Brad Childress seems determined to prove Adrian Peterson can hold up to a huge workload, no matter how risky. AP's 29 carries from against the Colts probably excited some fantasy owners, but I'd rather see Chester Taylor more involved. Peterson went over 20 carries only twice last year. In his record-breaking game against San Diego, he had 30. The next week he got hurt.
It doesn't make sense to overwork AP when the Vikings have such a great backup. Chester Taylor almost equaled Peterson's yards-per-carry last year, but has only nine totes in two games this year. If that trend keeps up, expect to see Taylor starting some games later in the season.
Peterson is second in the league in rushes. The leader, despite the addition of Rashard Mendenhall, is Willie Parker. Again. Tighten up those wheels, Willie!
I may pick up Koren Robinson in my deeeeeeep dynasty league just for nostalgia's sake. If the Seahawks sign him, and it looks like they will, Robinson should be starting before long.
I watched the Seahawks/49ers on tape last night, and Matt Hasselbeck's favorite wideout was the missing McMullen brother, Billy. He joined the team a week ago. Hasselbeck has a comfort level with K-Rob and the Seattle system gets people open. People other than Courtney Taylor at least. (Taylor had a big drop last Sunday, although he was wide open for a possible 25-yard TD and Hasselbeck missed him.)
Robinson can pass Michael Bumpus and McMullen in short order. I would place him roughly sixth at wideout on this list.
September 15, 2008
The column is out. And now so are the waiver picks. Chris Wesseling's got his full writeups tomorrow. As always, these lists can't cover everyone, but I try to only include players available in a majority of leagues. I'm sure you'll let me know who I forgot.
Running Backs
1. Pierre Thomas
2. Darren Sproles: Number one if you own LT2.
3. Fred Jackson
4. Ahmad Bradshaw
5. Michael Bush
6. Brandon Jackson
7. LaMont Jordan
Quarterbacks
1. J.T. O’Sullivan
2. Trent Edwards
3. Brian Griese
4. Kerry Collins
Wideouts
1. Bryant Johnson
2. Isaac Bruce
3. Matt Jones (still)
4. Antonio Bryant: I know I’ll take crap for this, but it’s a long season and Galloway is hurt. Griese was a disappointment though. Just like the picks we got right so far, getting it right or wrong for two weeks doesn’t win titles.
5. Justin Gage
6. James Jones
7. Derek Hagan
8. Brandon Lloyd
Tight Ends
1. John Carlson: There’s no one left to catch passes.
2. Randy McMichael
This Week’s Defense
1. Buffalo (vs. Raiders)
It's a lot more fascinating to read about dysfunction than it is to read about mediocrity. Give hme a 3-13 implosion to follow anytime over a 7-9 team. That's why I was eager to check out the articles in Kansas City and Oakland today. They didn't disappoint.
Jerry McDonald, one of the absolute best, shows how Lane Kiffin simply doesn't care what anyone thinks about him. A true maverick!
Nancy Gay of the Chronicle believes that Rob Ryan is the next Raiders head coach, and details the deep divide in the locker room and how Al Davis ordered Ryan's tirade last week.
And the Raiders actually won Sunday! Dueling Kansas City columnists Whitlock and Posnanski are fittingly apoplectic about the Chiefs. 90% of Kansas City readers believe they are the worst team in football. Larry Johnson wants out. Carl Peterson could finally be at the end of the road.
Week One Heroes who sunk
1. Maybe they were fluky: Anthony Fasano didn’t have a catch Sunday. Dante Rosario only had a six-yard catch. Randy McMichael had two catches for 24 yards.
2. Marvin Harrison owners should be concerned that he’s pouting like the playoffs and that Anthony Gonzalez looks like the better player.
3. Reggie, Reggie, Reggie is averaging 3.3 yards-per-carry on the season. The receiving numbers and punt return touchdown absolutely save him, especially in PPR leagues, but let’s not get carried away talking about his maturation just yet.
4. Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood learned what life can be like with a rookie quarterback facing a real NFL defense. They went from 313 yards and three scores to 60 yards. Thud.
Ah, the adventures of Ricky and Ronnie. We've had fun following these two from summer workouts in shorts to training camp battles. Stocks have risen, stocks have fallen. And for what?
Through two games, Ricky's numbers : 21 carries 52 yards and five catches for 16 yards. And three fumbles!
Ronnie Brown: 17 carries, 48 yards, one garbage time touchdown and five catches for 47 yards.
I may be winning my personal Ronnie vs. Ricky bet with an unnamed Rotoworld write, but what's the point? This team could run the ball better when Cam Cameron was in town. What in the name in Hudson Houck getting fired is going on around here? I'm not lucid enough at this hour to answer my own rhetorical questions. Thank you all.
September 13, 2008
It looks like we won't get to see how ready Steve Slaton is this weekend. ESPN says the Texans-Ravens is postponed, while the Houston Chronicle just says the game will definitely not take place at Reliant Stadium. An official announcement should come later Saturday, but get your Ravens and Texans our of your lineup.
September 12, 2008
The most surprising thing about Philip Rivers' awesome Week 1 performance was that no one was surprised. Except me. It was like his ACL surgery never happened. Unlike any recent quarterback returning from that surgery (Carson Palmer, Donavan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper, Brian Griese), Rivers showed no ill effects from the procedure. He may have looked better.
His accuracy and mobility stuck out - the two skills ACL surgery is supposed to hinder. Rivers had no fear of the pass rush. He patiently waited, dodged, and jumped around in the pocket. He bought extra time, he threw on the run, and he delivered when he was about to get hit. Rivers has never had a cannon, but he was accurate on touch passes and bombs alike against Carolina. I'm not ready to proclaim Rivers a QB1 yet. He's been inconsistent even when healthy, but proved a lot in Week 1.
His opponent in the game, Jake Delhomme, was harder to pin down. He led the Panthers to victory, but he threw some crazily off target passes. One moonball on a deep pass sticks out. I couldn't help wondering if his elbow had any effect on him. There were great moments and head scratchers, then a gutsy finish. In other words, typical Delhomme.
The Browns are under more pressure than any team to win in Week 2. If they lose at home against Pittsburgh, they are already two games down in the division, with a trip to Pittsburgh to go. That's a rough start.
Vegas gave up on Cleveland, making them ridiculous seven point underdogs this week. I'm going with the home team, trying to build on a solid 9-7 start to the year. The video below has my fantasy picks for the game. Here's a hint: I'm not bailing on the big name offensive players in Cleveland and the Browns secondary is terrible!
Taylor's name is in the headline because we have a picture of him
First the Texans wasted their time, resources, and roster spots on Ahman Green and Chris Brown. It's possible they'll get nothing in return, the way Green is going. Now they are forced to start Steve Slaton before they wanted to. Perhaps it will be a blessing in disguise, but it may be too much for the rookie to handle. The only safe bet is that Chris Taylor will start a game at some point for Houston. Darius Walker might too before this is over. This has a way of happening with the Houston running game.
Houston was one of the few teams I watched twice in the preseason, primarily because I was curious about Slaton and Taylor. They both show flashes of being effective roles players, especially Slaton, but I don't think they are ready to handle the load on their own. The Texans probably feel the same way.
Slaton averaged 3.3 yards-per-touch against the Steelers. And almost all of his damage came in the fourth quarter - by the time Byron Leftwich was at quarterback for Pittsburgh. Before that point, Slaton had seven rushes for 14 yards. If Slaton starts slow, look for Slaton and Chris Taylor to share touches evenly, just like they did in the third preseason game. Against Baltimore, he's probably going to start slow.
I saw enough versatility and surprising power in the preseason to think that Slaton can be effective as a lead back in a committee. But he's not ready for Baltimore. Chris Perry, another role player asked to start, found out the hard way. Expect Slaton to do the same.
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