eagle eye Posted October 7, 2016 Author Share Posted October 7, 2016 Cardinals-49ers was played last night with the ailing Carson Palmer-less Cards beating the woeful Niners 33-21. Drew Stanton subbed adequately for Palmer. He only threw for 124 yards but he did have 2 TD passes. The real fantasy star was Arizona's David Johnson who rushed for 157 yards on 27 totes with 2 TD's. He also added another 28 yards on 3 catches. This is Sunday the Colts play the Bears in Indianapolis. The game itself won't be all that interesting as it features two teams that are struggling with both teams having a 1-3 record. What will be an item of note will be Colts RB Frank Gore needing only 20 yards rushing to pass the Great Jim Brown in career rushing yards. It might be better for fantasy owners if he needed around 80 yards but it should give the Colts a little boost of adrenaline. The fact is the Colts, apart from Andrew Luck, just plain stink. The big hurrah over Goe is about all they have going for them. I actually see the Bears winning the game taking Colts head coach one step closer to being fired. More later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 8, 2016 Author Share Posted October 8, 2016 The biggest news of the day is that Denver will start their first round pick in this year's draft, Paxton Lynch, tomorrow against the Altanta Falcons. It's probably a good thing the 4-0 Falcons have to travel to Denver for the game if you'd looking at this from Lynch's point of view. He did make his NFL debut in relief of Trevor Siemian last week against Tampa Bay and he led the Broncos to 3 scores in just over a half of work. The Patriots made it official, Tom Brady is a full go for the Patriots tomorrow after serving his bullshit 4 game suspension for equipment tampering. The Pats have also activated DL Rob Nincovich who was suspended 4 games for substance abuse so the offense just got way better and the defense also got better. Brady and the Pats will play the Cleveland Browns tomorrow and there will likely be info on where to send condolences to the Browns for the beating they are about to receive. The Vegas line on this game is New England +10.5 with an over/under of 46.5. The Patriots could score 46 by themselves. Other teams having players coming off suspension are the Cowboys who get DE DeMarcus Lawrence. Also the Colts will get DE Arthur Jones back tomorrow as well. Here's this week's NFL.com Cheat Sheet for you fantasy owners. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000717045/article/cheat-sheet-denvers-top-d-faces-atlantas-top-o You want to know what a chicken shit the Colts GM is? In an interview this past week Ryan Grigson blamed the contract given to Andrew Luck which is worth about $24MM a year for the Colts inability to get players around him that allows the Colts to win. I wonder if it hurt much when Grigson ran over Luck with that blame bus? Never mind that Grigson has failed miserably to draft well and the free agents they brought in are almost to a man total busts. The prevailing opinion in Indy is that Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano are the most to blame for Indianapolis' lousy team. The Patriot Way has no ego, none. You've seen it time and again that if you don't toe the line and you don't perform you're gone. This past spring the Patriots made a real eye opening deal shipping defensive stud Chandler Jones to Arizona for the 2013 seventh overall pick OG Jonathan Cooper and a couple of other players. Cooper was injured in preseason and he's been inactive the first four weeks with a foot injury. Yesterday the Pats released Cooper. What's up with that? The Patriots have done very well without Cooper on the field thank you very much getting a 3-1 record with backup QB's on the field. It is being reported that if Cooper clears waivers they could resign him. That's a unique thing about Belichick, he doesn't care who the hell you are if you don't perform or you cause trouble you are gone. The thing is, the Patriots never seem to lose a beat. THAT is a good system and one I am jealous of. I wish my Cowboys get to this point---soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 9, 2016 Author Share Posted October 9, 2016 The guy who has sort of flown under the injury report radar this week is Carolina's Cam Newton. Cam suffered a concussion last week and he continues to recuperate from that and he will miss the Panther's game today against Tampa on Monday Night. The Titans-Dolphins game in Miami will go on as scheduled. Miami was not as hard hit as points north of Dade County were by Hurricane Matthew over the last few days and the game will be able to be played without relocating it to another city. The weather forecast for Miami today is partly cloudy with a high of 870 with no chance of rain. That's a common forecast for Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina who can really use the good weather to begin cleanup after being hammered by the hurricane. The weather may play a role in games along the eastern seaboard including Washington, Philadelphia, New York and Boston. The bad weather will hurt the playoff games in baseball more than the NFL schedule. The only game slated today in the weather zone is the Washington-Baltimore game in Baltimore. The worst of the storm is passing that area and by this afternoon they should have decent weather. By the noon kickoff the weather is supposed to be around 600 and partly cloudy with just a 20% chance of rain. Speaking of weather, it's awesome here with temps in the low 60's and sunny. I wish it would stay like this for a while. I wanted to give you a variety of starts/sits and so far I have relied mostly on NFL.com. I'm not a huge fan of Michael Fabiano so I figured I would give you a look at Yahoo fantasy writer Brandon Funston. Inside the article is a link to fantasy player rankings for Week 5 if things like that are helpful to you. I have one sleeper to lay on you today and that is New England RB James White. Brandin Bolden is out and LaGerrett Blount is hurting and with Tahmmy back in the lineup today a scatback like White could be a real catch, so to speak. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/week-5-startsit-sammie-quincy-and-the-duke-183933279.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 12, 2016 Author Share Posted October 12, 2016 Here's a bit of what we learned in Week 5: > The Carolina Panthers are finding out what Dallas found out last year, that when you're short handed you aren't as good as you were when you were when you had all hands on deck. In 2015 coming off a 12-4 season Dallas went into the year without leading rusher DeMarco Murray and one week in they lost Dez Bryant to a broken foot and two weeks in they lost Tony Romo. The end result, 12-4 quickly, and painfully, became 4-12. This season Carolina is without Cam Newton for 3 games, no Josh Norman, no Brandon LaFell. So far the Panthers are 1-4. > Colin Kaepernick is now the starting QB for the 49ers. Trouble is Kaepernick was injured running a read option offense similar to Chip Kelly's. He also changed his diet by becoming a vegetarian and it's being reported that he's lost some weight and looks pretty thin for the beating you take in the NFL. The other downside is Kaepernick is statistically the same as Blaine Gabbert. Two good things are coming as a result in this change in QBs. First Kaepernick agreed to a restructured deal that removed the guaranteed clause due to injury. Second, he's got an radical old school 'fro reminiscent of Sly of Sly and Family Stone. There was also an interesting question or two like what if he sucks does this hurt his National Anthem protest? And isn't it ironic that to run out the clock at the end of a 49ers victory he would have to kneel to do it. http://www.azquotes.com/public/pictures/authors/79/4e/794e1d1da62c6d499ed2a9dae78ffe7a/5494c77e33fb2_sly_stone.jpghttp://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/003/631/300/hi-res-88e43b161906567cf68b7e0d4e7f52ea_crop_north.jpg?w=630&h=420&q=75 The Jets have lost WR Eric Decker for the rest of the season because he is going to need surgery on his injured shoulder. Trevor Siemian may be back in the lineup this weekend but he status is officially questionable. Getting an early start on this week's starts and sits for the week. In this edition I'm heading back to NFL.com and Michael Fabiano's take for this week's booms and busts. Follow the drop down menu for all the position groups. http://www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball/story/0ap3000000719388/article/start-em-sit-em-week-6-quarterbacks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 There is an NFL game tonight. It pits the Broncos against the Chargers in San Diego. San Diego has been scoring points in droves, they are 7th in the NFL is total points scored, but every time it seems like something bad happens that costs them a win. Hence, the Chargers languishing at 1-4 and in last place in the AFC West. There are still chargers worth a fantasy play or two beginning with Phillip Rivers. He's tied with Andrew Luck for 4th in passing in the league. There's Travis Benjamin at WR and Melvin Gordon at running back. For those of you who picked up Dexter McCluster in your fantasy league hoping he would step right in a replace Danny Woodhead have to be disappointed. On the Broncos side Trevor Siemian is supposed to play which is good news for Emmanuel Sanders owners and couple of others. Division game and the since it's Thursday night at least one of the teams will be wearing their color rush uniforms. Eye candy that lasts, oh maybe, 30 seconds. Sort of a boring week in the NFL which is okay, I just want the games to start. The best game of the week is either going to be the Cowboys-Packers game or the Seahawks-Falcons game. Sunday ought to be pretty good with some pretty serious rivalry games like Chiefs-Raiders and Texans-Colts and maybe even the Saints-Panthers game will qualify. Kickoff tonight in about 30 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 16, 2016 Author Share Posted October 16, 2016 Week 6 began on Thursday with a fairly lousy game between the Broncos and Chargers. The expected fantasy outputs of some of the players just wasn't there and it was a boring game to boot. There is some news on the injury front and as usual some is good some not so much. > One good thing, unless you're a Saints fan is the return of Cam Newton who has cleared the NFL concussion protocol. He's back just in time for a key divisional showdown with the New Orleans. > The Packers host the Cowboys at 3:00 tomorrow but they will have to do it without RB James Starks and possibly without Eddie Lacy who is still nursing an ankle injury. If Lacy can't go the Packers only other RB on the active roster is FB Aaron Ripkowski > The Redskins face the Eagles but it will be without TE Jordan Reed or S Su'a Cravens. I try not to list only the players listed as doubtful or out because the vast majority of the players on team's injury lists are questionable and most of the time they play so there no point listing them. Here's NFL.com's "Cheat Sheet" for Week six with injuries, game previews and projected weather conditions for the games tomorrow. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000720812/article/week-6-cheat-sheet-can-cowboys-run-past-packers The State of Nevada legislature approved plans for a new football stadium in Las Vegas as the city that never sleeps keeps campaigning for an NFL franchise. Now they have approval they need funding and if there is anything Vegas has in spades (no pun intended) is funding. Which franchise will relocate or if there will be an actual expansion team going there has yet to be determined. There are some downsides to the franchise being in Vegas namely a population that barely tops 600K people but with all the gamblers in and out of the city it's possible they can actually support an NFL team. After all, the population of Green Bay Wisconsin is only 104K. But, the Packers are the only game in town and Vegas is, well, Vegas Baby! Former Auburn Tiger and the Jacksonville Jaguars 2nd round pick in the 2008 draft. He played two seasons in Jacksonville and spent time with several other teams through the 2015 season. It is believed the 32 year old Groves died of an apparent heart attack. Rest in Peace Quentin. You left this world way too soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 17, 2016 Author Share Posted October 17, 2016 This week has been a hoot so far. Some suspected outcomes came true while there were enough unexpected outcomes to raise eyebrows and get your adrenaline pumping, especially for fantasy football aficionados. Let's look at what's happened so far in Week 6. Thursday: > San Diego 21 Denver 13. A surprise win with the Broncos looking pretty shabby on offense but their offensive guru and head coach, Gary Kubiak, was not at the game as he was/is suffering from migraines . If you remember Koobs collapsed at halftime of a Texans game when he was the head coach. It turned out he had all the symptoms of a stroke but they called it something else. Chances are he's got issues with blood clots in his brain. A generally heartless person might say something like the Broncos sucked when their undefeated record was cancelled when Denver lost two weeks ago at the hands of Atlanta IN Denver and that would give anyone migraines. I'm not that guy but Koobs has a problem, a serious problem, because he looks like a prime candidate for a real, honest to goodness stroke. Former Cowboys and current Broncos special teams coach Joe DeCamillis made his very first appearance as a head coach in an NFL game. Too bad the Falcons rained on his parade. Sunday; > Buffalo destroyed the 49ers 45-16 with LeSean McCoy continuing to rip through NFL defenses. Chip Kelly was already quoted as saying the starting QB job is up in the air for next week. Does that sound like a genius to you? 49er fans cannot be happy about what going on with their team. Before anyone starts talking about how great Buffalo is maybe they could beat a full strength good team. The Jacoby Brissett-led Patriots doesn't count. > Jacksonville edged the Bears in Chicago 17-16 in what looks like the most boring game of the weekend. > Detroit beat the Rams 31-28 in a pretty exciting game. It was a see-saw affair and it was the first time in a while Matthew Stafford look like his old gunslinging self. > In what has got to be the most jaw dropping score of the day the Steelers toddled into Miami and scurried out with a 30-15 loss to the woeful Dolphins. Jay Ajaye finally had a big game so you know if he's available in your fantasy league snatch him up be won't be available long. > In the least surprising outcome the Patriots hosted the Bengals and slapped a 35-17 licking on them. Brady's first home game since he was suspended started slow but after a while the Patriots just wore out the Bengals with the passing game to Gronk and Martellus Bennett along with another 47 yards and 2 TDs to RB James White and the Bengals had no chance. The Cowboys ran the ball down their throat and Brady threw it over their heads. > New Orleans continued league wide smackdown of the Carolina Panthers. Cam or no Cam this team sucks. The Panthers have literally gone from first in the NFC to worst in the league in the space of a few months. New Orleans is still not very good but their defense actually--no lies here--NOLA won a shootout 41-38. That's all for now, I gotta go watch the Texans struggle with the Colts. I've already seen 3 plays I'd like to kick Brock Osweiler in the nuts over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 17, 2016 Author Share Posted October 17, 2016 To conclude the recap of today/tonight's games. I had to stop and watch the Texans and throw down a couple of drinks in the process. Here we go. > I begin with bad news for people who root for the Cowboys because the Ravens, a team I really don't like to begin with, blew a late 4th quarter lead to Mr Whiny-face himself, Eli Manning, who hit Odell Beckham Jr on a 62 yard bomb with just 40 seconds left in the game to steal a 27-23 win over the Ravens and give the Giants a cheap win just a week after being slapped around in Green Bay. The Giants are still in the NFC East Cellar but at 3-3 they are just 2 games back of the Cowboys who lead the division. BTW did I mention that OBJ caught 220 yards worth of passes (8 catches)? He did and the Ravens couldn't touch him. (Cue MC Hammer music) > Cleveland lost yet another heartbreaking loss today. This time it was to the Tennessee Titans by a score of 28-26. The Browns have been so doggone close and one of these days they are going to break through. Cody Kessler is showing he can lead this team and for most teams 26 points is enough to win a ballgame but the Browns just can't get the cooperation from their defense. > Washington won a big division game over the boys from the City of Brotherly Love by a score of 27-20. Carson Wentz was less than impressive while the Redskins have rebounded from an 0-2 start to get to 4-2 and they own 2nd place just one game behind the Cowboys. > The late afternoon games began with an old rivalry revisited. The Chiefs and Raiders is a rivalry that goes back to the fledgling American Football League that began in 1960. The Raiders have been at the top of the AFC West since day one it seems like. The Chiefs had an added advantage of coming off their bye week. Despite the fact they had to travel to the left coast and face the Raiders in their own back yard, it didn't matter to the final outcome of KC 26 and Oakland 10. With the Broncos losing to the Chargers on Thursday it tightens that division up considerably. > Seattle hosted the league's leading scoring team, the Atlanta Falcons, into Safeco Field. It was a good game that actually went down to the wire but the Falcons came up just shy of win as Seattle preserved a 26-24 after the Seahawks got a Steven Hauschka nailed a 44 yard field goal with 1:51 left in the game. Atlanta just wasn't able to make a play to get into field goal range and they ended up turning the ball over on downs with next to nothing left on the clock. The Falcons still own a 1-1/2 game lead over the Saints and Bucs. Tampa was on their bye week today so the 4-2 Falcons lead both the Saints and Buc who are 2-3 and, of course, the Panthers are bringing up the rear at 1-5. > The final game of the afternoon to talk about is the game between the storied rivalry that exists between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys. I'm sure, even though Dallas was riding a 4 game winning streak into Lambeau Field nobody really thought Dallas had a shot of winning. It was Aaron Rodgers after all and the defense had given up just 171 yards total in the 4 games they had played. That averages out to be just 42.75 yards rushing per game. So far the Packers haven't really looked like THE Packers with Rodgers inconsistent and Eddie Lacy not really racking up the yards and they barely squeaked by a so-so NY Giants team last week. Still, the Cowboys hadn't played anyone, had they. It was easy to write off the Cowboys even though everyone seems to be drooling over Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott who happens to lead the whole dang NFL in rushing through 5 weeks of the season. This Cowboys team may just be for real. Prescott passed for 254 yards and 3 TDs while Zeke went off on the Pack for 157 yards. That's just 14 yards shy of the 171 yards the Pack had allowed prior to today's game. The Cowboys D seems determined not to be overlooked as they forced 4 turnovers and recorded a sack but the D-Line harassed the hell out of Rodgers. Most importantly, they held the Packers to just 16 points in the game including denying them in the red zone allowing just 1 score in 4 trips. Dallas heads into a by week followed by a home game against the Eagles. The NFC East could get away from the rest of the teams if Dallas continues to play such dominating football. > Sunday ends with the NBC Sunday Night Football game and it was being played by yet another intense division rivalry game. Houston hosted the Indianapolis Colts and for 3-1/5 quarters Houston looked like they didn't have a clue. Brock Osweiler looked like warmed over dog doo-doo when Houston got the ball on their own 25 with 7:04 left in the game. Brock led the team to a TD on a drive that was 12 plays long and lasted too long with 4:27 taken off the clock on a pass and really nifty run by Lamar Miller. Houston's defense stiffened up too as they shutdown the Colts forcing a punt which Houston fair caught at their own 47 and 3 plays later Osweiler hit CJ Fiedorowicz with a 26 yard TD to tie the game to send the game into overtime. The story in OT was the same just a different chapter. The D set down the Colts having them end up with a 4th and 7 at their own 43. The Colts punted and Tyler Irvin took the rock at their own 16 and returned it 17 yards to their own 33. The Texans were moving the ball but on a 2nd and 10 at their own 48 Osweiler really moved the ball by hitting Jalen Strong on a 36 yard pass play giving Houston a 1st and 10 at the Colts 12. A kneeldown by Osweiler to get the ball spotted on the right hash mark and that left it up to Nick Novak to kick the game winner. And he did it giving Houston a highly unlikely 26-23 win. Don't put style points on this game please. A win is a win and I don't give a crap if it was by just one point under the weirdest circumstances ever because it just doesn't matter. A win is a win and if you're assigning style points to those victories then you are bound to be disappointed. All that is leaves is the Monday affair as the NY Jets march into the Arizona desert to face the Cardinals. If things go like they have this weekend the Jets will win by a safety. 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eagle eye Posted October 17, 2016 Author Share Posted October 17, 2016 Yesterday featured a lot of crazy plays and surprise upsets that made Week 6 a real interesting week of NFL football. > Ben Roethlisberger will be out for an indeterminate amount of time because he suffered a torn meniscus in his knee in the Steeler's loss to Miami of all teams. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter the surgery was supposed to be a cleanout procedure and not a repair or reconstruction so the time Big Ben misses will be, or should be, less. Just the loss to Miami was bad enough but losing Roethlisberger is just adding injury to insult. > Late in the 35-17 Cincinnati loss to New England noted Bengal cheap shot artist Vontaze Burfict did it again. In the 4th quarter when the game was out of reach on play that was totally removed from Burfict, he decided to go at the knees of Pats TE Martellus Bennett. Bennett didn't get hurt but it was still a very cheap shot. That type of hit is almost sacrilege in the NFL because every single player knows you never, ever go at another player's knees. That's something that could cost a player the rest of his career in a worst case scenario. I heard Merrill Hoge on ESPN say, in total outrage, that the NFL should come down hard on Burfict because of the history he has with cheap shots and just the heinousness of what he did. Hoge thinks that only losing games would send the right message to Burfict. > Back to the Miami-Pittsburgh game, it looks like the Dolphins will be without S Reshad Jones because they fear he has a torn rotator cuff. Not earth shattering news but losing a starting safety is not joke to a football team. > Still wondering what the hell got into Brock Osweiler last night. For 3-1/2 quarters Brock was the goat of the game but all of a sudden he just transformed in the a super hero. Maybe it was about the same time the full moon rose in the east. Maybe he's got some werewolf in him. All I know is Brock stopped short hopping passes to open receivers, he stopped sailing his passes high out of reach of his receivers and he made good decisions. Considering how he's played the first 5 weeks of the season there had to be something that got into him. When the score was 23-9 with around 7 and a half minutes left in the game I thought it was over. So did a lot of fans in NRG Stadium as NT Vince Wilfork ripped the fans who left early but in all honesty, could you really blame them? I sure can't, not after what I've seen in recent games. Not after what I've seen of Osweiler against New England and Minnesota. He was just awful in those games. Thank you Indianapolis for a giant choke job and let's hope the way he played in the final 8 minutes of last night's game in regulation and overtime gives Brock some confidence going forward. After all, isn't that kind of what we expected after Brock helped the Broncos last season going 5-2 in 7 starts? It really is what we had expected and it's about time he showed something. Let's hope he keeps it going. Here's some injuries to keep an eye on this week for all fantasy football players including Cleveland stud (no, that is not an oxymoron) Terrell Pryor who is dealing with a hamstring thing. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000722845/article/injuries-terrelle-pryor-dealing-with-hamstring-issue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 20, 2016 Author Share Posted October 20, 2016 Update on Ben Roethlisberger is that he will be out 2-6 weeks after he had surgery on a torn meniscus in his knee on Monday. Former OU QB Landry Jones will be at QB in the meantime. There is another QB change worth noting that has nothing to do with any injury unless you consider the fact that Ryan Fitzpatrick was killing the Jets offense with 11 INTs in the first 6 weeks of the season. Never mind that Fitzpatrick has been sacked 9 times and hurried countless others playing behind an O-line that resembled a sieve rather that a barrier. The run game hasn't been any better with Frank Gore quoted this week saying, "I didn't sign up for this." meaning he was tired of being bashed at, or behind, the line of scrimmage. Nobody is calling for Gore's head but such is life for a QB. Fitz is getting no support from the man who will replace him as Geno Smith was seen on the sideline of the Arizona game throwing his ball cap in disgust after yet another Fitzpatrick pick. Like Smith is one to complain. Smith missed most of 2015 because of a broken jaw he received when a former teammate punched Smith in the face after Smith stiffed his teammate for a charity event. Smith was going to lose his job to Fitz anyway because he sucked in training camp last year and he wasn't good enough to win the job in this training camp. Fitzpatrick was good for the Jets last year leading them to a 10-6 record and just narrowly missing the playoffs. After a prolonged holdout by Fitz during the spring and a big chunk of the summer the Jets and Fitzpatrick agreed to one year $12MM deal. What usually happens to a player who holds out? He gets hurt or he stinks when he comes back. Fitz held out and he stinks, San Diego's Joey Bosa held out and he had issues with his hamstring. Imagine that, a player who hasn't practiced since the 2015 college football season ended up with a pulled hammy, go figure. Geno Smith stank when he was drafted by Rex Ryan in 2013 and he still stinks. There were two QBs selected in the 1st round that experts agreed would be lousy NFL QB's. Geno Smith was one and Buffalo selected the other, EJ Manual, with both trying to draft the next RGIII. Trouble is after his rookie season when NFL defensive coordinators had time to figure out how to defense the read-option offense RGIII stank too. The Jets are going to go back to Fitz eventually when Jets head coach figures out Smith is a bust. He might not go back to Fitz because the Jets have their own Baylor alum in the fold, Bryce Petty, to turn to. QB's seem to be the subject of fantasy daydreams today. There are issues with Baltimore's Joe Flacco who missed practice today because of a shoulder issue. The folks in Green Bay are wondering just what the hell is wrong with Aaron Rodgers all of a sudden. The Bears and the Packers play tonight and the Bears may have a new QB, at least until Brian Hoyer has one of those 5 turnover turd fests like he had in the playoffs with Houston last season. That means if Jay Cutler is healthy he may not play. The Packers got some other really bad news when they had to place RB Eddie Lacy on IR after he needed surgery to fix the ankle he finished tearing up against Dallas last Sunday. Lacy went into the game with a tender ankle after the previous Sunday's game against the Giants on Sunday Night Football. It was announced earlier in the week that Green Bay brought RB Don Jackson up from the practice squad and they also signed for Kansas City Chief Nile Davis. It is expected that Jackson would be the lead back tonight against the Bears. (Hey fantasy dudes, hint, hint) Buffalo took a big kick to the groin when LeSean McCoy missed practice today after tweaking his hamstring in practice yesterday. It's being reported that McCoy could be one of those frustrating game time decisions fantasy owners love so much. Mike Gillislie or Reggie Bush or a combination of the two will have to step up it McCoy can't play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 22, 2016 Author Share Posted October 22, 2016 Joe Friday used to ask witnesses on Dragnet, "Just the facts, ma'am, just the facts." so that what you're getting here. > Giants kicker Josh Brown has a history of beating his wife. That is a recorded fact. The NFL is taking another look at Brown's case and he did not make the trip to London for tomorrow's game against the LA Rams. Brown is the poster child for spousal abuse and he's the reason all these activists should be advocating against. The issue came up over the summer and the Giants chose to stand behind Brown even though the evidence was clear, he hits his wife and has done it multiple times over the years. There are numerous police reports for domestic violence at his home and some hospital reports of his wife needing treatment. The guy is a slime and right now he can't play football. The Giants needed a kicker so yesterday they signed former Bears kicker Robbie Gould. > Redskins first round pick, Josh Doctson, will not be playing anytime soon because the Reskins put him on IR because of tenderness in his Achilles tendon. He has played in two games and had to sit out the rest. His total production for the year has been 2 catches for 66 yards. TE Jordan Reed who is making a really good living on the injured list is out yet again this week still suffering from a concussion. > LeSean McCoy is going to be a game time decision as he's got a hamstring issue. > Here's a big injury list from NFL.com to give the status of some players who you may have or are influenced by you fantasy lineups. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000724928/article/nineteen-things-to-know-about-week-7-injury-report Here is the Week 7 Cheat Sheet from NFL.com. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000725223/article/week-7-cheat-sheet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 23, 2016 Author Share Posted October 23, 2016 (edited) I am watching a boring ass game between the Giants and Rams. The score is tied and I need the Rams to play better because I really want them to win. If you have anyone but Rashad Jennings at RB for NY you are disappointed. Nobody is really lighting it up offensively but the long the game stays close the less confidence I have in the Rams winning this game. Doesn't the Giants coach Ben McAdoo look like Mr Rooney from Farris Buehler's Day Off? http://cinetechnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/great-mustaches-of-cinema-ed-rooney-jeffrey-jones.jpeg I'm just saying.................. Cleveland @ Cincinnati - The battle of Ohio today and the Bengals haven't won since Dallas beat them two weeks ago. Could this be the game the Browns finally get off the schneid? If you need a QB I have seen Cody Kessler throw for 300+ yards the last couple of weeks. Washington @ Detroit - I hope the Lions win for obvious reasons. The Lions are confusing and you definitely can't trust them and the Redskins have won 4 straight since beginning the season 0-2. Go Lions! They helped Dallas out last week by beating Philadelphia so if they keep up the good work this week I will definitely be happy. Oakland @ Jacksonville - It is hard as heck for west coast teams to travel to the east coast. I think it's the 3 hour time difference. Regardless, the Jags have had no luck and Oakland has been struggling so maybe the Jags can finally win a game. New Orleans @ Kansas City - New Orleans has found their offense the problem is their defense remains on milk cartons all over the place. KC will need to score on the Saints to have a chance but outdoors in one of the loudest stadiums anywhere I'd have to give the edge to KC. Buffalo @ Miami - LeSean McCoy is a game time decision and the Dolphins are coming off a smackdown of the Steelers last week. A beating that ended up in surgery on a torn meniscus for Ben Roethlisberger. Have the Dolphins stumbled onto a winning formula? Division games are hard to predict but I like Miami in this one. Baltimore @ NY Jets - ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz. Both teams stink AND they're boring. I am going for the Jets only because I hate Joe Flacco. Minnesota @ Philadelphia - Time to break out my PN-G purple as I root for the Vikings big time today. If the NFC East goes 0-3 today I will frolic about like a little girl! Minnesota is really good and I'll bet Sam Bradford would like to put a whoopin on his former team. Indianapolis @ Tennessee - An AFC South division game. I think you can stick a fork in the Colts and even though it's not his fault, completely that is, head coach Chuck Pagano may soon be unemployed. Hat's off to the Titans for showing some love to DeMarco Murray. He deserved better than he got in Philly. I guess if you want to be cold hearted about it you could argue that Murray got what he deserved when he left Dallas for the big money. San Diego @ Atlanta - Another west coast to east coast trek game and I think, like the Raiders, the Chargers will find a win a hard thing to come by. Tampa Bay @ San Francisco - Chip Kelly is continuing to stomp on his rep as a football genius and the Bucs seem to be getting better. Tampa is coming off a bye and is well rested and I'm hoping Jaquizz Rodgers plays as well as he did before the bye. New England @ Pittsburgh - This game might have been pretty good if Big Ben wasn't out for 2-6 weeks. As it is the Patriots are only gaining momentum as Tom Brady knocks off the rust after being suspended 4 games to start the season. Some rust, over 300 yards passing and 400+ total yards of offense since he's come back. Seattle @ Arizona - Maybe the biggest and best game of the week comes tonight in this division game between two really good defenses and two really efficient offenses. As for a winner you lean toward the home team but you can't dismiss the Seahawks. Houston @ Denver - The Monday Night Football game ends the Week 6 games and it could really be a snoozer. Houston barely beat a really bad Indianapolis team and they needed overtime to do it. This could be the 3rd road game in a row Houston gets embarrassed. As a Texans fan I hope not but I'm not counting on the Texans for much against a really good defense and an improving offense of Denver in their home stadium to give the Texans much of a chance. Here's list of inactive for today's games. http://www.nfl.com/inactives One last thing. Case Keenum has stunk all game against the Giants. The Rams have one last shot at beating the Giants, well not beating them but tying them as the Giants lead 17-10 (I told you it was a boring game), The have a 4th and 10 at their own 36. The Rams looked confused and called time out. 5 will get you 30 the Rams choke and the Giants go into victory formation. Son of a gun, Keenum hit Brian Quick for 16 yards and 1st down at the 2 minute warning. The Rams are still going to choke. Edited October 23, 2016 by eagle eye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 23, 2016 Author Share Posted October 23, 2016 Keenum saw a blitz coming on a 3rd and 10 at the Giants 15 and motioned something to Brian Quick. At the snap Keenum lofted a moon ball to the end zone but Quick stopped at the line of scrimmage. Dominique Rogers-Cromartie was playing deep and he fielded the pass like you would punt and Quick couldn't even make a play on the ball. That's 4 picks for Keenum today and I wonder who's fault that last one was on. I suspect Quick but it doesn't matter because the game is over and the Rams choked just like I figured they would. I honestly don't think Jeff Fisher is as good as people make him out to be. I don't think he's a great evaluator of talent and I don't think he's all that great a coach. I saw that in the HBO Hard Knocks show. Just not impressed at all. Kids tell Mr Fisher thank you for choking and not beating the Giants. Thank you Mr Fisher. Okay, kids go play with your knife collections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 25, 2016 Author Share Posted October 25, 2016 The NFL giveth and the NFL taketh away. > Geno Smith finally got his chance to start and in the 2nd quarter of the Jets-Baltimore game Smith tore his ACL and is done for the season. Ryan Fitzpatrick replaces Smith and leads the Jets to a 24-16 win and he did it without throwing a pick. Fitz said after the game he felt everyone was against him and his coach, Todd Boles said he didn't care if Fitz was mad as long as he won games. So, I guess from Fitzpatrick's view the NFL giveth, taketh and giveth back again. > I thought the Seahawks-Cardinals game was the worst game of Week 7 with no TDs scored and two missed chip shot field goals missed in OT and the game ending in 6-6 tie. Then last night's game was played with yet another Brock Osweiler egg laid in a road game. With the financial investment in the Brockmeister Houston can't afford not to give him at least 4 or 5 more games to show he's not a $72 MM bust. > Arian Foster announced his retirement from the NFL last night with Foster admitting he just couldn't take another rehab. He meant so much to Houston's turnaround from perennial doormats to playoff contenders but he couldn't escape the injury bug as he found it more and more difficult to stay healthy. The recent emergence of Jay Ajaye and his back to back 200+ rushing performances makes Foster's retirement less hurtful to the Miami Dolphins. > There may be some debate over the dumbest coaching moves of the past weekend but, to me, there are two undeniable choices. One in college and in the pros. The college bonehead play of the week, and probably the whole season was the fake punt BYU attempted at their own 5 yard line on a 4th and 19. The crazy thing about it is Boise State didn't even score on the ensuing possession. Go figure. The bonehead play in the pros was Atlanta head coach Dan Quinn's decision to go for a 4th and 1 call at their own 45 in overtime. The play failed and the Chargers drove for and got a game winning field goal to beat the Falcons 33-30. > It's pretty clear the 49ers are going nowhere fast as they enter Week 8 with a miserable 1-6 record. Now there a rumor in the wind San Fran is looking to unload some high priced veteran players for the right deal before the NFL trade deadline next week. Believe it or not there is a possible taker. The Eagles, who sold the farm to get Carson Wentz and who got some rental property back in the Sam Bradford deal might be willing to give that away and more if they can get OT Joe Staley and WR Torrey Smith in an Eagles uniform. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 29, 2016 Author Share Posted October 29, 2016 Cody Kessler is out this week for Cleveland with a concussion suffered last week against Cincinnati. On the other hand Josh McCown may be ready to play after missing the past few weeks with an injuries of his own. Looks like Devonte Booker is the player to have in Denver because the Broncos placed RB CJ Anderson on IR because he will need surgery to repair a torn meniscus. Here's NFL.com's injury roundup including news about the Bills LeSean McCoy and Doug Martin. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000729195/article/josh-mccown-to-start-kessler-in-concussion-protocol Here's NFL.com's Week 8 cheat sheet for all you fantasy players which includes weather forecasts and game previews. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000729285/article/week-8-cheat-sheet Ex NFL coach is said to be battling early onset Alzheimer's Disease. Yet another sad story of this disease. Hopefully, someday soon a real cure can be found. Here is yet another fantasy article for Week 8 from NFL.com. This time the a few of the site's fantasy guru's giving us their take on the perfect fantasy lineup. This one reeks of FanDuel or Draft Kings, I'm just saying. http://www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball/story/0ap3000000728007/article/picking-the-perfect-week-8-fantasy-football-lineup Bill Belichick has made a career since he's been in New England of doing the unconventional. Yeah, he cheated a bit now and then but they all do in their own ways. One of the things that sets him apart from almost all of the other 31 teams is his willingness to pull the trigger on trades and even cutting players who don't toe the line in "the Patriot Way". LeGarritt Blount is in his second stint with the Pats after he ran afoul of the PW two years ago. Blount came back to NE after he ran afoul of the Steelers way by getting arrested with two Steelers teammates and was charged with public intoxication. When Randy Moss got too big for his britches he was gone. That's Randy Moss now, maybe the best WR in the NFL in the last 15 years. Last year Belichick traded defensive stud Chandler Jones for an O-lineman. That deal, BTW, did not work out for the Patriots as the lineman in questions was released after Week 3. Regardless if he hits or misses he has been given carte blanche by owner Robert Kraft and really only Jerry Jones has more freedom to do what his wants in the NFL. The problem with Jones is he's not nearly as good a judge of talent as Belichick. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000729148/article/bill-belichick-lots-of-teams-kind-of-reluctant-to-trade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted October 30, 2016 Author Share Posted October 30, 2016 This is the first week that there are six teams on bye. That's 3 games and a lot of fantasy players off the table. The Rams, Giants, Steelers, 49ers, Ravens and Dolphins are sitting this week out. Alternatives must be had so if you are a little shy of depth on your fantasy roster consider these pickups; > RB Devonte Booker - With the Broncos putting CJ Anderson going on IR with a bad meniscus in his knee. Unless your opponents in your league are dead heads Booker is probably not available at this point. > WR Ty Montgomery is becoming more and more important to the Packers offense. He's been taking RB snaps as well as catching passes from Aaron Rodgers. > Another Green Bay player to pick up is rookie RB Don Jackson. He is coming off an injury but he's the next selection in a depleted Packers backfield. It turns out the ankle injury Eddie Lacy tried to play through needed surgery and he is now on IR. Jackson is, as they say, the next man up with recently signed Knile Davis and long time Packer James Starks in the rotation. If Jackson steps up like the Packers expect he will take the majority of snaps as Lacy did. Here's some more pickups from ESPN.com. http://www.espn.com/fantasy/football/story/_/page/Freeagentfinds161025/fantasy-football-free-agent-finds-waiver-wire-pickups-week-8-nfl-2016 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 1, 2016 Author Share Posted November 1, 2016 Week 8 of the NFL 2016 is in the books and there are definitely some surprises. Like, for instance, the Oakland Raiders are tied with the Denver Broncos at 6-2 and in first place in the AFC West. I’ll bet nobody would have thought that Denver would be in this position after Peyton Manning’s retirement and Brock Osweiler’s defection via free agency to Houston. Trevor Siemian took control of the starting QB job unequivocally in training camp allowing the Broncos to give Mark Sanchez his outright release prior to the season. Oakland was thought to be good but maybe not this good. The Raiders offense is a wide open passing attack prompting old timers like me to call Derek Carr a modern day “Mad Bomber” in the vein of 60’s Raiders QB Darryl LaMonica. With the likes of Amari Cooper, Michael Crabtree and Seth Roberts on the outside and true RB by committee running and catching passes all over the place it’s hard to slow this group down. Carr actually threw for 518 yards Sunday against the Tampa Bay Bucs but the heckofit is Tampa damn near beat the Raiders. Oakland needed overtime to beat them and it was just boneheaded football that caused the Bucs not to win in regulation. I think you could actually call the AFC West the strongest division in the AFC, maybe even the NFL. In the NFC who would have thought after the first 8 weeks of the season the team with the best record in the NFL would be – wait for it – the Dallas Cowboys. They have the conference’s best record at 6-1 and they have won all 6 in a row after dropping their season opener to the Giants by one lousy point. The NFC East doesn’t have one team that has a less than .500 record and no other division in football can say that. They’re not as good as the AFC West is top to bottom IMO. The Vikings lead the NFC Norris Division by a game over the Packers who are just 4-3 so far while Minnesota is 5-2. It’s a deceptive 5-2 as the Vikes have lost 2 straight after winning 5 in a row to begin the season. Philadelphia found the key to beating the Vikings and the lowly Bears followed the blueprint laid out by Philly to a tee in a big 20-10 win at home in Chicago last night. Jay Cutler returned to the field last night after missing the past several weeks with an injury and he looked pretty good. BTW, there was not a controversy over whether or not Brian Hoyer should remain the starting QB. (Take note of this Cowboys fans!) The NFL Trade Deadline is today in about an hour so……… Andre Johnson announced his retirement after 14 years in the NFL. The guy deserved a ring but he won’t get one but he will get a gold jacket when he goes into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 5 years. WR Percy Harvin announced he was UN retiring and he has signed with the last team he played for, the Buffalo Bills. Harvin will make $1MM plus incentives. He is finally completely healed in the hip that was the reason he retired in the first place 7 months ago. (Fantasy alert!) Ben Roethlisberger could be back on the field this week after only 3 weeks since he had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee. It all depends on how he does in practice this week. The Browns have been busy here just before the trade deadline. Yesterday they made a deal to get LB Jaime Collins from the New England Patriots. This is a deal that shocked the NFL since Collins is a very good outside LB. Collins was coming to the end of his rookie contract with the Patriots and New England doesn’t pay premium prices for their players. They have a lot of confidence in their player personnel department and they are not scared to let a player go as a result. All the Patriots got in return was a 3rd round compensatory pick. The Browns are open to dealing perennial pro bowl CB Joe Haden as well as veteran cover man Tramon Williams. Williams was signed by Cleveland as a free agent in 2015 from Green Bay. Jamaal Charles is out with problems with his surgically repaired knee, Spencer Ware left Sunday’s game with a concussion making what used to be a deep RB pool pretty thin. KC has signed former Tennessee RB Bishop Sankey as insurance in case the next man up, Charcandrick West, should get hurt. Green Bay’s 2 week dalliance with RB Knile Davis is over with Davis’ release by the Packers. In the who gives a F**k department: Terrell Owens has let the Eagles know he is available if needed. That’s the 42 year old Terrell Owens who was run out of Philadelphia once already. The same TO who hasn’t played a down of football since he played for the Allen Wranglers of the Pro Indoor Football League in 2012. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 3, 2016 Author Share Posted November 3, 2016 Some items of note: Norv Turner, the OC of the Minnesota Vikings just up and quit yesterday. This was an unexpected move to say the least that have the Vikes coaches, players and fans scratching their heads and saying WTF! Cardinals DL Calais Campbell was fined $18K and change for a low hit on Carolina’s Cam Newton. Did the fine come before or after Newton had a conversation with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell? I kind of go along with Colin Cowherd on this matter. Cam, stop whining and play ball. This is the only time I have ever agreed with NFL VP of officiating Dean Blandino when he said if a QB runs out of the pocket the protection a QB has inside the pocket goes away and the player becomes a runner and is only protected when he slides down to avoid a hit. Honestly, Cam looks like he’s too full of himself and his wardrobe decisions are just awful. The Chiefs are starting Nick Foles this week instead of Alex Smith. Smith left the game last week against Jacksonville after he took two separate hits to the head. In both instances he came off the field and was checked for a concussion. He didn’t show signs of being concussed in either instance but after the second one he didn’t come back into the game. If you read between the lines Smith hasn’t been effective this season, at least not the level he has in the past and Foles, in limited playing time, has been. Adjust your fantasy team roster accordingly. Tim Hightower is a player of interest in fantasy leagues this week. He came in for Mark Ingram in the Saints-Seahawks game because Ingram fumbled for the second time in the past two games and Hightower was effective as the Saints relied on a solid ground game to run clock and keep the Seahawks off the field. Ben Roethlisberger is expected to play for Pittsburgh this week against the Ravens. Personally, I think Big Ben should rehab until after the Cowboys game next week but I’m biased. Corey Coleman is back on the field and should play against the Cowboys this week. The folks in Cleveland are hurting over the loss of Game 7 of the World Series and over the Browns in general but having Coleman back should help the Browns change their fortunes a bit, just not this week against the Cowboys. Again, I am a biased individual here. The Patriots are eying the return of RB Dion Lewis who has missed all of the season so far due to a knee surgery. This might be good news for Lewis but for those of us who have benefitted from the efforts of James White, not so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 6, 2016 Author Share Posted November 6, 2016 Week 9 of the 2016 schedule is today. It's the second week of six teams being on their bye week. The Bears, Bengals, Cardinals, Patriots, Redskins and Texans get to kick back and just be fans today as they rest and recharge for the second half of the season. It doesn't make it easy for all the fantasy football players who will be missing key players from their rosters. It's what makes it imperative to draft well when you are setting up your team for the season. There is a reason why you notice when a player's bye week is in the player draft. Good luck to you all except, of course, for the people playing me. Last week was the first week I won in both my leagues in the same week. It was part of what was a great weekend sports wise for me last week but realizing I actually drafted poorly and I've been hammered by injuries so I hope I can just act as a spoiler down the stretch. With all that said we need to know who we can count on this week. So here's my weekly list of fantasy little helpers. So, did anyone pick up on WR Corey Coleman this week? It may not be too late to jump on this player especially in keeper leagues. Some other guys who should be in your lineup this week is Buffalo's LeSean McCoy and newly resigned Percy Harvin. The Bills have been devastated by injuries to their WR's so it is not inconceivable that Harvin not only plays but starts for the Bills. Harvin had been with Buffalo prior to his retirement 7 months ago so it's not like he is having to learn the offense, he's a plug and play guy from that standpoint. Dexter McCluster has been a fantasy no-show this season and now his a no-show period as he broke his forearm at home and the Chargers placed him on the IR/Non football injury list and he will miss the rest of the season. McCluster was signed after the Chargers lost Danny Woodhead for the season in Week 2 with a torn ACL but McCluster never really was able to make in a dent in the lost production that Woodhead gave the Chargers. Here are some more transactions that may affect outcomes this week. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000733981/article/transactions-saints-activate-rankins-pack-get-linsley Here's some other injury news from NFL.com including the talk of Ben Roethlisberger being a game time decision. This is such a lousy thing to do to fantasy players. Especially for a player who is a top tier fantasy option like Big Ben. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000734128/article/injury-roundup-roethlisberger-a-gametime-decision The next fantasy related news is the Week 9 Cheat Sheet from NFL.com. This is a nice tool because it gives injury news, a brief preview of this week's games and the weather forecasts for today's games. It's a great tool for fantasy and it's helpful if you like to place a wager or two. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000733645/article/week-9-cheat-sheet Here is the last item for fantasy footballers, NFL.com's starts/sits/sleepers for this week. Follow the page links in the article to go through each position group. The links starts with the QB's. Spoiler alert! There may be a surprise in there for you guys. http://www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball/story/0ap3000000732137/article/start-em-sit-em-week-9-quarterbacks The Chiefs are optimistic that Jamaal Charles will return to the lineup for the playoffs. Charles, who had yet another ACL repaired last season was having trouble with the knee when he went out of the lineup. It turns out he had a problem with his meniscus and it was determined that he would need surgery to repair it. What wasn't revealed in the MRI that determined the need for surgery was the meniscus wasn't as bad as first thought. Instead of a major repair the meniscus only needed to be trimmed. I'm not doctor so I don't really know what that means but if you put it into haircut terms it's like needing a trim instead of a major buzz cut and to me, that is a very good thing. For Charles, it's even better news than that since the recovery from a trim is weeks instead of months is like a big ol' "it's about friggin time I caught a break with my knee" sigh of relief for him. He will be eligible to return in Week 17 but more likely he will be able to come back when, or if, KC goes into the playoffs. I'm glad for something good to happen for JC even though it was yet another setback that started it in the first place. The Chiefs have resigned Knile Davis because the RB has taken a hit lately. There is the loss of Jamaal for the next 8 weeks but there is also the concussion that has cost Spencer Ware the last couple of games including today. Charcandrick West is the man for this week and Davis provides some depth for the Chiefs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 10, 2016 Author Share Posted November 10, 2016 The NFL is steamrolling along in the 2016 season and surprisingly enough no coach has been fired yet. It doesn’t mean there aren’t a couple on the hot seat. Let me give my take on who is, or who ought to be, looking over their shoulders for the man with his pink slip. Gus Bradley – Jacksonville’s head man has a team who is just 2-6 on the season and they have looked bad doing it. This team has way too many good players to look like warmed over doo-doo. If he can’t turn things around in the second half of the season he could be fired by mid December. Hue Jackson – I include Jackson in this list simply because of the 0-9 record and the impatience of team ownership. The Browns are turning things around but it’s not showing up in the W/L record. I think the Browns should weather the storm and stick with Jackson. Give him at least 3 years to develop the team before cutting the cord. Marvin Lewis – The Bengals a team I see that needs a change. Marvin Lewis has put together a nice roster but he has done nothing with it. Even when they have made the playoffs they went nowhere, losing in the wild card round every single time. Lewis is 0-7 in playoff games as the Bengals head coach and that includes making the playoffs in 6 out of the last 7 years, missing only 2010 in this streak. Their other playoff appearance was in 2005 but it was the same losing result. Lewis seems to be made of Teflon because I haven’t heard or seen much in the way of “Can Marvin” talk. Lewis’ team commit dumb penalties at dumb times and they just don’t play smart football at times. It might be time for a change in scenery for Mr Lewis. Todd Bowles – The Jets head man is only in his second season as head coach and so far his record is 13-12. His first season was 10-6 just missing out on the playoffs by a tie breaker losing out to Pittsburgh. This year it’s a different story as the Jets are 3-6 and they haven’t looked all that great in the process. The main reason for the Jets decline is the atrocious play of QB Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitz was replaced for a game by Geno Smith but he was lost for the season after he tore his ACL. Fitz’ second stint as a starter hasn’t been any better and NY fans and at least Mike Greenberg of Mike and Mike, who is a self-avowed Jets fan, want Bowles to play 2nd year QB Brice Petty from Baylor. The Jets are another franchise who is very impatient and if the Jets continue to struggle it may be hard for Bowles to keep his job. Chuck Pagano - The second half of the season is everything to the Colts head coach. He is taking the guy who was touted as the second coming of Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck, and getting him beat to hell behind of the Colts “look out!!” offensive line. You know the old joke, when you miss a block you yell to your QB, “look out” so he can duck and cover. The story of how Pagano beat cancer in an emotional season that saw the Colts go to the playoffs under the clarion call of, For Chuck.” It wasn’t the inspiration of Pagano’s fight with cancer it was former assistant coach Bruce Arians who led the Colts through the season. Arians got the job in Arizona on the strength of his work as interim coach. The fact is since Arians left for the desert the Colts have sucked and it could very well be Pagano’s, as well as GM Ryan Grigson’s, last year in Indianapolis. Both have done a lousy job with this team although given the dearth of talent on the O and D lines and the team in general it’s hard to blame Pagano for not being able to coach up Andrew Luck and a bunch of slugs to any kind of success. It’s a wonder that Indy is actually 4-5 and just 1-1/2 games back of Houston. The Colts win in Green Bay last Sunday was a shock in a lot of ways and could be an indictment as to how much the Packers have declined this season. Chip Kelly – Kelly is not a genius. He came to the NFL with a trick college offense and made a splash but he has shown no ability to judge talent, deal with grown men or win consistently. His failure to do anything with either QB he has, Colin Kaepernick or Blaine Gabbert, sort destroys his rep as a QB guru. The way he flat destroyed the talent level in Philadelphia over two seasons is epic in its scope. DeSean Jackson, gone. LeSean McCoy, gone. There were others and he traded Nick Foles to St Louis for Sam Bradford. If Kelly was purposely trying to sabotage the Eagles roster he couldn’t have done a better job. The 49ers are now 1-7 and things and the outlook is not great for the rest of the season. Jeff Fisher – If there is anyone more overrated than Chip Kelly it’s got to be Fisher. The guy had one good season and he ended up just inches short of being able to tie the Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV. He’s just over being a .500 coach in his seasons with Houston/Tennessee and the Rams in both St Louis and Los Angeles. He is the only coach in NFL history to coach the same team in two different cities two times. I’m not sure why everyone thinks he such a good coach. He hasn’t developed a QB. In fact he’s ruined guys like Vince Young because he is not supportive of young QB’s. People are dying for the No 1 pick in this year’s draft, Jared Goff, to start playing but Fisher says he isn’t ready to play. Are you telling me that the No 1 pick in the draft is a project player? Really? If that’s the case then your scouting department needs to be fired or your offensive coordinator and quarterback coaches need to hit the street. That is so messed up. What I saw in this summer’s Hard Knocks Los Angeles Rams was a head coach and assistants who I was so not impressed with. Not at all. The Rams got run out of Los Angeles because they sucked and nobody wanted to go to games and now they are back the Rams are giving them shit to look at. As far as I’m concerned Jeff Fisher and Chip Kelly are two sides of the same overrated coin. The Rams and 49ers both deserve better. John Fox – Fox led the Broncos to the playoffs with Tim Tebow at QB. He took them to the Super Bowl with Peyton Manning as QB but they lost. Despite his success in Denver Broncos VP John Elway fired fox at the end of the 2014 season and he hired his old buddy Gary Kubiak. Fox wasn’t unemployed long as the Bears snapped him up. For whatever reason, Fox hasn’t enjoyed the success in Chicago he enjoyed in either Denver or Carolina. His Bears were 6-10 last season and so far they are just 2-6 this year. Bears ownership may give Fox the benefit of the doubt because of his past success but there is going to have to have some sign that the Bears are actually getting better at some point this season. 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eagle eye Posted November 13, 2016 Author Share Posted November 13, 2016 (edited) If you have been riding the James White train the past few weeks prepare to disembark. The Patriots has taken RB Dion Lewis off PUP and he will play today against the Seahawks. It was a good run for White fantasy owners but it looks like this is the end of him fantasy-wise. Lewis has been rehabbing after two offseason knee surgeries but he has been practicing for the past two or three weeks. Patriots teammates have been effusive with their praise saying he is "nasty" in the open field. Lewis might be available as a free agent pickup in most leagues. The Ram's Todd Gurley has been listed as limited this past week in practice but he is expected to play today in New York against the Jets. Here are this week's sits/starts for this weekends games for fantasy footballers. It starts with QBs and just follow the pages links for the rest of the positions. http://www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball/story/0ap3000000735472/article/start-em-sit-em-week-10-quarterbacks It looks like the Bryce Petty era for the NY Jets is beginning today. Geno Smith is on IR, Ryan Fitzpatrick is listed as questionable with a bum knee. It makes sense in a way to start Petty because Geno Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick are probably gone after this year and the Jets need a QB of the future. Enter, Bryce Petty. The Jets also drafted former Penn State QB Christian Hackenberg in this year's draft but reports are he is a work in progress before he's ready to take an NFL snap. Here is the Week 10 Cheat Sheet from NFL.com replete with injury news, weather conditions for today's games and a preview of all the games today. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000424294/article/week-10-cheat-sheet Edited November 13, 2016 by eagle eye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 15, 2016 Author Share Posted November 15, 2016 (edited) This week’s NFL news is a return to the weird world of the NFL Knuckleheads Club. The Cowboys DE Randy Gregory was rumored to failed yet another drug test recently but there is no word from the NFL or the Cowboys as to the validity of the story. If it is true then Gregory will be facing a one year suspension. He currently serving a 10 game suspension for failing a drug test this past spring. That was after it was announced he would be suspended the first four games of the season for substance abuse. In all Gregory will miss the first 14 weeks of this season. The likelihood that he can come back in mid-December and make any significant contribution is pretty remote. If he does get the suspension he wouldn’t be able to be reinstated until December of 2017. If Gregory is guilty of yet another failed drug test I think it is safe to say his time as a Dallas Cowboy is over. Kenny Vacaro, the safety for the Saints, is looking at a 4 game suspension for using Adderal. Like the Saints don’t have enough problems without losing their Pro Bowl safety for drug use. Alshon Jeffrey is out the next four weeks for PED use. Eagles offensive tackle Taylor Lewan was suspended 10 games in October for PED use. 10 games means it’s his second violation. So I went to look up all the suspensions for this season and I was shocked at the amount of them there are. On Wikipedia I found an article on all the suspensions in the NFL in history and if you look at just 2015 and 2016 you’d be shocked at how big the NFLKHC is. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suspensions_in_the_National_Football_League A few teams had issues other than suspensions this past weekend. Here are some significant injury news from around the NFL from NFL.com including the possible loss of Bears RB Jordan Howard to an Achilles tear. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000738293/article/injuries-jordan-howard-suffers-possible-achilles-injury Another article from NFL.com is 36 things learned from this past weekend’s games. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000738759/article/thirtysix-things-we-learned-from-week-10 The Tennessee Titans look like they could very well be in the playoff picture by the end of the year. They are just 5-4 right now but they look really strong. Stronger than the 6-3 Houston Texans mainly because of the crappy play of Brock Osweiler and the resulting inability of the Texans to score points. The Texans are 30th out of 32 teams in total offense while the Titans are 2nd. That’s right, I said second. DeMarco Murray has put the nightmarish 2015 season in hell as a Philadelphia Eagle behind him as he is the 2nd leading rusher in the NFL just 75 yards behind his replacement in Dallas, Ezekiel Elliott. Last Sunday against Green Bay Murray rushed for 127 yards on just 17 carries with a TD and he added another 33 yards on 2 catches plus, he added a 10 yard TD pass on a 2nd and 8 pitch from Mariota on the Titans 2nd possession. Most boring game of the week? That’s easy, it was the Jets vs the Rams. How can a 9-6 game be anything but boring? It wasn’t without moments however. The Jets capped a 99 yard drive for a TD with the old hook and ladder play. What made the call unique was the fact it was run on the Rams 5 yard line on a 3rd and goal play. Usually, the hook and ladder is run when there is a lot more room to work the play but the Jets made it happen. The play occurred in the 2nd quarter with 12 minute remaining in the half. Unfortunately, it was the only score the Jets were able to make. The Seahawks did what isn’t done very often. They went into Foxborough Massachusetts and beat the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football. In the process the Pats have lost TE Rob Gronkowski for a couple of games because of what is suspected to be a punctured lung after a hit by Port Arthur native Earl Thomas. Gronk said Thomas’ hit was the hardest hit he’s ever taken, and I believe him. You can’t count on anybody. I’ve talked about what an underachieving team the Cincinnati Bengals are and they showed it again last night. I am loathe to give the Giant credit for anything much less having a great defense. The Giants should have a great defense considering the money they spent in free agency in the offseason. After the Giants first TD, a pass to rookie TE Jerell Adams, ESPN color man remarked that the Bengals, who were coming off their bye week, looked like they were still on bye. It was just another case of choke-itis by the Bengals and my ideal situation for the Cowboys of a win over Pittsburgh couple by losses by the rest of the NFC East only came half way true. The Cowboys held up their end but the NFC East all won their games too. Beforehand the likeliest team to lose was Philadelphia who was playing Atlanta but the Eagles stifled the Falcons #1 offense and they won 24-15. The Rams All Pro DL Robert Quinn checked himself into the hospital Monday morning after the Rams returned from New York for an unspecified non-football illness. Coach Jeff Fisher said he spoke with Quinn and things look encouraging. HIPPA law prevents disclosing personal medical issues so we might never know what’s going on with Quinn unless he decides to talk about with the media. Quinn came off a good game against the Jets on Sunday and was said to be in good spirits on the flight back to LA so there is not even any food for speculation at this point. Lastly, Seattle QB Russell Wilson has been outspoken about bring the Seattle Supersonics back to Seattle. Team ownership moved the franchise after the 2008-9 season to Oklahoma City and there is currently no NBA team in Seattle. That could change soon as Wilson announced on Twitter yesterday that he had partnered with Sonic Arena Group in an effort to bring the NBA and NHL to Seattle. The Supersonics were the first professional franchise in Seattle established in 1967. The Seahawks came next in 1976 were followed by the Seattle Mariners in 1977. I am just a casual fan of the NBA but there is a void in my mind not having the Supersonics in the NBA. No offense to Oklahoma City but I feel like Seattle is a much better city for young urban males than OKC is. It’s the same old story, the local Seattle government refused to go in on a new arena so the Sonics ownership took their basketball and went to Oklahoma. Franchise for ransom is an old story. It’s the same deal with the Oakland Raiders who constantly do the, ‘we want a new stadium’ chant pretty regularly. The Raiders even moved Los Angeles for a time before healing the rift in the force by moving back to Oakland. Now the prevailing rumor is the Raiders will move to Las Vegas. C’mon folks, there is just no ring to the Las Vegas Raiders. It sounds like crap and I’m totally against the move for just that reason. My life just got back closer to square when the Rams moved back to Los Angeles because the St Louis Rams just never resonated with me. I’ll never get the rest of my OCD discomfort alleviated because the Houston Oilers are never coming back. Neither are the Baltimore Colts or the St Louis (football) Cardinals. The force will never be in alignment as long as these franchises are not where they belong. Don’t even get me started about the discomfort I feel with the Astros in the American League. I think it’s pretty cool that Russell Wilson is championing the return of the NBA as well as the NHL to Seattle and I hope he and the Sonic Arena Group, is able to get it done. Edited November 16, 2016 by eagle eye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 16, 2016 Author Share Posted November 16, 2016 Jeff Fisher is a douche. He trades up in this year’s draft to get the #1 pick overall so he can draft Jared Goff and then he benches him for the first 10 weeks of the season. He wasn’t even active for most of those games. Go figure, huh? Now, after yet another disappointing offensive performance in which the Rams scored but 9 measly points on 3 measly field goals he decides to make a change. Fisher has gone from, “Goff is not ready to play in the NFL” coming out of training camp to “what the hell, he can’t be any worse than Case Keenum.” Goff will join a list of first time QBs in the NFL this year in which all of them who have been able to play have had varying degrees of success. None greater than the phenomenal run of 4th round pick Dak Prescott. Why not take a chance on Goff? I just wonder if Fisher has a box of rocks where his brain should be. I didn’t mention it in my post on the Cowboys thread but with the Cowboys win in Pittsburgh, extending their winning streak to a franchise tying 8 regular season games in a row, and the Patriots loss to Seattle on Sunday night the Cowboys are the #1 ranked team in the NFL. They have the best record and they top ranked running back. The Cowboys are #1! It’s not the #1 they are shooting for but I’ll bet they’ll take it. The Seahawks just screwed me in fantasy by waiving RB Christine Michael. It was bad enough that rookie RB CJ Prosise was leeching touches from Michael over the past couple of weeks but now, with Thomas Rawls set to return from IR the Seahawks felt they didn’t need Michael any more. According to the article linked below from the Seattle Times newspaper column written by columnist Jayson Jenks explains why Michael suddenly became expendable. http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/seahawks/the-reason-the-seahawks-released-rb-christine-michael-trust-and-consistency/ The Week 10 Players of the Week awards were announced yesterday on NFL.com and the winners including AFC Offensive POTW Marcus Mariota who led the Titans over the Packers on Sunday and NFC POTW Ezekiel Elliott who amassed 209 yards from scrimmage against the Steeler including 2 TD’s in the final 2 minutes of the game to give Dallas the win. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000740756/article/marcus-mariota-among-nfl-players-of-the-week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 17, 2016 Author Share Posted November 17, 2016 The ongoing saga of Christine Michael goes on. Just one day after being released by the Seattle Seahawks the Green Bay Packers claimed Michael off waivers. Over the last two seasons Michael has been the most traveled running back in the NFL. Michael was drafted out of Texas A&M in 2013 by Seattle where he spent 2 seasons backing up Marshawn Lynch and then, after Lynch was injured, Thomas Rawls. Dallas traded for Michael on September 6 of last year to try to bolster the RB position after the loss of DeMarco Murray to free agency. Dallas released Michael in November last year to sign Robert Turbin, another former Seahawk RB who has gotten some recent frequent flyer miles himself. Two days after being released by Dallas he was signed to the Washington Redskins practice squad but less than a month later he was released by Washington. Shortly after his release from the Redskins Michael was resigned by the Seahawks who were having to deal with injuries to Lynch and Rawls. He ended the season as the starting QB of the Seahawks and he began the 2016 season in the same position when injury to Thomas Rawls sidelined him and Marshawn Lynch retired in the offseason. Of the 9 games played Michael started 7 and his release this week was a bit of a shock. The emergence of rookie RB from Notre Dame CJ Prosise and the return of Rawls from IR coupled with the fact Michael is said to be an undisciplined runner who misses holes way too often were cited as reasons for his sudden release. At this point in the season Green Bay needs a shot in the arm offensively. They lost Eddie Lacy a few games ago to and ankle injury that ended up requiring surgery and his backup James Starks also went down with a knee injury suffered in practice on October 11 which required surgery. He is slated to come back this week but the Packers are really short on RBs and Michael is an Eddie Lacy type of back. So far the Packers have had no one step up at RB except WR Ty Montgomery. The Packers offense is purely one dimensional relying on the pass and this hasn’t been a stellar year for Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers has been considered over the last 3-4 years the best QB in the NFL but this year he has looked pretty average. Michael is in shape and ready to go and if there is one position that a newbie to a team can contribute right away it’s a running back. I wouldn’t depend much on Starks this week as he’s not going to be in game shape and he’s liable to be on a snap count to work him back into shape. Michael could actually be the Packers starting RB this week when they face the Washington Redskins on Sunday Night Football. I’ll be rooting for the Beaumont native and the rest of the Packers to beat the surging Washington Redskins. I would feel much better if the Eagles, Giants and ‘Skins all would lose this week to go along with a Cowboys win over Baltimore. I would love to see Dallas go up by at least 3 games on the rest of the division with just 6 games left to play. The finalists for the 2017 Hall of Fame Class have been released and here’s the list of 26 finalists from NFL.com. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000741028/article/semifinalists-announced-for-17-hall-of-fame-class Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagle eye Posted November 19, 2016 Author Share Posted November 19, 2016 After waiting what seemed like forever before the Patriots got Gronk back after his last injury it almost seems cruel to have to deal with yet another Gronk outage. That's what is the prognosis for him after a vicious, but legal, blow to the ribs suffered in last week's loss to Seattle. The good thing for New England is they still have Martellus Bennett. Bennett has enjoyed a resurgence of sorts in New England after spending time in Dallas, New York with the Giants and Chicago. He was slowed by his own injury issues for a few games but he's back and better than ever. There is no timetable given for Gronk's return, all that is known for sure is he's definitely out tomorrow. Here's some more injury updates of note from NFL.com: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000741870/article/twenty-things-to-know-about-week-11-injury-report As I went outside this morning and got a big blast of cold air I remembered why I like NFL.com's cheat sheet. Among the features of the piece is a weather report for all the game being played which is a good thing to know when you have to try to play when that old north wind blows in behind a cold front like it's doing today. Beside the weather there is roster news and a preview of every game among the information in the article. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000741990/article/week-11-cheat-sheet I don't do this often enough because to be honest I'm just too lazy but every once in a while I like to toss out the fantasy starts/sits/sleepers from someone else than NFL.com's Michael Fabiano. So, with that in mind, I'm giving the s-s-s's from USA Today Sports. The man on the hot seat is USA Today's Steven Ruiz who actually refers to his article as Studs, Duds and Sleepers. I guess there is no nifty alternative for the phrase sleepers. Enjoy. http://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/11/week-11-fantasy-football-rankings-sleepers-advice-lineup-start-sit-nfl The old 'threaten to relocate' blackmail is being used by the Oakland Raiders and it looks like the city of Oakland is making it's move to give in to demands. The Raiders ownership are seriously entertaining the notion of relocating to Las Vegas and apparently the City Fathers of Oakland will not go quietly into that good night. The word around NFL circles is the City of Oakland is preparing a new stadium proposal to try to keep their beloved Raiders. It would be a crying shame to let them leave now that they are good after floundering around in basement of the NFL also rans for 30 years. Yes, they had that brief shining moment when they actually made the Super Bowl right after the start of the new millennium but the "Just Win Baby" Raiders have been mostly "Could You Please Just Win One Baby" Raiders. Under new head coach Jack Del Rio, who was hired prior to last season has taken good players he has inherited, drafted well and added key free agents to build a really good roster. It might actually be the best overall roster in the NFL if you can believe that. After struggling mightily since missing a chip shot field goal to win a divisional round playoff game against Seattle last year Blair Walsh seems to have lost his mojo completely. So completely that he has routinely missed extra points and field goals at an alarming rate. So completely that the Vikings, who are in the middle of a losing tailspin after beginning the season 5-0 they now stand at 5-4 tied for first place in the NFC Norris Division with Detroit, that they pulled the plug on Walsh's employment this week. As recently as last week the Vikings auditioned kickers in what ended up looking like a proverbial kick in the pants for Walsh to help snap him out of his funk. It didn't happen. The Vikings scored 3 TDs in the first half last week against the Redskins but Walsh was just 2 of 3 in his extra point attempts. The Vikings signed a guy who has a lot of experience replacing ineffective or injured kickers in Kai Forbath. Forbath could solve one issue for the Vikings but he won't be much help to a lost and ineffective Sam Bradford. That's it for today. If I don't get back this way before tomorrow, good luck unless you are playing me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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