Three Players You Should(And Shouldn't) Trade For Now:

What's that saying in real estate--buy low, sell high? Well, it applies in fantasy football too. Which one of the early season strugglers should you trade for right now and which ones should you steer clear of?

1) Daunte Culpepper: Do it.
I don't believe Daunte is going to have another 40+ TD season this year, and he's reverted back to his turnovers of a couple years ago. But, he's also not going to continue on pace to throw 5 picks a game. Temper your expectations, but still make a move for him. I think good value would be a second-tier RB and WR. For instance, Steven Jackson and Terry Glenn for Culpepper would be fair value.

2) Kevin Jones: Do it.
His bye is out of the way and he's about as low as you can go in terms of value. He's got a lot of potential; and if you can get away with doing a 2nd WR (Jerry Porter, Isaac Bruce?) for him, you must do it.

3) Jamal Lewis: Don't do it.
Jamal had his bye out of the way too. But looking in my crystal ball, this is how I see things playing out with Lewis: (a) The Ravens try to feed him the ball 30-35 times a game; (b) He still gets shut down or injured; and (c) He ends up splitting time with Chester Taylor in an attempt to resuscitate the anemic Ravens' offense. Don't even waste a kicker in trading for Lewis; you'll have him on your roster and be tempted to start him and it will ruin you.

Random Observations...

I hear plenty of people saying the J-E-T-S are D-O-N-E. They're not.

Stop whining and get to work. Just like Herm Edwards is doing.

Note to John Madden: Manute Bol called and wants his tie back.

Did you see that thing he was wearing Monday night?!

Denver coach Mike Shanahan was fined $20,000 for his comments about the week two officiating in his game. A week one brawl on the 50 yard line earned Jeremiah Trotter and Kevin Mathis $5,000 fines. Yeah, that sounds about right.

To paraphrase Ferris Bueller "the NFL moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around, you could miss it"... The Bengals offense is the Greatest Show on Turf and the Colts defense looks like the Steel Curtain. At least we can count on Denver owning Kansas City at Mile High.

Would you have believed me in August if I'd told you that three weeks into the regular season, Eli would have more than twice as many touchdown passes as Peyton? Yeah I wouldn't have believed me either.

Peyton Manning owners: I know things seem bleak but don't panic. The Colts new-found defense is changing the offensive plan somewhat, but unless you think the 2004 offense hinged on Marcus Pollard, this is the same offense.

Watching TV this weekend I'm now convinced that I'm officially the last guy in America without a tattoo.

I wonder if the Browns were worried about facing Dwight Freeney on Sunday. On one play, Trent Dilfer lined up under guard Joe Andruzzi before being "shooed" away.

Something you may not know about referees – They get bye weeks too.

In case you were wondering if that preseason spat between D-McNasty and TO was going to affect their chemistry on offense, check out this series from Sunday's game vs. the Raiders...
*1st-10 from the OAK 19 D.McNabb pass to T.Owens to the OAK 9 for 10 yards
*1st-9 from the OAK 9 D.McNabb pass to T.Owens to the OAK 4 for 5 yards
*2nd-4 from the OAK 4 D.McNabb pass to T.Owens for 4 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
The soap opera is officially ov... well it's on a commercial break.

Julius Jones vultured two touchdowns away from Keyshawn Johnson on Sunday. On two separate trips to the red zone, Keyshawn caught a pass of 10+ yards and was tackled at the 1-yard line. Jones scored both times on the very next play. From a fantasy standpoint, a matchup between two teams with Julius Jones vs. Keyshawn Johnson, that's a 24 point spread on 4 plays.

You won't hear about this on ESPN, but Patriots coach Bill Belichick surprised veteran Steelers trainer John Norwig who rushed onto the field when Patriots tackle Matt Light was seriously injured. Belichick told Norwig to "get away from my f***ing player!"

Quote of the week: New York's Vinny Testaverde was addressing a large group of reporters and writers after arriving at the Jets complex: "For those of you who don't know, my name's Vinny Testaverde."

Vinny later said that several of his teammates said they remember him from the Tecmo Bowl video game.

Every once in a while, JNR & MC will debate on who to start in a given week. This week we have two face-offs. We've come to our own conclusions, and after reading, hopefully you will come to your own.

WEEK 3 FACE-OFFS

JNR would start Peyton Manning at Tennessee: Close call, but I'm going to have to go with Peyton Manning. Clearly, the Colts have been content on grinding out games. That might be because defenses have been dropping more guys into coverage (e.g., Jax), forcing the Colts to pound the ball. But that isn't going to be the case against Tennessee this week, and its 4-6 blitzing defense. Tennessee knows only one thing: come fast and come often. They're not going to drop 8 guys into coverage. So, I like Peyton's chances this week of airing it out...probably to the tune of 300 and 3 scores.

MC would start Drew Bledsoe at Oakland: I gotta go with Drew Bledsoe on this one. Peyton and the Colts have been content to run the ball when given the opportunity so far this season, and I don't see this game being any different. The Colts D will shut down Tennessee's offense, while Indy will hand to Edgerrin James to churn out yards through the ground game. Tennessee's defense is very aggressive, but this will wear them out. All the more reason for the Colts to run and protect their lead in the second half. On the flip side, the Cowboys D will have their hands full with Randy Moss, in what promises to be a barn burner in the Black Hole. This will be a high scoring affair with Bledsoe throwing early and often to keep pace with the Raiders one-dimensional, vertical passing attack.
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JNR would start Fred Taylor vs. Denver: I know Anderson had a beauty of a game on Monday night, but, come on! We're talking about a Denver Broncos' RB. Odds are that he'll re-injure his ribs in practice, Shanahan will tell no one, and then Ron Dayne is suddenly starting on Sunday, while Anderson is inactive. Start Taylor-- he ran hard last week with 37 carries. I think Jacksonville will try to grind it out on the ground.

MC would start Mike Anderson at Jacksonville: Despite Fred Taylor's huge amount of carries Sunday, he only averaged 2.6 yards per carry, not even breaking the century mark in yards. However, Mike Anderson's carries have gone up exponentially every week (4 carries in week 1, 15 carries in week 2, and 20 carries in week 3). Coming off his rib injury, he showed no signs of difficulty running the football, and Mike Shanahan showed no signs of lightening his normal workload. As for Taylor, he's going up against the D-line that dominated Kansas City's vaunted offensive line and held Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson to 75 yards total and 0 TDs. In this game, Mike Anderson is the back I would start over the recently inconsistent Fred Taylor.
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Without Further Ado, Let the Shameless Promotion Begin...


Brandon Lloyd is a double threat. Not only does he have the amazing ability to catch 3 balls a game, he's a rapper as well!

All right I had to promote my boy, B. Lloyd and tell everyone to check out his album, coming out soon on Flight 85 records entitled "Training Day".

Somewhere in between riding the pine for the first place Disposable Heroes and chilling with his "peeps", Lloyd has had time to record his first rap album. "I'm a Hero, first and last" said Lloyd. "But I love music, too. I'm so passionate about music. It excites me. I've treated it like football. I've studied it, and I had my approach, and knew what I wanted to do, and so I just went after it and did it based on what I like to hear."

To learn more about Brandon Lloyd and all his wacky antics, visit his official site at www.B Lloyd.com

Stat Guys Suck

First off, excellent Officials article JNR! While reading, it immediately reminded me of last season when I had a similar circumstance, except this time it was the scorers table that screwed me over. It was a Monday night and I had a close fantasy matchup on my hands. Towards the end of the game, Jake Delhomme (my starting QB) handed off to his fullback who took the ball and wobbled up to the line where he was met at the line by several D-lineman. He fumbled and the defense recovered. This was all fine and good, because I had Delhomme, not the fullback. However, after the game that I thought I had won by a single point, I checked the league site only to find out that I had lost by a point! I thought to myself, "self, how could this be?"

I looked at all players' stats closely... and discovered the scorers had given the fumble to my homie Delhomme! I couldn't believe it, so I looked through the drive chart on nfl.com carefully and found the play! It was the same play to the fullback that I saw clear as day (I knew it was that particular play because the FB had only one carry that game). I was furious... but I told myself that I couldn't get mad over how the ball bounces, and that I had in fact probably won several games because of my opponents lack of luck. Still, I was upset being that I had already marked it down as a win. This was week 1 of the season. When all was said and done, my team, the Disposable Heroes, missed the playoffs by a half of a game. My advice, score as much as you can, as often as you can, and leave no doubt who is the best team.

Week Four: Fantasy Football Hotline

Post any questions (under the comment feature of this post) that you have concerning who to start/sit this week. We will post the answers asap, so that you have time to make roster moves, etc. before the weekend.











1) Someone asked: Bench Tony Gonzalez in favor of Courtney Anderson? I say no; gotta stick with Gonzalez. He hasn't seen the endzone, but he's catching 5 balls a game and so should get on track soon. Be patient! Anderson had a career game last week (100 yards and TD), so temper your expectations until we see at least another good performance from him. Until then, dance with the one who brung ya.

The Role of the Officials in Fantasy Football

Three years ago I had Joe Horn and Aaron Brooks on my fantasy team. In a close fantasy matchup, I needed that once-dynamic duo to connect on a few TD's to guarantee victory. Late in the Saints' game, Horn was streaking down the field wide open and Brooks lofted a beauty to him in stride. As the ball was about to fall into Horn's hands for a sure TD, out of nowhere appeared a set of zebra stripes. The back judge, attempting to get out of the way, failed...miserably. Horn collided with the official, the ball fell incomplete, and I lost 12 points (probably 15, counting yardage) and my fantasy game.

So, don't discount the role of the officials in determining fantasy outcomes. Admittedly, an official usually will not physically interfere with a player, like the Brooks-Horn saga, but good/bad calls, instant replay, etc. can turn games.

Two examples from last week come to mind:

1) In the Jets/Jags game, near the end of the first half, Curtis Martin dove into the endzone for an apparent TD. The refs, however, called him short-- and the replays conclusively showed that he got in. But since the Jets still had two downs at the one, they decided not to challenge and a play later Jay Sowell, a hawkish FB, stole Martin's TD...oh, and by the way, stripped six points from me in my Nolton league, in a game I lost by two points.





2) Same game on Sunday--Jets/Jags--in OT Leftwich threw a beauty of a pass to Jimmy Smith who tiptoed the sideline and dove in the ednzone to win the game in sudden death. The officials, however, called him out at the one. So, of course, the Jags were ready to march out their kicker to kick a GW chip-shot FG. BUT, since it was OT, the reviews all came from upstairs. And, when the officials viewed the replay, they overturned the call, gave Jimmy Smith (and Leftwich) the TD and, no doubt, altered the fate of many fantasy matchups around the country.

The bottom line, I guess, is that some things, like refereeing, you just can't account for as a fantasy coach.

What if I told you...

1) that the top four scoring fantasy defenses/ST in the league are: Cinci; Indy; Chicago; and Tennessee?




2) that Rian Lindell, a perennial fantasy loser, has 32 points thus far (perfect on all of his kicks, including 3 beyond 40 yards) and is the second highest scoring kicker in the league (behind streaky Neil Rackers)...AND is sitting as a free agent in most leagues (including my own)?



3) that Drew Bledsoe is the third best fantasy QB in the league, only a measly two fantasy points behind McNabb and Palmer?




4) that Larry Johnson has as many fantasy points as Priest Holmes (23)--but with 35 fewer touches?



5) that Jamal Lewis and Andre Johnson, after two games, have two fantasy points...between them?

WEEK 3 NOLTON AWARDS

Prop of the Week
WR Chad Johnson CINAnti-Ryan

"Who covered 85 in 2005?" checklist. So far... no one.

Feat of the Week
PK David Akers PHIJoey Joe Joe Shabadoo

Definitely has to go to David Akers' foot... After straining his hamstring during the opening kickoff and struggling just to walk throughout the game, Akers calmly (yet painfully) kicked a 23 yard field goal to win the game for the Eagles in overtime.

7-Eleven Player of the Week
(always open)

WR Steve Smith CARJoey Joe Joe Shabadoo

Steve Smith put up 11 catches for 170 yards and 3 TD (24 Fantasy Points). This just in: Steve Smith is now officially over the injury that caused him to miss the entire 2004 season. Ironically, or maybe just coincidentally, both Carolina and Joey Joe Joe lost their respective games this week.

Comeback Player of the Week
QB Daunte Culpepper MIN

Joey Joe Joe Shabadoo

Look who's back... back again. Daute Culpepper had the worst game of his career last week, from a passer rating standpoint. He ended up with 236 yards, TD, and 5 turnovers (2 FP). He answered this week with a solid game with 300 yards, 3 TD, and no turnovers (25 FP). Daunte may not have Moss, but he still has heart.

Rookies of the Week
Auburn Alums
RB Ronnie Brown MIADisposable Heroes

The Dolphins hung in there with the Panthers all day and pulled it out in the end, due in no small part to the stellar running of Ronnie Brown who had 132 yards and a TD (12 FP) for his highest output of the season thus far.

&
RB Carnell "Cadillac" Williams TB
Anti-Ryan

Although he had a much softer matchup than his former college teammate, Cadillac Williams did not disappoint. He ran for over one hundred yards for his third straight game (first three games of his big league career) and continues to lead the Rookie of the Year standings.

Manning of the Week
QB Eli Manning NYG
C-Bass Git-R-Done

Originally with the number one pick, Coach C-Bass traded down, but still ended up with a Manning... and to this point, at least from a current fantasy production viewpoint, the better one. Eli [352 yards, 2 TD (19 FP)] outperformed the highly touted #1 overall pick of NOLTON by a whopping 17 points!

NOLTON Coach of the Week
Coach Ryan Demotte
Smackdown

Coach Demotte is a mad genius (just look at the picture)! In a must win game, the 0-2 Smackdown lived up to its name and did just that, dropping triple digits on the hapless (and also winless) Fentons, thanks to 4-count-'em-4 multiple touchdown scoring starters (QB Marc Bulger STL, WR Hines Ward PIT, WR Keenan McCardell SD, and RB Julius Jones DAL).

Al Gore of the Week
Coach Gregory Bauch
Stewie Griffin

Through his "smack talk", Coach Bauch all but conceded his week 3 matchup, only to have his #1 pick (NOLTON #2 overall) Ladainian Tomlinson drop 32 points on Commissioner Kline, including a passing TD to go along with his 3 rushing scores.

NOLTON Franchise Player of the Week
RB Willis McGahee BUF
Fentons

Fentons' franchise player Willis McGahee (13 FP) countered his sluggish start with a solid 140 yard performance vs. the Falcons and added a TD for good measure. Unfortunately for Fenton, he was going up against Smackdown, who recorded the league high score for the year (100 FP).

Start of the Week
WR Steve Smith CAR
Joey Joe Joe Shabadoo

There were lots of great starts this week, but I have to give it to Kline, because Smith destroyed a solid Miami defense who before that game was playing solid defense in this young season.

Start of the Weak
QB Peyton Manning IND
Terry's Titans

I can't fault Coach Terry for starting Manning really. I mean he traded his whole draft to move up to #1 just to draft the elder Manning. He's not playing badly, but the Colts are using a different blueprint than a year ago. Then again, from a strictly statistical standpoint, the breakdown is as follows: Peyton Manning 228 yards, 1 interception (2 FP) as opposed to the Titans' backup QB Drew Bledsoe DAL who had a monster game with 363 yards, 3 TD, 2 interceptions (23 FP).

Clutch Player of the Week
WR Jimmy Smith JAX
C-Bass Git-R-Done

Through 4 quarters of football, Jimmy Smith had just one catch for a mere 6 yards. Overtime was a different story. He scored the game winning, tip-toeing, one-handed, stretching touchdown increasing his total to 41 yards (8 FP). Footwork of the year so far; truly a thing of beauty.

Bench of the Week
WR Deion Branch NE (3 FP), WR Brandon Lloyd SF (19 FP),
WR Donald Driver GB (2 FP), RB Ronnie Brown (12 FP),
QB Jake Delhomme CAR (19 FP), DEF Tampa Bay TB (11 FP)
Disposable Heroes

You know I had to put this one in... Coach Cooper (96 FP among his 9 starters) had 66 points sitting on his bench.

Fact or Fiction?

Whose recent play was pure luck or a sign of better things to come?

1) Braylon Edwards: Fiction
After an impressive 107 yard, 1 TD game against Green Bay, is Edwards the real deal? I say no--most of those 107 yards came on a poorly defensed slant, which Braylon broke for an 80 yard TD. Take that one catch away and Braylon's season stats are pretty paltry. I like Braylon probably in two years to be a fantasy stud, but not as a rookie. And if you're tempted to pick him up now, just look at the tough pass defenses the Browns play next few weeks--Indy, Chicago, Baltimore, and Detroit.

2) Carson Palmer: Fact
Palmer has started hot and I think he'll have the break-out season a lot of pundits predicted before the season (including myself). I can see Palmer, if he stays healthy, going for 4000 yards this year. He's probably going to throw some picks (he still forces a lot of balls)--but look for a lot of TD's too. In another year, he could be in Peyton Manning's class.

3) Willie Parker: Fiction (as a top-tier RB)
Parker has a great blend of size and speed (uncanny speed, really). But I think with both Bettis and Staley ready to recover, a lot of his goal line carries will be taken. He'll have a solid yardage season, but I can't see him scoring a TD a game once the other backs return. Plus, with three solid backs, the Steelers have to be thinking committee--it only makes sense. Parker might be good in a keeper league--but I wouldn't bank on Parker scoring more than 5-6 TD's this year.

My team is so good, it's scary.

Fantasy Football Insurance!!

This company has come up with an innovative way to protect your fantasy investment--by offering insurance for your players. For instance, you can pay $15 to insure Peyton Manning against injury; and if, for instance, he goes down to a season-ending injury, the cash pay-out is over $80! Not too shabby.

I'm not sure how reputable this company is and I haven't insured through them (or anyone). But if the program is legit, you can really hedge your risks through fantasy insurance.

Here's the link: http://www.fantasyplayerprotection.com/HomePage.html

I'm so good at fantasy football, it's criminal.

I've come here to chew bubble gum and talk fantasy football... and I'm all outta bubble gum!

Here begins the fantasy football blog of two of the most astute fantasy players of our time. We promise to offer in-depth insight into player evaluations and weekly matchups, inside scoops re. our own league, as well as our own ground-breaking thoughts on fantasy (and even) real sports! Bookmark this site if you want the patent on fantasy-football success.

--JNR