How about those Lions? Amazingly the Failsafe Machine once again proved to be worth much more than I paid for it as it predicted a Lions cover and has me working out of my prior slump (I’m 15-13 now for the year). For a few minutes I thought the Lions might even win that game which again shows me why the Machine is so successful as it has no idea how terrible the Lions are and I think only Lion fans in denial would ever touch that 12.5 point spread. So with the Machine starting out this year so successful I’m going with the machine again to choose the play for tonight’s game of the Browns & Broncos. I’m so glad to have Thursday Night Football as not only is it another day of the week we can watch football but it also means the bye weeks are nearing an end and the fantasy playoffs are right around the corner only to be followed by the NFL playoffs. So without any further to do I will check with the machine for tonights cover and it is….Heads, the Browns at -3. They are at home so it is possible but will most likely hinge on Brady Quinn’s ability to outscore Jay Cutler’s crew. Should be an interesting game if you like offense tonight as these 2 D’s have to be in the bottom 5 making all these offensive fantasy players good starts this week although again Brady Quinn has to factor heavily into your choices. He’s definitely the wild card of this game as he makes his NFL debut tonight.
The following teams are on bye this week: Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins
Quarterback Rankings Week 10
1. Drew Brees At Atlanta Falcons
2. Kurt Warner Vs. San Francisco 49ers
3. Jay Cutler At Cleveland Browns
4. Peyton Manning At Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Aaron Rodgers At Minnesota Vikings
6. Philip Rivers Vs. Kansas City Chiefs
7. Jake Delhomme At Oakland Raiders
8. Brett Favre Vs. St. Louis Rams
9. Donovan McNabb Vs. New York Giants
10. Eli Manning At Philadelphia Eagles
11. Chad Pennington Vs. Seattle Seahawks
12. Matt Ryan Vs. New Orleans Saints
13. Brady Quinn Vs. Denver Broncos
If you are a gambler I love Brady Quinn Thursday night as the Browns have some talent and the Broncos D is terrible and NO Champ Bailey again (injury). I am definitely a minority in this pick but I like his upside unless I have a stud QB starting this week. Brees, Warner, & Cutler have great match ups and should perform big. After that I see some of those top 12 struggling due to good defensive play but I do however predict a big game from Favre this week. Instinstively I feel like he is due for a big game and the Rams D has been better but is still not very good under Haslett.
Running Back Rankings Week 10
1. Ladanian Tomlinson Vs. Kansas City Chiefs
2. Brian Westbrook Vs. New York Giants
3. Adrian Peterson Vs. Green Bay Packers
4. Frank Gore At Arizona Cardinals
5. Michael Turner Vs. New Orleans Saints
6. Willie Parker Vs. Indianapolis Colts
7. Ronnie Brown Vs. Seattle Seahawks
8. Chris Johnson At Chicago Bears
9. Matt Forte Vs. Tennessee Titans
10. Brandon Jacobs At Philadelphia Eagles
11. Maurice Jones-Drew At Detroit Lions
12. Thomas Jones Vs. St Louis Rams
13. Tim Hightower Vs. San Francisco 49ers
14. Jamal Lewis Vs. Denver Broncos
15. Marshawn Lynch At New England Patriots
16. Ray Rice/McClain/McGahee At Houston Texans
17. DeAngelo Williams/Jonathon Stewart At Oakland Raiders
18. Lendale White At Chicago Bears
19. Joseph Addai At Pittsburgh Steelers
20. Ryan Grant Ar Minnesota Vikings
21. Steve Slaton Vs. Baltimore Ravens
22. Kevin Faulk/B. Green-Ellis Vs. Buffalo Bills
23. Ryan Torain At Cleveland Browns
24. Jamaal Charles At San Diego Chargers
This is a huge week for LT owners as they hope his 170 yards and a score against the Saints was not a fluke and he is truly getting healthy now. After the bye he should be even more healthy and everyone is saying he looks great now that his toe injury seems to be nearly 100% gone. Throw in the fact the Chiefs are the worst in the NFL against the run giving up an average of 180+ rush yards a game and LT owners have to be excited. If LT truly is back he should have a devastating fantasy game.
Wide Receiver Rankings Week 10
1. Steve Smith At Oakland Raiders
2. Brandon Marshall At Cleveland Browns
3. Larry Fitzgerald Vs. San Francisco 49ers
4. Andre Johnson Vs. Baltimore Ravens
5. Anquan Boldin Vs. San Francisco 49ers
6. Greg Jennings At Minnesota Vikings
7. Braylon Edwards Vs. Denver Broncos
8. Calvin Johnson Vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
9. Reggie Wayne At Pittsburgh Steelers
10. Lee Evans At New England Patriots
11. Roddy White Vs. New Orleans Saints
12. Bernard Berrian Vs. Green Bay Packers
13. Randy Moss Vs. Buffalo Bills
14. Jerricho Cotchery Vs. St. Louis Rams
15. Plaxico Burress At Philadelphia Eagles
16. Eddie Royal At Cleveland Browns
17. Laveranues Coles Vs. St. Louis Rams
18. Donald Driver At Minnesota Vikings
19. Marques Colston At Atlanta Falcons
20. Vincent Jackson Vs. Kansas City Chiefs
21. Derrick Mason At Houston Texans
22. Matt Jones At Detroit Lions
23. Greg Camarillo Vs. Seattle Seahawks
24. Hines Ward/Santonio Holmes Vs. Indianapolis Colts
25. Donnie Avery/Torry Holt At New York Jets
Tight End Rankings Week 10
1. Antonio Gates Vs. Kansas City Chiefs
2. Kellen Winslow Vs. Denver Broncos
3. Tony Gonzalez At San Diego Chargers
4. Dallas Clark At Pittsburgh Steelers
5. Owen Daniels Vs. Baltimore Ravens
6. Visanthe Shiancoe Vs. Green Bay Packers
7. Anthony Fasano Vs. Seattle Seahawks
8. Kevin Boss At Philadelphia Eagles
9. Bo Scaife At Chicago Bears
10. Jeremy Shockey At Atlanta Falcons
11. LJ Smith Vs. New York Giants
12. John Carlson At Miami Dolphins
Gates should have benefited from his bye week and should be more healed from his nagging injuries that have slowed him this year. Despite his injuries Gates has 5 touchdowns this year but very lackluster yardage numbers from what we are used to from him. I also expect good games from Winslow, Gonzo, & Clark but I am not crazy about the rest of the batch as many have bad match ups and many don’t have the starting QB throwing to them this week.
Defense/Special Teams Week 10
1. Carolina Panthers At Oakland Raiders
2. Tennessee Titans At Chicago Bears
3. Baltimore Ravens At Houston Texans
4. Jacksonville Jaguars At Detroit Lions
5. Chicago Bears Vs. Tennessee Titans
6. Miami Dolphins Vs. Seattle Seahawks
7. New York Giants At Philadelphia Eagles
8. Pittsburgh Steelers Vs. Indianapolis Colts
9. San Diego Chargers Vs. Kansas City Chiefs
10. New England Patriots Vs. Buffalo Bills
11. Philadelphia Eagles Vs. New York Giants
12. Minnesota Vikings Vs. Green Bay Packers
If Rex Grossman starts for the Bears (I’ve heard conflicting reports on Orton) In love the Titans defense here as Grossman doesn’t have the nickname Turnoverasaurus Rex for nothing. Grossman played in 8 games in 2007 and had 7 interceptions & 6 fumbles. In 2006 when he was “playing well” he had a QB rating of 73.8 and 20 interceptions and 8 fumbles in 16 games. I can’t find the stats but I would not be surprised if Grossman is high in the history books when it comes to pick sixes as well as I remember seeing a lot of them over the years. The Titans might have a great day if Rex plays and is not on his game.
Of course if Orton starts I see a totally different game (although I’d still start the Titans in most cases anyway).