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Archive for the ‘Waiver Wire Pickups’ Category

I am not superstitious.  I don’t care about stepping on the lines of the baseball field.  I’ll be happy to talk to you during your no hitter.  I think the fact that hotels don’t have a 13th floor is absurd.  I have stepped on many cracks and it hasn’t broken my mother’s back.  I’ll open up an umbrella indoors while standing under a ladder.  I’m crazy like that.

But this past weekend has caused me to reconsider the unlucky number 13.  In Week 13 I felt like I was in the bizzarro world.  It started early Sunday morning when I noticed my kicker John Carney was inactive and I had to scramble for a kicker right before I was starting my podcast.  My podcast was cut off due to a unexplainable bad phone line at the, you guessed it, 13:00 minute mark.  Then things went downhill from there.  My team, the Patriots, blew another first half lead and ending up losing.  My fantasy team, the Patsies, had their worst week of the season.  In my point spread picks, I went an absurd 3-11 on Sunday. 

Everything went wrong.  I hate you Week 13.

So let’s bring on lucky Week 14.  Here are some Waiver Wire Pick Ups.  Full player rankings will be out on Wednesday. 

Quarterback

Bruce Gradkowski:   The only bright spot of my 1pm games was watching Oakland beat Pittsburgh.  That 4th quarter was exciting to say the least.  Whenever Pittsburgh is playing I tell my wife about how great Pittsburgh is to visit.  The food, the beer, the stadiums.  I also told her about my conclusion that Pittsburgh has the hottest females of any city in the country besides Dallas but the ugliest dudes.  Just as I was telling her about this, the cameras showed a hot blonde sitting next to a 325 pound dude wiping mustard off his chin with a terrible towel.  Back to Gradkowski, you have to assume Oakland will be playing from behind and he’ll be airing it out.

Running Back

Jerome Harrison:  The big pick up of the week.  Harrison showed some life in the Cleveland running game.  He’ll keep getting the ball as Eric Mangini will be trying to save his job.

Chris Brown:  If Steve Slaton isn’t 100% then Brown is your starter. 

Wide Receiver

Louis Murphy:  Wide receivers are streaky and this one is hot.  Get him while you can.

Davone Bess:  Back in the preseason, I started calling the Dolphins Wildcat offense  the Prevent Offense.  It may look good on any given play but it prevents you from winning.  The Dolphins beat the Patriots Sunday, their biggest win of the year.  It just happened to be the first game all season they didn’t run a single Wildcat play.  The NFL is a copycat league and Bess is trying to become the new Wes Welker.

Robert Meachem:  This guy needs to be in some one’s starting line up.  Why not yours?  The numbers are there.

Tight End

Fred Davis:  I first mentioned him a few weeks ago and he’s putting up numbers that are sitting on the waiver wire in way too many leagues.

Kicker

Garrett Hartley:  I haven’t put a kicker in this Waiver Wire column all year.  Hartley will be the top kicker for the rest of the season.  He gives the Saints 7-10 extra yards of being in a scoring zone on the field.  Drop whomever you have for Hartley.

In my 15 years of playing fantasy football, I don’t recall a season that has featured so many players out with the same injury. Concussions are a serious injury and we are seeing teams hold back their injured players even if they have practiced during the week. As we head into the last regular season week for many leagues, this is your last chance to add some depth to your roster.

Other than injuries, we have another wrinkle to consider when heading into the fantasy playoffs. The Indianapolis Colts may not have anything to play for as early as Week 15. Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, Joseph Addai and Dallas Clark owners should be preparing as if those players are going to be out in Weeks 15 and beyond.

Here’s some players to target this week on the Waiver Wire. Full player rankings will be out on Wednesday.

Quarterback

Alex Smith: If still available in your league, go out and grab Smith. He has a very easy fantasy playoff schedule. Nice insurance policy.

Chris Redman: As of this writing on Monday night, reports are out that Matt Ryan is already out for this weekend’s game. If Ryan is out for a few games, the Falcons may be inclined to shut him down if they are out of the playoff mix.

Matt Leinart: You can never predict any injury but we warned in the preseason that the chances of Warner holding up for a full season were slim. Not worth playing this week against Minnesota but Week 15 and 16 are against Detroit and St. Louis. Insurance.

Running Back

Larry Johnson: We talked at length on our podcast a few weeks ago to not drop Johnson. If someone in your league did, go grab him.

Jerious Norwood: The Falcon injury situation is a mess. Norwood has a chance to get significant carries over the next few weeks.

Wide Receiver

Pierre Garcon: He’s disappeared at points this season but right now he is getting a lot of looks from Peyton Manning. Even if Wayne gets rested down the stretch, I don’t see them doing that with Garcon.

Jason Avant: He’s getting more looks lately for the Eagles and with DeSean Jackson injured, he becomes a starter.

Tight End

Dante Rosario: A sleeper in the preseason, Rosario is finally starting to get more involved the last couple of weeks. Carolina cannot throw the ball deep and thus it makes Rosario a nice mid range target.

It was half time of the late games yesterday and I was pacing the floor. My fantasy football team was finished for the day and I had a comfortable lead. My opponent only had 1 player left and it was Tom Brady who put up nice numbers in the first half. If he put up similar numbers in the 2nd half, I would lose.

So what’s the big deal you say? Well Tom Brady is the quarterback for my favorite team since childhood, the New England Patriots. If he does well, my favorite team moves closer to winning and my fantasy football team comes closer to losing.

That raises the question: Which is more important to you? Normally I would say that the Patriots winning is more important than my fantasy team. But yesterday was a tough dilemma because I know the Patriots could have lost that game and still made the playoffs but my fantasy team would be in worse shape to make the playoffs.

How about this scenario? It’s Week 16 and you are in the Super Bowl of your fantasy league and your opponent has the running back of your favorite team. It’s the end of the game and your team is on the goal line. If that running back scores a touchdown, your fantasy team loses the Super Bowl but your favorite team makes the playoffs. Which do you root for as you see the hand off?

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Yesterday it worked out for me on both fronts. The Patriots and my fantasy team, the Patsies, both won. But it was close and if Tom Brady was able to convert on the QB sneaks at the goal line, my Patsies team would have lost.

Let’s look at the Waiver Wire for Week 12. This late in the year you are looking to just fill some holes on your roster and to prevent your opponents from picking up players that could contribute for them. It’s also the time of year when some leagues are up against a roster deadline so you need to be prepared if some of your starters go down with injury. Complete player rankings will be out Wednesday.

Quarterback

Jim Sorgi: If you are a Peyton Manning owner, it’s time to pick up Sorgi. It looks like Indianapolis is going to have everything wrapped up and may not be playing Manning for more than a series as early as Week 15. If you have roster space and want to stick it to a Peyton Manning owner, you can pick him up as well.

Running Backs

Rock Cartwright: I almost put him on this list last week as I was concerned about the durability of Ladell Betts. Betts is out for the season and Cartwright is the man running the ball the rest of the way for the Redskins. He is the top pick up of the week.

Fred Jackson: If available, grab him quickly. With Marshawn Lynch down, Jackson’s stock rises.

Wide Receivers

Mohamed Massaquoi: He was picked up in many leagues in the beginning of the season and then dropped by many. It’s time to bring him back.

Brandon Gibson: I put him on this list last week and he wasn’t picked up by that many. He had 7 catches yesterday and that’s worthy of a roster spot.

Tight End

Brandon Pettigrew: If you have seen him play this year you have to be impressed. With the game on the line yesterday, that play was drawn for him.

Tom Santi : He’s the number 2 tight end for Indianapolis right now and got a lot of looks yesterday. With that being said, it was an up and down game for him. However, if you are a Dallas Clark owner you need to pick him up as an insurance policy.

Busy week. Good Luck in Week 12.

There’s no way they are really going to go for it. They are just trying to draw them offsides to get the first down. They’ll take the 5 yard penalty and punt. Maybe make the Colts burn a timeout. They aren’t really going to go for it because that would be one of the riskiest calls that I have ever seen. No one does that.

That was my thought process as I watched the play clock slowly tick down as the New England Patriots lined up against the Indianapolis Colts in a game that will be talked about for years to come. And then…..

The players started moving. I yelled out two words. The first one was “Holy” and the next one was….I am sure you can imagine. In a flash the play was over and there was no way they were going to stop the Colts after that.

Forget the spot talk. That’s not the point. It’s about emotions and risk. I can see it both ways. Yes, getting 2 yards should be easier than asking your tired defense to stop a red hot Peyton Manning. On the other hand, it’s too unconventional. You have to play it straight up and punt.

It’s like playing blackjack and there is that one guy that’s doing things he shouldn’t be doing like splitting 10′s or taking a card when the dealer is showing a 6. Yes, it might work out but more often than not it doesn’t and it upsets the rest of the players because they have no confidence in how that person’s decisions is going to effect their play.

How the Patriots respond to this against the Jets this weekend will be important for the rest of their season. My opinion was that it was the wrong call before the play happened but I still would rather have Bill Belichick on my sideline than anyone else.

What do you think?

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It’s an interesting week on the Waiver Wire as quite a few running backs got injured.

Quarterbacks

Marc Bulger: St. Louis played with some fire this past weekend against New Orleans. Teams are having to load the line to stop Steven Jackson and in doing so allow the Rams to pick their spots down field. St. Louis has some games coming up against pass friendly teams suck as Arizona, Seattle and Tennessee.

Running Backs

Jason Snelling: # 3 on the depth charts could be starting for the next few weeks. Michael Turner owners should have Snelling but if they don’t, pick him up for trade or put on your bench.

Justin Forsett: This is the guy I am going for first this week. Even if Julius Jones is out a week or so, I think this is Forsett’s job to lose at this point and a nice soft schedule coming up.

Bernard Scott: Initial reports is that Cedric Benson’s injury is not that serious but Scott is an insurance policy that should be purchased.

Ricky Williams: I am listing him here on the slim chance he is still available in your league. With Ronnie Brown out for Thursday’s game, Williams is a top 10 back this week.

Sammy Morris: What’s lost in all this New England controversy is the fact that Laurence Maroney fumbled going in for a score last night. I guarantee that’s not lost on Belichick who loves Morris on the goal line and is close to returning.

Wide Receiver

Donnie Avery: Avery is streaky and on a bit of a hot streak right now.

Brandon Gibson: St. Louis is having some success throwing the ball and Gibson impressed me with his play yesterday.

Tight End

Spencer Havner: We put him on this list 2 weeks ago and he is still available in many leagues. He scored another touchdown yesterday and it’s hard to ignore these catches.

Check back Wednesday to see how these players fit into our Player Rankings.

Last week I received an email from someone that complimented me on this web site and referred to it as a  ”best kept secret”.  While I certainly appreciated the compliment, a big part of me wishes the site wasn’t a secret and that it would take off like Dane Cook’s comedy career or a cat who plays the keyboard. 

So it was with great surprise the other day to receive another email, this time from a loyal reader who said “Congrats on being named a top fantasy football site by FantasyXpert”.  Caught by surprise, I went to google to do some research and came across the site www.fantasyxpert.com.  They monitor dozens and dozens of fantasy football web sites both big ( like ESPN, Yahoo, CBS ) and small ( me ).  They have come up with a way to rank all of the web sites for accuracy in dozens of categories.  I checked it out and it’s pretty interesting, especially if you like to read about fantasy football. 

The category that they rank this web site in each week is the waiver wire pick ups and I have been listed as a top site so it’s good to know we are holding our own and maybe someday we won’t be such a secret.

Here are the players to target this week on the Waiver Wire.  These players should provide nice depth to your roster but most likely will not be starting for you.  Check back Wednesday for our complete player rankings.

Quarterbacks

Josh Freeman:  He led Tampa Bay to it’s first win and busted up a few Survivor pools in the process.  They are many young quarterbacks who are struggling like Matthew Stafford and even Mark Sanchez.  For leagues in which you start multiple quarterbacks, Freeman is a nice insurance policy.

Running Backs

Ladell Betts:  If you drafted Clinton Portis in the 1st or 2nd round and didn’t get the Betts insurance policy in the late rounds you have been skating on thin ice.  If he is available in your league you should either pick him up to trade him to the Portis owner or pick him up to stick it to the Portis owner.

Kevin Faulk:  New England’s schedule these next few weeks are brutal with games against New Orleans and Indianapolis coming up.  A lot of screens and short passes to Faulk.  Ideal time to pick him up in deep PPR leagues.

Wide Receivers

Devery Henderson:  Teams are trying to shut down Marques Colston and allowing Henderson to get open deep.  I see his role increasing.

Chris Chambers:  Not sure what to think of his first game in Kansas City.  It was impressive and wide receivers tend to be streaky so pick him up if you need some depth and let’s see how this plays out.

Tight Ends

Brandon Pettigrew:  Showing signs that he is going to be a top tight end in the not so distant future.

Ben Watson:  He has been streaky for years in New England.  Get him now while he’s getting looks.

With my favorite team on a bye week this past weekend, I had a chance to think about things other than the New England Patriots running game. Here are some football and non-football thoughts before we get into this week’s Waiver Wire Pick Ups:

Football Thought: Avoid starting the one week waiver wire wonder. Last week Shonn Greene was the waiver wire wonder after going nuts in the 2nd half the prior week. Yesterday he returned back to normal and scored less than 2 fantasy points while in many owners starting line ups.

Non Football Thought: Halloween should always be on a Saturday. A lot less stressful for parents who didn’t have to leave work early to rush home and cook dinner while people are ringing the doorbell every 5 minutes.

Football Thought: Barring a huge 2nd half of the season by Michael Turner, I realize I made a mistake in ranking him ahead of Maurice Jones-Drew in the preseason.

Non Football Thought: What’s happened to the size of Halloween candy? When I was a kid, I would come home with full size Snickers bars or Charleston Chews the size of a ruler. Now everything is called “Fun Size” and is the size of a quarter. There’s nothing fun about the Fun Size.

Football Thought: I wrote about this a month ago but I’ll mention it again. Indianapolis, please close that stupid roof. Not only can I not see the football while watching it on television but your wide receivers can’t either. Case in point- Reggie Wayne has 20 fantasy points yesterday on the side of the field in the shadow and 1 in the 2nd half on the sun side. When Joseph Addai has more touchdown passes than Peyton Manning, you know something is wrong.

Non Football Thought: The best beer I have ever had is Fat Tire Amber Ale. I discovered it about 10 years ago while in Denver on vacation.  I have never seen it on the east coast until last week.  Looks like I have picked the wrong year to give up drinking.

Football Thought:  I went 0-4 against the spread in the 4pm games yesterday.  If someone can figure out San Diego and Arizona, please let me know. 

Non Football Thought:  Last week I was at my first karate belt test as a parent.  I overheard a mother of a 5 year old describe her child’s activity schedule the previous week as  3 karate lessons, 2 baseball games, 4 football practices.  She was looking forward to baseball ending next week so the child could start swimming lessons.  The kid’s 5. 

Football Thought:  I have watched both Green Bay-Minnesota games this year in it’s entirety and I have come to the conclusion that Green Bay needs to run the ball more and Minnesota is just really really good.

Non Football Thought:  Arizona does not observe Daylight Savings Time.  I bet that makes them mad this past weekend that they didn’t get the extra hour but they probably feel pretty good about it in March.  I can’t believe this was an actual thought I had this weekend.

Football Thought:  Let’s dive into this week’s Waiver Wire Pick Ups keeping in mind these players should be added for depth reasons and not necessarily put into your starting line up.  Full player rankings will be out Wednesday.

Quarterbacks

Alex Smith:  If he didn’t get picked up in your league last week, pick him up now.  He looked OK against Indianapolis and has a great match up this week against Tennessee.

Vince Young:  Tennessee won which means he should start the rest of the season.  He is always a threat to run and we haven’t seen a running quarterback since Michael Vick.

Tavaris Jackson:  If you have Brett Favre, pick Jackson up now.  A few weeks ago, Favre hinted that he may not play all 16 games.  Not only that but there are some reports that he almost missed yesterday’s game due to a groin injury.

Running Backs

Ryan Moats:  This is going to be the big pick up of the week.  Steve Slaton may have lost his job yesterday and if not, he’s just a fumble or two away from doing so. 

Maurice Morris:  The injury prone Kevin Smith is hurt again which means Morris could be starting this weekend.

Jamaal Charles:  Larry Johnson is suspended this week.  If Charles has a good game, he should remain the starter from here on out.

Wide Receiver:

Jacoby Jones:  With Owen Daniels out for the season, Houston should shift to more 3 and 4 wide receiver sets and Jones will see more looks.

Tight Ends

Spencer Havner:  A former linebacker and special teams player, Havner is learning the tight end position and has 3 touchdowns in the past 2 games.

Ben Patrick:  With injuries to their wide receivers, I look for Arizona to get their tight end more involved in the passing game.

Can you believe we are to Week 8 ? We are already half way through another fantasy football season assuming you make it to the final week.

We have an interesting week on the Waiver Wire. Remember, even though we might recommend you pick up these players that doesn’t mean they go right into your starting line up. Check back Wednesday afternoon for our full player rankings. Picking up a player off the Waiver Wire provides you with depth to your roster and most importantly, out of your opponent’s hands.

Week 7 was a crazy week. Check out our Week 7 All-Star Line Up:

QB- Carson Palmer
RB- Ricky Williams, Shonn Greene
WR- Miles Austin, Chad Ochoconco
TE- Vernon Davis
K- Nick Folk
D- Pittsburgh

If you had this line up, you would have put up a stunning 196 points last week. The amazing thing about this line up is that none of these players went in the top half of your fantasy draft. Who says luck doesn’t play a factor in fantasy football?

In this week’s Waiver Wire, chances are that most of these players will be on some one’s team in your league. However, if they aren’t, get the one’s that you can at the position your opponent this week is the weakest. It’s crunch time.

Quarterback

• Alex Smith:  What he did on Sunday was impressive.  However, there isn’t much pressure coming into a game like that.  We’ll see how he does this week against Indianapolis to see if he warrants a start next week against Tennessee.

Running Back

• Shonn Greene:  I drafted Greene in the 13th round of a 20 round draft this summer and almost cut him two weeks ago for a bye week defense.  I am glad I didn’t as he has some good match ups ahead and could be a factor down the stretch.  Don’t get too excited, he’s not a starter but he’s worth the pick up.
• LeSean McCoy:  If the owner of Brian Westbrook wasn’t smart enough to handcuff him, grab him and make a deal.
• Mike Bell:  Some cut him when Pierre Thomas returned a few weeks ago.  Get him back as New Orleans trusts him more than anyone else at the goal line.
• Beanie Wells:  In the preseason, I recommended you to stay away from Wells and Tim Hightower as it was impossible to predict how this would play out.  It’s now Week 8 and time to get Wells.  He could take you to the playoffs with back to back weeks against St. Louis and Tennessee coming up.
• Benjarvis Green- Ellis:  New England has Laurence Maroney on a short leash.   Very short.

Wide Receiver

• Kevin Walter:  A big disappointment so far this season.  Numbers should improve if Andre Johnson is less than 100%.
• Sam Aiken:  New England desparately is trying to find a # 3 wide receiver.  It’s Aiken’s turn to see what he can do.  Showed nice speed last week.
• Michael Crabtree:  Get him if you can.  They are throwing him right into the mix.

Tight End

• Ben Watson:  If you have owned Watson in the past, as I have, I know you are bitter.  However, he’s healthy for the first time in a long while and I think he has some huge games coming up.
• Fred Davis:  Chris Cooley broke his ankle Monday night and is likely done for the year.  I have never been a fan of Cooley although his wife is very impressive.  However, Davis is now the starter in Washington and although he is slower than Cooley, he is bigger and stronger.  Take a flier on Davis.

Monday Night Blues.

That’s what I have tonight. As I write this column, at halftime of the Monday night game, I put myself in a position where I beat myself this week ( no high school pun intended ). I had my line up set last Friday as always and then I went and made wholesale changes to it Sunday morning. Every change I made backfired.

I saw the weather forecast for snow in New England, knew it would be high scoring, and replaced Ahmad Bradshaw for Sammy Morris. Bradshaw scored 10.80 points and Morris 0.30. BOOM.

I had Eddie Royal in my starting line up with Reggie Wayne out on a bye and replaced him with Kevin Walter because I read a stat that said Cincinnati has given up the most 20+ yard passing plays this season. Walter scored 2.60 points and Royal has two special teams touchdowns at halftime tonight for 12.00 points and counting. BOOM.

I cut Rian Lindell when I saw there were 15 mph cross winds at the Meadowlands and picked up Josh Scobee who  I thought would be in a high scoring game. Lindell finished with 10.00 points and Scobee 5.0.
POW.

Why did I do that? I never do that type of line up switches. I spend several hours a week formulating the player rankings on my web site and then I went and second guessed myself and it cost me a win.

The bright side is that I have the roster to field a highly competitive team each week. The down side is that I screwed it up. Never again.

Here’s this week’s Waiver Wire Pick Ups. It’s a short list this week as there were not many injuries on the offensive side of the ball. These players are worthy of a roster spot right now and should provide nice depth to your roster.

Quarterbacks

• Marc Bulger:  Bulger is back in the starting line up and performed OK in Week 6.  He should get his chances throwing the ball as St. Louis usually is trailing at the coin flip. 
• Vince Young:  If you have an extra roster spot, you may want to take a flier on Young.  He should be starting soon and it’s now or never in his career.

Running Backs

• Laurence Maroney:  Running backs are dropping like flies in New England and it’s Maroney’s time to be the top back. It looks like Sammy Morris got hurt Sunday and could be out for awhile and the Patriots play Tampa Bay this week.
• Justin Fargas:  Oakland handed him the ball 20+ times Sunday.  That makes him worthy of a roster spot.  If Oakland gets the lead, a big if, they seem content to hand the ball off all day long.

Wide Receivers

• Michael Crabtree:  If available, grab him and look to trade right after he scores his first touchdown.
• Steve Breaston:  With Boldin hurt, Breaston immediately becomes a top 25 wide receiver.
• Hakeem Nicks:  The Giants are passing enough to warrant starting their 3 wide receivers.

Tight End

• Jermichael Finley:  Green Bay is not running the ball in the red zone or even on the 1 inch line.  This makes Finley very valuable as he is emerging as a top red zone target.

Week 6 All Star Line Up:

QB- Tom Brady

RB- Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice

WR- Randy Moss, Wes Welker

TE- Zach Miller

K- Ryan Longwell

D- Green Bay

If you had this line up in Week 6, you put up an incredible 219 points.  I don’t think anyone could have drafted that team as I doubt you could have gotten MJD, Brady and Moss with your first 3 picks but maybe there is a Patriots fan out there somewhere that put that line up together. 

And now a Parting Shot:

I have read many message boards today that once again are focusing on the New England Patriots as a class-less team that ran up the score yesterday on Tennessee in winning 59-0.  I watched the game  and I totally disagree.  The game got out of hand very quickly in the 2nd quarter when Tennessee all of a sudden couldn’t tackle, snap the ball to the quarterback or keep up with New England’s wide receivers without falling down.  The Patriots scored 5 touchdowns in the last 10 minutes of the 2nd quarter.

So what should the Patriots have done differently?  They came to play football.  Should they not have just because Tennessee didn’t?  The Patriots were out on the field trying different types of footwear and gloves for 90 minutes prior to the game while the Titans came out to do a brief warm up and then went back to the locker room when the rain turned to snow 30 minutes prior to the game.  Guess which team blamed the outcome of the game on “bad footing”? 

At half time, you have to assume that whatever points you scored could be scored on you so you need to play the game into the 3rd quarter which is what they did.  They took Brady out and went with their back up quarterback which is an undrafted rookie.  The Titans still couldn’t do anything.  This game could have easily been 82-0 as the Patriots scored a safety that went uncalled and could have put together 3 more scoring drives. 

This is professional football where the average wage  is over 800,000 a season.  If you have a problem with a team scoring on you, get players to stop it.  My parting shot is that it wasn’t the Patriots play that ran up the score, it was the Titans.

What do you think?

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Before we dive into this weeks Waiver Wire Pick Ups, lets reflect on a very important lesson that was reinforced in Week 5.

Stick with the players that you drafted high as they were drafted high for a reason.

Last week I received several emails asking about starting players like Mark Sanchez and Derek Anderson while sitting players like Kurt Warner, Matt Hasselbeck and Tom Brady. Occasionally a switch in starters will work out but generally speaking these things don’t . Don’t over think and over analyze your line up decisions. Very rarely will unproven players put up good numbers in back to back weeks.

If you are using the waiver wire to find players to put into your starting line up, I would look to find out why. Chances are that you are too heavy in a certain position. Are you carrying too many quarterbacks or wide receivers? Are you carrying extra kickers or defenses? Cut the dead weight and add position players.

Using the waiver wire is important to build depth for your roster. I would be wary of putting these players right into your starting line up until they have proven themselves over a few weeks. Everyone who picked up and started Derek Anderson, Jerome Harrison and Mohamed Massaqoui are wishing today that they didn’t.

Here are the players worthy of a pick up this week. These players should provide nice depth to your roster.

Quarterbacks

• Matt Cassel:  I am not high on Cassel long term but every now and then he does surprise.  Think of him like your best dishes.  Stock them away and bring them out once or twice a year on special occasions.

Running Backs

• Sammy Morris:  In the game Belicheck wanted to win the most, Denver, he gave Morris the most touches.  New England’s schedule gets easier and therefore Morris’s numbers should improve.
• Jamal Lewis:  Not sure what  to think of Lewis getting the ball 30+ times but if that continues, we’ll have to think about starting him.
• Ahmad Bradshaw:  He shouldn’t be available but if he is grab him quickly.  The amazing thing about his performance in Week 5 was that he did most of the damage in the 2nd quarter.  If the game was closer, he could have broken records.

Wide Receiver

• Miles Austin:  He is going to be a popular pick up this week after his 250 yard performance.  I would do a pick up and trade with him this week as his stock is never going to be higher.
• Chris Henry:  He has been mentioned in this column before and needs to be picked up if available.
• Jeremy Maclin:  It’s obvious Philly likes to throw.
• Eddie Royal:  He’s back.  I hope you didn’t drop him. 

Week 5′s All Star Line Up:

QB – Matt Hasselbeck

RB – Ahmad Bradshaw, Michael Turner

WR – Miles Austin, Roddy White

TE - Kellen Winslow

K- Lawrence Tynes

D- Seattle

If you had that line up, you put up a whopping 213 points.  Considering only Michael Turner was a 1st round selection, it’s entirely possible someone had that line up.

For the past 2 seasons, one of my line up rules was to start anyone going against the Detroit Lions.  If I had anyone on my roster going against the Lions, they were an automatic start.   I am now calling an audible and switching my automatic start against team to the Oakland Raiders.  That’s a team that has truly given up.  They have been outscored by 80 points in the last 3 weeks.  Up next, Philadelphia Eagles. 

This weeks Line Up on Fantasy-Football-First

Tuesday:  Interactive Point Spread Picks Poll

Wednesday:  Player Rankings / 10:30pmEST podcast

Thursday:  Survivor Pool Rankings / Start Em and Sit Em

Friday:  Point Spread Picks

Since most fantasy football leagues go for 16 weeks, the end of week 4 marks the quarter point of the season.  Just like in school, the end of the quarter means it’s Report Card time.  Before we dive into this week’s Waiver Wire Pick Ups, let’s hand out 1st quarter grades to our top 10 draft picks according to the Fantasy Football Calculator.

1. Adrian Peterson:  The #1 overall pick is the # 1 running back so everything is going according to plan here.  AP should carry you right into the playoffs.  Grade A+
2. Michael Turner:  The “Burner” has been warm at best thus far.  Ranked #17 in the RB department but the best is yet to come for Turner.  Hold him if you have him or try to trade for him while his stock is low.  He is done with his bye week and has an easy year end schedule.  Grade C.
3. Maurice Jones-Drew:  MJD is who we thought he was.  Currently # 4 in the RB rankings, he is giving you everything you hoped when you drafted him.  Hold on to him.  Grade A.
4. Matt Forte:  The biggest disappointment so far as Forte is the #24 best RB so far.  The good news is that he does seem to be improving and it’s still early in the season so I would hold on to him even though you are probably getting many trade offers at this point.  You may want to try and trade for him by offering a low ball offer at this point and see if a frustrated owner wants to move him.  Grade D.
5. Larry Fitzgerald:  We wrote many columns in the preseason about how you should never take a wide receiver in the 1st round of a standard draft and then watched in horror as Fitzgerald continued to climb up the Average Draft Position rankings.  Right now he is #16 in the WR department and # 83 overall.  Unfortunately you have to hold on to him.  Grade D.
6. DeAngelo Williams:  We ran a poll in the preseason of who was the most likely to be a 1st round bust and Williams was the winner.  He’s been OK so far and I think he should improve as the season goes on.  Nothing spectacular but consistent. Grade B.
7. LaDainian Tomlinson:  I participated in 3 fantasy drafts this year and laughed inside all 3 times L.T. went in the 1st round.  You knew this could and probably would happen when you drafted him.  You have to hold on to him.  Grade F.
8. Randy Moss:  I liked Moss for this year, just not in the 1st round which he went in many drafts.  Currently he is #17 in the WR department and # 87 overall.  That’s a 1st round bust so far.  Hold on to him, his numbers should improve.  Grade D.
9. Steven Jackson:  I have had Jackson each of the last 3 seasons so there was no way I was taking him this year.  He is healthy which is good but his team is so poor that defenses are geared to stop him.   He is #21 amongst RB’s so far and while I think those numbers can improve, I wouldn’t trade for him.  Grade C.
10. Andre Johnson:  Another WR that crept into the top 10.  Johnson is #6 amongst WR’s and the one with the most upside.  Although I don’t think he will put up the numbers of a top 10 pick, he should perform very well down the stretch. Grade B.

Comments from the 1st quarter:

• Jason Witten, the #1 TE preseason, is currently #16 amongst TE’s.  All the other top ranked TE’s are performing as predicted.
• I received a lot of angry emails from Patriots fans when I ranked Tom Brady behind Phillip Rivers in the preseason.  Rivers is #3 and Brady #11.  However, I do like Brady’s numbers to improve as the season goes on and could be hot come playoff time.
• Back from an injury, I love Pierre Thomas for the rest of the season.  Try to get him if you can, he could end up being a top 5 RB.
• A good number of WR’s in the top 10 of the 1st quarter did not get  drafted in many leagues.  Another reason why we don’t draft WR’s early.

And now our Week 5 Waiver Wire Pick Ups:

Quarterbacks

• Derek Anderson:  It’s obvious that Anderson gives the Browns the best chance to win.  Look for him to continue to air it out. 
• Dante Culpepper:  If Stafford can’t go, Culpepper moves right in and they will let him throw more than they do with Stafford. 

Running Backs

• Justin Fargas:  With McFadden out for awhile, Fargas moves right into a timeshare in Oakland.  Fargas should put up the better numbers.
• Rashard Mendenhall:  If he is available, get him immediately.  Sorry Willie Parker.
• Jerome Harrison:  He performed pretty well last week.  Should get the majority of the carries in Cleveland.
• Ricky Williams:  Do you know that Williams is the #11 RB so far this season?   Very quietly, he is putting up consistent numbers as a back up running back.  Get him if available or try for a trade.

Wide Receivers:

• Mohamed Massaquoi:  Whenever there is a QB change, a WR usually benefits.  In this case it’s Massaquoi with Derek Anderson.
• Austin Collie:  Is there enough balls to go around in Indianapolis?  Perhaps.
• Donnie Avery:  Back from a leg injury, he was a preseason Sleeper of many.

Tight Ends

• Marcedes Lewis:  Jacksonville is throwing the ball.  A lot.
• Dante Rosario:  Bye week behind him, he’s done OK so far.

Week 5 is usually a big week for trades as standings are starting to separate in most leagues.  If you need a trade opinion, feel free to email me on the CONTACT page above.  Good Luck in Week 5!

This week’s Line Up on Fantasy-Football-First:

Tuesday:  Point Spread Picks Poll

Wednesday:  Player Rankings, 10:30pmEST podcast

Thursday:  Survivor Pool Rankings, Start/Sit

Friday: Point Spread Picks

Sunday:  10:30amEST podcast live from Washington, DC.