Fantasy Football Top 10: Week 14
BOSTON (CBS) – Each week 98.5 The Sports Hub's Nick Cattles will bring you 10 things he noticed from the week in Fantasy Football, and how it will all help your team.
10) Miami's Better – Go ahead and laugh if you want, but the Dolphins are one of the better teams in football over the past month or so. We've already talked in this space about how much Reggie Bush has improved throughout the year, but that's not the only difference. Quarterback Matt Moore, yes, that Matt Moore, has been productive making Brandon Marshall better and the defense has played very well.
9) Lynch Keeps Trucking – Many might have been casting a blind eye to Marshawn Lynch over the past month or so. If they did, that was a big, big mistake. Lynch had 148 yards and two touchdowns last week against Philly, but just wait for this week against a St. Louis defense that is LAST against the rush.
8) New England Is Not The Only Bad Defense! – Yes, the Patriots statistically have been bad this year. You can't overlook 32nd in the league, when there's, you guessed it, 32 teams in the league. But, let's not act like the Patriots are the only team with a good record and bad defense. New Orleans is 27th in the league in total defense and the Packers are 31st. If you have a matchup against these two teams, don't look at their records and be concerned.
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7) Goodbye Bears – First, Jay Cutler goes out and Earl Bennett's value plummets. Then you're thinking, well there's Johnny Knox with the Caleb Hanie connection. But, that connection needs a running game for it to work. Forget that idea now that Matt Forte is out for several weeks. Chicago's offense is dead and buried, to the point that they couldn't score against Kansas City last weekend. Stay away.
6) Palmer Hurt By Injuries – Carson Palmer was starting to get "it" in Oakland. Some of you surely jumped on it and picked him up expecting decent numbers with good matchups on the way. Now, he put together decent numbers in garbage time of a blowout against the Dolphins, but it likely hasn't been what you were hoping for. We're here to say that it's not Palmer's fault! His weapons are MIA due to injuries. Darrius Heyward-Bey has been in and out, Denarius Moore can't get on the field and Jacoby Ford is useless at this point. It's tough to put up top -10 numbers if you're missing three of your top targets.
5) Tebow Not the Only Benefactor – Denver's offense is no doubt tailored to Tim Tebow. Tebow just isn't a great pocket passer, so Head Coach John Fox has decided to run the option offense. But, this offense just isn't going to help Tebow's value in your fantasy league. Willis McGahee is now an every week option, because not only is he effective, but you know he's going to get at least 20 carries.
4) Don't be Fooled – Yes Dan Orlovsky and company poured it on in the fourth quarter in Foxboro last Sunday. But, don't be fooled into thinking those numbers are coming again anytime soon. Indianapolis doesn't have the easiest of schedules going forward, including a matchup with Baltimore this week. In case you haven't checked it, the Ravens are the third best defense in the league.
3) No Mario Williams, No Big Deal – Houston's defense started off on fire and many believed at the heart of that D', aside from Wade Phillips, was Mario Williams. So when Williams was hurt, peeps expected the Texans to falter at least a little. Well, after shutting down the Atlanta Falcons last weekend, the Texans are the second best defense in the league. Outstanding.
2) Speaking of the Texans – They've had a ton of injuries this season and have stuck with it. As mentioned above, the defense has continued to perform without Mario Williams. What might be more astounding is the continued success of Arian Foster, even though Houston's lost Andre Johnson, Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart. Now, stating that Arian Foster is a beast, isn't quite an epiphany. But, the fact that the running back still ran for over 100 yards and a TD with all these offensive injuries, while facing the 2nd best run defense in the league (Atlanta), should truly tell you how good Foster is.
1) Sanchez Still Sucks (At Least in Fantasy) – I'm sure some people jumped for joy and overhyped Mark Sanchez after he threw four touchdowns two weeks ago. What many overlooked was the fact that he did it against a bad defense and still only had 180 passing yards. Translation? Turnovers and a running game put Sanchez in a position to throw some short touchdown passes, therefore cashing in. Sanchez still shouldn't be considered anywhere near a top-15 quarterback at any point.
Tune in to The Progress Software Fantasy Football Show every Sunday at 9am on 98.5 The Sports Hub. You can follow the show on twitter @SportsHubFantFB and keep up with Nick Cattles @NickCattles.
