Week Four — Late-week fantasy tips

Baltimore Ravens — The Ravens are starting Eric Zeier at quarterback and Priest Holmes at running back this week. If they perform well, head coach Ted Marchibroda likely will stick with them. If they don’t, he’ll continue to search for answers at those spots. Holmes, a stumpy guy at 5-9 and 205 pounds, was a good goalline back in college.

New Orleans Saints — FB Ray Zellars seems to be carrying some sort of grudge against Jim Mora, whose Colts host the Saints this week. Zellars vows to go the extra mile vs. Mora’s team, and Zellars has been playing very well this season.

Cincinnati Bengals — Bad sign for TE Tony McGee: The Packers regularly double-teamed Cincinnati’s wide receivers last week, leaving McGee in single coverage vs. a linebacker. But Bengal QB Neil O’Donnell barely looked McGee’s way all day.

Denver Broncos — John Elway (hamstring) participated in practice on Thursday and is expected to do so once again today (Friday). If Elway makes it through Friday’s practice in one piece, he should start on Sunday at Washington.

Kansas City Chiefs — WR Derrick Alexander has only two catches in three games, and he was plagued by drops last week vs. the Chargers. The coaching staff isn’t happy with Alexander. If Alexander doesn’t turn things around soon, look for Kevin Lockett to take his job. ... It appears as though WR Andre Rison (hamstring) will not play this week.

Oakland Raiders — The Raiders reportedly are very interested in signing Craig "Ironhead" Heyward as a goalline and short-yardage guy. That would take Harvey Williams out of the mix.

San Diego Chargers — Charger observers say Natrone Means is running better than he ever has, even when he rushed for 1,350 yards for San Diego in 1994.

Seattle Seahawks — No one has stepped up at the No. 2 WR spot. The reasons: With Ricky Watters on board, there are fewer footballs to go around; the Seahawks have taken big leads in every game so far, meaning more rushing and less passing; and James McKnight, thought by many to be a sleeper this year, has been dropping passes.

New York Giants — None of the Giant running backs is doing anything, and most of the blame is being pinned on the offensive line. The line is really struggling, and the Giants, with very little depth up front, don’t have the personnel to make changes.

Philadelphia Eagles — Charlie Garner’s ankle is not coming along as expected, so his role isn’t likely to increase anytime soon. ... The Eagles, who have just 15 points all season, want to increase WR Irving Fryar’s role. Bobby Hoying will be the guy trying to get Fryar the ball, at least at the start of Sunday’s game. If Hoying struggles, don’t be surprised if Ray Rhodes calls on Rodney Peete to replace him.

Arizona Cardinals — Adrian Murrell had a huge game last week, but the Cardinals want him to be more consistent. He has yet to produce against a quality opponent or put together four good quarters this year. ... WR Rob Moore (hamstring) is a game-time decision.

Dallas Cowboys — All of Dallas’ tailbacks are on the injury report this week. Emmitt Smith and Chris Warren are questionable with groin injuries, and Sherman Williams is probable with an ankle. Our advice: Steer clear of Cowboy backs this week if you can.

Jacksonville Jaguars — Fred Taylor is the Man now that James Stewart is out for the year. But, if Taylor goes down for an extended period, don’t expect Tavian Banks to step in as the starter. The Jags view Banks strictly as a third-down, change-of-pace back and are more likely to turn to George Jones as the long reliever.

Washington Redskins — The new Redskin placekicker is Cary Blanchard. He’s a better, more consistent kicker than Scott Blanton and David Akers. ... QB Trent Green has done nothing to lose the starting job so far.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers — WR’s Bert Emanuel (ankle) and Jacquez Green (thumb) likely will miss this week’s game at Detroit but should be back the following week. ... FB Mike Alstott has been fumbling the ball more than the Bucs would like, but they’ve been working on stripping drills during practice to try to solve the problem.

Chicago Bears — The Bears are really struggling in the red zone, scoring only one TD in 10 trips. They will try to mix things up more this week, possibly passing more on first down. The lone beneficiary of Chicago’s red-zone struggles has been PK Jeff Jaeger.

Green Bay Packers — The Packers’ running game is in the hands of Raymont Harris. Travis Jervey is likely to miss this week’s game with a hamstring injury. ... WR Robert Brooks has missed a lot of practice time and may be a part-time player until his back gets better. So look for Derrick Mayes and Bill Schroeder to get more playing time.

Detroit Lions — Charlie Batch got the stamp of approval from head coach Bobby Ross after last week’s game, but Batch did too much running at times, giving up on plays prematurely. ... Both of Detroit’s fullbacks are injured, but that shouldn’t affect Barry Sanders too much. He had played most of his career before ’97 without a fullback and seemed to fare pretty well.

Minnesota Vikings — Don’t read too much into Leroy Hoard’s rushing touchdown last week. The Vikings were leading the game at the time and just so happened to be giving Robert Smith a break. ... Randall Cunningham led the Vikes to victory last week, but they struggled in the red zone, settling for field goals five times. Those red-zone problems could translate into a scoring bonanza for PK Gary Anderson.

Tennessee Oilers — The Oilers still want to get the ball into the hands of their wide receivers more. Their leading receivers last week were TE’s Frank Wycheck and Jackie Harris, and RB Eddie George. Look for Steve McNair to start taking more shots downfield.

Pittsburgh Steelers — Kordell Stewart has really been struggling lately, but the Steelers are sticking with him, and Stewart is confident that he can turn things around. Look for the Steelers to try to pound away at the Seahawks with Jerome Bettis this week. If Pittsburgh can run the ball effectively, it could open up the passing attack.

St. Louis Rams — Robert Holcombe will start at running back and get the majority of the carries. ... WR Isaac Bruce (hamstring) probably won’t play this week, making Ricky Proehl a very viable fantasy option.

San Francisco 49ers — Even though the 49ers signed Terry Kirby, Garrison Hearst will remain the primary ballcarrier and third-down back. Kirby’s role has yet to be defined, but he isn’t expected to get the ball nearly as much as he did a year ago.

Click here to return to our main site ProFootballWeekly.com

© 1998-2001 by Pro Football Weekly, a Primedia publication. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.