"Bye Week Blues" by FantasyCrowd.com's Dennis Robinson
Well, here it is...week 7 already! We all have tasted the unsavory, and bitter taste of the last two bye weeks with some great fantasy players having to be benched during those last couple games, but for week 7, this just makes my stomach ache! As I am pondering what to do this fantasy week, I see that there are some powerhouses that will be "riding the pine" again in some of my week 7 lineups. Ugh! This is where my "bye week"blues kick in! But remember, anytime you get sick, there is always an antedote and a cure for those blues! Anyways, here are the teams and some of their noted players that will be on byes for week 7:
Offense
Baltimore (Flacco, Rice, McGahee, Mason, Clayton, Heap)
Denver (Moreno, Orton, Buckhalter, Royal, Marshall, Scheffler)
Jaguars (Sims-Walker, Jones-Drew, Garrard, Lewis)
Lions (Stafford, Culpepper, Johnson, Smith)
Seattle (Hasselbeck, Houshmandzadeh, Jones, Burleson, Carlson)
Titans (Johnson, Collins, Britt, Gage, Scaife)
And let's not forget some of you who are in IDP leagues (Lewis, Williams, Durant, Tulloch, Dummervil, and more)!
So, from the afore mentioned list, lets say you have Flacco, Chris Johnson, and Mike Sims-Walker on your team and you are scouring your team's bench and waiver wire. You my friend are already against the clock, but do not fret, you are working and getting you game plan together, and it is only mid-week, so it seems that you are ahead of the game so to speak. Ok, so you see Kevin Walter and Matt Cassel on your bench (who are considered decent bye week fill-ins for this particular NFL game week. But, you have Chester Taylor and Michael Bush as backup running backs on your bench (two plays I would not suggest for this week), and you are now working the wire seeing who is predicted to get the most points for the leftovers that are out there. Here are a few pickups that I would suggest or keeping in mind going forward into the upcoming weeks to bolster up your weak bench:
RB - L. Maroney (Sammy Morris, a walking-injury bomb every time he touches the field is again hurt, and Maroney filled in nicely with a 100+ yard effort last week in the snow. This week, he matches up with St. Louis...go get him now)!!
RB - J. Fargas (Will take over as the starting RB in Oakland. Not saying a lot here, but he will get the majority of the carries this week, as he showed with a 23/87 performance last week). Keep in mind that DMAC will be back in a few weeks, but while he started, his anemic play could keep Fargas as the clear cut choice when it comes to consistency, and that is exactly what they need in Oakland.
RB - J. Forsett (Deep Sleeper, and may pose a big-time threat to J. Jones as he has averaged a mere 2.3 ypc in the last 4 games)
RB - A. Green (Who? He is back in the league? Yep, but not much fantasy value yet, but has now been signed with Green Bay, and is said to have taken over 3rd down duties from Brandon Jackson who fumbled and struggled last week upon his return).
Additionally, just because you were bitten by the "Bye Week" Bug doesn't mean your opponent hasn't too! Check out his lineup and make adjustments accordingly. If he has Schaub as his starting QB, then it seems that you would want to start Walter to off-set some of those points he will be getting. Plan accordingly, and out-smart your opponent anyway you can to benefit your team! Use all the benefits of checking the waiver wire daily (I just picked up L. Maroney in a 12 team league, and I do indeed have Chris Johnson on a bye), injury reports, start/sits, and by all means, do not be against trades at this point in time. Get what you can out of your players, and check matchups every week. Some good players that are high right now and you can maximize your trade might be: Jamal Lewis, Clinton Portis, David Garrard, Donovan McNabb, Eddie Royal, Bernard Berrian, Johnny Knox, Santana Moss, Zach Miller (OAK) and Marion Barber. Divisional rivalries are set to come into play throughout the next month, be prepared as these are notoriously sub-par fantasy weeks for certain players and positions!
Players you may want to hold onto for a few more weeks are: Kevin Smith, Greg Olsen, Thomas Jones, Cedric Benson, Sidney Rice, Jericho Cotchery, Mile Austin, Marshawn Lynch and Ricky Williams.
Minor studs that should continue to do well throughout the season and should not be considered as trade bait are: Correll Buckhalter, Leon Washington, Mike Bell, Jonathan Stewart, Tashard Choice, Laurence Maroney, Andre Caldwell, Nate Burleson, Brent Celek and Mario Manningham.
You see, sometimes what you are looking for is right in front of you, and that is a viable option, whether it be a waiver wire pickup, a trade, or simply plugging in one of these "minor" studs as a necessary bye week fill-in. Like my retired dad working and digging in those old river beds out in the Arizona dessert for gold, you too can find these little nuggets, but you'll have to work for it. Good luck out there!
Dennis Robinson
FantasyCrowd.com
Warren, MI
Dennis is president of FantasyCrowd.com, has 20+ years of fantasy experience under his belt, a senior writer for several fantasy websites, does radio, and live chat support every Sunday morning on Fantasycrowd.com and can be reached at: Dennis@Fantasycrowd.com
Offense
Baltimore (Flacco, Rice, McGahee, Mason, Clayton, Heap)
Denver (Moreno, Orton, Buckhalter, Royal, Marshall, Scheffler)
Jaguars (Sims-Walker, Jones-Drew, Garrard, Lewis)
Lions (Stafford, Culpepper, Johnson, Smith)
Seattle (Hasselbeck, Houshmandzadeh, Jones, Burleson, Carlson)
Titans (Johnson, Collins, Britt, Gage, Scaife)
And let's not forget some of you who are in IDP leagues (Lewis, Williams, Durant, Tulloch, Dummervil, and more)!
So, from the afore mentioned list, lets say you have Flacco, Chris Johnson, and Mike Sims-Walker on your team and you are scouring your team's bench and waiver wire. You my friend are already against the clock, but do not fret, you are working and getting you game plan together, and it is only mid-week, so it seems that you are ahead of the game so to speak. Ok, so you see Kevin Walter and Matt Cassel on your bench (who are considered decent bye week fill-ins for this particular NFL game week. But, you have Chester Taylor and Michael Bush as backup running backs on your bench (two plays I would not suggest for this week), and you are now working the wire seeing who is predicted to get the most points for the leftovers that are out there. Here are a few pickups that I would suggest or keeping in mind going forward into the upcoming weeks to bolster up your weak bench:
RB - L. Maroney (Sammy Morris, a walking-injury bomb every time he touches the field is again hurt, and Maroney filled in nicely with a 100+ yard effort last week in the snow. This week, he matches up with St. Louis...go get him now)!!
RB - J. Fargas (Will take over as the starting RB in Oakland. Not saying a lot here, but he will get the majority of the carries this week, as he showed with a 23/87 performance last week). Keep in mind that DMAC will be back in a few weeks, but while he started, his anemic play could keep Fargas as the clear cut choice when it comes to consistency, and that is exactly what they need in Oakland.
RB - J. Forsett (Deep Sleeper, and may pose a big-time threat to J. Jones as he has averaged a mere 2.3 ypc in the last 4 games)
RB - A. Green (Who? He is back in the league? Yep, but not much fantasy value yet, but has now been signed with Green Bay, and is said to have taken over 3rd down duties from Brandon Jackson who fumbled and struggled last week upon his return).
Additionally, just because you were bitten by the "Bye Week" Bug doesn't mean your opponent hasn't too! Check out his lineup and make adjustments accordingly. If he has Schaub as his starting QB, then it seems that you would want to start Walter to off-set some of those points he will be getting. Plan accordingly, and out-smart your opponent anyway you can to benefit your team! Use all the benefits of checking the waiver wire daily (I just picked up L. Maroney in a 12 team league, and I do indeed have Chris Johnson on a bye), injury reports, start/sits, and by all means, do not be against trades at this point in time. Get what you can out of your players, and check matchups every week. Some good players that are high right now and you can maximize your trade might be: Jamal Lewis, Clinton Portis, David Garrard, Donovan McNabb, Eddie Royal, Bernard Berrian, Johnny Knox, Santana Moss, Zach Miller (OAK) and Marion Barber. Divisional rivalries are set to come into play throughout the next month, be prepared as these are notoriously sub-par fantasy weeks for certain players and positions!
Players you may want to hold onto for a few more weeks are: Kevin Smith, Greg Olsen, Thomas Jones, Cedric Benson, Sidney Rice, Jericho Cotchery, Mile Austin, Marshawn Lynch and Ricky Williams.
Minor studs that should continue to do well throughout the season and should not be considered as trade bait are: Correll Buckhalter, Leon Washington, Mike Bell, Jonathan Stewart, Tashard Choice, Laurence Maroney, Andre Caldwell, Nate Burleson, Brent Celek and Mario Manningham.
You see, sometimes what you are looking for is right in front of you, and that is a viable option, whether it be a waiver wire pickup, a trade, or simply plugging in one of these "minor" studs as a necessary bye week fill-in. Like my retired dad working and digging in those old river beds out in the Arizona dessert for gold, you too can find these little nuggets, but you'll have to work for it. Good luck out there!
Dennis Robinson
FantasyCrowd.com
Warren, MI
Dennis is president of FantasyCrowd.com, has 20+ years of fantasy experience under his belt, a senior writer for several fantasy websites, does radio, and live chat support every Sunday morning on Fantasycrowd.com and can be reached at: Dennis@Fantasycrowd.com
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