Another week in the books. The early slate of games was as good as I can remember, watching the RedZone channel was like being in a twilight zone. Personally? Not the best football weekend. Went 7-9 with my picks, and lost Kenny Britt, as I'm sure many of you have. Let's hope this week goes better. As usual, first I'll give my good calls and bad calls of the previous week, and then on to the picks. This week I'm not going to highlight one player for each game, rather than give a quick fantasy preview of the entire game. Let's get going..

Good Calls:
Donald Jones - Was targeted a lot, and pulled in most. Would of been nice to find the endzone. Solid WR3 from here on out. 
Lance Moore - Huge game, obviously with Colston being out it should continue. WR2.
Daniel Thomas - Another big game, with getting nearly all the carries. A great pickup if he's somehow still available, and solid RB2 from here on out. 
Eric Decker - Thought he might regress with Lloyd back, but looked just as good. Flex WR.
Nate Washington - Had another big game, and will only be better after Britt's injury. Expect 15 or so targets a game, seriously. Solid WR3.
Brandon Pettigrew - Finally broke through! Had 11 catches, many of them in traffic. 
Mike Thomas - Played well due to being the only receiver on the team. Iffy play.
Joe Flacco - Obviously a huge day, don't expect that very often.
Julio Jones - Encouraging, hauled in a lot of catches, but remember they were trailing most of the game.
Johnny Knox - Had a few catches, was targeted a lot and was a drop away from another long touchdown. 

Bad Calls:
Jerome Simpson - One catch, six yards. Move on.
Brent Celek - I was banking on Kafka playing, as he looks for TE much more. He was terrible either way. 
Jacoby Jones - One catch. Bad call again. 
Bernard Berrian - Wait, zero catches! Keeps getting better. 
DeAngelo Williams - I'm finally dropping him, doneeee....
Danario Alexander - They were trailing the entire game and still only pulled in a few catches, the Ram offense is not what I expected. 
Derek Hagan - A few catches, nothing special. They ran the ball a lot. 
James Starks - Ryan Grant re-emerged as the star this week, I don't trust either right now. Off and on. 
Reggie Wayne - Only had a few catches, but can you blame him?

On to the picks..

New Orleans Saints (-7) @ Jacksonville Jaguars
I like the Saints to cover this, I think the Jaguars are just terrible. Drew Brees should be able to throw the ball around with ease, with Lance Moore and Jimmy Graham being the most targeted receivers. The only Jaguar I would start in this game would be MJD, and he should actually have a pretty decent day. I expect this line to end up closer to nine. 

Tennesee Titans (+1) @ Cleveland Browns 
Even with Britt out, the Titans are just a better team than the Browns. Cleveland didn't look much better last week, and I know Hillis was out but still, who cares. I think the Titans win this and Nate Washington has a big game. I also think Chris Johnson finally has a decent game, around 75 yards or so and finds the endzone.

Buffalo Bills (-3) @ Cincinnati Bengals
The Bills should cover this easily, and this line kind of makes me wonder. As the league gets more and more tape on Dalton, he'll struggle more and more. The same goes for Newton, Gabbert etc.. The Bills should score plenty of points to cover this, and they have plenty of good fantasy options. Fitzpatrick, Jackson, Johnson, Jones and even Chandler in deeper leagues. I wouldn't start any Bengals, unless you need a flex back or receiver, where Benson and Green could probably help. 

San Francisco 49ers @ Philadelphia Eagles (-6.5)
Regardless of the quarterback, I like to Eagles to cover this. The 49ers are still pretty mediocre, and the Eagles will be out to play with something to prove. LeSean McCoy is is obviously a fantasy stud, but a nice sleeper here could be Steve Smith if Jeremy Maclin is not healthy enough to go. Also keep an eye on Franke Gore's status, as Kendall Hunter would be a fantastic pickup if he can't go.

Minnesota Vikings @ Kansas City Chiefs (+1.5)
I'm giving the Chiefs one more chance. If they don't win this game at home, with their backs against the wall, coach on the hot seat...then they never will. I still don't think the Vikings are very good, and give me the Chiefs to cover this. I'm aware that Kansas City really doesn't have any weapons, but like I said, last chance. 

Detroit Lions (+3.5) @ Dallas Cowboys 
The Lions are mean. That front line is just brutal, and they know the Cowboys are hurting. They're going to attack and come after the Cowboys in a way the Redskin front line couldn't. I think they win this game, as the Cowboys will just lack healthy firepower. Nothing out of the ordinary for fantasy here, except for the fact I think Dez Bryant has a monster game. 

Carolina Panthers @ Chicago Bears (-6.5)
The Bears defense should give Cam all kinds of trouble. When Cam does have big plays, he uses his big arm to lets his receivers run under it. Against the Bears? Won't happen. That Cover 2 will give up some underneath routes and quick hitters, but big plays usually won't happen. The Bears should have no problem winning by a touchdown. Matt Forte is the only sure fire fantasy option in this one. 

Washington Redskins (PK) @ St Louis Rams
Give me the Redskins. The Rams have looked really bad, and I still can't figure out why. I'd like to pick the Rams here, but I'll go with the Redskins until I think I understand the Rams a little bit more. The Redskins defense is good enough and they'll put up enough points to win this one. I think you should sell high on Hightower, Helu is getting more and more involved.

Pittsburgh Steelers (+3) @ Houston Texans
The "vaunted" Texans defense finally got exposed last week, mostly due to the fact that they actually played a capable offense. Their defensive "turnaround" has been greatly exaggerated and the Steelers will win this game. It wont' really matter if Arian Foster plays, Ben Tate is a plenty capable backup. There are a plethora of fantasy options in this one though; Big Ben, Wallace, Mendenhall, Schaub, Johnson, Tate/Foster and Daniels are all premium, must start options.

Atlanta Falcons (-4.5) @ Seattle Seahawks
I like the Falcons to cover this so much that this is my layup of the week. Last week I took my first loss in the layup of the week pick, by HALF A POINT. Wasn't too happy about that. This is a lock though, if the Falcons don't win by at least a touchdown, something is wrong. You know the Falcons have a lot of fantasy options, and I would not start a single Seahawk. 

New York Giants (-2) @ Arizona Cardinals
This is a head-scratcher too. I was really high on the Cardinals preseason, and picked them to win the West. I am starting to doubt that, they just don't look very good. The Giants are playing relatively well given all their injuries, and they'll be too much for the Cardinals. Beanie should go in this one, but I wouldn't play him. I also would stay away from Victor Cruz, don't overreact. 

Miami Dolphins @ San Diego Chargers (-9)
The Chargers are going to finally go nuts this week, and Philip Rivers will have a huge day. I like Daniel Thomas and he's a solid fantasy option, but the Dolphins will not have the offensive firepower to stick with San Diego in this one. On a side note, if you can steal Ryan Mathews in any of your leagues, go do it. He's going to get better and better and he's even getting redzone carries. Really like him moving forward. Sell on Tolbert.

Denver Broncos @ Green Bay Packers (-13)
The Broncs are not very good, and outside of Brandon Lloyd, they don't' have any automatic starts. Decker in deeper leagues, McGahee too. As a fantasy player that drafted Knowshon Moreno, I'm pretty frustrated. I really don't know what to make of him. I'll give him a couple more weeks, after that, you can probably cut him loose. The Packers will have the usual array of fantasy options, and will put up a lot of points. Lean Grant over Starks for their RB1 situation. 

New England Patriots @ Oakland Raiders (+4.5)
Give me the Raiders. We all know the Patriots are struggling to stop teams, and while the Raiders don't have a fantastic offense, they DO have Darren McFadden. He is a beast. I think they play well enough to stay within a field goal, mainly due to the physical front seven of the Raiders. It looks like Aaron Hernandez will be out again, and I have no reasoning behind Deion Branch not getting a catch last week, I played him. I would stay away from the receivers except for Welker and Gronk, and don't play a running back either. Run DMC should be the only Raider you start. 

New York Jets @ Baltimore Ravens (-3.5)
I really don't think the Jets are a top tier team. Their offense simply does not have enough weapons, and Mark Sanchez is not good enough to make up for it. Everyone got a little too over-excited about Shonn Greene after that playoff game a few years back, he really hasn't been very good since. The Ravens fell asleep Week 2, and they won't let it happen against. They are stretching the field like they haven't in years, and Ray Rice is a man possessed. I like the Ravens in this. No real sleepers in this game, same ole as far as fantasy options. Well, wait, do NOT overreact to Torrey Smith. Please. 

Indianapolis Colts (+10.5) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I'm rolling the dice and taking the Colts to cover this. Like the Chiefs, it's now or never. I think they have more pride than the Chiefs and will give anything they have left after the Sunday Night game against Pittsburgh. I still expect the Bucs to win, but the Colts should cover. I really like Addai as a fantasy option, and I think Blount breaks through in this one, even though Indy looked solid against the run Sunday Night. 

There's the picks, they haven't been too good lately, but have your way with them. Law of averages, right? 

Also: Check out my interview with Atlanta Falcon cornerback Darrin Walls, covering his path as an undrafted rookie to the NFL. 

As usual, good luck and enjoy the weekend.

2011: 20-28
Layup of the Week: 2-1

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