HANDICAPPING/FANTASY LAST MINUTE NOTES

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The correlation between fantasy football and sports handicapping is an obvious one. Lets take a look at a few notes heading into Sunday’s games in a few hours.

Tony Romo is out
If you wanted value on Tony Romo’s injury then you should have wagered Tuesday morning when the line was still 3.5. Now it is at a pick em and you’re rolling the dice on Brandon Weeden having a complete abysmal game. Arizona has faced Kirk Cousins and Derek Carr as of late and escaped with close wins. As far as a fantasy standpoint, Cowboys owners should not be worried. The aggressive nature of the Cardinals defense should open up some big plays through the air and ground.

RG3 is back
RG3’s return will be overshadowed by the aforementioned details on Romo. They shouldn’t be. I saw one clip during the Monday Night football game that sparked my interest for this week. RG3’s warm up on the field in Dallas looked crisp. His body language on the sidelines looked like he was ready to go—spitting sunflower seeds in a cup. Coming back from a major knee injury twice is a tough road to climb. Adrian Peterson’s quick return was remarkable but also put a forgetful shadow on knee injuries. Typically athletes take a full season and a half to return strong. RG3 is at that point. His ankle injury might have been a good thing as he gained extra time off for physical and mental preparation.

AJ Green is back
I am a proud fantasy owner of AJ Green in one of my key money leagues. To hear he is returning against Jacksonville is a pleasant delight. He is one of the few receivers in a non-PPR format that can produce double digit points week in and week out. Owners may have to deal with his toe injury all season but if he has the green light don’t sit him.

Other last minute news

Fantasy: Week Nine of fantasy is key to make up that last bit of crucial ground for a playoff berth. It can be done but don’t outthink yourself. Ignore software projections and go with what you’ve seen on the field. With six bye week teams and Thursday’s game, everyone is knocked down to a degree. You may have to win ugly so over analyzing one starter for a bench player could be your dagger. I’d rather lose with a starter that I’ve used on a regular basis than to falter by inserting a perceived better match up.

Handicapping: We’re seeing backers of the Jets from an odds standpoint. Be careful Vick buyers. This is his third career team now and there may be a reason why the Jets decided to sit Vick so long in favor of Geno Smith. Also remember Vick faced the Chiefs as a starter for Philadelphia last year and had a horrible outing. He completed less than 50% of his passes and had three interceptions in a 26-16 home loss.

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