By Vidur Malik
notjustagame23@gmail.com

This Sunday’s games could be opportunities for guys who have disappointed so far to have big games. Several of the players on this week’s list have had sub-par seasons, and should have a chance to take advantage of favorable matchups. Others on the list have had surprisingly good seasons so far, and can continue their solid production this weekend.

Quarterbacks

Matt Ryan – The Atlanta Falcons play the winless San Francisco 49ers in Atlanta this weekend, and Ryan should be able to exploit a defense that has been a huge disappointment so far. Ryan has only one interception so far, and should have a great day against a team that gives up 29 points per game, and is last in the league in that category. Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Matt Cassel threw for 250 yards and three touchdowns against the 49ers in week three, and Ryan has the weapons and smarts to record similar numbers.

Sam Bradford – The St. Louis Rams’ rookie quarterback has had a solid season so far. He’s got five interceptions to go along with four touchdowns, but if there’s a defense he can pick apart, it’s that of the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks give up over 300 passing yards a game, and San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers three for 455 yards against them last week.

Chad Henne – After last week’s thriller against the New York Jets, the Miami Dolphins play the New England Patriots, another AFC East rival. This should be another nail-biter, and like last week, Henne should have a great game. Henne’s got a great group of wide receivers to throw to, and after Brandon Marshall’s 166 yard, one touchdown game against the Jets, Henne saw what makes him one of the best wideouts in the NFL. Look for Henne to have a big game against a struggling defense.

Wide Receivers

Santana Moss – Moss has become quarterback Donovan McNabb’s favorite target in his first three game as a Washington Redskin. McNabb and the Redskins play the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday, and there’s got to be some extra motivation for McNabb to play well against the team that traded him within the division. Moss should get most of McNabb’s production. He’s still got the speed to get big gains, as his 20.4 yards per catch average against St. Louis last week shows.

James Jones – Jones had a key fumble in the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Chicago Bears in week three, and is probably looking for redemption this weekend against the Detroit Lions. Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has the talent and weapons to have a huge day against the Lions’ defense, and Jones should have opportunities and good matchups with players like Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and Jermichael Finley who need to be accounted for. This is a weekend where Jones can become a bigger part of the Packers’ offense.

Roscoe Parrish – The Buffalo Bills are in the midst of a tough season, but could get their first win against the New York Jets. New starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is now the leader, and is going up against a Jets’ defense that has a shaky secondary. The Jets’ cornerbacks have given up big gains, and committed several penalties so far this year.
Parrish should be able to take advantage of that and use his speed to continue leading the Bills in receiving yards.

Running Backs
LaDainian Tomlinson – Tomlinson wasn’t supposed to be the feature back when he got to the New York Jets, but he’s become just that. He leads the team in rushing, and should continue his resurgence against Buffalo. The Bills’ defense gives up 141 rushing yards per game, and Tomlinson should keep up his 5.6 yards per carry average against them.

Ronnie Brown – Brown and the Dolphins should put up a lot of points against the Patriots in week four. Brown may not put up monster rushing numbers, but he can get you a solid amount of yards on the ground and with his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. He’s a tough runner with a 5.4 yards per carry average, which means points for fantasy owners.

DeAngelo Williams- The New Orleans Saints had trouble stopping the run in their loss to the Atlanta Falcons in week three, and the Carolina Panthers should put an emphasis on the run when they play the defending champs. With his quickness, Williams has the chance to lead the Panthers, who are playing rookie Jimmy Clausen at quarterback. If the Panthers have a shot against the Saints, Williams needs to be heavily involved.

By Zack Cimini

We had another week of above .500 selections going 9-7. There were a few games that went awry in the fourth quarter for us, or it could have been a fabulous week. With four bye week teams over the next few months, Sundays selection of games dwindles down from sixteen to fourteen. This weeks games feature a lot of tough spreads. Take a look at who were rolling with for winners.

Last Weeks Record: 9-7
Overall Record: 25-21-2

Tennessee -6.5- Broncos lost a tough one this past week. Tennessee hasn’t looked well at all and are winning games. They’ll shake off their rust and get things going with a big win.

Pittsburgh -1- With Ray Rice likely out or limited the Steelers will force the Ravens to beat them through the air. Flacco is going to make some big plays but will neutralize that with his mistakes.

Cleveland +3- Carson Palmer talks will finally begin after this one. How discussion hasn’t is beyond me.

Green Bay -14.5- Packers will blow out the Lions and get a dominant bounce back win.

New Orleans-13.5- The media has been on the Saints more than ever. They have not been clicking in their usual patented rhythm. Nothing like a Carolina matchup to settle that talk.

San Francisco +6.5- Were sensing a first half bad start by the Falcons. They’re coming off an emotional overtime win against the former Super Bowl champs. Facing an 0-3 team that has their backs against the wall. San Francisco jumps out early and possibly pulls out the win.

St. Louis -1- Not even a game to think about putting money on. We’ll take the home team.

NY Jets -5- Look for Shonn Greene to official start his season.

San Diego -8- The Cardinals have done a complete 360 in the wrong way as an organization. Last week should have been a demoralizing loss at home. The defense let the Raiders march up and down the field with ease. Philip Rivers is going to have a field day in this one.

Indianapolis -7- This is the type of road blowout win that gets the front office in a frenzy. They’ll look at making some decision making changes in their front office and on the field.

Oakland +3- The Raiders handed the Cardinals a win last week. Gradkowski starting was the right decision by Tom Cable. He is moving the offense with ease. They just need to capitalize and take advantage of red zone trips.

Washington +5.5- Just envision this game coming down to the fourth quarter and a last minute game winning field goal.

New York Giants -4- The Giants offensively have played about as bad as they possibly can. Without the turnovers we’d be talking about them in a totally different light. Things have to finally calm down for them on a turnover basis.

New England -1- Miami’s pass defense was exposed by Mark Sanchez. Brady is counting down the time before this game starts. He has two new options emerging at tight end and the same force at receiver. Big day for the Patriots offense.

Listen in on Notjustagame.com’s week four fantasy football pod cast show.

Tune in as Zack Cimini, Jabbar Harris, and Joe Lopat breakdown fantasy points from all different angles. Fantasy studs that’ll come down, fantasy disappointments thus far, guys you should trade, and much more.

Notjustagame23@gmail.com

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

Remember the days when Carson Palmer looked like he could be and played like an elite fantasy quarterback? Questioning Palmer now boils around several areas. He is on a talented team with a nucleus that’s been building forward. Additions have been made that should bolster this team and propel them for not just divisional contention but a strong playoff push. Yet, the majority of questions circling this Bengals team point at Palmer.

Palmer has declined in a plethora of areas. Maybe he has never fully recovered from apparent elbow issues from a few years ago. Early season rust? Possibly. Some of the throws Palmer has been making though are just down right third string quarterback level. He is firing into areas of the field he has no business. Against the Panthers this past weekend he was lucky he was only intercepted twice. Numerous throws were errant and dropped by the Panthers defense. For quite a while the Panthers remained in the game against the Benglas. Even though they were starting Jimmy Clausen who was having a typical rookie quarterback nightmare debut.

With a current quarterback rating of 71, the front office has to be taken note. We see them looking to either bring in a quarterback via free agency or through the draft to give Palmer some pressure.

The Bengals were able to side step Palmer’s struggles last season by basically flipping their offense from prior years. Instead of gunning the football they became one of the top teams in the league at rushing the football. Cedric Benson had games were he carried the football 37, 34, 36, and 29 times. A very high amount compared to most starting backs in the league. Palmer’s career average of yards per game also was a paltry 193 yards.

Fantasy owners were disappointed last year in Palmer’s productions and are realizing that is not going to change. Can he turn it around once he develops a better feel for rookie Jordan Shipley and veteran Terrell Owens? We highly doubt it. Whatever is going on with Palmer it seems that he has hit that ugly Jake Delhomme wall. He has the ability to make an array of throws but consistency will never be a path he can take. He’ll deliver a dandy of a pass to Chad Johnson and two plays later throw a pick directly to a middle linebacker. Defensive schemes don’t change up enough for Palmer to not recognize the disguises and what’s going on out there. He has to regain confidence and get this team clicking offensively. If not there season could get real ugly.

At this point, Palmer should be considered as a fantasy backup quarterback with little upside. Until he proves he can limit his interceptions he should never start unless it’s a prime matchup. His yardage numbers are not there and you can’t anticipate him having a game of multiple touchdown passes. It’s a sad day when Palmer is rated on the same tier level of a Ryan Fitzpatrick or Bruce Gradkowski. That’s reality, as Palmer has done a 360 in the wrong fashion of where people thought he would be at this point in his career.

Jabbar Harris and Zack Cimini discuss the Mike Vick/Kevin Kolb controversy at quarterback. Coaches on the hotseat. Start em/Sit’ em Fantasy players. Lock and upset underdog choices this weekend and much more.