Another one bites the dust

Chalk up another victory for me. Readers keep showing that this job isn't as easy as it looks, while I continue to make things look easy.

My picks

Studs

Rex Grossman – I told you there was nothing to worry about with Grossman’s bad week. He lit up the 49ers secondary for 252 yards and three touchdowns.

Andre Johnson – Johnson was indeed a stud, catching nine passes for 78 yards and a touchdown. That was just the kind of game I was expecting from the big man

Keyshawn Johnson – Johnson didn’t show up against his former team like I predicted, instead he caught only pass for 19 yards.

Tatum Bell – It was Mike Bell who stole the show in Denver against Indianapolis . Tatum registered just 27 yards on 13 carries.

Total: 2-for-4

Duds

Dominic Rhodes – This pick was dead on. Rhodes had three carries, but failed to rush for a single yard against the Broncos. He did catch three passes for 43 yards, but that’s still an awful day for any running back.

Joey Galloway – Galloway and the Bucs passing game was a complete disaster as I predicted. Galloway had 4 catches for 32 yards Sunday. Dud.

Derrick Mason – As predicted, Mason was held out without a touchdown. The veteran did catch six passes for 67 yards though.

Chester Taylor - Taylor ran for a season-low 22 yards. Told you so.

Total: 4-f0r-4 (you could make an argument that Mason wasn't a dud, but either way I still win).

Reader picks

Studs

Tatum Bell – See above.

Antonio Bryant – The 49ers No. 1 receiver caught five passes for 58 yards and a score. He also lost a fumble, but this was still a nice pick.

Chad Pennington – Pennington’s day wasn’t pretty. He threw two interceptions and no touchdowns and totaled just 108 yards the air.

Bryant Johnson – Johnson had nine yards one catch. Dud.

Total: 1-for-4

Duds

DeShaun Foster - Foster was certainly not a dud, rushing for 50 yards and a touchdown while adding four catches for 31 yards in the air.

Fred Taylor – Taylor had his second best day of the season, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown and catching a pass for two yards.

Mike Vick – Vick Blew up Sunday. He ran for 55 yards and threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns threw the air.

Joe Horn – Horn exploded for 126 yards and a score on five catches.

Total: 0-for-4 (I should subtract points, but I won’t)

Random advice

*Don’t even think about picking up Sage Rosenfels. That was against the Titans, folks. Even if Houston decides to sit its expensive quarterback on the bench, Rosenfels will only disappoint.

*Marion Barber and Brandon Jacobs are great guys to have especially in touchdown heavy leagues. Barber looked great Sunday night against Carolina, especially on his last touchdown run when he plowed his way into the endzone. Jacobs picked up his fourth touchdown of the season and more are sure to come.

*Tatum Bell owners need not worry about Mike Bell. Mike Bell owners who took my advice and started him as a sleeper were pleased with is two touchdown performance against the Colts, but Tatum is still the Bell you want.

*There is some obvious chemistry between Jason Witten and new quarterback Tony Romo. Witten caught six passes for 80 yards and a touchdown Sunday and I expect those numbers to be pretty regular without Bledsoe sucking the life out of the team. Trade for Witten now.

Others to watch

Here are some guys I think will have big games tomorrow, but I couldn’t fit in my blog. I want to clarify that these picks aren’t my studs n’ duds for the contest. Those picks were in Saturday’s Norwich Bulletin. Also, I avoid the obvious picks so keep that in mind.

Kellen Winslow

Javon Walker

Vince Young

Philly Defense

Another victim

Norwich's Justin LeBlanc isn't intimidated by my win last week over another reader. LeBlanc, who graduated from NFA with me in 2002, will throw his hand in the mix. His picks are below. If you submitted picks and didn't get selected then you can either respond to one of my blog entries so other readers can see your picks or try again next week.

Also, I need to mention that my picks are done and one of my studs matches Justin's. You will see who it is in Saturday's paper, but I wanted to mention this now so nobody gets accused of copying.

Studs
Tatum Bell, Chad Pennington, Bryant Johnson, Antonio Bryant

Duds
DeShaun Foster, Mike Vick, Joe Horn, Fred Taylor

Challenge results

By my scoring I won the challenge 3-4-1 to 1-4-3. I'm counting a "win" as great call, a loss as a bad call and a tie as something in the middle. If you disagree with the scoring I want to hear about it because this certainly wasn't scientific.

Congrats for Mike for having the guts to throw his name in the ring, but in all honesty it wasn't a great week for either of us. For challege rules scroll down to a previous post and get your picks in for next week!

Reader selections (Mike Andrews, Norwich)
(1-4-3)
Studs

*DeShaun Foster – The Panthers running back was more of a "dud," rushing for 59 yards and adding two catches for 20 yards through the air.

*Reggie Williams – Williams didn’t register a catch.

*Jon Kitna – Kitna looked good throwing for 269 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions (and 17 rushing yards).

*Neil Rackers – Rackers finished with nine points on three field goals with the deepest one from 45 yards out. Rackers also missed a field goal.

Results 1-2-1

Duds

*Matt Hasselback – This is a tough one to grade. Hasselbeck was only 7-for-17 before getting hurt, but he did have a touchdown and no interceptions.

*Tom Brady – Brady looked good connecting for 195 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. That’s a solid day for a fantasy quarterback.

*Warrick Dunn – Dunn carried the ball 26 times for 69 yards and a score. Not “dud” worthy.

*Chad Johnson – Johnson was a frequent target Sunday, but he finished with six catches and 73 yards. A decent day, probably not stud or dud worthy.

0-2-2

Expert selections
(3-4-1)
Studs

*Brett Favre – Favre threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns and didn’t throw a pick. The veteran also added 14 yards on the ground.

*Edgerrin James – James continues to disappoint, totaling 34 yards on the ground and one catch for four yards.

*Chad Johnson – Johnson was a frequent target Sunday, but he finished with six catches and 73 yards. A decent day, probably not stud or dud worthy.

*Kevin Jones – I said, “Jones is a must start this week.” And I was right. Jones rushed for 86 yards and tossed in six catches for 59 yards and a touchdown.

Results: 2-1-1

Duds

*Tampa Bay defense – The Bucs actually ended being “studs” thanks to Ronde Barber, who returned two Donovan McNabb interceptions for touchdowns. In my defense, the Bucs defense looked bland otherwise, finishing with one sack and one other interception.

*Reuben Droughns – Droughns had a total of 60 yards and lost a fumble. Definitely a dud.

*Mark Brunell – It was a solid day for Brunell, who tossed two touchdowns and 226 yards.

*Ben Roethlisberger – Big Ben made me look bad, throwing three touchdowns on 238 yards. He did lose a fumble, but who cares when he’s putting up those kinds of numbers. Bad pick.

Results: 1-3

That’s why they play the game

I know that when a fantasy football nut like myself tells people who don’t care about fantasy sports stories they get kind of stale. Since this blog is directed toward nuts like myself, I can’t resist telling you all about my game against a buddy of mine this week.

Allow me to set the stage…I’m trailing by 21.5 points heading into the Cowboys-Giants game and he has nobody left. My only prayer is the Giants defense who I picked up out of the free agent pool earlier this week because my Bears are on a bye week.

Somehow (I still haven’t figured it out) the Giants recorded six sacks (one point each), four interceptions (two points each), a safety (two) and a touchdown (six). If you’re too lazy to do the math, that gives me the win and my buddy an anxiety attack. The game was sealed on an eight point play, a 96-yard interception returned for a touchdown by Kevin Dockery with 2:33 left in the game.

I truly can’t imagine a more horrific way to lose a game so if you have some stories to share, do so here. Oh and don’t forget to send me your studs and duds for next week if you think you can touch me.

First challenger

Norwich's Mike Andrew will be the first to take me up on my challenge. His picks are below. My picks were in Saturday's Norwich Bulletin. Tuesday we'll take a look and see who did better. Start sending in your studs and duds for next week.

Keep an eye on Chad Johnson, who I have as a stud and Mike has as a dud.

Studs
Jon Kitna
Deshaun Foster
Reggie Williams
Neil Rackers

Duds
Matt Hasselback
Tom Brady
Warrick Dunn
Chad Johnson

Scared?

My counter says plenty of people have viewed this blog since my last post challenging all of you.

Because people are reading this and not accepting the challenge, I will have to assume you are all scared. I bet you're all shaking like Mike Vanderjagt before a game-winning field goal. Let's see what you've got...

I dare you

If you think you can pick four "studs" and four "duds" that look better on Tuesday than the picks I make on my blog and in the fantasy football page, then bring it on.

Either email me (tonyfarmer45@yahoo.com) or respond to this thread with your picks, name and town. Trash talk is always welcome so I can copy and paste it into a later thread to make you look silly. If you're lucky I will select your entries to go up on my blog Saturday night with your name for the world to see.

All I ask is that you don't pick obvious guys because I don't. Challenges with names like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady will get a laugh and wind up in deleted mail folder.

Working the market

Buy low

Trent Green – The veteran QB can be found in most league’s free agent pool, and the truth is nobody really knows when he’ll be ready to return. If you are shaky at backup QB then welcome Green to your team.

Edgerrin James – He has been a huge disappointment so far, but there’s a chance that when Larry Fitzgerald returns, the Cardinals’ passing attack will be more of a threat with Matt Leinart behind center. That could open up some lanes for James.

Rex Grossman – It was one bad week. Okay, so it was a really bad week. If someone on your league is giving up on Grossman already, then take advantage and get him cheap.

Sell high

Terrell Owens – Sure there’s a chance T.O. could use the Philly game as motivation to put together a great second half of the season, but there’s also a good shot he ticks off the wrong person and winds up missing a game for non-injury related reasons.

George Wrighster – He’s quietly put together a descent season, but the emergence of rookie tight end Mercedes Lewis is a big threat to change that.

Try this

I want you all to check out my favorite site that you should all have bookmarked. It will give you a big edge on the competition. It's a depth chart for all 32 teams, but it includes 3rd down backs, goal line backs and it's updated daily.

http://rotoworld.com/content/Depth_NFL.aspx?sport=NFL

Last minute advice

You know the routine. You wake up, listen to a little pre-game action, hopefully read my blog and then stare at your monitor for 2 minutes contemplating who to start in that one final roster spot.

If any of those borderline players is on the list of players below, then you should start them with confidence.

Rod Smith

Maurice Morris

Julius Jones

JP Losman

Rudi Johnson

Robbie Gould/David Akers/Nate Kaeding

Mark Brunell

Alex Smith (TE)

Neon Leon?

Any advice on the Jets’ running back situation must be taken with a grain of salt. Many of you probably got burned by drafting Curtis Martin. Those who didn’t may have come up short with Kevan Barlow, Cedric Houston or Derrick Blaylock. With those names, or shall we say nightmares, in mind I encourage you all to acquire Leon Washington immediately.

It was only one game, but Washington’s 101-yard performance against the Jaguars last week was quietly one of the biggest developments of the week. After all, this is against the same Jaguars defense that held the Colts running back duo (63 yards) and Willie Parker (20 yards) in check earlier this season.

Admittedly I’ve never watched Washington play ball in college, but trust me when I say that the stars are aligned for him to take over as the Jets feature back and make a huge impact down the stretch. Washington will face several suspect defenses down the stretch including Houston, Miami and Cleveland.

I warned you earlier this season to pick up Marques Colston and Ladell Betts and those who did are glad they listened. I’m having that same kind of feeling with Leon Washington.

Trade talks (continued)

I have a huge problem with the trade mentioned in the previous post and any trade like it. First off, LT’s bye week is in the rearview mirror and the other main players have a week off coming up.

Second, one team is receiving perhaps the best running back in the league (Tomlinson) with arguably the second best quarterback (Brady) for Gore (Fumbling issues/no longer a goal line back) Brees (solid) and Berrian (I like him a lot, but he’s not proven like the other guys).

I don’t think there’s any debate about whether or not the trade is fair. One team is clearly getting an advantage, but the question is whether or not that advantage is enough to veto the trade. I say it is.

The Veto

There’s a heated dispute going on right now in one of the leagues I’m running. The scenario should sound pretty familiar to most fantasy football owners... Owner A agrees to trade with owner B but the owner C, the commissioner, thinks the trade is unfair.

Now before I reveal the trade and ask your opinions I need to make my stance on fantasy football trades clear. I think the veto should be used only in rare circumstances when it hurts the integrity of the league. Owners who had nothing to do with the trade essentially need the commissioner to step in and protect them in these rare situations.

Also, the owners current roster should have nothing to do with the evaluation of the trade. For example, I can’t stand when I hear things like, “Well that trade isn’t fair because now he will have the three best wide receivers in the league.” I have always felt that an owner should not be punished for trying to put together an elite roster.

With that being said I will mention the trade to see what you all think and then check back in tomorrow night with my opinion and analysis of the trade.

Owner A: Tomlinson, Buckhalter, Brady, Jacobs
Owner B: Gore, Berrian, Marion Barber, Brees

Random thoughts

* I received several emails from readers about me picking Santana Moss as a “dud” in Saturdays paper. One reader predicted, “…even though i am a diehard giants fan i say look out for moss this week he torched them last year and is very streaky, portis is at full strength, and giants d is horrid right now…” Moss ended up with three catches for 39 yards a week after posting three touchdowns. I even said in the paper, “You’ve been warned” so if you ignored my advice, I have no sympathy for you.

* As predicted, Lee Evans is starting to put together a nice season. Granted, it’s mostly because the Bills are often trailing in the second half, but if Evans is on your roster he should be starting every week.

* A guy I’m starting to like more and more each week is Reggie Williams. It seems like Byron Leftwich always looks for Reggie in a tough spot. Williams is the best wide receiver on the Jaguars even when Matt Jones in healthy.

* Reggie Bush finally got his first touchdown this season. I told you (8/26) he was going way too early in fantasy football drafts and wasn’t a top-15 running back.

* It was nice to see Frank Gore hold onto the football for an entire game. Gore also led all Sunday running backs with 134 yards on the ground, but it was against the Raiders, who by the way are one of the worst football teams I have ever seen. They are just too bad for words.

*The Colts rushing defense is proving to be a serious weakness. Yes Indianapolis is undefeated, but not for long if they don’t do something about stopping the rush. Travis Henry looked like the Travis Henry of old today, but rest assured that was because of Indy’s horrible defense.

*I’m proud to say that I wasn’t one of the idiots who were predicting a breakout year from Chris Chambers. Sunday Chambers continued his mediocrity with five catches for 29 yards; certainly not the numbers you were looking for if you drafted him in the second round like some suggested.

Expert picks

Some of my favorite picks for Sunday that didn’t make it into the paper…

Brad Johnson – Only two teams have allowed more passing yards per game than Detroit (282) and nobody has allowed more touchdowns (10) through the air. Expect a big day from Johnson and the Vikings top wide receivers.

Eric Johnson – It’s only a matter of time before Eric Johnson busts out and this week at home against the Raiders is the perfect stage.

Drew Bledsoe – Bledsoe is going to have some fun picking on the Eagles injured secondary. The Eagles offense is pretty potent too, so I’m expecting a shootout.

Braylon Edwards – Edwards is quietly putting together the fantasy season most “experts” thought he couldn’t (I selected him in the 13th round of the Bulletin Fantasy Football Challenge). Edwards has been talking smack all week and you can expect him to back it up.

Get out of jail free

Let me set the scene for you. You’re in your favorite restaurant or drinking establishment sitting around a table drafting your fantasy football team. Suddenly two league owners get into a shouting match and the arguing begins to escalate. You witness one man throw another to the ground while his victim lays stunned and shocked.

At that instant you witness a 300-pound owner stomp the head of the defenseless man into the ground not once, but twice. There’s blood all over the floor, but the two uniformed police officers in the room just shrug their shoulders and let the bartenders and waitresses handle the situation.

Could something like this happen in real life? You bet. Sunday when Titans’ defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth stomped on the head of Dallas offensive lineman Andre Gurode with his sharp metal cleats, he should have exited the stadium wearing shiny metal cuffs. How in the world does a man assault another man on national television in front of thousands of fans and get no repercussions from the law? If this exact incident happened in the stands, then an arrest would have been made so why was no arrest made Sunday?

NFL officials want you and to think this injustice is okay because Haynesworth lost five weeks pay. So let me get this straight, Ricky Williams smokes marijuana a couple of times and he’s done for the season. Albert Haynesworth puts the career, vision and livelihood of a co-worker in danger by stomping on his head a couple times and he gets five weeks off.

The most disgusting part of the whole incident is the spin that the NFL puts on the whole thing. League officials have been quick to point out that the suspension is the longest in league history for on-field behavior. Big deal. NFL players are rich so missing a few paychecks isn’t going to do the trick.
Without actually taking the life of another man, how could Sunday’s actions have been more brutal? A weapon was used to purposely mangle the face of another man. That sounds like assault to me.

Jake the Snake

Statistically speaking, Jake Plummer’s 2006 season has been a disaster thus far. Jake the Snake has thrown twice as many interceptions (4) as touchdowns and his quarterback rating is a measly 60.6.

Those numbers will not continue. Last weeks performance against the Patriots was encouraging, but not just because he through two touchdowns and no interceptions. Both scores and 130 of Plummer’s yards were to his new No.1 receiver, Javon Walker. Sure you remember Walker, that guy who came out of nowhere to catch 89 passes for 1,382 yards and 12 touchdowns just two years ago. Walker and Plummer are building chemistry and that’s bad news for opposing defensive backs.

I suggest you trade for Jake Plummer immediately while his stock is low and laugh all the way to the bank. Plummer starting off a season slow is nothing new so expect a big turnaround from a guy who still has to play the Raiders twice and the 49ers, Cardinals and Browns once more.

Annoying

That Monday Night Football game was the best example of my No. 1 fantasy football pet peeve. Nope, it’s not when you are starting someone in one league that you are playing against in another league. It’s not benching the league’s player of the week. The thing that makes my blood boil more than any of that is game time decisions on injuries, especially surprising ones.

Fans who benched players on Sunday in favor of Brian Westbrook or Ahman Green on Monday got the worst possible news on Monday when it was announced both would be out of action. That’s kind of like a high school kid going to bed Sunday night with a forecast of eight inches of snow and waking up to see school will be on time. What a disappointment. I felt so bad for the poor souls in my league who had t pick up guys like Ryan Moats to start.

The whole Westbrook/Green debacle is really the tip of the iceberg with the injury issues too. How about when reports flip flop more than John Kerry during the week.

“Terrell Owens tried to kill himself.”
“Terrell Owens is not suicidal”
“Terrell Owens will travel with the team this week, but Bill Parcells won’t say if he’ll start.”
“Terrell Owens said he felt good in practice today, but this is the same guy who may or may not have tried to kill himself and may or may not have lied about it.”

I can’t deal with all that garbage. If I wouldn’t be at a competitive disadvantage I would just avoid the internet all week and update my roster Sunday morning. My life would be less stressful and I could spend all my free time working on trades.

If anyone lost a game because of Westbrook or Ahman Green, I want to hear about it.

Here are some random thoughts from Sunday’s games:

*Frank Gore is going to lose his job if he keeps coughing the ball up. Sunday makes it four straight games now that the 49ers’ starting running back has lost a fumble. The guy has obvious talent when he’s running, but opposing defenses have made him looks silly at times this season. Grab Michael Robinson if you haven’t already. Sure I said the same before Sunday’s game, but Robinson’s stock just went up even more with Gore’s struggles.

*The Chicago Bears are for real. And if you took my advice and spent an early pick on the Bears defense like I suggested before the season started, you should be smiling right about now. The Bears schedule essentially has three or four bye weeks because it’s so soft.

*I played Santana Moss AND Roy Williams this week in my Bulletin Fantasy Challenge game. Tear.

*My picks this week were hot and cold, but I’m proud of standing by Lamont Jordan when CBSsportsline.com had him ranked out of the top-20 for running backs this week. Jordan proved me right and led all running backs (to this point) with 128 yards.

*For all you skeptics, Colston and Berrian proved they are for real. I told you to pick up Colston before the season started, but Berrian has even surprised me. Same with Rex Grossman.

*NFL officiating seems to get exponentially worse every week. Poor Torry Holt had a touchdown taken away from him even though he clearly had possession of the ball while crossing the plane. I was actually pleased with the call because I played against Marc Bulger, but there is no excuse for a blown call like that. And it certainly wasn’t the only bad call Sunday.

*The biggest mystery in the NFL right now has to be the Jaguars defense. How can they look so good against the Colts one week and so bad against the Redskins this week?