The doc is in…the playoffs, that is. Are you? Let’s grab the charts and see what injuries will impact your week 13 matchups.
Philadelphia RB LeSean McCoy is still out with a concussion as is Eagles QB Michael Vick. This wasn’t much of a surprise but it makes RB Bryce Brown a strong play for this week. It’s no surprise that Brown performed so well on Monday night.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Normally, I’d write something incredibly witty here. But I’m running up against my deadline, so come on, it’s week 13. You know the drill. These are the top value plays at FanDuel and DraftKings this week. There’s no contest link here, true, but DraftKings does have a very nice freeroll you can (and should) enter.
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There was nothing special about Thursday Night Football from a fantasy perspective. It was New Orleans vs Atlanta, a matchup that had produced plenty of points in the previous outing for all fantasy owners. It was a night not to think too hard about the QBs or the WRs to start; it was going to be a fantasy smorgasbord. But in real life, tension was building. The Falcons came into the night 10-1 with the lone blemish on their near perfect season coming at the hands of the Saints just three weeks ago. It was supposed to be a turning point for the Saints as they were fighting themselves back into playoff contention after a 1-5 start and it was also a reminder of the parity that the NFL can provide when the supposed invincible team dropped to one that wasn’t even at a .500 record at the time. That game ended with Roddy White claiming the Falcons beat themselves but truthfully, every game since has been a struggle for the near perfect Atlanta team. Meanwhile, coming into the night, the Saints were now 5-6 and knocking on playoff death’s door really needing to win to even pretend to have playoff aspirations. The drama had already been ramped up prior to the Thursday night game as the Saints players were astonished to land in Atlanta on Wednesday to their bus getting egged not just by Atlanta fans but actual airport employees. There’s really no love between these two teams so Thursday Night’s game took on the playoff atmosphere and intensity usually reserved for January and when the dust of the night had settled, a fantasy star that had rarely failed his owners in the past came up flat. Drew Brees - the record holder for most consecutive games with at least one TD pass – finally had his streak stopped at 54 games by the Falcons. In fact, not only was his touchdown streak brought to a screeching halt, he ended the night with 5 INT, looking more like Matt Cassel than the fantasy stud we’ve come to know over the years while finishing with 341 passing yards and plenty of bad decisions under his belt. For fantasy owners looking for that big final push for the playoffs, Brees left them hanging in the wind for the night as he was outscored by nearly everyone. I mean, when was the last time both kickers outscored Drew for the night in terms of fantasy? It’s borderline unheard of. Needless to say, the following fantasy report of this game is going to read like a bit of a Twilight Zone episode where you’ll recognize the names of the people I mention but not the stats next to them. So with that said, let’s get on with the news that was week 13 Thursday Night football for the 2012 fantasy football season…
Matt Ryan - If I had told you Ryan would pass for half the yardage of Brees and only throw 1 touchdown in the process, how much would you have bet the Falcons lost? Yeah, me too. Unfortunately, plenty of fantasy teams riding Ryan’s arm might’ve taken themselves out tonight as well as he scored under 10 fantasy points in standard leagues. Circumstances again dictated the results – Atlanta literally ran over the Saints for most of the first half – but the fact of the matter is, Matt has now failed to finish as a top 12 QB scoring for 3 of the last 4 weeks. Don’t even start the argument that week 13 isn’t over, he’s not finishing in the top 12 this week. Overall, I’m not worried. See, you’d know if I were worried because when I get nervous I start passing gas…pardon me. Ok, now you should officially be worried.
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First and foremost I’d like to say Happy Thanksgiving to all of my readers. I hope the folks that don’t read my articles, even when I spam their facebook and emails with them, had something horrific happen to them. Like say, maybe trying to deep fry a turkey for the first time, and burning down their home or getting beaten by their wife, or you know, something of that nature.
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Last Week:
| Reign Maker$ | WIN | 156.74 |
| He Hate Me | WIN | 140.04 |
| The Iron Throne | Loss | 134.74 |
| The Bridgeburners | WIN | 133.34 |
| Team Krump | Loss | 124.12 |
| Smokin’ a Bowe | Loss | 116.22 |
| The Writer VinWins | WIN | 108.84 |
| Sky | WIN | 96.04 |
| Podcast Kings | WIN | 95.96 |
| JB Gilpin | Loss | 92.76 |
| Suck My Left TD | Loss | 87.62 |
| Multiple Scorgasms | Loss | 82.00 |
1 week to go, and only Zorboss has clinched a playoff spot.
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The Master Standings can be found here. You can also find a link to them if you look a little to the left under the heading Razzball Commenter Leagues. There is an explanation of the scoring at the bottom of the standings.
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Just like the majestic Canadian Geese, Nick has migrated from up north to Florida for the Winter. Well not really, just for the week for a vacation.
Despite a fantasy diaspora, JB and Nick still get together to preview week 13 with JB’s Up and Down calls, including foreseeing another big game for the hot rookie Colin Kaepernick, a sleeper special alert with a Tennessee Titans receiver after a change for Tennessee’s offensive coordinator position, and yet another jab at Nick’s love for David Wilson, who may get actual work with Andre Brown out for the rest of the fantasy season.
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After allowing Beanie Wells into the end zone twice this past weekend, The Rams are officially one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. Interestingly enough, they face one of the best run defenses in the league this week, The San Francisco 49ers. Even more interesting is how that game turned out the first time these two teams met. You may remember their 24-24 tie game from just a few weeks back. Although another overtime game is unlikely, these division rivals know each other well and both teams will be playing like it’s a playoff game. Steven Jackson actually broke the century mark against the 49ers earlier this year with a TD on top of it and Frank Gore had almost identical results on the opposite side of the ball. On paper, this is a much better matchup for Gore, but both RBs are worth a start this week.
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I don’t blame Fireman Ed for walking away disgustipated with his Jets. It’s hard to stay upbeat and ready to support your team after such a performance. By now, we’ve all learned that Mark Sanchez is a big Sir Mix-A-Lot fan with his unholy gravitational pull towards Moore’s backside. But for fantasy purposes and for nearly as much humor we were treated to another important chuck fumble care of Shonn Greene. Is this image even physically possible if Greene were carrying the ball even halfway securely? I’d think I had stumbled upon an odd kick formation if I didn’t know any better. But why does all this matter to you or even Fireman Ed for that matter? Because Bilal Powell scored one of the two Jets touchdowns on that ugly night. He also scored two the week prior and after that fumble by Shonn, it was clear the Jets weren’t entrusting him with the ball in any situation that they couldn’t bare to turn it over. Though Powell isn’t going to wow you – he plays for the Jets this year, cut him some slack – he is rosterable for a matchup against the team that gives up the 5th most fantasy points to opposing backs in the Jaguars during week 14. You can never promise a touchdown but you can almost promise after the last two weeks that Bilal is the goal line guy in New York and has averaged about 56 total yards per game during that span. Not tempting enough for you? Well, lets look at Michael Turner. He’s averaging 62 yards per game total over 11 games this year is good for a touchdown about every other game and is 100% owned in ESPN leagues while Bilal is owned in less than 2%. Yes, you can find a Turner type player on waivers and the playoffs are around the corner. So pick him up if you need him. Or pick him up because someone else in your league needs him and send this video via email with the subject line ‘I HAVE THE POWELL!’. Cuz it’s fun to be a jerk sometimes. In other 2012 fantasy football news for week 14…
Jacoby Jones - Boom or bust play call here but I liked how involved Jacoby was in the San Diego game and his targets over the last 3 have seen a steady uptick of late (3, 4, 7). Against a porous Redskins secondary, Jones could really shine. Plus, Jacoby Jones is just a cool name. If your bench can’t be useful, at least you can impress a hipster.
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For many leagues, this is the final week before the playoffs. With bye weeks behind us and the end of the season in sight, matchups have never been more important.
Sure, The Titans may not have been able to fully take advantage of The Jaguars awful pass defense, but The Bills should have a much easier time making plays which puts Steve Johnson on my own personal must start list. After making six catches for 106 yards against The Colts, Johnson should find pay dirt for the first time since week 7 when The Jaguars come to town. Look for another 90+ yard day as well to give him a solid 15-17 fantasy points on the day.
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