Week 3 - Hero's and Zero's

Hero's and Zero's:

Week 3 HERO'S:

QB's:

J. T. O'Sullivan (SF) - Another solid outing with 2 TD's, 0 INT, and 32 yards rushing...didn't I mention to pick him up?

Drew Brees (NO) - 39 of 48 with 421 passing yards, 1 TD and 0 INT (a nice recovery from last weeks outing)

RB's:

R. Brown (MIA) - What can he do for you? How about 4 TD's rushing PLUS 1 passing for a grand total of 5. (BTW- He was on the waiver wire in my league - Not for long!)

M. Turner (ATL) - Another solid outing with 3 TD's.

Frank Gore (SF) and M. Lynch (BUF) round out this category.

WR's and TE's:

B. Marshall (DEN), T.J. Houshmandzadeh (CIN), and A. Fasano (MIA)

Kickers:

J. Carney (NYG) and O. Mare (SEA)

Defenses:

Eagles and Ravens - Big Ben is still trying to get the license number of that truck...

ZERO's:

QB's:

Manning (IND) and J. Kitna (DET) - Manning is not producing Manning type #'s and unfortunately for Lions fans Kitna is producing Kitna like #'s...'nuff said...

RB's:

D. McFadden (OAK), R. Grant (GB) and (fast) Willie Parker (PIT)

WR's and TE's:

R. Willams (DET), B. Edwards (CLE) and Vernon Davis (SF)

Kicker:

P. Dawson (CLE)

And the zero of the week (as I got a Big "0" on my FF scorecard from this unit on Defense):

The (once) Mighty New England Patriots who laid a huge egg against Miami!

Week 2 - Hero's and Zero's

Hero's and Zero's

HEROS:

QB's: Cutler, (DEN), Warner (ARI), Rodgers (GB) and Rivers (SD)

RB's: Some rookies and old faces in new places really came through here: McFadden (OAK), Portis (WAS), Stewart (CAR), J. Jones (SEA), E. Graham (TB)

WR's: B. Marshall (DEN), Boldin (ARI), Jennings (GB) and Chambers (SD) - All their QB's are listed above, Coincidence? I think not....

TE: Scheffler (DEN). A fine graduate of Western Michigan University - yes, I actually went there and there really is a Kalamazoo, Michigan.

K: Longwell (MIN) - 5 FG's in one week should help your FF stat line.

D: Giants - 2 solid outings so far from the champs!

ZEROS:

Here are some guys who didn't help your stat line.

QB's: J. Russell (OAK) - Looks like he's still learning folks! Bench him until he shows some improvement......Brees (NO), D. Anderson (CLE) and C. Palmer (a who's who of stud QB's from last year who didn't help your stat line this week - all are proven commodities who will look to improve next week!)

RB's: Any Pat's RB - Even if their points were combined they would barely be considered a viable stat line - avoid at all costs for now!....R. Grant (GB) - 15 carries for 20 yards does not account for a good day....J. Addai (IND) - The only thing that saved his stat line was a TD.....

WR's: ZERO OF THE DAY.....Donald Curry (OAK) - 0 stats, thrown to 4 times.......Now the others: B. Edwards (CLE), C. Ocho Cinco (CIN), M. Harrison (IND)

TE's: Less that zero! Bubba Franks (NYJ) - minus 4 yards on 2 recepts.....Jeremy Shockey (NO)

K: S. Graham (CIN) - 0 FG on 1 Att

D: 'Fins, Rams - Both these defenses proved that Week 1 was no fluke!

Monday night madness:

Eagles: Westbrook, McNabb and keep an eye on that DeSean Jackson kid (even with the bonehead play!)

Cowboys: Romo, T. Owens, Barber (all the usual suspects...)

A couple players to keep a really close eye on....

QB: J.T. O'Sullivan (SF) - Would 321 yards, 1 TD, no INT's and 32 rushing yards help your stats? Thought so........if you lost Tom Terrific last week you could have done a lot worse!

RB's: Chris Johnson (TEN) - 202 yards so far....M. PIttman (DEN) - 3 TD's so far, very nice!.....Ahmad Bradshaw (NYG) - 1 rush TD, 1 Rec TD (but B. Jacobs is getting the yards)

WR's: Eddie Royal (DEN) - Eddie and Brandon Marshall could be the next true tandem to fear.....Chansi Stuckey (NYJ) - 2 TD's so far from Favre....D. Jackson (PHI) - He may be a bonehead, but do you see T.O. owners complaining?!

Week 2 - Studs and Duds

You won't see the names of the guys you should be playing week in and week out here but maybe there is a little advice you can use.......here we go!

STUDS:

QB's: Ben Roethlisberger (PIT) - he should have a solid outing against the Browns.
Aaron Rodgers (GB) - goes up against the Lions...'nuff said....

RB's: Brandon Jacobs (NYG) - the Rams D looks horrible.
Larry Johnson (KC) - should be solid against the Raiders.

WR's: Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward (PIT) - this duo that should have a good outing at CLE
Greg Jennings (GB) - see "Aaron Rodgers" above...

TE: Alex Fasano (MIA) - He could give the 'Fins a much needed boost this year.

K: Gostkowski (NE) - he could see a few more chances if the offense stuggles.....

D: Bills - (Against JAC) - Jags are starting 3 backups on O-line at center and both guards

DUDS:

QB: Marc Bulger (STL) - look for a repeat of last week verses the Giants

RB: Fred Taylor and MJD (JAC) - a banged-up O-line limits their production.

WR: Roddy White (ATL) - with a rookie QB, and going against a solid Bucs D

TE: Alge Crumpler (ATL) - see above.......

K: Kris Brown (HOU) - going against a tough Baltimore D, he should see limited chances

D: SD - Merriman out and Denver's offense clicking on all cylinders - + return of B. Marshall

Week 1 Studs, Duds and Surprises!

OK, It's about 11:00pm on the west coast and the Oakland/Denver game is almost putting me to sleep so we're going to make this quick.

Let's start with a couple of Week 1 Surprises:

Tom Brady's injury. Sorry if you drafted him with your first FF pick - sucks to be you! (Stay tuned to the Lionbacker FF blogspot for a follow up article.) Now that Tom Terrific went down, can we FINALLY stop talking about that Favre guy?!

A WR with the last name of Royal on the Broncos caught 9 passes for 146. Brandon Marshall who?

The pressure the Bears D put on Peyton Manning - Usually he has all afternoon to pick your Defense apart piece by piece. Nice job by the Bears. And Kyle Orton did a nice job of managing the game.

Chad Pennington had a nice outing (for Chad Pennington) going 26 of 43 with 2 TD's. The forgotten man in the Favre fiasco has a nice showing in Miami for only being in town for a few weeks.

Only 1 WR had more than 1 TD reception in game - Hines Ward (wasn't this supposed to be Santonio Holmes year.....relax, there's still time!)

The St. Louis Rams are this bad........

STUDS:

QB's: Donovan McNabb (PHI) and Drew Brees (NO) - 3 TD's a piece, 361 and 343 yards respectively

RB's: Micheal Turner (ATL), Willie Parker (PIT), and Frank Gore (SF)

WR's: Hines Ward (PIT) - target 6 times with 6 catches and 2 TD's - nice!
Reggie Wayne (IND) - target 17 times with 10 catches

TE: Kellen Winslow (CLE)

K: John Kasay (CAR) with 4 field goals.

D: Bears, Eagles and Bills

DUDS:

QB's: Jason Campbell (WAS) and Marc Bulger (STL) - not 300 yards and 1 TD between the 2 of them...EWW!

RB: Stephen Jackson (STL) - 14 carries for 40 yards with a 2.9 yard per carry average - 'nuff said! He gets this category all to himself based on that performance....

WR's: Tory Holt (STL) and Marques Colston (NO) - How can Brees throw for 343 and Colston only has 26 yards?

TE: Chris Cooley (WAS) - (7 yards receiving)

K: Shaun Suisham (WAS) - only 1 XP attempt won't get it done.

D: Vikings

A Few Players You Can Use For Week 1 (And a Couple You May Not Want To.....)

You won't see guys with names like LT, Peyton Manning or Tom Brady here but there are a few guys that might be able to help you get the Fantasy Season started.

The Good:

Quarter Backs:

Kurt Warner (CARDS): With his brilliant play in relief of Matt Leinart over 11 games last season, forced the club to open the competition for starting QB and then won the job outright this past week. Should be a great start against a weak 49ers team that gave up a heck of a lot of yards throught the air last season. Pick him up now!

Jon Kitna (LIONS): Should put up some solid numbers against a team that gave up more pass yards than 29 other teams last year. Time of possession should favor the Lions with Atlanta starting a new QB. Look for 2 TD's against only 1 Int for Kitna with 250 - 300 passing yards.

Running Backs:

Ricky Williams ('FINS): With Ronnie Brown injured, Williams should get about 25 carries and at least a TD against the Jets D.

Darren McFadden (RAIDERS): The Broncos gave up the second most rush yards in the league last season - 'nuff said.

Wide Receivers:

Calvin Johnson (LIONS): See Jon Kitna (above). CJ has all the skills necessary to break out his sophomore year. This could be the start of something big...

Chris Chambers (CHARGERS): Should pick up where he left off the last 4 games of the year last year against a weak Panthers pass defense. Look for 1 TD and 100 plus yards receiving.

Tight End:

Todd Heap (RAVENS): He should have a solid performance against Cincinatti.

Kicker:

David Akers (EAGLES): The Eagles should be able to put a big score against the Rams. The Rams may have some trouble moving the ball against the Philly D.

Defense:

COLTS: While this team is better known for the offense, they are a solid D. Look for Bob Sanders and Dwight Freeny to have solid outings in IDP leagues. The Bears and Kyle Orton will struggle on Sunday.

The Bad:

Quarter Backs:

Kyle Orton (BEARS): See above. With the departure of Berrian and Mohammad, the Bears offense should struggle the first half of the season.

Running Backs:

Ryan Grant (PACKERS): The Minn run D doesn't give up many yards......or TD's.

Reggie Bush (SAINTS): Has yet to score a TD against the Bucs in 2 seasons.........not too many yards either.

Wide Receivers:

Tory Holt (RAMS): Marc Bulger and Tory Holt need to knock off the rust the first few games. Look for improvement as the season progresses.

Laveranues Coles (JETS): No TD's in the past 2 seasons when playing in Miami. Look for him at home when Miami visits NY/NJ.

Kicker:

Robbie Gould (BEARS): With the return of Sanders and Freeney, Indy's D should be able to limit Kyle Orton and the Bears offensive production.

Defense:

FALCONS: I wouldn't count on these guys anytime in the near future.......'nuff said.