Ed’s Fantasy Football

Playoff Madness

It is fantasy football playoffs time, and a lot will be riding on the players that you start this week, and the players you don’t.
Fantasy football can be a heartbreaker, and for me it has been the past 3 weeks. I won one of my games, and lost two, knocking me out of playoff contention. But have no fear, my losses do not mean I am not a credible source, I just so happened to play the highest scorer the first week I lost, and the second highest scorer the second week, I scored second most and third most respectively. Playoffs are a stressful time, because if you lose, you are done, unless your league has some special rules of course.
Lets talk about some pick ups that I would advise to make your team stronger, and give you that extra push for the win. If you are in need of a running back, I would suggest Fred Jackson of the Buffalo Bills. I would guess that not many people have him, because he is on the Bills, a very weak team this year. He might not have the greatest stats in the world, but he will perform well. If you are in dire need of a running back, and Fred Jackson is not available, then pick up Brian Westbrook from the San Francisco 49ers. He is a second string running back, but he is still very effective at his position. Danny Woodhead of the New England Patriots wouldn’t be an awful choice either, because he can be placed in the Running Back or Wide Receiver slot, so he will be getting receiving and running points. Woodhead is a young motivated player with a passion for the game of football; expect great things from him in the future. Most players that will be potent in the playoffs are probably taken in your league, such as Tom Brady, Matt Cassel, or Arian Foster, but there might be some sleeper picks that have yet to be picked up, so be sure to do your research.
In other football news, to great rejoice of most Broncos fans, Josh McDaniels was fired from his head coaching position. Don’t expect any of the Broncos to start putting up fantasy numbers any higher than they are now, maybe even expect a decline. A change in staff can be tough on an organization. My advice would be to see how the players do this week, and if they look good, and you are confident, then start them.
Be sure to check in next week for another fantasy update, and a playoff bracket from my league.

12/8/10

Lions Get Their Roar Back

Matthew Stafford of the Detroit Lions got two points in his fantasy football debut week one, but this week, after coming back from his injury earlier this season, he got 36. Stafford threw four touchdowns and one interception. I advise picking this guy up if you are in need of a quarterback or maybe looking for an upgrade. The Lions are a promising young team and Stafford is a promising young Quarterback. This week might not be Stafford’s best week because he is facing the New York Jets who have some of the best Cornerbacks and Safeties in the league. Another Quarterback who performed well week 8 was David Garrard. Picking up Garrard, however, will require a lot of attention. He is not a Quarterback that you can start every week and put up 42.2 points like he did this week. If you consider starting Garrard, you need to consider the other team that he is up against, and this week he was against Dallas, a team who is morally defeated after loosing their starting Quarterback, Tony Romo.
In other news, Randy Moss was waved from the Minnesota Vikings and is looking for another team. I have him on my team, and I regret not trading him away when he was traded to the Vikings and I received an offer for him. He is filled with drama, he is not a team player, but he is a good Receiver. If he goes to the right team however, he could be effective, but I don’t think that he will put up very many big numbers like he did with the New England Patriots.
Brett Favre’s list of injuries grew this week when he received a laceration on his chin from being hit with an opposing players helmet while being tackled. He left the game and did not return, but Favre is still adamant about starting this week against the Arizona Cardinals. If you have another Quarterback that you have any confidence in, start him over Favre.
Be sure to check in next week for another Fantasy Football update.

This week, with so many players hurting, or out of the game, picking a perfect line-up seems daunting, but put those fears to rest, and check out this fantasy guide.

With so many injured players, it’s hard to know who can still play, who will play but isn’t worth starting, and who is actually not playing. Let’s start with some injured players that are worth starting anyways. Antonio Gates of the San Diego Chargers has an injure toe, but has been fully participating in practice and is expected to start Sunday. The only reason that he is listed as questionable is to acknowledge the fact that he won’t be playing at 100%. Still expect Gates to produce however, because he is arguably the best offensive player on the Chargers, and Philip Rivers most consistent Receiver. A player that is still questionable this week and will probably not play is Steven Jackson of the St. Louis Rams, this is a huge hit to any fantasy team, but don’t drop him, or trade him away, because he will be back this season and I predict good things when he is healthy. Brett Favre of the Minnesota Vikings, this guy is an on going story. From the scandals, to the injuries, he is a ticking time bomb, trade him for as much as you can get, I don’t predict much good from him. His ankle fractures will definitely mean a lot less power behind throws. Maybe the nickname ‘Grandpa Favre’ has actually caught up to him. I do, however, hope that he can start the rest of the season, to continue his streak. The most devastating loss in fantasy in my opinion is Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys. Not only is he a solid fantasy Quarterback, but now, the team has lost their leader, so expect every part of that team to struggle. If you can get rid of any of the players you have from Dallas, I advise you take what you can. This is only because the back up Quarterback, Jon Kitna, in my opinion will not do a thing this season, so Receivers won’t get many catches. Due to the slow passing game, the Cowboys will have to fall back on the run, and teams will start stacking the line, rendering the run ineffective. The defense will be on the field for a lot more time, so they will be tired, and more prone to making mistakes. You have been warned.

Fantasy football these past two weeks has seen a lot of high scoring players, and a lot of players who failed to even leave a mark.
During week five my team was the first to reach the 200+ points mark. This week sadly, I hardly reached 100 points.
Tom Brady of the New England Patriots came off his bye week and didn’t perform up to Tom Brady standards in anyway, only reaching 16 of his projected 23 points. I don’t expect this trend to continue however, I believe that the bye week for Brady, didn’t help, and that he lost the steam that he had built up for four weeks. Another Quarterback who didn’t perform week six was Philip Rivers of the San Diego Chargers. Week five he scored 30 points, this week he only scored 22 points, granted the Chargers did lose, but they also lost the week that he scored 30. This also doesn’t concern me however, because the Chargers are always a team to start off slow and then do really well near the end of the season. Some sports analysts think that the team won’t do this however, because they have lost an important offensive weapon in Vincent Jackson and a defensive player in Shawne Merriman. In my opinion I think that the Chargers will do just fine, they won’t win the division, but they will play well, and maybe make the wildcard spot in the playoffs.
Another player who didn’t play to his normal standard was Arian Foster, and I do believe that this might be a continuing trend. Kansas City isn’t one of the better defenses in the league, and Foster only put up 71 yards against them. Foster however is not a player to drop by any means and should definitely remain on your team. This is because there aren’t a lot of explosive backs this year, and Foster still leads the league with 635 rush yards.
If he isn’t already picked up in your league, pick up the newly acquired Deion Branch of the New England Patriots. Now that Randy Moss has returned to the Minnesota Vikings, Branch will be Brady’s primary receiver. The chemistry between Brady and Branch shouldn’t even be a question, because Branch played with Brady during their Super Bowl dynasty years. Branch nine passes for 98 yards and a touchdown in the Patriots game against Baltimore. Expect these numbers to grow as the season goes on.
A questionable player for the coming weeks is Brett Favre of the Minnesota Vikings. His injured elbow on his throwing arm, and injured ankle, don’t expect the same old Favre. Favre is someone who can play through a lot of pain though, so expect him to start unless the elbow starts severely affecting him. Favre also has Randy Moss to support him and make his job easier.
My best advice is to stick with what works. If your team is good one week, then don’t clean house, stick to your guns. Unless there is a player that you can pick up, that is a definite increase in points, don’t even bother.
Be sure to check in next week for another dose of Fantasy Football.

Big news this week in the football community regarding receivers, Randy Moss was traded to the Minnesota Vikings, going back to where he started his career. Pick up Moss! He will be getting a lot more attention, and definitely no more zero point weeks, which, by the way, made me lose, thanks a lot Brady, you couldn’t even throw one pass to Moss? That’s alright, because now that Brett Favre will be passing to this star receiver, he will be getting a ton more points. Also, coupled with the explosive running game of Adrian Peterson, the pass game will open up nicely.
Arian Foster had a break out game week one, rushing for 231 yards and 3 touchdowns. “When I saw Arian Foster run over the Indianapolis Colts, I knew he would be a good pick up,” says fellow fantasy player and junior, Jaron Bartoszek. The young back is leading the league with 406 rush yards, averaging 135.3 yards per game, so its no wonder he is in high contention. I think Arian Foster will continue to outrush Chris Johnson, especially after Johnsons measly rushing game of under 60 yards against the Denver Broncos.
Anquan Boldin of the Baltimore Ravens is off to a good start with 287 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns. Boldin’s success suprises me, with a Quarterback like Flaco, I didn’t expect him to blow up, I’m predicting Boldin’s success to continue, but that he won’t be as prolific. I would say that Reggie Wayne of the Indianapolis Colts or Randy Moss of the New England Patriots would be a better choice if you were looking for long-term success. Another up and comer you can look at is Austin Collie, of the Indianapolis Colts. He leads the league in receiving yards with 359 and tied for first in touchdowns, with four. If you can pick up Collie, do it quick, because if he is available, he won’t be for long.
The best Tight End in the league is undoubtedly Antonio Gates of the San Diego Chargers.  Gates has 242 receiving yards, only 23 behind the league leader, but he has four touchdowns. This is a very good stat, considering the league average for Tight Ends is zero. Since Vincent Jackson is not playing right now, Antonio Gates is Philip Rivers best receiver along with Malcolm Floyd. One Tight End that has probably gone over looked is Tony Moeaki of the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs are off the a good start this year, and so is this Tight End.
Big news this week in the football community regarding receivers, Randy Moss was traded to the Minnesota Vikings, going back to where he started his career. Pick up Moss! He will be getting a lot more attention, and definitely no more zero point weeks, which, by the way, made me lose, thanks a lot Brady, you couldn’t even throw one pass to Moss? That’s alright, because now that Brett Favre will be passing to this star receiver, he will be getting a ton more points. Also, coupled with the explosive running game of Adrian Peterson, the pass game will open up nicely.
Also, the Patriots defense exploded this week, but don’t expect that too often, if they get more than 20 points again, I will be very surprised.
Be sure to check in next week for another fantasy update.