansion teams in the NFL. It is the only investment that won't leave you heart broken, unless you are a Broncos fan...

Texas Tops Kansas As NCAA Basketball #1

Mon, 11 Jan, 2010 06:51:38 GMT

After #15 Tennessee shocked and upset then #1 Kansas on Sunday, the AP and Coaches poll has a different flavor to it. The two remaining undefeated teams in D1 NCAA Basketball known as Texas and Kentucky lead the rest of the pack respectively. The rest of the AP poll goes as follows:
1. Texas
2. Kentucky
3. Texas
4. Villanova
5. Syracuse
6. Purdue
7. Michigan St.
8. Duke
9. Tennessee
10. West Virginia
11. Georgetown
12. North Carolina
13. Kansas State
14. Wisconsin
15. Connecticut
16. Pittsburgh
17. Gonzaga
18. Brigham Young
19. Temple
20. Georgia Tech
21. Mississippi
22. Baylor
23. Miami (FL)
24. Clemson
25. Florida State

Ravens Fast Start Runs Over The Patriots

Mon, 11 Jan, 2010 03:43:29 GMT

Final Score: Baltimore Ravens- 33 New England Patriots- 14

Why The Ravens Won
Rushing attack. How does a team win a playoff game when their quarterback goes 4 for 10 with only 34 yards, an interception and a 10.0 passer rating? Have 4 rushing touchdowns by three different runners. Ray Rice did not get touched racking up 159 yards with a 7.2 yards per carry average and a pair of touchdowns. While Willis McGahee and LeRon McClain also played their parts. The Ravens had a perfect game plan for the Patriots and sent them home for another year.

Why The Patriots Lost
Tom Brady. The all-pro, future hall of fame quarterback will have a hard time digesting this loss. Throwing for 3 picks and only 2 touchdowns. Brady was out of sync all day. He never threw a touchdown to his favorite receiver, Randy Moss, and he only averaged 3.7 yards per pass. A 49.1 passer rating is bad for Brady on any day, but today it was bad enough to end the Patriots season.

Cardinals Out Score Packers In Overtime Game

Mon, 11 Jan, 2010 01:38:44 GMT

Final Score: Cardinals- 51 Packers- 45

Why The Cardinals Won
Kurt Warner. Completing 29 out of 33 passes for 379 yards and 5 touchdowns, Warner's 154.1 passer rating was a nightmare for the Packers all day. Warner never seemed out of his groove, even with the Packers storming back in the 4th quarter, Warner kept his cool. Sources recently said that Warner is looking to retire after these playoffs. If that is true, then he is opting to go out in the best possible fashion.

Why The Packers Lost
Failure to control the clock. The Packers offense was almost as untouchable as the Cardinal's offense. The problem was, the Packers did not take advantage of how good Ryan Grant was running. Instead, they got into a shoot out with the Cardinals and let them have the ball just as much as they did. With Grant averaging over 5 yards a carry, he should have had more than 11 touches. That, along with the 3 turnovers inevitably doomed the Packers in the end.

Poor Defense Dooms Eagles As Cowboys Coast To Easy Win

Sun, 10 Jan, 2010 06:42:56 GMT

Final Score: Dallas Cowboys- 34 Philadelphia Eagles- 14

Why the Cowboys won:
Stellar Offense. The Cowboys simply could not be stopped on any level. Romo was spot on for 244 yards and 2 touchdowns. Meanwhile the running game was in cruise control all day. Felix Jones led the pack with 148 yards and a touchdown while Tashard Choice tacked on another six. 8 different Cowboys caught a pass which had the Eagles secondary spinning the whole game. The Cowboys defense was also able to cause 4 turnovers which kept the Eagles offensive attack ice cold.

Why the Eagles lost:
Mental errors. Turning the ball over 4 times and the secondary tripping all over themselves led to Andy Reid's first Wild Card lost. All though quarterback Donovan McNabb played a solid game, and Michael Vick contributed with a big 76 yard touchdown pass, the Eagles offense could never establish something consistent enough to get them in the game. Jeremy Maclin did have a good day for the Eagles though, with 146 yards on 7 catches for a touchdown. It just couldn't be enough to give the Eagles a prayer in this game though.

Jets Strong Rushing Attack Overwhelms Bengals In Wild Card Win

Sun, 10 Jan, 2010 06:14:32 GMT

Final Score: New York Jets- 24 Cincinnati Bengals- 14

Why the Jets won:
Running backs. Starting back Thomas Jones and backup Shonn Greene had a touchdown each. While Greene amassed 135 yards on 21 carries. The Jets running game had the Bengals on their toes the whole game. After the Bengals got out to a quick 7-0 lead, the Jets fired back with a quick 14 and never looked back. This is a very good sign for the Jets. With the defense having a strong showing, the running game only adds fuel to the fire of their slim (but growing) championship hopes.

Why the Bengals lost:
Lack of Chemistry. The passing game just never got in a rhythm for Carson Palmer and the Bengals receivers. Laveranues Coles led the team with 6 catches for 48 yards and a touchdown. While the usual all star Chad Ochocinco was held to only 2 catches for 28 yards. Even though Cedric Benson ran all over the Jets with 8 yards a carry for 169 yards and a touchdown. He couldn't get help all day as the Bengals offense stalled time after time.

Peyton Manning Wins Record Fourth MVP Award

Sun, 10 Jan, 2010 05:48:33 GMT

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning won the MVP for the 2009-2010 NFL season. Manning won in a landslide with 39 1/2 votes. Saints quarterback Drew Brees came second in voting with 7 1/2 votes. Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers took third with 2 votes. While Vikings quarterback Brett Favre rounded out the bottom with a single vote. Manning was a pretty obvious choice for the award, leading the Indianapolis Colts off to a red-hot start of 14-0 and finishing 14-2. The 33-year old quarterback set the NFL record for MVP awards with this being his fourth one. He threw for 33 touchdowns, 16 interceptions, and 4,500 yards for a quarterback rating of 99.9. Now Manning has his sights set on adding another trophy to his resume. With home field advantage locked up throughout the playoffs, Manning's Colts are one on of the favorites coming out of the AFC.

NFC Wild Card Preview: Green Bay Packers At Arizona Cardinals

Sat, 9 Jan, 2010 07:14:23 GMT

Turns out the Packers don't miss Brett Favre that much after all. No matter how much success #4 has had with the Purple this year, no on can deny the promise that #12 is showing in Green. Aaron Rodgers has lived up to every expectation this year and is all but out of Mr. Favre gigantic shadow in Lambeau. No it is time for Rodgers to win some games. With his first real shot at doing some damage in the playoffs, Rodgers has the Packers looking poised and ready to go. However, they will have to beat "The Patriots of the NFC" in the Arizona Cardinals. This group of players knows all about winning playoff games, and their expert happens to be under center. Kurt Warner does not know how to give up, and with home field advantage for the first round, he looks as ready as ever to take a good run at things.

Arizona Cardinals

Key to the Offense: Beanie Wells & Tim Hightower. The Cardinals have been known for their passing attack ever since their dominance began. However, if they are going to continue their quest for a Super Bowl, the Cardinals are going to have to become less predictable. That all starts with their running game. Wells and Hightower have enough talent, they just need to get it all together before kickoff on Sunday. A strong running game will equal a win for the Cardinals.

Key to the Defense: Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. The Cardinals play maker on defense unfortunately tends to make big plays both ways. He gives up as many big plays as he makes. Rodgers-Cromartie is going to have to play smart against the clever Aaron Rodgers in order to make sure the Packer offense doesn't get off to any fast starts.

Green Bay Packers

Key to the Offense: Aaron Rodgers. This is the same story as every other week. The Packers go as Rodgers goes. Fortunately Rodgers has been pretty consistent all year as long as he gets time in the pocket. If Rodgers gets the chance, he will pick apart the Cardinals D. However, if the Pack gets down early, it is very important that Rodgers doesn't get too nervous and just stays calm and remembers how long the game is. If Rodgers stays in control, the Packers have a great chance at seeing round 2.

Key to the Defense: Clay Matthews. The Packers seem to have found a gem in the chip off the 'ol block called Clay Matthews. Matthews has been a terror all season because of his ability to fly around the field and run into the ball. The Cardinals will be moving the ball fast, but Matthews will have to move even faster. If Clay makes big plays, the Cardinals could have a bigger headache on their hands than they are ready for.

Prediction: Packers 27 Cardinals 20

AFC Wild Card Preview: Baltimore Ravens At New England Patriots

Sat, 9 Jan, 2010 06:37:02 GMT

Ahhh finally! A breath of fresh air. This AFC Wild Card match up between the Patriots and Ravens brings us our only Wild Card game that we didn't just see last week. The NFL will turn all of its attention to Foxboro on Sunday afternoon to see if it's fading dynasty can defend its honor against the up and coming Ravens. The fact of the matter is, the Patriots have all the experience in the world coming into the playoffs. They can only beat themselves in this match up, and the absence of Wes Welker might be a big enough catalyst to stir up and upset. With their less than impressive run defense, the Patriots are going to have to put points on the board as well as figure out a way to shut down Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense.

New England Patriots

Key to the Offense: Tom Brady. The year has been less than average for the leagues golden boy. With a "meager" 28 touchdowns under his belt for the season, Brady enters a playoff season where he is not favored to run the tables. In fact, no one has given the Patriots much attention at all. Brady will have to make everyone look stupid for overlooking him and his Patriots, and it will all start against the Ravens scary defense.

Key to the Defense: Tully Banta-Cain. The Patriots leader in sacks for the season will have to run on all cylinders come Sunday afternoon. The Ravens offense isn't great by any stretch of the imagination. However, if you let Cool Joe Flacco get in a rhythm, the possibilities are endless. Banta-Cain needs to get in the Ravens backfield fast and often.

Baltimore Ravens

Key to the Offense: Ray Rice. As far as how much a player means to their teams offense, no player is more valuable than Rice. The young start out of Rutgers has been the shining star of the Ravens attack. Rice can be used on the ground or through the air, and the Ravens are going to stick with their bread-winner in order to give themselves the best shot at a win.

Key to the Defense: Ray Lewis. This is no surprise and never will be. Lewis is the motor that makes the Ravens defense go. With the emotion and intensity he brings to the field, Lewis makes everyone around him better. Lewis cannot back down from the high-octane offense of the Patriots and let everyone on their coaching staff know that he is going to be around the ball all day.

Prediction: Patriots 42 Ravens 21

AFC Wild Card Preview: New York Jets At Cincinnati Bengals

Sat, 9 Jan, 2010 03:22:10 GMT

The Jets did what they needed to do to make the playoffs. After beating the Bengals in Week 17, they look even better coming into the game this week to kick off the playoffs. The Jets defense is the real story here, and in order to keep their Super Bowl hopes alive, it is going to need to stay that way. Now we have a team with a good defense, a solid running game, this team is starting to sound real and all to familiar to the NFL Playoffs.

Cincinnati Bengals

Injuries: None

Key to the Offense: Carson Palmer. Last time Palmer set foot on a playoff field, it was his last for a while. We all remember the blown ACL that ended Palmers playoffs and began the magical Super Bowl run of the Steelers. This time Palmer is all the wiser and is playing with a solid running back behind him. He is going to need to manage a good game to win this one.

Key to the Defense: Robert Geathers. With a young Mark Sanchez on the other side of the line under center. Geathers has all the fresh meat he can handle. As long as he can keep Sanchez frustrated, the Jets offense should stall.

New York Jets

Injuries: None

Key to the Offense: Thomas Jones. The blood that runs through the veins of the Jets offense needs to keep those legs running right through the heart of the Bengals defense. It will be up to coach Rex Ryan to call the right plays, and as long as they are varied up, Jones should have a fair shot at a big game.

Key to the Defense: David Harris. The Jets middle linebacker needs to bring every bit of his best game to slow down the Bengals rushing attack. If Harris is able to pile up a good amount of tackles it will force the Bengals to switch up their gameplan and hopefully look to second and third options.

Prediction: Bengals 24 Jets 10

NFC Wild Card Preview: Philadelpia Eagles At Dallas Cowboys.

Sat, 9 Jan, 2010 03:21:42 GMT

This whole NFL Wild Card round feels like a broken record. Luckily for us fans, its a good CD. With the 3 out of the 4 Wild Card matchups being repeats, one has to wonder how gameplans will be altered. I can guarantee you with minds like Andy Reid, and puppets like Wade Phillips, we are sure to be left scratching our heads after many a call. However, out of all of the Wild Card repeat matchup, this game draws the most intrigue. With Philly failing to show up for the Week 17 NFC East Championship games, the city of brotherly love is holding their collective breath to see if the mean green will show up this time. Here is a preview of this weeks game between the Dallas Cowboys and the visiting division rival Philadelphia Eagles.

Dallas Cowboys

Injuries: None

Key to the Offense: Miles Austin. Austin needs to have a big game against the turnover hungry Eagles secondary. With how good the Eagles are at being ballhawks, you can expect Romo to look underneath often to Austin, almost like the way the Denver Broncos used to use Brandon Marshall. The offense will rely on Austin's ability to make yards after the catch happen.

Key to the Defense: Demarcus Ware. This Defense lives and breathes with Ware. He is what keeps their hearts beating and they will rely on him to take care of business with McNabb and keep his check down options on lock down.

Philadelphia Eagles

Injuries: None

Key to Offense: Donovan McNabb. McNabb realizes that this is one of his few remaining years to make a run at a ring. With all of the weapons he has, the timing couldn't be better. It will be up to McNabb to take advantage of the NFL's fastest offense and expose the weaknesses in the Cowboys secondary.

Key to Defense: Asante Samuel. Tony Romo has been a question mark all season. Samuel needs to play cat and mouse games with him all day and lull him into a making mistake.

Prediction: Eagles 34 Cowboys 28

McCoy Injury, Ingram Doom Texas As Alabama Wins BCS Championship

Fri, 8 Jan, 2010 01:13:19 GMT

Alabama completed it's perfect season last night with a championship win over the then also perfect Texas Longhorns.

Star Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy was knocked out of the game in the first quarter with a right shoulder injury and did not return for the rest of the game.

As McCoy walked off the field to the Longhorn locker room, he took the Texas championship dreams and hopes with him.

The Texas offense hit a wall and failed to get going again until the 4th quarter when they pulled within 3 points of the Crimson Tide. However, the top ranked rushing offense of Alabama was too much for Texas to handle down the stretch and the Tide rolled to a BCS title.

Citi BCS National Championship Game: McCoy Key To Longhorn Shot At Beating Crimson Tide

Fri, 8 Jan, 2010 02:31:42 GMT

Tonight when the lights come on in Pasadena, California to light up the Rose Bowl Stadium, Colt McCoy will be stepping onto his biggest stage yet. The Texas Longhorns take on the Alabama Crimson Tide in tonight's BCS National Championship game, and the Crimson Tide couldn't be rolling into it any faster. The #1 team in the country is coming off of the biggest upset of the year after they crushed the repeat hopes of Tim Tebow and the Gators. The Longhorns almost look like a footnote to a championship story that seems to almost be written. However, Mac Brown and the state of Texas are used to winning their football games, so expect the Burnt Orange to give the Crimson Tide all they can handle in tonight's heavyweight match up.
The Longhorns are going to have to beat the Tide through the air. The Alabama defense will be the toughest yet that Texas has faced this season. So if the Longhorns try to establish a game on the ground, they are going to get punished and embarrassed. Instead the Longhorns need to turn to Heisman candidate, Colt McCoy and All-American Jordan Shipley to lead their offense. If Texas hits hard and fast through the air, then they will be able to keep the Crimson defense on their heels.
The other key to a Longhorn win is figuring out Mark Ingram. The Heisman winning running back made Florida look absolutely silly, and has the potential to do the same thing to Texas. The Longhorns need to throw plenty of blitz packages at Alabama and hope they get confused and start to audible out of their gameplan. This will put the pressure on Ingram to always look for a big play to jump start the offense. With Ingram trying to bust everything outside up the sideline, Texas will then have to rely on their speedy linebacker unit to contain #22 and keep the Crimson Tide at bay.

Week 14 Fantasy Football Questions: Who To Sit And Start.

Fri, 11 Dec, 2009 08:54:38 GMT

Got questions about fantasy football this week?

If you are seeking a second opinion on some of your roster spots for this week, then look no further. Anything from who you should start and sit to which of your free agents are worth picking up for this week. Post your questions here and you will get a personal response from Real Fantasy to answer your burning questions. Fantasy Football Week 14 lives here!

Why You Should Still Start Tom Brady And The Patriots For Your Fantasy Football Team

Wed, 9 Dec, 2009 04:41:59 GMT

Lets be honest, the New England Patriots just are not what they used to be. Belichick is blowing 4th down calls. Brady is getting jumpy in the pocket and throwing picks. And is it just me or did Randy Moss and Wes Welker kill the remaining Patriots receivers? Even though things are looking dark for the Patriots, they will still serve your team greatly as the season draws to a close, and here is why:
For the first time in a long time, the Patriots NEED to win. They should not feel comfortable with their division lead after last weeks loss to the Dolphins and the AFC Wildcard chase has been heating up over the last few weeks. Everyone on the Patriots knows that they need to start winning games. There is too much leadership on that team to allow them to miss the playoffs or to head into the postseason unprepared. So the star players on the Patriots offense are going to start to work overtime and your fantasy team will reap the benefits.
Tom Brady: Statistically, he is no Manning or Brees, but he's got enough jewelry to outweigh the both of them. The point is, Tom plays good when it counts, and from here on out, every game counts. His numbers have still been top 5 this season, but look for him to be competitive for the top QB spot every week from here to 17 and beyond. He knows he needs to play better, he knows his team needs to play better, and he knows he is the one who needs to make it happen.
Randy Moss: The NFL's leading receiver this year, count it. With 1,058 yards, no one has him beat. However, there have still been a few awkwardly quiet games for Moss this year. Don not count on that happening anymore this year. The Pats are going to look to capitalize on every one of Moss's skill sets. Look for the separation to start pumping into overdrive here within the next 4 games.
Wes Welker: And the NFL's second leading receiver, trailing Moss by 5 yards, is Wes Welker. He is going to be the Patriots money guy when they need to start sealing wins down the stretch. When the Patriots are done taking chances down field with Moss, they will look for Welker over the middle. This will continue to run out the late game clock, and run up the points for you and Belichick both

Berrian Joins Peterson As Vikings Speed Towards Playoffs

Sun, 6 Dec, 2009 02:51:46 GMT

On Friday night, Bernard Berrian was pulled over on Minnesota Interstate 694 going 104 mph in a 60 mph zone.

This is the second outstanding speeding ticket given to a Minnesota Viking after star running back, Adrian Peterson, was pulled over going 109 mph in a 55 mph zone. The Minnesota State Patrol has been about the only thing to stop the Minnesota Vikings so far this year. However, this close to the playoffs, Viking fans are trying to deny what these speeding tickets might be implying. Sure, it might not be the Anderson Miss of '98 or the Cardinal Catch of '03, but it still could prove to be a bad omen for the Vikings dream team of '09.

The Vikings have been charging towards a strong playoff showing ever since they signed Brett Favre during the storyline of the season. The defense has been solid as it usually has been for the last few years, but the offense has been the real catalyst. The addition of Favre has led to the breakout of Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin, but the Vikings two biggest offensive weapons from last year, Peterson and Berrian, have been left out in the cold.

So maybe the lack of attention has finally gotten to the two veterans. Maybe they have finally decided that if Favre isn't going to give them attention, then they will get their attention by going fast without a football in their hands. The Vikings can only hope that the attention getting tactics will stop soon, and in order to do such a thing, the Vikings will alter their game plan, which brings us to this weeks fantasy impact.

The Vikings coaching staff sees that, just like neglected children, Peterson and Berrian are acting up to get attention. So in order to prevent more outrageous tickets or god-only-knows what else, the Vikings are going to throw last years studs a few bones. Look for Peterson to have a season high in carries on Sunday night against the Cardinals. While Berrian on the other hand, will be getting an abnormal amount of attention from Favre. Coach Brad Childress can only hope that this will quench the appetite of his attention starved athletes, and not continue to curse what has been an untouchable season so far....so far.

Fantasy Football Week 13

Fri, 4 Dec, 2009 03:30:38 GMT

Got questions about fantasy football this week?

NFL Concussion Policy Fantasy Impact

Thu, 3 Dec, 2009 09:58:50 GMT

The NFL's latest policy on concussions will make it harder for players to return to play after they have been diagnosed with a concussion. This means that some key players that you are used to starting on your fantasy team will be missing more time then they would have last year. Here are a few big names that you should maybe be a little careful about drafting in your future fantasy football leagues.

Ben Roethlisberger: The latest injury sustained by Big Ben should serve as a warning, he is vulnerable. The problem with Big Ben is that his big body tricks him into believe that he can take bigger hits than he really can.

Kurt Warner: This might just be age catching up with him, but Warner latest concussion already has cost him some games. He may not be an option much longer in your future drafts, but consider passing before you take.

Desean Jackson: Jackson is fearless whenever he runs his quick routes over the middle, which has made him one of the most exciting players to watch and own. It also makes him breeding ground for concussions. Jackson's small frame will not absorb the impact he gets in the middle of the field as well as he might like. This has already led to a concussion this season, and if he continues to try to be a threat on a slants and posts, this could be a theme of his career.

Beyond these three players, it is also important to keep an eye on any small running backs who get a lot of carries on the goal line. This is commonly where teams get most desperate in the pile ups and shots to the head, whether dirty or accidental, will occur more often. With the small players trying to stay low, this will put their head at risk when running into a wall between the tackles. So keep your eyes on how this new ruling affects playing time on your roster and remember the lessons you learn once next years draft rolls around.

Also, if by some chance Tory Aikman or Steve Young make a comeback, don't even think about it.

Drew Brees Scores Big Fantasy Points In Week 12

Wed, 2 Dec, 2009 05:03:09 GMT

Week 12 had many exciting things to keep it's viewers thrilled. There was the phenomenal Vince Young comeback over the Cardinals, there was the stellar performance by Brett Favre as he tore apart the Bears, but nothing came close to Monday night. Drew Brees put on a show that the NFL has not seen yet this year, or in the last few years for that matter. Obviously the 5 TD's without a pick and 371 yards are impressive. However, it is the style in which he did it which really made it memorable. All 5 TD's were to 5 different receivers. The game took place under the lights of the NFL on Monday night, and it was against the defensive mastermind of Bill Belichick. Brees proved that the Saints have what it takes to make this their season. It will be interesting to see how the other powerhouses in the league such as the Colts and Vikings respond. So beyond the masterful passing show that Brees put on, here are some other players who had impressive fantasy numbers in week 12 that you might still have a chance to pickup.

Vince Young (QB, Titans): The 99-yard drive will go down as one of the greatest this decade has ever seen. What was most impressive though was the fact that a year ago, everyone thought that Vince Young may never throw another completed pass. These days, he could make or break your fantasy team. He does not throw for many touchdowns due to the scoring machine known as "Chris Johnson", but he racks up a lot of yards with both his arm and legs. As a backup fantasy quarterback, he would get you points for everyone of those yards.
Alex Smith (QB, 49ers): All he does is play consistently well...lately. Consider him this years Jeff Garcia. Puts up 250 yard games, 2 touchdowns, no picks. That's it. Nothing more and nothing less. Of course he still comes with a high-risk warning. However, with the slumping of Frank Gore and the continual improvement of receivers Josh Morgan and Michael Crabtree, Smith could be of service to you.
Chester Taylor (RB, Vikings): So, we don't want to say that Adrian Peterson has a fumbling problem...but he has a problem. The fact of the matter is, the Vikings really haven't needed him so far this year, so they are choosing consistency over explosion more often than not so far. Taylor has excellent hands for a running back and gives Brett Favre the perfect check down option. He should be able to pull in more consistent points for your team as well.
Kenny Britt (WR, Titans): If you have read my fellow SPN blogger, Double G, articles recently then you may have already heard about Kenny Britt. The kid out of Rutgers is playing consistent ball right now and is the main man that Jeff Fischer wants to turn into a go-to-guy for Vince Young. It will be interesting to see how much he really gets used in such a run-heavy offense, but it is definitely something for you to keep your eyes on.
Mark Clayton (WR, Ravens): Derrick Mason is good, but by no means is he a solid #1 kind of player. This makes room for Joe Flacco to spread the ball around more and Clayton has made some impressive catches lately. Heading into the playoff stretch needing to win some games, Flacco may look Clayton's way more often late in the game to give him a chance to make some plays.

BEWARE OF BUSTS
Eli Manning (QB, Giants): The Broncos seemed to have the Giants offense figured out on Thanksgiving night, and the rest of the league took notice. Without a running game that is clicking, Manning is extremely vulnerable as team's continue to drop back into coverage and let him beat himself.
DeAngelo Williams (RB, Panters): A bum ankle and no quarterback. None of this adds up for many yards for Williams. The only thing he does have going for him is that he will be running against Tampa Bay this week, so obviously it is possible to have a big game, but not likely.
Vincent Jackson (WR, Chargers): His two catches in the bloodbath against KC continues to be a mystery. The Chargers were putting up plenty of points but for some reason, Jackson wasn't given his cut. Defense's know that he is the Chargers only deep threat and have been giving him special attention, this will continue to make it hard on him and Phillip Rivers.

Breaking News: Tiger Woods Accident Impacts Fantasy Football

Sat, 28 Nov, 2009 12:50:02 GMT

This morning, legendary golfer Tiger Woods was in a car accident. Now before you go throwing your golf balls into the ocean, be reassured that he is just fine. He backed out of his home this morning and wound up hitting a fire hydrant and tree trunk. He was treated and released from the hospital with minor injuries. However, the impact this has on sports is not minor. This could be the biggest event to happen in the athletic realm since Jordan played baseball. Make sure your fantasy football team is ready feel the ripple effect.
First let's go over the basics. For the first time in his life, Tiger Woods misread something. Although the details are a little fuzzy, there is no way that the tree and fire hydrant jumped in the way of his SUV. The fact of the story is, Tiger Woods did something wrong. Now of course Tiger has lost tournaments and matches before (albeit, not many), there has always been an explanation. His knee was sore, his wrists were not snapping, his vision was blurred, the fairways were crooked. The thing is, Tiger Woods does not lose a fair match. He is not genetically engineered to be inferior...ever. However, today with a normal road, and a normal fire hydrant, and a normal tree, and a normal SUV. Tiger lost. Something is wrong in the world of sports, and Tiger will not be the only athlete affected. Just like in Space Jam when the NBA stars had their talent stolen by aliens. Tiger's misread on the road might as well have been a missed putt by a mile. So which other athletes will be affected by this strange string of events started by Tiger?
Peyton Manning: His power is no mystery to the defenses he has terrorized. Or to any fan annoyed by his constant audibles. Peyton can read a defense like book illustrated with color pictures. As soon as he steps up to the line, he knows each defensive players assignments better than they do. This allows Manning to put his passes in the weak spots of the zones and have led to his impressive hall of fame career thus far. However, this Sunday the "Tiger Flu" will impair Manning in the worst way. Look for Manning to throw more picks than usual, and if he looks a little pale...a certain golfer in an SUV is to blame.
Adrian Peterson: If Superman has any fear, it might just be AP. He is a freak of nature who will walk through a defense if he wants. His breakaway speed makes him a threat every time the ball is snapped. However, the real threat of AP in the open field is the 100% chance he is going to run right over or just through you. His strength combined with his speed make him a nightmare for any would-be-tackler below 500 pounds. The "Tiger Flu" fears no impact though. Sunday might be the day where Adrian Peterson receives the hit of his life from a prowling linebacker. A hit that could be big enough to even sit him out for a play or two.
Randy Moss: The fact he has Tom Brady throwing to him really does help. Most of us could at least put up one 100-yard game if we had Prince Charming tossing us presents through the skies. The reason Moss is still one of the best in the game though, is thanks to his hands...not #12. If Brady would ever throw a bad pass, you would never know it because Moss makes everything look good. He is not the fastest? No problem. He is not the strongest? Who cares. Moss could catch a bullet with his teeth. If a ball was set on fire and had a mind of it's own, Moss would still come down with it. Does the "Tiger Flu" care though? Not a bit. All though we may never see it again, Moss is going to drop an awkward amount of passes on Sunday. Brady will be frustrated, Belichik will be...himself, and fans all over will be utterly confused while the rest of you will know, the "Tiger Flu" has claimed another.

NFL Thanksgiving Brings A Fantasy Feast

Thu, 26 Nov, 2009 05:13:49 GMT

If you ask any real NFL fan, the most wonderful time of year is not Christmas, it is Thanksgiving. Because unlike Christmas, Thanksgiving gives us something to do when our stomachs are full and we are fed up with company. Thanksgiving gives us the gift that Christmas can not, the NFL. Tomorrow, we will get that gift three times. So make sure you set your fantasy rosters accordingly, and if your mind is too preoccupied with turkey to make sound decisions, then maybe these guidelines will leave you full on points by the end of the day tomorrow.

Green Bay Packers @ Detroit Lions

Injures: Ryan Grant (Probable), Matthew Stafford (Doubtful), Calvin Johnson (Questionable), Kevin Smith (Probable).

Packers: Aaron Rodgers should be solid as usual, however the passing game is not the one that should get your attention. Ryan Grant has been gradually gaining momentum the past couple of weeks and, assuming the Packers won't have to throw to win, he should see plenty of carries tomorrow.

Lions: This is going to be ugly. Last time the Lions played the Packers they failed to score a point. Thanksgiving will fail to give Detroit much more to be thankful about. Stafford will probably not play and even if he did, Calvin Johnson is also banged up. Don't expect much offense coming from the home team tomorrow.

Oakland Raiders @ Dallas Cowboys

Injuries: Jason Witten (Questionable), Marion Barber (Probable), Tony Romo (Probable)

Raiders: This could be interesting, for once Oakland could give us something good to talk about. Bruce Gradkowski has brought the most talent under center since Rich Gannon. Now coming off of a thrilling win over the heavily favored Bengals, the Raiders feel good about their chances against the stumbling Cowboys. Gradkowski could have decent numbers if you need a quick backup. Louis Murphy could also be of use to you if your flex spot is in a tough spot.

Cowboys: Quite possibly the most inconsistent team in the NFL. One day they can be putting up 30+ points, the next they can barely be scoring one touchdown against the Redskins. So which offense will show up against Oakland? Considering it's Thanksgiving and Tony Romo needs to start earning his paycheck, I think it is safe to bet on a good day for 'Boys. Miles Austin might finally start hauling in some yards again, and Tashard Choice could even hit pay dirt.

New York Giants @ Denver Broncos

Injuries: Ahmad Bradshaw (Out), Brandon Jacobs (Probable), Eli Manning (Probable), Kyle Orton (Probable)

Giants: The Broncos defense was impossible to get by for the first six games, but that defense has been seen in the last four weeks. Since going on a bye, the Broncos defense has been absolutely torched in the second half of every game, Eli Manning should be able to pick them apart. With the amount of weapons he has in the passing game, Denver's secondary will be tripping over themselves. Both Mario Manningham and Steve Smith have big game potential for Thursday night.

Broncos: At this point, any news is good news. The news this week is that Kyle Orton is finally practicing again and is planning on starting. This will help the over all flow of the Broncos offense and will help them get into a rhythm early on if they are to get in any rhythm at all. When Orton has played he has been solid so both Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal should be valuable to your team tomorrow. Knowshon Moreno on the other hand is a complicated case. All though talented, Coach Josh McDaniels still has not shown much trust in the rookie, and Moreno's goal line fumble last week does not give him much more credibility.

Week 10 Fantasy Football Recap

Wed, 18 Nov, 2009 02:41:20 GMT

The whirlwind of week 10 is finally over. With Sunday peaking at the end with the Colts/Patriots game, I think we are all ready to breathe a sigh of relief. While we are sighing said relief, maybe we could also breathe out a prayer for Mr. Belichick. God knows the poor man has finally lost it. I'm not saying going for it on 4th and 2 on your own 29 is stupid. But doing that when playing against Peyton Manning, is basically writing the L in your own loss column. However, maybe a worse decision was me starting Terrell Owens over Jerricho Cotchery. That was a 10 point loss for me, fortunately I was still able to beat the 2nd place team in that league, and co-founder of SPN, in order to retain my #1 sport...so that was nice. Lets check out what the rest of the league did this week.

Winners
Marc Bulger (QB, St. Louis Rams): Bulger had an impressive day against the usually tough Saints secondary. Throwing for 298 yards and 2 touchdowns with only one interception. Bulger should be a decent sub for you at your quarterback position in case of any upcoming bye weeks.
Justin Forsett (RB, Seattle Seahawks): Forsett went for 123 yards and a touchdown against the Cardinals. The Vikings will pose a bigger problem, but if Forsett can maintain a consistent YPC average, there is a chance he could continue to see carries once Julius Jones returns.
Jason Avant (WR, Philadelphia Eagles): 8 catches, 156 yards. Who on earth is this guy? Granted, Donovan McNabb threw 55 passes. But the Eagles have struggled all year to find consistent receivers. With Avant throwing his name into the hat, there is a chance Donovan could call his number again...whatever that number is.

Losers
Ben Roethlisberger (QB, Pittsburgh Steelers): Sure the Bengals are good, but when you claim to be one of the best, you have to play better. Especially against a division rival. Big Ben only threw 174 yards and one interception. As the Bengals swept the Steelers, your fantasy team wasn't the only one hurting.
Marion Barber (RB, Dallas Cowboys): Against the Packers, Barber had 26 yards on 5 carries. Guess which stat you should be worried about? If the Cowboys are only going to give Barber 5 carries even when Romo is struggling, that does not speak of a promising future.
Vincent Jackson (WR, San Diego Chargers): Jackson has been Phillip Rivers go-to-guy all season, and then for some reason he was only thrown to 3 times on Sunday while only catching one. It is hard to explain why he was given the blind eye, but keep an eye on this situation as it develops next week against the Broncos.

Week 10 Fantasy Football

Sat, 14 Nov, 2009 03:04:45 GMT

Heading into week 10, it is hard to find a bigger storyline than the match-up between the Indianapolis Colts and the New England Patriots. The Colts are off to an undefeated season thanks to a veteran quarterback and a rookie coach. However, Tom Brady is still one of the game's fiercest competitors, and you can be sure he will bring his best anytime he goes toe-to-toe with Peyton Manning. Another theme that can be found lining week ten is the abundance of second chances. Brady Quinn gets the nod at quarterback for the Browns against the Ravens on Monday night, while Ladell Betts will start in place of Clinton Portis for the Redskins against the Broncos in D.C. on Sunday afternoon. Are either of these players worth a risk for your fantasy team? Or will the tough defense's they both face succeed in making their second chance, a last chance. Here are some other things to keep an eye on this week for your fantasy team.

Bye-Week Blues
Houston Texans: Matt Shaub, Andre Johnson, Jacoby Jones, Steve Slaton, Ryan Moats, Owen Daniels, Brian Cushing.
New York Giants: Eli Manning, Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs, Kevin Boss, Terrell Thomas

Free Agent Frenzy
Josh Freeman (QB, Tampa Bay): If you are in a pinch this week for a quarterback, Freeman might be worth a look. Last week against the Packers he threw for 3 TD's and only one pick. If he can continue down this path, he might be able to help a hurting spot on your roster.
Jamaal Charles (RB, Kansas City): Although he may not be an easy pickup, talk of him losing his starting job may make him easier to grab. The point is, the Chiefs offense is struggling to find something consistent, and Charles is a solid enough runner who may become a featured performer for KC.
James Jones (WR, Green Bay): With Aaron Rodgers only getting better, Jones is worth a look. He has 4 big catches against Tampa last week and Rodgers will remember each one of them. Look for Rodgers to throw a few Jones's way down field.

Beware of Busts
Carson Palmer (QB, Cincinatti): The Steelers pass defense will continue it's hot streak this week against Carson Palmer, who has had a good season...up till now.
Marion Barber (RB, Dallas): The Packers have done a decent job against the run as of late, and with Tashard Choice starting to get more looks, the Cowboys backfield gets deeper while Barber's stats swim towards the shallow end.
Brandon Marshall (WR, Denver): Eddie Royal got tons of looks last week against the Steelers, and this week Marshall will not feel much more love in D.C.

Top 3
Peyton Manning (QB, Indianapolis) and Tom Brady (QB, New England): Granted, they are both going up against good defenese, but more importantly, they are going up against each other. These two will play out of their minds on Sunday and whoever comes out on top, will not come out by much.
Adrian Peterson (RB, Minnesota): AP is due, he has had plenty of mediocre weeks (in AP terms) and this week against the Lions, Peterson will take full advantage of the opportunity to pad his stats a bit.
Larry Fitzgerald (WR, Arizona): Warner and Fitzy seemed to be in a groove last week against the Bears, and the Seahawks will not pose much more of a problem. Fitzy will be able to pick the Hawks apart catch by catch.

Week 10 Questions

Wed, 11 Nov, 2009 02:09:24 GMT

Post whatever questions you might have about the upcoming week and the match-ups that you just are not sure about.

Week 9 Winners and Losers

Wed, 11 Nov, 2009 04:59:37 GMT

As much as I have ragged on Chad Ochocinco, I could not help but roll my eyes at the idea of Roger Goodell fining him for "bribing an official". What Chad did was simply trying to lighten the mood and change up the ref's day a little bit. Instead, the NFL is going to take that dollar, and probably 4,999 more. I mean, I'm not much one for defending #85, but when did football stop being a game? Beyond that, Larry Johnson was released, Ty Law was signed, and fantasy points were raining down on us...well, most of us. Take a look...

WINNERS
Any quarterback who played in Chicago on Sunday: Kurt Warner and Jay Cutler combined for 8 touchdowns and 630 yards while there was only one interception on the day. Cutler looked phenomenal dropping a touchdown pass in triple coverage to Greg Olson. While Kurt Warner went off for 5 touchdowns to complete an absolute blow out of the Bear's defense. I bet you guys wish you would have seen that one coming.
Michael Turner: You can alert the Atlanta police department to call of the search party, the Falcons have finally found Michael Turner. Mike put up 166 yards and two touchdowns as the Falcons beat a team with something other than the cool arm of Matty-Ice.
Randy Moss: Well, I had to get something right. At least I got it REALLY right though. Moss had 147 yards and a touchdown on only 6 catches. With the reestablishment of the Brady/Moss marriage, the Patriots are comfortable at the top of the AFC East.

Losers
Kyle Orton: Orton went 8 weeks without throwing an interception to a defensive player...and then last night happened. Orton overthrew and misread all night to wind up with 3 picks and no touchdowns. Leaving the Broncos on a 2-game losing skid and questioning if their quarterback is playoff-worthy.
Ladanian Tomlinson: 22 yards, no touchdowns. the curse of 30-year olds is alive and well while Tomlinson appears to be on his way out in San Diego.
Desean Jackson: After a big week last week, fantasy owners were excited to have Jackson on their team and were already figuring out how many wins they would have with him scoring 15 every week. Well, they might have to wait a little longer. Jackson was a non-factor against the Cowboys with only 29 yards on 2 catches.

Quick Hitters: Week 9

Sat, 7 Nov, 2009 03:56:48 GMT

The Saints and the Colts roll into week 9 with the leagues last two remaining untarnished records. The Saints host the Panthers while the Colts do the same for the Texans. One would assume this should be a fairly easy win for the Saints in the Superdome. The Colts on the other hand may have more to be worried about. The Colts secondary took a huge blow this week finding out that they will miss already absentee safety Bob Sanders for the rest of the season now. This weakens an already average secondary that now has to go up against a quarterback that is beating Peyton Manning in yards and touchdowns, Matt Shaub. Now it is hard to say that the Colts are not the favorite here, however, I do believe that if Shaub can get rolling right away and maybe get either Steve Slaton or Ryan Moats to show up, this game could be interesting. Other games around the league pose some interesting match-ups in the fantasy world, let's get cracking.

Oh Aaron
The Green Bay Packers come off a tough loss to the Minnesota Vikings and now have to rebound against...the worst team in the league. Aaron Rodgers is going to have a field day against Tampa Bay this week. Playing in the nice weather of Raymond James Stadium, expect Rodgers to throw at least 4 TD's while topping 300 yards, do I hear 400?
Cut Kurt
The Cardinals travel into Chicago to face the team that many thought would be winning the NFC North, not sitting at third. However, the Bears still play in Soldier Field, and Kurt Warner still is not the same guy from the "Greatest Show on Turf" years, or even last year for that matter. You throw him in a stadium with swirling winds and a surprisingly good secondary (not giving up a 300 yard game to a quarterback all season), and you have a bad mix for Grandpa Warner.
Heavy on Gore
I know, it is almost automatic to predict an offensive player to do good against the Titans, but this is almost a no brainer. Gore had a pretty quiet 91 yard week last week against the Colts and was constantly one arm-tackle away from breaking off a big run. Those arm-tackles will be non-issues against the Titans, and Gore will go big.
Tomlinson/Sproles Duo Down
Playing against the Giants D-line may not be the threat it was in week 5, however, this will still be a bad day for anyone wearing a Chargers jersey who wants to run the ball. Coach Turner will put this game in Phil Rivers hands and toss the scraps to the rest of the backfield.
Moss...again
Sure, the Patriots are not the undefeated giants (no pun intended) of 2007, but still...don't pick on them. Joey Porter called out the refs babying Tom Brady the week of the Dolphins hosting the Patriots. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Brady is going to embarrass the Dolphins and he will do so using his favorite target, Randy Moss.
Low Miles
Tony Romo's feelings are hurt again. Receiver Roy Williams was picking on him in the headlines and now Romo has to play a high pressure game against the rival Eagles. This could mean a quiet game for breakout receiver Miles Austin.

Time Traveling Today: Percy Harvin

Sat, 7 Nov, 2009 05:09:05 GMT

The 1,445.73 mile transition from The Swamp to The Metrodome could not have gone smoother for rookie receiver Percy Harvin. The Vikings picked Harvin with the 22nd pick of the '09 draft. Since then Harvin has made the 21 rookies taken before him look absolutely silly. Speaking of 21, that's the age Harvin just turned. So he is making people feel silly and old all at the same time. While averaging 158.3 yards among his receiving, returning, and Wildcat responsibilities, Harvin has given the Vikings a whole new set of plays besides; "Adrian Peterson to the left", "Adrian Peterson to the right", and "Adrian Peterson up the middle". Harvin + Peterson = a problem other teams just can't solve. However, the one variable in this equation that I would love to ignore but can't, is someone almost twice as hold as Harvin, Mr. Favre. It is no mystery that Brett Favre has had a hand in the renewed offense of the Vikings. So, how much of this transformation has to do with Favre, and how much has to do with the weapons at Favre's disposal? To find the answer I decided to send Percy Harvin all the way back in time to...one year ago.
So there was Harvin, being thrown to by Tarvaris Jackson in the year 2008. Granted, Jackson's stats definitely improved. After all, Favre or no Favre, Harvin can still catch wild passes into triple coverage like the one against the Packers. However, Harvin was under-thrown constantly by the inconsistent Jackson. Now, even a bad quarterback could not stop Harvin's explosive return ability. However, without a quarterback, teams would continue to stack the box so Harvin making a living with the Wildcat wasn't even an option.
So the season went on with the Vikings ending up 9-7, losing the division to the Packers (who oddly enough, sign Favre for another season if you go back in time, consider that a lesson learned), lost in the wild card round, and all in all had another mediocre season. Except of course for Harvin who went on to rookie of the year after all. The only difference was that without Favre, the other rookies actually thought they had a chance at beating out Harvin....lesson learned.

Week 9 Questions

Tue, 3 Nov, 2009 10:59:01 GMT

Post your questions for you fantasy team in week 9 here in the comment section and I will personally answer back to get your team on the right track.

Week 8 Winners and Losers

Tue, 3 Nov, 2009 11:00:02 GMT

Week 8 was a week of firsts for the Denver Broncos and the Tennessee Titans. The Broncos suffered their first loss of the season thanks to the revived defense of the Baltimore Ravens. Meanwhile, the Titans got the monkey off of their back and finally got a win over the dwindling Jaguars. Some would accredit this win to Vince Young getting his first start of the season, others would blame it on Chris Johnson's 228 rushing yards. You decide which side of the fence you land on this one. Then there were some teams that just kept on doing their same old same old as the Colts and Saints remained undefeated giving some idiots hopes for a perfect Super Bowl. If any part of the NFL was quiet, it was probably all of the fans at the Lions/Redskins...*cough*...game. However, the fantasy football world was definitely as loud as ever so lets dive in and take a look at the winners and losers of week 8.

Winners
Chris Johnson: As earlier mentioned, Johnson amassed 228 yards on the ground. This doesn't tell you half the story however. Johnson absolutely dominated this game. Ripping off touchdown runs of 52 and 89. Looks like CJ's initials could be M-V-P.
Ryan Moats: Not like you have a chance of picking this guy up in your league any more. But at this time last week you would never have even thought about it. But 126 yards and 3 touchdowns later, Moats may be the answer the Texans have been looking for to solve the question of Steve Slaton.
Quarterbacks who played in Green Bay this week: Between the two of them, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers passed the ball for 531 yards, 5 touchdowns, and no interceptions. The only difference to note between the two is that Brett Favre got to play the game behind a real offensive line.
Mark Sanchez: Granted, he was only playing against the Miami Dolphins, but he still took care of the ball throwing for 2 TD's and no picks. On an even better note, he stayed away from amusement park food for the WHOLE game.
Reggie Wayne: On a day where Peyton Manning (gulp) failed to pass for a single touchdown, Reggie Wayne still managed to catch a touchdown, helping the Colts struggle to a win. With 147 yards and a touchdown thrown to him by Colts running back Joseph Addai, Wayne showed that there is more than one star with a horseshoe on their helmet.
Ted Ginn Jr.: Considering this is the week the Dolphins dropped him from his #1 spot on the depth chart, I am just as surprised as you are to see his name here, however, anytime you make history you are going to get talked about. Ginn had 299 return yards and 2 kicks returned for a touchdown.

Losers
Ronnie Brown: The Jets declawed this Wildcat by only allowing him 29 all purpose yards and not once getting into the endzone. This is far from the kind of production fantasy owners are used to and Brown left many of them winless in week 8.
Kyle Orton: 152 passing yards is not horribly below his average. 0 interceptions is keeping in time with his accurate season. And throwing 0 touchdowns isn't totally un-Orton-ish. However, these stats have never looked more ugly than what Orton showed on Sunday against the Ravens. Never taking a chance down field and seeminly scared out of his mind by the second quarter. Granted, the Broncos O-line was left in utter confusion by the Ravens blitzing scheme. This still left Fantasy owners sure that their team still could never depend on Kyle Orton to be the starting quarterback.
Ted Ginn Jr.: A winner and a loser? Although he enjoyed an amazing day returning the football he also went the entire day without a single catch. Unfortunately, he is not going to rack up those kind of return yards in any other game for the rest of his career, so unless he can find a way to start grabbing some catches, Ginn Jr. will still be an extremely risky move for fantasy owners.

Quick Hitters Week 8

Sat, 31 Oct, 2009 04:17:37 GMT

Crisp friday night, the lights were bright, and the game was deep into the 4th quarter. Most of us Seniors were already done for the game as we had secured a win with a nice 45-0 lead over New Town High School.

As we all stood around with our helmets in hand, talking about the dance after the game. The ref blew the whistle and the game was over. We all ran on the field to shake hands and then over to the team bus to start our post game victory chant.

As we rode down main street up to the high school where I would change into my dress shirt and finest $20 cologne, I thought to my self "Gosh I love homecoming". Now fast forward a few years and head on over to a locker room in Green Bay, and I wonder if Brett Favre is thinking the same thing.

As Favre plays in Lambeau tomorrow for the first time in a purple jersey, one wonders if anyone could have ever seen this coming, especially Mr. Favre. The bitter hatred between the Vikings and Packers seems to have lost its edge with the changing of the Favre. Vikings fans say that they never really hated him in the first place and that they will take anyone who can call himself "The Best Quarterback Ever".

Meanwhile, the Packers are over in cheese country trying to convince themselves that Aaron Rodgers is already better than Brett Who could have ever hoped to be anyways. So whether or not you are as obsessed with this game as the rest of the country, there still remain plenty of intriguing fantasy match-ups that you may want to also give a glance.

Rivers Go Deep
The San Diego Chargers play against the Pop Warner wannabe Oakland Raiders. Although in the first game of the season the Raiders almost took it to the Chargers. It would appear that the Chargers are on a bit of an upswing, meanwhile the Raiders seem to have somehow gotten worse. This means Phillip Rivers is going to have an absolute field day. The Raiders will try to keep their heads above water all day but will wind up drowning in a river all day.

Oh No for the Big O
Kyle Orton has had nothing by success so far this season, however he has not seen this Ravens Defense yet. Baltimore is 3-3 and is frantically scrambling on a slippery slope. When a team is in need, the stars come out to shine. Unfortunately for Kyle Orton, these stars go by the names of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. All though the Broncos may still come out with a win, Orton could experience more head aches than he has been used to so far.

A Strong Forte
All though Matt Forte has been a non-factor all season, things could change this week against the Browns. After being spanked by the Bengals last week, the Bears are going to come out fired up and will put the Browns away early. This will make Lovie Smith take the game out of the erratic Jay Cutler's hands and turn to the more safe running game. Also, the Browns are not known for their solid run defense, or solid team for that matter.

Not Today, All Day
Adrian Peterson has been surprisingly quiet all year. This silence will continue for one more week thanks to all of the attention that is going to be on the Vikings new quarterback, Brett Favre. Everyone will know that Favre plays well in big games, and Coach Childress will once again try to prove the world right by allowing Favre to go bananas. Meanwhile, the Packers strong linebacker core will contain AP with ease AD.

Fitzy for Sure
The Cardinals are playing the Panthers. This along with the suddenly impressive run duo of Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells, will open up the world down field and Kurt Warner will have a blasty-blast picking apart that group of players Carolina calls a secondary.

A Blackout for White
Matt Ryan is fun to watch play. He is smart, he has a quick release, and he stays calm when the world is imploding around him. He is also a border line genius under center. So just like any other genius, Ryan is not going to take chances down field when someone called "Darren Sharper" is earning his paycheck by making quarterbacks look silly. Ryan will beat, yes BEAT, the Saints by picking them apart underneath. Not by giving #1 receiver Roddy White fat stats.

Time Traveling Today: New York Jets Rushing Attack

Fri, 30 Oct, 2009 06:50:21 GMT

Last week in the New York Jets/Oakland Raiders game, there were three surprises; Mark Sanchez stuffing has southern Cali beach body with processed leftover animal parts, Jamarcus Russel got worst, the Jets running game could not be stopped. Even though it was against the abysmal Raiders, the Jets were nothing short of impressive on the ground. Star Thomas Jones averaged 4.7 yards while piling up 121 with a touchdown. However, the real story was rookie Shonn Greene. The first year back out of Iowa put up 144 yards on only 19 carries while getting into the endzone twice. So the real question is, will this two-headed monster survive the season? Instead of waiting for week 17 against the Bengals, I decided to just skip ahead to the end.
Heading into Giants Stadium on January 3rd, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this New York Jets team. Would we see the Mark Sanchez we saw in the first three weeks of the season, or would we see the inconsistent quarterback who was terrorized by people like Darren Sharper. Well, the truth is, I saw a lot of Mark Sanchez. In fact, too much of Mark Sanchez. The USC pretty boy had completely let himself go, apparently the sideline was not the only place Sanchez was enjoying a good hot dog or seven. Against the Bengals, Sanchez ran on to the field 30 pounds heavier. However, no one seemed to care.
The reason the Jets were ignoring the expanding Oscar Meyer content in their quarterback, was because they didn't need him. The Jet's offense was running over the competition, literally. The duo of Jones and Greene had become unstoppable. The explosive ability of Jones combined with the downhill running of Greene had apparently been pounding teams all season. I was able to grab a fan wearing a New York Jets fireman hat who told me that Jones was up to 1,400 yards while Greene was looking to eclipse the 1,000 yard mark that day. The Jets as a team though? Needed this win to make the playoffs. With a record of 9-6, the Jets would be the last team in if they finished at 10-6. No matter the result though, the fans in green were looking forward to their future with Greene.
So coming back to present day, I urge you to invest in the Jet's running game. They have a talented quarterback who will keep teams from stacking the box, and Jones and Greene are as lethal of a one-two punch in the game. Thomas Jones remains a consistent choice for your #1 back, while Greene has emerged as a very attractive option for your flex spot. Do not be afraid to take a chance on this backfield, as this past Sunday looks to hopefully repeat itself against the better opponents that are ahead.

Long Time No See

Wed, 28 Oct, 2009 03:43:48 GMT

So the speed of college life finally caught up with me and I had to take a week off. Homework was done, tests were studied for, and sleep was caught up on. However, I am now back on the wagon and ready to impart more wisdom to the hungry bottom feeders of the fantasy football world. So with a week separating this post from my last post, I figure it's time to let you in on some of the secrets that I have found out while I have been a way.

Brett Favre will not be the MVP
The Vikings game against the Steelers proved it, Favre still resorts to his old self when the game starts to rest on his shoulders. With 51 pass attempts, Favre melted down in the 4th quarter while the Steelers went on to score 2 defensive touchdowns, and the Vikings proved theirs would be a short post-season this year.

Alex Smith...Maybe?
3 Touchdowns in one half is good no matter who you are. Let's keep some things in perspective though. All 3 TD's were to the same player; meaning Smith wasn't picking the Texans defense apart, he was simply taking what they were giving him. Which is an admirable trait, but what happens when defenses don't give anything to Smith and he has to create plays? Still, the emergence of Michael Crabtree could be an interesting development to keep your eyes on.

Ray Rice...for now.
While the year may have started slow for Rice, things are speeding by now. With McGahee getting most of the red zone action earlier on, fantasy owners were feeling the hits that Rice's stats were taking. These days Rice is the feature of the Raven's offense, and fantasy owners should feel great about centering their team around him.

Beanie Wells, Shonn Greene, and Rashard Mendenhall? Welcome to the Future.
Although currently these three backs are splitting time with more featured backs, they have shown in recent weeks that they deserve attention. While all three of their teams could be competitive in the post-season, expect these teams to search for creative ways to spice up the offense while including some of these names.

Is Calvin Johnson still worth it?
Trade him, trade him while you can still get a decent receiver and running back for him. He's got a bigger hospital bill than Dick Cheney and his quarterbacks are usually using the same bed pan he is. Stafford and Culpepper are still inconsistent when they are healthy though, and do not add up into a big year for Johnson at all.

Jacoby who?
The Texans Jacoby Jones should be a quick pickup for you. He is only owned in 25% of Yahoo! fantasy football leagues and I'm guessing his popularity isn't really soaring in any other leagues either...yet. With Andre Johnson banged up, Matt Shaub will have to look to a new #1 target. Jones has 4 touchdowns this year which is good enough for a 3-way tie at the top of the team stat chart. This, along with his kick and punt returns will give you a bargain for the amount of points you will get back.

Staying low in Buffalo
The Buffalo Bills defense has recovered two fumbles, picked off the opposing quarterback 13 times, and have racked up 16 sacks while scoring two touchdowns. These are stellar stats for any defense, but especially for a defense that is only owned in 33% of Yahoo! Leagues. All I'm saying, is they won't be winning any games because of their offense.

Quick Hitters Week 6

Sun, 18 Oct, 2009 03:52:14 GMT

This week, two unbeaten teams face off in The Big Easy as the Saints take on the New York Giants. So will Eli be able to continue his blazing season against the dangerous New Orleans secondary, or will Drew Brees take over and prove how real the Saints really are? Beyond this game, let's take a look at the rest of the week.

Rolling Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers will have a huge game against the still-struggling Detroit Lions. No matter how much better they are than last year, they are still the Lions, and will still give up a big game to #12.

Clinton will Carry
Clinton Portis has been semi-quiet this season, but his stats have gradually gotten better. Now this week he will face the Kansas City Chiefs, a team still struggling but capable of beating the 'Skins. So look for Washington to try to establish the run-game early on to prevent this from happening.

Moss Growing
Randy Moss was a non-issue last week against the Broncos. However, Tom Brady recognizes how important it is to get Moss involved in the Patriots offense. Sorry Wes, but Brady will be hooking up with Moss often against the abyssmal Titan secondary.

Missing Matt
The Texans will take on the surpising Cincinnati Bengals this week, and believe it or not, this is a defense to be feared. Beyond that, Matt Shaub has been inconsistent this year and the Bengals should be able to shutdown Andre Johnson, and thus silence Shaub.

No Time for Turner
The Chicago Bears secondary is beat up and Matt Ryan has been flawless. This equation leads to a very lonely Michael Turner this Sunday. The Bears D will be good enough to contain Turner and will force the Falcons to take to the skies.

Silence of Smith
Steve Smith of the New York Football Giants has been one of the most reliable receivers in the NFL this year. However, last week he struggled, and this week he is facing the indtimidating Saints secondary anchored by veteren safety Darren Sharper. This will make Eli Manning play it safe and keep Steve Smiths numbers relatively small.

Time Traveling Today: Kyle Orton

Fri, 16 Oct, 2009 03:16:23 GMT

Kyle Orton has led the Denver Broncos to quite possibly the most surprising 5-0 the NFL has seen in a long, long time. We all know the story; Denver coach Josh McDaniels couldn't get along with all-star quarterback Jay Cutler so he shipped him to Chicago and the Broncos got "stuck" with Kyle Orton. However, 5 weeks deep into the 2009 NFL season, McDaniels looks like a genius and Orton is playing beyond any expectations. His stats thus far are nearly flawless. He has thrown for 1,236 yards to go along with 7 touchdowns, 63% passing completion, and a quarterback rating of 97.4. Possibly most impressive is he hasn't thrown a real interception yet with his one pick of the season coming on an end-of-the half hail mary pass which Randy Moss, of all people, came down with. So with Orton looking this good, I decided to put his mettle to the test by throwing him in the Greek/Trojan war during the time where the Greeks were attacking Troy. I thought if I threw Orton in the mix with the Trojans a little before the whole "Wooden-Horse" incident, things may turn out differntly for the Greeks...maybe.
I dropped by Orton's apartment in Denver and caught him almost shaving...so close, yet so far. I grabbed him and hoped to God that he would get back to that shaving very soon, but for now we have so much more important things to get to. We crusied back through time and I dropped him off with the Trojans. At first, the Trojans were too creeped out by this strange looking, greesy moustache wearing soldier. However, Kyle eventually proved himself to be a hardworker and the Torjans eventually accpeted him as one of their own. Even though the Trojan army wasn't very talented, Orton still helped them win more battles than they maybe should have. More impressively, Orton rarely lost a battle with the Trojans fought within their walls. Some could say that he had a knack for defending the home-battlefield advatage. However, not too far away, there was discontent in the camp of the Greeks. The Greeks recently had brought in a new leader, King Agamemnon. He had a history of winning many battles, however, he did not get along with the Greeks best soldier, the legendary Achilles. At first their were rumors that Agamenon liked Ajax better than he liked Achilles, and that just led to more and more hurt feelings, and eventually it became obvious that the relationship was beyond repair.
Suddenly, rumors seemed to pop out of no where that the leader of the Trojan army, Hector, was trying to somehow bring Achilles over to Troy to fight with the Trojan army. Before I could save Kyle from another embarassing situation, the Torjan army had shipped him over to the Greeks (along with almost all of the Trojan weapons, food and clothing in order to sweeten the deal) in exchange for Achilles. As Kyle and Achilles passed each other on the road, Achilles tripped Kyle and kicked dirt in his face "geez, look in a mirror you creep, you need to take a blade to that upper-lip". Kyle got up, brushed the dirt off of himself, and kept on. As Kyle arrived in the Greek camp, no one seemed happy to see him. They were all wearing animal hides with phrases pained on them like "We Want Achilles!" or "Agamemnon is a camel-brain". One of the hides flat out said "I Hate Kyle..Alot". However, this did not seem to shake Kyle or Agamemnon. It seemed like they had everything under control.
It was obvoius that Achilles was the better soldier. He was quicker, stronger, and just more deadly. But Kyle just seemed a bit smarter. He did not take as many chances in battle and just seemed more concerned with winning the war rather than padding his total number of men killed in battle, like Achilles. Then one day, Kyle had an idea. This idea involved a wooden horse. A wooden horse that Achilles and the rest of the Trojan army never say coming. The rest, as they say, is history.
So even though Kyle Orton may not appear to be the best selection for a fantasy football team, he sure is working out perfectly for a real football team. The Denver Broncos are gaining more and more respect and seem to be making a number of NFL teams uneasy. McDaniels gameplan is working, the defense is clicking, and Orton is playing mistake-free football. Let's just hope the Broncos keep winning and don't allow themselves to be beaten by any "wooden horses".

Quick Hitters: Week 5

Sun, 11 Oct, 2009 02:39:01 GMT

Obi-Wan Kenobi against Anikan Skywalker, Henri Ducard against Bruce Wayne, and now Bill Belichik against Josh McDaniels. The Patriots will come into Denver looking to ruin Denver's perfect season thus far. Beyond that there is also the question of how the Browns and Jets will fair after the Braylon Edwards trade, but does any of this affect your fantasy teams? Let's take a look:

Tony's Time
So, I think it is finally time for the monkey to get off of Tony Romo's back this season. They are playing one of the NFL's worst pass defenses in Kansas City. Plus, Roy Williams not playing may be a blessing in disguise. This will force Romo to spread the ball around and expose how thin the Chief's secondary is.
Get to know Knowshon
The Denver Broncos have been a surprise all year and one of the biggest surprises has been their powerful run game fueled by Correll Buckhalter and Knowshon Moreno. However, Buckhalter will not play this week due to injury and Moreno will take a lead role in an offense that depends on the run. Expect Josh McDaniels to establish the run early against the Pats using Moreno almost exclusively.
No Barriers for Berrian
The Viking passing attack had a huge boost last week against the Packers. One of the keys to that boost was the developing chemistry in-between Brett Favre and Bernard Berrian. There were some nice catches by Berrian last week, and this week against the Rams, he should have a breakout game.
No Tryin' with Ryan
Matt Ryan has been quietly effective all season, but he could struggle this week against the 49ers. Coming off of a bye, the second-year quarter back could experience some rust while trying to adapt to the impressive defensive scheme that the 49ers will bring. Be careful of depending too much on Ryan this week.
Wary of Willis
The Ravens will take on a very beatable Bengal team this week. However, Willis McGahee will struggle, with most of his TD's coming in the red zone where the Bengals are the toughest, he could see a low point week. Expect Flacco to win this game with his arm while Willis plays second fiddle for this game.
No Mas Senor, No Moss
Champ Bailey had a monster week last week against the Cowboys. They went after him all day, and he embarrassed them all day. This week, he covers Randy Moss. Granted, Tom Brady and Moss finally started to find some of their old magic last week, but the Patriots know how good Champ is (especially Ben Watson) and Moss will stay quiet.

Time Traveling Today: Michael Crabtree

Fri, 9 Oct, 2009 06:25:06 GMT

Michael Crabtree finally ended his contract holdout, the 49ers got their receiver of the future, and the rest of the league breathed a huge sigh of relief after finally getting over this media headache. Crabtree's epic holdout rivaled many of the longer holdouts in the past, sadly few of those holdouts boded well for the players (see: "Jamarcus Russell"). However, Crabtree and the 49ers believe that everything is going to be all right and that this receiver will flourish within the rejuvenated 49ers. However, I am not a very patient person, so I thought I would skip on into the future and see what laid ahead for Michael Crabtree. Sure he makes decisions about as quickly as Brett Favre and is more greedy than Jerry Jones in a Sam's Club, but maybe he would still have a productive future. Maybe...
So I set my time machine for 2020, 10 years in the future where Crabtree SHOULD have a well established career. I was dropped off in San Francisco and headed over the newly built Silver Gate Bridge to the 49ers team headquarters. As hard as I looked though, I just could not find any sign of Michael Crabtree. Suddenly, I saw Jamarcus Russell walking through the lobby. What was he doing here? Turns out, in 2011 the Raiders got so sick of Jamarcus that they took him out into the middle of the bay one night and threw him overboard. Fortunately for Jamarcus, Mike Singletary was out on his nightly swim and saved Russell. From there, Singletary just kept saving Jamarcus and turned him into an all-pro quarterback. Amazing. Jarmacus politely informed me that Crabtree had been traded from the 49ers to the Cowboys to the Bills to the Bengals to the Browns to the Jets then back to the Browns and eventually to the Vikings (who still have not won a Super Bowl and are trying to recover from the Brett Favre incident).
So I traveled over to Minnesota to track down Crabtree. I walked into the Vikings locker room and found Crabtree staring blankly into his locker. "So, uh, whats going on Crab-ster?" I asked, he looked at me a little shocked and then mumbled "What am I supposed to do". Here I was with a star athlete going through a crisis, what an opportunity to help! I then went on to find out that the so called "crisis" that Crabtree was going through was the horrible dilemma of what color of gloves to wear to practice that day. Turns out everyone else was already out on the field, and Crabtree was behind, trying to piece together his outfit for that day. "Well, just pick a color Mike. It's only a pair of gloves, and the color doesn't even make much of a difference. Ya know, it's almost like the difference between 20 million dollars and 21.5 million dollars, you won't even notice!". Eventually Crabtree made his way out to the practice field, where I witnessed something quite shocking.
Crabtree was horrible. It wasn't like he wasn't talented. He just was never in the game long enough to make a difference. He would be in the huddle, hear the play, not like what he heard, and walk off the field. Eventually the coach would call a play he would like, he would run the play, maybe catch it, and then repeat the whole thing all over again. Then it came to running "read routes". These are routes where the receiver has to decide during the play which route he will run. I thought this would be perfect because then Crabtree could just run whatever he wanted. However, he would get out there, start running one route, not like that route then switch to another one, and then eventually switched back. This would confuse his quarterback and ultimately throw the whole offense out of sync. It didn't look like Crabtree would last much longer in Minnesota.
As I was riding back to present day, I pondered the perils facing Michael Crabtree. Would he be able to change his future by patching up an already tense relationship with the 49ers? Would he be able to put away his selfish side and be a team player? Only time will tell, but thanks to my time machines, I already know the secret.

Week 4 Fantasy Scores

Thu, 8 Oct, 2009 01:31:01 GMT

A pretty quiet fantasy week when it was all said and done, Week 4 still left plenty of story lines to be discussed. The Titans still continue their untimely plummet while the Broncos continue to stump analysts with their 4-0 burst out of the gates. On an individual basis, it is also far from business as usual.

Bread Winners
Brett Favre (QB, Green Bay Packers/New York Jets/Minnesota Vikings): He played well.
Ronnie Brown (RB, Miami Dolphins): Even though his yards gained (115) was average, the pair of touchdowns he added to his stats made him the work horse for most of his fantasy teams this week. This, along with the way the 'Fins are highlighting him in the Wildcat should keep Brown-owners happy.
Steve Smith (WR, New York Giants): Smith exploded with 11 catches for 134 yards and 2 touchdowns. Eli Manning has found his go-to guy and this combo is paying dividends for Smith. On a side note, Steve Smith is leading ALL NFL receivers in; yards, catches, and touchdowns. Unreal.

All Choked Up
Drew Brees (QB, New Orleans Saints): Even though the Saints are still winning thanks the an usually good defense. Brees didn't throw a touchdown for the second-straight week. Brees needs to find his groove again in order for fantasy owners to continue to rely on him.
Adrian Peterson (RB, Minnesota Vikings): It's not that the 55 yards and 1 touchdown is all that embarrassing. It's the meager 2.2 yards per carry he averaged vs. the Pack. That just isn't good enough for the player who was supposedly a no-brainer #1 pick in every fantasy league.
Greg Jennings (WR, Green Bay Packers): The Packers offensive line obviously threw off the entire offense all night against the fierce Viking D. However, Jennings 3 catches for 31 yards was still pitiful and Aaron Rodgers seemed to be looking more and more for Donald Driver.

That Hurts
Darren McFadden (RB, Oakland Raiders): McFadden will miss 2-4 wee- Oh...wait, I forgot. Nobody cares.

Diamonds in the Rough
Kyle Orton (QB, Denver Broncos): He continues to do a tremendous job managing Josh McDaniel's offense. With 243 yards, 2 TDs, and no picks, Orton posted his best game of the season. Also, not that you get points for comparisons in fantasy leagues, but here is just something to chew on...

Jay Cutler: 901 yards, 8 TDs, 5 Ints, 64.3 comp.%, 89.3 Rating.
Kyle Orton: 906 yards, 5 TDs, 0 Ints, 59 comp.%, 97.7 Rating.

...and Orton still hasn't lost.
Rashard Mendenhall (RB, Pittsburgh Steelers): Mendenhall went nuts against the Chargers for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns. While Willie Parker has struggled all season long, Mendenhall gave the Steelers a back they can trust.
Mike Sims-Walker (WR, Jacksonville Jaguars) I hate to say "I told you so" but...see Week 4 Quick Hitters. Sims-Walker went off for 91 yards on 7 catches to go along with a pair of touchdowns. This looks like the beginning to a very promising season.

Getting All Defensive
San Francisco 49ers: The 49ers defense was possibly the biggest story of week 4. The 49ers laid down 5 sacks, picked the ball off once, and recovered 2 fumbles. Also, they scored 3 times. Not the team, just the defense. Scored 3 touchdowns. From the defensive side of the ball. Kudos Coach Mike, Kudos.
Detroit Lions: Gave up 48 points without a single take-away. Sure they have already won a game this year, but this franchise still has a long ways to go.

Allright, we'll see you all in the middle of the week for the next edition of "Time Traveler", so till then...keep the bench warm.

Quick Hitters: Week 4

Sun, 4 Oct, 2009 06:43:10 GMT

7 NFL teams head into week 4 with undefeated records. Teams like Denver, Minnesota, and the Jets can expect to be tested to the limit. While others like the Colts and Giants should be able to head out of this week 4-0. If you're fantasy team is looking as good as some of these, here are some tips to keep it that way.

Campbell's soup for the soul.
Coming off of a big week last week, Jason Campbell is facing a very week Tampa Bay defense, and should be able to connect with Moss and CO. a few more times for some big pick-ups.

Never enough Coffee
Glen Coffee (RB, 49ers) will make you a very smart looking owner this week if you give him one of your starting spots. Running behind the line that gave Frank Gore 207 yards a couple of weeks ago, and this time against the abysmal St. Louis Rams, Coffee should have an impressive game.

Walker the Shocker
Mike Sims-Walker will not remain a small name much longer. He is quickly becoming one of David Garrard's favorite targets, and this week against the Titans sieve-like pass defense, Sims-Walker is set for a career day.

Where art thou Romo?
Romo has been less than spectacular this year. This week he faces the NFL's #1 defense in the Denver Broncos and could be headed for another day full of mistakes and frustration.

Sorry Miss Jackson
Steven Jackson could be trying to flowers out of weeds all day. The 49ers defense kept AP relatively quiet last week, and Jackson will have even more problems running behind the unproven O-Line of the Rams.

Say no to Bowe
Dwayne Bowe is nursing a sore right hamstring, while his QB Matt Cassel is still trying to find his rhythm. All of this against the New York Giants does not equal a happy ending for this typically #1 spot receiver.

Well that is all from me tonight, I wish all of you the best of luck tomorrow. I can't wait to come back and write about how good every player on the Broncos is after they take it to the big D in Denver.

Time Traveling Today: Mike Vick

Fri, 2 Oct, 2009 06:06:24 GMT

Mike Vick's less than impressive NFL re-debut on Sunday seemed to dull the hype that surrounded his absence from the league. After word came out that Vick kind of, sort of, half-expected to start this year, it only raised our level of expectation that much more. However, Coach Andy Reid did not see fit to give Vick much of a chance to do any thing on Sunday, so it will be interesting to see what kind of role he continues to fill throughout the rest of the season.
That being said, I have mixed feeling on Mike Vick. Before I support him completely, I need to get the thought of all of those poor dogs out of my head. You see, I love dogs. Since I could walk, I was chasing after every dog I saw. So before I jump on the Vick-train, I need him to prove to me that he is a changed man, that he has learned to love and appreciate animals. So how could my time machine help this situation? By sending Vick back to a time where he would be forced to interact with a bunch of animals in a very confined space. By giving Vick a one way ticket on Noah's Ark!
Now this is the longest trip the time machine has ever made, but I figured it would be worth it if it were to turn around one of the NFL's most exciting players. So I zipped over to Philadelphia where I found Vick playing Madden 2004 in his home (just can't let it go, can he?). Vick was very willing to do anything to prove to the world that he was a changed man, so we jumped in the time machine and took off towards Biblical times.
We arrived in the desert and found an old man working on a very large boat, er, ship. He seemed to be mumbling something about ridiculous rain clouds and stupid weather men. Needless to say though, he was more than happy for all the help he could get, and before he knew it, Mike Vick was helping Noah build the ark. Eventually everything came together, rain clouds appeared in the sky, and this epic journey was ready to begin. Then the Animals came.
At first it seemed like everything would be ok. Pairs of animals were peacefully loading the ark, Noah was in a chipper mood, and Mike...well, actually Mike seemed to be getting a bit of a crazy look in his eye. However, I figured this was just a phase on the road to full recovery for Mike. Once the ship was loaded, and the earth was flooded, Noah and Mike began talking what their roles would be on the ship. Mike wanted to be captain, but Noah insisted that Mike just didn't have the necessary talents and instincts to be a captain, that Mike would do better in a the role of first-mate. However, Mike insisted and Noah gave in. Mike was an exciting captain, but maybe just a little too crazy. The ship was always going fast, but it was never in control. Luckily there are no defensive backs to pick off your every mistake in the open seas.
Mike was struggling though, all of these animals, and none of them were fighting. It was as if there was some sort of spell placed over them by a higher being to keep them living in peace. This was driving Mike crazy, he just kept pacing the ark, looking at the lion sleeping with the lamb, and shaking his head. There had to be some animals that were willing to fight. Some of these animals had to be just a little more aggressive then the others. And then he saw it...the Tyrannosaurus Rex. All Vick had to do was poke the T-Rex in it's stubby little arm and it was over. Before you knew it, Vick had all of the Dinosaurs fighting each other. The ark was lost to chaos and Noah had no choice but to throw the Dino's over board. As for Vick, he was sentenced to the brig, because we all know the ark was nothing more than a really big, lonely pirate ship.
Because I figured Noah wouldn't be as forgiving as Roger Goodell, I got Vick from the belly of the ship and started our trip back to present day. I guess somethings will never change. So now when you are posed with the question of what happened to the dinosaurs, you will know; not meteor, or ice age, or divine force, but Mike Vick.

Week 3: What Could Have Been...

Tue, 29 Sep, 2009 09:14:11 GMT

Dear Loyal Readers,

I must sincerely apologize in not getting out a "Quick Hitters" post on Saturday to tip you off on all of the secrets that Week 3 would expose. Usually I will be quite reliable when it comes to posting my weekly article of last minute advice for your fantasy team. However, my internet was down all weekend, and thus disallowed me to help all of you out in your pursuit of a championship. For this I give you my deepest and most regret-filled "I'm Sorry".
The thing is; Real Fantasy does not quit. I firmly believe it is better late than never. I will not allow time to control me (As my time-traveling blogs have already proven). So without wasting anymore time, I give you what I probably would have written anyways on Saturday about the Week 3 that already was.

Rookie Wonders: I would not be surprised at all to see Mark Sanchez go off for 3 touchdowns this week. The kid has done nothing but impress NFL nation. He is calm and collected in the pocket. He does a great job of spreading the ball around. Most of all, he wants to win. I would also surmise that he may do some fancy footwork if he gets the chance to move too.
Finally...MJD: Maurice Jones-Drew will finally live up to all of the pre-season hype. The Houston Texans D is horrible and MJD will tear it apart. I would guess he will probably rush for something close to 120 yards, probably catch a few passes, and overall wind up with 3 TD's.
Start the KK: Kevin Kolb, QB Philladelphia Eagles, will be a valuable commodity this week. With Donovan McNabb out, expect to see Kolb light up the Chiefs for over 300 yards and probably a touchdown or two.
Nice, Tight End: Vernon Davis may be the best tight end in the game. This 49er just has all the right tools. Even though the Minnesota Vikings have one of the best defense's, Davis will still have his way with them. Expect at least 7 Catches for 96 yards and 2 Touchdowns out of this guy tomorrow.
The Right Choice: I Know what you are thinking; "But Tashard Choice is the Cowboys 3rd String running back, why on earth would I start him?", And that is exactly why you are not the one writing the articles. Why would you NOT start Tashard Choice? It could not possibly be any more obvious that he is going to go off on Monday night. I would guess he will probably get your team 15-20 points, hands down. Its just science really.
Not Touching Down: Even though Drew Brees, Adrian Peterson, and Larry Fitzgerald are all ranked #1 at their position, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that none of them will score. Even though they are not playing impresive defense's, 3 is unlucky for #1's. So these three #1's won't score once in week 3.
Forget about Favre: He is not good. He is washed up and he does not have the magic he used to. He can not complete long passes any more, and he is never responsible for any of the victories the Vikings have. This week, the Vikings will blow out the 49ers and Brett Favre won't even be noticed.

So there you have it, basically words from a sooth-sayer. In other news; The Vikings WR, Greg Lewis, may or may not be the best player on that team.

Time Traveling Today: Chad Ochocinco

Fri, 25 Sep, 2009 04:00:27 GMT

You'll remember last week I was kind enough to take Brett Favre for a ride in my time machine back to the civil war (http://realfantasy.sportspagenetwork.com/2009/09/Time-Traveling-Today-Brett-Favre.aspx). So this week, I have decided to do the NFL more good by teaching it's latest delinquent a lesson. After Chad Ochocinco slapped the Pack in the face with his "Lambeau Leap", I started to feel bad for the guy. I mean, here is a professional who is trying to have a good time, just in all the wrong ways. Plus, he still thinks the name on the back of his jersey means "85". The guys on the team just don't have the heart to break it to him, especially after Chad's latest idea; "Hey, we should change all of our last names to our Spanish numbers! Cedric, your number is 32 so we could call you 'TresDos', And Rey, your number is 58 so you could be 'CINCOOCHO'! How cool would that be?!?!". Meanwhile the guys on the team just keep telling him that they will all change their names when they win the Super Bowl, as a sign of brotherhood. That should keep their last names safe and sound.
So in order to cure Chad of his incessant need for attention through celebration, I decided to take him back to a time where there was nothing to celebrate about; The Dark Ages. So I went over to Chad's place, broke up his game of DDR, and began our journey back to the times of plagues, castles, and the crusades.
I dropped Chad off with a group of peasants and serfs and quickly got out of the way to allow the cure of celebration to begin. As Chad wandered through the village, guess who he bumped into first? Roger Goodell! Who knows how he got here, but he really can't let Chad out of his sight for one second. Chad immediately got to doing something productive; building himself a hut. It appears like the time travel is already doing some good! Chad's competitive nature got the best of him though, and he built the biggest hut in the whole village. No one really seemed to care or notice, so Chad decided to make them notice...by celebrating. How does one celebrate a hut-building though? By throwing a hut-warming party. Not a bad idea, except Chad forgot what happens when you group a bunch of peasants into a small contained area. Instead of receiving applause, Chad caused a plague. Looks like Ochocinco isn't just a locker room disease. Before things got worse, I decided to pick Chad up and take him East to our next stop, the Crusades.
I dropped Chad off in Jerusalem which was currently occupied by the Muslims, who were just about to engage in battle. Ochocinco bought into everything completely. He joined up arms with the Muslims and defended Jerusalem from the invading Christians. That night, the Muslims won the battle and the Christians were defeated and pushed back. Chad was pumped. He told his Muslim comrades that in the morning he would have a surprise victory celebration for all of them. The next day, the Muslim army woke up to posters made by Chad hung up all over the camp....posters of the prophet Mohammad. As you can imagine, this did not go over well with the Muslims, they booted him from the camp and sent him over to fight with the Christian army. As Chad left the camp, he muttered under his breath "Mohammad, who on earth would even want that name".
All though the Christian army wasn't typically known for accepting people different from them, they needed all the help they could get. So they accepted the ex-Muslim solider, Ochocinco. Which may have been a bit of a God-send, because the Christians pulled off a miracle victory the next day in battle. As the Christians marched through the now conquered city of Jerusalem, the defeated Muslim army gathered outside the city walls. "Watch this" Chad smiled "This is going to be hilarious!". I gasped as I saw Chad run to the top of the city walls and "leap" off into the crowd of Muslims. I was shocked! Roger Goodell was relieved (Seriously, how is he doing this? Where is he coming from?), And the Christian army was all together disturbed by what they had just seen. A comrade, jumping into enemy territory, as a sign of...yes, celebration. Then we heard something we never would have expected, "HOW YOU GONNA STOP 85!". I looked over the edge in awe, Chad had jumped into the Muslim army, and conveniently landed in the arms of three Christians. "Seriuosly" Roger Goodell sighed "How are we going to stop eighty-fiv, I mean, Ochcocin-,er...Chad".

Week 2 Fantasy News

Tue, 22 Sep, 2009 07:08:06 GMT

The Broncos are 2-0 thanks to the dangerous duo of Jabar Gaffney and Brandon Stokely along with a stellar defense. Just the way I thought this season would open up of course. Meanwhile, the Patriots learned all too well how to spell J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS, and the Cowboys new stadium looked like it could rival the Roman Colosseum (while Tony Romo looked like the aftermath of angry gladiators and hungry lions). This is why we watch the game though folks, that and to keep tabs on all of those fantasy points that Chris Johnson was stealing from the rest of the league, let's see how Week 2 wound up breaking down anyways.

Bread Winners
Matt Shaub (QB, Houston Texans)- Recovered from a forgettable Week 1 against the Jets by making the Titans defense trip all over themselves. By highlighting Andre Johnson and Owen Daniels, Shaub got into a rhythm early and never looked back by finishing with 357 yards, 4 touchdowns, and most impressive...a goose egg in the int column.
Chris Johnson (HB, Tennessee Titans)- All you need to know is he averaged 11.36 yards every time he touched the ball. However, I will still tell you more. He touched the ball 25 times. Still not impressed? That's 284 all-purpose yards. He also got in the end-zone 3 times. 2 by land, 1 by air. Wow.
Frank Gore (HB, San Francisco 49ers)- Typically I won't do 2 players at the same position, but Frank here finally looked like he was worth all of that hefty talk in the off season by scoring twice and gaining 207 rushing yards.
Andre Johnson (WR, Houston Texans)- Literally in the same boat as quarterback and fellow Bread Winner, Matt Shaub, Johnson played a solid 60 minutes. Catching the ball all over the field 10 times with style, grace, and just flat out talent for 149 yards and 2 TD's.
Honorable Mentions: Marques Colston, Darren Sproles, Drew Brees

All Choked Up
Tony Romo (QB, Dallas Cowboys)- What's being called his worst game ever (yes, the guy who lost the playoff game by fumbling an extra point hold) could not have come at a worse point this early in the season. Romo spoiled Jerry Jones open house by throwing 3 picks and only one touchdown to go along with a 127 yards that looked even smaller underneath the massive jumbo-tron.
Steve Slaton (HB, Houston Texans)- Granted, he really didn't need to do anything while relaxing in the shadow of the Texans phenomenal passing attack on Sunday. But still, Coach Gary Kubiak needs more out of his #1 guy than just 2 yards per carry.
Greg Jennings (WR, Green Bay Packers)- The Packers #1 receiver didn't catch any of the 5 balls that were thrown his way on Sunday. Meanwhile, Chad Ochocinco and the Bengals absolutely humiliated the Pack at home.

That Hurts
Brian Westbrook (HB, Philadelphia Eagles)- Not even that the ankle injury was all that bad, but still...already?

Diamonds in the Rough
Byron Leftwich (QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)- Scored huge fantasy points with 296 yards and 3 touchdowns. Even with the 2 picks, Leftwich could be an easy pickup that could provide for a safe backup come time for your starter to sit out his week.
Felix Jones (HB, Dallas Cowboys)- Jones was explosive against the tough Giants D. Racking up 96 yards on only 7 carries to go along with a touchdown. Jones could have some huge weeks coming up soon depending on how starter, Marion Barber's, quadricep heals up.
Mario Manningham & Steve Smith (WRs, New York Giants)- This unknown duo picked up a combined 284 yards, 20 catches, and 2 touchdowns. It appears that Eli Manning now has himself plenty of targets. Manningham and Smith will continue to have solid performances while Plaxico Buress will continue his weekday community knitting classes during free time.

Getting All Defensive
Denver Broncos- What was the league's worst defense this year is quickly making one of the most drastic turnarounds in the early season. In two weeks the Broncos have only allowed 13 points and 1 touchdown. This along with the stellar 4-sack game by Elvis Dumervil, surprisingly makes Denver a legit start at Defense.
Cleveland Browns- No one said they were going to be good, but we didn't expect this bad. Against a mediocre Denver offense, the Browns didn't even come close to making a play and gave up 27 points. It is only going to get more ugly from here as they line up to face the Ravens, Bengals, and Steelers, all already very competitive offensive powers.

So week 2 is in the books. I'm sure you are already sick of hearing the phrase "It's too early to tell.." so lets just call it like we see it at the end of every week and quit giving ourselves excuses. So I'll just step up and say what everyone else is thinking. The 49ers are 2-0, the Titans are 0-2...what the heck is going on here?

Week 2 Quick Hitters.

Fri, 18 Sep, 2009 11:02:43 GMT

Tomlinson out with sprained ankle
This obviously paves the way for Darren Sproles to have a huge day. He was explosive last week as a #2 guy, this week as the featured back he has potential to be one of the top performers. Make sure you start him if he is on your roster, and don't let LT take up one of your slots with a 0.

Breakout Warning: Austin Collie!
With Anthony Gonzalez, the Colts #2 receiver, out for up to 8 weeks, former BYU standout Austin Collie looks to step in as Peyton Manning's third option behind Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark. Collie is definitely worth picking up off of the free agent market at least. Any wide receiver with #18 throwing to him should never be over looked.

More struggles ahead for Matt Shaub
With a rough outing last week, Texans QB Matt Shaub is not going to find anymore breaks this week either. Going up a ridiculously tough Tennessee Titan secondary, Shaub will be lucky to come out of that game breaking even. Seriously consider starting your second-stringer over Shaub if there is potential for even a decent game there.

Big D in D.C.
The Redskins defense should have a field day with they abysmal offense of the St. Louis Rams. Albert Haynesworth should be up to destruction all day while the secondary will have fun reading and picking off struggling quarterback Marc Bulger. Steven Jackson will have to take his vitamins in order to cause any sort of ripple against this usually tough unit.

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Fri, 18 Sep, 2009 10:12:17 GMT

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Time Traveling Today: Brett Favre

Fri, 18 Sep, 2009 02:46:31 GMT

WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO THE MOST AMAZING, PHYSICS DEFYING INVENTION YOU HAVE EVER HEARD OF! My time machine. Yes, it is true, I have finally invented time travel. Not the wimpy kind that you see in some movie that can only take you to one specific time and place (Time Line), or that you can't control (Time Travelers Wife, not that I've seen it...). This time machine can go wherever I want, and I can take whom ever I want. Now I would explain to you how I invented it and everything, but that all concerns much scientific jargon that neither you, nor I want to have to go through. So let's just get to the best part; my first trip.
Now it is no secret that Brett Favre annoys me. I can not think of one thing about him that I even like a little. It is also no secret what a fan of war history I am, specifically the civil war. So I thought, what better way to spend my first trip, then to take Brett Favre back to 1861 and drop him off at the beginning of the Civil War and see what kind of insight I can gain into history, as well as future fantasy happenings. So come along as I take number 4 away from throwing franchises into crisis, and back to a nation in crisis.
After I snatched up Brett from ironing his Wranglers after practice, we quickly booked back to Virgina in 1861. Brett was relatively quick to join up with the Confederate Army. He mentioned something about being loyal to the south. Seriously, nothing phases this guy. Not 150 years of time travel, or 150 days of retirement. Luckily my time machine comes with a fast forward button so I was able to watch the next 4 years of the war with #4 play out relatively quickly.
First, the Confederate Army was excited to have such a gunslinger join their troops. Brett was quickly an impact solider. Winning many battles unconventionally. Although many of his bullets were off target, often times hurting his team, er, army more than helping it. He still managed to find a way to win battles. Helping with the huge victory of Super Bowl XXXI in Chancellorsville. Everyone in the South loved Brett. While the North hated him. It only deepened the rivalry between the Confederacy and the Union! The Rebels and the Yankees! The Gray and the Blue! The Green and the Purple! Wait...hold up, I'm getting ahead of myself. Things started to go down hill for Brett though. Gettysburg came, and soon he had lost Super Bowl XXXII. The South was starting to see that maybe Brett's time with them was over, it was time to move on to younger soldiers to try to salvage this franchise, I mean, army. So Brett and the Confederates parted ways, and everyone involved in the NFL, or, the Civil War, thought they had seen the last of Brett.
April 9, 1865: I haven't seen much of Brett lately. He has popped up in some skirmishes, but no one can ever tell who's side he is on, or if is even fighting, or how long he actually wants to fight for. Quite frankly, the South just wishes he would put his gun away and relax for a little bit. Good news though; today is the day where Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox Courthouse. Thus sealing the North's victory and superiority over the South. The Union sure is impressed with Grant, he has turned into their workhorse. Winning battle after battle, and rewriting the rushing records of the NFL. Adrian, I mean, Grant is the best thing that has happened to the North so far. Wait, what's this? It appears that Brett has signed on to fight with the North on the last day of the War! He is literally riding Grant's coattail to the surrender just to gloat over his fallen Southern comrades. However, the North seems un-phased by this blatant act of betrayal and are welcoming Brett with open arms. It is as if they can't remember all the pain he caused them in battle, and all the games he won with his right arm alone. Now he is just using AP, or rather, General Grant to ensure that he gets one last victory on his way out. Surely the North won't stand for this!
Sadly, the North stood for it. As I rode my time machine back to present day and checked the box score of the Vikings victory over the Browns, it all hit my like a volley of bullets. AP rushed for 180 yards and won the game, Favre threw for 110 yards and got to walk out with the winning team, meanwhile his old family in green struggled to beat a mediocre Chicago team. This act of betrayal will go unpunished. And Favre will get the last laugh. However; he will not do so in style. As proven Sunday, this old soldier is long past the days of outrageous stats. So let him ride General Peterson all the way to the Super Bowl, as long as he never gets off of your fantasy bench.

Fantasy Fun in Week 1

Wed, 16 Sep, 2009 02:15:10 GMT

Week 1 was crazy as all week 1's usually are. My Broncos pulled off a miracle in Cincinnati. The 49ers frustrated, enraged, and all together, upset the defending NFC Champion Cardinals. While the Patriots and Chargers both pulled off 4th quarter wins in games that should have been over by half time on Monday night. If you're like me though, none of these stories matter at all because I am hunched over my computer, pulling out my hair, wondering what went wrong with 6 out of my 7 fantasy football teams. I felt confident that I could come away with at least 5 wins, turns out I already have catching up to do all across the board. But enough about me, let's take a look at what went right and wrong in week 1 as well as what clues we can take from this week to prepare us for the rest of the season.

Bread Winners:
Drew Brees (QB, New Orleans Saints)- Brees was just flawless. 358 yards, 6 td's and only 1 pick? Welcome to first place in your league.
Adrian Peterson (RB, Minnesota Vikings)- Starts off slow, ends with 180 yards and 3 touchdowns. Meanwhile Favre was a non-issue, but still the threat of a deep ball will be loosening things up for AP all season long.
Reggie Wayne (WR, Indianapolis Colts)- 10 Catches for 162 yards and a touchdown, and all of us who let him slide to the third and fourth rounds because we thought the Colts offense was done are shutting up now.

All Choked Up:
Jay Cutler (QB, Chicago Bears)- 4 int's with 3 in the first half is not at all how Cutler wanted to start off his season. It looks like the shaky receiving core could be a thorn in his side all season long.
Michael Turner (RB, Atlanta Falcons)- What can you say about Turner's 2009 debut except, 65 yards? It is a mystery why he was a non-factor in Atlantas season opener, but they came away with a win so maybe it was just a game plan issue.
Andre Johnson (WR, Houston Texans)- Quarterback, Matt Shaub, had a less than stellar game which could attribute to Johnson's poor performance. But still, only getting 35 yards out of 4 catches does not look like what was widely held to be the second best fantasy receiver next only to Larry Fitzgerald.

That Hurts:
Donovan McNabb (QB, Philiadelphia Eagles)-With a broken rib sidelining him for up to 6 weeks, McNabb took down a lot of points with him when he left the game with 2 td's under his belt already.
Brian Urlacher (MLB, Chicago Bears)- With Urlacher's wrist taking him out for the season, the Bear's D will start to under perform as they will be missing their heart for their next 15 games.

Diamonds in the Rough:
Joe Flacco (QB, Baltimore Ravens)- We knew he was going to be good, but we didn't know he was going to be this good, this soon. With 307 yards, 3 touchdowns, and just 1 int. Flacco proved that he could be a valuable #1 QB for the rest of your season.
Carnell "Cadillac" Williams (RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)- While people were unsure if Williams would have much of a role in Tampa's offense, that is if he stayed healthy. However, Williams had a solid game with 97 yards and a touchdown. While the Buc's try to find a passing game, Williams could continue to be a consistent part of the gameplan.
Patrick Crayton (WR, Dallas Cowboys)- With the rise and fall of Miles Austin out of the way, Crayton solidifed his spot as the Cowboys #2 receiver led by an impressive Tony Romo who hooked up with Crayton 4 times for 135 yards and a touchdown.

So thats all I have to say about that. Week 1 is definitely one that deserves some pondering before you start to make your Week 2 decisions. However, you probably want to do your pondering away from someone who went 1 for 7 in their first week of fantasy play, No sense in the blind leading the blind after all. Unless of course the blind in front are just exremely unlucky and will be gaining their sight back any week now.

Can't Say No To Santonio

Fri, 11 Sep, 2009 04:05:21 GMT

As he tiptoed the sideline in the end zone he looked like he had just stepped off the set of "Dancing with the Stars". Santonio Holmes went from zero to hero in a matter of seconds as he sealed Super Bowl XLIII for the Pittsburgh Steelers with his memorable catch. During this past off season his value as a fantasy player has been debated. Was he a one hit wonder? Could he flourish with a game-managing quarterback throwing to him? With a stellar performance on opening night against the Tennessee Titans, Holmes left nothing unanswered.
The Titans came into the game with one last seasons most stout defenses. The game finished with the Steelers winning in overtime, 13-10. The small numbers do not tell the big story though. Holmes stood out like a rainbow in a world of gray. Gaining 131 yards and scoring one touchdown on 9 catches, Holmes established himself, not only as the Steelers #1 receiver, but also as one of the NFL's most exciting, up and coming receivers. Meanwhile current big dog on the Steelers depth chart, Hines Ward, had a solid 8 catches for 103 yards. However, no touchdowns and a fumble deep in enemy territory forcing the game in to overtime, seemed to seal the tone of the game that Santonio Holmes is ready inherit Big Ben's attention from Ward.
Although Holmes will be a hard player to trade for after the game against Tennessee, He is definitely someone worth targeting. If you have a big name receiver that you are not completely sold on, do not be afraid to feel out what you could get for him along with Holmes in an early-season block buster trade. If you are already lucky enough to have Holmes, even as your #1 receiver, feel confident. Your WR core is set and ready to bring you a lot of points this season.

Smart Money: Auction Draft Budget

Mon, 7 Sep, 2009 09:28:49 GMT

I recently was involved in my first Auction-style fantasy football draft. I can honestly say that this is my favorite way to draft, hands down. The strategy definitely steps up a notch and you feel much more involved with your team shapes up rather than if you were just picking whatever name was at the top of the list when your turn came. However, "With great power comes great responsibility" and this style of draft will hold you responsible for every breath you breathe in the draft room.

First the basics:

An auction draft works just like it sounds. Each owner is given a certain amount of points to spend throughout the draft. Then each owner takes turns putting a player up for bid by saying their name and the price they would be willing to pay. If no one else bids, than the owner who put that name up gets that player for the price they said. However, if it is a player that more than one owner wants, than they are auctioned off just like you would expect. Whoever is willing to pay the most points gets the big name.

Auction Strategy:

Just like graduating high school, it is very important to set up a budget before you enter in the real world of auction drafting. If each owner gets 100 points and there are 15 roster spots to fill, this leaves you an average of 6-7 points per pick. However, you are going to need to spend big your first few picks to get your studs, and towards the end of the draft you should be able to pick up some steals for no more than 4 or 5 points. Therefore, it is very important to keep the big picture in mind and not burn every point you have every time AP or MJD comes up on the board.

Auction Tips:
-Don't waste big money on players ranked #4-#7 at their position. (Guys like Matt Forte and Frank Gore can burn your bank without backing up their price with numbers)
-Don't be afraid to bid up other owners on mid-tier players. (If Eddie Royal looks like he is only going to cost someone 5% of their points, start throwing out some bigger numbers. You will make the other owners sweat, and if you scare them off and win the player, you more than likely are still getting that player off the clearance rack.
-Spend 35% of your budget on your #1 player
            25% on your #2 player
            15% on your next 2 players
            Sit back and wait for the steals for the rest of the draft, the other owners will start running out of money.

Now go find your self an auction league to get into. You will learn a lot your first time around so don't be afraid to make mistakes. The world is your playground, fantasy football is the monkey bars.

Preseason What2Watch4

Mon, 31 Aug, 2009 12:55:38 GMT

Starters only play for a possession or three. Even when they do play, it's hard to tell if they are going up against a full squad of starters or not. So as a fantasy owner, how are you supposed to tell which players will pay off, and which will leave you looking forward to next season. Well, if you are like me, you are not going to be giving your full attention to every game before week one, but here are somethings to look for whenever you channel surf by a game or two.

Big Hits: If a stud player is taking big hits everytime he touches the ball, chances are he is setting himself up for a roller coaster season. Players who take big hits will either end up wearing street clothes on the sidelines, or will drive their team nuts with their ego problems. Young, cocky players come in the game looking to prove that they bump around and still have time to get up and talk trash. However, your wiser, more mature players will play smart and find the plays that keep them ready to make the next big play. Especially in preseason, smart players know that there is no reason to try to prove themselves, especially if they are confident the coach is seeing them bust their rear every practice.
Smiles: A player who thinks they are going to get cut because they know the coach sees them messing up all the small things will not by flashing their pearly whites. However, a player who is confident that they are going to have a solid role on the team, will enjoy their preseason games and will be able to play more loose and laugh with their teammates in the huddle and on the sidelines.
Play Calling: If a coach is calling a number of plays in a small amount of time that highlight a specific player, chances are they have big plans for that player later on in life. So pay attention to how many passes are thrown at a player, how many carries they get, how many times the coach sends them on a blitz, and how often they are dropped in a cover zone over the middle. Coaches are using preseason to prove their hunches.

Enjoy the life of preseason! Make sure you get a chance to double check some of your draft picks. These are your last chances to find your risks and prove your rewards.

Top Secret: Drafting Formula

Tue, 25 Aug, 2009 07:30:35 GMT

This year is an interesting one for fantasy football. The buzz word is PPR (Points Per Reception) and it is changing the way fantasy owners are viewing their drafts. With a league using PPR scoring, Wide Receivers become a much more valuable asset. However, you still can not deny the value of a solid running back who is going to get a lot of touches inside of the red zone and has the ability to break down field. So as an owner, how do you take all of this into consideration, with out thinking yourself into some dumb picks. Here is a simpler formula I have worked out, that I will be sticking too blindly for the remainder of my fantasy drafts. I draft positions in this order: RB, WR, RB, WR, QB.
This year, the quarterback crop is extremely bountiful, and unless you are set on picking up Brees, Brady, or Manning (Peyton, of course) you will be wise to wait till the fifth round to pick up some jewels under center. By taking a wide receiver in the second round, you are avoding the risk of taking a question mark like Thomas Jones or Steven Jackson, and get a chance to pick up a solid #1 receiver like Calvin Johnson. Then once you get to the third round, you are in a prime position to pick up a steal at RB to compliment your solid #1 you got in the first round. I would recommend looking out for backs that look like they will be getting a lot of the carries to themselves no matter how big or small their name is.
Beyond that, make sure you analyze a teams schedule before you take their teams defense, you don't want Brees ripping on your team for 400 yards twice a year, and you also don't want AP running circles around you in double doses.
...And if you take a kicker before the last round of the draft, I will begin a petition to have your citizenship removed

Favre + Fantasy = Fail

Thu, 20 Aug, 2009 12:01:22 GMT

Don't do it.

I could just end this right there. You shouldn't need me or anyone else to tell you not to do what I know you are thinking of doing. My backup quarterback is Kyle Orton, and I didn't come close to thinking of picking up Favre. He is going to take up precious room on your bench, and they payout will never match the amount of attention the name is getting.

First off, let me clarify that I am writing this with just a hint of bias. I hate Brett Favre. I would rather have Chad Ochocinco team up with John Madden to commentate every football game to the end of time, then put up with Favre anymore. He has ruined everything about the NFL and the upstanding Hall of Famers who actually retired the right away; by going through with it. So that being said, I still believe Favre would be a horrible fantasy selection.

1. Inconsistent targets: Bernard Berrien is going to make highlights, not a consistent target. The rest of the Vikings receiving staff is unproven and will not be able to adapt to Favre's gunslinger style in the short amount of time they have, thanks to Favre putting himself above player status and skipping training camp.
2. Heavy Run Offense: This team is built around AP. He more than earns the nickname "All Day". Favre will be on the field because of his brain and ability to manage a game, not for the stats he is promising. Adrian Peterson will put up every point the Vikings score this year (almost) and Brett Favre will be left with 200 yard, 1 TD, 2 INT -type games.
3. Shouldering the load: I talked to some of the Archeologists at the Smithsonian museum. They said that fossils in Favres condition need to be preserved in a very stable, and non-active environment in order to obtain substance. Favre's shoulder will not last the season. If he is still playing by week 17, than the pain he is feeling in his shoulder will be causing him precious inches of accuracy on his daring throws. One doesn't become the NFL's all time leader in interceptions by playing conservatively.

So if you are needing a backup, and you think Favre being available is just too good to be true, well, trust me...it is. Pickup someone with a better chance of an upside to get you through your #1's off week or bum throwing arm. Other than that, just sit back and enjoy the self-destructing fireworks that is Brett Favre's career.

Sleeping Beauties

Mon, 17 Aug, 2009 02:09:11 GMT

We’ve all seen the Disney classic “Sleeping Beauty”. No? Well yeah, me neither obviously, I was speaking in general. I was more or less just referring to the idea of a Prince risking his life to fight off a horrible dragon in order to wake up a Princess with true loves first kiss in order to save her from certain peril. I mean, we have all been there right? You risk your entire Fantasy season on a sleeper that you are positive is going to stick with you for happily ever after (or at least the rest of the season). You attempt to wake them up with the kiss of one of your precious draft picks, thus slaying the dragon that is the predictions of everyone else in your draft room. Well I’m no Prince Charming, and I certainly have had my share of sleeping beauties that never woke up, but here are some damsels in distress I would maybe risk life, limb, and a late round draft pick, to save.

Light Sleepers

Mark Sanchez, QB: The secret is out; this rookie looks like he could have an impressive season and so far it looks like every player and coach on the Jet’s is completely bought into him. If he is available as an early round back-up quarter back, maybe you should buy in too.

Ronnie Brown, RB: This Wildcat has his first injury-free season behind him, and can now play with complete fearlessness of reinjuring that ACL. Ricky Williams was unimpressive in camp which solidifies Browns role as the go-to star of this up and coming offense.

Anthony Gonzalez, WR: When teams zeroed in on Marvin Harrison, Peyton Manning made Reggie Wayne a god. Now when opposing defenses are starting at Reggie Wayne, whose stats do you think are going to receive the Manning boost?

San Diego Defense: Not so much that they are good, as much as how bad everyone else in the AFC West is. They have to face Kyle Orton, Matt Cassel, and Jamarcus Russell twice a year each. There is your guaranteed 20 points a week for 6 weeks.

Heavy Sleepers

Sage Rosenfels, QB: True, who knows if he will even start. But ask anyone at Vikings training camps, and they will say that Rosenfels is the best they got. Combine this with the vertical threats in Berrien and Harvin while teams focus on AP. There might be some decent games.

Knowshon Moreno, RB: He needs to stay healthy. However, if he can go, Josh McDaniels showed early in the pre-season that they want to make Moreno their work horse. Points could fall on him while the Broncos QB situation remains uncertain.

Josh Morgan, WR: I say this simply because he is the only #1 receiver that could very well go undrafted. However, if the Niners can figure out their own scheme, and if teams start to hone in on Frank Gore too much, Josh Morgan could be a lonely target.

Washington Defense: They play against a lot of teams that like to air it out, and a few quarterbacks who are not really known for their speed. This could produce quite a few chances for interceptions and take downs behind the line of scrimmage.

Don’t even bother waking them up

Brady Quinn and/or Derek Anderson: Any Running back who has spent time in jail or with the Bengals. Anyone Eli Manning is throwing too, unless they are signing his checks. Anyone from the Detroit Lions whose name does not rhyme with Shmalvin Shmonson. Oh, and Hugh Jackman.