Ministry of Pain
Footballguy
Let’s assume you actually have some options at RB this week. Let’s take a peek at the games and breakdown the match ups.
Buffalo at Miami
Willis McGahee: Miami gave up 143 yards on the ground last week and a decent 3.8 ypc. Pittsburgh’s OL is far better than Buffalo. McGahee posted about 90 yds on the ground last week. I look for Miami to come out and really try and pounce on the Bills. McGahee might be looking at around 70-80 on the ground but unlike last week should find the end zone once this week. Not a horrible match up for him.
Ronnie Brown: Brown owners thought last week was OK with 2 rushing TDs…wait till they see what the boy does this week to a Bills team that allowed 183/4.5 ypc on the ground last week against the Patrioits which had virtually no WR threats. With Chambers occupying the secondary I look for brown to get loose this week at home. 20-24 carries, at least 100+ rushing yds and TD.
Carolina at Minnesota
Chester Taylor: Made for a good week for his owners with the TD…but struggled unnign with 31 carries and not reaching the century mark. Carolina allowed 250+ yds on the ground last week. 5.4 ypc and 3 runs of 20+ yds…yikes! Dan morgan went down in that game but he isn’t the whole defense. I look for Carolina to bite back this week as they were humiliated at home against the Falcons last week. Tayloe owners will expect for him to duplicate Dunn’s numbers form last week…I don’t see it.
DeShaun Foster: Disappointing. No other way to describe it last week. With Steve Smith out this offense changes drastically. Foster owners better hope Smith can make a go of it this week. Vikes gave up 103, a rushing TD, and 4.1 on the ground last week. Hard to gauge how good or bad they are…I would say they are middle of the road.
Cleveland at Cincinnati
Reuben Droughns: It wasn’t supposed to get much easier than a home opener vs the Saints…but Droughns was held in check. Under 30 yds rushing. He actually has a good match up this week. The Bengals kept LJ in check last week but gave up 4.5 ypc. Look for Droughns to get back on track this week. Something in the vicinity of 75-100 yds and maybe a TD as well.
Rudi Johnson: Stud…no need to worry about match up with him right now. Cleveland allowed 150 yards but 3.8 ypc. RJ will be fine.
Detroit at Chicago
Kevin Jones: Chicago did give up 4.5 ypc last week. What was encouraging about KJ last week were his 8 targets in the Mike Martz pass attack. Jones will have his work cut out on the ground but he might catch enough balls to make due as a decent RB2 again this week. Smart owners will trade for him before he actually has a big game and the price shoots up.
Thomas Jones: Still the starter. Nothing special last week. Detroit was though and held Seattle to just 3.5 ypc…will be interesting to see how Chicago does against a semi decent defense this week. I look for Jones to have a decent day but this is not a slam dunk match up by any stretch.
Houston at Indy
Wali Lundy: Till Houston can get their running game together I would steer clear. The Giants are a good run blocking team so don’t be lured into thinking Houston will be able to do the same to Indy.
Dominic Rhodes/Joseph Addai: Rhodes is starting for the moment. He and Addai will have good days for the Colts as they will be ahead and have the luxury of running the ball more. Houston gave up 130 yds and 4.3 ypc to an Eagles team that is not a power running team…Rhodes should have the better of it.
New Orleans at Green Bay
Reggie Bush: Just start him…especially in the flex. 10 targets in the passing game and you aint seen nuthin yet!
Deuce McAllister: I have owners in several leagues that are starting him as a RB2…He will not be getting much other than his rushing yds. If he gets 15 carries a week on average..that will amount to roughly 60-80 yds…I think he is a distant 2nd on this team.
Ahman Green: Start him if you must. I want to evaluate him 1 more week. NO gave up only 85 yds last week but almost 4 ypc..so maybe Cleveland just didn’t try hard enough. Saints are on the road again this week, I see them as a big letdown this week and probably will resemble the Saints we are more accustomed to. Green has a chance to supplicate his numbers of a week ago.
NY Giants at Philly
Tiki Barber: Not an easy match up but there is no question you will play him.
Brian Westbrok: Don’t look for him to have as big a day rushing the ball…his yards are gonna come thru the air. NY held Indy to 2.4 ypc last week…WOW!
Oakland at Baltimore
Lamont Jordan: I said Jordan owners would be singing the blues early in the season. That will continue this week. I would seriously consider benching him if you have some other options.
Jamal Lewis: As bad as Oakland was in giving up 194 yds on the ground it was only at a clip of 4 ypc. That isn’t horrible. Lewis owners need not expect LT type numbers this week.
Tampa Bay at Atlanta
“Cadillac”: Looked more like a Plymouth last week…bad joke I know. The Falcons numbers are deceiving. 61 yds but over 4 ypc last week. I look for the Bucs to actually have some success running the football this week. Cadillac will get lose and also find pay dirt this week…mark it down.
Warrick Dunn: OK, he looked great last week. But the Bucs only allowed 3.0 ypc last week in a 27-0 BLOWOUT!!! Dunn will have a very mediocre day against his old team. He has a couple of nice match ups after this week…look for a quiet day from Dunn.
Arizona at Seattle
Edge: AZ still sucks running the football. The Niners…THE FLIPPIN SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS held them to 2.9 ypc last week. Edge owners should shop him to death this week…as his stats were actually pretty good. There are a bunch of RBs you could likely acquire for him right now. He will have rough sledding in Seattle this weekend. I talked about the trio of LBs that Seattle has and they looked terrific on Sunday. I expect them to be very stingy on rush defense most of the season.
Shaun Alexander: Easily had one of the worst games of the season last week. He’ll be fine and he gets back on track with the Cardinals this week. Arizona gave up a whopping 6 ypc last week…6! Shaun will score a ton on Sunday.
St.Louis at San Francisco
Steven Jackson: The Niners did a good job of stopping the run last week. Andy McCollum was lost for the season and will not be replaced easily. I have not liked what I have seen form St Louis so far…just the fact that SJax is getting a full load is not reason enough to be happy. The pass attack looks terrible right now and if that continues then defenses will wise up. Gone are the 3 and 4WR sets so SJax will see more and more 7 and even yes 8 man fronts. He will be fine this week in SF but I see trouble brewing on the horizon.
Frank Gore: Don’t trip over yourself inserting him into the starting line up this week. Rams gave up almost 6.5 ypc last week…how the heck did they beat Denver? Larry Allen is lost for about a month but the Niners actually have a decent OL as we have talked about and I see them running well again on Sunday. They might actually win this week. Gore should rack up 100+ on the ground and another score this week. We called for 100 yds and a score last week for Gore…boy were we wrong…he almost doubled the anticipated output.
Kansas City at Denver
Larry Johnson: FF owners had the worst scenario on Sunday…Trent Green is gone for at least the next couple of games. LJ will get a full workload and Denver was gashed for 4.5 ypc on Sunday. I temper my enthusiasm for LJ with Damon Huard under center right now.
Tatum Bell: He has been named the starter but Shanny insists Mike Bell will get worked into the line up and whoever has the hot hand will see the most carries. Chefs held the Bengals to 3.4 ypc on Sunday. Maybe Herm can rally the troops but Denver can run on anyone they want to. Either Bell might be a decent play till we see which one can maintain the job. Tatum did have over 100 yds last week.
New England at NY Jets
Corey Dillon: Everyone seemed enamored with Maroney but they seem to have glossed over the fact that Dillon had a very nice game on Sunday. He ran well and as long as he is healthy this is a workload that will be pretty evenly split. This is not so great for FF owners but I think Dillon is the safer start right now as he will get most of the goal line work for the time being.
Laurence Maroney: Could be starting at some point down the road. For right now FF owners should simply enjoy his preogression. At some point soon he may be a decent spot start.
Derrick Blaylock: The Jets did not run the ball well. Blaylock had around 18 carries for less than 40 yards rushing…not good. At some point Barlow will be taking over the starting duties.
Kevan Barlow: Did not have a spectacular day stats wise but he scored a TD and if the Jets can muster a passing game…something they missed last season…then you might see some holes open up for the RBs. Their OL has a couple of rookies…good rookies though…look for them to get better and better every week. Ferguson and Mangold will make a major difference in their OL as the season progresses. Barlow to me is the safer start right now if you are in a pinch.
Tennessee at San Diego
Travis Henry: Fact is he is getting the goal line carries so that makes him a better play to me. However I wouldn’t start him against San Diego right now. The Chargers have picked right up where they left off last season. They stifled the Raiders to less than 50 yds rushing last week. Lamont Jordan looked helpless on the field. Let the Titans ride your bench this week if you can help it. Travis Henry may be available on your WW…if that is the case you should grab him.
LaDainian Tomlinson: May have a slightly tougher go of it this week. He is fun to watch run the football. Looks like he was the best of the early 3 drafted in leagues this season. Will it keep up?
Washington at Dallas
Clinton Portis: Check the injury report but he had 39 yds and a TD last week…one would think he will get a bigger load this week as Washingotn is desperate for a win. SO id Dallas. One of these preseason playoff pimped teams is going to go 0-2. Ouch! If Portis is even probable I would probably play him this week. I don’t expect him or Julius Jones for that matter to have big days rushing the football on these defenses.
Julius Jones: See Portis.
Pittsburgh at Jax
FWP: Start him every week. He is the focal point of the offense right now. It won’t be easy to run on Jax but the Pittsburgh OL is really good and will open plenty of holes for FWP. Remember the Jags suffered a major blow on their OL with Hayward going down for the season.
Fred Taylor: Only way he puts up good stats this week is if he can find pay dirt. Otherwise I expect him to have a low output this week.
Time for you all to chime in. Last week's thread was awesome and I wanted to thank all that participated, we turned that into over 3 pages.
If you have a question about your line up, you should use the ACF, there are quality FBGs that will help you there. However if you can provide some analysis, or state why you are leaning one way or the other...then please post away and we'll try and help. Just try to lay off the "pick 2" form these 4...at least give us an idea or something to work with.
Cheers!
Buffalo at Miami
Willis McGahee: Miami gave up 143 yards on the ground last week and a decent 3.8 ypc. Pittsburgh’s OL is far better than Buffalo. McGahee posted about 90 yds on the ground last week. I look for Miami to come out and really try and pounce on the Bills. McGahee might be looking at around 70-80 on the ground but unlike last week should find the end zone once this week. Not a horrible match up for him.
Ronnie Brown: Brown owners thought last week was OK with 2 rushing TDs…wait till they see what the boy does this week to a Bills team that allowed 183/4.5 ypc on the ground last week against the Patrioits which had virtually no WR threats. With Chambers occupying the secondary I look for brown to get loose this week at home. 20-24 carries, at least 100+ rushing yds and TD.
Carolina at Minnesota
Chester Taylor: Made for a good week for his owners with the TD…but struggled unnign with 31 carries and not reaching the century mark. Carolina allowed 250+ yds on the ground last week. 5.4 ypc and 3 runs of 20+ yds…yikes! Dan morgan went down in that game but he isn’t the whole defense. I look for Carolina to bite back this week as they were humiliated at home against the Falcons last week. Tayloe owners will expect for him to duplicate Dunn’s numbers form last week…I don’t see it.
DeShaun Foster: Disappointing. No other way to describe it last week. With Steve Smith out this offense changes drastically. Foster owners better hope Smith can make a go of it this week. Vikes gave up 103, a rushing TD, and 4.1 on the ground last week. Hard to gauge how good or bad they are…I would say they are middle of the road.
Cleveland at Cincinnati
Reuben Droughns: It wasn’t supposed to get much easier than a home opener vs the Saints…but Droughns was held in check. Under 30 yds rushing. He actually has a good match up this week. The Bengals kept LJ in check last week but gave up 4.5 ypc. Look for Droughns to get back on track this week. Something in the vicinity of 75-100 yds and maybe a TD as well.
Rudi Johnson: Stud…no need to worry about match up with him right now. Cleveland allowed 150 yards but 3.8 ypc. RJ will be fine.
Detroit at Chicago
Kevin Jones: Chicago did give up 4.5 ypc last week. What was encouraging about KJ last week were his 8 targets in the Mike Martz pass attack. Jones will have his work cut out on the ground but he might catch enough balls to make due as a decent RB2 again this week. Smart owners will trade for him before he actually has a big game and the price shoots up.
Thomas Jones: Still the starter. Nothing special last week. Detroit was though and held Seattle to just 3.5 ypc…will be interesting to see how Chicago does against a semi decent defense this week. I look for Jones to have a decent day but this is not a slam dunk match up by any stretch.
Houston at Indy
Wali Lundy: Till Houston can get their running game together I would steer clear. The Giants are a good run blocking team so don’t be lured into thinking Houston will be able to do the same to Indy.
Dominic Rhodes/Joseph Addai: Rhodes is starting for the moment. He and Addai will have good days for the Colts as they will be ahead and have the luxury of running the ball more. Houston gave up 130 yds and 4.3 ypc to an Eagles team that is not a power running team…Rhodes should have the better of it.
New Orleans at Green Bay
Reggie Bush: Just start him…especially in the flex. 10 targets in the passing game and you aint seen nuthin yet!
Deuce McAllister: I have owners in several leagues that are starting him as a RB2…He will not be getting much other than his rushing yds. If he gets 15 carries a week on average..that will amount to roughly 60-80 yds…I think he is a distant 2nd on this team.
Ahman Green: Start him if you must. I want to evaluate him 1 more week. NO gave up only 85 yds last week but almost 4 ypc..so maybe Cleveland just didn’t try hard enough. Saints are on the road again this week, I see them as a big letdown this week and probably will resemble the Saints we are more accustomed to. Green has a chance to supplicate his numbers of a week ago.
NY Giants at Philly
Tiki Barber: Not an easy match up but there is no question you will play him.
Brian Westbrok: Don’t look for him to have as big a day rushing the ball…his yards are gonna come thru the air. NY held Indy to 2.4 ypc last week…WOW!
Oakland at Baltimore
Lamont Jordan: I said Jordan owners would be singing the blues early in the season. That will continue this week. I would seriously consider benching him if you have some other options.
Jamal Lewis: As bad as Oakland was in giving up 194 yds on the ground it was only at a clip of 4 ypc. That isn’t horrible. Lewis owners need not expect LT type numbers this week.
Tampa Bay at Atlanta
“Cadillac”: Looked more like a Plymouth last week…bad joke I know. The Falcons numbers are deceiving. 61 yds but over 4 ypc last week. I look for the Bucs to actually have some success running the football this week. Cadillac will get lose and also find pay dirt this week…mark it down.
Warrick Dunn: OK, he looked great last week. But the Bucs only allowed 3.0 ypc last week in a 27-0 BLOWOUT!!! Dunn will have a very mediocre day against his old team. He has a couple of nice match ups after this week…look for a quiet day from Dunn.
Arizona at Seattle
Edge: AZ still sucks running the football. The Niners…THE FLIPPIN SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS held them to 2.9 ypc last week. Edge owners should shop him to death this week…as his stats were actually pretty good. There are a bunch of RBs you could likely acquire for him right now. He will have rough sledding in Seattle this weekend. I talked about the trio of LBs that Seattle has and they looked terrific on Sunday. I expect them to be very stingy on rush defense most of the season.
Shaun Alexander: Easily had one of the worst games of the season last week. He’ll be fine and he gets back on track with the Cardinals this week. Arizona gave up a whopping 6 ypc last week…6! Shaun will score a ton on Sunday.
St.Louis at San Francisco
Steven Jackson: The Niners did a good job of stopping the run last week. Andy McCollum was lost for the season and will not be replaced easily. I have not liked what I have seen form St Louis so far…just the fact that SJax is getting a full load is not reason enough to be happy. The pass attack looks terrible right now and if that continues then defenses will wise up. Gone are the 3 and 4WR sets so SJax will see more and more 7 and even yes 8 man fronts. He will be fine this week in SF but I see trouble brewing on the horizon.
Frank Gore: Don’t trip over yourself inserting him into the starting line up this week. Rams gave up almost 6.5 ypc last week…how the heck did they beat Denver? Larry Allen is lost for about a month but the Niners actually have a decent OL as we have talked about and I see them running well again on Sunday. They might actually win this week. Gore should rack up 100+ on the ground and another score this week. We called for 100 yds and a score last week for Gore…boy were we wrong…he almost doubled the anticipated output.
Kansas City at Denver
Larry Johnson: FF owners had the worst scenario on Sunday…Trent Green is gone for at least the next couple of games. LJ will get a full workload and Denver was gashed for 4.5 ypc on Sunday. I temper my enthusiasm for LJ with Damon Huard under center right now.
Tatum Bell: He has been named the starter but Shanny insists Mike Bell will get worked into the line up and whoever has the hot hand will see the most carries. Chefs held the Bengals to 3.4 ypc on Sunday. Maybe Herm can rally the troops but Denver can run on anyone they want to. Either Bell might be a decent play till we see which one can maintain the job. Tatum did have over 100 yds last week.
New England at NY Jets
Corey Dillon: Everyone seemed enamored with Maroney but they seem to have glossed over the fact that Dillon had a very nice game on Sunday. He ran well and as long as he is healthy this is a workload that will be pretty evenly split. This is not so great for FF owners but I think Dillon is the safer start right now as he will get most of the goal line work for the time being.
Laurence Maroney: Could be starting at some point down the road. For right now FF owners should simply enjoy his preogression. At some point soon he may be a decent spot start.
Derrick Blaylock: The Jets did not run the ball well. Blaylock had around 18 carries for less than 40 yards rushing…not good. At some point Barlow will be taking over the starting duties.
Kevan Barlow: Did not have a spectacular day stats wise but he scored a TD and if the Jets can muster a passing game…something they missed last season…then you might see some holes open up for the RBs. Their OL has a couple of rookies…good rookies though…look for them to get better and better every week. Ferguson and Mangold will make a major difference in their OL as the season progresses. Barlow to me is the safer start right now if you are in a pinch.
Tennessee at San Diego
Travis Henry: Fact is he is getting the goal line carries so that makes him a better play to me. However I wouldn’t start him against San Diego right now. The Chargers have picked right up where they left off last season. They stifled the Raiders to less than 50 yds rushing last week. Lamont Jordan looked helpless on the field. Let the Titans ride your bench this week if you can help it. Travis Henry may be available on your WW…if that is the case you should grab him.
LaDainian Tomlinson: May have a slightly tougher go of it this week. He is fun to watch run the football. Looks like he was the best of the early 3 drafted in leagues this season. Will it keep up?
Washington at Dallas
Clinton Portis: Check the injury report but he had 39 yds and a TD last week…one would think he will get a bigger load this week as Washingotn is desperate for a win. SO id Dallas. One of these preseason playoff pimped teams is going to go 0-2. Ouch! If Portis is even probable I would probably play him this week. I don’t expect him or Julius Jones for that matter to have big days rushing the football on these defenses.
Julius Jones: See Portis.
Pittsburgh at Jax
FWP: Start him every week. He is the focal point of the offense right now. It won’t be easy to run on Jax but the Pittsburgh OL is really good and will open plenty of holes for FWP. Remember the Jags suffered a major blow on their OL with Hayward going down for the season.
Fred Taylor: Only way he puts up good stats this week is if he can find pay dirt. Otherwise I expect him to have a low output this week.
Time for you all to chime in. Last week's thread was awesome and I wanted to thank all that participated, we turned that into over 3 pages.
If you have a question about your line up, you should use the ACF, there are quality FBGs that will help you there. However if you can provide some analysis, or state why you are leaning one way or the other...then please post away and we'll try and help. Just try to lay off the "pick 2" form these 4...at least give us an idea or something to work with.
Cheers!
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I'm not very good at this FF stuff? 
I think I try to outthink myself sometimes...
I'm more 
than ever...
