Baltimore @ PittsburghThe Ravens may have clinched their division, but home field advantage is still very much up for grabs in the AFC, so don't expect them to lie down for this one. Expect an old school smashmouth style game here between these two rivals. Both teams will try to establish a runnning game but don't set your expectations for
Willie Parker and
Jamal Lewis too high. Both defenses are solid against the run, both ranking in the top 5 in the league. The passing game should be interesting to watch.
Steve McNair is back in action this week and should be looking for
Mark Clayton and
Derrick Mason downfield more than across the middle to the banged up
Todd Heap.
Ben Roethlisberger has
Hines Ward back but we're still waiting to see someone really step up as the #2 guy. Toss it up between
Nate Washington and
Santonio Holmes as
Cedrick Wilson and former TE standout
Heath Miller have been disappointing this year. I think whoever wins the ground battle, wins the war.
Carolina @ AtlantaIf it wasn't for the sad mediocrity of the NFC, this game would have no playoff implications whatsoever. Instead, the winner here keeps themselves alive and the loser...well, they can still get some help. The Panthers are struggling right now and need a jump start on offense.
Chris Weinke has not been able to take advantage of having
Steve Smith and
Keyshawn Johnson and the team has only put up 16 points in the last 2 games. Perhaps a shootout with the Falcons is just what they need. With neither team having that great of a running game (
DeShaun Foster and
Warrick Dunn don't exactly instill a lot of fear in defenses) look for a lot of quarterback action.
Michael Vick will pick up the slack on the ground, but will look for
Alge Crumpler and
Michael Jenkins against a team that's given up 21 TDs through the air this season. In response, you can look for Weinke to repeat that week 14 400+ yard performance with a few red zone strikes to his eager receivers.
Chicago @ DetroitNormally I would say that this is a tough one to call, but with Detroit really being that bad, I still don't see them beating a Bears squad that has already clinched a divisional title and home field throughout the playoffs. With
Kevin Jones still out, the Lions are going with
Arlen Harris and
Aevion Cason and they've been as close to useless as you can get in a fantasy running back. The forever average
Jon Kitna doesn't have much going on but he'll still be forced to air it out to
Roy Williams and
Mike Furrey, as best as he can. For the Bears,
Rex Grossman remains under center as he should be. If the team is looking to maintain their momentum in the playoffs, then Grossman needs to continue to play and stay sharp. He'll have the help of
Bernard Berrian and
Desmond Clark to keep those fantasy numbers up there. The one change you will see is in the Bears ground game. To keep him fresh for the playoffs, the team will likely cut down the workload of
Thomas Jones and give the bulk of the carries to
Cedric Benson. That doesn't bode well for Jones' owners, but if you have Benson, he could be a huge start for you this week.
Indianapolis @ HoustonThe Colts are looking up at San Diego for home field and they're neck and neck with Baltimore for that #2 seed. Funny how a game against lowly Houston could be so important for the team.
Peyton Manning should have a strong on ehere, probably locking up mostly with
Reggie Wayne. Marvelous
Marvin Harrison will play, but if you saw him last Monday, you'll see that that hand is still bothering him a little. Look for TE
Ben Utecht to come up big as well. The ground assault will be led by
Dominic Rhodes as
Joe Addai is still questionable with the ankle sprain he suffered last week. For the Texans, I guess the guy to watch would be
Ron Dayne. The Colts D still struggles big time against the run, and Dayne will do everything he can to expose its weaknesses. In the air,
David Carr has been much less than spectacular lately, and will probably struggle again against the #2 pass defense in the NFL. Maybe
Andre Johnson can come down with something at some point, but I wouldn't bet my fantasy championship on it.
New England @ JacksonvilleThe Patriots can lock up the AFC East with a win, while the Jags need a win to keep themselves alive in the wild card hunt. Expect both teams to come out hard right from the start.
Tom Brady will be able to show off his prowess as he goes again without his favorite target,
Ben Watson.
Reche Caldwell and
Troy Brown could see some extensive looks. Also expect to see Brady get perennial backup
Kevin Faulk in on the action again as he gets more time with
Corey Dillon in the backfield while
Laurence Maroney remains sidelined. It's still a tough Jags D, so don't expect anything crazy. For Jacksonville on offense, it's going to be a lot of
Maurice Jones-Drew. With
Fred Taylor sidelined and
Dave Garrard being so inconsistent, look for a game plan that keeps the focus on Jones-Drew both on the ground and in the air.
Matt Jones may get a few looks here and there, but he's not someone I'm relying on. I don't see it being a barnburner, but I don't see it being too low scoring either. Brady and Jones-Drew should be the top point-getters.
New Orleans @ NY GiantsNow this one, on the other hand, has all the potential of being a huge barnburner. The high-flying Saints are looking to put last week's debacle behind them and will look to expose a very problematic New York secondary. The Giants hope to work some of their offensive magic into the game also and while the Saints have the #5 pass defense in the league, they've still given up 23 TDs via the pass this year. What does this mean for fantasy? It means get your damn starters in.
Eli Manning, Jeremy Shockey, Plaxico Burress, Tiki Barber, Drew Brees, Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Reggie Bush, Deuce McAllister...get them all in unless you have ridiculously better options. The Giants may be getting back DL
Michael Strahan, but the team has been bad enough the past few weeks to counter any and all of his efforts.
Tampa Bay @ ClevelandNow here you go. A game without a single playoff ramification. Two franchises looking at a top draft choice next year. But for this season, there's still a little fantasy hope. Inserting QB
Tim Rattay into the Tampa lineup did wonders for them after being battered by Chicago last week. They even made a game out of it by forcing overtime. Now Rattay takes over from the start and the Bucs are hoping to put up some points agaisnt a weak Browns squad.
Joey Galloway should have a great afternoon and I'll bet TE
Alex Smith gets a few red zone looks as well. The ground game may be a little rough as
Michael Pittman takes over for the injured
Carnell Williams, but Pittman has surprised folks for a few years now. For Cleveland, it could be tough as they just don't have any sort of a ground game.
Reuben Droughns and
Jason Wright have been abyssmal, so expect
Derek Anderson to look downfield a lot for
Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow, although
Steve Heiden has been a favorite target as well. With
Ronde Barber on Edwards for most of the day,
Dennis Northcutt becomes an interesting sleeper.
Tennessee @ BuffaloWhoa!! Where'd these Bills come from? People are still using the word 'playoffs' when speaking about this team.
J.P. Losman seems to be getting better and better and the trio of
Lee Evans,
Roscoe Parrish and
Peerless Price gives them depth at WR and numerous options.
Willis McGahee is trying to make something out of this year and a mediocre Titans run D could help the cause. For the Titans, it's going to be interesting to see how the offense rebounds from last week's disappointment.
Vince Young couldn't get things going and the pass defense had to bail them out. It's a tough task for Young as his wideouts are achey and
Travis Henry is banged up. Look for him to try and make it happen himself on the ground, but still find a few strikes to
Brandon Marshall and, if he plays,
Bo Scaife.
Washington @ St. LouisAnother game with little or no playoff implications, but possibly loaded with fantasy points. Redskins RB
Ladell Betts has been fantastic since takin gover for
Clinton Portis and he should attack the Rams D and their 31st ranked run D pretty strongly. I see another 100+ yard game for him. QB
Jason Campbell seemed to be doing a little better last week and hopefully will be able to continue hitting
Santana Moss and
Chris Cooley in this potential shootout. For the Rams, they've followed through with their plan and have turned
Steven Jackson into quite the premium running back. He's been great for fantasy owners down the stretch and should continue that against the Skins, although they've only given up a league low 5 rushing TDs. He'll get his points on yardage though. The points from the Rams, this week, are coming from the air. Look for
Marc Bulger,
Torry Holt and even
Isaac Bruce to take advantage of the Skins' poor pass defense that has allowed a league high 25 passing TDs.
Arizona @ San FranciscoThis is a game I'd love to see in 3 years. They've both got some holes to contend with, but these are two of the most promising young offenses in the NFL. The Niners will concentrate on the ground this week, so look for another strong performance from
Frank Gore. The passing attack took a hit when
Antonio Bryant was suspended by the NFL for violating the league's substance abuse policy, so look for
Alex Smith to reach out for
Vernon Davis and
Arnaz Battle this week. For the Cards, look for
Matt Leinart to shine. The Niners pass D is very suspect and with weapons like
Larry Fitzgerald and
Anquan Boldin, it's time for Leinart to step it up.
Edgerrin James is coming off another solid performance so he will definitely take off some of the pressure.
Joe Nedney and
Neil Rackers should also be pretty busy. I see a high scoring ending here.
Cincinnati @ DenverThis is a must win for both teams if they want to make the playoffs. The Bengals need to rebound from last week's dismal showing against the Colts, if they want to win and are getting a nice spark at just the right time.
Carson Palmer couldn't be happier with the return of OL
Levi Jones and should get a little more worry-free time to stay in the pocket this week. Look for
T.J. Houshmandzadeh and
Chad Johnson to come up big this week, and maybe even a little "something something" from
Chris Henry.
Rudi Johnson should find it a little tough on the ground against the staunch Broncos D. On offense for Denver, it's going to be a nice test for
Jay Cutler. The Bengals D, outside of last week, has made strong improvements and should make it tough for Cutler all day.
Javon Walker should fare pretty well, but my sleeper this week is rookie TE
Tony Scheffler. Cutler has the confidence in him and they've hooked up well before. Toss a friggin coin to see which RB shows up though.
Mike Bell,
Tatum Bell, jeez!! Who knows at this point?
San Diego @ SeattleWhat better way to lock up home field advantage than to pile on more TDs for your record in front of the guy whose record was broken after just one year?
LaDanian Tomlinson is a beast and he's going to continue to add to his totals this week. The Chargers want the win, so don't expect
LTD to sit while the game is close. Expect yet another 100+ yard performance with a couple of touchdowns again. Hell, he'll probably throw one too.
Phillip Rivers should also have another solid game as he tunes up for the palyoffs and
Antonio Gates will reap the benefits there. The WR area is still a little sketchy, but expect
Vincent Jackson and
Keenan McCardell to get a few looks as well. For the Seahawks, it could be a rough day agains ta fired up Chargers defense.
Shaun Alexander will find running room scarce and
Matt Hasselbeck will have to deal with an outstanding pass rush. Still, I see Alexander maybe grabbing a score and perhaps a strike to
Jerramy Stevens. Maybe even
Deion Branch, but again, i'm not betting a championship on it.
Philadelphia @ DallasThe Cowboys have already locked up a playoff berth, but a win this week gives them the divisional title and strong hopes for that #2 seed in the playoffs. Expect a usual Parcells type of attack as both
Marion Barber and
Julius Jones should get a large amount of work. Once again, I see Barber as the stroger option.
Tony Romo will have ample opportunity to air it out, and if
Terrell Owens has anything to say (and he usually does) he'll get the majority of looks as he tries to show up the Eagles this time around. I don't see Philly allowing too much of T.O., so expect to see
Jason Witten and
Terry Glenn get in on the action. The
Jeff Garcia-led Eagles are also in the thick of the playoff race, so expect them to come out hard from the onset.
Brian Westbrook has been solid as of late, and
L.J. Smith has seen a nice resurgance as well. If only Garcia can get
Reggie Brown and
Donte Stallworth involved a little more, they could have a shot here after all.
NY Jets @ MiamiSaving the best for last here, huh? My Jets are 8-6 and have a shot (although they need some help) at making the playoffs here in Man-genius' first year as head coach. The Miami D is tough, but both teams always seem to step it up for this rivalry. Basically, don't expect
Jason Taylor to run the show here.
Chad Pennington should have a decent day and
Laveraneus Coles (and all his bulletin board fodder) and
Jerricho Cotchery should reap the benefits. The ground game will switch back to the
Kevan Barlow-
Leon Washington tandem while
Cedric Houston sits due to injury. I expect Barlow to steal the 3rd down and goal line carries for Gang Green. For the Fins, it's about pride now. They were mathematically eliminated last week, but still want to go out with a bang. Word out of Miami has
Ronnie Brown playing, but only to spell
Sammy Morris, who should have the stronger game against the subpar Jets run D. Now since I'm not too sold on Morris, I'm going to have to assume that
Joey Harrington is going to be looking for
Randy McMichael and
Chris Chambers a lot downfield. Former favorite
Marty Booker is out again this week. I'm looking for a big Jets win here!!!
Good luck to you all this weekend and have a wonderful holiday!!!!
Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, whatever it is you're celebrating -- make it fun...and safe!
Player of the Week: He was the cause of my demise in the fantasy playoffs and the reason my wife is atleast about to win the 3rd place consolation prize in our primary league. With a 65.8% completion percentage, Marc Bulger led the Rams to victory with 388 passing yards and 4 TDs over the upstart Redskins. He also threw in a little bonus action with an additional 27 rushing yards. Big points in a very important week. He's had some peaks and valleys this season, but as always he is a dangerous quarterback to go up against.
Player of the Week: You know, no matter how many times I watch him play, no matter how many times I write about how great he is, both on the field and off, I never get bored. You would think that this boyish giddiness was coming from a first time owner, but I've owned LaDanian Tomlinson in fantasy football every year since 2001. He is just unbelievable. In the much hyped "Battle of the Running Backs", LTD showed Larry Johnson who the big swinging dick in the NFL truly is as he torched the Chiefs defense for 199 rushing yards with 2 TDs, one of which was an 85 yarder -- the longest of his famed career. He also threw in a catch for 5 yards just to get his all-purpose yardage over the 200 mark. LJ? Pfffft! 84 piddly-ass yards. Anyone with a first or second overall pick that passed up on Tomlinson for those other two clowns should have to pay a penalty fee in your league.