The long-running Tatum Bell vs. Kevin Jones debate takes an important step this week, with Jones expected to return to the field.

It's tempting to use Jones right away, but he's not expected to start the game. Early estimates say Jones will play 15-20 snaps, which means 5-10 touches. He could be worth using in fantasy leagues starting next week if all goes well.

Jones' main influence this week is to keep Tatum Bell owners from hurting themselves again. Bell needs Jones to get hurt again to be worth his high ADP this season. Bell put up 132 total yards and a score in two starts.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 02:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Profootballtalk.com has an entry Thursday that league "scuttlebutt" expects Andre Johnson to miss five weeks. Mike Florio cautions that he's not reporting the news as fact, just that people around the league expect AJ to miss that time.

It's the type of post that is interesting, but not substantial enough to post in our news section. So I thought I'd post it here.

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Continue reading "When will Andre Johnson return?" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (28)

The schedule is paramount in the NFL. Play the Raiders and Vikings, and you get the 2-0 Lions. Play the Patriots and Ravens and you get the 0-2 Jets. Are the Lions better than New York? Probably not.

The same goes for fantasy leagues, of course, but too many owners ignore scheduling factors early in the season when they can skew overall rankings.

Philip Rivers is a good example. He's had a rough start against the Bears and Patriots, and it will probably continue this week against a solid Green Bay secondary.

Continue reading "Buy low on Rivers?" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 03:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

I think this article was intended to applaud Matt Leinart's work ethic last week.

But I can't be the only one that wonders why it took a terrible Week 1 performance and some nudging from his coaches and Edgerrin James to show up early and leave late. "There may have been a little bit of a nudge, yes," coach Ken Whisenhunt said.

Continue reading "Leinart no longer slacking?" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

As a Byron Leftwich believer, even I was surprised how quickly the Gary Coleman look-alike was picked up in a few of my leagues.

Joining an offense during the season presents many difficulties, especially an offense as poor as the Falcons. There is no running game, shaky receivers, and an offensive line struggling to learn a new system. Leftwich managed to find a worse offense than Jacksonville.

Atlanta doesn't have a bye until Week 8, and it's unrealistic to expect Leftwich to learn the offense well enough to get the starting job before then. Although anything is possible with Joey Harrington.

Continue reading "Leftwich to Atlanta impact" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)

I don't like owning old receivers. I'd rather give up a year too early than a year too late. That's why I don't have guys like Joe Horn and Muhsin Muhammad on my team, although I know plenty of owners out there do.

These guys are edging towards irrelevence. Muhammad is known for his consistency, but has two catches for 15 yards in two games. Joe Horn has three catches for 48 yards. They are both slowing players on weak offenses. In Chicago, Bernard Berrian is clearly the top option. Roddy White appears to emerging in Atlanta.

Continue reading "Hot Seats: Joe Horn and Muhsin Muhammad" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 06:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Judging by emails, no top running back is causing their owners to panic like Laurence Maroney. I can understand Reggie Bush owners' consternation, but I am not worried about Maroney long-term.

Many point towards Sammy Morris' big role in the offense, but the Patriots have won two blowouts and have the luxury to spread the ball around. Maroney was never going to be a RB1 that racks up 350 carries.

Continue reading "Hot Seat: Laurence Maroney" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 05:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

Jones has three catches in two games, and his coach is publicly questioning his body language. I had Jones ranked quite high early in the offseason until a source close to the team in Jacksonville begged me off it because of Jones' reputation for laziness. I'm glad I listened, although he was still ranked too high from the looks of it.

Jones shouldn't near fantasy lineups at this point, but he should still be owned as a WR5/6 in most 12-team formats. He was second on the Jaguars with five targets in Week 2, and it's worth seeing if he responds to Del Rio's challenge.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

In a quiet week for waiver pickups, DeShawn Wynn was going to be the most popular waiver pickup this side of Derek Anderson after his two touchdown performance.

Wynn is turning into a must-pickup after a pair of Green Bay area articles Tuesday morning.

Continue reading "DeShawn Wynn fever" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (27)

Donovan McNabb looks a lot worse Monday night than he did in the season opener against the Packers. The recevers aren't always open, but Donovan McNabb has missed many by a wide margin. I am reminded of Carson Palmer's recovery from ACL surgery last year.

Palmer's biggest problem wasn't getting back on the field and taking a hit. It was his accuracy. His mechanics had to be relearned post-surgery and Palmer missed throws he normally made. His completion percentage dropped 5%.

Donovan McNabb has never been a particularly accurate West Coast quarterback. He's only topped 60% in a season once in his career. I think the Eagles offense will find their way, but it's going to be tough if McNabb loses 5% like Palmer.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)