By Zack Cimini
Notjustagame23@gmail.com

For all the bad publicity the New York Jets have received this year there has been a very bright spot. Their signing of LT has quietly been the key to their early season success. He has by far outperformed Shonn Greene. Greene was expected to storm by LT, and make him look like a cast away veteran in the last stage of his career. Instead Greene looks like LT’s backup. Fantasy owners have to be boiling that drafted Greene as he has done little. Most likely you’ve been forced to start him based on the position you drafted him.

LT’s departure from San Diego wasn’t handled in the best way, but LT acted like a business man during the whole matter. He could have been bitter and voiced his opinion in a fashion that tore apart the organization. Everyone knows the Chargers have not been the best in handling situations with their players. As the writing was on the wall, LT looked for a place that he felt he could still thrive and win a title.

The way LT has been hitting the whole he looks like he may get the last laugh on the rest of the league that was ready to write him off. Brian Shottenheimer currently calls the first half run plays as even as possible. LT and Greene get to showcase for full time second half duties. Whoever is performing better gets the bulk of those second half carries. For the first three games those carries have shifted to LT. Currently he has over 200 yards rushing with a whopping 5.6 yards per carry average.

The burden he has lifted off of Mark Sanchez has been enormous. Could you imagine how the Jets would have started the season with just Greene as the main back? Teams would have had a feast and forced the Jets to throw every down like some teams are forced. As erratic as Sanchez has been who knows how he would of handled the pressure. Starting off the year poor with a young quarterback could have dug Sanchez a mental blow he would of never got out of. You just don’t know how a quarterback is going to handle himself under the scope of an increased role.

With Sanchez having the comfort ability of a veteran back he is slowly emerging into a quarterback. Before you could tell Sanchez’s play calls were scripted. One or two reads and deliver the football. The Jets were not going to take chances with him. Now he is lobbing paces up and trusting Dustin Keller. He’s also making some precision throws and prime spots.

Shonn Greene will break out of his bog soon. Once he does who knows how scary this team is going to be. Defensively they’ve been stout. If this offense picks up momentum, watch out. Sanchez is likely going to go into the playoffs with a phenomenal rushing attack. Santonio Holmes will be back from suspension soon. Adding another big play threat to replace Jerricho Cotchery who is at best a fourth receiver on most teams.

Praise the Jets for their signing of LT and for the way he has responded. He is having more of a fantasy impact than he has in a long time. The past two seasons he looked dog tired and physically not there. Whatever it was….rest, new regimen, or a new beginning, it is working for LT. He is not a fantasy starter but is one of the highest ranking third backs to have on a fantasy team. You never know what’s going to happen over the course of the year. He could be that familiar weapon that you need down the stretch when injuries begin to take place.

By Zack Cimini
Notjustagame23@gmail.com

Whose out there for you to grab and light a fire to your fantasy team? We’ve got a ton of options for you too look at. If you’re real desperate now is the time to unload a trade before it gets out of control.

Tune in Wednesday night as we will be uploading another pod cast with hot topics and informative fantasy news and spread choices heading into week four. It’ll be uploaded 10pm PT.

Quarterbacks

Ryan Fitzpatrick- Ryan made one costly mistake throwing a pick in the end zone against the Patriots. For most of the game though he was more than what Bills fans would expect. A definite upgrade over what Trent Edwards was providing. If the Bills can continue to get solid run support from CJ Spiller and Marshawn Lynch than Fitz could be a bye week starter for your fantasy team. In deep leagues he can serve as a backup.

Sam Bradford- Bradford is excelling at a much better pace than most rookie quarterbacks. This bodes well for keeper league owners. Bradford is leading drives efficiently with a sub par running game and mediocre receivers. The running game should come around and you know the Rams will get Bradford more weapons to throw too.

Running Backs

Ryan Torain- We were wondering who the Redskins would look to after letting go Larry Johnson. Clinton Portis is giving it his all out there, but the Redskins need to split carries in their backfield. Portis isn’t giving them any big plays and is having a tough time getting out of the backfield. Torain got even carries with Portis, Sunday at seven each. Will see if the Redskins increase the load a bit.

Benjarvus Green-Ellis- It’s Ellis this week and could be Sammy Morris next. The Patriots look like they’re going to play the hot hand at running back. Fred Taylor is not nicked up at all which makes it puzzling why he is not getting the carries. Maybe the Patriots want to preserve Taylor as much as possible for the playoff stretch.

Peyton Hillis- Somehow Hillis has stayed on a good percentage of waiver wires. Jerome Harrison could face injury problems throughout the year, and if so Hillis’s value is exponential. He torched the Ravens defense Sunday, and provided great balance for the Browns offense. Even if Harrison comes back into the fold, Hillis is the Browns for sure short yardage and goal line back.

Justin Forsett- The Seahawks might not be over .500 at any other point this year. Forsett’s one of the few backs in the league that has a major chunk of his teams carries. He hasn’t done anything with those thus far, but showed a glimmer of hope against the Chargers. He neared 100 all purpose yards rushing and receiving, and is giving it his all. Leon Washington is their electric spark on special teams but hasn’t been mixed in the rushing game. That’ll likely change. If  you’re desperate ink Forsett to a waiver wire three week tryout.

Kenneth Darby- It remains to be seen if or how long Steven Jackson will be out with his groin injury. That type of injury is similar to a hamstring. Timetable for a recovery could linger on a week to week basis. Darby did a suitable job filling in for Jackson in the second half and even got in the end zone.

Wide Receivers

Jabar Gaffney and Brandon Lloyd-
Denver’s non existent running game has made a once non friendly fantasy receiver crew, into a hot commodity. The ball is being spread around nicely in Denver and on a week to week basis distributed to where all are fantasy worthy. Kyle Orton is doing a commendable job. Next thing for these receivers is getting it done in the red zone for Orton. They struggled against the Colts numerous times inside the red zone.

Roscoe Parrish- Often times when a quarterback change is made, you’ll see a receiver emerge within the depth chart. Reason why is the chemistry made during training camp and practice amongst the backups. Fitzpatrick’s been in the Bills system for a few years and has that chemistry with Parrish. The quick out pass worked against the Patriots. Opposing defenses will see film of that and shut it down going forward. They’ll need to run more routes down the field to build upon this week.

Joshua Cribbs- We profiled him right before the season as our deep sleeper of the year. The past two weeks he has crept up with decent games. He is still not a starting fantasy threat but by midseason he could be there. Especially if the Browns settle on a quarterback and get some consistency going.

Lance Moore- Moore is like the old Az Hakim of the St. Louis Rams. He’ll pop up a few times during the season and be non existent the rest. He seems to be healthy unlike last season. The Saints will continue to spread the field out with three and four receiver sets, especially with Reggie Bush out.

Davone Bess- When the Dolphins have tough matchups look at utilizing Bess. Miami doesn’t like to open up the offense unless the running game is shut down. Sounds like a formula most teams wouldn’t mind doing. Bess can be a deep league filler on those occasions.

Tight Ends
Tony Scheffler- Detroit has absolutely no one to go to behind Calvin Johnson at receiver. They’ve looked to throws out of the backfield with Jahvid Best, and are splitting their two tight ends out more. Scheffler and Brandon Pettigrew are rising as combo tight ends that are fantasy friendly. Scheffler has had minor value before in Denver. If you’re stuck in a rut with your current tight end situation email us on whose available.

By Zack Cimini

notjustagame23@gmail.com

There’s nothing like seeing someone explode on Sunday and the dash to rush to your computer to anticipate picking that athlete up. After grabbing him that week of excitement turns out to be that players season high for all around performance. It’s not just waiver wire athletes we look at. Will look at regular fantasy contributors as well that exceeded week two expectations. Owners that are in the hole can be duped by opposing owners selling an athlete higher than they should, and bolstering their squads for dominate runs.

Quarterbacks

Donovan McNabb-McNabb deserves a ton of praise for his performance to start the season. More people want to see him fail than succeed but he keeps proving doubters wrong. At that though he is on a team with a poor running game with two old backs as options. Picking a part the Texans will be McNabb’s best performance by far. Unless the Redskins get involved in exchanging Albert Haynesworth for Vincent Jackson or another receiver. If that happens, McNabb could continue to be a fantasy factor. Now with Joey Galloway as second receiver it’s just not a possibility.

Mark Sanchez-  For those believing Sanchez has even a sliver of fantasy value better jump off the band wagon. He delivered some key throws for the Jets but the same has been the case in the past for Jake Delhomme. It was one good half by Sanchez, that’s it. He’ll have more downs than ups this year and will continue to be shackled by the Jets play calling to limit his mistakes.

Shaun Hill- Detroit’s wishing he could have delivered as well as he did Sunday a week before against the Bears. There’s no side tracking Detroit’s offensive talent. Jahvid Best looks like he is the front runner for rookie of the year. Hill though has been a Jay Fiedler like performer in the past. He did most of his damage when the Eagles let up defensively with a comfortable 35-17 lead.

Running Backs

LeSean McCoy-  Yardage wise McCoy could be a top ten back this year. Factor in his rushes with yardage pass catching. Touchdowns though is a different story. Expect a large lapse of production from his first two weeks. In the first two weeks he has totaled what he did as a rookie with four touchdowns. McCoy’s touchdowns have come from fairly long distances. Another area backs can’t keep up. If we see him score more inside the five yard line, than we will become a believer.

Tim Hightower- Hightower has that big play potential and provided the lone Cardinals big play Sunday. Busting on the right edge and bursting down the sideline for a long touchdown. Hightower’s going to be a steady fantasy backup running back, but will lose a considerable amount of value once Beanie Wells is healthy.

Mike Tolbert- Tolbert’s the Ron McLain type which can be an occasional starter when injuries present themselves. McLain did that a few times for the Ravens but like Tolbert he is a situational short yardage and goal line back.

Wide Receivers

Mike Sims-Walker- He was a waiver wire gem last year. This year he can be a third wide receiver in deep leagues but besides that more of a suitable bye week filler. It’s not Walker’s talents hindering him, it’s the offense. David Garrard might be the most struggling quarterback in the league still holding his job.

Joey Galloway- At 38 Galloway is giving it his all out there but just like last year he’ll fade out.  Were sure he has a zero percent ownership but there’s someone out there that noticed his deep ball patterns with McNabb. One was caught and one Galloway lost a half step on a perfect throw. The yardage numbers (88) Galloway had he might not equal in the next six games.

Kevin Walter- Time and time again he has monster games. Schaub had a career day that few will ever come close to, including himself. Walter is an aging receiver that is being pushed by Jacoby Jones. As the season goes on we expect Jones to be a higher impact receiver than Walter.

After a foot injury limited his time in training camp and kept him out of the Denver Broncos’ season opener, rookie wide receiver Demaryius Thomas showed he can be the big, strong playmaking receiver that Brandon Marshall was when he was a Bronco. He also showed why we picked him as a wide receiver to watch for early in the season.

In his first regular-season game, Thomas caught eight passes for 97 yards and a touchdown in the Broncos’ 31-14 win against the Seattle Seahawks. Thomas showed that he can play a starring role in the Broncos offense, and led the team in receptions and receiving yards. Quarterback Kyle Orton had a great day, along with running back Knowshon Moreno and receiver Eddie Royal. Thomas, Moreno, Royal and receiver Brandon Lloyd all went over 50 yards receiving on the day.

Though it’s still very early, and it was only one game, it looks like it’s time to seriously consider picking up Thomas. His injury kept him off the field for a while, so there could be a high chance that he’s available in your league. If he is, and you’re looking for a second or third receiver, Thomas would be a great choice. If he can stay healthy and use his size against smaller defensive backs, he could have a great rookie season. The Broncos did lose an elite wide receiver in Marshall, but in time, Thomas could fill in well for him. If Orton can continue to get his other receivers involved, Thomas should see favorable matchups throughout the year. Moreno leads the rushing attack, and can also contribute as a receiver out of the backfield. Royal has dangerous speed, and is coming off a down year in 2009. He can be a great number two or slot receiver for Orton. Receiver Jabar Gaffney caught 54 passes last year, and looks like another reliable option. Both Royal and Gaffney can be solid as a supporting cast to complement a number one receiver. That’s where Thomas comes in. If he can continue playing like he did against Seattle, he can take control of the Broncos’ number one receiver spot and become Orton’s main target.

If Thomas indeed does become the go-to guy in Denver this year, he has the chance to be one of the premier young wide outs in the game. He’s in a good situation in Denver, with a solid quarterback who doesn’t make too many mistakes, and has a good amount of weapons around him. Keep track of him for another week or two if you’re not convinced, but picking him looks like a good move for your team.

By Zack Cimini

notjustagame23@gmail.com

Hopefully everyone was able to read our sleeper starters for this past week. As a handful of the guys listed on this weeks waiver wire pickup are guys that we tabbed as sleepers for week two. Usually it takes an injury for a player to step in and make the most of an opportunity. There were a few this weekend that make for a classic waiver wire bidding scramble.

Quarterbacks

Josh Freeman- Freeman’s doing enough each week to show subtle growth for a young quarterback. He doesn’t have the great run support but the team has a solid balance that’s working. As the season goes on he should develop an even better rapport with his rookie wide receivers. When his third year approaches a year from now he could be a viable starter in deep fantasy leagues.

Kyle Orton- Hands down Orton has been the best turn around quarterback of the last few seasons. In Chicago he backed up Rex Grossman of all people. They were both forced out of Chicago after musical chairs of dismal seasons with both. Orton landing in Denver as part of the Cutler trade was a joke of jokes around NFL circles. Orton’s held up his part of the bargain and doesn’t look like even Tebow’s name can supplant him.

Bruce Gradkowski- Gradkowski was one of many quarterbacks on Sunday that was called to replace a starter. Unlike other backups, Gradkowski came in and provided the spark to get his team a win. Jason Campbell struggled again. The Raiders have enough talent to maybe have to think about starting Gradkowski.

Running Backs

Donald Brown- Brown didn’t touch the ball week one mainly due to the Colts being down early to the Texans. Indianapolis got back to their game plan against the Giants, and showed a strong ground game. Indianapolis will likely have their fair share of games when they’re ahead comfortably. Even with that extra area to pad his stats, Brown seems to have a chance of getting ten carries a game as part of the Colts regular game plan.

Marshawn Lynch- Were not sure how Buffalo’s planning on splitting the backfield up between Lynch, Jackson, and Spiller. You’d expect Spiller to be the main threat after the Bills invested a first rounder on him. Lynch was perceived as being in the Bills dog house and on his way out. He led the Bills with seventeen carries Sunday. Even though he did not have a ton of yardage the amount of carries he had is fantasy friendly. Buffalo may hand the ball off every carry rather then have Trent Edwards attempt a pass.

Mike Tolbert- The bowling ball is typically the Chargers fullback, but has the ability to carry the load every down. Time will tell how long Ryan Matthews will be affected with his injury. Tolbert ran the ball effectively and scored two touchdowns Sunday, something Matthews had not been able to do thus far. Tolbert’s available in most leagues and even if Matthews is back next week, San Diego will likely lessen Matthews burden after Tolbert’s performance. The worst situation for Matthews owners is if Tolbert becomes the inside the five yard line running back.

Jason Snelling- Down goes Michael Turner again. Word is he should be back without worries. Turner wasn’t the only Falcon to go down though as Jerious Norwood did as well. Snelling stepped in and delivered a monster game. Three touchdowns in all and was effective both rushing and catching the football. The combo of Snelling and Turner could bolt up to the top five duel backfields in the league.

Wide Receivers/Tight End

Mike Williams (Tampa Bay)- We’ve been praising Williams in the off-season and the first two weeks of the regular season. He should have been a first round pick if it weren’t for some questionable decisions while at Syracuse. His talent is there and his shown it by catching a touchdown in both games this year. As Freeman becomes more comfortable in the pocket Williams stats will get even better.

Brandon Tate- Tate is getting integrated into the Patriots offense more and more. We see him blossoming as the year goes on and becoming a regular contributor to Tom Brady’s stat line. With rumors of Randy Moss not being resigned, and Wes Welker coming off a surgically repaired knee, Brandon Tate is the future for New England at wide receiver.

Kevin Walter- This guy is like a unpredictable weather pattern a meteorologist can’t figure out. For years he has scattered around big games here and there teasing fantasy owners. With the Texans we know that he can be a number five receiver in fantasy leagues. Matt Schaub’s on his way to being the yardage leader for the second year in a row. Someone besides Andre Johnson’s going to get a portion of that and Walter will be the beneficiar. The problem with Walter is when he goes off you’ll likely have him on your bench.

Aaron Hernandez- He looks nothing like a tight end on the field. Fernandez gets open with ease and may already be the top tight end at gaining yards after the catch. Impressive ability to make quick cuts and turn a routine play into a thirty or forty yarder.

Louis Murphy- If Bruce Gradkowksi has stolen the starting quarterback role from Jason Campbell, Louis Murphy shoots up the waiver wire. Not only the waiver wire but possibly as a third or fourth receiver instead of a fifth or sixth on fantasy teams. Gradkowski has that connection on point with Murphy. Last year when Gradkowski started a stretch of games for the Raiders, Murphy had three touchdowns and a monster game against Pittsburgh during a four game stretch. Sunday, Murphy did almost all his damage once Gradkowski had entered the game. Receiving ninety yards to go along with a touchdown.

By Zack Cimini

notjustagame23@gmail.com

New England has finally given up on one of their long term busts, Laurence Maroney. Maroney showed glimpses his rookie season of being a back of the future for the Patriots. After that year though he struggled to do much of anything on a consistent basis. At times the Patriots had to go with Sammy Morris, BenJarvis Green-Ellis, and even Kevin Faulk.

By bringing in Fred Taylor last off-season, Maroney figured to have a complement back to split carries with. Still he couldn’t muster anything on his last straw with the coaching staff. Denver agreed to trade a sixth round pick for him, and now has a crowded backfield.

It’s safe to say that Knowshown Moreno’s starting role is not in jeopardy. Denver went through preseason with their backfield banged up, so this is likely insurance if that circumstance re-arises. Correll Buckhalter is the current backup, but he has had a long history of nagging injuries. Moreno has struggled holding onto the football, and had a critical fumble week one versus the Jaguars.

All in all, Maroney may end up being cut at some point by Denver if he doesn’t show value. He needs to step up to the plate this time and get in the mix in Denver. Denver does love to run the football, and if he can get in the mix, Maroney could be a McGahee type to Moreno. That’s one department where he has had some effectiveness. A knack to get in the end zone.

For New England this move means they have more faith in Fred Taylor than anyone would of thought. Taylor is entering his thirteenth season and will likely be in some sort of 70/30 split carry load with Sammy Morris. Taylor still has the gears in his giddy up to be a fantasy producing back. It’s still a shocker to see this move by New England as Taylor has been fairly non-existent the past two seasons.

Belicheck has a plan so will see if it involves another trade or gambling on a rookie free agent.