Hey gang…apologies for what I hope was a noticeable absence, but business travels have had me literally to hell and back, but fortunately just in time for the first week of the fantasy playoffs! Straight off, I am going to tell you that this is not the week to overthink yourself. You made the playoffs, so you have your chip and a chair, to use a poker metaphor…it doesn’t matter HOW you got there. Sure this week is a must win to keep moving closer to your league championship and hopefully some hard earned CASH, but the game is the same. As the old saying goes, “dance with the one ya brought.” Check out my picks (which won’t include obvious starters)…on the other side…
Guys I Like
- Dez Bryant vs NY Giants – Dez has had an up and down season, but he seems to be trending up at the right time. This and the Giants D hasn’t stopped anyone the last 2 weeks giving up 81 points and more than 1,000 yards.
- CJ Spiller @ San Diego – Finally, Spiller is getting a chance to show what he can do and did so with a decent performance last week, netting 18 fantasy points in a PPR format. This week against a SD defense without a lot to play for, I think CJ is a sneaky good option, because Buffalo has enough of a passing game to keep SD honest and open some lanes for CJ.
- Carson Palmer @ Green Bay – I don’t think Oakland will win by any stretch, but I do expect them to be trailing and need to chuck it up a bunch and Palmer proved last week that he can do that and net some solid garbage time points, plus the GB defense is not very good. If you are QB challenged, Palmer is a solution.
- Marshawn Lynch vs St. Louis – Beastmode appears to be back and I expect it to be a long night for the Rams as they visit the Pacific Northwest. Bonus is this is a Monday night game (bonus only for fantasy purposes, because normally no one would watch this game), so Lynch can be you MNH (Monday Night Hook).
- Santana Moss vs New England – The Pats secondary is horrible and the Pats offense is good enough to jump out to big leads forcing their opponents to keep chucking the ball around the yard. Moss is back from an injury that saw him miss 4 games and this may be a great week from him to be all the way back from that injury. Bonus is he may still be on your waiver wire!
Guys I Don’t Like
- Tim Tebow vs Bears – The run and shoot, razzle dazzle, the wildcat…all new offenses that defenses adjusted to. Now, we have the read option offense in Denver led by the Tebocalypse…I think the Bears are just the defense to figure this offense out. Speed and discipline with the front 7 and a nasty disposition. I personally want to see Tebow take on Peppers, Briggs or Urlacher straight up and we’ll see who gets up first…yeah, I am drinking the kool-aid, but the Bears defense has to makeup for our offensive struggles and I think they set a tone early this week.
- Steven Jackson @ Seattle – Seattle is a tough place to play and Seattle’s run defense is still one of the best in the business. St. Louis has no one else for the Seahawks to key on, so expect 9 in the box and a long day for the warrior, Jackson.
- Michael Vick @ Miami – Since you have been without Vick for the last 3 weeks and still made the playoffs, that means you should have a suitable backup. Now is not the time to go back to Vick for round 1 of the playoffs unless you really have to. The Dolphins defense has been playing lights out and the overall Philly motivation is probably at its lowest point of the season coming off a loss to Seattle.
- Marion Barber @ Denver – Many Matt Forte owners need to look in another direction and Barber is a likely candidate, but something tells me that Kahlil Bell is going to have a little bigger piece of the pie than some people think. Bell is shiftier and more similar to Forte’s running style. Barber may get a TD plunge, but I think Bell could be a bigger recipient. Regardless, I think you should stay away from the Bears backfield until it sorts itself out, because if you don’t, you may not have a next week to look forward to.
- Mike Wallace vs Cleveland – You probably have to start Wallace, but temper your enthusiasm. Cleveland CB Joe Haden has been rock solid against # 1 WRs lately and I expect him to be up for the challenge. Plus, given the woeful Cleveland run defense, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Pittsburgh end up with less than 17 pass attempts.
Hit me at beargoggles@decon@gmail.com or @DeCon76 on Twitter.
CAN I GET AN AMEN?!?!?!?!?!
The DeCon has spoken, so let it be written, so let it be done…