A Menu For Success…Week #9's Tastiest Fantasy Treats

Nov 5, 2010

Matthew Stafford Matthew Stafford #9 of the Detroit Lions drops back to pass during the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Redskins at Ford Field on October 31, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. The Lions defeated the Redskins 37-25.

If you’re going out on a limb, go all the way out. That’s what I learned after week #8. We mentioned 4 quarterbacks, 2 of which play for winning teams and have pro bowl credentials. The other two are in their first or second year and are still adjusting to the rigors of playing the position at the professional level. So, you may ask, who did the best for their respective fantasy owners? Of course….the two young bucks. Peyton Manning didn’t exactly have a poor game but we’ve all kind of gotten spoiled by his past performances so we expect that much more from him. His counterpart, Matt Schaub really did have a poor game with only 1 td pass but 2 turnovers. As for the other guys….well, what can I say? We just had a hunch. Matt Stafford only threw for 212 yds, but his 4 td passes more than make up for the yardage. Sam Bradford of the Rams also had a low yardage figure (191 yds.) but threw two key td passes. Not coincidentally, both the Lions and Rams won on Sunday.

Our running back picks were not as stellar. Benson ran for 69 yds and added 3 catches for 12 more yds. Thomas Jones of KC had 77 yds. rushing and 1 reception for 5 yds. Only Frank Gore crossed the goal line in his efforts to amass 118 yds on the ground. None of these numbers are bad necessarily but we had hoped for far greater production, especially in the scoring column.

At wide receiver, Andre Johnson of the Texans had his usual solid performance with 7 balls for 106 yds and 1 td. Santana Moss of the Skins and Brandon Marshall of the Dolphins each had decent games but failed to get into the endzone. Our key tight end pick was Dustin Keller who disappointed (heck, the whole Jets offense disappointed) us with only 2 receptions for 45 yds. Heath Miller did one worse adding a fumble to his stats.

Rob Bironas of the Titans only made 1 field goal and 2 PATs. Nate Kaeding was a game time scratch so we lost out on those points. On defense, the Steelers had 2 sacks and forced two Drew Brees turnovers. As far as our other pick, the only thing we can say is that we had the right game…just the wrong sideline. The Jets did record 2 sacks and held the Packers to only 3 fgs. but it doesn’t look that impressive when you look at what the Packers did in shutting New York out.

As usual, we see a glass that is neither half full nor half empty. To clear things up, we offer up another menu of appealing “starters’ for the upcoming weekend. First of all, we see no reason to believe that Peyton Manning’s perfect 3-0 record against the Eagles will be tarnished after Sunday. The Philly secondary is suspect right now and no one in the league is better at dissecting a defense like Manning. We also like Philip Rivers to lead his Chargers into the second half of the season with a strong win at Houston. San Diego has this knack for turning it on in the back half of each season and I have no reason to believe this year will be any different. Take into account that the Texans secondary is nothing to write home about and you have the making for a positive output by Rivers. Honorable mention goes out to Drew Brees against the Panthers.

Running backs are a little bit easier to decipher this week. I like Adrian Peterson of the Vikes and Arian Foster of the Texans to offer outstanding point production. Also take a strong look at the Eagles’ McCoy and Tomlinson of the Jets, both of whom could put up significant points against mediocre defenses.

Wide receivers are comprised of the usual suspects. So let’s go out on that limb once again and see if there are any wide-outs who may surprise. Try Pierre Garcon of the Colts (Reggie Wayne is sure to get most of the attention) and, although certainly front-line talents, Jeremy Maclin and Anquan Boldin don’t often get the hype of others and yet are deserving of a hard consideration for this week’s action. At tight end, go with Witten of the Cowboys against the Pack (no way they put up two straight shutouts or anything close to that). We also like Tony Gonzalez of the Falcons and Shiancoe of the Vikes.

Considering the match-ups for Week #9, we like Carpenter of the Dolphins and Jankowski of the Raiders to be our kickers. And, although not in the same class of the Jets/Steelers, we like the Giants D on the road at Seattle. Also look at the Bears on the road at Buffalo.

So there you have this week’s recipe for fantasy success. A dash of Manning and Rivers over a hearty portion of Peterson and Foster. Add Garcon…..and well, you get the idea. Bon appetit!