Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: 2010 Week 11

November 15th, 2010 kNuke

The Thursday games are here and the Bye Weeks are gone. That signals the beginning of the stretch run towards the Fantasy Playoffs. If you’ve been following us all year long you should have a solid roster ready to make your move. At this point, you’ll be looking for injury replacements and opponent blocking on the Waiver Wire.

Injury news: CJ Spiller (out), Hines Ward, Josh Cribbs, Beanie Wells, Percy Harvin, Donald Driver, Matthew Stafford (out), Ryan Mathews, Jonathan Stewart, DeAngelo Williams, Roddy White, Sidney Rice, Austin Collie, Chad Ochocinco, Kenny Britt (out), Tony Romo (out), Joseph Addai, Antonio Gates, Malcolm Floyd, Pierre Thomas, Clinton Portis, and Reggie Bush.

QB: Jon Kitna, Shaun Hill, Matt Cassel, Vince Young, and Troy Smith. Kitna, Hill, and Cassel are all capable of putting up huge numbers, but suffer from inconsistency; keeping them out of the every week starter category. It’s still nice to have a backup QB in your pocket if you have the extra roster space. Young is a wildcard as it’s unseen how Randy Moss affects him. Troy Smith gets a shout out as he’s been useful in his two starts, but he still doesn’t warrant starting. He’s a better on the field than in fantasy.

RB: Fred Jackson, Tim Hightower, Bernard Scott, Mike Goodson, Javarris James, Willis McGahee, and Chester Taylor. With CJ Spiller out, Jackson should get even more run and is a lower-tier RB2. Hightower is on the rise again with the injury to Beanie Wells. If Wells is out, Hightower is a solid Flex play. Goodson and Scott are handcuffs. Jame, McGahee, and Taylor are TD vultures.

WR: Mike Williams (SEA), Mike Thomas, Steve Breaston, Nate Washington, Sidney Rice, Deon Butler, Vincent Jackson, and Jacoby Ford. For the 100th week in a row, please add Williams. Thomas had the miracle Hail Mary catch, but his numbers were pretty good without the catch; solid WR3 this week. Breaston and Washington play alongside guys that command double teams. That makes these two WRs sneaky WR3 plays. Add Rice and Jackson now and hope the investment plays off in a couple of weeks. Butler and Ford are speed guys worth adding as match up plays.

TE: Anthony Fasano, Jermaine Gresham, Benjamin Watson, and Tony Moeaki. Fasano should be solid moving forward with Thigpen at the helm. Gresham, Watson, and Moeaki all have solid match ups this week and are good bets at catching a TD.

Follow @kNuke on Twitter. Your questions, comments, and told-you-sos are strongly encouraged.

Posted in Fantasy Football | No Comments »

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: 2010 Week 10

November 8th, 2010 kNuke

Hope you had a better weekend than Wade Phillips or the Hawaii Warriors. My weekend was a mess, but like fantasy football as in life, it’s only one weekend.

Injury news: Matthew Stafford, Ryan Mathews, Jonathan Stewart, Roddy White, Hakeem Nicks, Sidney Rice, Beanie Wells, Austin Collie, Percy Harvin, Chad Ochocinco, Vernon Davis, Donald Driver, Chris Cooley, Kenny Britt, Ryan Torain, Tony Romo (out), Joseph Addai, Alex Smith (out), Antonio Gates (Bye), Malcolm Floyd (Bye), Pierre Thomas, Clinton Portis, and Reggie Bush.

Bye Week Teams: Green Bay, Oakland, New Orleans, San Diego.

QB: David Garrard, Matt Cassel, and Vince Young. If you own Stafford, Rodgers, or Brees, you need a replacement this week and Garrard is the guy. Stafford is probably out this week and could be done for the season. If you were counting on him to replace Romo, hope he is just out for this week. If he is done for the season, Young has a nice schedule upcoming, a new deep threat in Randy Moss, and if he’s healthy could be an interesting play the rest of the way.

RB: Tim Hightower, Fred Jackson, Willis McGahee, Chester Taylor, and Marion Barber. If Beanie Wells misses time, Hightower will get a starter’s share of touches making him a solid Flex. Jackson won’t go off for big numbers, but he’s a consistent fantasy scorer; solid Flex. McGahee and Taylor are TD vultures. Barber hasn’t done much all year, but with the firing of Wade Phillips who knows what will happen in Big D.

WR: Mike Williams (SEA), Mike Thomas, Steve Breaston, Sidney Rice, and Jacoby Ford. Williams tops the list as an immediate add; solid WR2 this week. Thomas should have a good week against a weak secondary and is a solid one-week play; lower-tier WR2. Rice is a add and stash, because his health is still a concern. Ford is really really really fast, but is only a speculative add at this point. He’s exciting, but one week is only one week.

TE: Tony Moeaki, Owen Daniels, John Carlson, and Brandon Pettigrew. All of these guys are borderline TE1 material. Moeaki is the best buy as an every week starter, but the rest of the lot has solid match ups this week. Make sure to check the injury status of Daniels before rolling the TE dice.

Follow @kNuke on Twitter. Your questions, comments, and told-you-sos are strongly encouraged.

Posted in Fantasy Football | No Comments »

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: 2010 Week 9

November 1st, 2010 kNuke

Looked like a low scoring week across the Fantasy landscape. Team Waiver Wire and Team Bench were once again dominating the scoreboard.

Injury news: Percy Harvin, Chad Ochocinco, Vernon Davis, Donald Driver, Chris Cooley, Kenny Britt (Bye), Ryan Torain (Bye), Brett Favre, Tony Romo (out), Joseph Addai, Alex Smith (out), Antonio Gates, DeSean Jackson, Malcolm Floyd, Eddie Royal, Austin Collie, Pierre Thomas, Michael Vick, Clinton Portis (out), and Reggie Bush.

Bye Week Teams: Denver, Tennessee, St. Louis, San Francisco, Washington, Jacksonville.

QB: Matthew Stafford, David Garrard, Jon Kitna, and Vince Young. Stafford is a little rusty and has injury concerns, but he’s worth a top waiver priority if you need a starting QB. Garrard is off this week, but has two nice match ups after the Bye and is worthy of being your backup QB. Kitna has the ability and situation to put up points, but his upcoming schedule doesn’t look so good. Young has a nice schedule upcoming and if he’s healthy could be an interesting play the rest of the way. Lots of love to Troy Smith this week, but he won’t chuck it enough to be a viable fantasy option.

RB: LaGarrette Blount and Fred Jackson. Blount is definitely the main man in Tampa now after his monster game. Don’t expect that kind of production every week, but he’s a solid Flex play with RB2 potential. Jackson keeps getting touches and that usually equates to points; solid Flex option.

WR: Mike Williams (SEA), Steve Breaston, and Jordy Nelson. Williams is somehow under 50% ownership. If he’s available in your league, add him immediately; he’s a lower-tier WR2. Breaston is a good WR, but it’s tough to trust that offense. Nelson has value as a WR3 if Donald Driver is out.

TE: Greg Olsen, Tony Moeaki, Todd Heap, and Benjamin Watson. Olsen hasn’t had a good year so far, but his match up is good so he’s worth the gamble. Moeaki and Watson have been steady, but not spectacular. Heap had two good games before his Bye last week, but don’t expect him to produce that way all year. The TE position is a crapshoot outside of Antonio Gates so riding the hot hand isn’t out of the question.

Follow @kNuke on Twitter. Your questions, comments, and told-you-sos are strongly encouraged.

Posted in Fantasy Football | No Comments »

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: 2010 Week 8

October 26th, 2010 kNuke

Crazy week in the NFL. Darren McFadden and Kenny Britt went off for 40+ points. Three Buffalo Bills (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Lee Evans, and Steve Johnson) were Top 15 point scorers. Two defensive players (DeAngelo Hall and David Bowens) cracked the Top 30. Tons of unexpected players scored big points, but most likely for Team Waiver Wire or Team Bench.

Injury news: Dallas Clark (out for season), Tony Romo, Joseph Addai, Brett Favre, Alex Smith, Antonio Gates, DeSean Jackson, Malcolm Floyd, Peyton Hillis, Chris Cooley, Eddie Royal, LeSean McCoy, Steve Smith – CAR, Austin Collie, Pierre Thomas, Michael Vick, Clinton Portis, and Reggie Bush.

Bye Week Teams: Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, NY Giants, Philadelphia, Baltimore.

I’ve eliminated the Trade Bait and Possible Cuts section, because it’s too hard to list players to trade/cut without taking roster considerations. I’ll take those questions individually on Twitter instead.

QB: Matthew Stafford, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Matt Cassel, and Jon Kitna. Fitzpatrick has been playing well lately and has a decent match up in Week 8, but Stafford is a better rest of season option for you Romo owners. The only problem with owning Stafford is that you’ll have to carry two QBs, because of his injury history.

RB: Donald Brown, LaGarrette Blount, Fred Jackson, CJ Spiller, and Reggie Bush. Brown could be a solid RB2 this week if Joseph Addai is out. Looks like Blount will continue to see his carries increase. Tampa Bay isn’t that good, but if Blount gets carries, he could be a solid Flex. Jackson is the starter right now and is a solid Flex, but don’t sleep on Spiller. Once the Bills get a win, the focus will shift to getting Spiller more involved. Bush should make his return this week and expect the Saints offense to get back on track. Bush is a solid Flex with a shot at being a lower RB2 if the PT Cruiser is still out.

WR: Kenny Britt, Mike Williams (SEA), Steve Johnson, Patrick Crayton, Davone Bess, Danny Woodhead, Dexter McCluster, Deion Branch, Demaryius Thomas, and Louis Murphy. Britt, Williams, Johnson and Crayton are WR2 material and immediate adds. Bess keeps scoring, but I wouldn’t count on that from him every week; upper tier WR3. Woodhead and McCluster are on this list, because they should receive more opportunities being a RB/WR. The rest of the guys are WR3 options at best due to their inconsistency.

TE: Todd Heap (Bye), Tony Moeaki, Owen Daniels, and Benjamin Watson. Heap has been scoring TDs the past couple weeks, but he is an injury concern and has a Week 8 Bye. Moeaki has been cold since a solid start, but he has good match ups. Daniels looks to be returning to form, but there are a lot of weapons in the Texans passing game. All of these guys are borderline TE1.

Follow @kNuke on Twitter. Your questions, comments, and told-you-sos are strongly encouraged.

Posted in Fantasy Football | 4 Comments »

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups: 2010 Week 7

October 18th, 2010 kNuke

Usually around this time of the season a bunch of teams are jumbled in the middle of the Standings. The moves you make in the next few weeks could be the difference between the championship playoffs and consolation bracket. Don’t be afraid to make moves. After your starters are done with their Bye weeks there is no need for a backup at QB, TE, K, and DEF/ST. Play the guys that are scoring points, not the guys that you drafted with high expectations who are failing.

There were two major injuries this week: Antonio Gates and DeSean Jackson. Both are possibly crippling to their fantasy owners. Move quickly to find replacements.

Injury news: Antonio Gates, DeSean Jackson, Malcolm Floyd, Peyton Hillis, Chris Cooley, Eddie Royal, LeSean McCoy, Knowshon Moreno, Steve Smith – CAR, Austin Collie, Darren McFadden, Pierre Thomas, Michael Vick, Clinton Portis (out 4 weeks), and Reggie Bush (out 3 weeks).

Bye Week Teams: Detroit, Indianapolis, NY Jets, Houston.

Trade Bait: Cadillac Williams, Deion Branch, Ryan Torain, Justin Forsett, Peyton Hillis, Steve Smith (CAR), Eddie Royal, Kevin Walter, Darren McFadden, Mike Tolbert, Austin Collie, and LaDainian Tomlinson.

Possible Cuts: Jason Snelling, Jermichael Finley, Tim Hightower, Dez Bryant, Jonathan Stewart, Sam Bradford, Mario Manningham, Devin Hester, Owen Daniels, Jerome Harrison, TJ Houshmandzadeh, Derrick Mason, and Vincent Jackson.

QB: Matt Cassel and Josh Freeman. Cassel had a breakout week and it’s highly possible that he puts up stellar numbers again this week. If you own Manning, Schaub, or Sanchez, grab Cassel and enjoy the roller coaster.

RB: Fred Jackson, Chris Ivory, Cadillac Williams, and CJ Spiller. Jackson takes over the starting RB position in Buffalo and should be a solid Flex moving forward, but remember it’s Buffalo and they’ll want to get Spiller involved more down the stretch. Spiller is a pickup and wait. Ivory had a banner day and should continue to see TD opportunities even when the PT Cruiser returns. Cadillac Williams keeps getting opportunities. He’s a pickup and package guy.

WR: Danny Woodhead, Roy Williams, Deion Branch, Mike Williams (SEA and TB), Danario Alexander, Demaryius Thomas, Davone Bess, Louis Murphy, Kenny Britt, Jabar Gaffney, and Steve Johnson. Woodhead is an interesting play since he’s a RB, but qualifies at WR. Roy Williams cannot be denied any longer as he looks like a constant threat on the goal line. Most of the other guys are WR3 options at best due to their inconsistency.

TE: Tony Moeaki, Benjamin Watson, and John Carlson. Moeaki should be solid for the next few weeks. Expect about 50 yards and a TD possibility. Watson is intriguing with McCoy at QB as he should continue to see consistent looks.

Follow @kNuke on Twitter. Your questions, comments, and told-you-sos are strongly encouraged.

Posted in Fantasy Football | No Comments »