On The Radar–Week 12
Carnell “Cadillac” Williams, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ok, I know that he was on this list last week, but things have happened since then. Earnest Graham suffered an ankle injury in Week 11 that will reportedly keep him out for the rest of the season. And although Warrick Dunn is playing he is dealing with his own injury concerns. So, will there be some carries for Cadillac this week? Probably some. Will he shoulder the load? Definitely not. Williams is not ready to resume such actions yet, but if something more serious were to happen to Dunn in the next couple weeks, you could have a starter on your hands. Now will he be the Cadillac of his rookie year or the one that was on the field the last time we saw him? That I don’t have the answer too, but I wouldn’t bet my house on it.
Ahman Green, RB, Houston Texans. Consider this more of a warning than anything else. If you find yourself relying on Ahman Green for points at anytime in what remains of this season, you are in trouble. I know he scored twice last week, but he just isn’t worth much and rarely gets more than 10 carries in a game. He had just one other touchdown this season, so I don’t see this as a trend that he will start taking touchdowns from Steve Slaton. Slaton has done nothing to make the Texans doubt his talent and they won’t stunt his growth by giving Green a hefty percentage of the carries. Unless you are REALLY in a bind, stay away from Green.
Pierre Thomas, RB, New Orleans Saints. If Reggie Bush is unable to return again, and IF Deuce McAllister gets hit with that expected four game suspension for the performance enhancers, Thomas could carry the load for the Saints this week against the Packers. Even if both of those things don’t happen, he should have some value this coming week. McAllister may be getting some scores lately, but he has rushed for only 18 yards in consecutive weeks so he isn’t exactly lighting up the stat sheet. Plus I don’t expect them to give Reggie Bush 20 carries in his first game back from injury if he is able to return this Sunday, so if you are in a bind, Thomas might be able to help. It would have to be the Perfect Storm of factors for him to be a top notch fantasy starter this week, but he should still get 10-15 carries and catch a few out of the backfield.
Antonio Pittman, RB, St. Louis Rams. Stephen Jackson has been ruled out again for Week 12, and when a back is ruled out that fast, it makes me nervous. I find it hard to believe that a guy who is ruled too injured to play on Tuesday will find his way back the following week either, so Jackson owners you might be in a bind. Pittman had a good game against lowly San Francisco last week with 95 yards on 18 carries. Now, remember his opponent before you get too excited about Pittman’s chances for the future. In Week 12 he gets the rough Bears run defense and in Week 13 it will be Miami. So don’t go running to the waiver wire expecting fantasy gold. But if you own Jackson (like I do) you may be forced to play Pittman as most if not all of the starters in the league are likely owned by other teams. It appears you can do worse that Pittman, but please temper your expectations and you won’t be overly disappointed.
Jerome Harrison, RB, Cleveland Browns. This one is really a long shot but I try to report on guys who had surprisingly good weeks. If you watched that game on Monday night then you know one thing, Harrison is fast……really fast. That 72 yard touchdown run was over in a blink of an eye, and I think that this guy will have a future in this league. He also had at least one nice catch out of the backfield for a nice gain. However, there is no way that he is taking anything away from Jamal Lewis. As long as Lewis is healthy he will be the main man in Cleveland. Harrison will get his 5-7 carries and catch or two each week, but if there happens to be an injury to Lewis (which is pretty rare), Harrison could be an exciting pickup down the stretch.
Jabar Gaffney, WR, New England Patriots. Last year after Thanksgiving, Gaffney had an good impact in every other game. He scored four times in the final six games and had performances of 82, 87, and 122 yards. Could he do the same thing again in 2008? I wouldn’t be all that confident about it, but Gaffney did have seven catches for 86 yards and a score against the Jets in Week 11. I no longer discount the Patriots receivers due to the fact that Matt Cassel is the quarterback, but I’m not sure that you will get the same kind of performance out of Gaffney that you got last season. He is definitely worth keeping an eye on though down the stretch if you are in need of wide receiver help.
Joshua Cribbs, WR, Cleveland Browns. Ok, as we get later into the season some of the guys on this list might be a stretch. Cribbs isn’t a bad pickup if your league rewards return yards as he is one of the best in the game. Cribbs averages almost 27 yards per kick return and nearly 10 per punt return. He has just two catches all season long, but did score on a short run on Monday night. As the Browns get more desperate to win games perhaps they will find inventive ways to use Cribbs’ speed, but I don’t think he is worth having on a roster at this time.
Benjamin Watson, TE, New England Patriots. Once thought to be the tight end that Tom Brady would throw to his entire career, Watson had just 11 catches for 91 yards heading into Week 11. He nearly doubled both totals with 8 catches for 88 yards and his first touchdown. The Pats haven’t been the type of team that overutilizes the tight end since the days of Ben Coates, but if Watson was ever able to put together a couple decent weeks, he might be worth adding. But they play Miami and Pittsburgh the next couple of weeks, so I would be shocked if that happened.
Vernon Davis, TE, San Francisco 49ers. I am sure that most of you have given up on Vernon at this point. I’m sure the people at Under Armour are just as pissed about his performances as the 49ers are. The good news? Davis has caught a touchdown pass in consecutive weeks. The bad news? Both touchdown catches were his only catches of the game and combined they added up to 20 yards. More good news? With that second one Vernon didn’t even do any idiotic celebration in the endzone and get penalized 15 yards. Maybe Singletary is getting through to the young potential stud. He is still too inconsistent to start at this point unless you are in a keeper league, or desperate.
J.P. Losman, QB, Buffalo Bills. Trent Edwards has turned into a disaster. In his last four games Edwards has three touchdowns, eight interceptions, two fumbles, and a safety. During this stretch the Bills have gone from 5-1 to 5-5. Will he remain the starter? I would bet at least for one more week that he will. However, if he has another repeat performance at Kansas City, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see Buffalo turn to J.P. Losman before they return home to face the 49ers.
Kevin Kolb, QB, Philadelphia Eagles. This one might be a huge stretch, but given the amount of injuries to quarterbacks I felt the need to report on the backup to a guy who had a horrible game. I guess some questions were hurled Andy Reid’s way about benching McNabb which he quickly squashed. With 14 touchdowns it isn’t like Donovan is having a horrible season, but I guess when you tie the Bengals the questions will start. If you have been decimated by injuries to quarterbacks like I have in one league, it is always good to know who the backups are because……..you never know.
As always, your comments and questions (adds/drops, lineup advice, etc.) are welcome at fightingchancefantasy@gmail.com. I guarantee a response within 18 hours.
hi ryan…looking for 2 RBs from these guys….lendale…mjd…bj askew..p hillis……now for WR…i got roddy..calvin johnson…michael jenkins……justin gage.. and reggie wayne…pick 3….thanks for a fighting chance!!greg
Greg,
RB-White, Hillis
WR-Wayne, Calvin, Roddy (as long as he plays)
Thanks bud.
Ryan