What's in a Name?

In an effort to appear witty and informed (as opposed to just handsome and debonair), JNR and MC have joined forces to select NFL players with similar names and pit them against each other. Each of the two prognosticators (if not procrastinators) will argue for one of the two players being more valuable to a fantasy team than his name-sake from this point forward (including playoffs). So, without further ado, let's face-off!

1) Rian Lindell BUF v. Ryan Longwell GB

JNR: I will take Ryan Longwell. Longwell, a pretty consistent fantasy kicker, has been struggling this year, netting only 26 fantasy points. Meanwhile, Rian with an "i" has been on a torrid pace for the Bills, quieting his critics with a whopping 42 fantasy points, while hitting on four 40+ yarders. But I still like Longwell down the stretch. The Pack's offense seems to be coming around (see the 52 point shalacking of New Orleans), giving Longwell more chances, and I think the late season winds in Buffalo will hurt Lindell.

MC: Both of these guys will score most of the points for their respective teams, but I gotta go with the girly spelling of the two. The Packers offense may be coming around, but that just means a couple more extra points for Ryan. The problem is the Green Bay defense is horrible and haven't stopped anyone except the road weary Saints (without Joe Horn and Deuce McAllister [for some of the game]). They will give up tons of points, and field goals will not help them. On the other hand, Buffalo's defense is still good enough to hold opposing teams under 21 points (especially at home). Rian will be asked to win games and, therefore will get more opportunities for fantasy owners.

2) Stephen Davis CAR v. Domanick Davis HOU

JNR: Tough one--but I'll take Dominick. Sorry, Stevie, but count me as one of the doubters who think that your once-microfactured knee isn't going to hold up over 16 games. Dom isn't a model of health either, missing some significant time last year due to injury--but he'll get more touches. Guaranteed.

MC: Not nearly as tough for me. Dominick, hands down. The Panthers have expressed interest in getting Deshaun Foster a lot more carries, and he should take a good chunk of points away from Stephen. Domanick seems to be the only Texan capable of producing yards (although the TDs will be tough to come by) so unless you're in a touchdowns only league, Domanick is your guy.

3) Jimmy Smith JAX v. Steve Smith CAR

JNR: I love Steve Smith, but my heart says Jimmy. At 100 years old, Jimmy is still the go-to guy in Jacksonville--plus, I love his playoff matchups (week 15: san fran; week 16: houston).

MC: Jimmy Smith is about as consistent a receiver as you're going to find. However, Steve Smith is turning out to be an absolute stud. Delhomme seems to have tunnel vision and will be feeding the beast all year. Jimmy might be the better receiver in reality, but in fantasy, Steve is the man.

4) Larry Fitgerald ARZ v. Larry Johnson KC

JNR: Grandmama--by a mile. Again, I've got to base this prediction on injury. Priest Holmes will slow at the end of the season, paving the way for LJ to carry this team. And how many games can Boldin and Fitzgerald catch 10 balls? There just aren't that many balls in Zona to go around--which means Larry F. will come out on the short-end of the stick for at least a few games.

MC: I gotta disagree once again. The Cardinals will be passing like crazy and it's gonna be tough for a defense to double Fitzgerald with Boldin on the other side, not to mention Arizona's propensity to use a lot of three receiver sets. Keep in mind that at this moment, LJ is still only getting a third of the carries in KC--he is making the most of them though. Fitzgerald and Boldin will have defenses picking their poison in the tradition of Carter-Moss and Holt-Bruce--one of them is gonna kill you (from a fantasy point persective of course, as the Cards couldn't kill time). Fitzy will be the deep ball threat and will be active in every game due to the Cards lack of running game and defense. Just keep in mind, that if Priest gets hurt (and my compadre seems sure of this), LJ is a top 5 fantasy running back.

5) Will(ie) Parker PIT v. Will(is) McGahee BUF

JNR: Will Parker is going to surprise some people by season's end. I don't care if he's splitting the backfield with 10 guys, he's young, fast, and strong. Those "other" guys (Staley and the Bus) are plain old. They'll get their touches, but Parker's outstanding play will keep him on the field and in the endzone.

MC: Whatchu talkin' bout? You gotta go with Willis. He is the Buffalo offense right now. Fast Willie will have some game-breakers, but the Bus will steal many of his goal line carries which are so coveted by fantasy owners. Willis, on the other hand, will get all of the goal line carries and will get about half of Buffalo's total yards on offense. And just for the record, JNR is a Bills fan and MC is a Steelers fan. Go figure.