I keep hearing how Jason Campbell looks so good, but the guy hasn't gotten more than 6.4 YPA in a game since Week 5, and Todd Collins was an immediate upgrade when he came into Thursday's game…The Bears need a running back…Kyle Orton is overrated. So he drinks Jack Daniel's – big deal. All that makes him any different is that he's dumb enough to be photographed. Oh, and as a player, he's simply beyond horrific (51.6 completion percentage, 5.1 YPA for his career).
I have no idea why I keep picking the Dolphins ATS. This team is historically bad. Last week they allowed a rookie QB who entered with a 1:5 TD:INT ratio throw four scores without a pick and two Buffalo RBs to eclipse 100 rushing yards…John Beck may very well not be the long-term answer at quarterback; in fact, odds are he's not. However, we don't know for sure after only four starts, so Miami's decision to start Cleo Lemon Sunday is egregious. Why let a silly thing like going in the history books as the first 0-16 team take precedence over the future of a $900 million franchise?
Carson Palmer has been absolutely awful the last two weeks and is in the midst of his worst season as a pro. The Bengals as an 8.5-point road favorite this week is a joke…This week in Triple-D 2.0 – DeDe Dorsey is averaging a whopping 9.1 YPC this season…If you take away one third quarter run, Steven Jackson gained 37 yards on 17 carries against the soft Bengals' defense last week.
While I'm not even close to giving up on him, Shaun McDonald is currently a better wide receiver than Calvin Johnson…While probably the third best team in the NFL right now, this Dallas squad would have almost certainly won the last three Super Bowls…As sure as Drew Peterson is guilty, Marion Barber is the superior running back to Julius Jones.
With last week's matchup with Oakland in the books and upcoming tilts against St. Louis and Chicago, you get the feeling Ryan Grant is going to be on a lot of winning fantasy teams this year…With tickets to this week's Colts/Raiders game, I'm going to have to do some serious tailgating to make it watchable. I'll put the over/under on Joe Addai TDs at 2.5.
Earnest Graham is an unstoppable force…As crazy as it sounds, I'm starting Sage Rosenfels during a Week 15 fantasy playoff game this week…I can't believe how frequently quarterbacks get killed when sliding feet first. It's almost as if defenders don't realize he's down without being touched. The rule actually ends up typically leaving QBs in the most vulnerable position possible. Flags rarely get thrown when it happens, too.
Reggie Williams is averaging an astounding 11.5 yards per target this season. To put that into perspective, Reggie Wayne led the NFL with 9.5 YPA last season…I can't believe how good Fred Taylor has been over the past three weeks. I refused to ever touch him again in a fantasy league after his groin fell off the bone the year I took him early, but he's proven to be extremely durable as he's gotten older.
While never practicing, Plaxico Burress often has poor first quarters, but his step appeared to be sprier last week – just in time for the fantasy playoffs…Donovan McNabb only throwing multiple touchdowns in two games this season looks especially bad when you consider he has quite possibly the most difficult running back to game plan against at his disposal…The Giants are 9-4 and haven't beaten a single team with a winning record this season.
In a battle of attrition, Vince Young vs. Philip Rivers was one of the uglier quarterback duals of the season…Kerry Collins finished with -0.7 YPA Sunday…Antonio Cromartie is having a rather odd season – his nine interceptions lead the NFL, but his 27 tackles rank 171st among defensive backs.
Adrian Peterson's box score last week was the most surprising of the year…In the history of the NFL, no team had ever had two different defensive tackles have interceptions in the same game. Minnesota had three different DTs pick off the 49ers Sunday…If I'm an NFC team, I do not want to see the Vikings in January…Your guess is as good as mine as to why Shaun Hill wasn't playing over Trent Dilfer to begin with.
Gutsy performance from Larry Fitzgerald last week…Bryant Johnson was held to just one catch, but he was targeted nine times and has scored in consecutive games, making him a fine fantasy start this week if Anquan Boldin (toe) remains sidelined. New Orleans' secondary is very inviting…Kurt Warner has thrown 12 touchdowns over the past five games. He's also been picked off eight times over the last three contests. His fantasy value relies heavily on your league's scoring system.
The Steelers aren't even in the same stratosphere as this Patriots team…How is the spread not in the 30 range against the Jets? New England's average margin of victory at home this season is 23.5 points, the Jets are one of the worst teams in the league, and the whole spygate factor is a legitimate thing. New England should just go for two after every touchdown…Tom Brady is officially the most unlikable player in sports.
Nothing's more frustrating than having a fantasy season end at the hands of Mike Shanahan, but so was the case for me when I started Travis Henry over Selvin Young last week. Then again, I fully admit I was asking for it in the first place…That said, giving Young the heavier workload was the right move, and he should continue to do so. But why must Shanahan insist on being so secretive? Would the Chiefs have really game planned differently knowing Young was starting over Henry?...Brandon Marshall is ill…Jay Cutler will unquestionably enter 2008 as a top-10 fantasy quarterback.
I don't have much to say regarding the Browns/Jets game, but these Levitra commercials drive me crazy. Listen, erectile dysfunction is nothing to joke about, and if I had it, I highly doubt I'd refer to it by a cute pet name such as "E.D." It just seems a bit miscast as an abbreviation.
Very frustrated I took Baltimore and the points last week – that game had letdown written all over it after the Ravens nearly beat the Pats the week before. At least my boy Anthony Gonzalez came through…How about Peyton Manning's line? He threw for 249 yards and four scores – all on just 13 completions…Is it just me, or are there an inordinate amount of terrible quarterbacks in the league right now?
The Saints are a better team with Aaron Stecker at running back than they were with Reggie Bush…Forget the Tuesday resignation, Bobby Petrino should have been fired on the spot after punting on 4th and 10 down by 20 points with 2:15 left on the clock. You are trying to tell me that decision gave Atlanta the best chance of winning that game? Good riddance…It's safe to say Arthur Blank's MNF interview didn't go over so well…Believe it or not, Drew Brees has thrown just three fewer TD passes this season compared to last with three more games still to play.