Thursday Game Preview: Kansas City at San Diego

by Matt Commins Posted on November 1, 2012

I don’t feel good about the Chiefs at all, but I have to believe the Chiefs will run the ball a lot with Jamaal Charles. Also, the Chiefs have a lot of talent and I cannot believe the poor play continues. Matt Cassel is back, which is a definite upgrade over Brady Quinn. Philip Rivers and the Chargers, specifically the offensive line and wide receivers look lost. If I knew Ryan Matthews was going to stay on the field during 3rd downs I would like the Chargers chances a lot more. But for some reason Norv Turner loves having Ronnie Brown as his 3rd down back.

The line opened at -8 Chargers, so there’s a lot of money on the Chiefs.

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Fantasy Football Week 8 Running Back Results

by Matt Commins Posted on October 30, 2012

Week 8 Running Back Results

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Byes: Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans

The Actual Rankings are based my scoring primer. It basically follows ESPNs standard scoring but uses fractional points and slightly devalues passing touchdowns.

Opportunity is just as important as ability when it comes to fantasy value. Willis McGahee is  a top 10 running back not because his skill set, but because of an opportunity to get the lions share of carries in a top 10 offense. Lastly, do not worry about Ronnie Hillman because he only got work because McGahee was tired and needed a breather. Hillman is a must own if you’re a McGahee owner.

When Kansas City Chiefs Coach Romeo Cronell was asked why did Jamaal Charles only get 5 rushing attempts his answer was “I don’t know.” If you’re the owner how can you not want to fire him after that? This is the 3rd game (out of 7) this year he’s gotten 4 or less fantasy points. I hate players that are feast or famine because there are weeks where they win you weeks and other times they lose you weeks. I think it’s ok to have one player like that, but when you own 2+ you’re begging to either finish 1st or last. If I owned him I would try to trade him for maybe 95 cents on the dollar.

Chris Johnson had another solid game. After watching the tape the offensive line is creating more holes and more open space for him. His next four games are against the Bears, Dolphins, Jaguars and Texans, this is a perfect opportunity to sell high.

If you take away his touchdown Felix Jones would have had an awful day. In the last two weeks he’s averaged 2.43 yards per carry. After watching the tape, the Cowboys offensive line is awful in pass protection and didn’t get a lot of push on running plays. That said, during the few runs with open lanes Jones failed to exploit them; instead moving horizontally toward the sidelines. Even if Demarco Murray is out this upcoming week, I have to believe Philip Tanner gets a chance to be “the guy”. Without a running game, it puts an awful a lot of pressure on Tony Romo and an offensive line that is average at best. If you can afford to grab Tanner, you should.

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Fantasy Football Week 8 Wide Receiver Results

by Matt Commins Posted on October 30, 2012

Week 8 Wide Receiver Results

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Byes: Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans

The Actual Rankings are based my scoring primer. It basically follows ESPNs standard scoring but uses fractional points and slightly devalues passing touchdowns.

Denver Broncos Wide Receivers: Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas. Both of them were in the top 10 this week finishing 5 and 3 respectively. The question is not whether not these guys are top 15-20 wide receivers, but which one is the better fantasy option? Thomas has the best tools, but it’s not significant. Decker runs the best routes by a lot (65-70) compared to Thomas’ average route running abilities. I give the edge to Decker because he’s had 100% more red zone targets (12 compared to 6 for Thomas).

Titus Young had the biggest game this week and most likely the #1 waiver wire pickup this week. With Calvin Johnson hurt and defenses focusing on taking Johnson out of the game, Young could be a solid high end wide receiver 3.

Denarius Moore is a really good real life wide receiver. I’d argue that it’s possible that at the end of the year he could be a top 10 real life wide receiver, which is something I didn’t expect. In terms of fantasy he is now a must start every week regardless of matchup.

Michael Crabtree looked good night last night, but at the end of the year this will be one of his outlier performances. Prior to last night he had only one touchdown and has a total of 3 red zone targets (15.8%). In PPR leagues, he’s a solid #2, averaging 4-5 catches a game.

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