Ministry of Pain
Footballguy
Little late this week...let's jump right into it.
RB that are popping up in the top 10 that I think are overrated this weekend.
Larry Johnson: Maybe the sites are just happy to be able to rank him #1 in their weekly cheatsheets. I understand Oakland has been gashed on their run defense with T Bell getting 80/TD, Henry with 128, Ronnie Brown 134/TD, and then LT just went hypernuts on them last week for about 200/4 TDs…however…those that look at what LJ did last week might want to take into account that he had almost all that yardage on the 1st 15-18 carries in the game…so basically after the defense was worn down he managed 12 more carries for about 10 yds…that’s not very inspiring to me. Owners could get very frustrated on Sunday.
Ronnie Brown: When did New England become a must start against? Marshawn Lynch had the most success of anyone with about 70/TD. The Miami Dolphins traded their WR1, Chambers this week…I don’t like Cleo Lemon and that offense will be worse this week. And NE has a good rush defense. They kept Barber and JJ in check last week. Brown should not be in the top5 this week.
LaMont Jordan: Kansas City gave up 100+ on the ground to the likes of Cedric Benson, ADP, and LT early on but they did a nice job of shutting down Jax and Cinci last week. Plus they have a chance to get a win on Sunday and get themselves to 4-3 on the season…I’m just saying. Jordan did practice fully this week but I think he is a somewhat shaky start right now.
Frank Gore: The Giants have given up 5 rushing TD on the season but they also have not been getting run over wither. Norwood had a big gain the other night but for the most part they have held opposing RB in check. My problem is that Dilfer/Smith are getting nothing done in the passing game, it has an impact on Gore. The Ginats will be keyed in on him and I think Gore on the road will have very average numbers in the Meadowland on Sunday.
Joseph Addai: Jax has been brutal against the run the past few weeks. Addai is coming off an injury, I don’t expect him to tear it up on MNF against the Jags on the road as well.
Players that have an exploit match up and can deliver.
Shaun Alexander: The Rams are dreadful against the run and this game is at home for the Seahawks. I know Shaun has been pretty subpar and I didn’t like what I saw against NO this past week, but the fact is they are limited just a bit in the passing game right now and also in the middle of a tight playoff run with AZ. Both teams have severe injuries that can cripple parts of their offense, however Seattle still has its starting QB and RB…they will win that division almost by default. I like Shaun and crew to get things going this week against the Rams…almost everyone else has.
Brian Leonard: Also should do well this weekend. Seattle allowed Reggie Bush to run all over them, and while Leonard is no Bush, he has some talent and should be able to rack up 100+ yds and a score on Sunday. I expect this game to be fairly high scoring.
Earnest Graham: Detroit has looked really bad at time son defense, they will likely be trying to shut down Garcia as much as possible, and I like Graham to be a sneaky play this weekend. He had a bad game against a great defense last week, the Bucs still managed to eke out the win, and I expect Graham to get a full load again this weekend. I wouldn’t let the acquisition of Michael Bennett worry you. Had the Bucs obtained Mewelde Moore, I would have been much more worried if I were a Graham owner.
Maurice Jones Drew: Taylor has been almost nonexistent this season, and MJD seems to be back on track. I understand he is somewhat limited in touches but this is a huge game, and I expect the Jags to give Indy a real fight on their hands on MNF. I wouldn’t hesitate to insert MJD this weekend.
Thomas Jones: Suddenly looking like a decent option. The Bengals allowed Larry Johnson to look like his old self. You almost have to find room for Thomas Jones this weekend on your roster.
Best of the rest…
Willie Parker: Denver has been allowing the opposition to move the ball on the ground, I always worry though when the game is in Denver. I expect the game to be fairly tight, that should actually bode well for FWP as they will need him in the 4th. Parker is always a threat to explode but he has come up short on several good match ups this season.
Kevin Faulk: Hard to not think he is capable of racking up 100 yards in a laugher in Miami. NE actually can use him and Heath Evans if they need to on Sunday. I expect Faulk to be active in the short passing game but I also think Brady and the air assault will put this game away quickly.
Brian Westbrook: I know Chicago has been bad but it’s never automatic that the starting RB going against them is going to go off. Westy is pretty high on most sites cheatsheets this week. I tend to think people are chasing those numbers of ADP last week and I don’t see Westy hitting those by a long shot.
Willis McGahee: Never has that “IT” game whatever that is. He gets the Bills this weekend, should have no problem getting about 80-100 yds this week. TD have been hard to come by for him. Baltimore kicked 5 FG last week. Some of those drives should have been rushing TD for McGahee.
Clinton Portis: (Muzzled)
Rudi Johnson/Kenny Watson: Whoever is getting the carries should have a pretty solid match up here. However the Cinci rushing game in general has been pretty subpar all year.
Reggie Bush: Can he put another good effort forward? Sure couldn’t close the deal in Seattle as he was bottled up during the last 2-3 drives giving Hasselbeck and crew ample opps to rack yards in that 4th quarter…to the delight of yours truly. Bush should have a great game against the Falcons…don’t let where he is being entered in this report have an impact on whether you start him or not. Green light all the way here.
Kevin Jones: The Bucs will have their hands full with Roy, Calvin, Shaun, and Mike…I don’t think they are game planning for Kevin Jones. The word is that he will get 15-20 carries…I’ll believe it when I see it but there is a likelihood he could be set up for a TD plunge as he had some other weeks with the passing game.
Good RB with difficult situations this weekend
Edge: Don’t like his QB situation none, don’t like him on the road, don’t like him in DC, don’t like the fact the Skins have been playing really tough against just about everything. I would say the Skins, although not flashy are one of the better defenses in the NFL right now. Their secondary sets the tone for the rest of the defense believe it or not. Sean Taylor is a ManChild and can disrupt everything, he is really playing up to his potential.
Adrian Peterson: The reason I don’t like this match up is simple. Dallas is steaming after last week…Crayton and Owens were ready to suit up on Monday. I know they don’t play defense but that front 7 and the secondary just got torn apart by the best Qb in the NFL…now they are going to face about the worst starting Qb in the NFL…Christmas!!! They won’t be gashed the way Chicago was last weekend. ADP will get his touches but I also expect MN to be behind in this game…maybe some garbage time for ADP to pad very average numbers from him this week.
Travis Henry: 2 words…Pittsburgh Defense.
MB III: Forget that he hasn’t produced a TD the past 3 weeks, this is just a bad match up for him and Julius Jones this week. I do expect Dallas to win handily in this game though so MB III might still be able to knock in a short TD form some long gains set up by the passing game.
Bench ‘em
Ahman Green: Can’t trust him in your line up. We’ll take him seriously when he actually can finish a game and isn’t on the injury report…not knocking him as a RB in general but you can’t afford for him to limp off to the sideline during the game and not return.
Cedric Benson: Philly will be all over him on Sunday.
Marshawn Lynch: The kid has run hard all season but Baltimore is a terrible macth up and he should be on the FF pine this weekend.
Jerious Norwood: Great that he had that long run this past week. Not much else happened…I wouldn’t expect him to repeat this week. In fact I expect Warrick Dunn to end up with more carries again this week. If Norwood can start getting 12-15 carries minimum or 15+ touches with receptions then we can start taking him seriously. Otherwise he is simply not a starting RB…how many people really played him last week? A few because of bye weeks but seriously not many.
LenDale White: If Vince Young is out I look for the Titans to be pretty awful on offense. White is an iffy start to begin with but Young out is like Vick out in Atlanta. The offense is geared around Vince.
Finally…
The New York Giants have a very interesting situation now. Brandon Jacobs is the starter but they can give him a breather with Derrick Ward but I am a little hesitant to lean either way. Droughns also had some nice stats at the end of the game on MNF, mostly because of the score and situation. I would not start Droughns at all. You have to go with Jacobs as he is the named starter but I think some weeks that Ward might outshine him. The Niners are not going to win this weekend and I expect the Giants to be able to run the ball either early or the 2nd half to keep the clock moving.
Please post your thoughts for the games…Good Luck this weekend.
RB that are popping up in the top 10 that I think are overrated this weekend.
Larry Johnson: Maybe the sites are just happy to be able to rank him #1 in their weekly cheatsheets. I understand Oakland has been gashed on their run defense with T Bell getting 80/TD, Henry with 128, Ronnie Brown 134/TD, and then LT just went hypernuts on them last week for about 200/4 TDs…however…those that look at what LJ did last week might want to take into account that he had almost all that yardage on the 1st 15-18 carries in the game…so basically after the defense was worn down he managed 12 more carries for about 10 yds…that’s not very inspiring to me. Owners could get very frustrated on Sunday.
Ronnie Brown: When did New England become a must start against? Marshawn Lynch had the most success of anyone with about 70/TD. The Miami Dolphins traded their WR1, Chambers this week…I don’t like Cleo Lemon and that offense will be worse this week. And NE has a good rush defense. They kept Barber and JJ in check last week. Brown should not be in the top5 this week.
LaMont Jordan: Kansas City gave up 100+ on the ground to the likes of Cedric Benson, ADP, and LT early on but they did a nice job of shutting down Jax and Cinci last week. Plus they have a chance to get a win on Sunday and get themselves to 4-3 on the season…I’m just saying. Jordan did practice fully this week but I think he is a somewhat shaky start right now.
Frank Gore: The Giants have given up 5 rushing TD on the season but they also have not been getting run over wither. Norwood had a big gain the other night but for the most part they have held opposing RB in check. My problem is that Dilfer/Smith are getting nothing done in the passing game, it has an impact on Gore. The Ginats will be keyed in on him and I think Gore on the road will have very average numbers in the Meadowland on Sunday.
Joseph Addai: Jax has been brutal against the run the past few weeks. Addai is coming off an injury, I don’t expect him to tear it up on MNF against the Jags on the road as well.
Players that have an exploit match up and can deliver.
Shaun Alexander: The Rams are dreadful against the run and this game is at home for the Seahawks. I know Shaun has been pretty subpar and I didn’t like what I saw against NO this past week, but the fact is they are limited just a bit in the passing game right now and also in the middle of a tight playoff run with AZ. Both teams have severe injuries that can cripple parts of their offense, however Seattle still has its starting QB and RB…they will win that division almost by default. I like Shaun and crew to get things going this week against the Rams…almost everyone else has.
Brian Leonard: Also should do well this weekend. Seattle allowed Reggie Bush to run all over them, and while Leonard is no Bush, he has some talent and should be able to rack up 100+ yds and a score on Sunday. I expect this game to be fairly high scoring.
Earnest Graham: Detroit has looked really bad at time son defense, they will likely be trying to shut down Garcia as much as possible, and I like Graham to be a sneaky play this weekend. He had a bad game against a great defense last week, the Bucs still managed to eke out the win, and I expect Graham to get a full load again this weekend. I wouldn’t let the acquisition of Michael Bennett worry you. Had the Bucs obtained Mewelde Moore, I would have been much more worried if I were a Graham owner.
Maurice Jones Drew: Taylor has been almost nonexistent this season, and MJD seems to be back on track. I understand he is somewhat limited in touches but this is a huge game, and I expect the Jags to give Indy a real fight on their hands on MNF. I wouldn’t hesitate to insert MJD this weekend.
Thomas Jones: Suddenly looking like a decent option. The Bengals allowed Larry Johnson to look like his old self. You almost have to find room for Thomas Jones this weekend on your roster.
Best of the rest…
Willie Parker: Denver has been allowing the opposition to move the ball on the ground, I always worry though when the game is in Denver. I expect the game to be fairly tight, that should actually bode well for FWP as they will need him in the 4th. Parker is always a threat to explode but he has come up short on several good match ups this season.
Kevin Faulk: Hard to not think he is capable of racking up 100 yards in a laugher in Miami. NE actually can use him and Heath Evans if they need to on Sunday. I expect Faulk to be active in the short passing game but I also think Brady and the air assault will put this game away quickly.
Brian Westbrook: I know Chicago has been bad but it’s never automatic that the starting RB going against them is going to go off. Westy is pretty high on most sites cheatsheets this week. I tend to think people are chasing those numbers of ADP last week and I don’t see Westy hitting those by a long shot.
Willis McGahee: Never has that “IT” game whatever that is. He gets the Bills this weekend, should have no problem getting about 80-100 yds this week. TD have been hard to come by for him. Baltimore kicked 5 FG last week. Some of those drives should have been rushing TD for McGahee.
Clinton Portis: (Muzzled)
Rudi Johnson/Kenny Watson: Whoever is getting the carries should have a pretty solid match up here. However the Cinci rushing game in general has been pretty subpar all year.
Reggie Bush: Can he put another good effort forward? Sure couldn’t close the deal in Seattle as he was bottled up during the last 2-3 drives giving Hasselbeck and crew ample opps to rack yards in that 4th quarter…to the delight of yours truly. Bush should have a great game against the Falcons…don’t let where he is being entered in this report have an impact on whether you start him or not. Green light all the way here.
Kevin Jones: The Bucs will have their hands full with Roy, Calvin, Shaun, and Mike…I don’t think they are game planning for Kevin Jones. The word is that he will get 15-20 carries…I’ll believe it when I see it but there is a likelihood he could be set up for a TD plunge as he had some other weeks with the passing game.
Good RB with difficult situations this weekend
Edge: Don’t like his QB situation none, don’t like him on the road, don’t like him in DC, don’t like the fact the Skins have been playing really tough against just about everything. I would say the Skins, although not flashy are one of the better defenses in the NFL right now. Their secondary sets the tone for the rest of the defense believe it or not. Sean Taylor is a ManChild and can disrupt everything, he is really playing up to his potential.
Adrian Peterson: The reason I don’t like this match up is simple. Dallas is steaming after last week…Crayton and Owens were ready to suit up on Monday. I know they don’t play defense but that front 7 and the secondary just got torn apart by the best Qb in the NFL…now they are going to face about the worst starting Qb in the NFL…Christmas!!! They won’t be gashed the way Chicago was last weekend. ADP will get his touches but I also expect MN to be behind in this game…maybe some garbage time for ADP to pad very average numbers from him this week.
Travis Henry: 2 words…Pittsburgh Defense.
MB III: Forget that he hasn’t produced a TD the past 3 weeks, this is just a bad match up for him and Julius Jones this week. I do expect Dallas to win handily in this game though so MB III might still be able to knock in a short TD form some long gains set up by the passing game.
Bench ‘em
Ahman Green: Can’t trust him in your line up. We’ll take him seriously when he actually can finish a game and isn’t on the injury report…not knocking him as a RB in general but you can’t afford for him to limp off to the sideline during the game and not return.
Cedric Benson: Philly will be all over him on Sunday.
Marshawn Lynch: The kid has run hard all season but Baltimore is a terrible macth up and he should be on the FF pine this weekend.
Jerious Norwood: Great that he had that long run this past week. Not much else happened…I wouldn’t expect him to repeat this week. In fact I expect Warrick Dunn to end up with more carries again this week. If Norwood can start getting 12-15 carries minimum or 15+ touches with receptions then we can start taking him seriously. Otherwise he is simply not a starting RB…how many people really played him last week? A few because of bye weeks but seriously not many.
LenDale White: If Vince Young is out I look for the Titans to be pretty awful on offense. White is an iffy start to begin with but Young out is like Vick out in Atlanta. The offense is geared around Vince.
Finally…
The New York Giants have a very interesting situation now. Brandon Jacobs is the starter but they can give him a breather with Derrick Ward but I am a little hesitant to lean either way. Droughns also had some nice stats at the end of the game on MNF, mostly because of the score and situation. I would not start Droughns at all. You have to go with Jacobs as he is the named starter but I think some weeks that Ward might outshine him. The Niners are not going to win this weekend and I expect the Giants to be able to run the ball either early or the 2nd half to keep the clock moving.
Please post your thoughts for the games…Good Luck this weekend.
Last edited by a moderator:
Seems a bit inconsistent. Anyway, ADP's lowest yardage output so far is 118 so even though Dallas isn't a great matchup I think you have to keep "riding the wave".
... and Jeff, your input is always appreciated on my part... but I have to respectfully disagree with you guys on that one...(disclaimer - I own Portis in one dynasty league - but I will do my best to keep the rose glasses away here)...
Not to mention he'll get all the goal line action with Young out..
... and Jeff, your input is always appreciated on my part... but I have to respectfully disagree with you guys on that one...(disclaimer - I own Portis in one dynasty league - but I will do my best to keep the rose glasses away here)...
