Fantasy Sports Review

Wikipedia defines karma as “the effects of all deeds actively create past, present, and future experiences, thus making one responsible for one’s own life, and the pain and joy it brings to him/her and others.” John Lennon believed in the idea of “Instant Karma”, which refers to a more immediate concept of accountability for your actions. Basically, what comes around, goes around. Why does the Commish Report care about karma? Why does anybody in the wide world of fantasy sports care about karma?

Fantasy owners believe in karma, or as I like to call it “The Fantasy Gods”, because one bad “karma” player can bring down your whole fantasy team. Every year on draft day I stay away from certain players because I do not want to upset these so-called “Fantasy Gods”. The recent trade of Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers sparked an age-old debate on whether team chemistry does indeed bring championships. This question has been routinely answered in many circles in the affirmative. One can simply look back at the recent success of the Boston Celtics and the back-to-back college basketball titles of the University of Florida Gators to see how team chemistry does indeed bring home the hardware.

After hours of diligent research, the Commish Report is proud to bring you the First Annual Karma Squad. The Karma Squad consists of players (in the last ten years) that one should never add to their fantasy roster for fear of destroying your team chemistry. One bad apple does destroy the bunch. In no particular order, without further ado:

Barry Bonds: He may be the homerun king but he comes with more baggage than Delta.

Travis Henry: Putting his marijuana issues aside, the man has fathered at least nine children among nine women. Just think about that little fact. Nine children with nine different women. NINE children with NINE different women. He is also reportedly in fiancial trouble which may explain his lack of funds to afford a box of condoms.

Chris Henry: This former Cincinnati Bengal’s rap sheet includes drunk driving, drug possession, assault with a deadly weapon and vandalism. He has also been suspended more times than the combined number of fake knee injuries between Manny Ramirez and Paul Pierce.

Chad Johnson: His on the field antics will not sit well with your fantasy coach and for argument sake let’s just include the entire Cincinnati roster. You do not want Rudi Johnson on your team either. How can you trust anybody on your team that spells Rudi with an “i”?

The Portland Trailblazers of the late 90’s which was also known as the Jail-Blazers: See Cincinnati Bengals above.

Brett Favre: I do not want anybody on my fantasy team that cannot make up their mind about retiring. If somebody offers me 20 million dollars, to stay retired I would take the money faster than Terrell Owens took a bottle full Vicodin (don’t get me started on a player that tries to commit suicide on the middle of the season). Let’s include Barry Sanders, Michael Jordan, Michael Strahan and Tiki Barber on this list.

Steve Smith: Punching your fellow teammate in the nose is no way to make friends. Maybe he should try and stay healthy for an entire season before he makes any more friends.

Gary Coleman: Whatchu talkin’ ’bout Commish? Just check out the video of his first at bat for the Madison Mallards minor league team. He gets ejected for corking his bat ala Sammy Sosa.

Coaches for my All Karma Team include Mark Richt, head football coach of the University of Georgia for his fine display of sportsmanship against the University of Florida last October in Jacksonville, Florida. Ordering a full team celebration in the end zone is a fantastic way to celebrate a touchdown and mold the young minds of his student athletes; Ozzie Guillen, current manager of the Chicago White Sox, for ordering his pitchers to bean certain opposing batters; and Bobby Bowden for wearing a Indiana Jones fedora and headsets, even though he has not coached in two decades

I would also like to include Howard Schultz as the team owner. Not only did he ruin the once storied Seattle Sonic franschise but his little coffee shop franschise seems to be in a little financial trouble.

Please forward me any additional players (past or present) that failed to make my First Annual All Karma Team roster.

This could be the weakest division of linemen in the conference. With all four teams ranking in the second half of the conference, three in the lower third, there is much work to be done. But with strong offensive coaching from Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay and Sean Payton in New Orleans there is hope these units can produce.

Carolina Panthers (1st in NFC South, 9th in Conference)
Without Jack Delhomme at quarterback last year, this group struggled. The return of Delhomme and the additions of first-round pick Jeff Otah up front and wide receivers Muhsin Muhammad and D.J. Hackett should help this group buy time for Steve Smith to be the centerpiece of the team once again.

LT Jordan Gross
LG Travelle Wharton
C Ryan Kalil
RG Keydrick Vincent
RT Jeff Otah

New Orleans Saints (2nd in NFC South, 11th in Conference)
This team was dynamic two seasons ago, so the question is can they return to form or was that just a flash in the pan? They certainly have plenty of weapons on offense, but they’re going to have to be a lot meaner up front and control the line of scrimmage for the Saints to have success.

LT Jammal Brown
LG Jamar Nesbit
C Jonathan Goodwin
RG Jahri Evans
RT Jon Stinchcomb

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3rd in NFC South, 12th in Conference)
This group was battered by injuries and inconsistent play last year. The signing of Jeff Faine last year should help, but if Jon Gruden spent half the time finding offensive linemen as he does finding quarterbacks, the Bucs would be perennial contenders. With time to throw, even an average quarterback can be productive.

LT Luke Petitgout
LG Arron Sears
C Jeff Faine
RG Davin Joseph
RT Jeremy Trueblood

Atlanta Falcons (4th in NFC South, 16th in Conference)
The Falcons have a lot of rebuilding to do, and their offensive line is in as much need of help as any other part of the team. Don’t spend big or draft high on Atlanta skill players, because top pick Matt Ryan is going to be running for his life.

LT Renardo Foster
LG Justin Blalock
C Todd McClure
RG Kynan Forney
RT Todd Weiner

This is the last post in a series in which we went division by division looking at and ranking the most overlooked factor in the success of your fantasy football squad, the offensive line. Here’s a quick recap;

AFC North
AFC South
AFC East
AFC West
NFC North
NFC East
NFC West

Now don’t you let the fact that this series is over stop you from hanging around. Go ahead and subscribe now (see below) because I’ll be back soon with some information on sleeper and value picks that you won’t want to miss. See you then.

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I can’t believe that we are a week away from Thanksgiving already. Where does the time go?

Hopefully many of you are either in position for your leagues playoffs or are hanging tough. Keep your nose to the grindstone because there are always a few guys that jump onto the fantasy radar screen this time of year. With that said, lets see who I can dig up for you this week.

Start’em if you got’em
Willis McGahee RB (BAL) - He had 104 yards the last time he played Cleveland and I haven’t seen anything out of the Browns defense since to make me believe that they can keep him from doing it this time. Also, as shocking as this may sound, with Boller under center and a healthier Mark Clayton, I think the Ravens will be able to keep the defense honest and give Willy some room to run. Look for 125 yards and a touchdown to go with his 4 catches for 45 yards.

Final stats: 102, a TD and 2 for 24 receiving.
Final thoughts: Solid effort.

Minnesota Vikings Defense - This week the Vikings best tackler Antoine Winfield should be back on the field after missing a few weeks with a bad hammy. He will help his team will take out last weeks Lambeau frustration out on former Viking Daunte Culpepper. The only thing the Raiders can do is run and Culpepper hasn’t been very good at passing the rock this year. That my friend plays right into the Vikings hands. Oh and word has it the Jamarcus Russell will get a few snaps this week. That has to be good for at least one pick don’t you think? Overall, this could be the ugliest game of the year which is great for defense. My feelings for the Vikings aside, sounds like 6 points allowed, 4 sacks, 2 Culpepper fumbles, 2 picks and a touchdown to me.

Final stats: 22 points allowed, 4 sacks, 1 Culpepper fumble, 1 pick and 0 touchdowns.
Final thoughts: Five field goals for SeaBass chewed up the points allowed.

Sit’em if you’ve got em
Steve Smith WR (CAR) - I don’t like to put guys on the list two weeks in a row but I had no choice. He is going into Lambeau field to face a brutal Packers defense with either a 44 year old quarterback or a sack dummy throwing him the ball. Not good. Look for the once must-start to catch 3 balls, a cold and rack up a whopping 45 yards. Don’t even think about a touchdown.

Final stats: DNP
Final thoughts: We’ll never know.

Kevin Jones RB (DET) - Word has it that he left the game twice last week with soreness in his surgically repaired foot. And going up against a 9th rank rush defense of the New York Giants I don’t like the looks of this and either should you. Don’t put your playoffs hopes on a surgically repaired foot. Play it smart and find another guy to play this week. I’m not sure he’ll hold up the whole game so I figure in 35 yards, 0 touchdowns and 1 catch for 5 yards.

Final stats: 11 for 25 rushing, 3 for 12 receiving and 0 TD’s.
Final thoughts: Kitna lost that game. He had two chances to drive for the wins and tossed interceptions each time.

Sleepers: don’t be surprised if…
…Kurt Warner QB (CAR) goes off against a Cincinnati defense that 31st overall and has surrendered 20 passing touchdowns this season. I don’t think it is unreasonable to expect 300 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Final stats: 16/22 211 for 2 TD’s and 2 rushes for -2 (Who said he was immobile).
Final thoughts: The Cards getting it done on both sides of the ball.

…Amani Toomer WR (NYG) has a solid day against the Detroit Lions. The Lions are solid at home and I am sure they won’t make things easy for Manning and company. But they are still 3oth against the pass and have allowed seven receivers to go over 90 yards this season. Plax should still get his but we haven’t heard from Amani in a few weeks and he has still been getting solid targets (9, 4, 6 and 7 the last four weeks). This week those targets turn to catches and he pulls down 7 catches for 110 yards and a TD to boot.

Final stats: 4 catches for 39 yards.
Final thoughts: Turned out to be a low scoring affair and Manning spread the ball around. Nine different players caught a ball or more.

Be sure to check out my Fantasy Football Waiver Wire post because you may be able to pick out a sleeper or two on your own.

As always, that is not all my friend. There are a few other stops you should make before finalizing your starting lineup.

First, make sure you stop by and see how the Fantasy Football Librarian can help you. Every week she posts all of the start’em sit’em articles, player ranking posts and waiver wire lists that she can find so that you don’t have to hunt for them yourself. Check her out and tell her the Goat says hi.

Second, you can get more in-depth NFL player projections throughout the week by checking out the Bruno Boys website over on MVN.com.

Third, be on the lookout for the weekly fantasy football start’em sit’em podcast I co-host with Marc Caviglia.

Can you feel the tension build every time you’re deciding on who to put into your starting line-up? Me too my friend. That could only mean one thing; it is crunch time.

It’s that time of the year where the championship money is within your grasp and the yearlong bragging rights are on the line. Your fantasy football league playoffs are only a handful of weeks away and you need that extra little something that will put you over the top. Here are few suggestions for you.

Start’em if you got’em

Marshawn Lynch RB (BUF) - Everything you watched him do last week, expect to see it again because the Dolphin’s just plain stink against the run. In fact, the only team in the league that is worse than Miami in that category is the Broncos (more on them later). Lynch had his break out game last week and tasted success NFL style. Look for him to build on last weeks performance with 125+ yards and one touchdown rushing with 4 catches for 50 yard and a touchdown receiving.

Final stats: 61 and a TD rushing. 3 for 24 receiving.
Final thoughts: Looks like Miami came to play defense this week.

Justin Fargas RB (OAK) - This guy has been quietly getting it done the last few weeks and that should continue this week at home against Chicago. Believe it or not Oakland is 4th in the league at rushing the ball. Meanwhile, Da’ Bears are giving up 130 yards per game on the ground. I don’t see why Justin can’t post at least 100 and punch it in for a touchdown.

Final stats: 81 yards rushing, 5 catches for 23 receiving and zero touchdowns.
Final thoughts: Oakland had a hard time getting across the fifty. Must have been an ugly game to watch.

Sit’em if you’ve got em

Maurice Jones-Drew RB (JAC) - Unless you are desperate for a starter this week you better put him down against the Titans. They are playing lights-out by only allowing 66 yards per game on the ground. Add to that the fact that he is still splitting time with Fred Taylor and whoever else Jack decides to hand the ball to around the goalline and you have yourself a ticket to a low scoring week. Expect 40 yards and a big fat goose egg in the touchdown column.

Final stats: 101 and a TD rushing. 3 for 28 receiving.
Final thoughts: Had I known Haynesworth for Tennessee was going to be a late scratch, I might have look elsewhere for this pick.

Steve Smith WR (CAR) - Guess what Steve had the last time he faced the Falcons? One catch for 10 yards. Ouch! Besides that he really hasn’t been doing much of anything for a few weeks now and it is hard to imagine that he will do much better especially with the quarterback situation. Even if they play Vinnie and gloves will both likely be playing at less than 100%. And do you really want to put your playoff hopes in the hands of a third string QB if they can’t? I’ll let you answer that. As much as it hurts I think it is best to play it safe and sit the guy down until things get a little more stable for the Panthers. I doubt he gets much more than 4 catches for 45 yards and no touchdown.

Final stats: 5 for 61 receiving
Final thoughts: Sucks if you own Steve Smith right now.

Tom Brady QB (NE) - He is on a bye and I thought it would be interesting to see what his name looked like underneath the sit’em headline. He’s not on my team so I think it looks pretty damn good. In my lock of the week TB goes for zero yards, zero touchdowns and still gets mentioned at least once on every NFL pre and post game show.

Sleepers: don’t be surprised if…

…Priest Holmes RB (KC) relives a little of the glory days this week against the Broncos worst ranked rushing defense. He won’t get all of the snaps but I bet he gets a big enough chunk to make him a solid number two running back in most leagues. The guy is a warrior and has been proving people wrong constantly. There is no reason why he shouldn’t be able to muster at least 100 yards and two touchdowns. Yep, I said two.

Final stats: 65 yards and 0 TD’s rushing. 2 for 14 receiving.
Final thoughts: Missed this one but who woulda thunk it. Like Miami above the Broncos defense looking to climbing out of the rushing defense cellar with a solid performance.

…the Oakland Raiders Defense picks off Griese at least three times and returns one of them for a score. The Raiders have an excellent pass defense. They are fourth in defending the pass and are sixth in the league in picks (and we all know how well the Bears rockslingers protect the ball). Even if the Raiders don’t have the best rushing defense in the league, the Bears are 31st so it shouldn’t really matter. Raiders get 16 points allowed, 2 sacks, 3 int’s and a touchdown.

Final stats: 17 points allowed, 3 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 0 int’s and 0 touchdowns.
Final thoughts: They held the Bears to 3 points until 3:11 left in the game when they gave up a 59 yard reception and then rushing touchdown from a turnover inside their five yard line. I am surprised there weren’t any picks especially when Grossman made it in to the game.

As always, that is not all my friend. There are a few other stops you should make before finalizing your starting lineup.

First, make sure you stop by and see how the Fantasy Football Librarian can help you. Every week she posts all of the start’em sit’em articles, player ranking posts and waiver wire lists that she can find so that you don’t have to hunt for them yourself. Check her out and tell her the Goat says hi.

Second, you can get more in-depth NFL player projections throughout the week by checking out the Bruno Boys website over on MVN.com.

Third, be on the lookout for the weekly fantasy football start’em sit’em podcast I co-host with Marc Caviglia.