Fantasy Football Case Study Week 11

Winning streak continues! 3 straight now and looking for the division title!

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Big Ben remains the easy choice, this week he picks on the Jets.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Holmes, Priest RB KC

Dillion, Corey RB NE

Very tough spot here - and could change as early as Sunday morning. The problem is Lynch is the Sunday night game - but healthy or not faces the Pats. And Henry is the Monday Night game. Right now both are on the bench and both look unlikely to play. The Dillion flyer appears to be a bust. Dunn and Holmes goes as my # 3 RB Rudi Johnson also remains hurt.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Colston, Edwards, Hackett get the starts and I'd take a repeat of last week for at least 2 of them.

Kicker

Sebastin Janikowski

Defense
NY Giants

Fantasy Football Case Study Week 10

Another win last week, making it 2 in a row and in a weak division still very much in the playoff hunt.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Back to Roethlisberger who should have a MONSTER game against Cleveland!

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Holmes, Priest RB KC

Dillion, Corey RB NE

As you can see I picked up 2 RBs last week. Dillion on rumors he may return to NE, it's a long shot certainly but dumping some dead weight at WR was a small price to pay. Also picked up Holmes (dropped Jason Campbell - no need for 3 QBs anymore) when LJ went down. I don't expect huge things from Priest but he does face the Broncos last ranked run defense at home. He starts along with Lynch.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Got tired of Darrell Jackson doing nothing so dropped him when I took the flyer on Dillion. Colston, Edwards, Hackett get the starts with two having very nice matchups.

Kicker

Sebastin Janikowski

Defense
NY Giants -They'll be out to shutdown Dallas. I expect at least 1 pick and perhaps a pick six!

Case Study Week 9

Back on track last week with a win and high point total in the league!

Here's a look at this week....

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Campbell, Jason QB Wash

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Going to go with Jason Campbell and take a chance this week. Pitts has a tough match up and Big Ben has struggled against the better defenses.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Henry appears to be OK to go on Sunday and Lynch should have a huge game. Johnson still not 100% and not playing very well anyway.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Looking for another huge game from Edwards, still want something from Colston but a tough defensive test and I'll go DJ Hackett with a favorable matchup against the Cleveland D.

Kicker
Picked up Janikowski last week and two 50+ FGs! Doesn't quite make up for my bonehead K move earlier in the season but was still nice. I'll stick with him.

Defense
NY Giants - Great week last week, we get carryover points with defenses and I have plenty to spare which is nice.

Case Study Week 8

My slide continues....another tough loss coming up just short in the Monday Night game.

After starting 2-0 I've lost 5 straight.....looking to get back on track.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Campbell, Jason QB Wash

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Big Ben was a relatively easy decision again this week.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Rudi looking to be hurt again and the horror of Henry a Monday Night game-time decision.....
Lynch looks good....and with Dunn on a bye I have to HOPE for Henry to go Monday Night but I'm not optimistic.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Still a bad WR group..... Colston still looking to have a decent game, Edwards could have another big one with the lesser of 3 evils Jackson Doubtful still, Hackett on bye leaves hopefully a healthy Bennett to round out the group.

Kicker
Dropped Rayner (bye) and picked up Janikowski

Defense
NY Giants - Love the match up this week!

Case Study Week 7

A tough loss last week as it came down to garbage yards late in the game against my defense on Monday Night.

Week 7 brings some tough decisions.....

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Campbell, Jason QB Wash

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Moved Delhomme off the roster, picked up Campbell and with a favorable match up is a tempting choice. But teams have been scoring big on Denver's D so I'll go Big Ben - but Garcia's potential this week makes him tough to sit as well.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Although they face tough defenses and my 2nd two RBs have better match ups I'm still going with Lynch and Henry.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

My WRs are terrible and banged up. Bennett, Colston, Hackett the healthiest and lesser of many evils on my roster.

Kicker
Dave Rayner

Defense
NY Giants playing very tough!

Case Study Week 6

Ouch. Last week hurt, dropping Brown and losing by 4 points. Such is fantasy football.

Bye week hell and continued injuries will make turning my 3 game losing streak around tough to do.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Delhomme, Jake QB CAR

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Still have Delhomme on the roster, waiting until somebody worth picking up is available somewhere by keeping my waiver spot as high as possible. Big Ben on bye so it's Garcia and with no running game he could put up some numbers.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

With Henry and Lynch on bye I can hope for the best but I do have some depth so all may not be lost.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Kicker
Might as well stick with Rayner now....

Defense
NY Giants - INT for TD last week, hoping for more of the same!

The agony of stupidity.....

For those of you who have not already done the math.....here is the bonehead move I made this week.

I added Dave Rayner, K for KC....he missed a FG and had 1 XP today. 1 point

I dropped Kris Brown....who, in case you missed it, had FIVE FGs today - 3 from over 50 yards!!

If not for this move I'd have a win in the bag, instead I need 13 points from Lynch Monday Night. Not impossible, but this should be over.

I hate kickers.

Week 5 Case Study

Another loss last week and injury concerns everywhere now. I made some changes to the roster but still face a tough week.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Delhomme, Jake QB CAR

Garcia, Jeff QB TB

Picked up Jeff Garcia this week as insurance as Delhomme is out again and Big Ben is not 100%
Also, Garcia has had some huge games this season.

Starting Roethlisberger, thought Garcia is tempting. But reports are the Big Ben is healthy and ready to go.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Henry's inability to not smoke pot may cost me dearly. He's facing a season long suspension. I do have some depth but it would be tough to lose him. As of late Saturday night he's going to play on Sunday so I'm starting him but will be ready for a late switch to Dunn. Johnson is on bye and hurting. Lynch and Dunn a tough call but Lynch has been finding the endzone so he gets the nod.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Dropped Dwayne Jarrett this week - he's simply not getting any chances in the offense right now.

Colston and Edwards go, but Edwards have a tough D to face. Colston may finally break out against the Panthers struggling defense.
Hackett still out and Bennett simply not getting anything thrown his way.
3rd WR is Jackson, but a good game from him would surprise me.

Kicker
Week 5, third kicker - that's a problem on a fantasy football team. Dropped Brown picked up special teams player of the week last week Dave Rayner from KC - Herm Edwards loves kicking FGs and Rayner thriving with his second chance.

Defense
Dumped Carolina picked up improving Giants.

Case Study - Week 4

Took my first loss of the week last week and I ran into a steamroller so not much I did would have helped. This week, the lack of depth on my team is getting exposed. I do have a solid back up to Delhomme which is huge this week.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Delhomme, Jake QB CAR

Looks like Delhomme will not start this week; I'm happy to have a quality 2nd QB ready to go.

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Henry will go and I'll hope to see the Indy run "D" from a year ago. Rudi Johnson is out so Lynch gets a start that is possibly overdue however my concern is that defenses will really start to key on him.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Jarrett, Dwayne WR

Colston on bye, Hackett still hurt, Jarrett still trying to fit in and has Carr starting this week as his QB. That leaves a very week receiving group to start.

Kicker
Brown, Kris K Hou

Defense
Panthers, DST CAR

On CBS Sportsline I'm a 14 point dog, and rightfully so - I am not putting a very good team on the field this week. I need some luck to avoid falling to 2-2 and two impressive wins to start the season.

I'll be working the waiver wire hard this week to improve this team before things get away from me.

Week 3 Case Study

Another win last week....now 2-0 on the season!
I did dump Olindo Mare and picked up Kris Brown, I liked the theory of Mare indoors but he couldn't make anything to start the season.

1 QB

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT

Delhomme, Jake QB CAR

Sticking with Delhomme although both look to have good weeks, I'll take the indoor QB

2 RB’s

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Lynch another good game last week, but they face New England this week. Sticking with Rudi and Travis.

3 WR’s

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Jarrett, Dwayne WR

Hackett out again, and Jarret may not even see the field. Colston and Edwards look like good plays for sure. Bennett really not a big part of the offense still, we'll stick with Jackson.

Kicker
Brown, Kris K Hou

Defense
Panthers, DST CAR

Week 2 Case Study

Got a pretty easy win last week, led by the decision to go with Big Ben - of course, Delhomme had a nice week as well.

Tougher match up this week as I'll face some great WRs in Terrell Owens and Roy Williams along with Ronald Curry plus Steven Jackson at RB so I've got my work cut out for me this week.

So here's a look at my lineup decisions for NFL Week 2:

QB

Roethlisberger, Ben PIT or Delhomme, Jake CAR

Big Ben was great last week, but against a questionable defense. However the Buffalo D look surprisingly solid last week. Delhomme gets the Texans D which we just don't know about because they played KC. Both look to have good days and it's a toss up. I went with Jake against the Titans.

2 RB's

Henry, Travis RB DEN

Johnson, Rudi RB CIN

Dunn, Warrick RB ATL

Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF

Did leave some points on the bench with Lynch last week and certainly believe he can repeat as we've been high on him all along as a breakout rookie. Dunn just has no support around him right now. Travis Henry and Rudi Johnson (could have a monster game against the Browns!) are pretty obvious starts though it's good to have depth at RB and I feel good about RB at this point.

3 WR's

Colston, Marques WR NO

Edwards, Braylon WR CLE

Jackson, Darrell WR SF

Bennett, Drew WR STL

Hackett, D.J. WR SEA

Jarrett, Dwayne WR

Need better play this week from my WRs for sure. Must go with Colston, he's got big game ability. Edwards has no QB to throw him the ball still. Jackson looks to have a better game, as does the entire SF offense and the potential is there against the Rams D so I start DJ. Bennett still not 100% but likely to play, still just not certain how big a part of the offense he's going to be. Hackett is hurt so obviously out and Jarrett has some quality in front of him. That leaves Edwards with all that potential as my third WR.

And we play a thin bench, so no decision to finish out the lineup:

Mare, Olindo K NO

Panthers, DST CAR

Good Luck to everyone this week in their leagues, don't forget we give personalized one-on-one fantasy football advice week-to-week at FantasyDraftEdge.com with a VIP Membership.

Fantasy Football Case Study - Week 1

I meant to get this up a little earlier but we've been exceptionally busy and FantasyDraftEdge.com

Here's a look at week 1 starting decisions....

Roethlisberger, Ben QB PIT @CLEV
or
Delhomme, Jake QB CAR @STL

Went with Big Ben based on a less than stellar Cleveland defense. Was tempted to go with Delhomme but want to see the Panthers at least once first. I'm not sold on the Rams D being better - but they might be, I don't think the Browns D is better.

Started
Henry, Travis RB DEN @BUF
Johnson, Rudi RB CIN BAL

Left on bench
Dunn, Warrick RB ATL @MIN
Lynch, Marshawn RB BUF DEN

Just too many question marks about the two guys who I kept on the bench. I'm very optimistic about Lynch but Denver is solid on D so I'll give Lynch some time to show me something. Dunn is coming off an injury and although he's expected to play I'll want to wait and see on him.
Henry and Johnson were my top 2 picks (11th and 14th overall) - it would be tough not to go with them to start the season.

Started
Colston, Marques WR NO @IND
Edwards, Braylon WR CLE PIT
Jackson, Darrell WR SF ARI

Kept on the bench
Bennett, Drew WR STL CAR
Hackett, D.J. WR SEA TB
Jarrett, Dwayne WR CAR

I've got some talent at WR but the three guys on the bench will need to prove their role in the offense before they break my starting lineup. The starters are all well established guys.

I only have one of each so it's real easy....
Mare, Olindo K NO @IND
Panthers, DST DST CAR @STL


I'll be back next week with - hopefully off a win!

Fantasy Football Season - Case Study

Throughout the 2007 fantasy football season, I will be taking your through my week-to-week process in running one of my fantasy football teams. This is not one of the many teams in an "expert" league we participate in at FantasyDraftEdge.com, but rather a league with my buddies, a league over 12 years old. We're all serious about and all pretty good players. It's no expert league but probably not too far from the league most people are in.

Hope you enjoy it.

I'll start tonight with a quick look at my team and a few comments.

The draft...I picked 11th in a 12 team league. Tough start, but it can certainly be done.

Round 1...Rudi Johnson, best RB available

Round 2...Travis Henry, if Denver really does go to Henry as THE guy as it seems they might, he's a solid 2nd round pick.

Round 3...Marshawn Lynch, now solid at RB (we start 2, I've got 3 good ones now)

Round 4...Marques Colston, very nice WR to grab in round 4

In no particular order, my teams rounds out like this:

Ben Rothlisberger - got him very late in the draft, happy for a late round QB
Braylon Edwards - wish Clev had a better QB
Darrell Jackson - SF could have a solid offense, and with some time in the offense DJ will be part of it
Olindo Mare - drafted a dome kicker in the last round
Panthers D - waited very late, still got a solid defense
Jake Delhomme - nice #2 QB in the late rounds, they play a weak D in the Steelers bye week
Warrick Dunn - drafted him late, he'll be healthy and back eventually, could be nice insurance/trade bait
Drew Bennett - they love him in St. Louis and Holt is hurting, getting older
DJ Hackett - sleeper.....
Dwayne Jarrett - Looks to be the #3 guy, and Carolina should be much better this season

Overall not a bad team, if Lynch is solid and Henry is in fact the #1 guy I feel pretty about this team.

I'll be back next week to talk about my lineup and my thoughts for my week 1 chances.....

LJ is in camp

We aren't surprised, we expected this to happen. Most people did. LJ got paid and now he's in camp. But will this be another case of a player losing some of his energy and effort after the big contract? It could very well be with Larry Johnson. Add that to the Chiefs offensive line woes and little to respect from the QB spot for defenses and LJ will come nowhere close to his past numbers, thus he remains lower on our cheat sheets than most where he's been all season long. The season is getting closer....we can't wait!

Mock Drafts

Running a fantasy football site, one of the best things about the job is participating in drafts. Our owners participate in several each off season - sometimes the only drawback is that we must do these drafts very early in the summer as they are often part of print publications in which we provide our comments and insight to the draft. But still, during August we stay busy with drafts as well. We've posted a few mock drafts at the site for your review. A lot of the drafts we're in our fantasy football expert leagues. Other website owners, magazine publishers, and writers participate. So theoretically these drafts are very good barometers of player rankings and draft expectations. But......no offense to my colleagues, I am consistently amazed how often I see things that surprise me. This is not entirely unexpected when you're playing with your buddies in a casual league, but when it is people in the industry I can't help but scratch my head sometimes. Just today for example in an 8 team league both a defense and kicker were gone before the 8th round....I was stunned. This is early in a 10 or 12 team league, but in an 8 team league there is a lot of talent left on the board to be taking defenses and kickers. I've said it many times, if your fantasy football team is counting on a defense or kicker for success - you don't have a very good fantasy football team. Sure, there are times when a kicker has a crazy good game or a defense goes nuts with a shutdown and 2 TDs and you think you're a genius. But with a kicker it's rather random where it's going to happen and nearly any D in the top half of rankings can have that kind of game. But I promise you that in the long run depth at RB or WR - even QB will payoff week after week much more so than getting that #1 kicker or defense.....

Kenny Irons out for the season

No sooner do I post an article about not hitting the panic button when a player is carted off the field do we get the news that rookie RB Kenny Irons is out for the season with a knee injury. Perhaps the exception to prove the rule....

We were high on Irons as a potential star in this league, the injury doesn't change that - just delays it.

Obviously, don't draft Kenny Irons in 2007. But this take any potential pressure off Rudi Johnson who will now have even more carries most likely.

Carted Off the Field

Seems we hear it everyday in the pre-season anymore. Don't panic. At least not yet. Obviously, it would be better if a player walked off the field after an injury but being over cautious is the norm in the NFL now. So certainly pay attention to the news that follows in the coming days but a player carted off the field is no longer automatically out for an extended period.

One pre-season game down - did we learn anything?

We watch a lot of pre-season football games and certainly pay close attention to as many players as possible. But it's rare for us to make any significant changes based on one or one performance. In a nutshell what we learned in the Saints v Steelers game was that the Saints D is still not very good and the Steelers offense is likely to pass more this season. Both things we already knew. But we will certainly continue to watch Big Ben and the Steelers offense as it adapts to a new coaching staff.

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