Stock Up

Players whose stock is on the rise.

Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams (QB) – Threw well during his first start as a pro quarterback.

Bottom Line: Fans are not interested in seeing A. J. Feeley under center in St. Louis.  Bradford showed a good command of the offense and looked ready to go for the season opener.  Barring injury I cannot think of a reason why Bradford would not start the season opener.

Derek Anderson, Arizona Cardinals (QB) – Anderson will start the Cards’ third preseason game.

Bottom Line: It is a rather telling sign when the backup quarterback gets the call for the third preseason game which is generally seen as a “dress rehearsal” for the season opener.

Jermichael Finley, Green Bay Packers (TE) – Caught six more passes against Indy.

Bottom Line: Finley has been lights out in the preseason and there is a lot of buzz about him being one of the breakout fantasy stars this season.

Sammie Stroughter, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (WR) – Stroughter is expected to start this weekend at one of the receiver positions.

Bottom Line: It has been widely speculated that Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams would open the season as the top two guys, but it would appear that Strougher remains a favorite of head coach Raheem Morris.

Brandon Gibson/Danny Amendola (WR) – Gibson and Amendola combined to catch 9 passes Thursday.

Bottom Line: With Donnie Avery out for the foreseeable future Gibson and Amendola should benefit by moving up the depth chart and becoming the team’s two starting wide outs.

Stock Down

Players whose stock is on the decline.

Donnie Avery, St. Louis Rams (WR) – Avery went down in a heap during the game against New England and never returned.

Bottom Line: It was reported after the game that Avery suffered what appeared to be a significant knee injury.  Unless one hears otherwise owners should probably not count on Avery giving them any kind of significant numbers the first half of the season, if at all.

Matt Leinart, Arizona Cardinals (QB) – Leinart will be the #2 guy for the Cards third preseason game.

Bottom Line: It is never a good thing when the starter gets demoted to second string for the third preseason game.  Unless Anderson falls on his face this weekend Leinart is probably destined for the bench and his days in Arizona could be numbered.

Donald Brown, Indianapolis Colts (RB) – Ran for just six yards on five carries.

Bottom Line: Brown has run for just 25 yards on 14 carries and 13 of those yards came on one carry.

Stock Up

Players whose stock is on the rise.

Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys (WR) – Bryant had the walking boot removed and hopes to begin running again next week.

Bottom Line: This is good news for the Dallas offense as Bryant appears to be recovering sooner rather than later.  The initial diagnosis of his high ankle sprain had him potentially being out of action until September.  It sounds as though he might be able to get himself back in time for the team’s fourth or fifth preseason game and get some game time prior to the season opener.

Fred Taylor, New England Patriots (RB) – Ran for 54 yards on 11 carries including a 28-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

Bottom Line: Taylor may be on the downside of his career but it looks like he has a little something left to give the Pats.

Wes Welker, New England Patriots (WR) – Caught a pair of passes against the Falcons.

Bottom Line: The fact that Welker is back on the field this soon is great news for the Patriots.  Barring a major set back this means Welker should be on the field week one.

Aaron Hernandez, New England Patriots (TE) – Hernandez grabbed four passes including one for a touchdown against the Falcons.

Bottom Line: Hernandez leads the Pats with 7 catches in the preseason and appears to be the #1 tight end on their depth chart right now.

Danny Amendola, St. Louis Rams (WR) – Amendola is reportedly turning some heads in Rams camp this summer and some are saying he has looked like the best guy out there at times.

Bottom Line: With no real established veteran receivers on the roster Amendola has as good of a chance as any to win a starting job this summer.  Keep an eye on him in the preseason games and see if he gets any time with the first offense.  He could end up being a good sleeper pick.

Stock Down

Antonio Bryant, Cincinnati Bengals (WR) – Bryant has been ruled out of this week’s preseason game against Philly and has yet to return to practice or resume running for that matter.

Bottom Line: With Jordan Shipley leading the team in receptions over the first two preseason games and making himself at home in the slot, Bryant’s days in Cincy appear to be numbered.  I have a hard time seeing the Bengals hanging onto him if he cannot even get himself onto the practice field within the next week or so.

Players whose stock is on the decline.

News & Notes From Around the League

The Giants have decided to hold Eli Manning out of this weekend’s game against the Steelers.  There is probably nothing to be worried about here and it is probably more of a precautionary move than anything else.  If this were a regular season game one can assume that Manning would probably be out there playing.

Jim Sorgi will miss the balance of the preseason due to a shoulder injury leaving the Giants with just two healthy quarterbacks, Rhett Bomar and Dominic Randolph, heading into this weekend’s game with the Steelers.

Look for Nate Davis to see some playing time with the first team offense at some point this preseason.  The Niners already know that David Carr is not a long term solution and they want to find out how much Davis has progressed since last summer.

Tim Tebow left practice early Wednesday with an undisclosed injury.  There are some reports saying he was wearing a flack jacket and that he is dealing with a rib injury.

Ramses Barden came away from Monday’s game with some lower back issues.  No word on whether the Giants intend on holding him out of this weekend’s game against Pittsburgh.

Kroy Biermann has recorded a sack in each of the Falcons two preseason games.

Joseph Addai has scored touchdowns in each of the Colts two preseason games.

Stock Up

Players whose stock is on the rise.

Ahmad Bradshaw, New York Giants (RB) – Yes, he only managed -1 yards on 3 carries Monday Night, but he took a broken pass play for 51 yards.

Bottom Line: There has been a lot of speculation this summer about Bradshaw being elevated to the #1 spot in New York.  He began the game as the starter and the Giants have to love his big play ability and versatility at the position.

Kareem Huggins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (RB) – Ran for 55 yards on 8 carries against Miami.

Bottom Line: With Derrick Ward struggling and Huggins showing improvement this summer there is a lot of speculation that Huggins is going to end up ahead of Ward on the depth chart by the end of the summer.

Stock Down

Players whose stock is on the decline.

Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants (RB) – Jacobs ran for just 2 yards on 4 carries, but he did find the end zone.

Bottom Line: Jacobs claimed he was changing his running style so that he would not go down as easily as he did last year.  He did not show anything on Monday night to suggest that it is working.  He had just two one yard carries and two carries where he was stuffed at the line.

Sidney Rice, Minnesota Vikings (WR) – Rice has begun running and doing cardio drills but he has yet to return to practice.

Bottom Line: It is sounding like Rice will not see any preseason action and may be ready for the regular season.  Not good news for the Vikes if they end up with Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels at QB this year.

Derrick Ward, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (RB) – Ward ran for just 20 yards on 12 carries versus the Dolphins over the weekend.

Bottom Line: There is some speculation that the Bucs are considering cutting Ward loose on the heels of a disappointing season and what has reportedly been a lackluster camp thus far.  The Bucs know they are still rebuilding and are not likely to contend this season.  Do not be surprised to see Ward cut loose in favor of Huggins to save the team some money.

Anthony Dixon, San Francisco 49ers (RB) – Dixon’s stock is back down on the heels of the Niners signing Brian Westbrook.

Bottom Line: With the retirement of Glen Coffee, Dixon was in line to be the primary backup to Frank Gore.  Westbrook changes all of that.  Dixon could still end up as the guy, however, as Westbrook still needs to prove on the field that he has anything left in the tank.

News & Notes From Around the League

Wes Welker did make the trip with the team to Atlanta but it is unknown whether he will participate in joint practices and whether he will play in Thursday’s game.  My guess is Belichick will wait until the third preseason game to get Welker some game action and see exactly where he is in terms of being ready for the opening game.

Ben Roethlisberger will play in the Steelers next preseason game, as to how much he will play, nobody is saying.  One would think that he is going to see some game action with the first team offense at some point this summer.

One should probably not read too much into Ramses Barden drawing a starting spot last night.  Yes, Barden has reportedly been one of the most improved players in camp this summer, but the Giants starting receivers are going to be Steve Smith and Hakeem Nicks unless one of them gets injured.  Mario Manningham, the other starter last season, will move to the slot this year and it did not make sense to start him on the outside when you are transitioning him to the slot this summer.

Bradshaw and Jacobs combined for just 1 yard on seven carries last night.

Do not jump on the Victor Cruz bandwagon just yet.  Yes, he had an eye-popping game last night, but what it ultimately means is Sinorice Moss’ job is in serious jeopardy this summer.  Cruz will likely end up the 4th or 5th receiver on the roster and be used as a kick returner in some fashion.

Stock Up

Players whose stock is on the rise.

Jake Delhomme, Cleveland Browns (QB) – Delhomme completed six of seven passes in the Browns preseason opener.

Bottom Line: The Browns need Delhomme to regain his confidence if they want to be competitive this season.  Completing six of seven is a good start for the veteran QB.  He is not going to be an elite QB but he can be a solid fantasy QB if he regains his mojo.

Arian Foster, Houston Texans (RB) – Foster ran the ball well going for 31 yards on four carries.

Bottom Line: With Ben Tate likely out for the year and Steve Slaton struggling against the Cards, Foster looks to be the early favorite to be the starting running back for the season opener.

Ryan Matthews, San Diego Chargers (RB) – Matthews ran for 50 yards on 9 carries in his Chargers debut.

Bottom Line: The Chargers are looking to Matthews to take up for LaDanian Tomlinson and re-energize the running game.

Jordan Shipley, Cincinnati Bengals (WR) – Caught five of six passes thrown his way for 50 yards.

Bottom Line: Seems to be solidifying his role as the team’s slot receiver.

Johnny Knox, Chicago Bears (WR) – The two passes that Jay Cutler completed were to Knox who caught a pair of passes for 47 yards.

Bottom Line: Knox has reportedly been the guy Culter has been targeting the most in camp this summer and the Bears believe he has the chops to be a number one receiver.

Devin Aromashodu, Chicago Bears (WR) – Aromashodu had the better overall game and caught 4 passes for 78 and a touchdowns.

Bottom Line: Aromashodu finished the season strong and looks to be picking up right where he left off this summer.

Brian Robiskie, Cleveland Browns (WR) – Robiskie caught three passes including a 13-yard touchdown catch.

Bottom Line: Aside from Mohammad Massaquoi the Browns depth chart at receiver is unsettled.  Cleveland is hoping Robiskie, who was a huge disappointment as a rookie last season, lives up to being a high second round pick.

Anthony Dixon, San Francisco 49ers (RB) – Dixon ran for 100 yards and a score on 21 carries.

Bottom Line: With Glen Coffee unexpectedly retiring the backup job behind Frank Gore is now Dixon’s to lose.  He probably will not see a ton of carries, but he could see 100 to 150 carries if the Niners are serious about limiting Gore’s touches to keep him fresh deep into the season.  He will definitely be the team’s goal line back.

Riley Cooper, Philadelphia Eagles (WR) – Cooper made a strong case for being the Eagles #3 receiver catching 3 passes for 61 yards including a 46-yarder.

Bottom Line: With Kevin Curtis being released and Reggie Brown traded to Tampa during the off season the #3 spot is up for grabs.  The Eagles took Cooper because they liked his size and athleticism but he could see more action if he shows a penchant for big plays.  He has reportedly been a pleasant surprise in camp this summer, so much so that they are talking about Hank Baskett’s days being numbered in Philly.

Troy Williamson, Jacksonville Jaguars (WR) – Williamson caught a pair of catches for 101 yards including a 73-yard touchdown strike from Josh McCown.

Bottom Line: Williamson won a starting job last summer only to lose it due to a season-ending shoulder injury early in the season.  He appears to be in the mix to take over for Tory Holt who was released over the off season.

Deon Butler/Mike Williams, Seattle Seahawks (WR) – Butler caught a pair of passes for 39 yards and Williams had a 51-yard TD catch.

Bottom Line: Butler and Williams had the two biggest plays for an offense that was devoid of big plays in the passing game last season.  Neither guy is likely to land a starting job but they could push for the #3 spot with strong summers.

Sammie Stroughter, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (WR) – Stroughter caught 3 passes for 33 yards including a 13-yard touchdown from Josh Freeman.

Bottom Line: Stroughter is thought to be in the mix with rookies Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams for one of the starting receiver jobs.

Devin Thomas, Washington Redskins (WR) – Thomas caught 3 passes for 64 yards including a 44-yard touchdown.

Bottom Line: Thomas is believed to be down to his last chance in D. C. and needs a strong summer to keep his job.  The receiving depth chart is wide open after Santana Moss and Thomas could work his way into the second or third spot on the depth chart with a strong summer.

Chad Hall, Philadelphia Eagles (WR) – The undrafted free agent a pair of passes for 60 yards, including one for 57, and ran for 22 yards.  He also looked solid as a return man.

Bottom Line: Hall is one of those type of players that Reid loves.  He played both running back and receiver in college and is lightning quick.  He is on the smallish side but is one of those guys that Reid can line up all over the field.  He likely will not be a guy whom the Eagles go out of their way to get the ball to, but he could be a guy who returns kicks and gets 8 to 10 touches a game just to see what he can do with the ball.

Stock Down

Players whose stock is on the decline.

Vince Young, Tennessee Titans (QB) – While Young did complete five of six passes for 78 yards in the two offensive series he played, he fumbled once and threw an interception.

Bottom Line: It is not a good sign to see him putting the ball on the ground and turning it over like that.

Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers (QB) – Smith was 3 for 9 and threw an interception against Indianapolis.

Bottom Line: Mike Singletary will not hesitate to go with David Carr or Nate Davis if it looks like Smith is regressing again.

Trent Edwards, Buffalo Bills (QB) – Edwards completed just 6 of 12 passes and threw an interception.

Bottom Line: Edwards is currently seen as the starter, but Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brian Brohm are going to be given opportunities to win the job this summer.

Fred Jackson, Buffalo Bills (RB) – Jackson broke a bone in his hand against the Redskins and is expected to miss the next four to six weeks.

Bottom Line: He could end up missing the first couple of games due to the injury.

Ben Tate, Houston Texans (RB) – Tate suffered a severe ankle injury against the Cardinals and is thought to be lost for the season.

News and Notes From Around the League

There were some good and some bad with Michael Vick on Friday.  The good was he completed 11 of 17 passes and ran for 50 yards and a score.  The bad was he put the ball on the ground twice, losing one, and threw an interception in roughly two quarters of work.

Martell Mallett made a strong case for being the #3 back behind LeSean McCoy and Mike Bell in Philly.  Mallett ran for 60 yards and a score against Jacksonville.

The Jaguars did not even try to run the ball against Philadelphia calling just 8 running plays all night.  It seems like they are not too concerned about figuring out who might take some of the workload off of Maurice Jones-Drew’s shoulders this season.

The Redskins allowed a whopping 8.1 yards per carry to the Bills.  That came with Fred Jackson, C. J. Spiller, and Marshawn Lynch getting only 6 carries.

Colt McCoy threw two picks and suffered a sprained thumb when he hit his hand on a helmet following through on a pass.  The injury is not considered to be serious and could simply mean he starts the season as the emergency QB as opposed to possibly being the backup.  The Browns have no intent on starting McCoy this year anyway so it should not be a major set back in his development.

After completing just 9 of 19 passes and throwing three interceptions against the Niners on Sunday one begins to wonder how much longer Curtis Painter will have a job in Indianapolis.

Stock Up

Players  whose fantasy stock is on the rise.

Carolina Panthers Defense – Greg Hardy and Tyler Brayton combined for 4 sacks and 6 tackles-for-loss against the Ravens.

Bottom Line: There are huge question marks as to who was going to replace Julius Peppers’ productivity in the defense this summer.  Brayton and Hardy are both considered to be in the mix for starting DE jobs.

Mark Clayton, Baltimore Ravens (WR) – Clayton caught two of the three passes thrown his way including a 30-yard TD strike.

Bottom Line: Clayton is battling Donte’ Stallworth for the Ravens #3 receiver position and may have gained an edge with last night’s performance.

Ted Ginn, San Francisco 49ers (WR) – Alex Smith is reportedly finding a real comfort level with Ginn this summer and they seem to have found a rhythm that works.

Bottom Line: Given how things went for Ginn in Miami expectations are pretty low for him this season.  However, he still has game breaking speed and if he settles into the SF offense he could be a real fantasy sleeper this season.

Stock Down

Players whose fantasy stock is on the decline.

Roy E. Williams, Dallas Cowboys (WR) – Williams is still struggling in the Cowboys offense and has caught just one of six passes thrown his way during the Cowboys first two preseason games.

Bottom Line: Williams’ job is believed to be on the line this summer and it is widely assumed that Dez Bryant will end up being the starter at some point in time this season.  With Patrick Crayton playing better than Williams right now he is in danger of slipping down to 4th on the Cowboys depth chart.

Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings (WR) – Harvin has not been with the team since the end of July to deal with his grandmother’s death.  Now comes reports that he suffering from migraines again.

Bottom Line: Harvin is a game breaker for the Vikings and they need to get him in camp so they can get him into game shape.

Ben Tate, Houston Texans (RB) – Gary Kubiak made some pointed remarks about Tate skipping out on OTAs and still learning how to be a pro.  He appears to be in Kubiak’s doghouse for the time being.

Bottom Line: The Texans drafted Tate with the idea that he would push both Arian Foster and Steve Slaton for carries and would prove to be a more stable option at the RB position.  As it stands right now do not expect to see much of Tate on the field unless he just blows people away in preseason games.

Armanti Edwards, Carolina Panthers (WR) – Edwards caught just two of nine passes thrown his way last night.

Bottom Line: The Panthers are hoping Edwards can learn the position fast enough to be their slot receiver this season.  It looks as though he still has a ways to go and it may be a while until he does more than return kicks for Carolina.

News & Notes From Around the League

The Cowboys offensive line has not played well as of yet this summer.  The Dallas o-line has allowed 11 sacks and 15 tackles for loss in the first two exhibition games and the Cowboys running backs have rushed for just 125 on 45 carries, 2.78 yards per carry, thus far.

Cincy’s Antonio Bryant has yet resume running and there is no time table on when his knees might feel well enough for him to continue training and return to practice.

A MRI on Steve Smith’s (NYG) groin showed no significant damage meaning he should be back after a few more days of rest.

The Ravens and Panthers combined for 13 quarterbacks in their game Thursday.

Ravens rookie TE Ed Dickson caught a pair of passes for 26 yards against Carolina.

Ravens back Willis McGahee, who caught just 15 passes last season, caught four in Thursday’s game.

Beanie Wells will be held out Arizona’s preseason game this weekend as a precaution after the second year back suffered a rib injury in practice this week.

Rookie defensive tackle Lamarr Houston had a pair of sacks for the Oakland Raiders against Dallas on Thursday.

Stock Up

Players whose fantasy stock is on the rise.

Brandon LaFell, Carolina Panthers (WR) – As of Tuesday LaFell was working out with the first team offense.

Bottom Line: With Muhsin Muhammad retiring the Panthers are looking for another big receiver to take his place.  Dwayne Jarrett has never been the guy they thought he would and barring an injury or major regression one should expect LaFell to be the guy opposite Steve Smith when the season opens.

Pierre Garcon, Indianapolis Colts (WR) – Pierre Garcon was listed, along with Reggie Wayne, as a starting receiver on the Colts depth chart released this week.

Bottom Line: Nobody is going to see more balls thrown their way than Wayne and Dallas Clark, but being in the starting lineup ensures that he should see more balls than Anthony Gonzalez and Austin Collie.

Brandon Lloyd, Denver Broncos (WR) – Lloyd has been lining up as one of the Broncos starting receivers this week.

Bottom Line: It is hard to say whether Lloyd is a leading candidate for one of the starting jobs or whether he is out there due to rookies Eric Decker and Demaryious Thomas battling injuries.

Mike Thomas, Jacksonville Jaguars (WR) – Thomas reportedly is in the lead for the #2 receiver job opposite Mike Sims-Walker.

Bottom Line: Thomas generally catches whatever comes his way, but it remains to be seen whether he has the chops to be a play maker at receiver.  He was used largely as a possession guy last season and only averaged 9.4 yards per catch.  Keep an eye on how he performs in the preseason games this summer.

A. J. Feeley, St. Louis Rams (QB) – Feeley remains the starting QB in St. Louis.

Bottom Line: Don’t jump on Feeley as a starter just yet.  I still expect him to be “beaten” out by Bradford by the end of camp.  Keep an eye on how this plays out over the next couple of weeks.

Steve Johnson, Buffalo Bills (WR) – Johnson has reportedly emerged as the leading candidate as the other starting receiver opposite Lee Evans in Buffalo.

Bottom Line: Evans is really the only Bills receiver worth keeping an eye on right now.  With so many questions at quarterback and along the offensive line one should not expect much more than 50 or 60 catches from any Bills receiver this season.

Stock Down

Players whose fantasy stock is on the decline.

Willie Parker, Washington Redskins (RB) – Parker was listed as the #4 running back behind Ryan Torain on the Redskins’ initial depth chart.

Bottom Line: Parker seemingly has one foot out the door in Washington.  It seems unlikely Shanahan would have him taking up a roster spot when they could give that to a younger, less expensive back.

Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams (QB) – Bradford is still the #2 quarterback on the depth chart behind A. J. Feeley

Bottom Line: I still expect that Bradford will “win” the starting job by the end of camp.

Sidney Rice, Minnesota Vikings (WR) – Rice has yet to hit the practice field for the Vikes as he rehabs a hip injury suffered in the NFC title game in January.

Bottom Line: Rice is targeting the first game of the year for his return even though his agent said he might be ready to go by the start of camp.  There is growing speculation that he is using this as a ploy to get more money without officially holding out from camp.

Austin Collie, Indianapolis Colts (WR) – Collie probably becomes the odd man out with Garcon holding a starting job.

Bottom Line: With Garcon being elevated up the depth chart I have a sneaking suspicion Collie becomes the guy who loses the bulk of his playing time to Anthony Gonzalez.

Dwayne Jarrett, Carolina Panthers (WR) – With LaFell moving up to the first team Jarrett could be looking for a new team by the end of the summer.

Bottom Line: Jarrett entered the camp as the starter by default and nobody really thought he was a serious threat to win the starting job this summer.

James Hardy, Buffalo Bills (WR) – Hardy has reportedly fallen behind Steve Johnson in the battle for the second starting receiver job.

Bottom Line: Hardy was considered the favorite to win the job entering camp.  Stay tuned though.

News & Notes From Around the League

Texans’ defensive end Mario Williams received some good news earlier this week after being told he would not need surgery on his ailing hip and just needs to more rest and treatment.

Giants safety Kenny Phillips returned to practice for the first time this year on Monday.  He saw only 12 snaps in practice and it remains to be seen how much the Giants plan on using him.

Falcons defensive end Jamaal Anderson, believed to be down to his last chance in Atlanta, has reportedly beefed up to 295 pounds and is having the best camp of his career.

Falcons top pick linebacker Sean Weatherspoon has been working out with the first team defense at the weakside linebacker spot which is where Mike Peterson lined up last season.

Packers top pick Bryan Bulaga has been seeing time at left guard with the first team offense this summer.  There is no official word as to whether this is a permanent move or if the Packers are just trying to figure out a position to get him on the field this season until Chad Clifton is ready to give up the starting job at LT.

Saints safety Darren Sharper has yet to practice and does not know when he will be able to make it back onto the playing field.  There is growing speculation that the Saints may move him to the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list to start the season.

Second year corner back Asher Allen was listed as the Vikings starter opposite Antoine Winfield on the team’s initial depth chart released this week.  He currently holds the edge over rookie Chris Cook and veteran Lito Sheppard.  If Sheppard loses out to either Cook or Allen one can expect he will be traded or released by the end of camp.

There is growing speculation that the Browns may end up moving top pick Joe Haden to safety as he has been a disappointment in camp and there are some serious questions as to whether he has the speed to play corner in the NFL.

The Bengals have signed running back James Johnson on the heels of Brian Leonard suffering a significant foot injury in Sunday’s game.  There is no word on how long Leonard will be out but there is speculation that he could miss some of, or possibly all of, the regular season.

Stock Up

Players whose fantasy stock is rising.

Arrelious Benn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Benn is reportedly impressing during his first camp with the Bucs displaying a penchant for making big plays.

Bottom Line: Fellow rookie Mike Williams has already been penciled in as one of the starters and it sounds like Benn is well on his way to becoming the other starter.

Harry Douglas, Atlanta Falcons – Douglas is expected to assume Michael Jenkins spot on the first team offense while he recovers from a shoulder injury.

Bottom Line: There were those who thought Douglas would push Jenkins for the job last summer prior to blowing his knee out.  Early reports have him out-performing Jenkins in the early going and one should not be surprised if Douglas is in the starting lineup to stay.

Jacoby Jones, Houston Texans – Jones is reportedly making a strong run at unseating Kevin Walter as the #2 receiver on the Texans’ depth chart.

Bottom Line: Keep an eye on this over the next couple of weeks.  Walter is a nice receiver but he does not have the explosiveness that Jones does and his ability to stretch the field makes him an attractive pairing with Andre Johnson.  At the very least Jones will see more snaps this season even if he does not unseat Walter as the starter.

Cincinnati Bengals Defense – The Bengals looked as though they might have some emerging pass rushers in Geno Atkins and Michael Johnson on Sunday.

Bottom Line: Cincinnati was a middle of the road team in terms of its pass rush last season and a significant boost in that arena makes them that much more attractive for fantasy owners.

Stock Down

Players whose fantasy stock is falling.

Michael Jenkins, Atlanta Falcons (WR) – Jenkins suffered a shoulder injury over the weekend and is expected to miss the next month or so and may not be ready for the season opener.

Bottom Line: Jenkins’ job as a starter could be in jeopardy as a result of this.  He has never done anything to endear himself in terms of his production to coaches or quarterbacks in Atlanta to warrant not losing his job due to injury.

News & Notes Around the League

Matt Jones led the Bengals with 3 catches and 42 yards in the HOF game Sunday giving him a leg up on Antonio Bryant, who was held out due to injury, for a roster spot with the Bengals.  Bryant and Jones are thought to be locked in a battle for one of the last roster spots at receiver this summer.

Rookie Jordan Shipley made his biggest impact on special teams with a 63 yard punt return and also caught a pair of passes for 17 yards.

Geno Atkins had a sack and 3 tackles-for-loss against Dallas and looked quick and explosive off the snap.

The Bengals are toying with some 3-4 looks with second year player Michael Johnson coming off the edge.  Johnson looked very comfortable in this role and got a lot of pressure on the quarterback Sunday and ended up with a pair of sacks, two TFLs and a pair of QB hits.  This coming from a guy who had just 3 sacks and no TFLs last season.  He looked much improved yesterday.

Jermaine Gresham, the Bengals’ top pick in the draft, was held to zero catches on Sunday.

The Cowboys still look like they have some issues with pass protection and being physical when they need to be down near the goal line.  When the Bengals dug in and came after Romo they did not seem to have too many problems doing so.  It looked as though teams who can bring pressure from the right side are going to have success against the Cowboys this season.

Tight ends Jason Phillips and Scott Sicko had strong games Sunday.  Phillips caught four balls for 60 yards while Sicko snagged five for 44.

The Broncos are reportedly looking to second year man Robert Ayers as Elvis Dumervil’s replacement for the time being.  Ayers has reportedly looked like a player hoping to redeem himself on the heels of a disappointing rookie season.

Joe Haden has yet to crack the starting lineup in Cleveland and is currently working as the team’s nickle back.

Rookie corner Chris Cook is reportedly pushing Lito Sheppard for the injured Cedric Griffin’s starting job in Minnesota.

Stock Up

Players and team defenses whose stock is on the rise.

Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers (QB) – While Ben will still miss the first few games due to suspension there is some traction taking hold for his suspension being reduced as Roger Goodell says Roethlisberger is doing more than just the bare minimum to get back sooner rather than later.

Bottom Line: He is still going to miss some games but it sounds as though there is a real possibility that his suspension will be four games rather than six.

Golden Tate, Seattle Seahawks (WR) – Tate has emerged as the early favorite to be the starting receiver opposite T. J. Houshmandzadeh.

Bottom Line: Matt Hasselbeck was raving about Tate’s ability to make plays and it sounds like he is developing a good rapport with the young receiver.

Deon Butler, Seattle Seahawks (WR) – It sounds as though Butler is making a strong case to be the ‘Hawks #3 receiver meaning he should see the field a lot more when Seattle goes to its 3-receiver sets.

Bottom Line: Seattle’s #3 receiver, Deion Branch, caught 45 balls last season.  Butler struggled quite a bit during his rookie year, but Coach Carroll seems intent on giving everyone a chance to win a starting job this summer and Butler seems to be making the most of it.

Stock Down

Players and team defenses whose stock is on the decline.

New York Jets Defense – Darrelle Revis seems intent on sitting out regular season games this season if he does not get the kind of deal he is looking for.

Bottom Line: The Jets will still be a solid defense but Revis’ absence means they will have to rely on rookie corner Kyle Wilson more than they had hoped they would have to.  Revis is a lock down corner whose presence allows the team to use more exotic blitzing schemes and stack the box.  The Jets will have to be more conservative defensively without Revis on the field.

Denver Broncos Defense – Elvis Dumervil was diagnosed with a torn pectoral muscle in practice earlier in the week and is expected to miss the next three or four months.

Bottom Line: Dumervil was the pass rush in Denver last season with 17 of the team’s 39 sacks.  He also led the team with 4 forced fumbles.  The defense was not exceptionally strong with him and will take a bit hit without him unless someone else steps up becomes that guy who can give them double digits in sacks this season.

Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks (WR) – With Butler stepping up and making a run at the #3 spot it means a diminished role for Branch.

Bottom Line: If Branch loses his job to Butler expect him to be released as he has largely been a bust for the ‘Hawks and they would seem to want to wash their hands of him.

News & Notes

Dallas Defensive End Marcus Spears went out with a sprained knee Thursday and is expected to miss the next month or so.  The injury is not considered to be too serious and he could make it back in time for the seasons opener.

Jacksonville rookie defensive tackle D’Anthony Smith needs surgery on his Achilles tendon and is believed to be lost for the season.  Smith was expected to be in the Jags d-line rotation in the upcoming season.

The Broncos are reportedly entertaining the idea of bringing in Leonard Little and/or Aaron Schobel to fill in for Dumervil this season.

The Jets, Dolphins, Texans, and Patriots are also reportedly interested in Schobel’s services.

Louis Delmas will not need surgery for his injured groin, but still has not returned to practice.

Eagles receiver Jeremy Maclin joined DeSean Jackson on the sidelines when he suffered a hyper extended knee on Tuesday.  The good news is there was no structural damage and Maclin simply as a bone bruise as a result and should be back on the field in a few days.

The Bengals appear to be moving closer to cutting Antonio Bryant.  The consensus seems to be that they will give him a chance to show what he can do in a preseason game or two before making the final decision, but the fact that he is not practicing and has been ruled out of this weekend’s HOF game does not bode well for his future in Cincy.

With Correll Buckhalter and Knowshon Moreno nicked up and out of action for the time being the Broncos have cut Kolby Smith and are bringing LenDale White in for a trial run to see if he has anything to offer.

Carolina DE Charles Johnson reportedly lost 20 pounds over the off season and reported to camp in the best shape of his career.  There is currently a lot of buzz around he and fellow DE rookie Greg Hardy about how well they have looked in the early going.

Green Bay safety Atari Bigby will require surgery on his ankle and is out for the foreseeable future.  Rookie Morgan Burnett who is having a strong camp is expected to ascend to the starting strong safety position.

Stock Up

These are players whose stock is on the rise this week.

Tarvaris Jackson, Minnesota Vikings (QB) – With the news that Brett Favre is retiring Jackson is expected to be named the Vikings starting quarterback.  Jackson has shown flashes of what he can do but has never been able to put it all together over a 16 game season.

Bottom Line: Target Jackson as a potential backup on your fantasy team.  He is not worth throwing into a starting lineup until he proves he can get it done.

Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings (RB) – With Jackson under center this season look for the Vikings to go back to a more balanced offense that was roughly 50/50 in terms of passing and running plays as opposed to the 55/45 pass to run split they had last season.

Bottom Line: Peterson could go back to getting 350-plus carries again this season as the team will look to re-center the offense around him again.

Hakeem Nicks, New York Giants (WR) – Nicks has reportedly been Eli Manning’s favorite target in camp this summer, and has looked like their best receiver thus far.

Bottom Line: Nicks missed a lot of practice with injuries early on but once he got going last season he was a home run hitter for the Giants last season.  He has the skill set to be an elite receiver for the Giants.

Mike Williams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (WR) – Williams is reportedly sitting atop the Bucs depth chart at the receiver position.

Bottom Line: With a young quarterback under center it makes sense to develop the younger talent they have at receiver with him.  The Bucs are still a couple of years away from being relevant again.  One should not expect big things from Bucs receivers this year though as Josh Freeman continues to learn on the job.

Wes Welker, New England Patriots (WR) – There is guarded optimism with Welker as he was cleared for practice over the weekend.  He is currently only participating in individual and agility drills and has yet to participate in any contact or passing drills with the first team offense.

Bottom Line: With Julian Edelman proving to be a competent replacement for Welker next season the Patriots will take their time with Welker and rush him back until they feel he is up to snuff.  Target him as a backup receiver for now with the hopes that he will back into the groove a couple of weeks into the season.

Gary Barnidge, Carolina Panthers (TE) – Barnidge has reportedly been the breakout star in Panthers’ camp thus far.

Bottom Line: The Panthers have been searching for a viable pass catching tight end since Wesley Walls left town after the ’02 season.  Barnidge has big play potential and could catch 50 to 60 balls this season if he continues to develop the way he has so far this summer.

Kenny Moore, Carolina Panthers (WR) – With Steve Smith out of the lineup as he rehabs from a broken arm Moore is getting reps with the first team along with Dwayne Jarrett.  Moore has reportedly been the better of the two in the early going.

Bottom Line: Wait and see on Moore.  He seems like more of a possession type of a receiver meaning he will probably not put up huge fantasy numbers for the Panthers who are likely to be a run-oriented offense with Matt Moore under center this season.  He could also be pushed by Brandon LaFell by the end of camp.

Stock Down

These are the guys whose stock is falling.

Sidney Rice, Minnesota Vikings (WR) – Rice has been battling a lingering hip injury that has caused him to miss practices.  His numbers are also likely to suffer a bit now that Favre will not be throwing him the ball next season and the team will likely look to run the ball a bit more than last season.

Bottom Line: Stay away from Rice until he gets back on the field and we see how much the Vikings plan on throwing the ball this season.  He should still have a good season but one should not count on him getting close to 80 catches and 1,300 yards again this season.

Mario Manningham, New York Giants (WR) – Hakeem Nicks has reportedly usurped Manningham as the other starting receiver opposite Steve Smith in New York.

Bottom Line: Manningham suffered from drops and lack of overall consistency last season, his numbers could slip a bit as he is transitioned to a slot receiver position.

Steve Smith, New York Giants (WR) – Hakeem Nicks has reportedly leap frogged both Mario Manningham and Smith to the top of the depth chart at receiver.

Bottom Line: Smith will still see his share of balls thrown his way simply because he has the best hands of all the receivers on the team.  One should lower their expectations on his output this season to where 75 to 80 catches and 950 to 1,000 yards seems more likely than the 107 catches and 1,220 yards he had last season.

Antonio Bryant, Cincinnati Bengals (WR) – Bryant’s surgically repaired knee has reportedly been giving him trouble this summer and he has already had to sit out parts of some practices because of it.

Bottom Line: The fact the Bengals have brought in Terrell Owens means they are probably not that interested in waiting to see if Bryant’s knee ever comes around.  Do not be surprised if Bryant is cut loose by the end of camp.

Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys (WR) – Bryant is expected to miss most of, if not all of, the remainder of camp with a high ankle sprain.

Bottom Line: He is still a good guy to go after, but one should not target him as their top receiver as he is unlikely to be conditioned to play a lot the first couple of games.

Trindon Holliday, Houston Texans (WR/RS) – Holliday is reportedly struggling as he transitions from the scat back role he played in college to a slot receiver position in the NFL.

Bottom Line: He was probably never going to do much more than return kicks this year anyway as he learns to play receiver in the NFL this season.

Dwayne Jarrett, Carolina Panthers (WR) – Jarrett has reportedly struggled to impress yet again this summer and may be down to his last chance with the presence of rookie Brandon LaFell.

Bottom Line: The Panthers had hoped Jarrett would have won the starting job from Muhsin Muhammad by now.  He opened camp as a starter by default and is being outplayed by Kenny Moore thus far.

Bills Defense – The Bills are reportedly set to release Aaron Schobel, who would rather retire than continue his career in Buffalo, rather than try and trade him.

Bottom Line: Schobel was the only guy who consistently got to the quarterback last season.  His departure means the Bills will be relying on Aaron Maybin, who disappointed as a rookie, to step in and be the top pass rusher this season.

Ravens Defense – The Ravens already weakened secondary suffered another blow this week when Dominique Foxworthy was lost for the season with an ACL injury.

Bottom Line: The Ravens are already facing the prospect of starting the season without All Pro safety Ed Reed and now they lose a guy who tied for the team lead in interceptions last season.

Fantasy Studs

These are the best pass catchers at the position in the league.  Owners can generally count on these guys for 70 catches and 800 yards a season.

Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers – After struggling with a toe injury for a year-and-a-half Gates seems to be back and better than ever.  Even through the injury he was still one of the more productive TEs in the league.  He is coming off a career best of 1,157 yards and in his six years as the starter in San Diego he is averaging 972 yards, 9 touchdowns, and 76 catches.

Dallas Clark, Indianapolis Colts – With Marvin Harrison being phased out of the offense over the last two years Clark has picked up the slack for the Colts in a big way.  He is coming off a season in which he posted career bests with 100 catches and 1,106 yards and his 10 touchdowns were the second highest of his career.  Over the last two seasons Clark is averaging 88 catches and 977 yards and over the last three seasons he has posted double figures in touchdowns twice and is averaging 9 scores per season.

Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys – Witten has been Tony Romo’s favorite target ever since he assumed the starting quarterback role in Dallas.  Over the past three seasons he is averaging 90 catches and 1,042 yards.  The only real knock on Witten as a fantasy player is he has only scored 13 touchdowns over the last three seasons which make Gates and Clark better fantasy plays.  One thing to keep an eye on with Witten will be the presence of Dez Bryant and whether Witten sees fewer passes come his way because of it.

Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons – The seemingly ageless Gonzalez is easily the best pass catching tight end to ever play the game.  He needs just one more catch to become the first TE to catch 1,000 balls in a career and coming off an 83 catch season at the age of 33 he is showing no real signs of slowing down.  Over the past three years he is averaging 92 catches, 1,032 yards, and 7 touchdowns.  Gonzalez is the #2 option in the Falcons passing game now so his days of catching upwards of 100 passes may be over, but there is no reason to believe he will not give fantasy owners another 80 catch, 800-yard season this year.

Fantasy Broncos

These are guys who are capable of putting up big numbers but have some question marks surrounding them.

Visanthe Shiancoe, Minnesota Vikings – Shiancoe has emerged as one of the better touchdown guys at the TE position scoring 18 times over the last two seasons.  He is probably only going to be good for 50 to 60 catches and 500 to 600 yards though.

Owen Daniels, Houston Texans – Has excelled in Houston since Matt Schaub came to town, however, he is coming off another ACL injury and it remains to be seen what he will be able to do this summer.  If healthy he could go for 70 catches and 800 yards.

Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins – Cooley had quietly emerged as one of the best pass catching TEs in the league over the last few years.  He is coming off a broken ankle so it remains to be seen if that has any impact on his play this summer.  If healthy he should be good for 80 catches, 800 yards and seven or eight scores.

Fantasy Colts

These are players coming off of breakout seasons who are another year or two away from being fantasy studs.

Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers – Davis finally showed us why he was worthy of being the 6th overall pick in the ’06 draft.  It took him three years but Davis finally got his crap together and is arguably becoming the most dynamic in the league at the position.  He posted career best numbers with 78 catches, 965 yardss, and his 13 TD receptions were tops in the NFL last season.  It is scary to think what he might be able to do if the Niners ever get any consistency from the quarterback position.

Brent Celek, Philadelphia Eagles – Celek is coming off a breakout season posting career bests of 76 catches, 971 yards, and 8 touchdowns in his first full season as the Eagles’ starting tight end.  Celek should continue to post big numbers in Andy Reid’s pass happy offense.

Keep an Eye On

Keep an eye on these guys, they may be poised for breakout seasons this year.

Zach Miller, Oakland Raiders – Miller has been the only thing worth watching on the Raiders offense the past two years averaging 61 catches and 791 yards.  He has managed these numbers without anyone else catching more than 34 passes and the likes of JaMarcus Russell and Bruce Gradkowski throwing him the ball.  If the Raiders can find some competent receivers to go along with a competent quarterback Miller could have a big year in Oakland.

Tony Scheffler, Detroit Lions – Scheffler looks to be the primary pass catching TE in Detroit this season.  He could get an opportunity to show what he can do in Detroit.

Jermichael Finley, Green Bay Packers – Finley started coming into his own last season catching 55 passes for 676 yards and five scores.  He only played 13 games last season so he could see a boost if he stays healthy this season.

John Carlson, Seattle Seahawks – Carlson has been one of the Seahawks most consistent players his first two years in the league averaging 53 catches for 600 yards and six touchdowns over his first two seasons.  He has caught at least 51 passes in each of his first two years.

Dustin Keller, New York Jets – With the Jets beefing up the receiving corps and Mark Sanchez getting another year under his belt in the offense Keller could see more opportunities to shine this season.

Buyer Beware

Be wary of these guys they have some serious issues that could short circuit their seasons.

Kellen Winslow, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – When he wants to be Winslow is arguably as good as anyone else in the league at the position.  The problem is he tends to be prone to meltdowns and injuries.  He has played 16 games in three of his six seasons and played in just 12 the other three.  In the three years where he played all 16 games he is averaging 82 catches and 955 yards.  He has never been a big touchdown guy, but is generally productive otherwise.

Todd Heap, Baltimore Ravens – When healthy he can give a team 70 catches, 750 yards, and 7 TDs.  The problem is he is generally fighting nagging injuries which has cost him some of his productivity over the years.  He could see a drop off with the Ravens beefing up the receiving corps and drafting a couple of young tight ends.

Jeremy Shockey, New Orleans Saints – Shockey is as talented as anyone at the position but he has never played all 16 games in a season and always seems to be playing with a nagging injury as it is.  He is still a solid fantasy guy but his productivity has slowly dropped as all of the injuries have started taking their toll.

Fred Davis, Washington Redskins – Unless Chris Cooley cannot go or Davis beats him out it seems unlikely that Fred Davis  will match last year’s numbers of  48 catches, 509 yards, and 6 touchdowns.

The Jury is Out

These are players who the jury is still out on.

Heath Miller, Pittsburgh Steelers – Miller had career best numbers with 76 catches and 789 yards last season.  However, Ben Roethlisberger is out to start the season and Mike Tomlin has already stated his preference to going back to being a more run-oriented offense.  Miller could very well have another 70-catch season or he could go back to being a 40-catch guy if the Steelers follow through on running the ball more this season.  Miller can always be counted on for 6/7 touchdowns though.

Greg Olsen, Chicago Bears – While Olsen is the Bears most accomplished receiver he faces some uncertainty this summer.  The problem is new offensive coordinator generally has little use for his tight ends meaning Olsen may not be as big of a factor in the Bears passing game this year.

Assessing the Rookies

How this year’s crop of rookie TEs may fair this season.

Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati Bengals – Gresham was big time play maker in college scoring 25 times on 103 catches over his last two seasons at Oklahoma.  He has good speed and size for a tight end and represents the first real pass catching threat that Carson Palmer has had throw to at the position since coming to Cincy.  The big question with Gresham is how well his knee holds up as he missed significant playing time at OU due to knee issues.  He should get a chance to shine for the Bengals this season.

Rob Gronkowski/Aaron Hernandez, New England Patriots – Like Gresham, Gronkowski missed significant playing time due to injury, only Gronkowski missed last year with a back injury.  Also, like Gresham, Gronkowski has a nose for the end zone.  Gresham is the better pass catcher and Gronkowski is the better blocker.  Of the two Hernandez is the better athlete and play maker, but Gronkowski is the better all around player.  Both guys should see playing time and with the Pats cleaning house at the position this spring one of them should begin the year as the team’s starter.

Ed Dickson/Dennis Pitta, Baltimore Ravens – Unless Heap goes down to injury neither guy is likely to see a lot of playing time this season.

Tony Moeaki, Kansas City Chiefs – Moeaki is largely seen as a guy who will need a year or two to develop, but given the Chiefs poor production at the position last season he could get a chance to start right away.

Jimmy Graham, New Orleans Saints – Graham played only one year at Miami after playing for the basketball team.  He is big and athletic but also very raw.  With the presence of Shockey and Dave Thomas, Graham is not likely to see the field very much, if at all, this season.

Broncos Backs Go Down

The Broncos lost both Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter on the first day of practice.  Moreno went down with what is being reported as a serious hamstring injury while Buckhalter simply tweaked his back.  Moreno could miss the balance of camp or close to it while Buckhalter is expected to be out a week or so.

Fantasy Impact: Buckhalter should be back on the field and unless this injury lingers throughout camp it should not be major issue for him.  Moreno is a slightly different story, but as long as he gets back by the time camp breaks he should have enough time to get ready to play in the opener.  Owners should keep a close eye on him though and may want to consider holding him out the first week.

Dez Bryant Injures Ankle

Dez Bryant went down with a high ankle sprain the other day and is expected to miss most of, if not all of, the balance of training camp.  It is thought that he will be cleared to get back on the field by the season opener, but it remains to be seen whether he can be in game shape by then.

Fantasy Impact: Bryant is still a guy worth targeting for fantasy football as the expectation was for him to emerge as the other starting receiver opposite Miles Austin.  Owners will simply have to be patient with him and not expect a lot the first two or three games as he works his way back into game shape.

Steve Slaton

Steve Slaton is reportedly ahead of schedule and is expected to be cleared for full contact any day now.  He also has reportedly looked good in what he has been allowed to do.

Fantasy Impact: Even though Slaton is closer to getting back on the field there is still a lot of doubt as to whether he is going to have a featured role this season.  Arian Foster enters camp as the starter after posting 216 yards and 3 touchdowns over the Texans last two games in ’09.  Rookie Ben Tate is expected to get a chance to win the starting job as well.  Stay away from Slaton until he wins the starting job back.

Bryant’s Future in Cincy

With Terrell Owens now a member of the Bengals there has been some speculation that Antonio Bryant will be knocked down to the #3 spot and line up in the slot giving the team a pretty impressive trio of Ocho, T. O., and Bryant but one should not hold their breath on that happening.

Bryant has been slowed in camp by his surgically repaired knee and the team has been less than impressed with what he has shown them this spring and into the summer.  Consider that if the Bengals were interested in that should of an alignment then they would have signed both guys when they had them in for interviews and workouts a couple of months ago.

Do not be surprised to see Bryant cut loose by the Bengals, doing so will save them $1.5 million and we all know how cash conscious the Bengals can be.

Fantasy Impact: Stay away from Bryant until he actually makes the roster coming out of camp.

McCluster and the Wildcat

The Chiefs have been tinkering extensively with Wildcat packages in camp with Dexter McCluster lining up as the Wildcat back under center.  The Chiefs see this as an opportunity to get McCluster the ball in his hands where he can run around and make something happen.

Fantasy Impact: This probably does little to change his status that much.  One would imagine the Chiefs are only going to run this formation a handful of times each game.  Given that Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones are proven 1,000 yard backs they will still be the focus of the offense and running game.

Everette Brown Struggling

Everette Brown is reportedly being dominated on a routine basis by Jordan Gross in camp thus far.  It should be noted that Gross is one of the league’s best tackles so it is of no surprise that he is routinely beating Brown.  What is disconcerting for the Panthers is Gross is making it look easy and if Brown cannot at least challenge Gross is there any hope that he is going to be able to even beat decent tackles.  There is a lot of concern that he has not progressed at all since the end of last season.

Fantasy Impact: Brown was expected to fill the role vacated by Julius Peppers and the team was hoping he would be able to chip in 8 to 10 sacks this season.  If Brown cannot step it up this summer one should expect to see the Panthers sack numbers drop quite a bit this season.

Redskins Receivers

The Redskins are reportedly close to giving up on former second round draft picks Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly.  Both Thomas (34th) and Kelly (51st) were taken in the second round of the ’08 draft and neither has been able to crack the starting lineup or even look like they are close to doing so in their two years in the league.

Fantasy Impact: The ‘Skins currently have 13 receivers in camp and the only real certainty is that Santana Moss will be one of the starters so the team essentially has 12 guys competing for the other starting job.  Aside from Moss none of the Washington receivers are worth gambling on right now until we know who is even going to make the team.

Fantasy Studs

These are receivers owners can typically count on for 85 catches, 1,200 yards, and 8 to 10 touchdowns.

Andre Johnson, Houston Texans – They do not come much better than the Texans’ pass catcher.  He has had at least 101 catches, 1,569 yards, and 8 touchdowns over the last two seasons.  Johnson is in the conversation of being one of the best two or three receivers in the league.

Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts – Wayne has been a mark of consistency catching at least 77 passes and posting at least 1,000 yards in each of the last six seasons.  His TD numbers can be hit or miss at times but he has posted double digits in two of the last three years and is generally good for at least eight or nine a year.  As long as Peyton is still slinging the ball and he stays healthy fantasy owners can count on 1,000 yards and 10 TDs this season.

Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals – Fitzgerald’s yardage tumbled down to 1,092 last season, but he still scored 13 touchdowns.  The only thing to be wary of with Fitzgerald this season is no Kurt Warner under center for the Cardinals this year.

Randy Moss, New England Patriots – There was a lot of talk about Moss having lost a step and not being the same receiver he was a couple of years ago.  However, the fact is, he still caught 83 balls for 1,264 yards and still managed to find the end zone 13 times last season.  He has compiled at least 1,000 yards and 10 TDs in each of the last three seasons.

Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons – Is averaging 85 catches, 1,245 yards, and 8 touchdowns over his last three seasons.  His touchdowns numbers have also gone up in each of the last three seasons from 6 in 2007 to 11 in 2009.

Brandon Marshall, Miami Dolphins – Has caught at least 101 passes in each of the last three years.  His yardage numbers have decreased steadily over the last 3 years while his touchdown numbers have gone up.  As long as his hip recovers he fantasy owners should be able to count on him for another 1,000 yard season with upwards of 10 touchdowns.

Fantasy Broncos

These are receivers capable of putting up stud numbers but have questions surrounding them this season.

Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers – I debated putting him in with the studs but his four touchdowns last season make me a bit hesitant to do so.  He has gone for 1,100-plus yards the last two years though.

Marques Colston, New Orleans Saints – With the emergence of guys like Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, and Lance Moore Colston does not get as many balls thrown his way.  He may never get 98 catches or 1,200 yards the way he did in ’07, but he can still be counted on for 1,000 yards and 8 to 10 touchdowns this season.

Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers – The seemingly ageless Ward is coming off back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons, but it remains to be seen how long Pittsburgh will be without Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback and who will replace him until he returns.

Anquan Boldin, Baltimore Ravens – Finally got out of Arizona and on a team willing to reward him with the kind of contract he felt he has deserved the past couple of years in Arizona.  Has caught 100 passes and gone over 1,400 yards in the past but that seems unlikely here with the Ravens desire to mix in the run with the pass.  He should be able to go for 1,000 yards and 8 to 10 scores though.

Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens – Mason has talked of retiring the past couple of years, but he keeps coming out and putting up solid numbers despite not having any real help around him.  Has gone for 1,000 or more yards in 8 of the last 9 seasons including the last three.  He has never been a big touchdown producer though.

Fantasy Colts

These are receivers coming off a breakout year who are another year or two away from being studs.

Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions – Johnson struggled with nagging injuries much of the season and without any other weapons on offense teams generally schemed to take him out of the equation last season.  With some of the additions the Lions have made in the passing game this spring look for Johnson to bounce back in a big way this season.

Miles Austin, Dallas Cowboys – Austin had a breakout season last year catching 81 balls for 1,320 yards and 11 scores.  He was something of a boom or bust player though.  While he had 5 100-yard games last year he also had four games of 20 or fewer yards and zero touchdowns.

SIdney Rice, Minnesota Vikings – Rice was the other receiver break out star at receiver who nobody really expected it from.  Rice caught 83 balls for 1,312 yards and 8 touchdowns after catching just 46 passes in his first two seasons combined.  The only reason to potentially steer clear of Rice is if Favre actually goes through with retiring.

DeSean Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles – Another young star in the making who had his coming out party last season.  Some say Jackson is the most electric receiver in the game right now and he is a threat to score any time he has the ball in his hands.  He still struggles with consistency though.  An added bonus for Jackson owners is he has scored at least one touchdown rushing touchdown and taken at least one punt back for a score in each of his first two years in the league.  He is averaging 2.5 non-receiving touchdowns for his career.  One does wonder how much longer he will be returning kicks as he becomes a bigger part of the Eagles offense.

Steve Smith, New York Giants – The other Steve Smith had a breakout year for the Giants catching 107 balls for 1,220 yards and 7 scores.  He was a huge reason for Eli Manning’s success last year as a passer.

Keep an Eye On

These are guys who could be poised for a breakout year.

Steve Breaston, Arizona Cardinals – Had a 1,000 yard season in ’08 only to see his production fall in ’09 due to nagging injuries.  The assumption is he will start opposite Fitzgerald now that Anquan Boldin is in Baltimore.  He should see his numbers get back over the 1,000 yard barrier this season.  He should see his TD numbers rise as well.

Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers – He was consistently solid for the Niners last season and with a full camp under his belt he should hit the ground running this season.

Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings – One of those hybrid athletes with speed to burn that are becoming the rage in the NFL.  Is a threat to score any time he has the ball.  As an added bonus he returned a pair of kicks for touchdowns and will get a handful of rushing attempts.

Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia Eagles – Really seemed to find his groove late in the season catching 17 passes for 297 yards in the Eagles last three games.  He showed flashes last season and with Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown out of the picture his status as a starter is solidified.

Mike Wallace, Pittsburgh Steelers – The rookie was a pleasant surprise for the Steelers last season scoring six touchdowns and racking up 756 yards.  The assumption is that with Santonio Holmes going to New York that Wallace will be the guy starting opposite Hines Ward this season.  He could easily post 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns as a starter for the Steelers.

Malcolm Floyd, San Diego Chargers – Floyd has steadily improved the past couple of years and had career highs with 45 catches and 776 yards last season.  With Vincent Jackson’s status up in the air Floyd could end up being the beneficiary as he would theoretically become the #1 receiver.

Mike Sims-Walker, Jacksonville Jaguars – Was a surprise for the Jags last season catching 63 balls and scoring 7 touchdowns.  However, without any real established depth around him in the passing game one wonders whether he will be able to build on last season’s success or not.

Mario Manningham, New York Giants – Had a solid year with 822 yards and 5 touchdowns.  If he ever masters the mental aspects of the game he has a chance to be a home run hitter for the Giants.

Hakeem Nicks, New York Giants – Showed a real knack for making the big play during his rookie year scoring six times on 47 catches.  If Manningham does not get it together Nicks could push him out of the picture.

Robert Meachem, New Orleans Saints – Put up the numbers the Saints were hoping for when they drafted him in ’08.  Scored 9 touchdowns on just 45 receptions.  Will the Saints look to go his way more often in 2010?

Nate Burleson, Detroit Lions – Should be a nice compliment to Calvin Johnson in Detroit.  He never lived up to expectations after posting 1,000 yards in his second season but he could be poised for a big year opposite Johnson.

Buyer Beware

These are vets who have some baggage owners need to be aware of.

Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers – Had a down year last season, but a lot of that can be attributed to Jake Delhomme’s struggles early on.  Smith and expected starter Matt Moore seemed to find groove late in the year with Smith catching 19 passes for 378 yards and three touchdowns in the four games they played together.  The main thing to be wary of with Smith is he is recovering from a broken arm suffered playing flag football in the off season and there is no word on how this may affect him in the early going.

Chad Ochocinco, Cincinnati Bengals – Ocho was one of the league’s best pass catchers for about six years until general unhappiness and malaise set in leading up to the 2008 season.  He bounced back with a solid season in ’09, but unless the Bengals fins some more weapons to compliment him he is going to struggle to put up big time numbers again.

Donald Driver, Green Bay Packers – While he has posted six straight 1,000 yards seasons he is 35 years old and coming off arthroscopic surgery on both knees.

Braylon Edwards, New York Jets – Edwards has all the talent in the world but still struggles with drops and the mental aspects of the game.  He is a huge wild card and could go for 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns or simply struggle to put up 800 yards and five touchdowns.

T. J. Houshmandzadeh, Seattle Seahawks – Houshmandzadeh is a nice receiver, but he is probably never going to live up to the contract Seattle gave him last spring.  He is more suited to be a complimentary receiver than a lead receiver.  The ‘Hawks question marks at quarterback and lack of receiving depth do not help either.

Santana Moss, Washington Redskins – Never quite became the elite receiver fantasy owners thought he would be after the ’05 season.  He is still good for 70 catches a year but is not the game breaker he was five years ago.

Devery Henderson, New Orleans Saints – Is always going to get opportunities for the big play in the Saints offense, but will never be a #1 guy and despite averaging just under 20 yards per catch during his career has never been much of a TD producer.

Wes Welker, New England Patriots – Welker has been a pass catching machine catching at least 111 passes for at least 1,165 yards in each of the last three seasons, however he shredded his knee at the end of the season and it remains to be seen how productive he is going to be this summer.  The Pats have put him on the Physically Unable to Perform list meaning he could miss up to the first six weeks of the season.  Stay away from Welker as a potential starter until he gets back on the field and shows what he can do.

Santonio Holmes, New York Jets – Holmes is coming off his first 1,000 yard season, but he is going to miss the first four games due to a violation of the league’s substance abuse policy.  It also remains to be seen whether the Jets open the offense up this year or stick with the run when you can and throw when you have to philosophy on offense.

Vincent Jackson, San Diego Chargers – Jackson has emerged as one of the best young big play receivers in the league and is coming off back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons and has scored 16 touchdowns over the last two years.  However, he still has yet to sign a contract for next season and is threatening to sit out half of the season if he does not get the type of long term deal he is looking for.  Avoid Jackson until he signs a contract.

The Jury is Out

These are players who the jury is still out on.

Terrell Owens, Free Agent – Interest in Owens is starting to pick up as we get closer to the opening of camps around the league.  The Jets and Bengals are rumored to be the front runners.  The Bengals seem to be the better fit at this stage as the Jets will not have enough balls to go around once Holmes comes back from his league suspension while he would have a real shot at being the #2 guy in Cincy.  He is not the game changer he used to be but could still go for 1,000 yards and 7 to 10 TDs in the right situation.

Jerricho Cotchery, New York Jets – Definitely wait and see on Cotchery.  He is already going to be bumped down to third on the depth chart behind Holmes and Braylon Edwards and if the team brings TO on board his playing time will diminish even further.  Wait and see how the Jets use him this summer before deciding on Cotchery.

Pierre Garcon, Indianapolis Colts – With Anthony Gonzalez due to come back from injury this summer it remains to be seen how the Colts intend on using Garcon.

Assessing the Rookies

Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos – If he gets over the dropped passes that plagued him in college he has a real shot to start this year for the Broncos.  He is big and fast and looks like a faster version of Brandon Marshall.  The biggest issue with him is he dropped a lot of balls in college that elite receivers hang on to.

Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys – Bryant is going to be given every chance to unseat Roy Williams as the other starting receiver opposite Miles Austin.  Big things are expected out of Bryant in Big D this season.

Arrelious Benn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – With no real talent at receiver in Tampa, Benn should get a chance to win a starting job this summer.  Do not expect big numbers from Benn unless Josh Freeman figures it out this summer.

Golden Tate, Seattle Seahawks – The ‘Hawks are hoping he is the receiver they thought they were getting when they dealt for Deion Branch.  He should get a shot at winning a starting job.  At the very least he will be the #3 guy on the depth chart.

Damian Williams, Tennessee Titans – At the very least he will be the #3 guy in Tennessee and could have a shot at unseating Nate Washington as he failed to deliver in a big way for the Titans last year.  One should not expect big things from Williams just yet as the Titans are still going to be a run first offense.

Brandon LaFell, Carolina Panthers – With Muhsin Muhammad retiring LaFell is expected to compete with Dwayne Jarrett for the spot opposite Steve Smith.  He could be one of the sleepers from this year’s draft.

Emmanuel Sanders, Pittsburgh Steelers – Should compete with Antwaan Randle El for the slot receiver job.

Jordan Shipley, Cincinnati Bengals – Shipley is expected to compete for the slot receiver position in Cincy.

Mike Williams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Like Benn, Williams will get a chance to compete for playing time out of the gate.

Fantasy Studs

These are backs one can count on for 1,500 yards of offense and 10 touchdowns.

Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans – After racking up over 2,500 yards of total offense and finding the end zone 16 times it can be argued that Johnson is the most lethal weapon in football right now.  His receiving skills bring an added bonus for leagues that score for receptions as he has been good for at least 40 catches in each of his two seasons.  The only reservation I have with Johnson is he had over 400 touches last season and, historically speaking, backs that see the ball 400 times usually see a dip in production the following season.  The one thing he does have going for him is he is a bit younger than other backs who have toted the rock that many times in a season.

Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars – Jones-Drew showed to the world that he could handle being the primary back in Jacksonville racking up over 1,700 yards of offense and hitting pay dirt 16 times.  He is another back who can be counted on for 50 catches a year.  The only reservation with him is he saw his workload increased by 100 touches last season so he could see a drop off in production this season.

Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings – Some might see Peterson’s 1,383 rushing yards as a bit of a disappointment last season.  He was the one who was supposed to be rushing for 2,000 yards last season, but he seemed to struggle with consistency at times last season.  Peterson did, however, lead the league with 18 touchdowns and as an added bonus to fantasy owners he posted career highs in catches (43) and receiving yards (436).  The one thing that plagues Peterson is his tendency to cough the ball up.  He fumbles more than an elite back should.

Fantasy Broncos

These are backs capable of putting up stud numbers but have other questions that may cause them not to be good fantasy players.

Thomas Jones, Kansas City Chiefs – Any other year and Jones would be a fantasy stud at running back.  He has posted at least 1,400 yards of offense and has scored 29 touchdowns over the last two years.  However, he is going to have to share carries with Jamaal Charles and it seems unlikely that he will carry the ball more than 250 times this season which means his numbers are going to dip some.

Steven Jackson, St. Louis Rams – From a yardage standpoint Jackson is a stud fantasy player.  His owners can generally count on him for 100 yards of offense each week he is in the lineup.  He loses value because of how awful the team is around him.  Despite being the second leading rusher in the league last year Jackson only managed to score four touchdowns and finding the end zone is more valuable to fantasy owners than piling up thousands of yards is.  He also brings added value as a receiver as he can generally be counted on for 40+ catches a season.  He also loses some points for health concerns.

Ryan Grant, Green Bay Packers – Grant can be maddeningly inconsistent at times.  For example he sandwiched a 137 yard game in between 41 and 37 yard efforts last season.  He is generally good for 1,200 rushing yards per season though, and he did manage to score 11 times last season.  He does not bring a lot to the table in the passing game though.

Fantasy Colts

These are backs coming off break out seasons who are another year or two from being a fantasy stud.

Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens – Rice was one of the huge surprises last season.  Nobody ever thought he would be capable of putting up 2,000 yards from scrimmage in one season.  He found the end zone 8 times and as an added bonus caught 78 passes out of the backfield.  With the Ravens adding more firepower at receiver his receiving numbers could dip this season, but there is no reason to think he will not put up another 1,300 yard rushing season.

Rashard Mendenhall, Pittsburgh Steelers – Mendenhall posted the first 1,000 yards season of his career going for 1,108 and scored 8 touchdowns in a breakout season.  The Steelers will look to feature him more in the upcoming season as Roethlisberger is out for up to six weeks due to suspension.  Mike Tomlin also expressed a desire of getting back to being more of a power running team meaning Mendenhall should see more carries this season.

Johnathan Stewart, Carolina Panthers – The upside to Stewart is he has a knack for finding the end zone scoring at least 10 times in each of his first two seasons.  The downside is he has to share carries with DeAngelo Williams and he only caught 18 passes last season.  At any rate he should be good for 800 to 1,000 yards and 10 TDs and makes for a good #2 or #3 back on a fantasy team.

Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs – Charles is coming off a break out year in 2009 in which he ran for 968 yards and 7 touchdowns over the second half of the season.  On the year Charles put up 1,417 yards of offense and scored 8 times.  The major downside to Charles is the addition of Thomas Jones to the roster.  Instead of entering the season as the primary back in KC he will be sharing carries with Jones.  The one plus with Charles is he has proven he can run for 1,000 yards with fewer than 200 carries.  The one thing that remains to be seen is whether he can be a productive player when he is not getting the ball 20 to 25 times a game like he was the second half of last season.

Keep an Eye On

These are young backs who could be poised for break out seasons in 2010

Shonn Greene, New York Jets – Greene’s stunning performance in the playoffs where he ran for 263 yards on 44 carries against the Bengals and Chargers made the decision to release Thomas Jones that much easier.  Greene is expected to be the primary ball carrier for the Jets this season and should have trouble posting 1,000 yards and 8 to 10 touchdowns running behind one of the best lines in the league this season.

Felix Jones, Dallas Cowboys – The expectation is that if Jones can actually stay healthy that he will end up being the featured back in Dallas this year.  He has blazing speed and could potentially put up huge fantasy numbers if he gets enough touches.  The main thing holding him back is his tendency to miss weeks at a time due to injury.  If he becomes the featured back he could easily go for 1,200 rushing yards and 10 TDs.

Knowshon Moreno, Denver Broncos – Moreno had a solid rookie season only to see his production fade a bit towards the end as he hit the proverbial “rookie wall” during the last month.  He showed flashes of what he could do and still managed to put up 1,160 yards from scrimmage and 8 touchdowns.  There has been some talk this spring about Josh McDaniels planning on featuring him more in the coming season.

Beanie Wells, Arizona Cardinals – The Cards think Wells has the chops to be one of the league’s best backs and would like to make him a more integral part of the offense.  He had a solid rookie season running for 793 yards and 7 TDs and with Kurt Warner retiring the Cards are likely going to run the ball a bit more this year.  The two things holding Wells back are his tendency to put the ball on the ground and the production of Tim Hightower.

LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia Eagles – With the release of long time starter Brian Westbrook, McCoy is expected to begin the season as the Eagles starter.  McCoy was solid during his rookie season and showed flashes of what he could do at times.  He is a versatile back who catches the ball well out of the backfield and stands a good chance at rushing for 1,000 yards this season provided he gets enough carries.

Leon Washington, Seattle Seahawks – After toiling in the shadow of Thomas Jones in New York the past several seasons Washington may finally get his shot at winning a starting job with Seattle this summer.  He will be competing with Julius Jones and Justin Forsett for playing time, but Pete Carroll has an affinity for versatile backs like Washington and he very well could end up winning the job in Seattle.  Keep an eye on this over the summer and if Washington beats out Jones and Forsett he could be worth taking a flyer on in a later round.

Buyer Beware

These are veteran backs who come with some baggage fantasy owners need to be aware of.

DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers – Last year at this time Williams was the one back everyone was clamoring to get on the heels of his 20 TD effort in ’08.  While Williams is still a quality back one has to wonder how many carries he will see as Johnathan Stewart continues to get better.  He should still be good for at least 1,000 yards and 8 to 10 TDs as the Panthers will still feature the run.

Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons – Turner’s productivity took a big tumble last season as he struggled with nagging injuries most of the year.  Just as we has starting to get his mojo back he lost most of the second half of the season due to a high ankle sprain.  However, he did still manage 10 TDs in 11 games before going down for the count.  One would expect that the Falcons will do a better job of limiting his carries, especially since Jason Snelling proved effective in Turner’s absence, and it seems unlikely he will ever approach the 376 carries he saw in ’08.  As long as he stays healthy he is still a good bet for double digits in touchdowns and 1,300 to 1,500 yards.  He gives fantasy owners nothing by way of the passing game.

Cedric Benson, Cincinnati Bengals – Yes Benson is coming off a career year in Cincy where he posted the first 1,000 yard season of his career.  However runners like Benson tend to wear down quickly and he has never played a full 16 games in any one season.  There is also a potential suspension looming over a May arrest.  He has also never scored more than 6 TDs in any one season.

Ricky Williams, Miami Dolphins -Ricky is coming off a strong year which saw him post almost 1,400 yards of offense and score 13 touchdowns.  The problem with Williams is he could flake out at any moment and decide he does not want to play ball any more.  For the time being he seems content on playing a couple of more years simply because he needs more money to be able to live the lifestyle he ultimately wants to live after his playing days are over.  There is also the matter that he will share carries with Ronnie Brown.  One of the reasons he was able to go for over 1,000 yards last season was due to Brown getting hurt and missing several games last season.

Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers – Gore is one of the better all purpose backs in the game.  The two biggest issues with him are he tends to miss a couple of games a year due to injury and inconsistency.  He tends to be very much a boom or bust player where he gives you over 100 yards or is struggling to get past 40 or 50.  He is not one of those guys where owners can expect 70 to 80 yards from him each and every week.  He is coming off one of his best fantasy years in which he put up 1,526 yards of offense and scored a career high 13 touchdowns.  One major bonus with Gore is he is typically good for 50-plus catches out of the backfield.

Ronnie Brown, Miami Dolphins – The biggest thing holding Brown back are his injuries and having to share carries with Ricky Williams.  If he stays healthy, though, one can count on 800 to 1,000 yards and 8 to 10 touchdowns.

Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts – Addai never developed into the guy the Colts thought he would after rushing for 2,153 yards and scoring 23 touchdowns his first two years in the league.  The Colts were expecting him to be a top ten rusher by this point in his career and it has never quite come together for him.  The one big thing that makes him an asset to fantasy owners is he has always been a pretty consistent touchdown guy when he has been healthy.  He averages 11.8 touchdowns per 16 games for his career.  He has generally been good for 40-plus catches and a couple of touchdowns out of the backfield over his career.

Pierre Thomas, New Orleans Saints – Thomas is probably never going to see more than 175 to 200 carries in a given season given how much the Saints like to throw the ball and the fact that he will share carries with at least one other back.  What makes him a solid addition to a fantasy team as a secondary back is he has scored 20 touchdowns over the last two seasons.

Matt Forte, Chicago Bears – On the heels of an unexpectedly strong rookie season Forte was the hot young fantasy back last summer.  Now, not so much.  Forte struggled to find his groove the entire year and saw his rushing yards dip from 1,238 to 929 in his second year.  He also saw his scoring output drop from 12 to 4.  The Bears brought in Chester Taylor this off season to pair with Forte in the backfield meaning Forte is more likely to see the 258 carries he had last season as opposed to the 316 he had his rookie year.

LaDanian Tomlinson, New York Jets – LT is on the downside of his career and it seems highly unlikely he will see more than 150 to 175 carries this season.  The Jets are likely looking to him as a complimentary back to Shonn Greene.  He does, however, still have a knack for hitting pay dirt and managed to score 12 touchdowns last season.

Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants – Jacobs is probably never going to be a feature back who gets 300 carries a season, however when he is playing at his best he can give fantasy owners 1,000 yards and double digit touchdown numbers.  His productivity can be inconsistent at times and he gives fantasy owners very little in the passing game.

Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys – Barber has never lived up to the hype that was bestowed upon him when he scored 28 touchdowns over the 2006-07 seasons.  Since then he has signed a huge contract extension, failed to breach the 10 TD mark in either of the last two seasons, and he has never reached the 1,000 yard barrier in rushing yards.  The problem with Barber is his running style lends itself to a lot of nagging injuries and Barber tends to wear down late in the season.  The primary reason to be wary of Barber this year is the Cowboys are leaning towards making Felix Jones the featured back this summer.

Ahmad Bradshaw, New York Giants – As long as Jacobs is around Bradshaw is always going to have to split carries with him.  Bradshaw did a nice job last season running for 778 yards and scoring 7 TDs though.  He is a nice guy to have around as a secondary back.

Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions – Smith is coming off an ACL injury that cost him the last three games of the season.  Since coming into the league Smith has never struck me as a guy who was going to challenge for a rushing title and is something of a grinder.  Regardless of his health he is going to lose touches to rookie Jahvid Best anyway.  He will still probably be featured at the goal line though meaning he could still score seven or eight touchdowns this year.

Laurence Maroney, New England Patriots – Maroney tends to play well when the spirit move him to do so, and because of this he spends a lot of time in Bill Belichick’s doghouse throughout the season.  He still remains the Patriots best option in the backfield and for what it is worth coming off a career best 9 touchdowns last season.

Cadillac Williams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Injuries have pretty much sapped what was once a promising career.  When healthy he is generally good for around 800 yards and a handful of touchdowns but one should anticipate him ever putting up Pro Bowl caliber numbers.

Fred Jackson, Buffalo Bills – While Jackson is coming off a career year and his success has made Marshawn Lynch expendable one should not plan on Jackson having a repeat performance this season.  Barring injury C. J. Spiller is expected to be the featured back in Buffalo this season meaning Jackson is likely going back to being a complimentary back who gets 8 to 10 touches a game.

Clinton Portis/Larry Johnson/Willie Parker, Washington Redskins – I don’t think I would waste my time on either of these guys.  Yes Mike Shanahan does have a knack for getting production out of his running backs, but I am just not convinced either of these three has enough left in the tank to give more than six or seven hundred yards and a handful of touchdowns.

Jury is Out

These are players who the jury is still out on.

Jerome Harrison, Cleveland Browns – Harrison was tremendous over the last three games for the Browns rushing for 561 yards and five touchdowns, but it remains to be seen Mangini intends on featuring him in the offense this season or not.  One would think he earned it with his performance to close out the year.  His carries could be limited by rookie Montario Hardesty though.

Marshawn Lynch, Buffalo Bills – I want to see where Lynch ends up before deciding what to do with him.  If the Bills hang onto him then there are not many compelling reasons to pick him up.  If he ends up getting dealt to a team that is willing to feature him then he is worth a look as a secondary back.

Steve Slaton, Houston Texans – Slaton’s fortunes are going to depend a lot upon when he is cleared to resume practicing.  There is some thought that he may not be cleared for contact until the end of August.  His role with the team is somewhat tenuous given how poorly he played prior to getting hurt last season.  He still has the play-making ability to warrant the Texans giving him another go before pulling the plug on him though.

Assessing the Rookies

A brief look on how this year’s rookie backs might fare.

C. J. Spiller, Buffalo Bills – Barring injury Spiller is expected to be the featured back in Chan Gailey’s offense this season.  Spiller has elite game breaking speed and was considered by many to be the best all around offensive player in this year’s draft class.  If he gets enough carries he should go for 1,500 yards from scrimmage and score at least 8 to 10 touchdowns.

Ryan Mathews, San Diego Chargers – Mathews is considered to be the best between-the-tackles back in this year’s class and is expected to step right in for LaDanian Tomlinson.  He should see at least 250 to 300 carries this season making 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns a strong possibility.

Jahvid Best, Detroit Lions – Best’s speed and play-making ability is comparable to that of Spiller’s, his stock slipped a bit after missing several games due to complications resulting from a concussion.  The Lions will likely limit his exposure a bit until he proves he is over the concussion issues.  Kevin Smith will probably still see the majority of the carries with Best getting 10 to 15 touches per game.

Dexter McCluster, Kansas City Chiefs – McCluster is not likely going to see the ball very much as a running back given the presence of Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles.  There is some talk of the Chiefs converting him into a slot receiver.  One could possibly see him being used much the same way Percy Harvin was in Minnesota last season.  The Chiefs will probably look to get him 5 to 7 touches in space to let him see what he can do with the ball in his hands.

Toby Gerhart, Minnesota Vikings – Gerhart is expected to take over the role Chester Taylor held as Adrian Peterson’s backup last season.  He should get roughly 100 carries or maybe more if the Vikings look to limit Peterson’s touches a bit more.  He could score a decent number of touchdowns as a goal line back though.

Ben Tate, Houston Texans – Keep an eye on Tate this summer.  The running back job in Houston is considered to be wide open and Tate is expected to have a shot at winning it.

Montario Hardesty, Cleveland Browns – There are those who think Hardesty has a reasonable shot at winning the starting job for the Browns this summer.  My gut tells me that it is Harrison’s to lose for the time being and Hardesty will be the #2 guy to start the season.

Joe McKnight, New York Jets – Without an injury to Greene or Tomlinson it is tough to imagine McKnight getting more than 75 to 100 carries this season and that is being generous.

Fantasy Studs

These are the guys who, barring injury, one can pencil in for 3,800 yards and 25 touchdowns this season.

Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints – Brees has arguably been the best fantasy quarterback since coming to New Orleans.  He has led the league in scoring strikes the past two years and has averaged 30 touchdowns and 4,574 yards in his four years in New Orleans.  Since coming to the Saints he has thrown for at least 26 touchdowns and 4,388 yards every year.  The only downside to Brees is he will throw his share of interceptions due to the sheer volume of pass attempts and he fumbled the ball 10 times last season, but those are things most fantasy owners are willing to live with given they know he will be in the top two or three in yards and touchdowns.

Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts – Fantasy owners can always count on Manning for 4,000 yards and 28 touchdowns.  Manning has never thrown for fewer than 3,739 yards and 26 touchdowns.  Manning has averaged 30 touchdowns and 4,137 yards over the past five years for the Colts.  He will throw his share of picks and he saw that number go up to 16 last season but a lot of that can probably be attributed to playing with two relatively green receivers in ’09.

Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers – Rivers has established himself as one of the league’s elite passers averaging 31 touchdowns and 4,131 yards over the last two seasons in San Diego.  The one thing to be wary of with Rivers is the Chargers have still not signed Vincent Jackson who is a favorite target of Rivers.  The absence of Jackson could really hurt Rivers’ fantasy numbers as he is the only established wide receiver on the team.

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers – Like Rivers, Rodgers has blown up over the last two seasons averaging 4,236 yards and 29 touchdowns per season for the Packers.  He even managed to cut his interceptions down to 7 from 13 last season.  The one big plus to Rodgers is fantasy owners can typically count on some rushing touchdowns from him as well as he has scored 9 rushing touchdowns in his two seasons as the starting quarterback in Green Bay.

Tom Brady, New England Patriots – Brady looked a little rusty at times in the early going but he still managed 4,398 yards and 28 touchdowns.  There is no reason to believe he will not post comparable numbers in 2010.

Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings – We will put Favre in this group, but, keep in mind he is 40 and he still has not decided whether he is coming back for 2010 or not.

Fantasy Broncos

These are players who are capable of putting up great fantasy years, but, have been known to backslide at times, or have some known issues that could cause them to slip a bit this year.

Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys – Romo generally puts up good fantasy numbers and they could get better with the addition of Dez Bryant.  However, there could be an issue of pass protection for Romo this season with the team looking breaking camp with an untested left tackle.  Romo has shown a tendency to make bad throws when pressured by opposing teams.  The Cowboys also teneded to move the ball better when they featured the running game.  Keep an eye on how well the Cowboys protect Romo in the preseason before deciding on him.  If he gets protection this season he will be a stud if not it could be a long year for his fantasy owners.

Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals – Prior to having his knee shredded in the playoffs in 2008 Palmer was a guy on the come for the Bengals.  He had three consecutive years of 3,800 yards and 26 touchdowns prior to the knee injury.  Palmer’s numbers dropped significantly in his first full season back from the injury last year.  The additions of Antonio Bryant and Jermaine Gresham could help Palmer get back to being one of the best passers in the league in 2010.

Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears – Take away the interceptions and Cutler had a pretty solid fantasy year with 27 touchdowns and 3,666 yards last season.  He has thrown 52 touchdowns over his last two seasons and has thrown for at least 3,497 yards the past three seasons.  The problem is the Bears did nothing to improve Cutler’s targets meaning he will likely be left to force a lot of throws and suffer threw another 20+ interception season.

Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers – The first reason to avoid Roethlisberger at the top of your draft is the fact that he could miss the first six weeks of the season due to a league suspension.  Roethlisberger is coming off an outstanding fantasy year but the reality of it is the Steelers tend to fare better as a team when they run the ball effectively and Mike Tomlin has stated a preference to get back to that this season.  Roethlisberger is sure to have some rust when he initially returns from suspension and could be worth squirreling away on your roster as a late season guy.

Eli Manning, New York Giants – Manning is coming off the best fantasy year of his career posting lifetime bests of  4,021 yards and 27 touchdowns in ’09.  It remains to be seen if this was simply Manning having a career year or the start of his ascension to being a guy the Giants can count on to carry the offense or if he will go back to being the same old mediocre Eli.

Donovan McNabb, Washington Redskins – When healthy McNabb could typically be counted on for 3,500 yards and 20 touchdowns per season in Philly.  Another bonus is fantasy owners can typically count on two or more rushing touchdowns per season.  Learning the offense should not be an issue for McNabb as the Philly offense is similar to Shanahan’s, but what could hurt McNabb is the lack of receiving talent in D. C. and an offensive line that still has a lot of question marks heading into training camp.

Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos – Yes Orton is coming off the best year of his career and is still considered the starting quarterback heading into the summer.  However his level of play dropped a bit after the first two months of the season and the team will be without Brandon Marshall this summer.  One should be wary of Orton this year as there is a good chance his numbers will drop.

Fantasy Colts

These are young quarterbacks coming off of breakout seasons and are on track to becoming studs with one or two more good seasons.

Matt Schaub, Houston Texans – Schaub was finally healthy enough to start all 16 games last season and had a breakout year in 2009.  He led the league with 4,770 yards, sixth most in league history, and 29 touchdowns last season.  When healthy Schaub is as good as there is in the league, the only problem is he has missed five games in 2007 and 2008.

Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens – Flacco has steadily progressed his first two seasons in the league and posted solid fantasy numbers of 3,613 yards and 21 touchdowns in only his second year.  With the additions of Anquan Boldin and Donte’ Stallworth to the Ravens roster this off season Flacco could be poised for a 4,000 yard, 25 touchdown season in 2010.

Keep an Eye On

These are quarterbacks who have yet to prove themselves to be good fantasy picks but could be poised for a breakout year this season.

Kevin Kolb, Philadelphia Eagles – Kevin Kolb may have the most fantasy upside of any of the unestablished quarterbacks in the league.  He is the only quarterback to ever pass for 300 yards in his first two career starts.  He also threw for two touchdowns in each of his two starts.  The big question on him is whether is tendency to throw picks is an aberration or if he is going to be a guy who gets picked 20 times this season.  With all of the weapons he has around him on offense the potential is there for him to throw for over 4,000 yards and upwards of 30 touchdowns.

Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers – Smith is showing signs of coming around and with Vernon Davis emerging as a legit play maker and Michael Crabtree in the fold this summer Smith could be poised for his first 3,500 yard, 20 touchdown season.

Chad Henne, Miami Dolphins – Henne had his moments last season and like most first year starters he struggled greatly at times.  One reason to be optimistic about Henne’s fantasy fortunes is the addition of Brandon Marshall to the Dolphins roster.  His presence alone could push Henne’s numbers up to 3,500 yards and 20 touchdowns this season.

Matt Moore, Carolina Panthers – Moore went 4-1 and threw for 8 touchdowns and threw for 990 yards as a starter last season.  With the presence of DeAngelo Williams and Johnathan Stewart it is hard to imagine Moore throwing for more than 3,000 to 3,500 yards but he should give fantasy owners 20 to 25 touchdowns and he only threw 2 interceptions in 138 attempts last year.

Jury is Out

These are guys who the jury is still out on as to what their fantasy numbers may be this season.

Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons – It is hard to gauge Ryan’s fantasy stock right now.  There are some things to like but one thing making me leery of him is they did nothing to try and enhance the receiving corps this off season and after Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez there is not a ton to be excited about in Atlanta.  He would appear to have the talent to be an upper echelon passer it is simply a matter of whether he has the weapons around him to do so.

Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs – Cassel has shown he can be a good fantasy quarterback (3,693 yds/21 TDs in ’08) the problem is I just do not like the talent around him in KC and the team did little to try and improve his receivers this off season.  Pass protections looks to still be an issue as well.

Matt Leinart, Arizona Cardinals – Leinart is considered the starter heading into camp and he has the talent around him to pass for 4,000 yards and 25 touchdowns.  The only problem is he has yet to show he is going to put it all together at the pro level.  He has been very inconsistent in previous stints as the Cards starter.

Buyer Beware

These are quarterbacks not worth taking unless you are looking to take a late round flyer on the off chance he does something this season.

Matt Hasselbeck, Seattle Seahawks – Hasselbeck still has something left in the tank but the Seahawks are still rebuilding and there is no guarantee he even beats out Charlie Whitehurst this summer.  If you have to take one guy out of this bunch he is probably the best choice simply because of what he has shown he can do in the past when he is healthy and has enough talent around him.

Mark Sanchez, New York Jets – While I still think Sanchez is going to be a good quarterback in due time and he should post better numbers than he did last season.  Two things to be wary of hear are he is coming off knee surgery and the Jets were the leading running team in the league last year.  There is no reason to think the Jets are going to shift gears and conscientiously start throwing the ball 30 to 35 times a game this season.

David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars – Until the Jags put serious effort into giving Garrard some real weapons to throw the ball to 3,500 yards and 15 to 18 touchdowns is about as good as it is going to get for Garrard.

Vince Young, Tennessee Titans – Young is in a similar situation as Garrard.  There simply are not a lot of weapons at Young’s disposal for owners to expect he will put up good fantasy numbers and he still turns the ball over his fair share.  The big plus is what Young can give you running the ball.

Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders – While Campbell is coming off the best fantasy season of his career he is going to Oakland which has been an offensive train wreck for several years running.  There is no reason to expect Campbell’s numbers to improve or even approach last year’s.  The only way Campbell has a respectable season is if Darrius Heyward-Bey suddenly learns how to catch a football.

Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Freeman was pretty inconsistent during his rookie season and turned the ball over quite a bit.  He had a few solid games but the bad outweighed the good for Freeman.  After Kellen Winslow, Reggie Brown is the best established receiver on the roster and after him it is mostly guys who never made it or unproven talent.  If Arrelious Benn or Mike Williams turn out to be ready for prime time Freeman’s fortunes could change.  Keep an eye on how the rookie receivers look this summer before making the ultimate decision on Freeman.

Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions – Stafford was wildly inconsistent last season and he never seemed to settle in and find his groove.  He threw a lot of interceptions and pass protection could still be an issue this season.  A healthy Calvin Johnson and the addition of tight end Tony Scheffler should help Stafford progress some this season, but until he shows he can string together three or four consecutive games with 250 passing yards and not throw multiple interceptions then Stafford is probably not worth taking as a starter for your fantasy team.

Jake Delhomme, Cleveland Browns – Delhomme was downright brutal last season and even in his best years he just an average fantasy quarterback.  There is no reason to believe Delhomme is going to give fantasy owners anything now that he is in Cleveland.  After all the only reason he was a decent fantasy quarterback in Carolina was having guys like Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad to throw the ball to.

Assessing the Rookies

These are the top rookie quarterbacks taken in the 2010 draft.

Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams – The expectation is that Bradford will begin the year as the Rams’ starting quarterback, however, given the lack of talent at the receiver position in St. Louis would should not expect big things from him in year one.  I would tend to lean towards him putting up numbers closer to Matthew Stafford than Matt Ryan or Joe Flacco had as rookies.  Ryan and Flacco had at least one established receiver to throw the ball to and the Rams simply do not have that.  I do think he will fare better than Stafford or Freeman simply because he does have Steven Jackson who should help take some of the weight off his shoulders.

Tim Tebow, Denver Broncos – Tebow is likely going to be the #3 guy behind Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn to start the season.  He is largely seen as a guy who is going to need two or three years to develop before being ready to start at the NFL level.  He could see action as a Wildcat quarterback this season though.

Jimmy Clausen, Carolina Panthers – The starting job is Matt Moore’s to lose in Charlotte and unless Moore or the Panthers fall flat on their faces the first month of the season it seems unlikely Clausen sees much playing time initially.  He could get a couple of starts at the end of the year if the Panthers are out of the playoff hunt.

Colt McCoy, Cleveland Browns – With Delhomme already in Cleveland McCoy will likely sit and watch to start the season.  The Browns are facing pretty low expectations so there is no real compelling reason to throw McCoy to the lions right away.  He could see action towards the end of the year once the Browns are out of the playoff picture.

Injury Updates

DeAngelo Williams has been held out of practice this week, but, odds are he will play as well as Johnathan Stewart.  Neither guy has barely practiced the past couple of weeks but have been good to go come game time.

Ronnie Brown was placed on IR yesterday due to the ankle/foot injury he suffered this past Sunday.

Miami tight end Anthony Fasano is not going to play for the Dolphins Thursday.

Brian Westbrook has been ruled out of this Sunday’s game due to the concussion he suffered against San Diego.

Clinton Portis did not practice Wednesday for the ‘Skins and remains extremely doubtful for Sunday as he recovers from a concussion.

Jermichael Finley returned to practice for the Packers on Wednesday.

Brett Favre has been limited in practice with a hip/groin injury but still is expected to play Sunday.

Julius Jones has been ruled out of this Sunday’s game against Minnesota with a bruised lung.

Michael Turner sounds like a guy who is going to try and go this Sunday but with a high ankle sprain it seems unlikely he will be that effective.

Kyle Orton did not practice Wednesday but it is expected he will play Sunday.

Cedric Benson is looking like a game-time decision for the Bengals on Sunday.  If he cannot go then Larry Johnson or Bernard Scott will see the bulk of the carries.

Terrell Suggs has been ruled out of Sunday’s game with a knee injury.

The Panthers place Jordan Gross on IR this week with a broken ankle.

Dallas safety Ken Hamlin has been ruled out of this weekend’s game against Washington.

Marc Columbo is likely going to miss the balance of the season for the Cowboys with a broken leg.

Jacksonville corner back Rashean Mathis has been ruled out of Sunday’s game with a groin injury.

Corner back Tracy Porter will not play for the Saints this weekend.

Jets safety Jim Leonhard has been ruled out after having thumb surgery this week.

Start/Top Plays

Look for Rashard Mendenhall to shred a Chiefs defense that is allowing 141 yards on the ground this season.

Maurice Jones-Drew should run up a ton of yards against a Bills defensive front allowing 173 rushing yards per game this year.  Jones-Drew has rushed for 530 yards and seven touchdowns over the past four games.  He has rushed for at least 97 yards and scored a touchdown in each of those games including a pair of multiple touchdown efforts.

Kurt Warner has thrown for 601 yards and 7 touchdowns in the two games since his five interception performance against the Panthers.  Look for Warner and company to light it up against a Rams defense ranking 25th in the league in passing yards allowed.  Larry Fitzgerald has caught 16 passes for 196 yards and three touchdowns in those two games.

With Ronnie Brown on the shelf Ricky Williams becomes the lead back in Miami and is coming off his first 100-yard game of the season.

LeSean McCoy is back in the starting lineup with Westbrook back on the sidelines and the Bears have struggled to stop the run this season due to various injuries.

Ladell Betts has rushed for 184 yards and two scores over the last two weeks for the ‘Skins and with Portis still recovering from a concussion Betts looks to be the lead back for Washington again this week.

With Dwayne Bowe out for the next four weeks Chris Chambers becomes the big play guy for the Chiefs.  He has posted 130 receiving yards and scored a pair of touchdowns in his two games with Kansas City.

Justin Forsett is coming off a 125 yard game and looks to get the start against Minnesota this Sunday with Julius Jones not expected to play.

Jason Snelling looks to be the odds on favorite to start at running back for the Falcons this Sunday.

Ryan Fitzpatrick has been named the starter over Trent Edwards this week.

Brandon Gibson is coming off a 7-catch 93-yard performance and with Keenan Burton going on IR this week Gibson looks to assume the starting spot opposite Donnie Avery.

For what it is worth JaMarcus Russell has been benched in favor of Bruce Gradkowski.

Players on the Rise

Chris Johnson has 759 yards, 623 rushing and 136 receiving, from scrimmage over the past four weeks for the Titans.  He has scored two touchdowns in each of the last three games and has rushed for at least 128 yards in each of the last four games including a season high of 228 against Jacksonville in week eight.

Tom Brady has thrown for at least 300 yards, totaling 1,395, the past four weeks.  He has thrown at least three touchdowns in three of those four games for a total of 13.

Randy Moss has caught six of those touchdowns passes and posted 524 receiving yards.  Moss has had at least 129 receiving yards in three of those four games.

Wes Welker has 435 yards and three touchdowns of his own over the last four weeks for the Patriots.

Frank Gore has 417 yards, 278 rushing and 139 receiving, of offense and three touchdowns over the last three weeks for the Niners.

DeAngelo Williams has rushed for 640 yards (128 ypg) and 5 touchdowns over the past five games for the Panthers.  He has rushed for at least 89 yards in each of those five games and 149 or more three times.  He has scored in three of those games including a pair of two touchdown games and is averaging 5.9 yards per carry.

Ray Rice has scored in each of the last five weeks for the Ravens for a total of six touchdowns.  He has also gained 684 yards of offense, 367 rushing and 317 receiving, over the last five weeks.  Rice has six straight games of at least 100 yards from scrimmage.

Brandon Marshall has caught 16 passes for 246 yards and a pair of touchdowns the last two weeks.

Sidney Rice is coming off the first 200-yard game of his career and has had at least 136 receiving yards in three of the Vikings last four games.

Johnathan Stewart has scored in four of the Panthers last six games for a total of six times.  He has also posted a pair of two touchdown games in the last three weeks.

Steve Smith is not putting up the big yardage numbers for the Panthers but he has scored in two of the last three games including a pair of touchdowns against Atlanta last weekend.

Adrian Peterson has scored in three straight games and has scored in seven of the Vikings nine games this season.

Joseph Addai has scored in six of his last seven games including a pair of touchdowns in each of the last two games for Indy.  He has also had 180 yards of offense over the last two weeks.

Matt Hasselbeck is coming off back-t0-back games where he threw for at least 300 yards and a touchdown for Seattle.

Reggie Bush is not putting up big yardage numbers, but, he has scored five touchdowns over the last five weeks for the Saints.

Laurence Maroney has scored in four straight games for the Patriots.

Brent Celek has scored in three straight games for the Eagles.

Lee Evans has scored in three of the Bills last four games.

Greg Olson has caught 12 passes for 146 yards and three touchdowns over the last two weeks for the Bears.

Roy E. Williams has caught 10 passes for 180 yards and a touchdown in Dallas’ last two games.

Jeremy Maclin has scored in two of the last three games for Philly and is averaging just over 55 yards per game in those contests.

Devin Hester is averaging 6.8 catches and 81.4 yards per game over the last five weeks.  With his speed it is just a matter of time until he starts scoring touchdowns again right?

Aaron Rodgers has thrown at least one touchdown pass in every game for the Packers this season.

Bench

Jay Cutler has thrown 6 touchdowns and 12 interceptions over the last five games for Chicago.  He leads the league with 17 interceptions thrown this season while the Eagles’ defense is third in the league with 15 picks.

Dwayne Bowe has been suspended by the league for four games.

Players Not Getting it Done

Matt Forte has rushed for more than 41 yards just once in the last five weeks and that came against the Browns when he ran for 90 yards.  The Cleveland game was also the only game he scored in the last five games.

Marion Barber still has not run for more than 53 yards in a game since his week two injury and has only scored twice in the six games he has played in since returning from the injury.

Felix Jones is struggling as well with just 128 yards of offense and no touchdowns in his four games since returning from a knee injury.

With teams now keying on Miles Austin he has just 5 catches for 69 yards and one touchdown the last two weeks.  The touchdown came on a blown coverage by the Eagles.  Teams seem to be willing to let the Cowboys try and beat them with Roy Williams and/or Patrick Crayton who have not been marks of consistency this season.

Matt Ryan has thrown 7 touchdowns and 10 interceptions over the past five weeks.  He has also failed to pass for 200 yards in three of those games.

Joe Flacco has not thrown for 200 yards in any of his last three games and has thrown just one touchdown pass.

Jason Witten has not scored since week two and has not had more than 53 receiving yards since week three.

Santana Moss has caught just 7 passes for 55 yards over the last two games for the ‘Skins.

Heath Miller has caught just 13 passes for 82 yards and no touchdowns over the last three games for Pittsburgh.

Mike Bell has just 47 yards on 13 carries over the last two games for the Saints.

Marques Colston has caught just 3 passes for 62 yards over the last two weeks.

Kyle Orton has thrown two touchdowns and 3 interceptions and has thrown for 200 yards just once over the last three weeks.

Teams With Byes: Buffalo, Cleveland, Oakland, St. Louis, Minnestoa, New York Jets

Start

Maurice Jones-Drew has rushed for 310 yards and scored five touchdowns over the past two weeks.  Look for another huge game from MJD as the Jags square off against a Chiefs defense that ranks 26th in the league in rushing defense.

San Diego’s Vincent Jackson is coming off back-t0-back 100-yard efforts totaling 245 receiving yards.  He has also scored touchdowns in three consecutive outings.  Go with Jackson against a banged up Giants secondary that has been allowing big plays of late.

The Cowboys have struggled in pass coverage this season so look for Donovan McNabb to take shots down the field to DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin.  One can expect another big play touchdown for Jackson this weekend.

Barring any set backs in practice this week Brian Westbrook is expected to start for the Eagles this weekend.

The Dolphins secondary has been prone to allowing big plays this season.  Look for Tom Brady to take some shots down the field to Randy Moss this weekend.

Tight end Fred Davis caught 8 passes for 78 yards in a touchdown after Chris Cooley went down with an injury in the Redskins last game.  He is expected to start at TE while Cooley recovers from surgery.

After running for 126 yards and three scores and with the mediocre play of Steve Slaton of late one can expect Ryan Moats to be the primary ball carrier for the Texans this weekend.

Green Bay’s Ryan Grant averaged 112.3 yards per game against the Rams, Browns, and Lions this year.  Expect a big game from him against a Bucs defense allowing 162 yards per game on the ground.

Cedric Benson ran for 120 yards and a score the last time the Bengals faced the Ravens in week five.

Chad Ochocinco caught 7 balls for 94 yards in week five against the Ravens.

Ray Rice had 69 rushing yards and 77 receiving yards and a touchdown in week five versus Cincinnati.

Joel Dressen is expected to be the starting tight end in Houston with Owen Daniels out for the remainder of the season with an ACL injury.

With Larry Johnson’s suspension Jamaal Charles is expected to be the primary ball carrier on Sunday for Kansas City.

Bench/Be Wary of

Calvin Johnson participated in practice Wednesday and even took reps with the first team offense.  Johnson is still listed as questionable for this Sunday and if he does not play then do not bother playing Matthew Stafford either as he clearly showed last weekend he is useless without Johnson on the field.

Eli Manning has thrown just 3 touchdowns and 6 interceptions and is averaging just 214.3 yards per contest over the Giants last three games.  He is also completing less than 50% of his passes over that time frame.

LeSean McCoy is said to have a bad case of the flu this week.  It is expected that he will play but one wonders how effective he will be and how many snaps he will be able to play.

Do not be fooled by Tony Romo’s recent play.  No, he is not throwing interceptions like he was a few weeks ago but he has still not corrected his accuracy issues and the Eagles are second in the league with 14 interceptions this season.  The Eagles are also second in the league in sacks so look for them to pressure Romo into making some bad throws resulting in a couple of picks Sunday.

Marion Barber is averaging just 48.5 yards per carry since injuring his quad in week two.  The Eagles are the sixth toughest team to run against allowing just 3.7 yards per carry and have allowed only four rushing touchdowns all season.

Anquan Boldin is still fighting an ankle injury and it is being speculated that he may be held out of this weekend’s game with Chicago in hopes he can get to 100% the following week.

Drew Brees has thrown just three touchdowns and four interceptions the past two weeks for the Saints.

Joe Flacco passed for just 186 yards and threw just one touchdown and two interceptions in week five against the Bengals.

Donald Brown sat out last week with an injured shoulder and only had ten touches in his two games prior to that.

Steve Slaton got just one carry and caught two passes before being benched in favor of Ryan Moats.  Given how well Moats played Sunday and that Slaton has lost fumbles in three straight games do not expect a lot out of Slaton for the time being.

Ronnie Brown has rushed for just 75 yards the last two weeks for the Dolphins.

The Giants’ Ahmad Bradshaw is playing with a cracked bone in his foot and likely will not be 100% until he has surgery in the off season.  He has, however, managed to score in three of the Giants last four games totaling four touchdowns.

Ted Ginn, Jr. saw only 16 snaps on offense last weekend and did not catch any passes.  He did, however, return a pair of kicks for touchdowns.

Jermichael Finley missed last weekend’s game with a knee injury and his status is up in the air for this weekend’s game with the Bucs.

Do not expect a lot from Josh Freeman, making his first start for Tampa, going against a Packers’ defense that is 4th in the league in interceptions and rates 9th in passing yards allowed this season.

Larry Johnson has been suspended and will not play this Sunday for the Chiefs.

Hot Hands/Players on the Rise

Chris Johnson has rushed for 356 yards and two scores over the Titans last two games.

DeSean Jackson is averaging 88 yards of offense and has scored six touchdowns in seven games for the Eagles this year.  All six of his touchdowns have gone for 50 yards or more.

Baltimore’s Ray Rice is averaging 149.25 yards of total offense and has scored four times over the Ravens last four games.

DeAngelo Williams is averaging 133 yards per game over the last three weeks, including two games of 150 or more, in addition to finding the end zone three times.

Johnathan Stewart is averaging 74 yards per game over the last three weeks as well as scoring three touchdowns for the Panthers.

Reggie Wayne has scored in five straight games and has only failed to score once in seven games.  He is also coming off a career high 12 catches last weekend.

Marques Colston is averaging 107.7 yards per game over the past three weeks and has caught a touchdown pass in each of those three contests as well.

Tom Brady has thrown 11 touchdowns and just two interceptions over the Patriots last three games.

Aaron Rodgers has thrown at least two touchdowns in five straight games and has thrown 12 scores and only 2 interceptions over that span.  He is also averaging 318.75 passing yards per game over his last four starts.

Michael Turner has scored in six straight games and is third in the league with 8 touchdowns overall.  He is also coming off a season best 150 rushing yard performance on Monday night.

Vernon Davis has scored in four of the Niners’ last five games totaling seven touchdowns altogether and four over the last two weeks.

Roddy White has scored in four straight games and has six touchdowns total on the year.

Derrick Mason has scored in four of the Ravens’ last five contests.

Reggie Bush may not be putting up much by way of yards, but, he has scored in each of the Saints last three games.

Wes Welker is averaging 9.3 catches and 109.67 yards per game over the past three weeks for the Patriots.  He has also scored four touchdowns in those games.

Ochocinco is averaging 7.3 catches and 105 yards over the Bengals last three games.

Devin Hester is averaging 7 catches and 88.3 receiving yards over the last three games for Chicago.

Players Who Are Slipping

Matt Ryan has completed just 51.8% of his passes and thrown five touchdowns and seven interceptions in his last three games for Atlanta.  He is averaging just 224 yards in those three games.

Jay Cutler has thrown just 3 touchdowns and six interceptions over the last three weeks for the Bears.

Kellen Winslow has caught just 5 passes for 38 yards in the Buccaneers last two games.

Matt Cassel has completed 46.4% of his passes and thrown just one touchdown and three interceptions in the Chiefs last two games.  He also only averaging 141.5 yards in those games.

Jacksonville’s David Garrard has thrown zero touchdowns and four interceptions over the Jaguars last three games.

Seattle’s T. J. Houshmandzadeh has caught just 8 passes for 58 yards and no touchdowns the last two games.

Titans’ leading receiver Kenny Britt has just 3 catches for 25 yards over his last three games.

Brandon Marshall has caught 9 passes for just 73 yards and no touchdowns over his last two contests.

Vince Young was officially named the starting quarterback for the Titans yesterday.

Calvin Johnson and Matthew Stafford both participated in practice for the Lions on Thursday and it is expected that both will play in some capacity on Sunday.

Andre Johnson is still questionable with a lung contusion and was sent back to the doctor for further examination this week.  I suspect Johnson will be a game time decision as long as the doctors clear him to play.

Reggie Wayne has missed practice this week as he battles a groin injury and it is unknown whether he will be able to play this weekend.

Dwight Freeney missed practice Wednesday and Thursday with a knee injury and is listed as questionable.  I suspect he is being held out for precautionary reasons and will play Sunday.

Mario Manningham suffered a shoulder injury in practice Thursday and is now listed as questionable for Sunday.

Arizona wide outs Anquan Boldin (ankle) and Steve Breaston (knee) are expected to play but may only see limited action Sunday.

John Abraham was limited in practice Thursday with a foot injury and is questionable for Monday.

Seattle’s Lofa Tatupu was put on IR this week after having surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle.

Adewale Ogunleye was limited in practice Thursday with an ankle injury and his status is questionable for this weekend.

Tommie Harris, who was held out of last weekend’s game is expected to be back in the lineup this Sunday.

Jermichael Finley has not practiced this week and is listed as questionable with a knee injury.

Muhsin Muhammad has not practiced this week and is questionable for Sunday with a knee injury.

Chad Clifton is still limited in practice with an ankle injury and is expected to be a game time decision for the Packers.

Philadelphia’s Macho Harris sat out practice with an ankle injury on Thursday casting doubt on his availability for Sunday.  Sean Jones was taking reps with the first team defense.

The Eagles put Omar Gaither on Injured Reserve and signed running back P. J. Hill off of the Saints practice squad.  Picking up Hill leads one to believe Brian Westbrook will not be playing as a result of the concussion he suffered Monday night.  Reid is still telling reporters that Westbrook is a game time decision, but Westbrook has not practiced at all this week.  This is probably just Reid messing with the media as he likes to do at times.

Victor Abiamiri and Kevin Curtis have been ruled out of this Sunday’s game with knee injuries.

Chris Canty is being ruled out against the Eagles this weekend with a calf injury.

Antonio Pierce has been limited in practice this week with an ankle injury and is questionable for this Sunday.

Ahmad Bradshaw has a cracked bone in his foot and is expected to play the rest of the year and have surgery in the off season.  This likely limits how productive Bradshaw is going to be the rest of the season.

Chaz Schillens is still questionable for this weekend and Louis Murphy could not make through practice on Thursday leading to speculation that Javon Walker may get the start for Oakland Sunday.

Corey McIntyre, Donte Whitner, and Kyle Williams have all been ruled out of Buffalo’s game this weekend.

Mark Tauscher is looking like a go for Sunday.  It has not been confirmed as of yet but Mike McCarthy sounded like he was leaning that way.

Jerricho Cotchery is telling reporters he is a go for Sunday after returning to practice on an albeit limited basis Wednesday.

Safety Antrel Rolle is being considered a game time decision for Arizona on Sunday due to a foot injury.

Allen Rossum is expected to miss the next few weeks for the Cowboys with a hamstring injury.

Wide receiver Jordy Nelson has been ruled out for the Packers.

Johnson Out, Freeman In

Josh Freeman led the first team offense in Tampa Bay’s first full practice since returning from London and head coach Raheem Morris announced Freeman will be the starter when the Bucs take on Green Bay in week 9.  It comes as no real surprise that Morris decided to pull the plug on Josh Johnson after he completed just 9 of 26 passes and threw three interceptions against the Pats last weekend.  In Johnson’s four winless starts the offense never scored more than 14 points in a game with Johnson throwing 8 interceptions.

One should not expect too much out of Freeman being a rookie quarterback on a bad team.  But, to be honest, I do not know that I will ever expect much out of Freeman.  He just felt like a guy that teams fell in love with because he has a rocket arm, but, he was never terribly accurate in college and tended to really struggle against the better teams in the Big 12, and the Big 12 has not been known for its stalwart defenses the past few years.

Who knows maybe he will turn out to be a good quarterback, but I just do not see it.

Delhomme the Man

Much to the dismay of Carolina Panthers fans head coach John Fox announced Jake Delhomme will remain the starting quarterback for the time being.  On the surface the decision seems rather dumbfounding given how atrocious Delhomme has been at times this year.  Only Josh Johnson, JaMarcus Russell, and Derek Anderson have lower passer ratings this season and Delhomme leads the league with 13 interceptions.

The problem is the alternatives are Matt Moore and A. J. Feely.  Moore had a handful of starts back in ’07 when Delhomme went down with an elbow injury and did nothing to leave the impression that he was ever going to be anything more than a serviceable backup in the NFL.  Ultimately the only reason Feely was even signed was because Josh McCown went down with a season-ending injury in week one.  They simply needed someone to be the emergency quarterback in the event Moore and/or Delhomme go down to injury.

One wonders if McCown had stayed healthy if Delhomme would still be the starter in Charlotte this weekend.  If McCown were healthy one has to think he would be starting this week against Arizona.

Will it be Young or Collins?

Head coach Jeff Fisher has yet to reveal who the team’s starting quarterback will be this Sunday when the Titans take on the Jags.  It is being reported this week that team owner Bud Adams is leaning on Fisher to get Young out there more than he has.  One has to think that if Adams is seriously giving Fisher heat about not playing Young that Young will be the starter this weekend.  If Collins draws the start then one has to think Young will see significant time at some point on Sunday.

LJ Suspended

Larry Johnson was officially suspended Wednesday and will not play in the Chiefs next game against the Jaguars on November 8th.  Johnson has said he will file an appeal but it seems rather fruitless.  Regardless of his claims that he is intent was to promote his father and not disparage his coach one has to wonder what he thought would happen.  You cannot openly criticize your coach the way you did and not expect some repercussions.  One cannot go around and openly criticize their employer and not expect to be punished when the higher ups find out about it.

There has been rampant speculation the Chiefs will merely cut Johnson loose when his suspension and/or appeal is resolved.  They are probably further ahead simply cutting him loose rather than having around the team where he can be potentially toxic to a team that is trying to rebuild itself.

Walter Jones Done

The Seahawks put All-Pro tackle Walter Jones on Injured Reserve this week officially bringing his season to an end.  There is also a lot of speculation that Jones’ career is over in Seattle.  He says he still wants to play next season and is rehabbing with that goal in mind.  It sounds as though Jones’ heart is not listening to his body just yet.

Brian Westbrook Update

Brian Westbrook has been officially listed as a game time decisions for the Eagles Sunday.  I am still leaning towards him not playing this weekend.

Trent Edwards Done in Buffalo?

The fact that the Bills brought Patrick Ramsey in for a tryout earlier this week makes one wonder how bad Trent Edwards’ concussion was.  He was ruled out of this week’s game prior to Monday.  One of the first injury updates I heard about this week was that Edwards would not play this weekend.  Given the concussion was a week-and-a-half ago and Edwards is nowhere close to returning to the practice field makes one think Edwards is not coming back any time soon.

The fact that Ramsey, a former Bills quarterback, was brought in this week makes one wonder if the Bills think Edwards will be back on the field at all this season.

Teams having a bye this week: Cincinnati Bengals, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins

Start

DeSean Jackson leads the league in plays from scrimmage of 40 yards or more with six.  New York’s secondary is more physical than it is fast.  Look for the Eagles to get the ball to Jackson in space where he can run past the Giants secondary.

Miles Austin should pile up a bunch of yards after the catch this weekend against a Seattle team that does not tackle well.

Matt Forte should finally have a big game this weekend as the Browns are allowing 170.6 yards per game to opposing rushers this season.

With Leon Washington being placed on injured reserve with a broken league fantasy owners should look to pick up Shonn Greene.  Greene is expected to pick up the fifteen or so touches Washington was getting a game.

Buffalo is giving up over 170 yards per game on the ground this season so this should finally be the week that Steve Slaton gets his nut running the ball.

The Bills have had trouble against some of the better tight ends in the league so look for Owen Daniels to have another strong game this week.

Look for Drew Brees and company to light it up against an ailing Falcons secondary that has allowed 589 passing yards and five touchdowns the last two weeks.

Ronnie Brown ran for 74 yards and a pair of scores the first go around with the Jets and has scored in three straight and four of the last five games for the ‘Phins.  Brown has scored five times in the last three games for Miami.

Ricky Williams ran for 68 yards against the Jets in week six and is coming off a 3 touchdown performance against the Saints and has five touchdowns in his last 4 games.

Brian Hartline is coming off a 3-catch, 94-yard performance against New Orleans and is reportedly practicing with the first team offense this week.

Torry Holt has caught 12 passes for 196 yards in his last two games and Tennessee is allowing over 300 yards per game through the air.

Mike Sims-Walker is averaging 7 catches and 99 yards per game in his last four starts making him a good play against a soft Titans secondary.

Chris “Beanie” Wells is expected to make his first start of the season on Sunday against a Panthers defense that is allowing over 130 yards per game on the ground this year.

Bench/Be Wary Of

As of Wednesday morning Philadelphia’s Brian Westbrook is listed as questionable and the consensus seems to be that he will not play against the Giants on Sunday.  He went for tests to determine the extent of his concussion on Tuesday and more will be known later in the week.

Houston’s Andre Johnson is listed as questi0nable with a chest contusion and it has been reported that he suffered a bruised lung on Sunday.  Early reports are that he is expected to play but that could change so keep an eye on his status throughout the week.

Buffalo’s Trent Edwards has been ruled out of this weekend’s game as he continues to recover from a concussion he suffered against the Jets in Week Six.  Ryan Fitzpatrick will start in his place, but, based on his game against Carolina he probably is not worth starting.

Calvin Johnson is still not practicing coming out of the bye week.  Matthew Stafford has been taking snaps this week with the first team offense, but if Johnson cannot go playing Detroit’s quarterback is pretty useless.

Ted Ginn, Jr. is reportedly not practicing with the first team offense this week after dropping some key passes in Sunday’s second half meltdown against the Saints.  The consensus seems to be that he will play Sunday but will not be an every down player.

Arizona is allowing only 67.5 yards per game on the ground so do not expect big yardage numbers from either DeAngelo Williams or Johnathan Stewart this weekend.

Bernard Berrian injured his hamstring against Pittsburgh and has only caught 5 passes for36 yards in his last two games.

Jerricho Cotchery is reportedly back to practice this week but is still listed as questionable on the team’s injury report.

Aside from his 207 yard game against the Seahawks Frank Gore has rushed for just 66 yards on 36 carries this season.

On The Rise/Hot Hands

Miles Austin has caught 16 passes for 421 yards and four scores in the Cowboys last two games.

Thomas Jones has run for 331 yards and two touchdowns in the Jets last two contests, and has scored seven times on the season.

Baltimore’s Ray Rice is averaging 163 yards of total offense in his last three games and has scored three touchdowns over the last two weeks.

Sidney Rice has caught 16 passes for 312 yards over the Vikings last two games.

Reggie Wayne has caught at least six passes and scored a touchdown in five of his six games this year.

Matt Schaub has passed for 899 yards and thrown 8 touchdowns over the Texans last three games.

Phillip Rivers has thrown seven touchdown passes over his last three games and has thrown for at least 250 yards in every game this season.  He also has not thrown an interception since the second game of the season.

Aaron Rodgers has passed for at least 246 yards and thrown at least two touchdowns in the last four games for Green Bay.

Donald Driver has 191 receiving yards the last two games and has had at least 84 yards in four of his last five games.

Ryan Grant has rushed for 238 yards the past two weeks and has gone for at least 90 yards in three of the Packers last four outings.

Owen Daniels has three touchdowns in his last two games and has caught 22 passes for 295 yards over his last three.

Vincent Jackson has caught touchdown passes in two straight games for the Chargers.

Joseph Addai has scored touchdowns in four straight games for the Colts and has scored in five out of their six games this season.

Even though he is not putting up the big yardage numbers he did last season Michael Turner has scored in five straight games and has seven total for the year.

Roddy White has scored in three straight with four overall touchdowns in those games.

Philly’s defense has a league high 18 takeaways, is second in the league with 21 sacks, and fourth in the league in yards allowed.

Chicago’s Devin Hester has caught 14 passes for 184 yards over the Bears last two outings.

San Francisco’s Vernon Davis has six touchdowns in his last four games.

Giants receiver Hakeem Nicks has caught at least four passes in his last three games and has scored a touchdown in four straight.  He is also averaging 19.7 yards per reception this season.

Austin Collie has scored touchdowns in three straight games for the Colts and has four total over the last three weeks.

On the Decline

Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw has rushed for just 80 yards on 22 carries over the Giants last two games, but he does have a touchdown.

Terrell Owens has caught just 10 passes for 84 yards over the last three weeks and has scored just one touchdown on the season.

Dallas’ Marion Barber is averaging just 56 yards of total offense per game and has scored just one touchdown since injuring his quad in week two.  He is also averaging only 3.5 yards per carry since the injury.

Matt Forte has just 109 yards of total offense in his last two games and has scored just one touchdown this year.

Jamal Lewis has just 83 yards of total offense in the Browns last two contests.

San Francisco’s Isaac Bruce has caught just five passes for 43 yards over the Niners’ last three games.

Seattle’s Julius Jones has just 76 yards of total offense in his last three games.

Chicago’s Jay Cutler has thrown just three touchdowns against five interceptions that last two weeks.

Mark Sanchez has thrown just two touchdowns and eight interceptions in his last four games.  He has also not thrown for more than 200 yards since week one.

Willis McGahee has rushed for just 12 yards on 13 carries and has scored just one touchdown in the Ravens last three contests.

Kerry Collins has not thrown a touchdown in his last two games and has passed for just 157 yards in those two games.

As of Friday afternoon Buffalo’s Trent Edwards was being ruled out of this Sunday’s game due to the concussion he suffered against the Jets last Sunday.

Arizona’s Anquan Boldin is questionable with an ankle injury and is expected to be a game time decision on Sunday.

Jets receiver Jerricho Cotchery has been ruled out of this weekend’s game against the Raiders.  Cotchery missed the game against Buffalo with a hamstring injury he suffered against the Dolphins two weeks ago.

It is also being reported that Rex Ryan is ruling cornerback Lito Sheppard and backup receiver Brad Smith out of this weeks game as well.

Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu is still expected to play this Sunday despite missing practice time earlier in the week.

It is expected that Michael Crabtree will be on the field for approximately half of the Forty Niners plays during his pro debut this weekend.

Newly signed Mark Tauscher is not expected to see significant time at right tackle for the Pack this weekend.

Chicago defensive tackle Tommie Harris was held out of practice two days this week raising speculation as to whether he will play this Sunday against the Bengals.  If he is unable to play it could pave the way for Cedric Benson to have a big game.

Bob Sanders is expected to play this Sunday for the Colts.  It is unknown how many snaps he will see however.

Miles Austin was officially promoted to starter this week in favor of the enigmatic Patrick Crayton.  Crayton, however, could still see significant playing time as it is still not known how much Roy Williams is going to be able to play this weekend.  Williams says he is playing, but, there is speculation around Dallas that they are not so sure that he will be able to give the team much on Sunday.

Washington placed Chris Samuels on IR due to a neck injury and there is speculation that his career may be over.

Justin Edelman is out indefinitely with a broken arm.  With Joey Galloway being released earlier in the week it is unknown who the third receiver will be for the Pats this weekend, but, there is speculation that it may end up being Isiah Stanback who failed to catch on with the Cowboys.

New England’s Sammy Morris has been ruled out of this weekend’s game against the Bucs.

Chaz Schilens is expected to see his first action of the season this weekend leading to speculation that Darrius Heyward-Bey is going to see fewer snaps for the Raiders.

Kevin Curtis is still questionable for this weekend and is expected to be getting a second opinion on his knee injury meaning Jeremy Maclin is likely to remain in the starting lineup for the time being.

Marcus Trufant and Lofa Tatupu have both been ruled out of this weekend’s game for the Seahawks.

Clinton Portis has missed practice time this week with a foot/ankle injury but is still expected to play against Philadelphia on Monday Night.