CAN HE SCORE?

Ok, I had a pretty bad week last week.  Nate Washington, a lock against Indy?  Not so much.  Did anyone see Mike Sims-Walker sitting out last week? (At least he got some!)  Or how about Derrick Mason laying a big, fat goose egg?  No and no.  And it's not like this week's predictions (guesses) are gonna be any easier.  And that's what makes fantasy sports worth playing.  One week your Nostradamus, the next your Mel Kiper (Really, does anyone get paid MORE money to be wrong on a yearly basis?).  

So this week, as with all weeks, remember the picks here are relative to you and your team.  If you have a better option and you know it, ignore what I say.  Never sit a stud for a one week flyer!

TOP FIVE, LET 'EM FLY

Jets D-  The Bills offense laid an egg last week at home against an awful Browns team and this week they're on the road against a blitz happy Jets squad.  I expect the Jets to post decent stats in sacks and passing yards allowed. 

Randy Moss-  The stretch run of tough defenses ends this week as the Patriots get the league's 2nd worst unit against the pass.  Expect Moss to approach his projections and maybe even go above them. 

Kellen Winslow-  Winslow is the number one option for a terrible pass offense in a week where they play the number two pass defense.  I still like the inexperienced QB Johnson to look for him enough to make Winslow a must start.

Santana Moss-  He won't approach the crazy numbers of Miles Austin from a week ago, but he is the 'Skins number one receiver, which makes him a must play against the Chiefs.

Bernard Berrian-  He's the team leader in targets and the way you defeat Baltimore is through the air. 

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CAN HE SCORE?

TOP FIVE, LET 'EM FLY

Nate Washington- Scored in three straight and the Titans are going to have to throw to keep up with Indy.  If you got him, start him and if you don't, get him.       

 

Vernon Davis- I initially had Vernon Davis down as a "Sit" this week.  But then I realized how bad the Falcons are against the run, how bad they are against the pass and also the fact that Davis has four red zone targets this season.  So, um, yeah, he might do pretty good tomorrow.  (And for those saying "But Vernon Davis doesn't run the ball", remember, the run sets up the pass.)

Glen Coffee- Remember the part where the Falcons can't stop the run?  Couple that with the fact that the 49ers offense is 15th in rushing YPG and Coffee seems like a lock for close to twenty points.

Nate Burleson- Plays well at home, plus he gets Hasslebeck throwing to him again this week.

Mike Sims-Walker-  Seattle's D is 17th in passing YPG and Sims-Walker seems to be Garrard's favorite target at this point.  You have to go with the hot hand, and there have been few hotter than Sims-Walker these past few weeks.

SHUT 'EM DOWN

Steve Smith (CAR)-  His value is tied entirely to Delhomme's ability to find him.  Until his QB gets his act together, bench Smith unless better options escape you.

Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson-  The Bills offense stinks right now.  Sure, there's a chance they could run up the score on a pretty bad Browns team, but knowing which of these guys will do the most damage is nigh impossible at this point.  Avoid starting either guy until a clear front runner emerges. 

Eli Manning-  He might post decent stats, but surely won't go big enough to win your game for you.  Once they get up, and up they will get, they're going to go to Jacobs and Bradshaw to milk the clock.  Plus, there is always the risk of a recurrence of the heel injury from last week.

Pats Defense-  Too much lost talent from last year to now, too many injuries to be a reliable start.  The worst part of this matchup is that they're former offensive coordinator knows these guys well enough to exploit their weak spots and exploit McDaniel will. 

WAKE UP AND SMELL THE SLEEPERS

David Garrard-  I expect both defenses to struggle here, making a shootout quite likely.  Jacksonville passes well enough to take advantage of the matchup.  

Mohamed Massaquoi, Jerome Harrison-  The Browns have effectively re-started training camp, going with a new QB, WR and RB all in the past three weeks.  They need to see what these new/old toys can do, so expect them to be force fed the chance to suck as their predecessors once did. (Garbage points are points nonetheless.)

Jabar Gaffney- Facing his former team and backed by a coaching staff that knows the Pats very well, I like Gaffney as Orton's safety net this week.

Brandon Pettigrew-  With Stafford nursing a knee injury, Duante Culpepper gets the start.  Rookie/Mediocre/Bad QB's tend to use the Tight End as a crutch and Culpepper isn't a Rookie or mediocre, so throw to Pettigrew he will.











Can He Score? is the fantasy blog at rexdeaz.blogspot.com.  It is written by a guy whose best served not trying to date women from Ivy League Universities (Currently 0-4, ouch!).

Me, In Real Life

I got a job today.  Now, don't get too excited, because I am most assuredly not excited.  For 9 hours a day I'm going to be bugging people at a call center in Tustin, CA, selling "Vehicle Service Contracts".  Not warranties, but "Vehicle Service Contracts".  I know, you're asking "But, does it work like a warranty?"  And the answer is yes, but I'm not supposed to tell you that (pretend like you skipped the first paragraph).

The environment, upon first, third and fifth viewing reminds me of the movie "Boiler Room".  There are phones and computers everywhere, wall to wall, for three floors.  The guys all look like they're former something or others trying to make a quick buck so they can pay for the car they can't really afford and keep the wife satisfied.  ( A brief respite:  I call a former something or other a guy who looks like he hasn't been in shape since the weekend after his last "big game" back in high school/college/semi-pro/European basketball, and is now working in a competition based environment so he can expend some of his mental energy and because he didn't bother to learn any skills applicable to any other type of job.)  The men have beer guts, shiny shirts and Payless Shoes (I've bought five pair of Payless shoes this year, I know what I'm looking at), while the women have on too much makeup, slutty boots and tight jeans.  Mind you the dress code calls for "business casual", not "crusing for casual sex".   

Can He Score?

You Should Be Angling For................

 Tashard Choice and Matt Forte

Everyone and their momma knows that they should be trying to acquire the only, truly healthy piece of a rushing attack that has gone for more than 400 yards the last two weeks, so we'll call Tashard Choice kind of a no brainer pick up this week.  But, try working a deal for the Bears' Matt Forte.  No need to run all of his stats from this year, he's been awful.  I'll just drop one on you instead: He touched the ball 27 times last week.  Considering we know what his production ceiling is you have to figure that a consistent string of performances that include 25 attempts/receptions can and will lead to bigger and better things.  If you have the spare parts to do it, steal Forte from an impatient, irrational owner.

You Should Be Benching.......................

Bernard Berrian and Andre Johnson

Considering where these guys were drafted in most leagues this is gonna be a tough pill for some to swallow.  But think about this:  In 9 games against the Packers, Berrian is averaging less than two catches per game, with only one touchdown.  Ever!  Andre Johnson has it even worse, as he becomes the latest high flyer to go up against Nnamdi Asomugha.  Johnson's ceiling for this game sits somewhere near his 3 catch, 50 yard average against the Raiders, but the potential for a pitfall is too great to take that risk.  Look at last season's 2 catch, 19 yard stinker as proof.  If you don't have better options, then by all means give em a go.  But don't be surprised if you lose by the amount these guys should have contributed.

You Should Be Starting................

Bengals Defense and Julian Eddleman/Wes Welker

The Bengals D has played with some kinda chip on their shoulder all season and with the awful, awful Cleveland Browns up next, they're worth at least a spot start this week.  Unless you have a premier defense already in place, swap out your mediocre squad for the Bengals this week. 

Don't be fooled by the "resurgence" of Fred Taylor.  No way the Patriots commit to as many runs this week against the excellent Baltimore defense.  Instead, look for the two headed monster of Eddleman/Welker to produce their usual stat line.  Whichever one of these guys is healthy and starting is the guy to go with, as the Pats love to use them as the main alternative when running the ball proves too tough.




Can He Score is the fantasy football blog at rexdeaz.blogspot.com.  It is written by the two-time defending champion of Center Court One Fantasy Football, based out of Cleveland Heights, Ohio. 

My National Debut

(Written for Big League Stew, June 16th, 2009)

 

An on-the-ground account of Rick Vaughn bobblehead night

By 'Duk

'Duk note: Loyal Stewie David Connor (better known 'round these parts as rexdeaz was at the Brewers-Indians game on Monday night and was nice enough not to only snag me a souvenir — what have the rest of you done for me lately, by the way? — but write about his quest as well as the journey of other Major League fans he met. His words follow below.

* * *

As you might have heard, Monday finally brought Rick Vaughn bobblehead night at County Stadium Progressive Field. Major League sits squarely at No. 2 on my list of favorite movies. It was the film that gave a dying city hope and inspired the most improbable turnaround of any franchise in recent memory. (Rocktober and RockJune notwithstanding, of course.)

Of course, I'm not the only one with an affinity for the film as I was able to meet people who had driven from all over to celebrate "Major League Monday" and one of the most memorable characters from a baseball movie.  

For example, on the way to last night's contest I noticed something quite strange: Canadian accents! Tyler, Aaron and Justin were Blue Jays fans that made their way down from Ontario to see the Tribe, "support ballparks near Toronto" and, yes, "to get bobbleheads."

I then noticed a woman headed to the restroom wearing the jersey of the Wild Thing himself. Waiting for her to reappear, I ended up beginning a conversation with her husband Chris instead. A Mets fan from New York, he had bought the gift for his wife as her 50th birthday present. He and his wife Nancy had planned on coming to the game since mid-April and Nancy claimed to have seen the movie "at least 15 times". 

After finishing my conversation with the couple, I spotted three guys who obviously weren't from around here. Jason, Dan and Matt were all diehard Brewers fans who had decided to come to the game back in February, way before the promotions schedule had even been released. That they'd be heading back with a cool souvenir made the trip all the better, though they said they'd only seen the movie a combined five times or so — even with their own broadcaster, Bob Uecker, appearing in the film (and throwing out Monday's first pitch).

Quick tangent: The coolest part of the night was seeing the onslaught of old school jerseys for popular players on either team. Represented in the best 80's fashion last night were: Corey Hart(notes), Prince Fielder(notes), Ryan Braun, Grady Sizemore(notes) and even Pedro Cerrano, Rick Vaughn and Roger Dorn! Strangely, though, neither team wore their old uniforms.

By far, the award for the coolest fans of the night went to Amy and her husband Ben, who hailed from Chicago. Ben had purchased three Major League jerseys for Christmas — Dorn, Willie Mays Hayes, and Vaughn — one for himself, one for his brother and one for his dad. He and his wife heard about the giveaway on a radio show and decided to make the drive over to Cleveland. I asked them to try and remember how many times they'd seen the movie and they both responded with "too many to count!" We began going over some of the film's more famous quotes, with Amy spouting out most of them. Note to Ben: She's. A. Keeper.

(So, really, what we had here were Cubs fans wearing fake Indians jerseys while in town to watch the Brewers. Do we need any other reason to keep interleague play?)

As for my own Vaughn bobblehead quest, getting the first didn't prove to be much of a problem. They were handed out to all fans.

But getting bobblehead No. 2 to give to the venerable and esteemed editor of this here blog? Well, that was a bit tricky as the guards at the gates were locking us IN to limit us at one bobble. But determined I was to deck out 'Duk with a Rick Vaughn of his own.

I gave security a puppy dog face, told them I had to go back to work and I was free and on my way to gate A! I stuffed bobblehead No. 1 in the bottom of my bag, under my gym shorts, gym socks and dress shoes. I was hoping like heck that they wouldn't thoroughly check the bag as I attempted to enter on the opposite side of the ballpark. As I approached the security guard, I informed him that I had gym shorts in my bag and he responded by not even going past the first layer of shoes! Bobble No. 2 will now have a nice home at Stew HQ.

Of course, there were plenty of Brewers fans at Progressive Field on "Major League Monday". Their connection to the film is nearly as deep as ours. The movie was filmed at their park, and it co-starred their longtime announcer. It was a truly great night indeed.
Up until the 8th inning for this Tribe fan, of course. 

* * *

A little trivia for you: Who led the Tribe in homers in 2003?
Hint: I got to watch his sweet swing during the last group of Brewers BP.

* * *

A big BLS head nod goes out to C. Trent Rosecrans, who drove up to the game from Cincinnati and shot the above photos for his award-winning blog.

"Welcome to the darkside..."

Those were the words said to Ryan Atwood, lead character on "The O.C.", as he entered his first Orange County house party.  And while I had been in Southern California for several days by the time we went, it was a trip to Venice Beach that brought me into a darkside of my very own.  There were junkies, jugglers, gangbangers, milfs, bodybuilders, tourists, break dancers and even a film crew. 

For those that know me, I'm no stranger to the camera.  I've been interviewed for the news close to a dozen times and when I sit in the fancy seats at sports stadiums the camera guys always seem to find the "average, non threatening negro" to show off to the rest of the crowd.  So it came as no surprise that this film crew on Venice Beach wanted to get a word with me and the people I was with.  The rest of the video is pretty self explanatory.  Enjoy!