Tag: Jay Cutler (Page 31 of 32)

      You could have had this fantasy team…

      September 18, 2008 /

      We’re only two weeks into the NFL season and some fantasy owners are already lamenting their teams. Nobody – not a NFL team and certainly not a fantasy team – likes to start 0-2, and while some owners are furiously trying to improve their teams, others are no doubt wondering, what if?

      As always, I’m here to help. Below you’ll find the team you could have had. The rules? Pretty simple. To ensure the player is available, we have to draft him a round early. That is, if the player has an Average Draft Position (ADP) of 3.02, we have to take him in the second round. The plan is to start one QB, two RB, two WR and a TE, and I’ll leave the K and DT to your imagination. I’ll mow through the first twelve rounds so that we have a starter and a sub at each position.

      Keep in mind, this draft is for a 12-team, Points Per Reception (PPR) league, with the Antsports’ High Performance Scoring System.

      Off we go…

      Round 1 – Reggie Bush (2.07)
      Drafted: RB12
      Actual: RB3
      Someone actually gave me grief about considering Bush in the second round of my Industry Insiders league, and while there are a lot of (Reggie) Bush haters out there, the fact of the matter is that in a PPR league, the guy produces. Through two games, he’s averaging 127 total yards, 7.5 receptions, and 0.5 TD per game. He’s on pace for a 120-catch, 2000-yard season.
      Alternate: Tony Romo (2.09)

      Round 2 – Jason Witten (3.11)
      Drafted: TE1
      Actual: TE1
      I know, it seems way too early for a TE, but Witten is as solid as they come and gives this team an advantage just about every week he plays. He has 13 catches for 206 yards, so he’s on pace for 104-catch, 1648-yard season. He hasn’t even caught a TD yet, but with numbers like that, who cares?

      Round 3 – Willie Parker (4.08)
      Drafted: RB20
      Actual: RB5
      A lot of people (myself included) were down on “Fast” Willie this offseason after the Steelers used a first round pick on Rashard Mendenhall. It’s not often that a team burns a first round pick on a RB and doesn’t at least utilize him in a RBBC approach, but the Steelers have given Parker the vast majority of the workload, and he’s responded with 122 rushing yards and 1.5 TD per game.

      Round 4 – Dwayne Bowe (5.06)
      Drafted: WR 23
      Actual: WR15
      No sophomore slump thus far for the talented Kansas City wideout. Even with the likes of Brodie Croyle, Damon Huard and now Tyler Thigpen throwing to him, Bowe has still racked up an average of 5.5 catches, 70 yards and 0.5 TD per game. The Chiefs look like they’ll be trailing for the rest of the season, so Bowe should get plenty of work against loose secondaries in garbage time.

      Round 5 – Santana Moss (7.03)
      Drafted: WR29
      Actual: WR4
      There isn’t a player with an ADP in the sixth round that is playing better than Santana is and, besides, we need to keep our Round 6 pick open for a certain QB. Moss hasn’t been hurt by the Redskins’ move to the West Coast Offense. He has posted an average of 6.0 catches for 100 yards and 1.0 TD per game. He looks like the Santana of old.

      Round 6 – Jay Cutler (7.04)
      Drafted: QB9
      Actual: QB1
      I advocated drafting Cutler in the sixth or seventh for those owners that missed out on one of the top six QBs – Brady, Peyton, Romo, Brees, Big Ben and Palmer. Brady is out for the count, Palmer is struggling big time and Roethlisberger looks a little iffy (though I think he’ll finish with great numbers). Back to Cutler, who is not only the top fantasy QB, he’s also the top fantasy player. In short, Cutler is off to an awesome start and I’d be happy as hell to have him on my roster right now.
      Alternate: Matt Forte (7.08)

      Round 7 – Chris Johnson (8.11)
      Drafted: RB36
      Actual: RB9
      The Chris Johnson hype started sometime in the middle of the preseason. The table was set for the young speedster. He was joining an offense that featured a great running game and a veteran back (LenDale White) who had taken up residence in the head coach’s doghouse. Throw in a lack of talent at receiver and you have the makings of a very nice fantasy season. Thus far, Johnson has racked up an average of 124 total yards, 2.5 catches and 0.5 TD. He makes a heckuva RB3.

      Round 8 – Tony Scheffler (9.11)
      Drafted: TE11
      Actual: TE2
      Since we have the Denver QB, we might as well draft the Denver TE. The sure-handed Scheffler is averaging 3.5 catches for 68 yards and a TD through two games. And with the receiving corps surrounding him, there’s no worry that he’ll be double-teamed.

      Round 9 – Aaron Rodgers (10.05)
      Drafted: QB19
      Actual: QB3
      Thus far, this kid has succeeded under enormous pressure. How would you like to spend your first offseason as the presumed starter answering countless questions about Brett Favre and his on-again/off-again retirement? You take the field on Monday night, knowing full well that half your fan base is wishing #4 was still under center. Then, over two games, you average 253 yards and 2.0 TD, while rushing for another 30 yards and 0.5 TD. I drafted Brady in one league and was fortunate enough to have Rodgers on my bench to step in. Whew!

      Round 10 – Chris Perry (11.09)
      Drafted: RB44
      Actual: RB33
      Granted, the Bengals offense is really struggling, but Perry averaged 50 yards and 0.5 TD per game versus the Ravens and the Titans, two very tough defenses. Those are adequate numbers for our RB4. Plus, he has some upside.

      Round 11 – DeSean Jackson (13.04)
      Drafted: WR51
      Actual: WR12
      It’s tough to count on rookie WRs, but the writing was on the wall in the preseason. Always keep your eye on a talented rookie wideout headed to a team with a good QB that is desperate for playmakers in the passing game. Jackson surely benefited from injuries to Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown, and now that he’s started his career with consecutive 100+ yard games, it doesn’t look like he’s giving up his starting spot anytime soon. (By the way, had he not made the bonehead fumble play against the Cowboys, he’d be WR9 right now.)

      Round 12 – Eddie Royal (15.01)
      Drafted: WR58
      Actual: WR3
      Not to toot my own horn (which inevitably leads to someone tooting their own horn), but I had Royal ranked as my #1 Impact Rookie WR back in late August. (I had DeSean Jackson ranked #3. Who was #2, you might ask? Josh Morgan. Hey, they can’t all be winners.) Royal had a great preseason and he carried it over to the regular season, posting nine catches for 146 yards and a TD, making DeAngelo Hall look foolish in the process. In his encore, even though running mate Brandon Marshall almost set a record for catches in a game, Royal still caught the go-ahead TD and 2-point conversion against the Chargers.

      So after 12 rounds, here’s our squad:

      QB: Cutler (QB1), Rodgers (QB3)
      RB: Bush (RB3), Parker (RB5), C. Johnson (RB9), C. Perry (RB33)
      WR: Bowe (WR15), S. Moss (WR4), De. Jackson (WR12), Royal (WR3)
      TE: Witten (TE1), Scheffler (TE2)

      Alternatively, if we had taken Romo instead of Bush in the first and Forte instead of Cutler in the sixth, this would have been our squad:

      QB: Romo (QB5), Rodgers
      RB: Parker, Forte (RB8), C. Johnson, C. Perry
      WR: Bowe, S. Moss, De. Jackson, Royal
      TE: Witten, Scheffler

      Obviously, either squad would be the favorite to win a title at this point in the season, but I prefer the first team.

      Feel bad? Don’t fret, you could have this team:

      QB: Brady, Bulger
      RB: Maroney, R. Brown, R. Johnson, McAllister
      WR: Colston, Ocho Cinco, Walker, Ginn
      TE: Da. Clark, Crumpler

      Is there a more motley crew of fantasy football n’er-do-wells?

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Ed Hochuli received hate mail over blown Chargers-Broncos call

      September 18, 2008 /

      Ed Hochuli, the referee that blew the call in last Sunday’s Chargers-Broncos game, is receiving hate mail from angry San Diego fans.

      Ed Hochuli“I’m getting hundreds of e-mails — hate mail — but I’m responding to it all,” Hochuli wrote to several Chargers fans, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. “People deserve a response. You can rest assured that nothing anyone can say can make me feel worse than I already feel about my mistake on the fumble play. You have no idea … Affecting the outcome of a game is a devastating feeling. Officials strive for perfection — I failed miserably. Although it does no good to say it, I am very, very sorry.”

      It’s not surprising that Hochuli is receiving hate mail, but that doesn’t mean it makes it any less ridiculous. It’s a freaking football game. He made a mistake and yes he’s a profession who blew what should have been an easy call, but everyone makes mistakes. This guy doesn’t make enough money referring games to receive (presumably) personal attacks on his character. Charger fans have every right to be upset, but maybe they should focus their energy on why San Diego’s defense allowed Jay Cutler to throw for 350 yards and four touchdowns. Or why Brandon Marshall was able to catch 18 passes on what was supposed to be a solid secondary.

      For Hochuli’s sake, I hope the Chargers rebound and cruise to a playoff berth. Because if San Diego fans are anything like Cubs fans are, they’ll turn Hochuli into the next Steve Bartman.

      General Sports, NFL

      Chargers need to look in the mirror before blaming ref

      September 16, 2008 /

      NFL Spokesman Greg Aiello says that official Ed Hochuli will be given a lower grade following his blown call during the Denver Broncos-San Diego Chargers game last Sunday. A lower grade can result in Hochuli not being allowed to ref the NFL Playoffs and/or 2009 Super Bowl.

      “Officials are held accountable for their calls. They are graded on every play of every game,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Monday. “Ed has been an outstanding official for many years, but he will be marked down for this call. Under our evaluation system, an official’s grades impact his status for potentially working the playoffs and ultimately whether or not he is retained.”

      The play occurred with the Broncos at the Chargers’ 1-yard line in the final minute. Denver quarterback Jay Cutler dropped back to pass, and the ball slipped out of his hands, bounced off the grass and into the arms of San Diego linebacker Tim Dobbins.

      Hochuli ruled it an incomplete pass. Replay ruled it a fumble, but it was spotted at the 10-yard line, where the ball hit the ground, and given to Denver because the rules did not permit possession to be awarded to San Diego because the whistle had blown.

      Denver went on to score, convert a two-point conversion and win 39-38.

      Hochuli blew the call, plain and simple. And did he cost the Chargers a win? Absolutely. But so did allowing Jay Cutler and the Broncos to march up the field before the blown call and score like they were playing against air. San Diego could have stopped Denver from scoring on fourth down, but they didn’t. They could have stopped them on the 2-point conversion play, but they didn’t. And hey, how they could have stopped the Broncos from scoring 31 first half points, too. But they didn’t.

      The Chargers and their fans have every right to be pissed. Hochuli can’t blow the whistle in that situation. He blew it (the call that is, not his whistle). But the bottom line is that one blown call doesn’t make or break an entire game, either. The blame doesn’t fall solely on Hochuli.

      NFL

      For QBs, it’s boom or bust in the middle rounds

      September 15, 2008 /

      Take a look at this list of fantasy QBs, in order of Average Draft Position. The ADP is from Antsports’ 12-team league drafts from 8/1-9/1, and the last number on each line is the player’s average points per game in Antsports’ High Performance scoring system.

      QB7 (5.09) Derek Anderson, 9.5
      QB8 (5.11) Donovan McNabb, 30.4*
      QB9 (7.04) Jay Cutler, 28.5
      QB10 (7.05) Matt Hasselbeck, 10.6
      QB11 (8.04) Brett Favre, 15.3
      QB12 (8.07) Marc Bulger, 10.3
      QB13 (8.08) Eli Manning, 20.4
      QB14 (8.09) David Garrard, 11.7
      QB15 (9.04) Matt Schaub, 18.5*
      QB16 (9.07) Phillip Rivers, 26.4
      QB17 (9.11) Jake Delhomme, 13.0
      QB18 (10.04) Jon Kitna 19.8
      QB19 (10.05) Aaron Rodgers, 26.7
      QB20 (10.12) Vince Young, 7.9*

      * only one game of data is included

      Save for Favre, Delhomme and maybe Schaub, each of these quarterbacks is either greatly outperforming or severely underperforming in relation to their preseason expectations. I see two distinct groups: Boom and Bust.

      Boom: McNabb, Cutler, E. Manning, Rivers, Kitna and Rodgers

      Bust: Anderson, Hasselbeck, Bulger, Garrard and Young

      Sure, it’s early, but think about it this way – if you had a QB in the Bust group, is there any possible trade for a player in the Boom group (i.e. Anderson-McNabb, Hasselbeck-Cutler, etc.) where you wouldn’t pull the trigger? I was high on Garrard before the season, but after two weeks of watching the Jaguars disappointing pass offense in action, I’d be more than willing to make a Garrard-for-Kitna swap if the opportunity presented itself (although Kitna is a little dicey because his job isn’t that secure). Likewise, if you have a Boom player, would you trade him for any of the players in the Bust group? I wouldn’t.

      Chances are that a few quarterbacks in each group will return to the mean. Some in the Boom group will cool off while some in the Bust group will heat up. But right now, there is a big disparity within this group of quarterbacks.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Broncos shock Chargers after controversial call

      September 14, 2008 /

      Jay CutlerFor the second straight week, the Chargers lost in the final minute of the game as the Denver Broncos converted a 2-point conversion with 24 seconds left to play to edge San Diego 39-38.

      On the Broncos’ game-winning touchdown drive, QB Jay Cutler appeared to fumble while attempting a pass. The Chargers recovered, which would have given them the ball back with under a minute to play and up 38-31, but the officials had blown the whistle to signal an incomplete pass. The call upheld after replays, Denver got the ball back and on fourth down Cutler hit Eddie Royal in the end zone for a four-yard touchdown to make the game 38-37. One play later, the Broncos converted the eventual game-winning 2-point conversion, which was an incredibly gutsy call by head coach Mike Shanahan.

      It was a blown call. Replays clearly showed that Culter’s arm wasn’t coming forward and that it was an apparent fumble. San Diego should be 1-1 on the season, but the bottom line is they need to look in the mirror first and foremost. The Chargers took the lead on a 66-yard Darren Sproles touchdown reception and then the defense proceeded to allow the Cutler and the Broncos’ offense to march up the field on the ensuing series.

      The Chargers’ defense has looked disastrous in back to back weeks now. It also didn’t help that LaDainian Tomlinson was beat up all week and then could only muster 26 yards on 10 carries. It goes without saying – the Chargers are in trouble. And all of a sudden the Broncos are the best team in the AFC West.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

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