Detritus
11-01-2008, 01:25 AM
Wily Corn Trolls (7-1) - 0.0
Neanderthals (6-2) - 0.0
Zohan's Posse (4-4) - 0.0
Fallen Angels (1-7) - 0.0
Fighting Friars (4-4) - 0.0
SnakeBitten (4-4) - 0.0
Trifecta Wookies (3-5) - 0.0
2nd helping skillets (4-4) - 0.0
Tribbles (2-6) - 0.0
Demolition (5-3) - 0.0
Spotlight Matchup: Wily Corn Trolls vs. Neanderthals
The top two teams in the standings square off in what is sure to be an epic tilt. The Yahoo Friday projections line makes WCT a 25-point favorite, but if the prognosticators were really that good, they wouldn't be working on fantasy football for Yahoo.
That said, the WCT are fortunate to catch Neanderthals with QB Drew Brees on bye. A lingering quadriceps bruise casts some doubt on the availability of RB Steven Jackson as well. It is also true that many of the players in the WCT lineup have pretty juicy matchups on paper. The Kurt Warner-Larry Fitzgerald hookup draws St. Louis. RBs Adrian Peterson (vs. Houston), Chris Johnson (vs. Green Bay), and Ronnie Brown (vs. Denver) all go up against teams that have had trouble defending the run. And TE Greg Olsen and K Robbie Gould face the woeful Lions.
Neanderthals will need the Jeff Garcia-Antonio Bryant hookup to show large vs. the hapless Chiefs. They also need for Houston to figure out a way to get Steve Slaton with the ball in open space vs. the Vikings (much as the Titans did with Chris Johnson vs. Minnesota), and for Marvin Harrison to turn back the clock and torch the depleted Patriots secondary. Owen Daniels has been one of the hottest TEs in the league in terms of targets, but Neanderthals will likely need him to hit paydirt for them to have a realistic hope in prevailing.
And the rest...
The remainder of the Week 9 slate finds only one team above .500. Demolition look to strengthen their hold on the #3 seed, or perhaps slide to #2 if Neanderthals lose. The resurgent Brian Westbrook and Anquan Boldin have Demolition looking strong, even factoring in TE stud Jason Witten's cracked rib.
Tribbles stand in the way of Demolition's upward march. They boast the #1 WR in the league through eight weeks in 6th-round draft pick Roddy White, but their top five picks (Addai, TO, MJD, Derek Anderson, and Ocho Stinko) have been pretty disappointing. Anderson and C. Cinco are not even members of the Tribbles roster any more.
Fighting Friars, favorites at the quarter pole, take on SnakeBitten in a game pitting two 4-4 teams currently on the outside looking in at the playoffs against each other. The Tom Brady injury looks to be catching up with the Friars given Jay Cutler's recent bout with mediocrity. Reggie Bush has also been out the past two weeks, and Michael Turner has struggled against solid run defenses. It may be the case that their WRs (Wayne, Evans, Ward) are their strongest unit, although Wayne and Ward were both quiet last week.
SnakeBitten have welcomed the return to form of LT and Stevonne Smith in recent weeks to get them back in the playoff hunt, but both of them take their byes this week, as does #2-overall QB Philip Rivers. They do have the blazing hot Matt Schaub to fill in for Rivers, and get Matt Forte back just in time to face the paper-soft Lions run D. They need at least one of Ryan Grant or Willis McGahee to come to life.
The Skillets-Wookies matchup is similarly laden with playoff positioning import. The Skillets are rumored to be shopping QB Peyton Manning to bolster the RB tandem of Marshawn Lynch and Earnest Graham. They also welcome back WR Brandon Marshall from his bye. Santana Moss has been streaky, but had a big game last week, and the Skillets most likely get to choose between to similar guys (Houshmazilli, Welker) for their flex spot.
The Wookies are banking on the continued hot play of Captain Neckbeard himself, QB Kyle Orton, to fill in for Tony Romo and his broken pinky. #1-overall RB Clinton Portis will have to carry the mail again, and LenDale White is a pretty good bet for at least one more short score vs. the Packers. They need to fill in for TE Antonio Gates, but do get WR Eddie Royal back from his bye.
The #2-scoring team, Zohan's Posse, take on cellar-dwelling Fallen Angels. The Angels took a managerial leave of absence and left Greg Jennings and Michael Pittman in their lineup during their bye weeks. The good news is they don't have to re-insert them into their lineup, although QB Donovan McNabb does have to get back to starting. The bad news is that RB Frank Gore is on *his* bye this week. Will he still be there come kickoff of the Niners' game?
The Posse have been led in recent weeks by the incandescent Andre Johnson, who has cracked double figures in catches and topped the century mark in yardage in three straight weeks. WR Randy Moss has also seen his targets inch upward as the Patriots have decided to feature him more in the short passing game that was once the near-exclusive domain of Wes Welker. RB Marion Barber hasn't been quite as effective as people first guessed in Tony Romo's absence, replacement Brad Johnson has been so bad that teams have moved to shut down the run and force Johnson to beat them. The Giants will likely employ a similar philosophy, so look for so-so output from Barber for one more week.
Neanderthals (6-2) - 0.0
Zohan's Posse (4-4) - 0.0
Fallen Angels (1-7) - 0.0
Fighting Friars (4-4) - 0.0
SnakeBitten (4-4) - 0.0
Trifecta Wookies (3-5) - 0.0
2nd helping skillets (4-4) - 0.0
Tribbles (2-6) - 0.0
Demolition (5-3) - 0.0
Spotlight Matchup: Wily Corn Trolls vs. Neanderthals
The top two teams in the standings square off in what is sure to be an epic tilt. The Yahoo Friday projections line makes WCT a 25-point favorite, but if the prognosticators were really that good, they wouldn't be working on fantasy football for Yahoo.
That said, the WCT are fortunate to catch Neanderthals with QB Drew Brees on bye. A lingering quadriceps bruise casts some doubt on the availability of RB Steven Jackson as well. It is also true that many of the players in the WCT lineup have pretty juicy matchups on paper. The Kurt Warner-Larry Fitzgerald hookup draws St. Louis. RBs Adrian Peterson (vs. Houston), Chris Johnson (vs. Green Bay), and Ronnie Brown (vs. Denver) all go up against teams that have had trouble defending the run. And TE Greg Olsen and K Robbie Gould face the woeful Lions.
Neanderthals will need the Jeff Garcia-Antonio Bryant hookup to show large vs. the hapless Chiefs. They also need for Houston to figure out a way to get Steve Slaton with the ball in open space vs. the Vikings (much as the Titans did with Chris Johnson vs. Minnesota), and for Marvin Harrison to turn back the clock and torch the depleted Patriots secondary. Owen Daniels has been one of the hottest TEs in the league in terms of targets, but Neanderthals will likely need him to hit paydirt for them to have a realistic hope in prevailing.
And the rest...
The remainder of the Week 9 slate finds only one team above .500. Demolition look to strengthen their hold on the #3 seed, or perhaps slide to #2 if Neanderthals lose. The resurgent Brian Westbrook and Anquan Boldin have Demolition looking strong, even factoring in TE stud Jason Witten's cracked rib.
Tribbles stand in the way of Demolition's upward march. They boast the #1 WR in the league through eight weeks in 6th-round draft pick Roddy White, but their top five picks (Addai, TO, MJD, Derek Anderson, and Ocho Stinko) have been pretty disappointing. Anderson and C. Cinco are not even members of the Tribbles roster any more.
Fighting Friars, favorites at the quarter pole, take on SnakeBitten in a game pitting two 4-4 teams currently on the outside looking in at the playoffs against each other. The Tom Brady injury looks to be catching up with the Friars given Jay Cutler's recent bout with mediocrity. Reggie Bush has also been out the past two weeks, and Michael Turner has struggled against solid run defenses. It may be the case that their WRs (Wayne, Evans, Ward) are their strongest unit, although Wayne and Ward were both quiet last week.
SnakeBitten have welcomed the return to form of LT and Stevonne Smith in recent weeks to get them back in the playoff hunt, but both of them take their byes this week, as does #2-overall QB Philip Rivers. They do have the blazing hot Matt Schaub to fill in for Rivers, and get Matt Forte back just in time to face the paper-soft Lions run D. They need at least one of Ryan Grant or Willis McGahee to come to life.
The Skillets-Wookies matchup is similarly laden with playoff positioning import. The Skillets are rumored to be shopping QB Peyton Manning to bolster the RB tandem of Marshawn Lynch and Earnest Graham. They also welcome back WR Brandon Marshall from his bye. Santana Moss has been streaky, but had a big game last week, and the Skillets most likely get to choose between to similar guys (Houshmazilli, Welker) for their flex spot.
The Wookies are banking on the continued hot play of Captain Neckbeard himself, QB Kyle Orton, to fill in for Tony Romo and his broken pinky. #1-overall RB Clinton Portis will have to carry the mail again, and LenDale White is a pretty good bet for at least one more short score vs. the Packers. They need to fill in for TE Antonio Gates, but do get WR Eddie Royal back from his bye.
The #2-scoring team, Zohan's Posse, take on cellar-dwelling Fallen Angels. The Angels took a managerial leave of absence and left Greg Jennings and Michael Pittman in their lineup during their bye weeks. The good news is they don't have to re-insert them into their lineup, although QB Donovan McNabb does have to get back to starting. The bad news is that RB Frank Gore is on *his* bye this week. Will he still be there come kickoff of the Niners' game?
The Posse have been led in recent weeks by the incandescent Andre Johnson, who has cracked double figures in catches and topped the century mark in yardage in three straight weeks. WR Randy Moss has also seen his targets inch upward as the Patriots have decided to feature him more in the short passing game that was once the near-exclusive domain of Wes Welker. RB Marion Barber hasn't been quite as effective as people first guessed in Tony Romo's absence, replacement Brad Johnson has been so bad that teams have moved to shut down the run and force Johnson to beat them. The Giants will likely employ a similar philosophy, so look for so-so output from Barber for one more week.