Published: Thursday, December 17, 2009
FANTASY FOOTBALL: Making the tough decisions
This is really the hardest column of the year to write. There's no picking up players off the waiver wire or trading in most fantasy leagues at this point, so fantasy owners have their lineups pretty much written in stone.
So what can I provide?
Well I thought I'd take a look at some imaginary battles by position and hopefully help some people out who might be trying to figure out who to play. For example, a fantasy owner in one of my leagues was wavering between Kurt Warner and Philip Rivers. Well one of those guys was much better than the other on Sunday and could have helped him win. By the way, I'd tell him to go with Warner this week.
Quarterback:
Ben Roethlisberger or Brett Favre
Both the Steelers and Vikings are facing two of the stingiest pass defenses in the league this Sunday in Green Bay and Carolina, respectively. Pittsburgh seems to be spiraling out of control and it may just be that the Steelers aren't very good. Brett Favre is coming off two less-than-stellar performances over the past two games and you know Adrian Peterson is going to run wild over the pathetic Panthers' rush D. So which of these two is a better play this weekend? I'd go with Roethlisberger. The Packers/Steelers game seems like a classic shootout and look for Big Ben to go for a 350 yards/3 TDs/2 INT game.
Running back
LaDainian Tomlinson or Cedric Benson
The two running backs are going up against each other this Sunday. Tomlinson is coming off two solid games and will be at home against the stingy Bengals defense. Benson has totaled more than 200 yards on the ground in the past two games, but he has yet to reach the end zone since Week 9. I think I'd go with Tomlinson here. I can just picture the Chargers fans energizing the old-timer and helping him shred a Cincy defense that is due for a bad game.
Wide receiver
Hines Ward or Robert Meachem
Ward has put up three stinkers over the past five games and was atrocious last Thursday night against Cleveland. Meachem had a bit of a letdown last week after scoring six touchdowns in the previous five games, including a monster game (8 catches for 142 yards and a TD) the week before. The Saints are playing a questionable defense in Dallas (remember Ken Hamlin, anyone?), so keep him in your lineup. Meachem has been scorching hot and one mediocre game doesn't ruin the bunch. Play him and hope Drew Brees looks his way often.
Tight end
Kellen Winslow or Jason Witten
The two tight ends have put up pretty close to the same numbers, but I like Winslow this week. The home-and-away numbers for the Bucs TE are amazing. Winslow at home has 36 catches for 465 yards, while in Tampa he's 26/194. Of course that doesn't mean that just because he's sleeping in a different bed he's all of a sudden going to put up big numbers. But hey at this point in the season we're all looking for something.
So what can I provide?
Well I thought I'd take a look at some imaginary battles by position and hopefully help some people out who might be trying to figure out who to play. For example, a fantasy owner in one of my leagues was wavering between Kurt Warner and Philip Rivers. Well one of those guys was much better than the other on Sunday and could have helped him win. By the way, I'd tell him to go with Warner this week.
Quarterback:
Ben Roethlisberger or Brett Favre
Both the Steelers and Vikings are facing two of the stingiest pass defenses in the league this Sunday in Green Bay and Carolina, respectively. Pittsburgh seems to be spiraling out of control and it may just be that the Steelers aren't very good. Brett Favre is coming off two less-than-stellar performances over the past two games and you know Adrian Peterson is going to run wild over the pathetic Panthers' rush D. So which of these two is a better play this weekend? I'd go with Roethlisberger. The Packers/Steelers game seems like a classic shootout and look for Big Ben to go for a 350 yards/3 TDs/2 INT game.
Running back
LaDainian Tomlinson or Cedric Benson
The two running backs are going up against each other this Sunday. Tomlinson is coming off two solid games and will be at home against the stingy Bengals defense. Benson has totaled more than 200 yards on the ground in the past two games, but he has yet to reach the end zone since Week 9. I think I'd go with Tomlinson here. I can just picture the Chargers fans energizing the old-timer and helping him shred a Cincy defense that is due for a bad game.
Wide receiver
Hines Ward or Robert Meachem
Ward has put up three stinkers over the past five games and was atrocious last Thursday night against Cleveland. Meachem had a bit of a letdown last week after scoring six touchdowns in the previous five games, including a monster game (8 catches for 142 yards and a TD) the week before. The Saints are playing a questionable defense in Dallas (remember Ken Hamlin, anyone?), so keep him in your lineup. Meachem has been scorching hot and one mediocre game doesn't ruin the bunch. Play him and hope Drew Brees looks his way often.
Tight end
Kellen Winslow or Jason Witten
The two tight ends have put up pretty close to the same numbers, but I like Winslow this week. The home-and-away numbers for the Bucs TE are amazing. Winslow at home has 36 catches for 465 yards, while in Tampa he's 26/194. Of course that doesn't mean that just because he's sleeping in a different bed he's all of a sudden going to put up big numbers. But hey at this point in the season we're all looking for something.
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