Week 9 ~ Start'em

Due to the lack of key fantasy players on bye-week and the majority of injuries being recovered and on the field (although a few remain), it is time to focus on teams that are facing key match-ups to determine who best to play this week.

In this week's Start'em, I will focus on big names who should have big games... helping you to decide who amongst your studs you should play.

QUARTERBACKS:

Matt Hasselbeck: Here is a guy that has been consistent for years and is going to run into some fantasy points as the Seattle Seahawks prepare to face a defense that ranks 28th in receiving and 26th in rushing. This means big opportunities for Alexander to break out and Hasselbeck some opportunity to put up TDs.

Jason Campbell: Jason should shine like the sun this week as he has it even better than Hasselbeck. Campbell and the 'Skins go to New Jersey and face the 31st ranked defense in the passing game and the 30th ranked run defense. The Jets are in a constant state of chaos, from the starting quarterback (now Kellen Clemens) to the defensive starters (started the most players in defense so far this year.

Carson Palmer: Not only is he on the verge of getting his no. 3 WR back in Chris Henry, but it is safe to say that the "milking" of Rudi Johnson's knee injury is nearing an end. Palmer faces a defense that has a lot of turnovers but gives up the 3rd most yards per reception in the league. With C.J. & T.J., this means trouble for Buffalo fans and rejoicing for Palmer owners.

Jay Cutler: They are slowly coming out of a funk, mostly due to Brandon Marshall and Tony Scheffler. Cutler will have plenty of opportunities with the pick-happy, yet abysmal defense of the Detroit Lions (ranked 29th overall in receiving yards).

J.P. Losman: He gets his job back, as I suspected he would ( Week 9 ~ Waiver Wire). It couldn't have come at a better time for Losman and the Bills. They face a defense that ranks 26th in receiving yards given up and 25th in rushing yards. This means Lynch can move the ball and give Losman the time to deliver the pass, all the while remaining balanced to keep the defense honest. They will likely play from behind, meaning more passing than rushing attempts.

RUNNING BACKS:

Kevin Jones: He is looking more and more like the Kevin Jones of two years ago... cutting and slashing his way through defenses, even without an offensive line to speak of. Detroit faces a tough pass defense, but Denver ranks 31st in rushing yardage allowed. This gives owners a chance to look good... at least those who drafted him or picked him up early.

Adimchinobe Echemandu: Huh? How do you say it? This week, you can just say "TD Eche" because Houston faces the 29th ranked team in rushing yards allowed. Like Denver, they are staunch defenders of the pass but porous in the front seven.

Shaun Alexander: Here is a chance to redeem yourself for picking him in the top 5. Seattle rolls into Cleveland with an axe to grind, a full arsenal of receivers and a defense that simply cannot stop the run (ranked 28th overall). The defense of the Browns also gives up a ton of receiving yardage which will open up opportunities for Alexander to look good, fantasy-wise.

Marshawn Lynch: The Buffalo offense should look stout this weekend with Cincinnati unable to get out of their own way, most of the time. Lynch has grown in his position and with Losman at the helm and the Bengals looking more like the "Bungles", it is Lynch's day to shine.

Rudi Johnson: I put him in here, more for hope than anything... I need him to play. I think that all reports indicate he is in, but they are so sketchy... isn't this how Dillon basically lost his role. I expect him to carry the ball at least 20 times, say... 80 YDs and a TD against a poor Buffalo Defense.

Justin Fargas: This week, the "right" Fargas shows up. Oakland faces the 24th ranked rushing defense (and passing for that matter) when they host the Houston Texans. Fargas had nearly 100 all-purpose yards last week and should have a great showing this Sunday.

Joseph Addai: When will he NOT get his? Addai will have a good day, regardless of the fact that he is up against one of the best defensive teams in the game. I expect him to tag 100+ on the Pats and maybe 2 TDs, one in the air, one on the ground.

WIDE RECEIVERS:

Laveranues Coles: I am a Cotchery fan but think that Coles wins out this weekend as Clemens will rely on him to be the go to guy as they face the Washington Redskins. The 'Skins are hotter than hell after being flambasted by the Patriots. All things considered though, the Patriots did more than shalack them, they exposed them. Expect Coles to have a great day.

Deion Branch: Back from injury and ready to regain his position as Matt's go-to-guy. They didn't give up a first round draft pick for nothing. Cleveland has holes all over the defense and that is Deion's specialty. I realize that Engram, Burleson, and Hackett are avaiable, but that is exactly why the defense can no longer silence him.

Brandon Marshall: Expect Marshall to have a stellar game as he faces Detroit Lions and their lack of aptitude on the defensive side of the ball. Sure they have a ton of picks...because they are so bad, offenses can simply throw 40 times, get 2 picks and still beat them. They have gotten better in the past three weeks, but not good enough that Denver won't man-handle them.

Vincent Jackson: Is now a threat. With Chambers on the opposite side and Gates roaring up the middle, it is time for VJax "to get his". Chambers will be the short/mid-range guy and Jackson will see 6 - 8 attempts, but should net 80+ YDs and a TD.

Lee Evans: He's back. For all of you that dropped him...two things... shame on you! and thank you. I can't tell you how many leagues I was able to pick this guy up about two weeks ago. He will have matching or better stats than last week, especially since he is facing the Bengals defense.

David Patten: I have been talking about him for three weeks now. He is the best deep threat that Brees has. He is opening opportunities for everyone, including a disappointing first half by Marques Colston. Expect David to have another good day as they face tough Jags defense.

Hines Ward: I was wrong last week to stay away from him... I thought he needed at least one more week... I was dead wrong. He is facing a Baltimore defense that is suspect in it's secondary. He should be able to net more yards but one less TD than last week.

Santana Moss: He earns some points for you this week against the lowly J-E-T-S, JETS, JETS JETS!!!! The Jets rank 30th in run-defense, 31st in pass defense. Jason will rely on Moss, Cooley, and Portis to bring home a win and erase the Patriots from their recent memories.

Reggie Williams: Quinn Gray has to throw to someone and Reggie usually gets the call. Jacksonville has a chance to open the run game with a solid passing performance against the 26th ranked pass defense. I mean...someone has to get the ball thrown to him, right?

TIGHT ENDS:

Antonio Gates: Is this obvious, "Yes"! But the truth is, he should outperform any previous week this year as San Diego plays host to the 24th ranked defense against the pass. The Saints are 3rd in giving up the most yards per pass... this HAS to fair well for Gates.

Tony Scheffler: He is starting to live up to the draft day expectations. Scheffler is having more and more of a role in the offense due to the loss of Javon Walker. He should continue to fair well for the second half and is much a great waiver wire pick-up as he is a starter. Look for Culter to use Scheffler against a weak DET secondary.

Heath Miller: Like the Miller of two years ago, Big Ben is relying more on Heath to get the job done in the red zone. Baltimore has shown a weakness in the secondary, which means the linebackers need to play deeper to keep the game close. Look for Heath and Big Ben, directed by Mike Tomlin to use this to their advantage.

I realize it's a break from the norm, this week's Start'em, but a this point, with only a few key players out for bye weeks and injuries, it made since to go with a more traditional approach to Start'em.

May your roster be healthy and the points many.

Statistocrat

Teams are QB "Broke", why not look to "Brooks"?

Where oh where has Aaron Brooks gone? Oh where oh where can he be?

I bet he is sitting on his coach watching the state of the quarterbacks in the NFL and wondering “What the hell am I doing on the coach with no phone calls and these fools are getting paid to do what I do best!!!”

With Vinny Testaverde coming off the coach and into your living room on Sundays and Jeff George advising NFL teams that he wants in, why on God’s green earth isn’t there any talk about this kid?

Aaron played for 8 seasons, amassing 123 TDs and 92 INTs. He had over 20,000 Yds with a career 78.5 passer rating. Are you telling me that this guy shouldn’t be on several team’s radars.

If you ask me, the Minnesota Vikings, the New York Jets, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Miami Dolphins should be picking up the phone and dialing right….about….NOW!!!!!

Statistocrat

Week 9 ~ Waiver Wire

Here is my outlook on the free agent market as the majority of league's waiver wire is due within 24 hours.

Although there are slim pickin's, that doesn't mean that they aren't worthy candidates.

Look to this group of players to help fill injury and bye-week fillers.

QUARTERBACK:

Alex Smith: With injury all but behind him, Alex looks to regain some momentum and drive San Fransisco to a late run at the playoffs. I expect that his re-emergence lends growth to Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, and Darrell Jackson.

Kellen Clemens: If for no other reason, because he has Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery as targets, but also because he has the ability to go down field in a way that Pennington's arm wouldn't allow them.

J.P. Losman: So many people dropped him, but Edwards has shown a completel lack of ability to be a consistent winner. I expect Losman back in the line-up before the week ends. He filled in nicely at the end of the Jets game, ultimately leading them to victory.

Brooks Bollinger: If you are in a two quarterback league or there is nothing left and you had Schaub, Delhomme, or maybe even rested on Trent Green... Maybe with the abysmal outlook of the QB situation in the NFL, be it Leinart or Culpepper, Harrington or Chad Pennington, Brooks could be a nice find. He is careful with the ball but has the ability to heave it downfield.

RUNNINGBACKS:

Chris Henry: This rookie has seen the endzone twice in two weeks. He is slowly securing his job as the back-up to LenDale White even when Chris Brown returns from injury. He is a must-hold-on-to if you are in a keeper league.

DeShaun Foster: A yearly, second-half-guy. He had 6 straight games at the end of the season in which he ran for over 100 yards and a TD and I don't expect less, even with Vinny "The Ancient" at the helm.

Kevin Faulk: With Sammy Morris on the sidelines, Kevin is a great filler for bye-weeks and injuries. He should see somewhere between 50 - 75 yards based on how Belicheck uses his running backs. He has the chance to get the most yards in the air as Brady loves to throw screens to Kevin.

Michael Bennett: He got in the end zone last weekend and I expect his role to ever increase as they use Graham more an more to field punts/kick returns. Both are effective on the ground and through the air, but I believe that Bennett has the most upside.

WIDE RECEIVERS:

Chris Henry: The team needs this third receiver almost as much as they need Rudi Johnson back. He is able to practice with the team and should be able to make a run for some points as early as next week. Be a genius and grab' em before anybody else does.

Derrick Mason: Flying under the radar or being dropped for lack of consistency, Derrick Mason is quietly posting 7 - 10 fantasy points a week. If someone was gullible enough to drop 'em, go ahead and grab him. He is not going to be huge, but as a third receiver, he is dependable.

Marty Booker: Besides the spry Nick Hagan, Marty Booker is one of the only one's remaining of the starting offensive roster for the Dolphins. Cleo Lemon relies on Booker to help him in his times of need, and fantasy-wise, maybe you should to.

Reggie Brown: Like all other Eagles WR, it's hit or miss, but this past weekend, he looked dynamic. Maybe between Curtis and Brown, Westbrook and L.J. Smith, we see an offense re-emerge and give McNabb a reason to stop whining and start winning.

Bobby Wade: He is the veteran in this threesome (Williamson, Wade, and Rice). Whether it is Bollinger or whomever, I see Wade starting to play a more important role in this offense, being consistent in the short to mid-range passes.

Deion Branch/D.J. Hackett: Both are back from injury and I expect them both to be used to try and right this Seahawks ship. Branch is the better of the two, but Hackett has speed that cannot be matched. Nate Burleson and Bobby Engram will limit their opportunities, but great pick-ups for the rest of the season.

TIGHT ENDS:

Jeff King: This team is banged up and the player who has been the most consistent, win or loss, is the tight end King. This is unheralded, as the Panthers are known for run-blockers, not receivers in the TE spot. King is consistent enough to plug in over McMichael's, Eric Johnson, or even someone like Bo Scaife and to date, Todd Heap...

Tony Scheffler: As Cutler grows in his position, it is apparent that Scheffler, not Graham, is going to be the receiver of the group. With Rod Smith all but withered away, Javon is gimpy as usual, the beat-up offense of Mike Shanahan is relying on Brandon Marshall, Brandon Stokley, and Tony Scheffler to keep the ball moving.

These are my candidates for who is likely there and who will likely be taken if you don't act fast.

Good luck and happy hunting...

Statistocrat

"East Coast in the West"

With the news of Joe Torre likely headed to Los Angeles, it brings up a great story about the Dodgers.

Frank McCourt tried to buy the Red Sox. After that didn’t work, he bought the Dodgers. Since then, he has gone out of his way to recruit any and all Red Sox players to add to his rosters (The Red Sox 2). Players like Nomar Garciaparra, Bill Mueller, Derek Lowe, Rudy Seanez, David Wells, have all been moved from the East Coast Sox to the West Coast Sox ( Dodgers.) Even manager Grady Little was a Red Sox annex.

Now, with the Red Sox pools depleted, he turns to the Yankees. The news around the league is that there is little to discuss in the departure of Grady and the insertion of now Ex-Manager of the Yankees, Joe Torre. I can only believe that A-Rod, at the very least, is next. I could see Johnny Damon and Doug Meintkiewicz in a Dodgers uniform next year. There are also some pitchers available too. Maybe Frank "McCourts" players like Carl Pavano, Kyle Farnsworth, Ron Villone, and Jason Giambi.

The Dodgers are deep in the outfield, but with Melky Cabrera, Shelley Duncan, Bobby Abreau, and Hideki Matsui in the outfield all ready for the Yankees, the infamous Johnny Damon is now expendable.

The Yankees can use Duncan at first as well as either Andy Phillips or even Jorge Posada, if they get the right freeagent catcher in the off season (or Jose Molina can get the job done), which would make Giambi a wholesale purchase. This is less likely he ends up in a Dodger’s uniform with James Loney stepping it up this year, but you never know.

Here are the likely departures of the Yankees:

1B – Jason Giambi
1B – Doug Meintkiewicz
3B – Alex Rodriguez
RP – Kyle Farnsworth
SP/RP – Ron Villone
SP – Carl Pavano
SP – Andy Pettitte
SP – Roger Clemens

The Dodgers (Sox 2) are fairly healthy, and will see a starting line-up along the lines of…

C – Russell Martin
1B – James Loney
2B – Jeff Kent (Tony Abreu)
3B – Nomar Garciaparra (Andy Laroche)
SS – Rafael Furcal
LF – Luis Gonzalez (Matt Kemp)
CF – Juan Pierre (Matt Kemp)
RF – Andre Either (Matt Kemp)

They will be loaded on starting pitching with…

SP – Brad Penny
SP – Derek Lowe
SP – Jason Schmidt
SP – Chad Billingsley
SP – Randy Wolf
SP – Esteban Loaiza

And an excellent bullpen that consists of…

CL – Takashi Saito
SU – Jonathan Broxton
RP – Scott Proctor
RP – Mark Hendrickson

And many, many more… With Torre at the helm, will the Dodgers be in line for a World Series visit? Only time will tell…

The real question is… Will McCourt continue to pilfer from the American League East Free Agent Pool?

And if Torre does become a Dodger, will some of these NYY cast-offs come’a runnin’?

Statistocrat

"What About Me....I'm A-Rod!"

If there was anyone out there who questioned Alex Rodriguez and his me first mentality, you should now have more that enough proof. He had it leaked that he was opting out of his New York Yankees, hereafter know as "The Dark Side", right in the middle of game 4 of the World Series. I have seen a lot of selfish acts in my day, but this one takes the cake. So I have decided to write a letter to my dear Alex....





Dear Mr. Rodriguez,

I understand that you are a big star and that this is big news. But your "Love and Respect" for the game that has made you such a big star seems to be lacking. A-Rod, this is the biggest stage in baseball. That is....for the people who are playing. We should be talking about Papelbon slamming the door, Ellsbury and his remarkable hitting, Lowell getting the MVP, Manny kicking his helmet, the Red Sox going from despair to potential dynasty, Francona and his status among coaches in the league.....The list is endless. No wait, actually it isn't. It should end with the teams that are involved. For you to give you hired gun the permission to release that information at a time like that is disgusting.

Any excuse that you are getting ready to formulate, please forget. There is none. If you had made up your mind earlier that day, you should have had the courtesy to wait until the American League East and now World Series champion Boston Red Sox had their exclusive time in the sun. If you just made up you mind about 2 minute before we heard about it, why would you even call someone and let them know. No wait....I know. It is because you believe you are bigger and more important that the game itself. Just like the rest of the team you are leaving (The Dark Side) you don't get it. It is not all about the individual. You were a locker room full of individuals. Hope you all had fun watching the World Series.

I was able to sit and watch my favorite team pull off their second World Series in the past 4 years. The fact that you somehow snuck in, did not make the victory any less sweet. Anyway, good luck getting your $30,000,000.00 per year contract. You may want to put some of that aside for some Baseball History tapes and an etiquette class.

Sincerely,

Leroy the Fish