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Fantasy Football: Fanduel Thursday
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Fantasy Football: Fanduel Thursday

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Fantasy Football: Fanduel Thursday

Usually I like to leave the Thursday night game alone in daily fantasy football unless the match up is just too juicy and this week that match up is like a rare steak to a starved lion. The New Orleans Saints had a rough and tumble game against the 49ers last week and get to play a division rival in a short week as a prize. The schedule makers looked cruel in the preseason as this could have been a huge game with division title implications, but that is not the case. Luckily that division rival is currently in shambles as the Atlanta Falcons have imploded on both sides of the ball due to injuries.

With the Falcons defense looking like Swiss cheese you need to try and get at least one Saint in your lineup this week.

Let’s take a look at Drew Brees and see if he will play at or above his value this Thursday.

Drew Brees- 309.41 yards and 2.94 TDs-(numberFire Projection)- 24.14 Fantasy Points -$11000 Salary

So Brees’s cost per point is $455.67. That’s with me not including the potential for turnovers. That’s a very doable number for me. With little to no running yards expected by Brees he will have to put up a very nice game without any turnovers to make him a good play.

For Comparison

Case Keenum-242.97 yards and 1.49 TDs-(numberFire)- 15.68 Fantasy Points -$6100 Salary

Keenum will scare off a lot of owners because of his benching last week, but there is no need to put him on your DO NOT TOUCH list. He is facing the Jaguars who couldn’t contain Carson Palmer last week and supposedly has the full confidence of coach Kubiak. His $389 cost per point is a very nice way to stack your team with high priced studs. Remember I didn’t factor in any negative points for turnovers.

If you are going based on pure Cost Per Point then Brees would have to throw for over 310 with 4 passing TDs tonight to come close to a very low end projection of Keenum.

I suggest you build a team with both and see which lineup will score more points based on your most trusted fantasy projection site. I prefer Brees for all 50/50s and Keenum for all bigger tournaments and expert (55K) heads up FanDuels.

Fantasy Football: Week 12 Thoughts
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Fantasy Football: Week 12 Thoughts

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football: Week 12 Thoughts

Week 12 of the NFL season is finally upon us. This will be the final week our rosters will look like Swiss cheese, as it is the final week for byes in the 2013 NFL season. With Philadelphia, Seattle, Cincinnati, and Buffalo all off for the bye week, fantasy owners will be scrambling to fill roster holes. I will try to help you stay ahead of the pack during the week 12 fantasy playoff push.

First let’s take a look at what happened in Week 11.

Nice surprises

The Thursday night game gave us some of the biggest surprises of the week. Chris Johnson started the game off running with a purpose and ended up with 17 carries for 86 yards and 2 touchdowns. His night looked like it would be much bigger than that, but still not a bad haul for a low-end RB2. The other Tennessee Titan that surprised was former 49er Delanie Walker who had a huge night with 10 receptions for 91 yards and 1 TD. His recent play has him as a fashionable waiver wire add for owners who are suffering at the tight end position. More on that later. The Indianapolis Colts had two nice surprises of their own. Donald Brown had a great night running the ball as he used 14 carries to cover 80 yards and score 2 TDs. Coby Fleener had a career night for the Colts as he reeled in 8 receptions for 107 yards. I have talked about Fleener for a while and am very excited forAndrew Luck and this Colts’ offense with Fleener emerging at the tight end position.

Fantasy owners were expecting big things from Garrett Graham when Owen Daniels went down in Houston, but he has mainly disappointed since taking over the lead tight end role. Well this week against the Raiders he finally went off. He had 13 targets and caught 7 balls for 136 yards and a touchdown. On the other side of the ball in that very same game Rashad Jennings put on a show Bo Jackson would have been proud of. He ran the ball 22 times for 150 yards and a touchdown that will be one of the runs of the year. He ran through D.J. Swearinger on the way to a high-lite reel 80 yard touchdown. While Jennings production has been great to this point there is the possibility that he could be in for a time share with Darren McFadden, when McFadden returns from injury.

The final surprise for me was the goal-line work from Montee Ball with the Denver Broncos. Most fantasy experts thought Ball would have wrestled the job away fromKnowshon Moreno by this time in the season, but Moreno has been nothing short of amazing for the Broncos up until this point. Ball got the most work he has seen on the season with 11 total touches against the Kansas City Chiefs including two rushing touchdowns, but Moreno still had 27 carries on the night. I think this outing makes Ball a must-add as a lottery ticket this late in the season. Moreno has had injury issues in the past and he hasn’t handled this kind of workload in a very long time.

Disappointments

I’m not sure why I even bring him up as a disappointment anymore, but Trent Richardson once again stunk it up. He has shown zero vision and no explosiveness all season. I hope for his sake and for fantasy owners out there, that the Colts finally make Donald Brown the anointed rest of the season starter. Brown has been better week in and week out, and I’m sure Richardson is tired of the questions.

A.J. Green is on this list through no fault of his own. He just happened to be covered by “the current best cornerback in the NFL” Joe Haden. I knew Green was in for a touch match up, but 2 receptions for 7 yards. If you play in IDP leagues Joe Haden actually outscore A.J. Green by a huge margin as he had two tackles, two passes defensed, and two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown.

Case Keenum was a huge disappointment, but it was really his coaches who disappointed me. Keenum has struggled with the blitz and it showed up on Sunday against the Raiders. Instead of sticking with the youngster the Texans pulled him and went back to Matt Schaub for the second half of the game. Schaub was very Schaub-esque in his relief duties and now it looks like Keenum will be back under center this week against the Jaguars.

Andre Ellington is my last disappointment for the week, I’m sure there are other deserving mentions, but Ellington is the guy that burned the most owners. Ellington touched the ball ten times for 13 yards. It’s bad enough that Rashard Mendenhall is splitting carries with him, but not producing against the Jaguars is tough to swallow.

This week’s best matchups

Usually I don’t recommend starting quarterbacks and wide receivers on Thursday night, but this Thursday is different.

Drew Brees has a tremendous matchup against a battered Atlanta Falcons’ defense and should put up huge numbers. The only question is who will be the beneficiary of all of Brees’ passes. I think this could be a mirror image of the game against the Cowboys for Brees. He will pick apart the Falcons linebackers with his running backs and I look for Marques Colston to continue his semi-hot streak. I wasn’t sure I could make Jimmy Graham my No. 1 tight end because of his injury, but then I came to my senses and put him in at the top. I am playing all of my Saints in this match up, especially Pierre Thomas, who has been a great PPR running back to this point.

Two of my favorite running backs this week are Andre Brown against the Dallas Cowboys and Eddie Lacy against the Minnesota Vikings. Brown in particular should have a very nice game against a banged up Dallas Cowboys defense. The Cowboys will be without Sean Lee at linebacker and have been piecing their defensive line together for weeks. If the Giants can involve Brown in the passing game it could be a huge day as the Cowboys have specifically had issues covering running backs. Lacy, on the other hand, faces a Minnesota run defense that was embarrassed by Marshawn Lynch last week. Lynch didn’t have a monster yardage day, but did score three times. Lacy is a special runner. We may come to find out that he has his very own version of “beast mode” this Sunday. The more I watch Lacy the more I understand why SEC coaches were so glad when he left Alabama.

I’m going back to the well with Keenum. The matchup is too good to pass up against theJacksonville Jaguars. The Jags let Carson Palmer throw for 419 yards and 2 TDs against them last week. If Palmer can handle the Jaguars rush then Keenum will be able to. If Keenum is too much of a gamble then you could go with the surprisingly consistentMike Glennon. Glennon has been very steady since taking over as the starter in Tampa Bay and goes into Detroit on a two game winning streak. Detroit has been good against the run, but hasn’t been able to cover anyone lately. So that makes Vincent Jackson a WR1 once again and puts Tim Wright and Tiquan Underwood on very deep league radars.

The Rashad Jennings show will once again be playing in Oakland. I don’t know if we’ll see anymore 80 yard touchdowns, but we should see RB1 production against the Tennessee Titans in Oakland. The Titans have been so easy to run on some experts actually thought about using Trent Richardson against them last week. While the experts were in the right ball park they were looking at the wrong player. Donald Brown was the beneficiary of the Titans’ porous run defense instead of Richardson. This time it will be all Jennings as McFadden is set to miss another week.

I expect Colin Kaepernick and Frank Gore to run all over the Washington Redskins on Monday night. I think they could both be top five at their respective positions in fantasy scoring. The Redskins have struggled against Zone-read and there aren’t many teams that do it better than the 49ers. Kaepernick along with Keapernick fantasy football owners need this to be the week he breaks out and I believe he will.

Other news and notes

Make sure you sell Ray Rice now! I’m sorry to say that he will not be facing the Chicago Bears again this season and should immediately be traded off of your teams wherever possible.

Washington Redksins’ tight end Jordan Reed suffered a concussion early in the game against the Eagles and is playing on Monday night this week. Make sure you have a plan B in place. I would look to Fleener, Rob Housler, and Delani Walker in that order as injury replacements.

If Bobby Rainey somehow stayed on your waiver wire you need to make sure you grab him immediately. Rainey picked up where Mike James left off as he rushed through and around the Atlanta Falcons for a huge game. He touched the ball 32 times for 167 yards and 3 TDs.

With Matt McGloin under center for the Oakland Raiders Rod Streater finally had a decent fantasy game. Posting over 80 yards on 6 receptions and adding a touchdown. He could be a decent bye week fill in in deeper league, but the Titans corners are pretty good.

Adrian Peterson has been dealing with a groin issue and it could finally be time to pick up his hand cuff, Toby Gerhart. If the groin becomes more of an issue then at least you are covered and don’t have to fight for him on the waiver wire if Peterson goes down.

Wide receiver Miles Austin is slated to return to the Dallas Cowboys’ lineup this week, and while I didn’t know how to feel about his return there are reports that he will gain his starting job back this week. This one is via Rotoworld.

Bryan Broaddus of the Cowboys’ official website believes Miles Austin (hamstring) is “your guy” as the No. 2 receiver when he returns this week.

When asked if the Cowboys plan to ease Austin back in, Broaddus replied that it “doesn’t appear that way.” Speaking on Tuesday, Jerry Jones said Austin is ready to go after missing basically every game since pulling his hamstring in Week 3. Terrance Williams has struggled of late in the No. 2 role, so it sounds like Austin is going to take over. Williams will still see plenty of action in three-wide sets, with Austin moving to the slot. Cole Beasley and Dwayne Harriswill be the Nos. 4 and 5 receivers. Austin has WR3 upside.

Feel free to ask me any start/sit or trade questions on Twitter @Coachesser or by messaging me on Facebook by liking Coachesser’s Playbook. You can also read my articles at www.coachesser.com and listen to the definitive fantasy football podcast on Itunes or Stitcher Radio by subscribing to the Trick Plays podcast hosted by Micah James (@FFMagicMan) and myself.

Fantasy Football Week 11 Thoughts
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Fantasy Football Week 11 Thoughts

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football Week 11 Thoughts

Week 11 is traditionally where I begin to narrow my focus for a Fantasy Football playoff run. The bulk of the fantasy season is behind us, but the real work is just beginning. We should start by looking to make trades for players that have favorable match-ups in the playoffs. Then make the small trades that help protect our rosters. Like trading a fifth wide receiver for Joique Bell so you don’t get stuck with Reggie Bush standing in street clothes come Week 15. Those types of trades should only happen if the handcuff can produce similar fantasy points and the player has a clear history of injuries.

Before we look forward to Week 11 we must take a look back at what happened in Week 10.

Nice Surprises

First and foremost, our very own Andre Brown made his claim for more fantasy attention with a fantastic game against the Oakland Raiders. He touched the ball 31 times producing over 100 yards and scored a touchdown. What many saw as a cloudy running back situation for the Giants, including me, has become a beacon of hope for fantasy owners. Brown was clearly what the Giants have been looking for and should be a solid RB2 going forward.

Tavon Austin finally looked like a top 10 pick as he broke out for a three touchdown game. While waiver wire darling Zac Stacy was mostly bottled up on the day, Austin exploded. Austin still didn’t see the field as much as he should, but at least it was a very encouraging sign for those that own him in dynasty formats. I still don’t see him as much more than a WR4 for the fantasy playoffs.

Golden Tate took advantage of a beautiful match-up against the Atlanta Falcons and scored well above his weekly average. Tate’s 6 receptions for 106 yards and touchdown saw him as a perfect bye week filler for guys like Josh Gordon and Danny Amendola. He should be a high end WR4 going down the stretch.

Three New Orleans Saints who were either headed towards, or were firmly in the fantasy football abyss finally broke out. Marques Colston was borderline dropable heading into this week. He was right there with Dwayne Bowe as far as usefulness for a fantasy owner. The only difference is that Colston has Drew Brees throwing him the ball. Brees finally decided to look Colston’s way and he delivered with 7 receptions for 107 yards and 1 TD. Mark Ingram was so forgotten that he was even being dropped in dynasty leagues. The former Alabama star, who is just now fully healthy, ran like a man possessed against the Dallas Cowboys defense. He racked up 145 yards and a touch down on just 14 carries and added 2 receptions for 15 yards for good measure. Darren Sproles came into the game on a long string of disappointing fantasy returns. The Cowboys were the ideal remedy to get him going. He scored on the ground and through the air as he looked like his old elusive self. The Cowboys sixth-string linebackers only made him look that much more amazing.

Disappointments

Trent Richardson, Ray Rice, and C.J. Spiller.

Richardson has just not been able to get going since being traded to theIndianapolis Colts. The fact that fantasy owners are now looking to start Donald Brown over him makes him border-line dropable at this point. I am holding out hope, but I am literally starting a ball boy over him at this point. Ray Rice is not the same player he used to be at this point. The hip injury has sapped some of his elusiveness and power and he is running behind one of the worst offensive lines in football. Joe Flacco is still looking to him in the passing game, but he can’t make the first guy miss at this point, so his yardage suffers. I would look to trade him for anything that could help me down the road, because Ray Rice is still a name and sometimes you can make a deal on that alone. C.J. Spiller’s ankle was finally healed and he was coming off a 100 yard performance, so naturally the Bills were going to feature him….right? Nope, Spiller basically saw a third of the snaps in the backfield for the Bills and he was once again a fantasy disappointment.

The Mike James injury! Mike James was fast becoming a big-time fantasy running back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was the answer to all the prayers of Doug Martin and David Wilson owners as the Buccaneers had decided to feature James going forward in a more balanced attack. The Buccaneers had finally decided to put Doug Martin on injured reserve early on the weekend making Mike James rest of the season outlook look that much better. Well a fractured ankle on a run that came up just inches short of a touchdown may have cost some of us a fantasy championship.

Week 11 Start/Sit

With only Dallas and St. Louis on a bye in Week 11 most fantasy teams will be fully stocked for battle.

The Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles game looks like an explosive fantasy match up on paper, but these two teams are division rivals who have already played each other once. I still think there should be some nice fantasy points scored in this game, but I don’t really trust Robert Griffin III just yet. If Griffin is erratic throwing the ball then the Redskins offense will stall and The Eagles will take the air out of the ball with LeSean McCoy. The one good thing for the Redskin’s run defense is that Nick Folesis under center and he is much less of a threat in a zone-read situation. The Redskins have been gashed all year by mobile quarterbacks running zone-read.

While Marshawn Lynch has a great match-up against the Minnesota Vikings, Adrian Peterson will see his name slide down some fantasy experts’ lists. I am not one of those experts. I think Peterson is just finally getting healthy and that the Seahawks defense can be run on. I have Peterson as my number four overall running back this week.

We saw what Andre Brown and the Giants were able to do against the Oakland Raiders last week. Well now Ben Tate and the Houston Texans get those same Raiders in Houston. I feel like Tate is going to have a very big day, but his injured ribs are my only concern. High upside RB2 for me this week.

Alfred Morris was having a huge game last Thursday before the Redskins forgot to call running plays in the second half. This week they’ll stick to the running game against the Eagles and Morris will finally get back into the end zone.

Because of injuries and a bye week for Tony Romo you may need to use the waiver wire for your quarterback this week. While early in the year I may have had to recommend any quarterback that was facing the New York Giants, that is no longer the case. The Giants have improved dramatically in recent weeks and make starting the newest Green Bay quarter back Scott Tolzien a real reach. I would instead look to Case Keenum against the Oakland Raiders or Ben Roethlisberger against the Detroit Lions.

The wide receiver match ups are very interesting. Andre Johnson gets a huge bump with Case Keenum now slinging the ball in Houston and looks to have the best match up of all the wide receiver ones. DeSean Jackson ran through the Redskin’s secondary at will the last time they played and he should still find room this week to make him a top play. The Eagles’ other wide receiver, Riley Cooper, has seen his fantasy statistics sky-rocket with Nick Foles at the helm and looks to be a WR3 and flex option going forward. Huge disparity in numbers for Cooper with Foles under center than withMichael Vick.

Two guys that would usually be at the top of any wide receiver list, in Calvin Johnson and A.J. Green actually face very tough match-ups this week. Calvin Johnson faces the always tough Ike Taylor, while A.J. Green gets theJoe Haden. I expect Johnson to still put up representative numbers, but Haden is a real tough draw for A.J. Green.

A man that may have been forgotten and that the Dolphins‘ owner, general manager, and fans would probably like to forget so far this season, Mike Wallace, actually has a very nice match up this week against the San Diego Chargers. The only issue is if Wallace decides to actually try for a change.

Two of my top tight end plays this week happen to share the same first name. Jordan Reed and Jordan Cameron both have pretty good match ups this week. Reed faces the Eagles and is in the enviable position of being the number two target on a team that may have to play catch up on Sunday. Cameron is the Browns number two target and should have been working during the bye week with Jason Campbell to get on the same page. Cameron is an unbelievable talent as a pass catcher and I expect Campbell and the Browns to do everything they can to get him the ball going forward.

Top Fantasy Waiver Targets

Michael Crabtree — it looks like he could be back soon as the 49ers have let go of Kyle Williams

Brian Leonard, Mark Ingram, Bobby Rainey, Shonn Greene, Rishard Mathews, Nate Burleson, Tyler Eifert, Coby Fleener, Rob Housler

Who has been your biggest fantasy football disappointment and surprise to this point?

Contact me @Coachesser on Twitter or by messaging me on Facebook by liking Coachesser’s Playbook. You can also read my articles at www.coachesser.com and listen to the definitive fantasy football podcast on Itunes or Stitcher Radio by subscribing to the Trick Plays podcast hosted by Micah James (@FFMagicMan) and myself.

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 10 Start/Sit
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Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 10 Start/Sit

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 10 Start/Sit

The Giants spent the bye week healing up and readying for an uphill battle back to the top of the NFC East. While it’s anyone’s guess if the Giants really have a legitimate shot at making a run at the NFC East title, the fact that the Giants are as healthy as they have been since training camp cannot be disputed.

The Giants welcome back their power back Andre Brown to a now crowded back-field and could get their best run-blocking tight end, Adrien Robinson, back from a preseason foot injury. The combination could have a ripple effect throughout the Giants offense that could benefit everyone involved. What looked like a thunder and lightning partnership between Andre Brown and David Wilson, has now become a backfield full of rolling thunder. Andre Brown, Peyton Hillis, and finally healthy Brandon Jacobs could become the type of backfield that can break the wills of opponents.

Fantasy Outlook

Eli Manning-311.56 yards 1.45 TDs and 1.56 Ints (numberFire projection)

Eli comes off the bye week with an offensive line that has finally settled in together. While the defense was finally clicking on all cylinders before the bye week , Eli and the offense were sputtering. The additions of Andre Brown and Adrien Robinson can only help Eli over the second half of the year. I expect Eli to have a very big game and my co-host, Micah James, at Trick Plays picked him as his sleeper of the week. The Raidersdefense is ripe for the picking and Eli should put up top ten QB numbers.

Andre Brown-6.02 carries for 27.15 yards and .14 TDs (numberFire)

Brown’s return to the offense comes at an interesting time for the Giants’ running game. Brandon Jacobs had gashed the Bears a few weeks ago before getting injured, and then Peyton Hillis did a more than adequate job stepping into the backfield off the street. Hillis has proved a solid pass blocker as well as pass catcher while doling out his usual forward falling straight ahead runs. Brown’s patience and skills in the screen game could be a perfect compliment to these two bruisers. I actually like Brown to be a nice flex play this week against a bad Raiders defense.

Peyton Hillis-8.40 carries for 27.24 yards and .12 TDs, 2.30 receptions for 21.16 yards and .12 TDs (numberFire)

Hillis will have a diminished role with Brown back from injury, but just how much it will be diminished is still to be seen. Hillis has been very valuable on passing downs and could carve out a niche going forward in that role. I don’t see him as much of a fantasy option until we see how much Brown is going to be used this week.

Brandon Jacobs-?

The return of Andre Brown and the emergence of Peyton Hillis has put a damper on the great story that was for Brandon Jacobs. Jacobs will be lucky to hang onto a roster spot with Brown’s return and should only get short yardage and spot usage going forward.

Victor Cruz-5.34 receptions for 76.09 yards and .43 TDs (numberFire)

Cruz missed practice yesterday with a stiff neck and his status is to be monitored going forward for those that have him in fantasy. I actually have Cruz having a much bigger day, if he plays, than numberFire has him having against the Raiders pass defense. The Raiders safeties have been as bad as any in the league and Cruz can run by them at will if he is healthy.

Hakeem Nicks-3.44 receptions for 46.21 yards and .41 TDs (numberFire)

Nicks has been pretty bad from a fantasy perspective this season. This match-up could be the one to get him going. The Raiders corners have struggled in man coverage and Nicks should be able to beat them off the line of scrimmage at will. I expect almost double the numberFire projections.

Rueben Randle-2.28 receptions for 33.66 yards and .32 TDs (numberFire)

Randle put up a goose-egg the last time out and could see his snaps limited with the return of Stacy Robinson at tight end. While Randle may not get enough snaps to have a huge game, he may only need a few to make a fantasy impact. I expect the Giants to take some deep shots to Randle if they are able to get the running game going. I have Randle as a WR4 this week, but he has TD potential.

Brandon Myers-3.31 receptions for 32.82 yards and .28 TDs (numberFire)

Myers will be freed up from some of his blocking duties by the return of Adrien Robinson to the lineup. Myers has failed to click with Eli Manning so far this season and his production is hard to even project. He is only the fourth option in the offense and should be no more than a tight end two going forward. He could have some more opportunities in the passing game with Hillis in the backfield and Robinson in at tight end. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him have a nice game this week after watching the Raiders try to cover the Eagles tight ends last week.

Start/Sit Around the League

Aaron Rodgers‘ injury has the fantasy football world in an uproar. His shoulder injury not only affects Rodgers’ fantasy owners, but also the owners of Jordy Nelson, Jarrett Boykin, James Jones, and to a lesser extent Eddie Lacy.

Aaron Rodgers owners …

The first thing I would do is to look at the waiver wire and see if Jay Cutler is available. Cutler may return this week from a torn groin and was playing at a borderline QB1 before his injury. He has a great match up against the lions this week and should be good to go if the doctors clear him. Other QBs that could be your answer on the waiver wire are Nick Foles and Case Keenum. Foles is a good choice, but don’t go chasing last week’s points. The Raiders won’t be there for the Eagles to pick on the rest of the year. Keenum will have a huge test this week against the Cardinals on the road, but he has shown a nice deep ball as well as a rapport with his number one receiver Andre Johnson.

Jordy Nelson owners …

Don’t panic, but the WR1 days are over with Wallace at the helm in Green Bay. Seneca Wallace has poor arm strength and will have a hard time hitting Nelson on any out breaking routes as well as getting the ball to him deep. Nelson could still be a WR3 going forward, but I am going to be playing the wait and see game and pray that Rodgers is back in time for the fantasy playoffs.

Jarrett Boykin owners …

Boykin has had a nice showing while filling in for James Jones and Randall Cobb, but his fantasy relevance took a huge hit with Rodgers going down. I would jump ship with Boykin if Riley Cooper, Aaron Dobson, or Mike Brown were available on the waiver wire.

James Jones owners …

Jones has always had trouble separating from coverage, but that was never a problem for Aaron Rodgers. Jones would body up his defender and Rodgers would fit it in to him. Jones is going to be a WR4 until Rodgers comes back from injury.

Eddie Lacy owners …

Eddie Lacy was fast becoming a top fantasy running back the last few weeks, but the absence of Rodgers could put a stop to that trend. Lacy was facing soft fronts with Rodgers at quarterback and now will face stacked boxes that are full of run blitzes. If I was a defensive coordinator, stopping Lacy and his running mate James Starks would be my first priority. Lacy goes back to RB2 territory until Rodgers comes back.

Fantasy Football: Week 9 Start/Sit

Just a few short weeks ago we, as Giants‘ fans, were begging for a bye week to help our team catch their breath before a difficult season swallowed them up. Now on a two game winning streak with a defense making plays and a running game that is at least making third downs manageable, the bye week hits us. Hopefully the Giants don’t lose the momentum they’ve built up and can pick up right where they left off when they’re back on the field in week ten.

While I’m confident the Giants won’t let an ill-timed bye week trip them up, I’m not as confident in some of my fantasy teams. The reason I am concerned is because of the quality of players that share this week nine bye.

Players like: Peyton Manning, the surprising Knowshon Moreno, the triumvirate of Denver receivers, Matthew Stafford, Reggie Bush, Calvin Johnson, Our own Victor Cruz, Colin Kaepernick, the age-less Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, Cecil Shorts, Justin Blackmon, Larry Fitzgerald, and the break out star of last week Andre Ellington.

The week nine bye is especially difficult if your team is not currently sitting with a winning record. Sitting at 4-4 with only a handful of weeks to make the playoffs will have some owners desperate to fill out a solid lineup, even if it means trading away some of their best players who are on a bye. I make it a point to look at league records and poke and prod owners who are in these delicate lineup situations. You never know if they might trade you Demaryius Thomas for Pierre Garcon because they feel they can’t bite the bye week bullet.

Some interesting news from around the league

Zac Stacy’s sprained ankle has been reported to not be the dreaded high-ankle sprain and even got in a very limited practice yesterday with the Rams. Stacy’s performance against the Seahawks on Monday night went a long way towards proving his running back two status moving forward. His vision and elusiveness make him a must own if he’s still on your waiver wire somewhere.

Shonn Greene returns to the Tennessee Titans this week after missing the first seven weeks of the season with a knee injury. Mike Munchak hinted at a time-share at the running back position moving forward. He said Greene would get 15carries while Chris Johnson would get 20. Seeing as Johnson doesn’t factor in goal-line or short yardage situations, this could be a major hit to his fantasy stats the rest of the year. Greene should be owned in all twelve team leagues.

Roddy White still has not been cleared to play and it looks like Harry Douglas will continue for the foreseeable future as Matt Ryan’s number one target. Make sure to start him while you can. Jonathon Stewart returns to the Carolina Panthers just in time asDeAngelo Williams is nursing a leg injury. The Panthers running back situation will be very difficult to navigate for the next few weeks as Stewart and Williams lose goal-line carries to Mike Tolbert. If Stewart can prove to be an asset in the passing game with his excellent screen-pass skills then he could be a flex play going forward.

If you were lucky enough to listen to my podcast Trick Plays last week then you had Marvin Jones in your lineups when he went off for four touchdowns against the Jets. If you didn’t well then that’s on you. Jones had all of that production (8 receptions, 122 yards, 4 touchdowns) while only running 13 routes. Jones is the epitome of the big play receiver as A.J. Green attracts double coverage on the opposite side of the field. Jones ability to break tackles and accelerate quickly make him a touchdown threat on any reception. His ownership numbers skyrocketed this week in fantasy football as a result of this breakout performance.

I know some people might be itching to get Torrey Smith back in their lineups following the Ravens bye week, but I would be cautious as he is facing the always difficult Joe Haden. Ray Rice on the other hand should have a bounce back game and is back into my running back one rankings.

One game to watch, with fantasy starters in mind, will be the Indianapolis Colts against the Houston Texans. T.Y Hilton is expected to take on a bigger role in the passing game with the injury to Reggie Wayne, and he should be able to run free against the Texans’ secondary. The Texans on the other hand are once again starting Case Keenum at quarterback, and have a bunch of injury concerns at the running back position. Arian Foster hasn’t practiced yet this week and Ben Tate is nursing a rib injury. The fact that this is a late Sunday game with both running backs likely being game time decisions, makes it an extremely difficult situation for Arian Foster owners. The last thing you want to do is bench Foster for, let’s say Ryan Mathews, only to have Foster put up huge numbers against the Colts. I would suggest picking up James Starks as insurance to the Houston running back situation, as Starks plays on Monday night and should see a lot of action against the Bears.

QB Bye Weeks Fillers:

Jake Locker, Terrelle Pryor, Nick Foles

RB Bye Week Fillers:

Mike James, Jonathan Stewart, Mike Tolbert, Shonn Greene, possibly Daryl Richardson(if Stacy is out)

WR Bye Week Fillers:

Kendall Wright, Nate Washington, Emmanuel Sanders, Golden Tate, Marvin Jones Jr., Darrius Heyward-Bey

Feel free to ask me any start/sit or trade questions on Twitter@Coachesser or by messaging me on Facebook by liking Coachesser’s Playbook. You can also read my articles at www.coachesser.com and listen to the definitive fantasy football podcast on Itunes or Stitcher Radio by subscribing to the Trick Plays podcast hosted by Micah James (@FFMagicMan) and myself.

This post originally appeared at www.bigblueview.com on October 31st, 2013.

Fantasy Sports: Trades
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Fantasy Sports: Trades

Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Basketball, Fantasy Football

Fantasy Sports: Trades

Being Proactive Vs. Being Annoying

I am all for trying to better your roster from the time the draft ends to the very second that you are eliminated from the playoffs. I even love making trades during a draft. That’s why I always prefer having a live in-person draft because you can use some of the best skills a poker player possesses to your advantage. You can read a person’s reaction to a pick. (bad or good.) You can use your memory of how much an owner loves a certain player to corner them into a trade. You can even use your mathematical skills to gain an advantage when trading draft picks.

The problem I have seen with online drafts full of anonymous strangers is there is little to no advantage to be culled for trade purposes during a draft. The message board is often filled with braggadocio and insults, and offers little useful information to the cunning owner. The occasional, you sniped me comment, can be used, but even then the owner knows they opened their big mouth during the draft. The trade block after a draft is filled with mistake picks that look like road side junk on the way to a theme park.

After a draft is always a delicate time for trades. It’s easy to take a player or two off an owner’s hands that had some buyer’s remorse, but trying to pry away top draft picks is often a fruitless endeavor. They were drafted high for a reason. The owner believes in their talent and opportunity. The only time I even try and go after an owner’s first few picks is when there is some post draft news that may affect how in love they really are with that player. Is the backup all of a sudden going to be handed a bigger role. Is there an injury that went unnoticed in the preseason.

Make Sure You See The Signs

If an owner tells you up front that they would prefer not to talk about trades until after the season starts, take that as a big hint. They are basically posting a huge warning sign that states CLOSED UNTIL THE SEASON. Treat these owners like they are bears in hibernation. You don’t really want to go prodding the bear and end up creating an enemy for life.

If an owner says a certain player is OFF LIMITS don’t cross that line. As the great @WHUDEY says all the time, habitual line steppers will be put in their place! No rationale or pointing out of holes in an owner’s lineup will help you pry away an untouchable. You will only make that owner dig in deeper, like a jungle warrior trying to avoid an invading army. You are only setting yourself up for disaster if you keep on with the assault.

If an owner says they have a certain need, make sure your trade offer solves that problem otherwise you are wasting people’s time. Don’t try and sell your offer as a problem solver if it only puts a band-aid on an open wound. When someone loses Reggie Wayne for the year don’t offer them Hakeem Nicks for Jimmy Graham. Not only are you insulting their intelligence, you are bringing your own into question.

If your 100 MESSAGES aren’t being returned it’s time to rethink your strategy. Trying to get a trade done is not a war of attrition. You don’t try and wear down the other owner until they finally accept an offer. You are not only alienating the owner, but you are setting yourself up for a big problem. If you continuously set your sites on one player you can make so many offers that you may make a mistake where you give away way too much for that player. It’s especially dangerous if the owner you are trying to force a trade with is a poker player. A good owner (poker player) could be just checking and checking every time they decline your trade offers without a reason, waiting to trap you into that one big hand where he empties your wallet. (roster.)

Being First To The Feeding Frenzy

When there is a major injury on a Sunday in fantasy football, the first thing I do is check the owner of that player’s roster for possible trade fits. I treat that owner as if they are a stranded swimmer out in the ocean. Life boats will be coming at them from all angles with some boats looking more inviting then others. Being first to lend a hand with a sensible offer can put you at the head of the line if there are multiple owners with similar offers. Remember that most owner’s worst traits tend to come out when they smell blood in the water. They offer their waiver wire bound wide receiver and act like it’s the golden ticket from Willy Wonka. I’m pretty sure Slugworth wouldn’t even want Miles Austin on his roster if it meant some of Wonka’s secrets.

Please use these tips as a guide of what not to do in trying to trade in fantasy sports.

Fantasy Football and Social Media
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Fantasy Football and Social Media

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football and Social Media

The New York Post released an article Tuesday recounting a disgusting barrage of tweets that New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs was subjected to before and after the The Giants faced the Minnesota Vikings at Metlife Stadium. Jacobs exposed the idiot who threatened him and his family as well as another self-centered fantasy football participant who thought Jacobs owed him a personal injury report before fantasy lineups locked on Sunday by saving the screen-shots of the tweets.

I will not dignify the hooligan who threatened Jacobs and his family yesterday by referring to him as a fantasy football player. He is a cyber-bullying thug. He thought he could anonymously threaten a player and his family using a hobby as an excuse and nothing would be done. Well now his family and friends know what an idiot he is and hopefully some fans see this as a warning. It’s fanatics and hooligans like this guy that ruin the the social media experience for players and for real fans.

I hate to break it to some of you out there, but professional athletes care less about your fantasy sports team than I do about the dangers of carbohydrates. They literally put their lives at risk to provide entertainment for us. If you think that I’m being melodramatic please watch some clips of former Philadelphia Eagles‘ fullback Kevin Turner’s visit to former Oakland Raiders‘ fullback Steve Smith’s home. They both suffer from ALS after sacrificing their bodies on the football field each and every Sunday. Jermichael Finley suffered a terrible neck injury this weekend against the Cleveland Browns, and still some idiots had the nerve to complain about how it affected their fantasy football teams.

Cyber-bullying is a foreign concept to me. If I was bullied when I was growing up, it was to my face and I had my chance at recourse. Being the behemoth that I am it hardly ever happened and when my friends fell victim they always had me to come to the rescue. The children of today are so connected yet so isolated. They have face-time, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, snap-chat, to stay in touch at all times. Think about that. There is zero privacy. People can say whatever they want to you at any time even if you don’t want to communicate with them. When I was a kid and didn’t want to talk to people I would just hang out at home and unplug the answering machine with the very cutting edge background music taped from MTV’s Headbanger’s ball.

I was a child of the late ’70s and ’80s. I was introduced to AOL in high school and only used AIM to talk to the three or four friends who actually had a computer. I use Facebook now to keep up with family and friends who have scattered across the country, and I use Twitter to interact with like-minded sports and pop-culture fans. Whether it’s a late night conversation about a controversial call in a big game or reminiscing about how much we loved Rocky IV, it’s mainly been a positive experience.

There are the occasional wackos that berate me for telling them to bench a player that goes off, but it’s never gotten to the point of a threat. I don’t even give these fantasy football fanatics the satisfaction of a rebuttal. That’s what most of these wackos want. They want you to notice them and engage them. Any attention, even negative attention, makes them feel good. I try to be as courteous as possible because you never know who you’re dealing with. These people take the pastime or hobby of fantasy football way too far.

I regularly send tweets or messages to professional athletes on Twitter and Facebook. Probably once a month. Almost every time it has been to give them words of encouragement or ask how they were doing after a surgery or a tough loss. Many of ourNew York Giants are glad to reach out and have a short Twitter conversation to let you know they appreciate the support. If they don’t reply, I completely understand that they lead very busy lives and are not there to answer each and every tweet they receive. When they do reply I get a big kick out of having short back and forth. I can’t imagine how much a young fan would enjoy the same experience. If I was able to send a tweet to Mark Bavaro or Lawrence Taylor when I was 10 years old and they answered me back I may have died on the spot. Just recently I sent a tweet to Andre Brown about his recovery from surgery and we had a nice back and forth while he searched for ice cream.

This amount of interaction is amazing to me. I remember sitting with my neighbor growing up, and he would tell me that some of his beloved Brooklyn Dodgers used to live right on his street growing up. They would go to the same stores and even attend the same church. They would congratulate the Dodger players after a big win and try and lift their spirits after a tough loss. I was so jealous hearing this. I couldn’t imagine seeing Don Mattingly or Dave Winfield walking on my block or sitting behind me in church. I’m sure it would become old hat after a while if that was the norm, but things like that hadn’t been the norm since the 1940s.

Now we have a different kind of glimpse into the personal lives of professional athletes and celebrities. We follow them on Twitter to see their conversations. We follow them on Instagram to see all the interesting places they go. We follow them on Facebook so we can see when their next personal appearance might be. Some players use social media strictly as a platform for their business while others use it to help shape their public persona for future jobs. I remember earlier this year Chris Perez of the Cleveland Indians was one of the funniest pitchers on Twitter and regularly interacted with his fans. Then he went through a tough stretch trying to save games while he was injured and the hooligans rained down on him. He immediately closed his Twitter account and one of the best athlete Twitter feeds was lost. (This all happened before his dog received an infamous shipment).

My suggestion to everyone is to treat social media interactions as if you were being taped. Would you want your parents or co-workers to see what you typed? How about your family or friends? If the answer is no, then for the love of God, don’t hit send. People have been fired from their jobs and lost their loved ones over what has been said on social media. Even though we tend to put professional athletes and celebrities on a pedestal and think they are not of this world, they are human beings first and should be treated with respect. Even A-Rod. (at least I think he’s human)

So the next time Hakeem Nicks drops a pass or David Wilson fumbles a ball please don’t feel the need to remind them on Twitter or Facebook. I’m sure they feel bad enough as it is. Besides, a true fan would be trying to build them up instead of tearing them down.

This post originally appeared at www.bigblueview.com on Monday October 21st, 2013.

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 8 Start/Sit
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Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 8 Start/Sit

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Week 8 Start/Sit

Well this week I finally get to write a start/sit post after a win. We did win that game on Monday night, didn’t we? It almost feels like a loss the way that game played out against the Vikings. After all, Josh Freeman’s incompletions got more highlights then Eli Manning’s touchdown pass to Rueben Randle.

The Giants‘ offense didn’t necessarily set the world on fire Monday night, but there were some good signs. The emergence of Peyton Hillis as a third down back is a huge thing. The Vikings were extremely susceptible to running backs in the passing game before they faced the Giants, but until Monday night there was no way of telling if the Giants could actually exploit that. Hillis proved to be a capable blocker and pass catcher as he racked up 5 receptions for 45 yards in his first game with the Giants.

The Vikings decided to keep their safeties in the middle of the field to try and containVictor Cruz and left Hakeem Nicks singled up on the outside most of the game. Nicks was unable to get going as he had his worst game of the season in a great match up. He had a team high ten targets and managed only two receptions for twenty eight yards. The only good news concerning Nicks is the fact that he is now facing an Eagles team that he absolutely destroyed earlier this year.

Start/Sit

Eli Manning-295.44 yards 1.28 TDs 1.29 INTs-numberFire

Well numberFire has Eli turning throwing more interceptions than touchdown this week. Can you blame them? The Eagles actually played a pretty good defensive game last week against the Cowboyspicking off Tony Romo twice, but were still exposed by the Cowboys outside wide receivers. If the Eagles continue to give the same looks to the Giants I expect Eli to have to throw the ball to Hakeem Nicks and Rueben Randle on the outside. If those two receivers can make plays for Eli than Eli could finish in the top 12 of fantasy quarterbacks this weekend. If they don’t make the plays Eli will struggle.

Brandon Jacobs-12.38 carries for 43.47 yards and .24 touch downs-numberFire

If Brandon Jacobs is healthy enough to go this week he will be a RB2 in most formats. The Eagles can be run on and Jacobs is the best runner the Giants currently have. While I like his skills much more for standard leagues, I will be putting him in my line ups in PPR as well as there are six NFL teams on byes this week.

Peyton Hillis-5.28 carries for 16.56 yards and .09 TDs 1.86 receptions for 17.28 yards and .09 TDs-numberFire

Hillis proved that he is the Giants best asset out of the backfield in the passing game. In PPR leagues I would be using him this week if I had injury or bye week problems. I doubt he will get goal line looks with Jacobs back, but you never know. Especially if the Giants go to their patented shotgun draw play at the goal line.

Victor Cruz-6.19 receptions for 89.78 yards and .59 TDs-numberFire

Cruz has gotten a lot of extra attention lately as Hakeem Nicks has struggled to get going. He is still a must start in all formats, but Nicks needs to get going for Cruz to put up the big numbers.

Hakem Nicks-3.63 receptions for 48.39 yards and .33 TDs-numberFire

Nicks has really struggled lately, but he has a tremendous match up this week. He still has the skills to get open. He still has the huge hands and big catch radius. He must come up big this week for the Giants to win and for you to win in fantasy football.

Rueben Randle-2.19 receptions for 34.32 yards and .32 TDs-numberFire

Randle was once again hit or miss last week as he made a tremendous reception for a touchdown and a terrible fumble on a punt return. Hopefully facing the team that he torched a few short weeks ago will help him get out of the doghouse. Randle will be in a ton of lineups because of the bye weeks and I expect him to have a very solid game. Much higher than the numberFire projection.

Brandon Myers-3.62 receptions for 39.11 yards and .21 touchdowns-numberFire

Myers has not been a big part of the offense lately. In his last five games Myers has put up two goose-eggs and a total of seven receptions. I am not starting him in any leagues. The Giants are simply not looking his way, because of a variety of reasons. I would rather start the Jets‘ Jeff Cumberland or the Cardinals‘ Rob Housler if you need a bye week fill in.

Fantasy Whip Around

Injuries, injuries and more injuries. Week seven saw multiple quarterbacks go down with injuries as well as top fantasy draft picks Reggie Wayne and Doug Martin.

The quarterback injuries shouldn’t affect many fantasy teams as Sam Bradford and Jay Cutler were always 2nd string fantasy QBs. Cutler was having a nice year, but there are plenty of good arms on the waiver wire.

The injury to Reggie Wayne will be tough to recover from for fantasy teams. DHB gets a bump and should be the first guy to take a flyer on, but I would also look to Kendall Hunter and Nate Washington in Tennessee. They are both available in a bunch of leagues and should be able to fill your flex spots.

Doug Martin has not been ruled out for the rest of the year just yet, but owners should immediately pick up Mike James just in case. If James has been scooped up take a look around the waiver wire for high upside guys like Roy Helu Jr. or Jonathan Stewart.

I have to say that this week’s episode of my Trick Plays podcast on Itunes is our best episode yet. Please subscribe so you never miss out. Thanks!

Fantasy Football: Week 7 Thoughts

Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals

Marshawn Lynch was his usual powerful self running for over 90 yards and scoring a touchdown. His middle finger to the sideline on a goal-line pass call was like a scene from the cutting room floor of Any Given Sunday. If I were Lynch I would be pissed as well as he is as good as it gets at the goal line. Russell Wilson broke the spell of underperforming QBs on Thursday night as he managed 3 TDs through the air and ran for an additional 29 yards. Zach Miller continued the tight end dominance against the Cardinals as he had 5 grabs for 40 yards and a TD. The return of Percy Harvin to practice this week makes him a top waiver priority, but don’t expect huge numbers in this run first offense.

The Cardinals on the other hand were lucky that the scoreboard didn’t reflect their actual play. Waiver wire darling Andre Ellington managed 5 touches for 13 yards, as Rashard Mendenhall once again led the Cardinals’ backfield in touches with 13. Mendenhall was once again ineffective as he had only 22 yards on 13 carries, but did manage a rushing TD. Larry Fitzgerald was playing on a balky hamstring and it showed. He only had 2 receptions for 17 yards on 5 targets. Michael Floyd led the Cardinals in yardage and targets, while Rob Housler had a lot of “garbage time” looks. Housler finished with a season high 7 receptions for 53 yards. If Jermichael Finley was your TE1 Housler may be a better roster filler than whoever gets named Finley’s replacement.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons

Mike Glennon was able to top 20 fantasy points once again as he made it a point to target Vincent Jackson whenever possible. Jackson led all wide receivers in week 7 with 22 targets, while finishing with a tremendous 10 receptions for 138 yards and 2 touchdowns. Tim Wright got the bulk of the passing down snaps, but didn’t see the targets necessary to make him fantasy football relevant. Doug Martin had juicy match up against Atlanta and of course he was injured while running the ball in the red zone. Mike James took over and looked very capable in Martin’s absence. Schiano won’t admit that Martin’s shoulder injury is season ending yet, but I would be targeting Mike James in all free agent systems. The volume will be there and he is a skilled runner so it could be worth mortgaging your FAAB budget if your early round running backs didn’t pan out. (Wilson, T-Rich, Spiller, etc.)

The demise of Matt Ryan was greatly exaggerated as he had a fantastic fantasy day against the Buccaneers. His big first half was enough to calm many a fantasy GMs nerves. Jacquizz Rogers had a great PPR day with 8 receptions for 46 yards and 2 touchdowns, but the Falcons as team found it difficult to run the ball as they had 18 carries for 18 total yards. With Steven Jackson having a set back last week it only solidifies Rogers’ PPR value. Tony Gonzalez was thought to be the beneficiary of all the lost targets from the losses of Julio Jones and Roddy White, but Harry Douglas had other plans. Douglas had his best fantasy day as a pro with 7 receptions for 149 yards and touchdown, while Gonzo had 2 receptions for 30 yards.

Cincinnati Bengals at Detroit Lions

The Bengals’ Andy Dalton must have heard me muttering a few weeks ago about his lack of production. I was sold on him coming into the year as the poor man’s Matt Ryan with all the weapons at his disposal, but he had failed to breakout until the last two weeks. Dalton had 372 yards and 3 touchdowns in a tough road game in Detroit. AJ Green had a huge game with 6 receptions for 155 yards and a TD. The Bengals talented tight end duo of Gresham and Eifert had 7 receptions for over 100 yards and a touchdown combined. Giovani Bernard was held in check, but still managed over 10 points in full point PPR leagues. Marvin Jones had a nice TD and could be taking over a the WR2 very soon. For those of you that lost Reggie Wayne this weekend in deep leagues, I could see taking flier on the talented Jones.

Matthew Stafford was once again a player that many thought about benching going against a very tough Cincy Defense that never gives up 300 yard games, but if you stayed the course you were rewarded. While Stafford wasn’t terribly efficient (28/51) he did manage to throw for 357 yards and 3 touchdowns. That gives him 7 passing TDs over the last two weeks. Reggie Bush got plenty of opportunities with 20 carries and 5 targets, but only managed 94 yards. Calvin Johnson broke out big time with 9 receptions for 155 yards and 2 TDs after being a decoy last week. Kris Durham was targeted 8 times and came away with 5 receptions for 41 yards. Joseph Fauria was NOT the tight end to reach the end zone as Brandon Pettigrew was able to catch a touch down pass. Fauria did see 3 targets in the end zone. Nate Burleson is almost back and will be a welcome sight for this offense.

Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins

Thad Lewis was unable to match his week 6 fantasy output (who knew) and finished with 0 TDs. Stevie Johnson was his favorite target with 13 total targets, but only managed 6 receptions for 61 yards. CJ Spiller had 9 touches for 7 total yards. 7!!!!! The future is as cloudy as it’s ever been for this top fantasy draft pick. Fred Jackson was injured twice during the game, but toughed it out and managed the only offensive touchdown for the Bills.

Ryan Tannehill was constantly under pressure and turned the ball over 3 times resulting in points for the Buffalo Bills. Brandon Gibson was a PPR star with 5 receptions for 40 yards and 2 TDs. Mike Wallace and Brian Hartline both had over 10 targets, but didn’t have the big games many expected. Charles Clay turned his one reception into a touch down. I was surprised he wasn’t more involved. I was even more surprised that the annoying (for fantasy purposes) Daniel Thomas had more touches than Lamar Miller. Miller is in a virtual time share for the foreseeable future and should be benched in most formats.

Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles

Tony Romo had a few bad turnovers, but still managed to top 300 yards and throw a touchdown pass. Joseph Randle proved to be just an average talent, but did have 22 touches for 93 yards. Miles Austin once again was riding a bike and it looks like he will be shut down for a while. He honestly he doesn’t fit the offense anymore as their ideal set of receivers is Dez, Terrance Williams, Cole Beasley, and Jason Witten are much better at exploiting matchups. Dez Bryant had 8 receptions on 16 targets for 110 yards. Terrance Williams once again scored a touch down and looks to be more than a dynasty league target now. He is a legitimate WR2 if Miles Austin is phased out. If he is available make him a top priority.

Nick Foles pretty much sunk every daily fantasy line up I had as he was horrible while he was in the game and later left with a concussion. The good new is Michael Vick should be back this week. DeSean Jackson failed to get going with his QBs struggling and was injured on a running play. Somehow Jason Avant had a team high 15 targets, but only turned them into 3 receptions. Riley Cooper had 6 receptions on 7 targets for 88 yards and still managed one bad drop. LeSean McCoy was held in check by a Dallas defense filled with no names up front.

New England Patriots at New York Jets

Tom Brady once again disappointed, but who can blame him. These wide receivers just can’t be relied on and he focused almost all of his attention on the returning Rob Gronkowski. Gronk led the Patriots in targets with 17 and had 8 receptions for 114 yards. He was tackled inside the 2 yard line on one play and failed to see a pass from Brady because of the sun being in his eyes, otherwise he would have also had a touchdown. Brady was focusing on Gronk so much that he threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown on one pass where he defender undercut Gronk’s route. Ridley and Bolden split the touches in the backfield and both had rushing touchdowns. Bolden getting the first crack at a goal line carry had some Ridley owners running for the exits. Ridley is by far the best running back at their disposal, but he is nothing more than a RB2 with this usage.

Geno Smith was inefficient when throwing the football (17/33), but did manage to throw a touchdown and run for one. Off season acquisition Chris Ivory was finally on display, but nobody decided to tell fantasy owners of Bilal Powell that Ivory would be the bell-cow for the day. Ivory getting 34 carries for 104 yards was a nice surprise for anyone who was forced to put him in their lineups is deeeep leagues. Jeremy Kerley was able to show off his considerable skills in the absence of Santonio Holmes by having 8 receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown. Jeff Cumberland started the game with a 25 yard reception, but managed just 2 more receptions for 16 additional yards. I still like his skill set if you’re desperate for a tight end.

Chicago Bears at Washington Redskins

The Bears are decimated by injuries on defense and that trend continued as Lance Briggs was injured in this game. The bigger problem for the Bears and fantasy owners is Jay Cutler was injured and looks like he will be out more than a month with a groin tear. Matt Forte was in all my daily fantasy lineups and that paid off big time as he had his first ever 3 rushing touch down game. Alshon Jeffrey made the most of his four receptions as he went over 100 yards and had an additional 16 on the ground. Brandon Marshall had 6 receptions for 75 yards on a team high 10 targets. Martellus Bennett made the most of his one reception with a seven yard TD. The fact that the Bears will have to turn to journeyman Josh McCown for the next few games makes banking on anyone besides Forte and Marshall going forward a tough thing to do.

I expected a huge game from the Redskins running game against the Bears and boy did we get it. The only thing is it wasn’t Alfred Morris who was the top fantasy producer. Instead Roy Helu Jr. came off the bench and vultured 3 touch downs. The Redskins ran for 209 yards and Morris was able to nab 95 of those yards while Robert Griffin III was able to run for 84 yards. The big news in this game was the break out of tight end Jordan Reed. The signs have been coming for a while that Reed was going to break out and now he has arrived. The stage was cleared before the game as Fred Davis was a healthy scratch and Reed came through big time with 9 receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown. Somehow he is only owned in 25%of ESPN fantasy leagues. That’s going to end big time. If he’s on the wire he should be your top priority.

St. Louis Rams at Carolina Panthers

Well this game couldn’t have ended any worse for the Rams. Their best defensive player Chris Long was shown the door for throwing a punch in a scrum and Sam Bradford was lost for the year to a torn ACL. Janoris Jenkins decided to enrage Steve Smith of the Panthers and was the recipient of a vintage move by Smith for a receiving TD. The only bright spot was waiver wire find Zac Stacy managed to have a nice fantasy game (87 total yards and a TD) in a terrible matchup. The Rams should have to lean heavily on Stacy going forward, but their run game might not be able to hold up against the added attention. Kellen Clemons is a big down grade from Sam Bradford behind a suspect offensive line.

The Panthers had a nice fantasy match up against the Rams and failed to capitalize. Cam Newton put up pedestrian numbers and DeAngelo Williams was only able to 40 yards on 15 carries. If you chose Mike Tolbert in any best ball leagues you got rewarded again with a short yardage touchdown. Steve Smith had a touchdown and added 69 yards. Greg Olsen only had 4 targets and caught all four for 47 yards. I’m worried that he isn’t involved enough.

San Diego Chargers at Jacksonville Jaguars

Philip Rivers was super efficient going 22/26 for 285 yards and a touchdown. While Rivers had a very nice day it was the running backs you wanted in your lineups for this match up. Ryan Mathews rewarded your patience by running the ball for 110 yards and 1 TD. A running back going for 100 yards is nothing to sneeze at in today’s NFL. Danny Woodhead once again put up over 15 PPR points and has been even better than he was last year in New England. Eddie Royal finally got back in the end zone with a diving effort at the pylon. Waiver wire target Keenan Allen had 3 receptions for 67 yards, but was banged up a little in this one. Antonio Gates had 6 receptions, but managed only 31 yards.

Chad Henne had over 300 yards passing, but was sacked 6 times and threw one interception. Justin Blackmon had a pedestrian game (6-58-0TDs) after having back to back huge games. Cecil Shorts III was a surprise start and had a team high 8 receptions for 80 yards. Mike Brown looked pretty good against Denver last week and he looked even better this week with 5 receptions for 120 yards. I would only look at him in extremely deep leagues unless there’s an injury to Shorts or Blackmon. Still a name to file away.

San Francisco 49ers at Tennessee Titans

The 49ers have decided they are a running team only apparently. They rode Frank Gore and Colin Kaepernick’s legs to a victory on the road. Kaepernick was once a gain not a top 10 fantasy QB, but did look more decisive and explosive when running. Frank Gore had 70 yards rushing with 2 TDs and even added 34 yards in the air. Anquan Boldin and Vernon Davis got the bulk of the targets and had decent days as both just barely managed more than 10 fantasy points in PPR leagues.

Jake Locker made a surprise start and was a top 12 fantasy quarterback as he racked up yardage and touchdowns in catch up mode. (326 yards 2 TDs) Chris Johnson was only used in 1% of Draftstreet lineups because of the tough match up against the 49ers, but racked up 19 fantasy points thanks to a long catch and run. Kendall Hunter is becoming a nice flex option in PPR leagues as he had 9 receptions for 98 yards. Nate Washington saw his targets increase (10) with Locker back , but managed only 3 receptions for 62 yards.

Cleveland Browns at Green Bay Packers

The Browns played like a team that knew they didn’t have a chance to win. Even though the Packers defense was banged up the Browns failed to take advantage. Weeden looked awful (17/42 for 149 yards 1TD 1Int) and it wouldn’t surprise me if he finds the bench next week. McGahee was pedestrian and the Browns haven’t missed a beat with T-Rich traded. The big surprise was the performance by Josh Gordon. He had 2 receptions for 21 yards on 6 targets and looked almost disinterested. Jordan Cameron got a lot of garbage time attentions and finished with a team high 7 receptions for 55 yards and 1 TD.

Finley’s career may be in jeopardy after sustaining a serious neck injury

Aaron Rodgers was able to have a very representative game (260 yards 3 touch downs) despite missing two of his biggest targets in Randall Cobb and James Jones. Jarrett Boykin the owners that rushed to the waiver wire for him last week with 8 receptions for 103 yards and 1 TD. Jordy Nelson was limited in production by Joe Haden, but still managed to grab 5 balls for 42 yards and 1 TD. The big issue for the the Packers is the very scary injury to Jermichael Finley. He was having a break out game with 5 receptions for 72 yards and a hard fought touch down, only to have his health come into question on a hit over the middle. Finley has been diagnosed with a spinal contusion and if you own him you should look for a replacement ASAP. I honestly hope he is put on IR and is able to fully heal before thinking about suiting up again. Andrew Quarless will most likely take over tight end duties for the Packers, but I would look to some other FA names first.

Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs

Case Keenum got the chance to start for the struggling Texans. He had a very nice game (271 yards 1 TD) even though he didn’t have a running game to take the pressure off. Arian Foster injured his hamstring very early in the game and his back up Ben Tate apparently broke a few ribs filling in. By the end of the game they were down to fullback Greg Jones running the ball as third string running back Cierre Wood was inactive and later released for team rules violations. After the running backs were hurt it was impossible for Andre Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins to build on their hot starts to the game.

What more can I say about Jamaal Charles. He is the most consistent runningback in fantasy football. A ho-hum 123 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown in the 7th game in a row. Dwayne Bowe had a team high 9 targets, but didn’t have a big game. The return of Anthony Fasano almost produced two touchdowns, but he was tackled inside the 5 yard line twice. Keep an eye on him in deep leagues as Alex Smith loves to feature the tight end.

Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers

This game was a struggle for both teams and for fans to watch. Ray Rice continued to struggle and Torrey Smith was once again held in check. Nothing more to report besides some injuries to the Baltimore offensive line that might need a shuffle.

The bright spot for the Steelers was the continued emergence of Le’Veon Bell. He carried the ball 19 times for over 90 yards and showed nice patience when pressing the hole. One of my all-time favorite tight ends Heath Miller caught the only touchdown pass from Ben Roethlisberger, but only caught one other pass. PPR beast Antonio Brown was held relatively in check with 6 receptions for 55 yards. My Trick Plays sleeper Emanuel Sanders was a big disappointment with only one reception for 7 yards. He teased me and fantasy owners with with a long touchdown return, but stepped out of bounds by a hair. UGH!

Denver Broncos at Indianapolis Colts

Peyton Manning was able to put up big fantasy numbers (386 yards 3 TDs), but his passes were mostly wounded ducks that had fantasy owners scared about an injury. The injuries along the offensive line finally proved to be costly as Manning was hit regularly by the Colts defense. Manning tried to take advantage of two deep safeties by running the ball, but Knowshon Moreno failed to get anything going on the ground (15-40 1 TD) and his running mate Ronnie Hillman once again had a costly fumble. Eric Decker had 8 receptions for 150 yards and 1 TD, Demaryius Thomas had 4 for 82 and 1 TD, Wes Welker was fed the ball late and had 7 receptions for 96 yards. Tight End Julius Thomas had 5 receptions for 41 yards and 1 TD.

Andrew Luck was played heavily in daily fantasy football and he didn’t disappoint. (228 yards 3 TDs 29 yards 1 TD), but he did lose his best wide receiver Reggie Wayne to a torn ACL on a poorly thrown ball. The injury to Wayne should be very concerning for any Andrew Luck owner as he leaned on him heavily. The Colts are going to need TY Hilton and Coby Fleener to grow up fast and Darius Heyward-Bey to make more plays. Trent Richardson was once again held in check as he looks completely lost running the ball. He is indecisive and shows a real lack of vision.

Minnesota Vikings at New York Giants

Adrian Peterson should have stayed on the bus for this one. With the Vikings throwing Josh Freeman to the wolves by starting him a few short weeks aster signing him, Peterson was met by a wall every time he tried to carry the ball. Freeman looked rusty and out of sync with every wide receiver on the Vikings as he had over 30 in-completions. Talking about any of the receivers would be disservice to them as they had no chance on may of Freeman’s throws. I would stay away from starting any Viking besides AP until Freeman gets acclimated.

Eli Manning was looking at another banged up secondary and another chance to get into the good graces of fantasy owners, but once again didn’t produce. (200 yards 1 TD) Peyton Hillis was signed off the street and found himself as many fantasy owners’ last hope of grabbing a victory. While he totaled 81 total yards and a touchdown, it was anything but a great running back performance. Hakeem Nicks had a case of the drops and if you hoped he would be traded to a better passing team I think that ship has sailed. Victor Cruz had a tremendous match up and only managed 5 receptions for 50 yards. Rueben Randle was once again hit or miss. He made a tremendous leaping catch for a touchdown and then fumbled a punt return by using poor fundamentals. I’m a little worried that play may land him in the doghouse next week.

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Start/Sit Week 7
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Fantasy Football: NY Giants Start/Sit Week 7

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football: NY Giants Start/Sit Week 7

Fantasy owners and Giants’ fans alike, have had a long time to stew over last week’s performance by Eli Manning. Eli once again managed to turn the ball over multiple times, only this time he did it with the game on the line in the fourth quarter. In retrospect he was lucky to only have only three turnovers as he made a multitude of questionable decisions with the football.

Eli’s struggles somewhat overshadowed a wonderful performance from the reinvigorated Brandon Jacobs. The Giants’ offensive line were able to handle a banged up Chicago Bears front seven, allowing Brandon Jacobs to test the tackling skills of the Bears’ secondary. While no one, including me, predicted Jacobs would have one of the best games of his career, the signs were there when looking back.

The Bears defense was down to their fourth string defensive tackle and their defensive ends have shown little effort in stopping the run. Thursday night games always seem to be dominated by the running game, I’m not sure if it’s because teams tend to try and shorten the game because of the short rest, or because defensive players have a hard time recovering physically and mentally after playing a game only a few days before. Either way, you can almost always count on teams sticking to the running game instead of airing it out on Thursday night. (exception: Peyton Manning)

Start/Sit for Week 7

Eli Manning– 300.74 yards 1.66 TDs 1.12 turnovers (NumberFire)

This match up is one I would normally be touting Eli Manning as a must start in almost all leagues as he is facing the 32nd ranked pass defense and needs a big time bounce back game. The problem is Eli has been so poor this year that I can’t push him that far up my rankings. If the Brandon Jacobs was healthy as I am writing this I would be more optimistic about Eli’s fantasy projections, but with the question marks currently at running back I feel like there may be too much pressure on Eli to perform. If you have Drew Brees on a bye, I think Eli would be one of my top replacement choices.

Brandon Jacobs- 14.24 carries for 61.52 yards and .38 TDs 2.55 receptions for 19.29 yards (NumberFire)

As I am writing this the news has broken that the Giants have signed Peyton Hillis. The unknown recovery time for David Wilson coupled with the injury to Da’Rel Scott have forced the Giants to bolster their running back corps. Brandon Jacobs was unable to practice on Monday and there were some thoughts that Michael Cox may be forced to carry the load. Luckily for the Giants they can wait all the way until Monday night to see if Jacobs has healed up enough to carry the load. Even if Jacobs dominates the touches I don’t see him as more than a flex option and a low end RB2 in standard formats. The Vikings are more susceptible to the pass and running backs who can catch the ball then battering ram types.

Michael Cox- ?

Cox is a question mark because there is no way to predict his involvement in the offense. Coughlin and Gilbride don’t have the best track record in trusting rookie running backs and I would be playing a wait and see even if he is forced to start.

Victor Cruz- 5.85 receptions for 93.63 yards for .67 TDs (NumberFire)

Victor Cruz is NumberFire’s #3 overall wide receiver play for week 7. I am in complete agreement as I see this defense being especially vulnerable to excellent slot receiver play. The play of Antonio Brown against the Vikings in London is just one instance of a quick receiver having an advantage.

Hakeem Nicks-3.84 receptions for 52.88 yards and .13 TDs (NumberFire)

Nicks has been tough to handicap from a fantasy perspective. His best two games have come against NFC East opponents who happen to be some of the worst defenses against the pass in the league. The Vikings are right up Nicks alley and I wouldn’t shy away from playing him as a low end WR2 or flex.

Rueben Randle-2.06 receptions for 32.27 yards and .27 TDs (NumberFire)

Randle has caused some head aches for Eli Manning in the passing game with some poor communication and drops earlier in the season, but there is no denying his talent as a big play receiver. He is a nice flex play this week in deeper leagues or if you currently have injury issues with Julio Jones, Randall Cobb, and Danny Amendola all sidelined.

Brandon Myers-4.04 receptions for 42.86 yards and .29 TDs (NumberFire)

Myers has not been a big part of the offense the last few weeks and I think that trend will continue. The Vikings do play a lot of zone and that could play into Myers hands, but I think there are better options to start out there.

Big Blue View Fantasy Football League Update

League 1 – Well, thanks to a two-game losing streak I am now sitting in third place after suffering a loss at the hands of the clairvoyant Pataroons who predicted my teams demise. Phoenix Big Blue currently sits in first place, but Pataroons is hot on their tale riding a 4-game winning streak.

League 2-All is right in the world of League 2 as I sit in first place after week 6. Here Comes Treble is hot on my tail riding a five game winning streak. The highest scoring team in the league Marcus’s Longshots are having a tough luck season as they also have the most points scored against and sit at 3-3.

News around the league – The injury to Randall Cobb should be the final push for some of you to roster Keenan Allen of the San Diego Chargers. The continued absence of Rob Gronkowski and the new injury to Danny Amendola have made Tom Brady a tough start in fantasy leagues. Look for Jordan Reed of the Redskins to be the next break out tight end in the league as he is clearly the second best pass catching option in Washington.