We all know Rashard Mendenhall is the pickup of the week. If you have the FAAB money to do it, go large on him. My man crush is reaching epic status on Mendenhall.
But...if you are like me and you preferred Glen Coffee to Mendenhall last week, you may need a few less expensive acquisition options, so here are my three favories this week.
Lance Moore, WR, Saints
Moore is out there in a lot of leagues and he is back in action after battling the injury bug earlier in the year. Drew Brees has admitted in the past that Moore is his favorite target.
Mohamed Massaquoi, WR, Browns
He may not be quite as sneaky, but, as I noted in the As Seen on TV column this week, he was clearly Derek Anderson's favorite target against the Bengals. He looked really good. I wouldn't expect 8-for-148 every week, but I bet he's much better than Braylon Edwards.
Sidney Rice, WR Vikings
Rice has emerged as Brett Favre's favorite target early in the season. Considering he's also their best red zone threat in the passing game, he could end up being a starting caliber wideout in most leagues.
FYI, I still like Andre Caldwell, Chad Henne and Jamaal Charles, each of whom was touted in last week's column.
Cheers,
TFAM
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
Very Bad Things
So, bad things come in threes right?
Al Davis has run the Raiders into the ground. Jamarcus Russell and his 39 % completion percentage is a joke, and they have a head coach who is reportedly about to be arrested. Is there a worse organization in pro sports right now?
How about the Browns? You know its bad when the Bengals come across the state and put 14 on the board before you even get out of the locker room. My grandpa used to make that joke. He said the Chargers would have 14 before the Vikings even took the field. I loved it then... Anyway, Eric Mangini seems to be a fan favorite at this point, no? What a disaster. Braylon Edwards was blanked in five quarters of action yesterday.
What team is going to emerge and become the third clown in the car?
Washington? Jim Zorn makes Brad Childress look like Vince Lombardi.
Dallas? I'm feeling a Dallas meltdown this season. Wade Phillips is as laughable as Zorn, and Roy Williams is the worst number one receiver in the league. Give me Donnie Avery instead. Seriously.
St. Louis? They handed me a fantasy win this week be ceding 39 points to my San Francisco defense.
Your thoughts?
Cheers,
TFAM
Al Davis has run the Raiders into the ground. Jamarcus Russell and his 39 % completion percentage is a joke, and they have a head coach who is reportedly about to be arrested. Is there a worse organization in pro sports right now?
How about the Browns? You know its bad when the Bengals come across the state and put 14 on the board before you even get out of the locker room. My grandpa used to make that joke. He said the Chargers would have 14 before the Vikings even took the field. I loved it then... Anyway, Eric Mangini seems to be a fan favorite at this point, no? What a disaster. Braylon Edwards was blanked in five quarters of action yesterday.
What team is going to emerge and become the third clown in the car?
Washington? Jim Zorn makes Brad Childress look like Vince Lombardi.
Dallas? I'm feeling a Dallas meltdown this season. Wade Phillips is as laughable as Zorn, and Roy Williams is the worst number one receiver in the league. Give me Donnie Avery instead. Seriously.
St. Louis? They handed me a fantasy win this week be ceding 39 points to my San Francisco defense.
Your thoughts?
Cheers,
TFAM
Sunday, October 4, 2009
As Seen on TV
In case you missed the note from yesterday's post, As Seen on TV will be my Sunday night weekly column where I highlight what I saw watching the games that you may not find in the box score. God bless the NFL Sunday Ticket.
In no particular order of importance...
Rashard Mendenhall is running with authority, clearly trying to silence the haters.
The box score says Mohamed Massaquoi was targeted by Derek Anderson 13 times. Watching the game it felt more like 26. Seriously, every throw went to him from halftime through the end of the game. He looked good by the way, or at least he knows how to get open.
Fred Taylor was the tailback in a Patriots goal line formation, yet Sammy Morris got the carry as the fullback. I don't think the Pats are going to have a set goal line guy.
Roy Williams is not a good player. You can read it in his body language. He'll never be on any fantasy team I own for the rest of his career. He has zero percent Hines Ward in him.
I like Chad Henne. He just looked very composed and prepared for his first NFL start. He's not a fantasy guy in most leagues just yet, but I think he's going to be a solid NFL quarterback.
Patrick Willis flies around on defense like he's a player on a video game. More specifically, think Lawrence Taylor on the first Tecmo Nintendo game. What a player. He also came within a half second of scoring a second defensive touchdown. The refs (correctly) ruled Boller down before yet another fumble.
Kyle Orton may have had decent numbers today, and he's leading a 4-0 team, but he is a horribly inaccurate passer. He was in Chicago, is now in Denver, and always will be.
Four of Larry Johnson's last five carries went for negative yardage. However, before we start getting all excited about Jamaal Charles and his two for 24 effort, know this. His 24 yard carry was the last play of the game. I think half the Giants team was already in the tunnel.
Did I mention Rashard Mendenhall is a human wrecking ball tonight? Willie Parker, may I introduce you to Wally Pipp?
Cheers,
TFAM
In no particular order of importance...
Rashard Mendenhall is running with authority, clearly trying to silence the haters.
The box score says Mohamed Massaquoi was targeted by Derek Anderson 13 times. Watching the game it felt more like 26. Seriously, every throw went to him from halftime through the end of the game. He looked good by the way, or at least he knows how to get open.
Fred Taylor was the tailback in a Patriots goal line formation, yet Sammy Morris got the carry as the fullback. I don't think the Pats are going to have a set goal line guy.
Roy Williams is not a good player. You can read it in his body language. He'll never be on any fantasy team I own for the rest of his career. He has zero percent Hines Ward in him.
I like Chad Henne. He just looked very composed and prepared for his first NFL start. He's not a fantasy guy in most leagues just yet, but I think he's going to be a solid NFL quarterback.
Patrick Willis flies around on defense like he's a player on a video game. More specifically, think Lawrence Taylor on the first Tecmo Nintendo game. What a player. He also came within a half second of scoring a second defensive touchdown. The refs (correctly) ruled Boller down before yet another fumble.
Kyle Orton may have had decent numbers today, and he's leading a 4-0 team, but he is a horribly inaccurate passer. He was in Chicago, is now in Denver, and always will be.
Four of Larry Johnson's last five carries went for negative yardage. However, before we start getting all excited about Jamaal Charles and his two for 24 effort, know this. His 24 yard carry was the last play of the game. I think half the Giants team was already in the tunnel.
Did I mention Rashard Mendenhall is a human wrecking ball tonight? Willie Parker, may I introduce you to Wally Pipp?
Cheers,
TFAM
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Just Thinkin' About Tomorrow
Here are the storylines that I'm going to be following in the NFL tomorrow.
Larry Johnson's corpse
Will the Chiefs begin to get Jamaal Charles more involved in their offense against the Giants?
Rashard's redemption
Can Rashard Mendenhall bust through the doghouse door and not look back? Wille Parker is giving him that chance.
It's now or never
Matt Forte (Lions) and Steve Slaton (Raiders) have to get off the schnide with their matchups this week, right?
Streakin' the quad
How much of an impact will Marion Barber have in Denver? Is his quad 100%? I'm guessing no.
Fred or Fraud?
Will Fred Taylor build on his 100-yard and a score effort last week? If he does it against the Ravens this week, look out.
Andre the Giant?
Andre Johnson has been held to three catches (combined) in his last two meetings with Nnamdi Asomugha. Is he pissed?
Is there sugar in the Coffee?
Glen Coffee gets his shot against the putrid Rams.
Chad Henne gets his shot
I have a hunch he may be better than Pennington if they give him a chance to throw the ball downfield. Actually, that would mean they have to have someone who can make the big play down the field. Scratch that.
Force vs. object
The Saints offense gets a shot against the Jets defense on the turf. Should be really interesting. Can Pierre run on the Jets? Can Revis shut down Colston?
Julius Jones, really?
He gets a soft run defense in the Colts tomorrow. Can he score four games in a row? I hope so, he's been a key cog on my dynasty team through three weeks.
Finally, tomorrow will be the debut of "As Seen on TV", my weekly Sunday night column devoted to finding the items you may not get from the boxscores.
Good luck tomorrow everyone.
Cheers,
TFAM
Larry Johnson's corpse
Will the Chiefs begin to get Jamaal Charles more involved in their offense against the Giants?
Rashard's redemption
Can Rashard Mendenhall bust through the doghouse door and not look back? Wille Parker is giving him that chance.
It's now or never
Matt Forte (Lions) and Steve Slaton (Raiders) have to get off the schnide with their matchups this week, right?
Streakin' the quad
How much of an impact will Marion Barber have in Denver? Is his quad 100%? I'm guessing no.
Fred or Fraud?
Will Fred Taylor build on his 100-yard and a score effort last week? If he does it against the Ravens this week, look out.
Andre the Giant?
Andre Johnson has been held to three catches (combined) in his last two meetings with Nnamdi Asomugha. Is he pissed?
Is there sugar in the Coffee?
Glen Coffee gets his shot against the putrid Rams.
Chad Henne gets his shot
I have a hunch he may be better than Pennington if they give him a chance to throw the ball downfield. Actually, that would mean they have to have someone who can make the big play down the field. Scratch that.
Force vs. object
The Saints offense gets a shot against the Jets defense on the turf. Should be really interesting. Can Pierre run on the Jets? Can Revis shut down Colston?
Julius Jones, really?
He gets a soft run defense in the Colts tomorrow. Can he score four games in a row? I hope so, he's been a key cog on my dynasty team through three weeks.
Finally, tomorrow will be the debut of "As Seen on TV", my weekly Sunday night column devoted to finding the items you may not get from the boxscores.
Good luck tomorrow everyone.
Cheers,
TFAM
D'oh!
"Oh, so that's your little plan get us addicted then jack up the price."
--Homer Simpson, realizing he had to pay for a "macamadamia" nut cookie after going to town on the free samples.
For the past three years, http://www.goaliepost.com/ has been my favorite fanatsy hockey site. It really only served one purpose, but it was a big one. Goaliepost would post who is going to start between the pipes each night as soon as they had an idea. Basically, they saved me the time of scouring the web for this information. Well, they've jacked up the price. It's now $10 to pay for a year of their service. I guess I'll have to start browsing for some more free samples.
Cheers,
TFAM
--Homer Simpson, realizing he had to pay for a "macamadamia" nut cookie after going to town on the free samples.
For the past three years, http://www.goaliepost.com/ has been my favorite fanatsy hockey site. It really only served one purpose, but it was a big one. Goaliepost would post who is going to start between the pipes each night as soon as they had an idea. Basically, they saved me the time of scouring the web for this information. Well, they've jacked up the price. It's now $10 to pay for a year of their service. I guess I'll have to start browsing for some more free samples.
Cheers,
TFAM
Friday, October 2, 2009
Hockey Squad
I promised that I'd reveal the hockey squad I drafted last Sunday for my hockey pool. Without further ado...
In round order
Dany Heatley, W, San Jose--Monster season forthcoming
Alexander Semin, W, Washington--Could be a beast with Ovie and Backstrom on his line, health concerns
Niklas Lidstrom, D, Detroit--Always solid
Cam Ward, G, Carolina--Don't love him, best backstop on the board
David Backes, W, St. Louis--30 goals, Blues on the come, PIMs
Semyon Varlamov, G, Washington--I think the Caps are the best in the league, so I wanted the tenders
Mikko Koivu, C, Minnesota--Should thrive in the new Lemaireless up tempo game
Milan Lucic, W, Boston--PIMs, could have been a reach
Derick Brassard, C, Columbus--First breakout candidate, could be a PPG guy centering Nash
Nikolai Khabibulin, G, Edmonton--Still a quality backstop, insurance
Brian Gionta, W, Montreal--Best scorer on the board, three years removed from 48 G
Jose Theodore, G, Washington--Couldn't wait for the handcuff
Andy McDonald, C, St. Louis--44 points in 46 games last year. Good value here.
Cam Barker, D, Chicago--Up and coming D on cup caliber squad
Mathieu Schneider, D, Vancouver--Could be done, but an upside play late
Paul Kariya, W, St. Louis--Injury concern, but 15 points in 11 games last season
Kyle Okposo, W, New York Isles--Plus/minus concern, but showed flashes as a rookie
Daniel Carcillo, W, Philadelphia--Led the league in PIMs, no offense here
Jack Johnson, D, Los Angeles--Best of the sleepers left
Jimmy Howard, G, Detroit--Coach pledges to get him 20+ starts. Osgood on the decline.
Notes
I like my draft. I had the 11th pick in a 12 team league, so to get Heatley where I did was a bonus. He was fourth on my board. Seriously, playing with Thornton on a cup contending squad? He's only 28 years old and he's just two years removed from back-to-back seasons where 50 goals, 53 assists, plus-29 and 74 penalty minutes were the floor of his statlines. He'll get back there with the Sharks. Semin could be a beast if healthy, and I really like St. Louis to make a move this year. If the Blues win their share of games, the plus/minus rating of the Blues skaters improves dramatically. The rest of the stats are already there. Can't believe the guy who took Osgood didn't handcuff Howard. My favorie sleeper may be Okposo, who could be a balanced contributor to the squad.
I also liked some picks that other teams made.
Joe Thornton went in the third...great value there. I loved Olli Jokinen in the fifth. He could be magical with a full year of Jarome. Mark Streit plays with the Isles and all, but 56 points out of a defenseman at the end of round eight is a steal. Jonas Hiller could be a top 5-10 goalie, he went in the ninth. Zach Bogosian is a great defensive sleeper in round 13. He could breakout in a large way, PIMs and all.
Your thoughts?
Cheers,
TFAM
In round order
Dany Heatley, W, San Jose--Monster season forthcoming
Alexander Semin, W, Washington--Could be a beast with Ovie and Backstrom on his line, health concerns
Niklas Lidstrom, D, Detroit--Always solid
Cam Ward, G, Carolina--Don't love him, best backstop on the board
David Backes, W, St. Louis--30 goals, Blues on the come, PIMs
Semyon Varlamov, G, Washington--I think the Caps are the best in the league, so I wanted the tenders
Mikko Koivu, C, Minnesota--Should thrive in the new Lemaireless up tempo game
Milan Lucic, W, Boston--PIMs, could have been a reach
Derick Brassard, C, Columbus--First breakout candidate, could be a PPG guy centering Nash
Nikolai Khabibulin, G, Edmonton--Still a quality backstop, insurance
Brian Gionta, W, Montreal--Best scorer on the board, three years removed from 48 G
Jose Theodore, G, Washington--Couldn't wait for the handcuff
Andy McDonald, C, St. Louis--44 points in 46 games last year. Good value here.
Cam Barker, D, Chicago--Up and coming D on cup caliber squad
Mathieu Schneider, D, Vancouver--Could be done, but an upside play late
Paul Kariya, W, St. Louis--Injury concern, but 15 points in 11 games last season
Kyle Okposo, W, New York Isles--Plus/minus concern, but showed flashes as a rookie
Daniel Carcillo, W, Philadelphia--Led the league in PIMs, no offense here
Jack Johnson, D, Los Angeles--Best of the sleepers left
Jimmy Howard, G, Detroit--Coach pledges to get him 20+ starts. Osgood on the decline.
Notes
I like my draft. I had the 11th pick in a 12 team league, so to get Heatley where I did was a bonus. He was fourth on my board. Seriously, playing with Thornton on a cup contending squad? He's only 28 years old and he's just two years removed from back-to-back seasons where 50 goals, 53 assists, plus-29 and 74 penalty minutes were the floor of his statlines. He'll get back there with the Sharks. Semin could be a beast if healthy, and I really like St. Louis to make a move this year. If the Blues win their share of games, the plus/minus rating of the Blues skaters improves dramatically. The rest of the stats are already there. Can't believe the guy who took Osgood didn't handcuff Howard. My favorie sleeper may be Okposo, who could be a balanced contributor to the squad.
I also liked some picks that other teams made.
Joe Thornton went in the third...great value there. I loved Olli Jokinen in the fifth. He could be magical with a full year of Jarome. Mark Streit plays with the Isles and all, but 56 points out of a defenseman at the end of round eight is a steal. Jonas Hiller could be a top 5-10 goalie, he went in the ninth. Zach Bogosian is a great defensive sleeper in round 13. He could breakout in a large way, PIMs and all.
Your thoughts?
Cheers,
TFAM
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Let's Play Hockey
Let the marathon begin. The Bruins and Caps are on the ice in Boston, and so starts the NHL season. Let it be known that I'm here all the way through game 82 for all you fantasy hockey geeks. For those of you that don't play, it's not too late. Set up a league and enjoy. I've been playing for four years and have really enjoyed it, more than fantasy hoops, though I compete there as well.
If you are starting a league, let me give you three quick recommendations, all of which are semi-related, Lamar Odom-Bruce Jenner style.
1. Use rotisserie scoring
Head-to-head leagues can be fun, but it can be tedious trying to set lineups each week in that format. Trying to out-game another team becomes paramount, and fantasy leagues shouldn't be decided by something idiotic such as how many games you can get a week. Rotisserie scoring also encourages employing a balanced lineup.
2. Set game limits per position
Continuing with the theme of games played, you need to cap the number of games you can count from each position. It's fairly simple, our league uses Yahoo (highly recommended for hockey and hoops) and you can implement this setting. The concept is easy. If you can start three centers, you want 3 X 82 = 246 games that an owner can count from the center position. This is just another way to eliminate owners winning the league by employing a brainless game heavy strategy.
3. Allow daily transactions
Nothing is worse than weekly lineups in fantasy hockey. Goalies are rested A LOT. For example, in a daily league, having Jose Theodore and playoff hero Semyon Varlamov on your team can be highly profitable. The Caps will be good, and you want goalies who will accrue wins. However, in a weekly league, having two goalies split time can be as fun as a walk down North Paulina in Chicago. You need to be able to adjust your roster on a daily basis. You'll find that the cream rises to the top in your league if daily lineups are part of the equation. Otherwise, it becomes a war of attrition against the injury bug.
Tomorrow I'll post my the roster I drafted in my league and my thoughts on a handful of players who I think are in for a big season. Tease? Dany Heatley.
Stanley Cup prediction: Capitals over Canucks
Cheers, TFAM
If you are starting a league, let me give you three quick recommendations, all of which are semi-related, Lamar Odom-Bruce Jenner style.
1. Use rotisserie scoring
Head-to-head leagues can be fun, but it can be tedious trying to set lineups each week in that format. Trying to out-game another team becomes paramount, and fantasy leagues shouldn't be decided by something idiotic such as how many games you can get a week. Rotisserie scoring also encourages employing a balanced lineup.
2. Set game limits per position
Continuing with the theme of games played, you need to cap the number of games you can count from each position. It's fairly simple, our league uses Yahoo (highly recommended for hockey and hoops) and you can implement this setting. The concept is easy. If you can start three centers, you want 3 X 82 = 246 games that an owner can count from the center position. This is just another way to eliminate owners winning the league by employing a brainless game heavy strategy.
3. Allow daily transactions
Nothing is worse than weekly lineups in fantasy hockey. Goalies are rested A LOT. For example, in a daily league, having Jose Theodore and playoff hero Semyon Varlamov on your team can be highly profitable. The Caps will be good, and you want goalies who will accrue wins. However, in a weekly league, having two goalies split time can be as fun as a walk down North Paulina in Chicago. You need to be able to adjust your roster on a daily basis. You'll find that the cream rises to the top in your league if daily lineups are part of the equation. Otherwise, it becomes a war of attrition against the injury bug.
Tomorrow I'll post my the roster I drafted in my league and my thoughts on a handful of players who I think are in for a big season. Tease? Dany Heatley.
Stanley Cup prediction: Capitals over Canucks
Cheers, TFAM
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