After a fast start to the season, Anquan Boldin has been very quiet since Arizona's Week 8 bye. While still showing some aftereffects from a hip injury that forced him to miss three games, Boldin has caught only 16 passes for 212 yards and a touchdown over the last four weeks.

He's taking a backseat to Larry Fitzgerald in the offense and there are indications Boldin isn't happy about it. Using our targets report, I decided to check if Boldin's displeasure had merit.

Continue reading "Boldin unhappy with Fitzgerald's emergence?" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Herm Edwards can be criticicized for a lot of things, time management being first among them. But those who picked on him for running Kolby Smith on fourth-and-one in the fourth quarter instead of attempting a field goal weren't watching the game.

Smith was the entire Kansas City offense, and he had converted three out of four short-yardage opportunities on the day. Dave Rayner, the Kansas City kicker, missed a 33-yard field goal in the fourth quarter by as much as you can possibly miss an unblocked field goal. And the Kansas City defense had no answer for Justin Fargas in the second half; they couldn't even stop him when they knew the Raiders were running out the clock.

Taking all those factors into account, Herm made the right decision. It just didn't work.

***

New Fixes are up - talking waiver picks and 100K playoffs.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 04:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

It's never boring with Ricky, is it? Just six carries into his latest comeback, Ricky is out for the season with a torn chest muscle. The injury reportedly occured when Steelers LB Lawrence TImmons stepped on Williams' shoulder blade.

Continue reading "Fun while it lasted" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 03:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

Still a RB1?

There are a lot of ways to measure how disappointing top-shelf running backs have been this season,. Here's one that sticks out to me: Ronnie Browns is still ranked in the top-ten backs of the year.

He's ninth in standard scoring and seventh in points-per-reception leagues. Since you could use his starting spot in the last five weeks, it's easy to make the case that Ronnie is still among the Fantasy MVPs this season.

Continue reading "The Season Running Backs Collapsed" »

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (18)

If you are in position to make the fantasy playoffs, you shouldn't be desperate enough to need Patrick Cobbs or Fred Jackson.

Cobbs carried the load for Miami last night when Jesse Chatman and Ricky Williams were hurt, and has a great matchup on paper next week against the Jets. And while Cobbs could be worth a flier in the deepest of leagues, the most likely outcome in Miami is that Williams, Chatman, or both will be back in the lineup by Sunday.

I feel the same way about the Buffalo situation. If Anthony Thomas is out, Fred Jackson and Dwayne Wright will probably split carries against the Redskins. That's not worth investing a roster spot in. Just wait for Thomas or Marshawn Lynch to return and roll with what you have.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I feel closer to everyone else who watched that entire game for having experienced it together. Thanks for stopping by today.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Ricky was MIA in 2004

Watching tonight's game, it's hard not to think about the last time a Miami-Pittsburgh game was delayed by weather. This was in 2004, when Hurricane Jeanne turned the Week 3 contest into a night game played in sloppy conditions. The Dolphins had Dave Wannstedt as their coach, A.J. Feeley as their quarterback, and Leonard Henry as their starting running back. Ricky Williams's excellent yoga adventure was just getting started.

That was Ben Roethlisberger's first NFL start, and the Super Bowl Champion Steelers often cited that weekend in retrospect as a pivotal time because of the bonding that took place while waiting out the storm in the team hotel. There wasn't a touchdown scored that night until the fourth quarter, when Ben Roethlisberger hit a diving Hines Ward in the corner of the end zone.

The way the field looks tonight, we could be looking at a similar lack of scoring.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 09:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Like many of the receivers who have lined up across from Marques Colston the last two seasons, David Patten has struggled to keep a hot streak going.

After playing like a WR2 for a four-game stretch (331 yards, one score), Patten has only seven catches for 83 yards the last three weeks. Guys like Terrance Copper, Devery Henderson, and Lance Moore have shown flashes in New Orleans, but not enough consistency to play them every week. Sean Payton's system makes them look great occasionally, but ultimately they aren't talented enough to be weekly fantasy options. Drew Brees is going to spread the ball around except for Colston.

New Orleans needs to address their receiver depth in the offseason again after drafting Robert Meachem last year. And fantasy owners who rode Patten's hot streak need to bench him for the playoffs.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 04:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I left Baltimore-San Diego out of the Morning After so here are a list of unsolicted, lazy thoughts about the game. All in a writer-friendly numbered list ...

1. Any hope for a Mark Clayton revival this season is gone, at least for fantasy leaguers. He's among the most disappointing young receivers in the league.

2. Baltimore's pass defense still shouldn't scare anyone. But you knew that by now, right? San Diego's receivers were all wide open on the touchdowns, apparently the result of blown coverages.

3. Philip Rivers, like Eli Manning, has become completely unpredictable, whether good or bad.

4. Derrick Mason is still averaging under ten yards-per-catch, but he's already topped his reception and yardage total from 2006. Mason should top 100 receptions for the first time in his career and remains a perfect PPR WR3.

5. The Ravens and the Panthers are giving consistently poor efforts. If Baltimore tanks the rest of the season, the organization may have no other choice but to make a change at head coach. Fantasy owners wouldn't mind.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

LaDainian Tomlinson is on pace for almost 500 fewer total yards and 16 fewer touchdowns this year, but he's still the second-highest scoring fantasy running back in the league.

He's only averaged more than four yards-per-carry in a game three times, yet he's still sixth in rushing yards. Sunday's game was a good example of LT2's season: 24 carries, 77 yards, six catches, 45 receiving yards.

Tomlinson is on pace to have his most receptions and yards since 2003, which is helping to make up for any "struggles" on the ground. In short, Tomlinson is finding a way to produce big numbers when he's not playing his best. In a year with so many high-priced fantasy busts, that's all you can ask for.

The real question heading into next season: Is this a slight blip in a Hall of Fame career or the start of Tomlinson's decline? I'd lean towards the first option, but there will at least be arguments for a different number one overall pick in fantasy leagues next year.

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)