Category: Fantasy Football (Page 298 of 324)

Some of the press in Boston is speculating that Laurence Maroney may have a knee injury that is more serious than the team is letting on, but the Globe reported, “Whatever is holding (Laurence) Maroney back isn’t expected to be a long-term situation.” The Pats are notoriously tight-lipped about injuries (anyone remember Deion Branch being questionable for an entire season a couple years ago?), so don’t expect Bill Belichick to shed light on this any time soon…Speaking of Branch, based on a statement released by the team – “No trade has been consummated. Deion Branch remains under contract to the New England Patriots.” – it looks like he’s going to stay with the Pats, at least for the time being…Seattle’s involvement in the Branch situation makes you wonder how confident they are in the knee of Darrell Jackson. He is supposed to practice next week in preparation for Week 1. The team already signed Nate Burleson to a pretty big contract, so throwing Reggie Wayne-type money at Branch (supposedly that’s what he wanted) seems superfluous…If Branch continues his holdout, expect TE Ben Watson to be the big beneficiary. His ADP has moved upward the past few weeks, and now he’s a pretty solid pick in the 8th round…Steve Smith had an operation to remove an in-grown toenail, and has already had the stitches removed. Apparently, this was the bigger problem than the strained hamstring he had during camp…Derrick Blaylock has been named the starter for the Jets, but expect Kevan Barlow to get some carries as well. They didn’t bring him to ride the pine…Jay Cutler has looked great as a backup in Denver, so don’t be surprised if he’s the starter in ’07…Miami RB Sammy Morris will be suspended for the first four games for testing positive for ephedrine. Supposedly, Morris ingested the substance after taking Sudafed (which does contain the chemical). Is the league really going to suspend a player for four games for having the amount of ephedrine present in an over-the-counter cold medicine? Something else is going on here.

5:35 PM ET update: The Rams signed Stephen Davis. It’s quite possible that Davis will be used some around the goal line, so be prepared if you are already a Steven Jackson owner or are planning to draft him.

New England Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch has tentative deals in place with the New York Jets and Seattle Seahawks, ESPN.com’s Len Pasquarelli is reporting.

But neither team, the sources acknowledged, has been able to come to an agreement with the Patriots on compensation for the four-year veteran. And without the second half of the deal in place, the deadline could pass without a trade, and again force Branch to decide whether to extend his camp-long holdout.

Apparently the Patriots are seeking two No. 1 draft picks for Branch, which is just ludicrous in my opinion. Branch had a nice season last year and is a good target, but he doesn’t have game-changing ability like Steve Smith, Randy Moss or Chad Johnson.

He would make a team better, that’s for sure, but two No. 1 draft picks? Please.

My guess is that Branch will be back in New England by the 4pm deadline that they set for a deal to get done.

Upadate: New England rejected both Seattle and New York’s offers (which reportedly were both pretty solid) and now the player’s union has filed a grievance on the behalf of Branch.

Titans’ HC Jeff Fisher denied the CBS Sportsline item which indicated that Travis Henry was going to start Week 1. Chris Brown is apparently still the #1 guy in Tennessee, but the situation is quite muddled… Billy Volek is apparently upset about the signing of Kerry Collins and wants out of Tennessee. Collins is expected to start Week 1…Warrick Dunn is set to be the Falcons’ main offensive weapon and will be used around the goal line. This makes Dunn a great pick in the third round, especially in PPR leagues…Carson Palmer suffered no ill-effects in his knee after Monday night’s game and is expected to start the final preseason game. With injuries like his, it’s always good to hear that the player suffered no aftereffects. His healthy return continues to boost the value of Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Rudi Johnson…NFL.com is reporting that Adam Vinatieri has a severely injured ankle, going so far as to say that it may be broken. When asked about it, Vinatieri didn’t deny the report. He’s a kicker, so stay away from him for now.

Curtis Martin will start the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, which means he’s on the shelf for at least the first five weeks of the season. Kevan Barlow and Derrick Blaylock are fighting for the starting job for the Jets, a situation which should be avoided by all but the most desperate fantasy owners…Mike Shanahan (aka “Skeletor” and the “Mastermind”) is at it again. After awarding Mike Bell the top spot on the depth chart, setting up a combination similar to the Mike Anderson/Tatum Bell one-two punch that was so productive for Anderson last season, Shanny is now saying that it’s not that clear. Once again, the Denver RB situation is muddled, but the team has probably the best run-blocking line in all of football, so it’s tempting to dive in and take one of the Bells in the 4th or 5th round. Let the buyer beware…Terrell Owens graced the rest of the Dallas Cowboys with his presence on the practice field this week. Honestly, I don’t know what the big deal is about a sore hammy. WRs have them all over the league. This is more about the battle of wills between Owens and Bill Parcells. Given the contentious preseason, I’m not sure T.O. won’t pull a repeat of last season…A source close to the Tennessee Titans reported that it will be Travis Henry, not Chris Brown, that will start for the team Week 1. We’re still waiting for a confirmation of this to prove that it wasn’t just the report of an optimistic fantasy owner…Torry Holt still has a bruised sternum, but he returned to practice and looks good to go…Bill Belichick inferred that there may be a RBBC forming in New England. Laurence Maroney has looked so good in the preseason that it will be hard to deny him playing time, and Bellichick feels that it’s important to have at least two good running backs, given all the hits they take during the course of the season. This is bad news for Dillon owners and obviously good news for Maroney, but really, everyone loses in a RBBC.

A severe bone bruise in his left knee could spell an early season’s end for Houston Texans runnning back Domanick Davis.

“It’s getting to the point where it’s just draining me,” he said. “I’m tired of watching. I’ve been here and I’ve worked hard with everybody else and I can’t be out there and help. It’s just killing me watching.”

Davis said he doesn’t really have any significant pain when doing every day activities, but when he runs his knee is “just not right.”

“It’s up and it’s down,” he said. “I can feel good one day and I’ll do a little more and kind of aggravate it a little bit, then I have to back off of it a little bit.”

It’s possible that Davis could be put on injured reserve. This obviously doesn’t sit well with Davis fantasy owners. While his rushing numbers and touchdown totals decreased from 2004 last season, Davis still was seen as a quality back for the upcoming season. Rookie Wali Lundy is slated to start in his place, but the Texans also have Antwain Smith and Vernand Morency on the roster.