Week 2 Predictions

[Drax]

It's still early in the week, but I have some time to kill... Plus this is the part of the week I hate concerning football season - the Tues through Friday lackofgames thing. :roll: :lowlol:


Palmer v Brees - Palmer faces an exploitable Minn secondary (yay!) while Brees gets to test his mettle against divisional foe Denver and welcomes Gates back to the fold (see below :mrgreen:). Imo, Brees is the preferred choice for Gratz, as his backup is Griese facing a very stout Buffalo D. Plus Denver D isn't all that it used to be... Edge: Gratz, but slightly.
Kennison/Porter v Wayne/Harrison - Divisional foes playing against each other in Oak, on great passing offenses, v a potent receiving tandem with the league's best QB playing against a tough run D with a decent to great secondary. Should be interesting, but still... Edge: Drax. Things change only slightly should Gratz substitute one Indy Receiver with McCardell, in which case Edge: Drax still.
LT v Faulk - LT against divisional foe Denver, v StL backup against Ari. Denver run D may be better than the score indicated in the Miami game, since R Brown's 57 yds required 22 carries, although that could just as easily be attributed to Brown being a rookie. However, I think it'll be the LT show. Edge: Drax
Willie Parker v Jamal Lewis - Parker v Houston, v an injured Lewis against a completely porous Tenn D. Edge: Push - Depends on how well Lewis plays through the injuries, especially his broken digit which admittably shouldn't be an issue on Sunday.
Gates v Witten - One of the two best TEs v one of the three best TEs. Ought to be a fun matchup. Brees will make the most or all of Gates' return, so Gates' production should mostly be negated, unless (and I'm hoping this happens) LT tosses a TD pass to Gates. Boy, wouldn't that be sweet! Witten should definitely be a factor this Monday, except for the blurb I read about Clayton. Gratz, you may want to read this (http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/6405/news)... Edge: Drax
Vinateiri v Elam - Who knows? But I expect V's game to be a close grind-em-out, while Elam's game to be high scoring. Edge: Push.
Baltimore v Cinci - Bal gets Tenn (who was limited to 1TD on the opening drive of the game and nothing afterwards; *cheer*). Cinci gets a Minn team with something to prove. Edge: Drax
Some things may change this week, but this is my basic synopsis for my Week 2 game. In any case, should be a fun one. I just hope not all my games are as close of victories as Week 1 against Shiz. I'd rather win by a landslide... :mrgreen:

[Zyzzyx]

It's still early in the week, but I have some time to kill... Plus this is the part of the week I hate concerning football season - the Tues through Friday lackofgames thing. :roll: :lowlol:
See... that's what I like about football. You're not overloaded all the time. There's anticipation for the games. Basketball, hockey, and especially baseball, I get too bored with because there is ALWAYS a game or twenty happening. Though I wouldn't mind seeing a regular Friday night NFL game, just not Tues-Thurs.

[Shiz]

Leftwich v Manning - I get hosed here. They are even playing each other.
Burleson v Jackson - Burleson is due for a better week.
Stokely v Coles - I should win the comparison as well.
Davis v McCallister - Deuce has the better matchup
Johnson v Green - wash.
Crumpler v Cooley - Crumpler get his first TD this week.
Jordan v Droughns - Jordan gets his first TD this week and the committee continues in Cleveland.

I have a shot at a victory here, barring a 40 point game from Manning.

[Thuriniel]

Like a phoenix, rising from the ashes, my team shall be disheveled and dirty this week!

Another tough matchup this week; hopefully not a 100+ scoring week like I faced last week. But then again, I always seem to start out a fantasy season as someone's punching bag. =oP

[noptov52]

Yeah, I think my matchup with Shiz will be pretty close this week. Although, reports have Drougns having won more carries after his strong showing and I like his matchup vs a porous Green Bay defense.

But as he said, my main hope rests on the capable arm of Manning.

My weakest position is TE, but if Cooley snags a TD I think I have the decided advantage. I'm projecting him for 7-8 this season, after getting 6 in limited action last season.

If Drougns wasn't facing a good matchup, I'd consider starting Santana Moss because in spite of the much ballyhooed game Anthony Henry had, as a unit Dallas' D did not look good at all against the Chargers. S. Moss meanwhile had 4 grabs for 96 yards against a stiff Chicago D.

[Raveneye]

OK, I'm jinxing myself, but here goes:

Bulger vs. Culpepper : Bulger puts up workman like numbers against a weak Arizona D. Look for 300+ yards and 2 TDs again this week at least. Culpepper, the new Michael Vick experience, he's a rollercoaster. Which Culpepper will show up against a decent Cincinnati defense, the showstopper or the train wreck we saw last week. I say the latter. Edge - Wiggle

Chad Johnson and Rod Smith vs. Keyshawn Johnson and Bobby Engram : Chad and Keyshawn are cousins. Rod and Bobby are not. Regardless of relations, Chad and Rod come out on top thanks to favorable matchups and better QBs. Edge - Wiggle

The Edge vs. Portis : Two prime RBs facing tough running Ds. This is anyone's guess. Edge - Even

Julias Jones vs. M. Bennett : Jones is the better back, but will be facing the stifling Redskins defense. Bennett will be splitting carries at best, but may have an easier time vulturing a TD against Cincinnati. Receptions could give Jones the edge, but it's too close to call. Edge - Even

Wiggens vs. Gonzo - Wiggens had 2 TDs called back last week, he's defintely a target for Culpepper around the end zone. That said, Gonzo is...well...Gonzo. Edge - Maulers

Dunn vs. Taylor : Dunn nabbed 117 yards against a good Eagles D this week. Taylor faces Indy, who seems to have discovered a defense sometime in the offseason. Because he splits with Duckett, Dunn is a a slight disadvantage here, but then Taylor's knee could snap in a stiff wind, so it's a toss up. Edge - Even

Shayne Graham vs. Vanderjagt : Graham will get plenty of opportunity against a weak Vikings defense. I expect the Bengals to be within FG distance on many trips down the field. That said, Manning and crew will put Vandy in position often as well. Edge - Even

Detroit vs. Buffalo : I'm goign out on a limb with Detroit this week. My main D is Jacksonville, who is facing Indy, so not a good option. Detroit handled Brett Favre and crew with seeming ease last week, the mostly young Chicago offense is nowhere near as tight as Green Bay, so it should be another good outing for them. Unfortunately, Buffalo has just about the best defense in the NFL right now. Edge - Maulers

So after all that it still comes down to the wire. Should be a close and hopefully high scoring affair. Good luck Lycos!

[Erudite]

Okay, let's see...

QB: Kerry Collins vs. Gus Frerotte - KC will get an edge against any QB not named Peyton this year (and maybe McNabb). Against Frerotte, this is a big edge to me. :lowrazz:

WR: Derrick Mason and Jimmy Smith vs. Randy Moss and Frisman Jackson - I'm benching my favorite receiver in Hines Ward, because I think the Steelers are going to rack of the ground yardage against Houston. Still, even if Smith puts up another big game I don't see me winning this matchup. Edge to Barrack.

RB: Corey Dillon and Tiki Barber vs. Willis McGahee and Veron Haynes - two top-flight starters against McGahee and Parker's backup in Pittsburgh. I like my chances here, even if Haynes sneaks a goal line touchdown. Edge to me.

TE: L.J. Smith vs. Randy McMicheal - hard to get excited about this matchup at all. More of a push than anything, I think, but I'll give a slight edge to Barrack.

Flex: Larry Fitzgerald vs. Larry Johnson - another one that's tough to figure. Fitz seems to be Warner's favorite target in pass-happy Arizona, but Johnson (legal troubles aside) is sniping more and more of Holme's carries and is looking good doing it. I have to give a decent edge to Barrack and hope Fitz finds the magic for another game.

K: Jason Hansen vs. Ryan Lindell - normally I'd give Lindell the edge, but Hansen's Lions are taking on the lowly Bears. I look for them to give him plenty of opportunities to kick, so a slight edge for me.

Def: NY Jets vs. Indianapolis - Indy looked good against a weak Ravens offense. The Jets looked very bad against a good KC offense. I'll give Barrack and Indy the edge, even though I don't think that's how it will work out this week.

Looks like a close game. I think I win with a little breathing room, but wouldn't be surprised at a loss. ;)

[Raveneye]

I wondered who would bite on Frisman Jackson. I personally think he's a one week wonder, but if not Barrack may have made the pickup of the year at WR.

Our free agent pool at RB is amazingly shallow. No diving in to find a treasure in there.

[Shiz]

Our free agent pool at RB is amazingly shallow. No diving in to find a treasure in there.

I, too, expected more depth at RB with only 12 teams but it seems a lot of us drafted 3 or more so pickings are indeed slim.

[Thuriniel]

That's the reason I was so depressed when I got home from the hospital to see no tier one or two RBs on my team, and all the starters spoken for. In ten team leagues you can usually find a low ranked starter or two available...in our 12-team league it's almost impossible.

[Thuriniel]

to wit: the best course of action after the season starts is usually a trade. The W/R position makes it a bit easier to work a deal owing to the increased lineup flexibility it provides.

Anyway, on to this week's matchup, where the lovely Serani goes for a 2-0 start, while my team tries to start the season over at .500. (lineups of course subject to change at a whim =oP):

QB
DMac vs. the Big Berger (aka The Whoppered): 14 and O, that's Big Ben's record as a starter in the league. Nice. He's probable. DMac...another proven winner, but with a nice chest bruise. Questionable (hell ya' he'll be in there). Both have the ability to put up the QB points, but I'll go (not unbiasedly, I note duly) with McNabb...this team does great after loses.

WRs
T.O. vs Plaxico. I like Plaxico; used to watch him snag balls for Mich. St., and I think he was a great pickup this year in a maturing offense that needs another big target in the end zone. I expect him to put up excellent numbers this year. But I still expect T.O. to put up bigger ones. Going with Owens.

A. Boldin vs. J. Galloway. Meh. Flip a coin. Heads: Galloway scores and racks up 90+ yards. Tails: Kurt throws Boldin's way and he snags a TD or two.

RBs
Westbrook vs. Hicks (SF). Hicks can see some scoring possibilities on the goalline, for sure. However, the Eagle's D will be right there to meet him, and Westbrook can score from anywhere on the field. Westbrook.

D. Foster vs. TJ Duckett. Size beats speed, here. I'm giving the edge to the power short yardage and goaling back. Duckett.

TE
Shockey vs. Brady. Could go either way, but I'll trust that Shockey will live up to his usual standards, maybe 8 recs for 80 yards, and a TD. And just maybe a televised incident wherein he scores, climbs into the stands and gets into a heated exchange with some tearful Saint's fans. Shockey for the shock value.

Flex
B. Jacobs (NYG) vs. Randle El. Rookie goalline back vs. Slash 1.5. Going with Slash 1.5 here.

Kicker
Akers vs. Reed. Looking for a return to form from Akers, who justmissed a couple of long FG attempts last week. However I think Reed should be mired deep in a FG contest with Houston this week...wouldn't be surprised if he racked up 3 or 4 of them. Reed.

Def/ST
Car vs. Pitt. Carolina needs to cope with some personnel loses and regain their focus. Pitt is always tuffnosed and dangerous. Pitt.

All-in-all, I like a couple of my matchups, and feel so-so about the rest. I definitely see some points potential across the firld from me, and can only hope that some of my playmakers make some plays this week. I do NOT want to start off the season 0-2. :mad1:

[Drax]

I ... can only hope that some of my playmakers make some plays this week
I foresee ... your greatest playmaker ... making big plays come Monday.

Namely, the Add/Drop feature. :mrgreen: :lowlol:

(J/k, Thur. ;))

[Thuriniel]

I know ya are. :lowrazz:

I've already replaced most of the autodraft chaff I didn't want, so I don't see much more churning in my future, knock on wood. :mrgreen:

The team is not anywhere near what I would have drafted, but in a 12-team league I feel the team has the ability to put up some respectable points totals. :lowcool:

We'll see how it goes.

[Erudite]

RAWR!

Okay, so I probably won't outscore Thur this week (he's got over 110 with two players still out - curse thee, 49ers!), but I still should clear 100 points and move to 2-0. I'm glad I decided against benching Ward after all.

And snagging Brown off the waiver wire gives me some depth at RB - that was a bit of a concern for me.

Looking forward to next week's matchup with Shiz. :lowrazz:

[Shiz]

Well, I couldn't have asked for a better week to play Manning. Oh well. My RBs have just been sucking wind so far.

[Caranthir]

My heart stopped for a second when Priest went out with that contusion. I'm doing pretty well so far, but I'm screwed if either of my starting RBs remember they tend to get injured.

Picking up Travis Henry may help. We'll see in the coming weeks. Maybe he'll be my Willis McGahee for this season.

Also, my condolences to Lycos on the regression of Daunte Culpepper. I had him a couple of seasons ago in another league and he burned me week after week. Problem is you can't really bench him because you never know when he'll go off.

[Erudite]

Also, my condolences to Lycos on the regression of Daunte Culpepper. I had him a couple of seasons ago in another league and he burned me week after week. Problem is you can't really bench him because you never know when he'll go off.

It's a little bit frightening that, despite 5 interceptions and 2 sacks, Culpepper was still a better performer than Lycos' backup QB.

[Serani]

Culpepper was my BABY last year and half the reason that I did so well then.

I might, MIGHT (I'm taking a BIG risk saying this cause Rubi's reading over my shoulder) have chosen him over Ben had I actually been drafting live.

Dammit, he caught it. *sigh* Guess I'm sleeping on the couch tonight...

[Raveneye]

Isn't it your birthday? Somehow I doubt Rubi is going to let you sleep at all tonight. Oh wait, that's HIS birthday... :wink:

I'm boggling over the fact that Culpepper can throw FIVE interceptions and still only score 2 points less than Bulger (my QB) who had a perfectly serviceable game (200+ yards, 1 TD, 1 INT). Then I saw that sacks count against you to the tune of a point each. OUCH! Bulger was sacked 4 times, so -4 points off his total really hurts.

I made the bonehead decision (as did a lot of FFL pros) to pickup and start Detroit against Chicago this week instead of my normal defense (JAX). I think we're all so used to Chicago being the whipping boy that you just look for defenses to play against them. Combine that with the way Detroit stymied Green Bay last week and it looked like a sure bet. Well Cedric Benson and Kyle Orton are proving this is not the Bad News Bears we're used to seeing. Detroit earned me negative 1 point, they are heading for the waiver wire this week.

Even underperforming in those areas, I still look good to pull out the win tonight as long as Julius Jones can match Clinton Portis point for point. That would leave Keyshawn Johnson to try and close the 30 point gap on his own, which is highly unlikely.

[GravenStone]

Wanted for questioning, Indy offense. If found, please contact Tony Dungy, then beat the lot of them to a bloody pulp....

[Drax]

Wanted for questioning, Indy offense.
You may want to start by questioning Carson Palmer and Donovan McNabb, who both seemed to channel Manning's chi this weekend... :mrgreen: