NFL Week 5 is upon us as we move past the first quarter of the season. The NFL will try and capitalize off of the success of Monday Night Football. The Vikings-Packers game was the most watched program in cable history. To the new fans that tuned in on Monday, you ain’t seen nothing yet!

The AFC will take the headlines this week with several rivalry games. The AFC South, North, and East all have excellent grudge matches. The first one that catches my eyes will kick off Sunday at 1 at M & T Stadium and pits the 3-1 Baltimore Ravens against the 3-1 Cinncinatti Bengals.

Fun NFL Week 3 Camelclutchblog.com Fact- 64 % of 3-1 teams has made the NFL playoffs since 1990.

The Ravens and Bengals both are coming off of disappointing weeks. The Bengals were able to pull out a win in OT after struggling with the winless Cleveland Browns. In the end a win is a win, even after a lackluster offensive effort out of the Bengals. The Ravens are still crying about their loss to the Patriots and questionable calls. Both teams are looking to make a statement about their 3-1 records. This one has the likelihood of turning into a shootout with two poor passing defenses and two very good quarterbacks going nose to nose in a divisional game.

In my opinion, both teams have been overachievers thus far this year. The Ravens are usually good, but nobody expected an air attack like we have seen out of Baltimore. The defense is much more vulnerable than usual thanks to the departure of Rex Ryan. The Ravens are giving up over 230 yards a game in the air and five touchdowns thus far. The rushing attack is even better than it was last year. Willis McGahee is finally starting to pay dividends for the Ravens. The Ravens may have the most dangerous combination of passing and rushing in the NFL.

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Hello fantasy football fans! Well we are 4 weeks into this 2009 season and as you all know its one quarter of the way finished. So what do we do when things are a quarter over? Well we grade them. Yes here it is, all 32 teams starting position guys and some extra players who get bulk work and how they have faired so far. This is thee must have measuring stick for your fantasy team. If you have A-Grade players you should be moving along nicely. However if you have F-Graded players, perhaps its time to view your bench or the waiver wire. So read up, enjoy, and scold those who come home with a bad report card!

Quarterbacks:

The A Class:
Peyton Manning, Colts, 1336 yards 9 total TDs
Joe Flacco, Ravens, 1103 yards 8 total TDs
Drew Brees, Saints, 1031 yards 9 total TDs

The class of this group is Manning. We all know what Drew Brees has done, but you can always count on Manning to give you points every week.

The B Class:
Aaron Rodgers, Packers, 1098 yards 7 total TDs
Phillip Rivers, Chargers, 1245 yards 7 total TDs
Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers, 1193 yards 7 total TDs
Matt Schaub, Texans, 1047 yards 8 total TDs
Eli Manning, Giants, 1039 yards 8 total TDs
Jay Cutler, Bears, 901 yards 8 total TDs
Donovan McNabb, Eagles, 79 yards 3 total TDs
Brett Favre, Vikings, 837 yards 8 total TDs

The best of this group is a toughy, but im going with Eli Manning. His team is 4-0 so not only is he getting great stats, but his team is winning too. Some of these guys can reach A status with easy weeks coming up.

The C Class
Tom Brady, Patriots, 1129 yards 5 total TDs
David Garrard, Jaguars, 951 yards, 6 total TDs
Carson Palmer, Bengals, 845 yards 7 total TDs
Kurt Warner, Cardinals, 863 yards 4 total TDs
Shaun Hill, 49ers, 700 yards 5 total TDs
Matt Ryan, Falcons, 648 yards 5 total TDs
Seneca Wallace, Seahawks, 645 yards, 4 total TDs
Kyle Orton, Broncos, 906 yards, 5 total TDs

Of this class maybe Matt Ryan does not belong, but he could be a bit better. These guys do decent jobs of managing games,but for fantasy purposes they are mainly back-ups for you at this time.

The D Class (detention time for these guys)
Kerry Collins, Titans, 914 yards, 6 total TDs
Jason Campbell, Redskins, 963 yards, 6 total TDs
Trent Edwards, Bills, 790 yards 5 total TDs
Matt Cassel, Chiefs, 458 yards 5 total TDs
Tony Romo, Cowboys, 990 yards 5 total TDs
Matt Stafford, Lions, 894 yards, 3 TDs

Some of these guys stats may not be quite as bad as some C guys, but these guys have killed their teams, not to mention what they have done to fantasy owners. These guys are desperation or match-up friendly only guys.

The F Class (you should be ashamed if you own these guys!)
Jake Delhomme, Panthers, 601 yards 2 total TDs
JeMarcus Russell, Raiders, 506 yards 1 total TD

There is nothing nice or cute to say about these guys. If these guys are on your team you’re finished. I don’t see any light at the end of these tunnels, move on!

The following players draw incompletes until we see more:
Josh Johnson, Kyle Boller, Derek Anderson, Mark Sanchez, Chad Henne

Running Backs ( these grades are based on point-per catch leagues)

The A Class
Chris Johnson, Titans, 434 yards 2 TDS, 14 rec 117 yards 1 TD
Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars, 296 yards 5 TDs, 16 rec 97 yards
Adrian Peterson, Vikings, 412 yards 5 TDs, 8 rec 56 yards
Ronnie Brown, Dolphins, 369 yards 4 TDs, 6 rec 50 yards

This is the best of the class of the biggest fantasy position. Johnson needs his team to improve to keep up his numbers. Very few guys make the A Grade, and the pressure is on to maintain these spots.

The B Class
Willis McGahee, Ravens, 201 yards 5 TDs, 7 rec 54 yards 2 TDs
Fred Jackson, Bills, 333 yards 0 TDs, 18 rec 160 yards, 1 TD
Frank Gore, 49ers, 241 yards 3 TDs, 8 rec 57 yards, 1 TD
Kevin Smith, Lions, 234 yards 3 TDs, 16 rec 101 yards
Ray Rice, Ravens, 295 yards 1 TD, 16 rec 134 yards
Julius Jones, Seahawks, 251 yards 1 TD, 11 rec 65 yards, 2 TDs
Cedric Benson, Bengals, 367 yards 2 TDs, 6 rec 49 yards
Ricky Williams, Dolphins, 248 yards 2 TDs, 8 rec 62 yards 1 TD
Pierre Thomas, Saints, 212 yards 3 TDs, 5 rec 42 yards

This is an amzing group when you consider the names that are on it, and the names that are not. The Ravens boast 2 players on this list as their running attack carries a heavy load. Beware of injuries to Frank Gore, and to reduced time-share roles for guys like Rice, Fred Jackson, and Ricky Williams

The C Class
Joseph Addai, Colts, 183 yards 2 TDs, 16 rec 100 yards 1 TD
Marion Barber, Cowboys, 244 3 TDs, 4 rec 58 yards
Ryan Grant, Packers, 257 2 TDs, 9 rec 83 yards
Correll Buckhalter, Broncos, 267 yards 1 TD, 8 rec 96 yards
Steve Slaton, Texans, 192 yards 1 TD, 11 rec 121 yards 1 TD
Cadillac Williams, Buccaneers, 191 yards 1 TD, 12 rec 81 yards, 1 TD
DeAngelo Williams, Panthers, 180 yards 2 TDs, 9 rec 84 yards
Rashard Mendenhall, Steelers, 210 yards 2 TDs, 3 rec 39 yards
Thomas Jones, Jets, 229 yards 3 TDs, 2 rec 1 yard
Michael Turner, Falcons, 226 yards 2 TDs, 1 rec 5 yards

A group of guys loaded with talent that just aren’t getting it done. Guys like Slaton, D. Williams, and Marion Barber have been big disappointments to fantasy owners. However, these guys do have the stuff to turn it around and in 10-12 team leagues are more then serviceable.

The D Class
Matt Forte, Bears, 271 yards 1 TD, 13 rec 92 yards
Steven Jackson, Rams, 367 yards 0 TD, 12 rec 67 yards
Tim Hightower, Cardinals, 109 yards 1 TD, 20 rec 172 yards
Brandon Jacobs, Giants, 288 yards 1 TD, 3 rec 13 yards
Reggie Bush, Saints, 148 yards 1 TD, 14 rec 121 yards
Jerome Harrison, Browns, 181 yards, 14 rec 88 yards

Some of these names must be killing fantasy owners right now. Forte and Jacobs with just 1 TD? Stephen Jackson with zero? These are not late-round names here people. Some of these guys are first rounders and may be ready for some fantasy pine. Yes, it’s just the first quarter of the season but keep an eye on these underachievers.

The F Class
Clinton Portis, Redskins, 281 yards 0 TD 4 rec 25 yards
It would appear that Clinton Portis may have reached the end of the road. He has produced nothing and most fantasy owners are waiving him or benching him already. Man how quickly times change.

Incompletes go out too
Brian Westbrook, Knowshon Moreno, Darren McFadden,

Wide Receiver/ Tight End

Ok so I was going to get all lavish and do the grade system again, but this is such a dead-heated pile of guys all around the same that its a crap shoot right now. I gave out an A+ to Steve Smith of the Giants, and then an A to Reggie Wayne of the Colts. Outside of these guys, it has been a real hard first quarter to pin down great wideouts. Ok ,so you should have gotten Mike Sims-Walker and if you havent, you’re probably too late. The usual suspects still get your starts every week. Larry Fitgerald, Andre Johnson, Calvin Johnson, Brandon Marshall etc, you start with confidence, and you play the matchup with anyone else. I did’nt cheat with the WR catagory, yet I just feel this is one you can all do yourselves for right now. In the half way report, we will be able to seperate the men from the boys!

I also found myself working hard on defense, but it’s also a game to game crap shoot. The obvious choices are there. The Steelers, The Ravens, The Giants etc are all handling their business but not until the mid way point do we know who truly merrits the good grades.

I will be back with you on Thursday with my Start Em/ Sit Em article and don’t forget to check out “Beat The Shark” every Friday at www.CamelClutchBlog.com!

If you’d like to hear anything else from me on topics or ideas I can be reached at phillyphan1971@yahoo.com

Happy Fantasy everyone!

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Eric Mangini has done it again Jets fans. Adam Schefter has reported that the New York Jets have acquired Braylon Edwards from the Cleveland Browns. The pass-dropping wide receiver will shed the dog pound for the bright lights of New York City. Could Edwards be the offensive missing piece or is this the screw up that Jets fans have been used to seeing for the last thirty years?

Fantasy Impact -

Braylon Edwards owners have a shot at redemption here. Edwards was probably taken between the 4th and 6th rounds in your fantasy football draft. For a guy that has 12 catches and 49 yards, he has been a bust. A high pick like that could kill your team because you obviously passed up on better players at that pick. Edwards’ owners ran to the bank in 2007, but haven’t been able to make a deposit since. If Edwards’ issues were truly the Browns, the losing atmosphere, and the quarterback instability, he could turn it around here. The real upside here in my opinion is trade value. Edwards’ owners can likely flip Edwards for much more value than they would have had yesterday. My advice for Edwards owners, flip him and don’t look back.

Sorry Jerricho Cotchery owners, your diamond in the ruff is back in the ruff. Cotchery is the overall eighth ranked receiver right now in one of my ESPN leagues. Nobody drafted Cotchery with any of their first several picks, so owners got him at a bargain. Cotchery’s impact is now over. He will continue to produce for another couple of weeks, but once Edwards gets comfortable with the offense, he will be expected to be the number one receiver.

Sorry Thomas Jones owners, the Jets will start looking more at the pass with Edwards in the offense. The Jets have been a team like the Ravens where they run to set up the run. Thomas Jones has under produced this season due to the increased play of Leon Washington. I would expect Jones numbers to continue to decrease with more of an emphasis on the passing game.

Welcome back Mark Sanchez! Sanchez opened up the season with a heavy passing effort against Houston which resulted in 272 yards and a touchdown. Sanchez’s fantasy impact has decreased since then bottoming out last week in New Orleans. Edwards will open up the long ball and the offense. Rex Ryan didn’t acquire Braylon Edwards not to pass the ball. If and this is a big if, if Edwards lives up to his potential Mark Sanchez can turn into a real fantasy threat at the end of the season. Sanchez is available in most leagues on waivers or free agency. He may be worth a shot if you have a spot open on your roster.

Get Mohamed Massaquoi and get him now! Mohamed Massaquoi had a breakout game over the weekend, thanks to a change at quarterback. Derek Anderson had some serious chemistry with Massaquoi. The trade shows me that the team is confident that they found their overall number-one receiver with Massaquoi. Massaquoi didn’t have a touchdown, but he had 148 yards on 8 catches. I just checked and even with the news, Massaquoi was still available in free agency. Follow my lead and grab him!

Derek Anderson, put that FF cape back on! In 2007, Anderson came out of nowhere and became the Drew Brees of fantasy football. I picked him up off free agency after Week 2 and he turned my season around. Anderson showed flashes of that 2007 season last week by being the first Browns quarterback to move the ball well since Derek Anderson in 2007. Edwards was reportedly a very divisive player on the Cleveland Browns. Edwards could be that addition by subtraction that the Cowboys were hoping to achieve by cutting Terrell Owens loose. Anderson is well worth a roster spot if you are struggling to find a quarterback on a bye week. Anderson has the potential to get hot right when you need him in December.

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The 2009 NFL regular season is a quarter of the way through. After four weeks we are starting to see the contenders separate from the pretenders. Today is report card day for the NFC. Let.s take a look at some teams on the Dean.s List and some teams who are worthy of a big fat “F” for fail.

There are several different components I take into account in grading the teams. The first is overall won/lose record. The second is quality of competition and how teams played up or down to their competition. Third, are these teams over or under achieving based on pre season projections and analysis? Fourth, I take into account coaching and how well teams have been prepared and whether any coaches have made decisions that won or lost games. Fifth, overall individual efforts from team players are definitely taken into consideration in both positive and negative grades. With that said, let.s hand out the NFL First Quarter Report Cards for the NFC.

Dean.s List -

New York Giants

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If I may start off with a quote from legendary sportscaster Al Michaels:
“Do you believe in miracles? YES!”

Okay, so after 2 weeks of pure torture, “The Shark” got back some swagger. Contestant Carrie DeHart gave it her all, but in the end “The Shark” finally sunk his teeth in to the victory cake! “The Shark” came away with a 3-1 record yesterday as I chose the 49ers, the Colts, and the Texans, with the only setback being the Bills (geez how bad are they, really?). Carrie on the other hand settled for just a 1-3 day, as she was let down by the Ravens, the Titans (ok I apologize to the Bills) and the Bengals who didn’t cover. Her only win came from the Giants. So after this week “The Shark” has gotten more respectable with an overall 6-6 record, while the girls fall to 7-5. It’s really heating up now, and plenty of more time to go!

Ok so now that my bragging is behind us, it’s time for what may be my favorite segment, “Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down”, my weekly praise or bashing of people from the past week.

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I have been writing critical Brett Favre blogs for three years. However, I got tired of all of the Favre games like everyone else the last couple of years. I had very low expectations of Favre coming into this season. Between the time off, his finish last season, and no mini-camp, I expected Favre to fizzle. Well, he certainly proved me wrong. Favre was spectacular last night. Favre threw for 271 yards, 3 touchdowns, and only missed seven of 31 passes. This comes a week after Favre’s fantastic game-winning touchdown to Greg Lewis. It has been a long time since Favre has looked this good consistently.

There was something fun about seeing the faces of Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy after every Brett Favre touchdown. As they watched their quarterback throwing interceptions and giving up a safety, they had to be wondering what the hell they were thinking two years ago. We can sit here and go through the Favre vs. Rodgers argument all day, but the bottom line is the Packers have gone from a team one game away from the Super Bowl to a team under .500 ever since Favre left.

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Here are the latest news and notes to help you decide your Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 4. Check out all of the latest injury news from around the league that will impact your Fantasy Football Week 4!

The Jets are sitting two corners, start your Saints! -NJ.com.

Kevin Smith says he WILL play Sunday. His coach says he won’t. Handle with care. – Mlive.com.

Ahmad Bradshaw was back in practice, yet still walking around in a boot. – Rotoworld.com.

L.T. will be p.t. on Sunday night. – Sports.yahoo.com.

Is Jay Cutler finally a start ‘em fantasy quarterback? – Fantasynews.com.

Domenik Hixon is out against the Bucs. – ProFootballTalk.com.

Surprise surprise, Willie Parker to miss Sunday’s game. – Post-gazette.com.

Aaron Ross is out, not that anyone owns a Bucs receiver these days. – Nydailynews.com.

Start the Cadillac! Derrick Ward to miss Sunday’s game. – Pewterreport.com.

Like you needed another reason to start your receivers against the Texans. CB Jacques Reeves is out Sunday. – Chron.com.

Mark Sanchez thrives, as Beanie Wells is labeled an early bust. – Sports.yahoo.com.

Start Glen Coffee if you got him! The 49ers aren’t going to change a thing about their running attack – Mercurynews.com.

The Dolphins want to air it out. – BostonHerald.com.

Don’t count on Matt Hasselbeck for Week 4. – AP.

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The NFL will officially wrap up the first quarter of the 2009 regular season this weekend. The big news thus far of the season is a changing of the guard. The Super Bowl teams are under .500 and falling hard. Early favorites like the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys have struggled. To top it off, a quarterback who had to fight for a starting spot last year in college is the darling of the NFL. This is quite the NFL season!

A year ago at this time the Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers looked unstoppable. In 2009 neither team has been able to win one game. The rhetoric is, “Neither 0-3 team is as bad as record.” As a great man once said, “You are what you are.” I am so tired of the excuses by NFL analysts and journalists. These are two teams 0-3 for a lot of reasons and one of them isn’t bad breaks.

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Hello again loyal readers and fantasy football people. Well here we are in Week 4 of the 2009 NFL season ( seems to be going fast huh? ). Ok so here’s where we seperate the true draft gurus from everybody else playing as the bye weeks are now in effect.

Do you have the back-ups good enough to survive? Do you feel you may need some extra advice going into this week? Well don’t worry because as an added bonus to my fantasy start ‘em or sit em segment known as “Flash and Crash” I will also offer some waiver wire pick up ideas and some good guys to start this week. So sit back and relax, read along and go get em in week 4!

Ok so my coulmn isn’t always perfect but when I mention guys like Johnny Knox and he does his deed it makes me feel pretty good. Or when I say Matt Schaub is good for 3 TDS and he throws 3 TDS, well you get the point, so here is what I like this week.

Quarterbacks:

Flash

Eli Manning, Giants at Kansas City
It doesn’t even matter to me anymore about that mystique at Arrowhead, the Chiefs defense is awful. After watching a newbie like Kevin Kolb go off last week, a Super Bowl winning QB like Manning should have a field day. Eli appears to have finally found his receivers, his running game is working wonders, and the Giants as a whole are on quite a roll. Start Eli with lots of confidence and 3 TDs could be easy.

Jay Cutler, Bears vs Detroit
I understand the Lions won their first game in 20 attempts last week, but let’s face it, they are still the Lions. Jay Cutler seems to finally be doing what he was brought in to do, throw TDs and win games. Cutler has 5 TDs in his last 2 games and guys like Devin Hester and Johnny Knox are developing into good downfield receivers. You also have to believe that the running game can get it going so Cutler will have all day to go nuts. 3 TDs for JC? Why not?

Aaron Rodgers, Packers at Minnesota
In this Monday night affair Rodgers finally gets to go head to head against the man he replaced in Green Bay. Rodgers has come on the last few weeks and is using his entire arsenal of weapons to move the ball down the field. The Vikings boast a very tough run defense so to win this one the Packers will have to rely heavily on the pass. Plus we all know that Rodgers would like nothing more to win against Brett Favre. You may have to worry about some early jitters but he should be just fine.

Crash

Tony Romo, Cowboys at Denver
This is one of those picks I could easily be yelled at for on Monday, but lets face facts. In the last 2 weeks Romo has thrown just 1 TD against 4 interceptions. The Cowboys have turned him into a game manager. In those 2 weeks with only 1 TD from Romo the Cowboys have still managed to score 51 points. He seems to lack the big time receivers to put up huge numbers. Forget what he did opening day against Tampa, because everybody seems capable of that. Until Romo shows us otherwise, you may have to bench him.

Matt Cassel, Chiefs vs New York Giants
Cassel is making people wonder how he got such a big contract from a team in obvious rebuilding mode. He is not a savvy veteran leader that is teaching anything, and he doesn’t appear to be working any wonders with this club. He looked helpless last week against the Eagles and now he is facing possibly the toughest defense in the league. Mean pass rush and no rushing attack at all spell a long day for Mr Cassel in this backfield. Forget about 5 dollar footlongs, I think Justin Tuck and the G-Men will be having Cassel for lunch.

Whoever Miami puts out there at QB
Chad Pennington was laid out this past week and Chad Henne showed us that it doesn’t matter what “Chad” they put out there, the Dolphins just aren’t very good. I like the idea of Pat White running within the Dolphins Wildcat offense but I don’t see him leading a big charge, and Henne isn’t looking as if he is offering much either. In fact I would expect the Dolphins to use Ronnie Brown most of the day and to see the Dolphins reach 20 passing attempts would be stunning.

Sleeper – QB: Shaun Hill, 49ers Handle with care: Joe Flacco, Ravens

Running Back

Chris Johnson, Titans at Jacksonville
Johnson should play every week despite an off day here and there. He is always a bomb just waiting to explode. The Jaguars don’t have the scary defense of old and the Titans are desperate for a win. Johnson will certainly be used for about 80 percent of this offense and his numbers this week should be huge.

Willis McGahee, Ravens at New England
How is this possible? This guy was shunned on draft day like an 8 year old with cooties on the playground. All McGahee has done is score 6 TDs in his first 3 weeks. He has become the main red zone weapon for the 3-0 Ravens and the Patriot defense isn’t so tough this year. In a game that should have some scoring going on I think McGahee is as safe to use as he’s been all year.

Steve Slaton, Texans vs Oakland
Last week I sent out the same notice to Matt Forte owners, and even though he didn’t go nuts he still produced decent points. Ok so now it is Slatons turn. Before you click on and put him on your bench, let him have one shot against a suddenly struggling Raiders defense. Last week Denvers Correll Buckhalter ran up and down the field on them for 104 yards on just 12 carries so I would find it impossible that Slaton does not finally have the day that we all dreamed of on draft day. I expect him to get some catches, find some holes and finally meet the end zone this week.

Crash
Ryan Grant, Packers at Minnesota
I have been saying all season that you can’t start a back against the Viking defense and I’m sticking to it. Frank Gore went down with an injury and Glen Coffee had an average day in his place against them last week. As much as I think Grant has become under-rated and overlooked I don’t see this as a big matchup for him. Plus as I wrote earlier, you know Aaron Rodgers is going to do all he can to show up Brett Favre.

Reggie Bush, Saints vs New York Jets
I try not to dislike Bush, but only consider him in a point per catch league this week. The Jets actually play very good defense and it may be put on Drew Brees to win this week. Plus Pierre Thomas stepped up and showed the league that he’s just as good as hyped this pre-season with a 126 yards and 2 TDs on 14 carries in just one half last week. From this point on you have to believe the Saints will use Thomas and Mike Bell(when he returns) to do the majority of the running and Bush as a special plays type back. Too risky for me.

Steven Jackson, Rams at San Franciso
Jackson has become the ultimate enigma in fantasy football. This week it looks as if the Rams will be going with Kyle Boller again at QB, and I can’t see the 49ers defense giving him that much respect so they will focus on the run game. Last week Adrian Peterson looked average against these Niners and they are not too shabby at stopping the run, so expect the same average effort from Jackson this week.

Sleeper pick - Ahmad Bradshaw, Giants

Handle with care - Julius Jones, Seahawks

Wide Receiver:

Flash

Steve Smith, Giants at Kansas City
I said earlier that Eli Manning was a great start so why not use his new favorite receiver as well. Smith has found the end zone the last 2 weeks and the Chiefs defense is bad. At the beginning of this season this WR corp was full of names but no one with the gumption to step up. After producing 16 catches and 2 TDs in his last 2 outings it appears that Smith has become that guy. Did I mention that the Chiefs defense stinks?

Reggie Wayne, Colts vs Seattle
The Seahawks secondary didn’t impress me much last week against the Bears, but Wayne sure did with one handed grabs and explosions down field. Wayne is in fact the new Harrison in Indy and he seems to progress every week. Wayne has always been a bit of a slow starter so here in week 4 I believe he’s ready for take off.

Brandon Marshall, Broncos vs Dallas
I know what you are all thinking but it’s time to forgive and forget with Marshall. Last week he had 5 catches 60 plus yards and a touchdown against Oakland and the very tough Asmougha at corner. Josh McDaniels team is 3-0 and to remain successful Marshall will become more part of his plan as he will be happy with winning. Kyle Orton isn’t the best QB in the league but Dallas has showed a severe lack of pass rush so far and he may have the time to work. Marshall may very well be back to form of the guy that caught over 200 passes the last 2 years, and against a decent opponent he may decide to hold a coming out party.

Crash

Santonio Holmes, Steelers vs San Diego
I don’t like to print bad stuff about this guy as I feel he’s always capable, but where has he been the last 2 weeks? He has shown little since his opening day explosion against the Titans and in comes an aggressive San Diego defense that will make things tough on his QB, Big Ben. Holmes has been rumored to be a lazy player when things aren’t going his way and if the last 2 weeks show me anything is that well, baby isn’t getting his bottle.

Terrell Owens, Bills at Miami
I’m going to make this simple, I think he has lost all desire to play. T.O. seems to have become a shell of himself in 1 years time, and is lost in this system. As sad as it is when a once superior athlete fades away, it looks like it is happening to Owens.

Braylon Edwards, Browns vs Cincy
This guy should have been traded when he had the chance. The QB situation in Cleveland stinks, Coach Mangini has no clue how to run a ball club, and the very talented Edwards, who had a real good pre-season is lost in the mix. If Derek Anderson starts he may do a little something as Anderson has always been an “Edwards guy”, but if it’s Quinn forget it, much the way Quinn forgets Edwards is on his team. These guys are a mess and one of the best tooled wideouts in the game is punished because of it.

Sleeper pick - Nate Burleson, Seahawks Handle with care: Randy Moss, Patriots

Defense

Flash

49ers vs Rams

Bears vs Lions

Bills at Dolphins

Crash

Seahawks vs Colts

Jets at Saints

Jaguars vs Titans

Ok so as promised some nice waiver wire gems for you to dig for. If you have some bye weeks to contend with and don’t have the best bench you may want to run out and grab these guys and give them a look.

Johnny Knox, WR, Bears
Knox has scored TDs in the last 2 games and has become the most solid route runner of anyone in Chicago. Add to that the fact that the Bears will be at home this week against a poor Lions secondary and Knox could be up for his best pro game to date. Many close to this team have said that Knox is actually faster then (get this) Devin Hester? Sounds like it’s worth a look to me.

Glen Coffee, RB, 49ers
Frank Gores ankle injury will probably keep him down for a week or 2 so in steps Coffee. Just a rookie but he has the tools to take over right where Gore left off. He has a good mix of speed and power, and has the luxury of playing a bad Rams team this week. One of the true sleeper starts of this week.

Mike Wallace, WR, Steelers
Ok throw in your “60 Minutes” jokes because this rookie wide out plays 60 minutes hard for sure. He had his best day yet in his brief career last week with 8 catches and over 100 yards plus a TD for the Steelers. As I said earlier Holmes is becoming lost, so I think Wallace is now found! The matchup isn’t great against San Diego this week, but if you’re in a jam take a chance at this kid.

Mike Syms-Walker, WR, Jaguars
Who is this guy you may ask? Well he is a third year wideout out of USC and has become David Garrards favorite target in Jacksonville. The Jags have always struggled at wide out and sure have had a cast of characters go through town, but Syms-Walker seems to be settling in. The past 2 weeks he has delievered 12 catches for close to 200 yards and a TD, which is big stuff for a Jag receiver. This week he has the Titans to deal with, but I don’t see it as impossible. This guy deserves some looks, and seems like that guy that will make opponents cry in fantasy playoffs.

Josh Johnson, QB, Buccaneers
Byron Leftwich was told to sit down last week, as always, and in came Johnson. The Bucs used a first round pick this year on QB Josh Freeman but don’t feel he’s quite ready to take over and with Leftwich being just brutal, its Johnsons team now. He showed nice flashes last week against the Giants and is a decent scrambler. He may not put up huge numbers but in a pinch I think his “nothing to lose” mentality will garnish some points in a pinch.

Good luck in week 4 and don’t forget as always to check out “Beat The Shark” every Friday as we have a lovely new female going one on one with me in picking NFL games. Thanks as always for reading!

If you’d like to hear anything else from me on topics or ideas I can be reached at phillyphan1971@yahoo.com

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No matter how perfect your fantasy football draft is, you can’t prepare for injuries, bad coaching, and other intangibles. The beauty of fantasy football is that you aren’t stuck with who you drafted. Drafting is only one third of the equation. Trading and playing the waiver wire are just as important. Manipulating the waiver wire can turn around your season like instantly.

Fantasy Football Week 4 is absolutely critical if you have done anything but play to a perfect record. The bright side of being in last place is having the first pick on the waiver wire. This is a great week to turn around your week with the waiver wire. There are several players available at wide receiver, running back, and quarterback that could take you from the outhouse to powerhouse by next Monday.

It is also very important not to get caught up in one-week hype. Greg Lewis may have had the catch of the season, but he has no long term value. Mario Manningham was the fantasy darling last week. One week later he produced a disappointing five points. So be careful not to be blinded by a great week or a bad matchup which turned one week into fantasy gold.

Here are just a few guys that you should pick up if available on your waiver wire…

Running Back – Glen Coffee, San Francisco 49ers. Coffee will be the starting running back for the 49ers this week. Frank Gore is scheduled to miss one-three games. The 49ers are a run-first team. Coffee will get great opportunities against the Rams, and possibly Houston in a few weeks. It is a rare opportunity that you will get the chance to take a starting running back like Coffee off of waivers. Take him, but don’t drop anyone of long term value for him. Remember, once Gore comes back he is back to the bench.

A sneaky fantasy player may take Coffee and use him to trade for someone on Gore’s team. Hey, anything goes in fantasy football.

Ricky Williams, Miami Dolphins. I grabbed Ricky off of waivers immediately after seeing the Colts game. The Dolphins are a team that will run and grind it out using two running backs. Ronnie Brown is the starter, but Williams gets more carries than some starters in time shares around the league. Now with Chad Henne, look for the Dolphins to run even more if they can. Williams has a great matchup this Sunday against Buffalo. I’d take him and plug him in if you need a back. I did and I will!

Quarterback – Kyle Boller, St. Louis Rams. Boller came off the bench and did something the Rams haven’t been able to do…score! This isn’t going to be the greatest show on turf, but there is some definite offensive potential here. Teams have been stacking the box and begging the Rams to pass. They will continue, and Boller is the type of quarterback who can take advantage of that. I can’t say with confidence that Boller is the next 2007 Derek Anderson, but he is definitely worth a shot if you need a quarterback.

Mark Sanchez, New York Jets. The Jets are giving Sanchez more and more opportunities. Rex Ryan is giving him more chances to pass and Sanchez is looking sharper by the week. He didn’t win three games in a row by accident. Sanchez has a tremendous matchup against the Saints this weekend. I am not convinced that the Saints have the personnel yet to turn the defense around. If you need a quarterback or you have a guy on a bye, grab Sanchez and start him.

Wide Receivers, Kevin Walter, Houston Texans. Andre Johnson is getting double covered, leaving Walter wide open. The Texans are putting up big points two weeks in a row and I have no reason to think it won’t stop. Walter will be seeing Oakland, the Giants, and Philadelphia in the next three weeks. All three of those teams have holes in the defensive backfield. Those are great matchups for the Texans and Walter. If you need a wide receiver, he is probably the best number two you will find available in the league.

Sidney Rice, Minnesota Vikings. Brett Favre is known for finding one favorite receiver and locking in on him. I thought it would be Percy Harvin, but it has turned out to be Sidney Rice. Favre and Rice were on fire on Sunday and look to be getting more comfortable with each other week to week. The Vikings have Adrian Peterson, but they also have a buffoon of a coach that would rather pass. The Vikings see the Packers and the Rams in the next two weeks. Both teams have given up some big plays in the air in the short season. If you need a receiver, I’d take Rice and plug him in with confidence for the next two weeks.

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