Fantasy Geek/Life is Just a Fantasy
Occasionally I will get asked for advice on subjects other than fantasy football. This includes people who want to know how someone like me, with so many weaknesses, has been able to stay married for nearly 17 years.
The answer is simple: I know when to hoist the white flag. I know when it’s time to gracefully bow out of situations before things get ugly. At the same time, knowing when to surrender means you also know when not to quit -- when you should weather the storm because you can see a break in the clouds.
Four weeks into the fantasy football season, nobody should be reaching for their white flags just yet -- even if you’re 0-4.
Not to date myself, but I’ve been playing fantasy football since the days when Christian Okoye and Haywood Jeffries were first-round picks and some young quarterback named Brett Favre looked like he had the potential to be a decent player. And every year, there’s a team that starts off slow and comes roaring back to make the playoffs.
So, I’ve learned to institute the rule of 5-5. Simply put, you don’t give up on a season as long as you can still get to a record of 5-5. So, take heart if your team is sitting at 0-4 or 1-3 and you’re ruing your selection of Michael Turner or Matt Forte over Maurice Jones-Drew right now. Just focus on getting to 5-5 because there’s still a lot of football to be played.
In honor of the Nebraska-Missouri game tonight, I can tell you that my Week 5 selections may appear as gross as a booger, but that wouldn’t stop Chase Daniel from gobbling them up.
Kournikovas: Brett Favre, QB, Minnesota; Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Pittsburgh; Steve Smith, WR, New York Giants.
Favre may have been able to recapture some of his old magic last week against the Packers, but the Vikings have to pick-and-choose their spots with giving Favre a big workload. His big week last week combined with Minnesota playing at St. Louis, which has one of the worst rush defenses in the league, means Favre will be busy handing the ball off on Sunday.
Yes, Mendenhall had a bust-out game last week, but running backs rarely have back-to-back monster games. Besides, how much could the Steelers’ offensive line have left in them after their performance on Monday Night Raw?
Sticking with the philosophy that players rarely have huge games in consecutive weeks, owners of the Giants-version of Smith should be happy with what they got last week and not expect the same this Sunday. Plus, Oakland’s pass defense is substantially better than their rushing defense.
Clint Longley of the Week: Bobby Wade, WR, Kansas City.
Todd Haley isn’t happy with the performance of his offense in Kansas City. Matt Cassel hasn’t done much so far this season. Going against a Cowboys pass defense that ranks 29th in the league will help and Wade has established himself as the Chiefs’ No. 2 receiver.
Bus Brigade: Donovan McNabb, QB, Philadelphia; Adrian Peterson, RB, Minnesota; Wes Welker, WR, New England.
Philadelphia is not only playing at home against Tampa Bay, but the Eagles are coming off a bye week and McNabb is going to need to perform well if he wants people to forget about how good Kevin Kolb has looked while filling in for him. McNabb always seems to rise to the occasion when his job seems in jeopardy and he’ll have a big week this week.
Petersen has “just” 140 yards and one touchdown in his last two games. He’ll shred through the St. Louis defense this week while Minnesota does its best to limit the amount of throws from Favre.
Welker stands to benefit from studio analyst Rodney Harrison’s statement that Tom Brady needs to “take off the skirt.” After missing a couple weeks, Welker started to get back into the groove last week and should be prime for one of his usual 10 reception, 100 yards and a touchdown kind of performance.
Best Husker Available: Chris Kelsay, DE, Buffalo, and the rest of the Bills defense. Kelsay has had a sack in each of his last two games and Buffalo is hosting Cleveland this week. That’s a Cleveland team with no established quarterback or running back which just traded its best wide receiver.
The Fantasy Geek is a native Fremonter and freelance writer in Omaha.
Print This Story
Email This Story
