Here are some football players that might be able to help you play fake football. But don’t take my word for it! Oh wait, yeah, do take my word for it!
(Doc’s note: Holy crapolanco! Jason LaConfora is reporting that Frank Gore is OUT for the season! It has now been confirmed by the 49ers. Grab Westbrook! Now back to your regularly scheduled programing.)
Quarterbacks —
Jay Cutler: I mentioned his nice schedule yesterday, but for the sake of redundancy here it is — @DET, NE, @MIN and then The Jets which you will find someone else. That’s two indoor games and one home game. Cutler is available in at least one of my leagues so I’m sure he’s out there in some of yours as well. I like him for this stretch run.
Sam Bradford: Sam had a great game in Denver and next week gets the Cardinals. He looks like he could be a safe play next week, but I’m not going to bet my fantasy season on him just yet.
Josh Freeman: Freeman hasn’t had any huge games, but he also hasn’t had a game under 12 fantasy points since week three against Pittsburgh. Yes, 12 fantasy points isn’t what you want, but P. Manning, Rivers, Roethlisberger and Ryan all had under 12 this week. You aren’t going to start Freeman over those guys, but with his schedule I wouldn’t mind having him as my backup to finish this season. He gets ATL, @WAS, DET, and SEA to finish up the fantasy season. Those are 4 poor pass defenses and three are at home. Keep that in mind if you are worried about Buc Williams as well.
Chad Henne: During the fantasy playoffs the Dolphins get Detroit and Buffalo at home. Henne can throw a lot of picks and a lot of yards, but if he is still healthy he should be fairly safe for those two games.
Running Backs —
Brian Westbrook: I can’t believe nobody took my advice and started Westbrook this week! I knew Gore would go down and Westy would go off like it was 2007. Maybe I forgot to write it down or something. edit — With Gore now OUT for the season with a fractured hip Westbrook is a must add in all formats. But with his age and injury history you can also take a stab at Anthony Dixon.
Jonathan Stewart: He’s the Panthers franchise back at this point and no matter how good Goodson plays, Stewart will be the guy. He finally showed some of what we know he’s got last weekend and hopefully he can finish the season strong. Pick him up, pick him up, waaaay up!
Toby Gerhart: I believe Adrian Peterson will play next Sunday so I’m pretty lukewarm on Old Toby (I prefer Longbottom Leaf), but if you are a worried Peterson owner it’s worth grabbing him for peace of mind.
Maurice Morris: His schedule is fairly brutal, but I just don’t see Jahvid Best coming back soon enough and healthy enough to make much of an impact this season. Mo Mo is worth a spot on your team, especially in PPR.
Chris Ivory: The Saints backfield is a hot cluster fudge cake, but grosser than that sounds. Who knows when Pierre Thomas will crawl out of his hole and Reggie Bush is a wide receiver, so that leaves us Ivory. If he can stay healthy he should continue to get the goal line carries and Payton does like to run the ball in from the one.
Tashard Choice: Marion Barber will be out two weeks which will give Felix Jones plenty of opportunities to get injured and Choice plenty of opportunities to prove his groove.
Wide Receivers —
Danario Alexander: If this guy hadn’t hurt his knee so many times he’d be all galaxy. He has tremendous ability after the catch and looks a lot like Miles Austin last season, at least in a very very small sample size. His 4 receptions for 95 yards was just inches from 96 yards and a touchdown. Like last time he was playing well, I have to qualify any suggestion of picking him up with his almost certain re-aggravation of his knee injury.
Jacoby Ford: I like his ability, and both Gradkowski and Campbell feel good about targeting him (even though Grads might be done for a while), but he has a bit of the boom or bust in him. No reason not to take a flier on him if you have room, just don’t depend on him.
Legedu Naanee: With the news that Vincent Jackson should be out 2 weeks after getting calf implants (that part’s not true) we may see the reemergence of Naanee. Rivers could be back with his starters from week 1 with Floyd and Naanee, but now with Gates still hurting and Floyd not 100%, Naanee could get a goodly amount of work. It’s hard to decipher the Chargers’ injured tea leaves, but he’s looking strong.
Jason Avant: Avant led the Eagles in targets on Sunday, but that probably won’t be the case on Thursday night. The good news is, they play Houston. Vick will probably give Desean Jackson some special attention, but the other pass catchers should have their opportunities as well.
Deion Branch: His numbers fluctuate quite a bit, but he has had over 70 yards receiving in his last 3 games and of course that huge game on Thanksgiving with his first touchdown in 5 games. The problem is, he faces NYJ, @CHI, and GB in his next three games.
Ben Obomanu: He’s scored a touchdown in 3 of his last 4 games and has a decent schedule on the horizon. He will lose some looks when Big Mike Williams returns, but Hasselbeck seems to like him. I’d rather have Ben than Branch.
Davone Bess: He had a big game for his homecoming in the Bay area with Brandon Marshall out. Henne also looked decent in his return and like I said earlier, they have two nice matchups in the fantasy playoffs.
Brian Hartline: Choosing what Dolphins receivers will put up good fantasy numbers, especially after Marshall gets back, is not an easy task, but Hartline has been steady in PPR league recently. Not great by any means, but depending on your needs you may want him.
Tight Ends —
Rob Gronkowski: After Gronk’s big game he hasn’t come anywhere close to those kind of numbers, but he is also slowly taking over the #1 TE position. They have tough matchups, but Brady is Brady and will get him the ball. I’d still rather own The Gronk.
Brent Celek: Celek could have had about 7 touchdowns against the Bears it seemed, but he did end up with one. Will this be the start of something? Good question whoever you are. I just don’t know. Vick likes his speedy receivers, but at least for next week the Texans are horrid against tight ends and he should get some work.
Kevin Boss: Steve Smith will miss another week and Boss has had 3 touchdowns in his last 4 games. With the crap that’s out there at TE he’s worth a start.
Joel Dreessen: If and when Owen Daniels returns it will be hard to start Dreessen, but OD hasn’t done much even when he was playing. Keep Dreessen around.
Defenses —
Seattle Seahawks: The Panthers played pretty well against the Browns, but ended up losing. After a heart wrenching defeat they get to travel cross country to Seattle. And Jimmy Clausen is still their quarterback.
San Diego Chargers: The Raiders aren’t horrid, but it looks like Jason Campbell will get the start and the Chargers will be playing at home.
