Teams on bye: Chicago, Denver, New EnglandAFC East
Buffalo — RBs Shawn Bryson and Sammy Morris seem to be emerging as
viable fantasy players. Morris has scored four TDs in three weeks, and Bryson rushed for
72 yards on 11 carries last week. Morris might produce sooner for your team, but Bryson
should not be overlooked in yardage leagues. He rushed for 40 yards on 12 carries in Week
Three vs. the Jets.
Indianapolis — WR Marvin Harrison may see fewer catches this week vs. a
tough Lions secondary. Along the same lines, WR Terrence Wilkins’ production
has dropped off and could continue to slide this week. Look for the Colts to push Edgerrin
James to the limit before even attempting to pass against the Lions.
Miami — QB Jay Fiedler had an impressive overall game on Monday night and
faces a lighter challenge this week vs. the Packers, whose defense is decent but not the
caliber of the Jets’ defense. … RB Lamar Smith has had only two games
topping 100 yards rushing and has five rushing TDs on the season. … WR O.J.
McDuffie returns to full-time action this week after sitting out the first half with a
toe injury. Expect a little rustiness, especially since he hasn’t played much with
Fiedler at the helm.
New York Jets — You could see a lot of passing by the Jets in this game, though
they will keep RBs Curtis Martin and Richie Anderson involved, much as they
did last week. Bills LB Sam Cowart is one of the strongest MLBs in the game and a quality
run stopper. Look for the Jets to spread the Bills’ defense out as they did with the
Dolphins last Monday night. Jets wide receivers could have another great day vs. a Bills
secondary that gave up several big plays to the Vikings last week.
AFC Central
Baltimore — The Ravens hope their unbelievable scoring drought will come to an end
with Trent Dilfer replacing Tony Banks at quarterback, but that certainly
remains to be seen, since they will be facing a Steelers defense that has been every bit
as tough lately as the Ravens’ defense. What could help the Ravens as much as
anything is the expected return of C Jeff Mitchell from an ankle injury. … FB Obafemi
Ayanbadejo remains out with a nagging toe injury and will again be replaced by Sam
Gash. … Look for the Ravens to continue using Jermaine Lewis in a variety
of ways in the hopes of catching lightning in a bottle. Over the past three games, Lewis
has caught eight passes, run three times, played tailback in an I-formation and even lined
up in a shotgun set, completing a three-yard pass to RB Priest Holmes. … You
might consider playing WR Qadry Ismail if you have him on your roster. Ismail has
360 yards receiving and four TDs in his last two games vs. Pittsburgh.
Cincinnati — If 278 yards and two touchdowns weren’t enough for you, RB Corey
Dillon’s performances against the Browns last year should keep him in your
fantasy lineup this week. Dillon rushed for 360 yards and three touchdowns in the two
meetings with Cleveland last season.
Cleveland — If you have Doug Pederson on your fantasy roster, you are
obviously very hard up at the QB position. You should do whatever is humanly possible to
secure an alternative passer because he may wind up sharing time with rookie Spergon
Wynn in the near future. … WR Dennis Northcutt appears to be on the verge
of becoming a regular contributor to the Browns’ offense. The thing that may wind up
holding him back is the problem at quarterback. … WR David Patten is likely
going to miss this week with a toe injury.
Jacksonville — Someone to keep an eye on is RB Fred Taylor, who has
yet to come up with back-to-back 100-yard games after a slow start to the season. He is
running very hard and could be on the verge of beginning to live up to fantasy
expectations.
Pittsburgh — First off, Kordell Stewart is the Steelers’ starting QB
this week. The Steelers will continue to pound RB Jerome Bettis, as usual, while
trying desperately to get the passing game off the ground. Sooner or later, WRs Plaxico
Burress and Troy Edwards will have a breakout game. This could be it,
considering the Ravens’ defense is very strong up the middle of the field. If the
Ravens shut down Bettis (which they probably won’t be able to do completely), expect
Stewart to look outside to the receivers. … The Steelers’ defense could very
well blank the Ravens for its third straight shutout. The Ravens’ offense is in a
state of flux with a new starting QB, and the Steelers are playing great defense.
Tennessee — RB Eddie George (knee) may be listed as
"questionable" on the injury report, but he said he’s optimistic that
he’ll play Monday night vs. Washington. George said he was 70 percent, the exact
percentage he said he needs to be to play. … WR Carl Pickens (hamstring)
should also return to action Monday night.
AFC West
Kansas City — RB Kimble Anders may be a good starter this week if RB depth
is a problem for you. Head coach Gunther Cunningham loves Anders and has showed a
commitment to him lately, as Anders last week was the first Chiefs running back to gain
100 yards in a game this season. He will be facing a Seahawks defense that has been
atrocious vs. the run.
Oakland — If QB Rich Gannon or WRs Tim Brown or Andre Rison
is on your roster, you may want to play him this week vs. San Diego. The Chargers’
defense ranks 29th in the league vs. the pass, and the Raiders possess the
running threat to open things up through the air with play-action — Gannon’s
specialty.
San Diego — Look for the Chargers to come out throwing vs. Oakland. QB Jim
Harbaugh showed some confidence in WRs Jeff Graham and Curtis Conway
last week, as both were healthy together for the first time in a while.
Seattle — Seahawks receivers may need to be put on the back burner this week, as
QB Jon Kitna steps in for the injured Brock Huard. Kitna was benched earlier
this season because he wasn’t aggressive enough in throwing downfield — never a
good sign for fantasy owners.
NFC East
Dallas — Cowboys RBs Emmitt Smith and Chris Warren combined for 176
rushing yards and three touchdowns in last week’s rout of the Cardinals. While the
Cowboys will continue to run the ball, they won’t concentrate on the ground game as
much as they did vs. the Cardinals, who have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. The
Cowboys want to achieve balance on offense, which means that QB Troy Aikman will
become more involved. Ultimately, what this means is that Warren will not be a consistent
fantasy scorer.
New York Giants — Head coach Jim Fassel benched WR Amani Toomer in the
second half of the Giants’ last game, which was a Week Seven win over the Cowboys.
The Giants were on bye last week. Fassel’s decision to bench Toomer can be viewed as
a way to light a fire under the receiver, who has been a disappointment so far this year.
Word has it that Toomer had an outstanding week of practice, and Fassel is looking for
Toomer to explode in the near future. He may be a good play this week, despite the fact he
goes against a very strong Eagles secondary.
Philadelphia — Expect QB Donovan McNabb to target WRs Charles
Johnson and Torrance Small a little more than usual this week. With the
Giants’ top cornerback, Jason Sehorn, out with a broken rib, the Eagles like their
matchups of receivers against cornerbacks. Sehorn is being replaced by Emmanuel McDaniel,
an average player at best. The other CB spot is manned by Dave Thomas, who is also
considered average. This could be a good week to go with Small or Johnson.
Washington — After waiting patiently for quite a while, Albert Connell
finally had a breakthrough game last week, as he scored three touchdowns and racked up 211
yards. While it’s highly unlikely he will stay as productive, he should be an
every-week starter for your fantasy team. … WR Irving Fryar is listed as
probable for this week. He has missed the past couple of games with a neck injury. Even
when Fryar returns, expect to see plenty of James Thrash. There are several people
on the team who believe that Thrash may be the most talented receiver on the
Redskins’ roster.
NFC CENTRAL
Detroit — WR Herman Moore (hamstring) returned to practice Thursday and
will likely play Sunday vs. the Colts. However, that doesn’t necessarily make him a
fantasy starter. The Lions’ passing game hasn’t amounted to much this season,
and Moore has remained conspicuously absent from the stat sheet. Granted, he was hobbled
in Detroit’s Week Eight win over Tampa Bay and finished with only one reception for
nine yards. But Moore’s involvement when healthy has been minimal. He has 13 catches
for the season and has caught more than two passes in a game just once. Overall, the
passing game has sputtered. As a team, the Lions have broken 200 passing yards twice this
season, and QB Charlie Batch is averaging only about a TD pass per game.
Green Bay — The Packers hope WR Corey Bradford’s return from a broken
leg will help them twofold: First, give the team a true burner with the ability to stretch
defenses. Second, create room for WR Antonio Freeman to make plays underneath.
Though he’s seemingly turned his game up a notch the last few weeks (he’s scored
in three straight games, including performances of 98 and 116 yards), Freeman could use
the extra help to free him up more. As for Bradford, he remains a No. 3 fantasy receiver
until he proves otherwise. Though Bradford had five touchdowns last season, he caught only
37 passes.
Minnesota — As the last two weeks have proved, WR Cris Carter is not a
forgotten man in the Vikings’ passing game. Carter has caught 14 passes for 218 yards
and three touchdowns the last two games — more than he had in the previous three
games combined. History has shown that the Vikings’ offense runs in cycles. WR Randy
Moss will flourish for a few weeks, and then Carter will follow. The bottom line is
this: If you have a Vikings skill-position starter on your team, it’s best to play
him every week — no matter what.
Tampa Bay — If for no other reason than fantasy owners are always looking for
running backs, RB Mike Alstott remains a viable fantasy starter. Granted, he’s
carried 12 times for 40 yards in the last two games. But Alstott is the lead runner and
goal-line back for what’s supposed to be a running team. After handing off only 14
times in their Week Eight loss to Detroit, the Buccaneers will likely try to establish
their ground attack this week vs. the Vikings. Alstott’s last two games at home vs.
Minnesota have been productive ones (95 yards last year, 128 and a touchdown the year
before), so don’t lose hope.
NFC West
Atlanta — The good news is that RB Jamal Anderson appears to be regaining a
lot of the stop-and-go running ability that made him so effective before he tore his ACL
last season. The bad news is that Atlanta’s defense is so beaten up, especially at
the LB position, that the team is a good bet to fall behind early, thereby eliminating
much of a running game featuring Jamal in favor of an aerial game out of necessity. …
WR Tim Dwight could be an intriguing fantasy prospect, considering his returning
prowess and the Saints’ subpar coverage on kickoffs and punt returns. Dwight is also
the team’s best big-play bet on offense, and the extra return dimension could reap
some dividends.
Carolina — Of the three skill-position players who are on this week’s injury
list — TE Wesley Walls (ribs), WR Muhsin Muhammad (hamstring) and WR Donald
Hayes (ankle) — only Walls figures to be really questionable. And while he hear
Walls’ ribs still hurt, it’s probably 70-30 that he’ll suit up for the
Falcons, especially considering Atlanta’s LB woes. … If you’re looking for
a placekicker, you really ought to consider Joe Nedney, who has been almost perfect
(8-of-9 FGs) since joining the Panthers.
New Orleans — RB Ricky Williams, who has been on a rampage with five
straight 100-yard rushing performances (and six TDs in those five games), could have
another killer day vs. Arizona’s weak rushing defense. … QB Jeff Blake
and WR Joe Horn could also be decent fantasy plays, as the Saints’ balanced
West Coast attack continues to evolve.
St. Louis — In his first full-fledged start as Kurt Warner’s
replacement, QB Trent Green catches a big break going against the 49ers’
bruised and battered young defense. … The Rams were really concerned right after last
week’s loss to K.C. over the condition of RB Marshall Faulk’s shoulder,
but Faulk says he will be just fine on Sunday. Nonetheless, the Rams would love to give
Faulk a little more rest, which could mean more work for Justin Watson and Robert
Holcombe if the team is able to pull away from the Niners. The Rams had hoped that
this would be the week first-round rookie Trung Canidate really started asserting
himself after being sidelined with a season-long foot injury, but Canidate apparently
aggravated the injury late in the week and figures to once again be a nonfactor. … PK
Jeff Wilkins is out at least another week with a quadriceps injury. His
replacement, Pete Stoyanovich, is better than most PKs on grass fields.
San Francisco — Matched up against the Rams’ beleaguered defense, the usual
suspects — QB Jeff Garcia, RB Charlie Garner and WRs Terrell Owens
and Jerry Rice — could have big days. Garner’s calf is a bit sore, but he
should be OK. |
