Because I’m dumb, I forgot to post it up before the Thursday night game. Sorry to all those who missed out on his selection of Quinn, which proved to be quite the hit.
It seems this week is all about change. Our country has changed presidents. The Lions have changed quarterbacks. The NFL has changed back to Thursday night games (hence the earliness of this week’s column). But what probably won’t change is my slightly better than 50% accuracy in picking fantasy starters (that and Brittany Spears being a bit of a skank – you can set your watch by that one). Anyway, here’s a review of last week’s picks:
Time to Shine:
QB Dan Orlovsky, Detroit: In what was most likely his last start of the year, Orlovsky went out with a bang. 292 yards and two scoring passes make it the two interceptions easier to take. Hit.
RB Earnest Graham, Tampa Bay: Graham didn’t do anything particularly well, but he did enough of everything to have an effective day. 91 total yards (62 rushing, 29 receiving) and a touchdown pass of all things makes this one a nice surprise. Hit.
RB Tim Hightower, Arizona: 109 rushing yards and a score. Ladies and gentleman, I’d like to officially welcome you to the Tim Hightower era. Hit.
WR Rashied Davis, Chicago: I was off by 11 yards, but the touchdown still makes this one a hit.
WR Ted Ginn Jr., Miami: The frustrating career of Ted Ginn the Lesser continues. His follow-up to a career day? 38 yards. Miss.
Ride the Pine:
QB Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay: Not a great day for Rodgers, but against one of the best defenses in the league, Rodgers owners have to be happy with the effort. Miss.
RB Marshawn Lynch, Buffalo: 68 total yards, but nothing else. Then again, it’s hard to rack up stats when you only get 9 carries. Hit.
RB Steve Slaton, Houston: No touchdowns, but 118 total yards makes this an effective day. Miss.
WR Terrell Owens, Dallas: Tough one to call. Only 36 receiving yards says hit, but the touchdown says miss. The tiebreaker? A lost fumble negates half his touchdown points turning this one back into a hit.
WR Santana Moss, Washington: 2 catches for 14 yards makes this day much easier to evaluate. Hit.
Week 9 totals: 7-3
Overall totals: 43-34-4
On to this week’s picks:
Time to Shine:
QB Brady Quinn, Cleveland: This one may be a bit of a reach, but Quinn looks like the kind of guy who just gets things done. Starting out against one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL won’t hurt either. 200 yards and a couple Tds gets Quinn’s tenure as the Browns’ franchise quarterback off to a good start.
RB Ryan Torain, Denver: So what if he’s won the job by default. My super sleeper this year (go ahead and look back at the column if you want – I called this one back in August), finally gets his chance. The result? 80 yards and a touchdown makes this pick better late than never.
RB Jonathan Stewart, Carolina: Against a soft Oakland defense, Carolina should be able to run roughly 200 offensive plays making it easy to get both backs in Carolina plenty of carries. Stewart should easily get 75 yards and a score this week.
WR Matt Jones, Jacksonville: He’s the only legitimate receiving threat going against a team that can’t stop the run or the pass. After last week’s embarrassment, the Jags would like nothing better than to embarrass someone else. Jones hangs 90 yards and a score on the hapless Lions.
WR Donnie Avery, St. Louis: After a slow start, Avery has shown some promise in the last several weeks. Going up against the Jets who stuff the run yet can’t give up passing yards fast enough, Avery should see lots of opportunities to put up big numbers. 80 yards and a score for Avery this week.
Ride the Pine:
QB Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia: Donovan has had an up and down season, so it’s always a bit of a challenge figuring out when to start him. This isn’t looking like the week. A stingy New York defense with confusing blitz packages will make for a long day if Philadelphia.
RB Joseph Addai, Indianapolis: There’s a lot I don’t know about Addai. I don’t know if he’s fully healthy yet. I don’t know if he has his timing down yet. I don’t know what’s up with his hair. I do know this: he’s going against the number 3 rush defense in the league and at this point in the season, Peyton will run the ball just enough to keep the defense honest.
RB Ryan Grant, Green Bay: Maybe this is just me being stubborn (I also picked Grant to sit the first time the Packers played the Vikings), but this looks like another bad match-up. Grant doesn’t look like the back he was last season, and with the passing attack improving by the week, Grant’s impact on this game should be minimal.
WR Calvin Johnson, Detroit: How desperate are the Lions? I don’t have an answer, I really would like to know. Who are they picking up next week, Michael Vick? The truth of the matter is Daunte Culpepper is not the answer and Johnson is going to suffer for it.
WR Roddy White, Atlanta: There are a lot of good reasons to start Roddy White, but here’s why I’m benching him this week. The Saints are a desperate team and they need this win badly. They won’t let Turner or White beat them – everyone else might, but those two will get extra attention which means extra crappy stats this week.