Joseph Addai, RB, IND - Active
Josh Freeman, QB, TB – Inactive
Percy Harvin, WR, MIN – Active
Julio Jones, WR, ATL – Active
Michael Turner, RB, ATL – Active
Sebastian Janikowski, K, OAK – Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Active
Montario Hardesty, RB, CLE – Active
Peyton Hillis, RB, CLE – Active
Percy Harvin, WR, MIN – Active
Kevin Kolb, QB, ARI – Inactive
Visanthe Shiancoe, TE, MIN – Active
Sam Bradford, QB, STL – Active
Jared Cook, TE, TEN - Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND - Inactive
Jermaine Gresham, TE, CIN – Active
Kevin Kolb, QB, ARI - Inactive
Lance Moore, WR, NO – Active
Nate Washington, WR, TEN – Active
DeSean Jackson, WR, PHI – Inactive. Disciplinary Reasons.
Question 1: Asked by Valeri
Should I start Tim Tebow or Ryan Fitzpatrick this week? Thanks.
Answer
I have to give the nod to Tebow. Fitz has a fairly decent match up against the Cowboys secondary but with LT Demetrius Bell still looking like he will be sidelined again, I am concerned about Demarcus Ware severely limiting his ability to extend plays. This game will become about Fred Jackson for the Bills. If Jackson gets going, the pass rush should need to respect him enough that Fitz can make the big play. Tebow on the other hand IS the running threat that slows the pass rush and McGahee doesn’t hurt. Even if Tebow plays bad, he is almost a lock for double digit points because he will be giving you 5-6 in rushing yards alone.
Question 2: Asked my @MFarrell21
Benson vs Pitt or Donald Brown vs the Jags with Addai likely out?
Answer
It has to be Benson. Not many guys see 20-30 touches per game and Benson has fresh legs after the Bye and his one game suspension. Pittsburgh’s defense has been playing better as of late, but they are far from as lights-out against the run as they have been in recent years. Start Benson with confidence this week but do not expect too much from him. Be happy with 70 yards and hopefully he finds the end zone.
Question 3: Asked by Zach
Hey so what’s your take on Ryan Mathews? He did not get nearly as many carries as I expected him to last night, probably a result of his injury and the Chargers wanting to ease him back into play – as you stated in your love/hate list; but what do you think about going forward, after a 10 day stretch do you think he will start getting the bulk of carries again? I have Starks on my bench and depending on how he plays this next game, I may consider playing him over Mathews week 11.
Answer
I think Mathews is doing fine. He only had 6 carries, but I am not really surprised that they split the carries evenly. Both backs were running well and if Tolbert can be productive, he will see touches. Mathews was averaging 5.7 yards per carry last night and had it not gotten out of hand and San Diego would have continued to pound the rock. My only issue with Mathews is health so if he is active and practicing all week, I think you have to start him. Especially over Starks who is on a by far pass-first team and sharing some touches with Ryan Grant.
Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, NYG – Inactive
Darren McFadden, RB, OAK - Inactive
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Active
Daniel Thomas, RB, MIA - Active
Plaxico Burress, WR, NYJ - Active
Kevin Kolb, QB, ARI - Inactive
Jermaine Gresham, TE, CIN – Inactive
Wes Welker, WR, NE – Active
Sam Bradford, QB, STL - Active
BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, NE - Active
Fred Davis, TE, WSH - Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Inactive
Chris Cooley, TE, WAS - Active
Tim Hightower, RB, WAS - Active
Love
Matt Schaub, QB, HOU – With Garrard already listed as out on the injury report for the Jaguars, the Texans are heavy favorites to win this game. The weakness of the Jags defense is in their secondary. All season long I have written that the CBs of the Jags have not been able to cover opposing wide receivers with any consistency. If the Texans have Andre Johnson back and healthy, Schaub should be in for a big game to close out the 2010 season.
Steven Jackson, RB, STL – Last week the Buccaneers had a big second half on the ground against the Seahawks. There was plenty of success to be had through the air as well, but the Rams are less likely to be as aggressive with a rookie QB on the road. I expect St. Louis to feature SJax heavily this week and he is among the most consistent performing fantasy running backs in the NFL.
DeSean Jackson, WR, PHI – DJax is a streaky and inconsistent player. He has HUGE potential going into any given week, but also has a decent chance to flop and get you nothing. To me, with a player like this (and I owned him last year on my championship team) you HAVE to start them on a weekly basis. Trying to guess which weeks he will blow up is a recipe for disaster. After making it through a slow outing last week, can you afford to miss out on his big game next week?
Jamaal Charles, RB, KC – Charles is by far the most productive back in the league’s top ranked rushing offense. It is a two back system where he shares work with Thomas Jones, but yet he has been a staple inside the top 10 of my RB rankings all season. This is due to a dynamic play making ability as well as his threat to catch the ball out of the back field.
Miles Austin, WR, DAL – McGee did enough at QB in relief of Jon Kitna last week to keep me confident in Miles Austin’s production. There has been no declaration from the Eagles about how much time their starters will see but with Andy Reid hinting that he will be benching some starters, Asante Samuel is not likely to play all four quarters. Look for Austin to put up some good numbers this week even if it is in junk time.
Ryan Mathews, RB, SD – With Tolbert leaving the field on an ugly injury last week, Mathews should be the feature back for the Chargers against the 31st ranked rush defense. This past week he was able to move the ball effectively and should be a quality RB2 for you in your last fantasy match up of the 2010 season.
Hate
Vincent Jackson, WR, SD – With the Chargers being knocked out of the playoff race, I have concerns that we will not see their best game this week. Philip Rivers knows only one way to play and that is at an elite level and Ryan Mathews has something to prove. VJax on the other hand has proven to be a bit selfish by holding out and is the one player that I fear will not give 100%. He still ranks as a WR2, but lower your expectations.
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Now that he is back in the lineup, he will be receiving more work with each passing week since the Colts will not trust their younger talent with the entire season on the line. Dominic Rhodes has been picking up the slack in the mean time and you should expect him to carry the load late in the game if the Colts get ahead. Addai may very well have a good game this week, but the threat to lose goal line carries and a good potion of the carries is too great to think of him as anything more than a mediocre flex play.
Jahvid Best, RB, DET – It was nice to see this young, exciting player able to make a splash again. It was however, not enough to trust him in your championship match up! He is the best RB in Detroit for fantasy-purposes, but still should only be used in very deep formats.
Michael Crabtree, WR, SF – With a new head coach installed for just this Week 17 match up, I would stay far away from any 49ers not named Vernon Davis. The 9ers are not unfamiliar with changes happening in the coaching staff, but this is largely why Crabtree was not a more consistent option for his fantasy owners throughout the season.
Jermaine Gresham, TE, CIN – The Bengals offense looked very good last week, but with the Ravens as opponents in Week 17 there is little reason to expect this rookie to have a big game. Baltimore is only allowing an average of 4.9 fantasy points per week to the opposing tight end.
Austin Collie, WR, IND - Active
Chris Ivory, RB, NO - Inactive
David Garrard, QB, JAC - Active
DeSean Jackson, WR, PHI - Active
Jacob Tamme, TE, IND – Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Inactive
Marion Barber, RB, DAL – Inactive
Matt Cassel, QB, KC – Active
Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, JAC – Active
Roy E. Williams, WR, DAL – Inactive
Ryan Torain, RB, WAS – Active
Terrell Owens, WR, CIN - Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND - Inactive
Bernard Berrian, WR, MIN – Active
Percy Harvin, WR, MIN - Active
Andre Johnson, WR, HOU - Active
Jacob Tamme, TE, IND – Active
Vince Young, QB, TEN – Active
Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Active
Jahvid Best, RB, DET – Active
Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, NYG – Active
Donald Brown, RB, IND – Inactive
Austin Collie, WR, IND – Active
Pierre Garcon, WR, IND – Active
Peyton Hillis, RB, CLE – Active
Andre Johnson, WR, HOU – Active
Jacoby Jones, WR, HOU – Inactive
Donovan McNabb, QB, WAS – Active
Tony Scheffler, TE, DET – Active
