Author: TJ Streett

Streaming Defenses- Week 2

The Cincinnati Bengal defense is the best play this week if you love to stream your fantasy defenses.

Analysis: We won’t even go into the Cincinnati performance or lack thereof Monday night. What we will do is take a deeper look into the Cleveland-Philly week one matchup. The Eagles turned the ball over five times, FIVE times and the Browns still only managed to score sixteen points. Brandon Weeden threw four picks and was sacked twice in his NFL debut all while picking up a 5.1 passer rating in the process. Weeden only completed 34% of his passes and he did fumble two times. Key stat- the Browns only made it into the red zone twice at home against Philly who turned the ball over five times.

Say what you will about the Bengal D but the Browns are just plain awful. Trent Richardson can’t do much on the ground if his quarterback is sporting a 5.1 passer rating. The Cincinnati D is available in ninety percent of leagues so you’re going to have to act fast in order to capitalize on such a great matchup.

Selling High- Dennis Pitta

Former BYU star Dennis Pitta put up great numbers in his Monday night opener, but is he a keeper?

Analysis: Dennis Pitta led the Ravens with nine targets, five receptions, 73 yards and a score Monday night. As much as I like Pitta’s game, there will be plenty of contests which will see him end up with two catches for sixteen yards. Ed Dickson, Baltimore’s other tight end is actually the better athlete and should be breaking out this season. We also cannot ignore the addition of Jacoby Jones to an already solid receiving corps which in turn will further spread the ball around.

Pitta was only targeted 56 times last year to Dickson’s 89, so we cannot conclude much from a one week sample size. Ray Rice was even targeted over 100 times last year but was only thrown to four times Monday night. As good of a night that Dennis Pitta had and as talented as he is, I just cannot see him putting up top fifteen tight end numbers at all this year. Keep in mind that Pitta caught two or fewer balls in eight of sixteen games last year. If you’re looking for a tight end to sell coming in to week two- Pitta’s value will not get any higher than it is now.

Buying Low- Tight Ends

It doesn’t take a smart fantasy owner or even a replacement referee to know that wide outs Kevin Ogletree and Stephen Hill will be hyped prior to week two. But tight ends worth roster consideration are rare but there are a few out there for you this week.

Analysis: Owen Daniels is owned in about eighty percent of leagues but that should be changing very soon. Daniels was targeted eight times Sunday, fifth most among all tight ends. Daniels’ 87 receiving yards led all NFL tight ends on Sunday, so all signs point to buying now before his value rises further. It is rather apparent that Houston has absolutely nothing at wide out outside of Andre Johnson, so this could be another big year for the oft-injured tight end.

Coby Fleener is another tight end you may want to be buying at the moment. Fleener was targeted ten times for six receptions and 82 yards Sunday. The Colts will be trailing in tons of games this year and Fleener will benefit greatly from “second half come-from-behind-junk-yards.” Fleener is available in seventy percent of leagues but his stock will be rising in the weeks to come as well.

PPR Help- Dexter McCluster

Dexter McCluster was one of the most heavily targeted players in football Sunday which continues from his success from late last season.

Analysis: Dexter McCluster caught ten balls and was on the end of twenty carries in the final three contests of the 2011 season. To kick off the 2012 campaign, McCluster was targeted ten times leading all players with running back eligibility. That’s more targets than LeSean McCoy and Darren Sproles, pretty impressive. The ten targets and six receptions led the Chiefs while Dwayne Bowe was only targeted six times, Jamaal Charles was not targeted in the passing game. McCluster lined up in the slot a ton which will eventually earn him wide receiver eligibility, another fantasy plus.

At the moment McCluster is available in well over ninety percent of leagues but the ten targets for a back is the real winner here. As of now he remains a PPR league add only but an injury to Charles or Hillis will see him start to carry the rock again. Remember that it was this time last year that Darren Sproles was one heavily targeted back and his stock has not come down since.

 

Power Bats On The Wire

There isn’t much left on the waiver wire at this point in the season but there are a few power bats to help get you home.

Analysis: Oakland’s Chris Carter is a first baseman to watch. Carter has hit 14 home runs in just 51 games played this year. He’s went yard four times with nine runs batted in over his last eight games played. Carter is available in well over eighty percent of leagues and is one of the most underrated bats on the wire at the moment.

Another option out there is Jesus Montero. Montero suffers greatly from playing at Safeco Field but he is the real deal. He’s only hitting .259 at the moment but keep in mind his BABIP is an unusually low .290. Montero has 15 homers this year with 53 RBI. He’s available in forty percent of leagues because much of his hype has died down.

A few must owns who are available in a small, small percentage of leagues include: Alex Rodriguez, Garrett Jones(23 HR) and Pedro Alvarez(27 HR).