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Hi Folks,
Our Footballguy Scott Luebke takes a look at this week's Updgrades and Downgrades. Enjoy! Joe /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/ Upgrades QB - Aaron Brooks - Brooks and the Saints offense are clicking now and Brooks' fantasy owners must be ecstatic. Brooks has scored multiple touchdowns in 3 of the last 4 weeks and I expect this trend to continue for the remainder of the season. With an easier schedule and better decision making, Brooks has been able to connect with Aaron Brooks, Willie Jackson and breakout tight end Boo Williams. QB - Jeff Garcia - Garcia continues to put up exceptional numbers. He has thrown for 3 or more touchdowns in 5 of the last 6 games. I wouldn't bench Garcia in favor of any quarterback in the league right now. He is a stud. QB - Charlie Batch - Batch's 436 yard, 3 touchdown performance deserves recognition. However, I still think Batch will see bench time as the Lions give backup Mike McMahon some playing time towards the end of the season for the winless Lions. A tough schedule remains for Batch and the Lions as Green Bay, Chicago (2), Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh are left on the schedule. QB - Rich Gannon - A strong performance on Sunday with 311 yards and 4 touchdowns proves Gannon and the Raiders offense is the team to beat in the AFC. With Tim Brown and Jerry Rice looking fantastic, Gannon will continue to post good numbers for the remainder of the season. QB - Kurt Warner - Warner looked good on Sunday night with 401 yards and 3 touchdowns. More importantly, he did not appear to be hampered by a thumb injury that has been nagging him throughout the season. As always, keep Warner in your starting lineup. QB - Jake Plummer - Plummer looked good on Sunday with 334 passing yards and 4 touchdowns. Keep in mind, this performance was against the hapless Lions. Look for Plummer to return to his normal erratic self in the next two weeks against San Diego and Oakland. Plummer might be a good option for playoff weeks as he faces Dallas in week 15 and Carolina in week 16. RB - Shaun Alexander - Plain and simple, Alexander produces when he is in the lineup. He scored his 10th touchdown of the season on Sunday and nearly cleared 100 yards once again. Look for Alexander to remain the starter once Watters returns from injury. RB - Duce Staley - Staley continues to look better and better. The 133 total yards on Sunday will be a sign of things to come for Staley in the second half of the season. Philadelphia's offense and a rock solid defense will keep the Eagles in the lead in the majority of games. With Correll Buckhalter in trouble with a team suspension due to marijuana, Staley will not lose many carries to Buckhalter. RB - Warrick Dunn - Dunn managed just 12 yards rushing against a solid Bears defense, but a 12 catch, 138 yard receiving performance helps vault him into the upgrades section. More importantly, it appears that Dunn has returned to 100% after being hampered by foot and hamstring injuries. RB - Garrison Hearst - Hearst nearly reached the 100-yard plateau once again. He has looked good the last few weeks and should continue this trend for the remainder of the season. The 49ers offense continues to look good and a favorable schedule gives Hearst the advantage over a majority of starting running backs in the league. RB - Ricky Williams - The Saints offense is looking sharp and efficient. With Brooks making wise decisions, the offense will continue to get better and this will lead to more scoring opportunities for Williams. Williams has topped the 120 yard mark in consecutive weeks. Look for this trend to continue as the Saints have a favorable schedule in the second half of the season. WR - Marty Booker - The Bears finally starting passing the ball downfield and Booker's statistics were directly affected. He burned the Buccaneers for 3 long touchdowns on the day and made it look rather easy. Look for more longer passes out of the Bears in the second half of the season. With teams starting to "sell out" to the run, Booker and Miller should connect on some play action pass touchdowns. WR - Joe Horn - Horn remains one of the hottest receivers in the league with 8 catches for 148 yards on Sunday. With Aaron Brooks making wiser decisions, the New Orleans offense has started putting touchdowns on the board. Although this may be bad news for John Carney owners, it is good news for Horn, Ricky Williams, and Willie Jackson. WR - Jerry Rice - With Tim Brown receiving the majority of attention from defenses, Rice will continue to be effective on the other side of the field. The career touchdown leader added 3 more to his total on Sunday and made it look rather easy. With the Oakland offense looking good, Rice should continue to see scoring chances. A good option for a 3rd wide receiver in your lineup. WR - Peerless Price - With 10 catches and 138 yards receiving on Sunday, Price continues to outperform Eric Moulds in the Bills offense and have many fantasy owners questioning who is the number one receiver in Buffalo. With Eric Moulds being shut down with double teams, Price has quietly scored 5 touchdowns on the season. Price is a talented receiver and should continue to score a touchdown every other week. WR - Hines Ward - Ward has amassed 26 catches in his last 3 games. He has only scored two touchdowns on the season, but his reception and yardage numbers are becoming a consistent factor on a weekly basis. I've never been a big fan of the Steelers passing game, but Ward deserves consideration for active duty on a weekly basis. WR - David Boston - Boston's 100-yard game streak ended this week. Fantasy owners had to settle for 80 yards receiving and 2 touchdowns. Look for Boston to continue to put up quality numbers. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/ Downgrades QB - Brian Griese - The ankle injury to Rod Smith had me worried a little bit heading into Sunday's game, so I was not surprised by Griese's poor performance on Sunday. With Smith hobbled by injuries and McCaffrey out for the year, Griese's receiving options were limited and his production was directly affected. You may want to consider benching Griese until Smith is healthy. However, the Broncos do play Dallas on Thanksgiving. QB - Tim Couch - Couch threw 3 interceptions and was held to 144 passing yards against a stingy Ravens defense. Couch should be considered a quality keeper quarterback, but the Browns schedule will make Couch an inconsistent quarterback for the remainder of this season. Couch should do well against Cincinnati and Jacksonville, but struggle against New England, Green Bay and Pittsburgh. QB - Mark Brunell - An injured quad injury kept Brunell out of the lineup this week. With an unfavorable matchup against Baltimore this week, it may be best to start someone else this week. QB - Elvis Grbac - Grbac looked horrible with 4 interceptions on Sunday. The week was not a total disappointment for Grbac as he threw 2 touchdown passes. The schedule looks favorable for Grbac, but he is struggling, which concerns me. QB - Tony Banks - Banks suffered a concussion in Sunday's game against Denver. The injury looked severe as Banks was slammed to the ground and then taken off the field on a stretcher. QB - Jay Fiedler - Fiedler threw 3 interceptions and 2 touchdowns on Sunday. Unfortunately, Fiedler's two touchdowns were scored by the Jets defense. The up and down season for Fiedler continues. With games against Buffalo, Indianapolis and San Francisco left on the schedule, Fiedler should still be considered a quality "spot starter". RB - Eddie George - George was held to 61 yards on 23 carries Sunday. He has yet to break the 100-yard barrier in a game this season. I guess the toe injury in the preseason affected his performance more than most anticipated. Although we can blame the toe injury, two other factors have meant the demise of George this season. First, the loss of lead back Lorenzo Neal has minimized running lanes. Finally, the Titans offensive line is not giving George the quality run blocking of the previous seasons. RB - Anthony Thomas - Thomas was held under 60 yards for the second consecutive game. With opposing defenses focusing on stopping the run, Thomas will continue to find the running room a little tougher throughout the remainder of the season. Keep in mind, the Bears last two opponents (Green Bay and Tampa Bay) are two of the better defenses against the run in the league. With Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Minnesota and Detroit (2) on the schedule for the remainder of the season, expect Thomas' stats to be up and down. RB - Lamar Smith - With 53 rushing yards on 19 carries, Smith continues to struggle. This marks the 5th consecutive game that Smith has been held 3 yards/carry. Don't be surprised if the Dolphins give Travis Minor a larger role in the running game. RB - Travis Henry - Henry continues to struggle. He managed just 29 yards on 13 carries this past Sunday and had a crucial fumble. A running back can not be productive with just 13 carries. Keep him on your bench. WR - Rod Smith - Suffering from an ankle injury, Smith was limited to 25 yards on three catches. He did manage to score a touchdown. Smith's ankle injury deserved your attention. The Broncos kept Smith on the sidelines late in the 4th quarter while the team was attempting to drive down the field and tie the ball game. The short week will not help Smith's status on Thanksgiving Day. WR - Eric Moulds - The disappointing season for Moulds continues. He was held to 61 yards on Sunday while Peerless Price gained 138 on the other side of the field. Moulds may not even be the best fantasy option on the Bills at this point. WR - Wayne Chrebet - A shoulder injury to Chrebet limited his production on Sunday. Testaverde and the passing game isn't looking very good at this point. You may want to bench Chrebet until he is 100% healthy. WR - Todd Pinkston - Pinkston has become a regular on the downgrade list. Heck, I like the guy and think he could become special. However, he remains to do what is needed....produce on a consistent basis. WR - Muhsin Muhammad - Muhammad suffered a sprained shoulder and was unable to play in the second half against San Francisco. Heck, his production was not missed. It's pretty difficult to miss little to no production, if you know what I mean. If you're a Muhammad owner, you know what I mean. WR - Reggie Wayne - Wayne suffered a sprained knee on Sunday and his status is not yet known. He has yet to do anything special this season, but his expectations were fairly high, so I'll downgrade him /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/ Waiver Wire Keep in mind, the waiver wire analysis selections are based off of 12 and 14 team leagues. QB - Alex Van Pelt - Van Pelt stepped in the lineup and looked good on Sunday with 316 passing yards and two touchdowns. He has a talented receiving crew with Moulds, Price and Riemersma. As long as he can get pass protection, his production could be a welcome addition to fantasy teams in need of a quarterback. RB - Ben Gay - Gay was the feature back on Sunday with 18 carries for 56 yards and a touchdown against a quality Baltimore Ravens defense. No other running back has taken over the reigns of the Browns rushing offense. Gay may just be that guy. RB - Amos Zeroue - Although he suffered a sprained shoulder against the Browns, Zeroue is expected to return to the team this week against Jacksonville. If you have Jerome Bettis on your team, Zeroue deserves a roster spot. If not, you may want to take a flyer on this guy. The Steelers have a solid running game and an injury to Bettis would open the door for Zeroue to produce quality numbers. RB - Lamont Jordan - Jordan is in a similar situation as Zeroue. If Curtis Martin gets injured, Jordan would enter the lineup and produce quality numbers. Not a bad option, if you can spare a roster spot. If you have Curtis Martin, get Lamont Jordan. WR - JJ Stokes - Stokes looked good on Sunday with 72 yards and a touchdown. This marks the second consecutive game with 72 yards. With the 49ers looking good in the passing game, a healthy Stokes could be a decent "spot starter". WR - Keith Poole - Poole was unable to do anything on Sunday against the Redskins. However, he continues to learn the offense and should start producing very shortly. Poole's effectiveness will most likely occur with a healthy Rod Smith garnering double/triple teams on the opposite side of the field. TE - "Boo" Williams - "Boo" has me excited about his potential. He's a big, fast tight end with good hands. Plain and simple, he has big play potential and should produce in the Saints offense. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/ Bryant Analytics, Inc. All Rights Reserved 1999-2001 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: cheatsheets-unsubscribe@egroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
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