Fantasy Fallout — Week 2

By Brett | Permalink | No Comments | September 18th, 2006 | Trackback

One thing that never fails to crack us up/piss us off –depending on who we drafted in our fantasy leagues– in the early part of the season is the vast difference between what everyone thought was going to happen in fantasy football, and what actually ends up happening.

Case in point, how many among us would have predicted Lavernanues Coles going over 100 for two straight weeks, while TO has been a relative non-factor?

Each week in this section, we’ll take a look at some of the more intriguing developments in the fantasy world, and see if we can help make sense of the madness.

If Peter King can do this, then we sure as hell can too…

Cadillac Williams
He was feast or famine as a rookie, and the hope was that he would produce like a #1 back this year. So far, he’s been held under 40 yards in both games. He probably won’t be this bad all season, but with the offensive line and QB situation in Tampa both in terrible shape right now, we’re not anticipating a big increase in production anytime soon. Add to that the fact that he’s battling a back injury (and has reputation as a guy that gets banged up), and there isn’t much to like here.

Tip: Hang onto him until he has a decent game, then trade him to some RB-starved sucker in your league.

Reggie Bush
After a great week one performance against Cleveland, Green Bay held him in check, limiting him to less than 10 yards rushing. Bush is too good to be limited all season long, but he does have a few strikes against him: First, he plays for the Saints, and even though they’re 2-0, this is not a good team. Second, Deuce McAllister is getting all the goal line work, which keeps Reggie’s value down. You should expect him to games like this. Expect some great games too. Just don’t expect a lot of consistency from week to week.

Tip: He’s the perfect guy to play in flex spot, and can pass as a #2 back in larger leagues. Even though he’s not going to be productive every week, you can’t bench him because you don’t want to be the a-hole that benched Reggie Bush the week he busted out a 75 yard ankle-breaking TD run.

Kevin Jones and Roy Williams
We take special interest in these two guys because A) they got punked by the Bears this weekend (more on that later), and B) we were among the suckers that bought into the hype of Mike Martz bringing his high octane offense to Detroit this year. Both Jones and Williams are supposed to be big time contributors this year. Thus far, neither one has pissed a drop, either in terms of yardage or getting into the endzone. Making things worse, Jones fumbled twice yesterday.

Tip: If you own either of these guys, we feel your pain. We have both of them, and can’t recommend using either as anything more than a bench option until they prove they can nut up a little bit.

Michael Vick
Perhaps the most maligned NFL star going into fantasy drafts this year, Vick’s stock had never been lower than it was a few weeks ago. Now? He’s back, baby. Who cares if he only threw for 95 yards on Sunday? He racked up another 127 on the ground, threw for a TD and ran for another. That, my friends, makes for a great fantasy day.

Tip: Unless you have a top 5 QB on your roster, Vick should be in your starting line up, especially with the Saints on the horizon.

Bills Defense
This defense looked dominant yesterday against Daunte Culpepper and the Dolphins. Seemed like every time we flipped over to that game, the Bills were getting a sack, forcing a fumble, or stuffing Ronnie Brown. In most leagues, they’re probably sitting on the waiver wire right now.

Tip: Good bye week fill in, but probably not one of the top 10-12 fantasy defenses out there…yet.

Chad Pennington
Pennington, a guy who probably wasn’t even drafted as a back up in most leagues, has two 300 yard games to start the season. We’re cautiously optimistic here, even though those games came against two teams with less-than-dominant pass defenses. Three things in Pennington’s favor: the AFC East isn’t the great division it was a few years back, he has good receivers, and the Jets are probably going to throw the ball quite a bit this year. If your RBs were Kevan Barlow and Derrick Blaylock, woud you run the ball much? Neither would we.

Tip: Snag him off the waiver wire if you’re one of those guys that took a flyer on, say, Chris Simms as your back up QB. Pennington’s a solid bye week sub, and could potentially be used in platoon situations.

Desmond Clark
Who? Going into the season, Dez Clark was considered one of the worst starting TEs in the league. He’s been a big part of the Bears passing attack for the first two games, notching 150+ yards and TD in those games. It’s possible that the Bears offense is coming out of a ten year hybernation this year, and Clark figures to see his share of looks in the red zone. It should be noted, though, that the Bears also targeted TE John Gilmore twice at the goal line yesterday.

Tip: If you’ve got a spare roster spot and need a #2 TE, Clark is worth picking up. Just don’t expect miracles.

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