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      2010 NFL Week 4 Power Rankings

      September 28, 2010 /
      NEW ORLEANS - SEPTEMBER 26: Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons celebrates after throwing a touchdown pass against the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome on September 26, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Falcons defeated the Saints 27-24. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

      There were a lot of movers and shakers in the power rankings this week and we could have a lot of moving parts next weekend too with a couple of big-time match ups (none bigger than the Steelers and Ravens this Sunday in Pittsburgh).

      Let’s get nasty…

      Check out Week 3’s Power Rankings

      1. Indianapolis Colts
      Previous Week: 2
      The Colts didn’t dominate the Broncos by any stretch of the imagination on Sunday, but that was no less an impressive victory. They were coming off a quasi-must win on Sunday night and had to travel cross-country to play in a tough environment. Good win.

      2. Green Bay Packers
      Previous Week: 1
      I don’t know whether to rip the Packers for that horrendous display last night or remark how impressive it was that they still had a chance to win a game after committing 18 penalties. Either way, that was some ugly football.

      3. Pittsburgh Steelers
      Previous Week: 10
      I have to admit, I thought the Steelers would get caught looking ahead to their game with the Ravens this weekend when they took on the Bucs. Obviously I’m not that bright.

      4. Baltimore Ravens
      Previous Week: 4
      I’m starting to think I have this team rated too high, but then again the Ravens haven’t played a complete game yet. Their offense struggled the first two weeks and their defense took a step back last Sunday against the Browns. I think when this team puts it all together it could dominate, but we haven’t seen it yet.

      5. Atlanta Falcons
      Previous Week: 13
      Yes, there loss to the Steelers in overtime was ugly. But there aren’t many offenses that look good against Pittsburgh’s defense. Matt Ryan stepped up in a huge way on Sunday in the win over the Saints. It may have been his finest performance to date.

      6. New Orleans Saints
      Previous Week: 3
      Tough loss for the Saints, who were a Garrett Hartley chip shot away from 3-0. At least fans can take comfort in the fact that Drew Brees and Sean Payton won’t rest until they iron out their issues.

      7. New York Jets
      Previous Week: 10
      I’m not the biggest Mark Sanchez fan, but there’s no doubt he’s been impressive the past two weeks. He’s found a solid weapon in tight end Dustin Keller.

      8. Philadelphia Eagles
      Previous Week: 9
      I’m still waiting for Michael Vick to take a game off (he’s been prone to in the past), but I have nothing but positive things to say about his game to this point. He’s been spectacular.

      9. Houston Texans
      Previous Rank: 5
      The Texans learned a valuable lesson this week in that playoff hopefuls can’t take weeks off. They just didn’t show up against the Cowboys.

      10. Chicago Bears
      Previous Week: 15
      The Bears are the greatest team alive – period. Bear Down, Chicago Bears.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      Marshawn Lynch back on the trade market?

      September 28, 2010 /
      Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch charges into a hole on a carry in the first quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts on September 26, 2010. UPI/Matthew Healey Photo via Newscom

      Apparently a 0-3 start has turned Bills GM Buddy Nix into Brian Cashman.

      ESPN Milwaukee’s Jason Wilde is reporting that the Bills have put the word out that Marshawn Lynch is available for trade. This comes a day after Trent Edwards was released, so it appears that Nix is starting to get more aggressive in his decision-making.

      Too bad he wasn’t this aggressive six months ago when he could have actually helped the Bills build a more competitive team. I don’t understand why he would wait until now to try and get something in return for Lynch. He likely had the opportunity to trade him around draft time and he never did. Now he’s stuck with three starting-caliber running backs (Lynch, Fred Jackson, C.J. Spiller) on his roster and is trying to trade one if them when teams know he has three starting-caliber running backs on his roster.

      It just doesn’t make any sense. If the intention was to eventually deal Lynch (and don’t kid yourself – as soon as the Bills drafted Spiller, the intention was to deal Lynch), then Nix should have gotten something before the draft when teams were more motivated to buy. Don’t wait until the season kicks off and teams have had the chance to fall in love with some of their own players that they had throughout training camp and preseason.

      Nix will be fortunate to get a fifth round pick in return for Lynch if he winds up trading him now. If he had traded him back in April like he should have, then maybe he would have gotten a third or fourth rounder in return.

      Just more bad timing from a bad organization.

      External Sports, NFL

      Delonte West denies affair with Gloria James

      September 28, 2010 /
      Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23), Delonte West (13) Anthony Parker (18) and J.J. Hickson reacts after James had a foul called on him against the Washington Wizards at the Verizon Center in Washington on November 18, 2009. UPI/Kevin Dietsch Photo via Newscom

      Boston Globe writer Gary Washburn tweets that Delonte West denied those salacious LeBron James rumors from earlier in the summer:

      Delonte west denies lebron rumors “I come from an era where you dont say nothing bad about someones parent. So not at all.”

      Don’t know what I’m talking about? Crawl out from under your rock, wipe the six months of sleep from your eyes and read this. Caught up? Great.

      Back to West…this wasn’t a denial, at least the way it was written.

      But in a longer Washburn story about West at Boston.com, the picture becomes clearer:

      But then a reporter from a local radio station asked West the question that basketball fans, entertainment buffs, gossip columnists, and the entire Northeast Ohio region had been wondering about since the Cavaliers were eliminated from the NBA playoffs last May.

      Did West have an intimate relationship with Gloria James, the mother of two-time Most Valuable Player and former teammate LeBron James?

      Before a frantic team official could intervene, undoubtedly fearing West might react with four-letter words, or perhaps clam up altogether, as he did last season, West took a deep breath, stared the reporter in the eye, and addressed whether the rumors were true.

      “Not at all,’’ he said. “I come from an era where you don’t say nothing bad about someone’s parent, so not at all.’’

      Washburn left that first “not at all” out of his tweet, which made it seem that West was dodging the question.

      Damn Twitter!

      But back to West, again…why add the bit about “I come from an era…”? By saying that he doesn’t want to say anything bad about LeBron’s mom it would seem to confirm that he indeed has something bad to say, but just doesn’t want to say it.

      And what ‘era’ is West talking about? He’s 27 years old, so is he talking about the ’80s or the ’90s? It’s not like he’s a WW2 vet or something.

      One thing’s for sure — those Heat/Celtics games are going to be interesting.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Waiver Wire Watch, Week 4: Need help? Call the law firm of Ben, Jarvus, Green & Ellis

      September 28, 2010 /
      FOXBORO, MA - SEPTEMBER 26: BenJarvus Green-Elllis of the New England Patriots celebrates his touchdown with teammates Sammy Morris and Danny Woodhead in the second half against the Buffalo Bills at Gillette Stadium in the second half on September 26, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

      Every week, I highlight a few players that you should target in waivers. I use the ESPN league data when filtering players, so the only guys eligible for discussion here are those that are available on the waiver wire in at least 50% of ESPN’s leagues. I’ll list each player’s percentage-owned after their name so you have an idea of how available they are in leagues around the country. I’ll always try to mention a few players that are available in 90% of leagues for those of you in 12-team leagues or leagues with big rosters. I’ll rank them in the order I’d pick them up in a league with a high-performance, PPR scoring system.

      Please note that these rankings are for total value through the end of the year. Players with particularly good matchups this week are in bold.

      Matt Hasselbeck (24.6)
      Fantasy owners were down on Hass this year because he has had trouble staying healthy, not because he isn’t a good fantasy QB when he is healthy. Right now, he’s healthy, and with the Rams on tap in Week 4, he’s a good start this week.

      Mark Sanchez (34.9)
      The Jets seem to be limiting him to short drops so that he gets the ball out quick. That keeps the pressure off of him and helps him avoid mistakes. 476 yards and six pass TD later, and Sanchez is looking like a viable QB2, and he has the Bills this week.

      Josh Freeman (16.6)
      Yes, he struggled in Week 3, but that was against the Steelers, who made Matt Ryan and Vince Young look foolish in Week 1 and Week 2. I still like him as part of a committee — he has great matchups in weeks 10-11 and 15-16. After his bye, things are pretty neutral, so he’d be a solid second guy in two-QB leagues.

      Bruce Gradkowski (2.1)
      He wasn’t bad against the Cardinals, but he did throw 2-3 passes that should have/could have been picked off. Still, with Louis Murphy, Zach Miller and Darren McFadden, he has enough weapons to look pretty good. With the Texans on deck, he’s a sneaky good start in Week 4.

      Sam Bradford (20.2)
      The rookie is a shoe-in for 20+ picks if he stays healthy, but he’s also on pace for almost 3,500 yards and 21 TD. With Seattle and Detroit on tap, he isn’t a bad short-term fix.

      Matt Cassel (9.5)
      Cassel’s 250 yards and 3 TD came out of nowhere against an underachieving San Francisco defense. A pretty nice upcoming schedule — HOU, JAX, BUF in weeks 6-8 — makes him an interesting start in two-QB leagues.

      Alex Smith (14.0)
      Well, he has thrown for at least 232 yards and a TD the last two weeks. But he’s also thrown five picks in three games. The 49ers just fired their offensive coordinator, so let’s see how Smith fares against the Falcons and Eagles before giving up on him.

      Ryan Fitzpatrick (0.3)
      Fitzy had a nice game against a very questionable New England secondary. With Jacksonville on tap this week, he should be a good start if you’re in a pinch.

      Derek Anderson (7.2)
      How long will the Cards put up with Anderson’s play with Max Hall waiting in the wings?

      David Garrard (29.3)
      He used to be the most underrated QB in fantasy football. But he’s been absolutely brutal lately and has a pretty tough matchup (IND) this week.

      Shaun Hill (2.0)

      Seneca Wallace (0.8)

      Jimmy Clausen (1.7)
      Boy, that first start didn’t go very well.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Living Lighter: Hate your fantasy team? Don’t fret — it could be worse.

      September 28, 2010 /

      This series is supported by LACOSTE Essential Sport.

      Staring at an 0-3 start in your fantasy league? Hey, it could be worse, you could have this group of fantasy busts, based on some seriously faulty preseason analysis:

      QB: Kevin Kolb
      Forget those preseason struggles, it’s all about the system and Kolb looked pretty good in a couple of starts last season. One quarter against the Packers and Eagles’ fans will forget about Donovan McNabb. You think Mike Vick is a threat? The just-got-out-of-jail, can’t-pass-from-the-pocket Mike Vick? Ha!

      RB: Maurice Jones-Drew
      I personally guarantee that MJD will score at least two touchdowns in his first three games. What more can you ask from your #4 overall pick? The guy hosts a fantasy football radio show, for Pete’s sake! Of course he’s going to be a stud!

      RB: Ryan Grant
      You’re worried about injury? Are you crazy? Grant simply doesn’t miss games due to injury. The guy is as durable as the day is long. Count on it.

      WR: Michael Crabtree
      This guy is so good that he can miss all of preseason and still catch 48 passes in the final 11 games. He’s a veritable shoe-in for a 90-catch, 1,200-yard season. Dude is gonna go off in Jimmy Raye’s high-octane passing attack.

      WR: Sidney Rice
      Bah, hip injury, shmip injury. There’s no way Brett Favre comes back without a guarantee that Rice is good to go. No. Freakin’. Way.

      TE: Brent Celek
      He has future Pro Bowler Kevin Kolb throwing to him. What more do I have to say?

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, Humor, NFL

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