| With playoff implications abounding in the NFL,
right off the top of my head I can think of at least five games — Eagles at Redskins,
Bucs at Bears, Dolphins at 49ers and a pair of prime-time beauties, Ravens at Steelers
Sunday night and Rams at Saints Monday night — that will warrant our utmost attention
this week. With playoff implications also abounding in the Pro Football Weekly
inter-office fantasy league, my particular focus will be on two of the teams that will be
involved in the aforementioned games (the Saints and Steelers) and another team, the
Vikings, who will be trying — probably very hard — to avoid becoming the first
team this year to lose to the hapless Lions.
Facing a must-win situation, I am seriously thinking about starting more than one
player from each of these teams this weekend. I have to win — big — and hope
that fellow editor Keith Schleiden falls flat on his face in his matchup against Steve
Silverman (go Silvio!!!). Schleiden should have met his maker two weeks ago matched up
against yours truly, but back judge Phil Luckett enabled him to very luckily beat my butt
in a key matchup. Luckett, you might remember, bumped into Saints WR Joe Horn at the goal
line after Horn appeared to catch what would have been a sure touchdown from Aaron Brooks,
who just might be the hottest quarterback in the NFL at the moment (Brooks has registered
a passer rating over 100 in four of his last five games).
If Horn scores that TD … well, no use crying over spilled milk, right?
Anyway, as far as the Saints go, I must once again decide this week whether or not to
include both Horn, who has been my fantasy stud, and Willie Jackson in my starting WR
arsenal. We go with 3-WR lineups in our league, and my other WR options are Denver’s
Rod Smith, who is once again listed as questionable this week for the game at Kansas City,
and San Diego’s Curtis Conway, who has been playing second fiddle to the likes of
Jeff Graham and Tim Dwight in recent weeks and will be up against an Oakland team that put
the clamps on Conway in Week 10 in a 34-24 victory.
There are two big concerns with the Horn/Jackson game plan. The first is the fear that
I simply might be putting too many eggs in one basket. But the more I look at the numbers,
the more I’m starting to believe this fear is unfounded. Horn and Jackson have scored
touchdowns in the same game twice this season. One of those times was last week, when they
came through for me in a big way, combining for 11 catches for 184 yards and a pair of
touchdowns a 28-10 victory over Atlanta.
The other time? Week Seven against the Rams, when the Saints stormed back with a
25-point third quarter to upset the Rams 34-31. Horn and Jackson combined for 10 catches
for 173 yards and three TDs in that game.
But here’s my second fear. The Rams’ defense is playing lights out right now.
It completely shut down the 49ers’ potent offense last Sunday, and it’s playing
with a real edge — like it’s a little tired of being overshadowed by "The
Greatest Show on Turf."
Will the Rams’ "D" shut down Brooks, Horn and Ricky Williams the same
way it shut down Jeff Garcia, Terrell Owens and Garrison Hearst last week? Or will this
game be the wild-and-wooly shootout a lot of us expected the 49ers-Rams game to be?
My gut’s telling me to go with Horn, Jackson and Smith, and let the chips fall
where they may.
Real quickly, let me tell you about my dilemmas with the Steelers and Vikings.
Regarding Pittsburgh, do I play Kordell Stewart at quarterback over Daunte Culpepper, who
is expected to be back in the lineup this Sunday in Detroit? Stewart has been great
lately, but he’s up against the Ravens defense — a unit that has been stoked by
some questionable trash talk from both Jerome Bettis and Plaxico Burress this week. And
speaking of Bettis, who is listed as questionable for the Ravens but is expected to play,
do I insert him back in my starting lineup, or do I stick with Kansas City’s Priest
Holmes and New England’s Antowain Smith?
I’m leaning toward starting Culpepper and keeping Bettis nailed to the bench.
One other Vikings-related consideration: Do I go with Byron Chamberlain as my tight
end? The Rams’ Ernie Conwell and the Falcons’ Alge Crumpler are my other
options. Do I go with Chamberlain in the hopes that Culpepper just comes out firing and
makes Chamberlain his primary intermediate target, which he has done on occasion this
season? Or do I opt for Conwell, who has just two touchdowns and hasn’t scored since
Week Four, or Crumpler, who my snoops in Atlanta keep telling me is a sleeping giant.
My gambling spirit is tilting me in the direction of Crumpler, who will be up against a
Colts defense that looks even shakier than the Lions’ D right now.
So what do you think? I have until the end of the day Friday to change my mind. If you
feel I should, click on to darkush@primediasi.com
and let me know why. I’m more than happy to give you some suggestions too, if you
feel the need for them.
See ya’ next week. |
