Fantasy Focus for Thursday: Chiefs vs Eagles

Follow@cimini Each week I like to profile Thursday’s games to give fantasy owners some clarity in setting their lineups early. Thursday’s game profiles the Eagles potent offense squared against its former coach in Andy Reid and the Chiefs. Reid has been known for his unbalance in the ground attack vs the air attack. Will he have the Chiefs ready to play Chip Kelly ball or can he force the tempo to his side and slow things down with Alex Smith’s playbook? Quarterbacks Philadelphia’s defense has reverted quickly back to its old lay down and get thrashed ways. In their last six quarters they have given up yards and points galore. San Diego attacked the defense exactly like a college team does against potent offenses. Short quick throws and mixed in runs that eat the clock. Philadelphia could not get up on any of the routes and it allotted Philip Rivers to have one of his best mistake free games in quite a while. Kansas City has the same type of offense that might be even more simplistic with the dink and dump attack. Smith also has scrambling ability that should bolster his fantasy stats for the week. Smith though will not be rated any higher than a mid range teen ranking this week. Vick, on the other hand, is a no-brainer to insert in your lineups. Kelly will find a way as he always does to develop the run or pass with his high velocity play calls. For those worried about the Chiefs currently having a top five defense don’t be. They faced the Jaguars week one and were getting torched by the Dez Bryant in the first half this past Sunday. Dallas than reverted to poor play calling that deflected away from Bryant’s involvement in the passing game. Running Backs Thursday’s game usually does not present itself as a stat filler for running backs. This week should change that with Jamaal Charles and Shady McCoy matching up. Kansas City sort of held back Charles this past Sunday against the Cowboys. Maybe it was because of the short week ahead, and they realize his value is high on the barometer against a poor Eagles team. Against Dallas he only had sixteen carries and his involvement was not it’s typical use. Shady McCoy may have a tough time against a Chiefs defense that is stout against the run. Where they struggle is in the passing game, so the Eagles will likely find McCoy out of the backfield and with quick screens to loosen the Chiefs front seven. Wide Receivers The question with the Chiefs receivers is who is next to step up. In an odd week where the Chiefs will have to pass the ball, there will be other receivers and weapons that dot the fantasy radar. Dexter McCluster is poised to breakout this week. He has been split out as wide receiver in several packaged plays. His role in the backfield has diminished but don’t be surprised if the Chiefs involve him in a few decoy plays back there. Donnie Avery is another to consider as he had a touchdown a week ago and has been getting a solid share of Alex Smith’s mediocre passing yards thus far. Owners of Dwayne Bowe are anticipating one of those monster games he used to put up two to three years ago. He should be able to get into the end zone at least once. From Philadelphia’s standpoint it’s a full go from the regulars in DeSean Jackson, Riley Cooper, and Jason Avant. X-Factor: Tempo Being a short week questions will linger if Chip Kelly may slow things down or Andy Reid may extend drives. Kansas City may do so on a drive or two, but I don’t believe Andy Reid has faith in that style of football. He’ll play to win and score. For those worried about the Eagles not being rested on a short week should pay attention to how rested they should actually be. Against the Chargers they were not even on the field for twenty minutes of game action. The Chargers had the football for over forty minutes while the Eagles held it for right under twenty. The Eagles will be right back to their all out arsenal attack offensively.