Top Targets for 2011 Week 12

The most important part of picking up players now that bye weeks are behind us, is grabbing players, who are available, on productive offenses and play bad defenses down the stretch. Keep that in mind when you are grabbing everything that glitters this week.

Quarterbacks

Matt Moore, Miami Dolphins – Matt Moore has quietly been one of the most consistent (non blue chip) fantasy qbs over the last 5 weeks. He is not flashy and probably won’t carry your team, but if you lost your QB in the last couple of weeks Matt Moore could help. He plays some bad defenses down the stretch and he throws more TDs than INTs, both critical in the playoffs.

Hail Mary

Rex Grossman, Washington Redskins 31, 17, 27, this is the passing defenses that Sexy Rexy faces in weeks 14, 15 and 16 respectively. Now if “good Rex” shows up he could put up 25 a game for you, if “bad Rex” shows up it could be the end of your fantasy season.

Matt Leinart, Houston Texans – I was a week early on this but here it is again…Leinart could not stay on the field with Kurt Warner helping him and Larry Fitzgerald catching his wounded ducks. Chances of a resurrection in Houston are slim….but possible. Maybe he has matured, maybe he likes Andre Johnson better than Fitzy? Who knows, maybe.

Running Backs

Head Smacker

Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions – 200 total yards and 3 touchdowns……..man i hope you were reading this last week! Kevin Smith is a strong play from here until Best is back in the game.

Not so Obvious

Chris Ogbannaya, Cleveland Browns – On paper, Ogbannaya looks like a very mediocre play, but hear me out. 4 of the next 5 weeks he faces very stiff run defenses which is bad but here is the deal, all of these teams are division match ups which are always wild cards. Plus, in week 15 the Browns play the awful Cardinal defense. I was in Cleveland 2 weeks ago and watch Ogbannaya in person and he a good burst and good feet, he just might rise to the occasion.
Wide Receivers:

Head Smacker

Nate Burleson, Detroit Lions – Burleson doesn’t get much ink because he lives in the GIGANTIC shadow of Megatron. But he also doesn’t get much coverage which means he runs wide open all the time. The key to wide receivers pick ups at this point the season (as I stated earlier) is that players have to be available, on teams that face bad defenses and throw a lot. It is even better if they are players who play opposite superstars who can’t be covered. By that standard…Burleson is perfect!

Top Targets for 2011 Week 11

Quarterbacks

Head Smacker

Carson Palmer, Oakland Raiders – This is Palmer’s 3rd week on my pick up list and each week he gets an upgrade. He appears to know most of the playbook and is getting some chemistry with his receivers. Best part once again is that the Raiders face some terrible defenses down the stretch. Palmer now has value in most leagues.

Hail Mary

Matt Leinart, Houston Texans – Leinart could not stay on the field with Kurt Warner helping him and Larry Fitzgerald catching his wounded ducks. Chances of a resurrection in Houston are slim….but possible. Maybe he has matured, maybe he likes Andre Johnson better than Fitzy? Who knows, maybe.

Running Backs

Head Smacker

Lance Ball, Denver Broncos – Well, Moreno is out for the season with an ACL tear and McGahee is limited in practice so it looks like Ball is going to be the guy down the stretch. With Tim Tebow at the helm completing 2 of 8 passes for an entire game, the Broncos will be running a lot!

Not so Obvious

Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions – The Lions offense has sputtered since their bye week, but that should turn around against the Carolina Panthers bad run defense next week. Smith should be a decent flex play until Javid Best gets back from getting his bell rung.

Wide Receivers:

Head Smacker

Laurent Robinson, Dallas Cowboys – This is the second time this week that I am mentioning a guy I talked about last week. Robinson, as he does, is making the most of his opportunity. He has been solid in his starts this season and that will continue as long as he starts.

Not so Obvious

Vincent Brown, San Diego Chargers – Brown had a break out week last week and if Malcolm Floyd misses more time with a tight hip and if the other Vincent (Jackson) continues to fight off double teams, Brown is a solid play against the Bears horrid pass defense next week.

Top Targets for 2011 Week 10

There is still lots of help out there if you need it! Don’t fret

Quarterbacks

Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams – The Rams are showing some signs of life on offense and Bradford looks to be able to play even if he can’t practice. Additional, the rams dont face a good pass defense until week 15 so you should be able to get some milage out of a Bradford pick up.

Carson Palmer, Oakland Raiders – Palmer is only an option if you get -3 or less taken away for interceptions throw because he is an interception machine! But, he is also putting up decent yardage and some touchdowns. Best part is that the Raiders face some Terrible defences down the stretch. Palmer will only have value in deep leagues.
Running Backs

Head Smacker

Roy Helu, Washington Reddskins – Well the Shanahan rotating running back carousel continues. This week he has said that Helu is the starter from this point out, after this week I believe him. Helu went for 41 yards on the ground but he also caught 14 balls (yes 14!) for 105 yards. It appears that he will be used similar to the way Matt Forte is used in Chicago and Preist Holmes in KC before him and Marshall Faulk in St. Louis before him. As long as Shanahan doesn’t lose is mind and make Henry Winkler the running back next week.

Not so Obvious

Ben Tate, Houston Texans – If I was a betting man, I would bet that Ben Tate is going to get a bigger work load as the season moves on. Tate stepped in very productively when Arian Foster was laid up and he has been making the most of every chance he has gotten since. With the Texans all but assured a playoff spot, Kubiak is going to want to keep all of his running backs fresh so they can go hard in the post season. Look for this timeshare situation to grow and ben Tate to become more valuable. If you need help in a deep league Ben Tate is a good option.

Wide Receivers:

Laurent Robinson, Dallas Cowboys – We mentioned Laurent earlier in the season when Miles Austin went down and guess what…he is down again. With Miles expected to lose 2-4 weeks, Robinson should once again be a factor in fantasy leagues everywhere.

Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons – When he has been on the field this season, Jones has been very productive. With the health problems he has had, some people have dropped him to make room to in order to make it through the bye weeks. Julio is a legit talent and gets open a lot with Roddy White taking all the attention.

Hail Mary
Torrey Smith, Baltimore Ravens – Smith has been the classic feast or famine guy in his rookie campaign. With Evans continuing to be in witness protection and Boldin being the only wide out making consistent noise in Ravens camp, Smith could go off again at any time.

Top Targets for 2011 Week 9

**update**
Ahmad Bradshaw is doubtful and some reports have him with a broken bone in his foot. Brandon Jacobs should be grabbed immediately.

Saw a funny post today on facebook. “Jesus just dropped Tim Tebow from his fantasy team, I guess that whole faith thing only goes one way!” Too Funny, thanks Brandon Ficara

For the record, I am thinking I might have been a little off about Cam Newton, fine! are you happy?!

Here are your pick ups for this week

Quarterbacks

Matt Cassell, Kansas City Chiefs Matt did not look spectacular in the Chief’s fourth straight win but if you are in need of a Quarterback, he is worth a look. His chemistry with his wide receivers, new and old is getting better and Baldwin is emerging as a marquis guy. Best of all, the Chiefs face some really bad pass defences down the stretch, Dolphins, Broncos, Pats and Bears. He will become a better option as the season moves on.

Running Backs

Head Smacker

Javon Ringer, Tennessee Titans Chris Johnson is still the starter in Tennessee but that position is tenuous at best. Johnson has been very mediocre this season and is showing no signs of getting better. If Ringer has another good week and Johnson continues as he has been, this has timeshare situation written all over it.

Chris Ogbonnaya, Cleveland Browns The Browns are down to their 3rd running back with Hardesty going down last week with a calf injury. The Browns are not any better than they have been, but a couple of things to think about, Ogbonnaya is getting his first NFL start, in the area he grew up, against the team who cut him earlier this year even though he wanted badly to play there. Ogbonnaya could have a really good game this week

Hail Mary
Tashard Choice, Washington Redskins Choice has been productive in the past, he is now playing in the Shanahan system and the guy in front of him is always getting hurt. Tashard is a Hail Mary because his production was in the past, and he is playing for Shanahan. He could go for 200 yards next week, or Mike could bring someone in from the scout team to rush for 200.

Wide Receivers:

Jon Baldwin, Kansas City Chiefs – Baldwin is a big strong guy with good hands the ability to get open. Todd Haley likes him and Matt Cassell likes him and if you see him play, you will like him too.

Hail Mary
TJ Houshmandzadeh, Oakland Raiders Housh is back with his buddy Carson Palmer, the only QB he has ever had any kind of success with. Keep in mind, it has been a long time since either of them have had any value in fantasy but there might just be a little magic left for these two.