Tag: Russell Wilson

Three Takeaways From Thursday

It was a dominant and efficient performance by the Seattle Seahawks in the opener.

Percy Harvin was explosive and versatile… he looked like Percy Harvin. His projected fantasy numbers going forward will be inflated. Seattle is too efficient and diverse on offense for Harvin to consistenly put up great fantasy numbers. The Seattle defense also hurts his value due to the fact that the Hawks will rarely trail in the fourth quarter. I’m still taking Emmanuel Sanders over Harvin as wide outs that were taken in the WR2/WR3 portion of drafts.

The Green Bay defense isn’t awful. Julius Peppers was a top 20 defensive end last year according to all the advanced stats. Clay Matthews looks healthy and the Green Bay D will perform better than last year- 25th in yards allowed, 24th in points against. They have the Jets at home next week and that should be a great stream opportunity.

Russell Wilson finished 2013 as the 8th best fantasy quarterback despite throwing the 22nd most passing attempts among all NFL QBs. He does get it done with his legs but it is surprising that he was the 14th QB on average taken off the board in drafts.

Russell Wilson Is Streaking

Russell Wilson threw for 293 yards and 2 touchdowns in Chicago Sunday afternoon.

Analysis: Russell Wilson now has 9 touchdowns and 0 interceptions over his last four games. As much as everyone likes to rave about Andrew Luck he has thrown 8 interceptions over his last four games. Russell Wilson is simply playing smart, consistent football. Sunday’s game in Chicago is an impressive one and next up on the schedule is the lowly Arizona Cardinals. The following week is the Buffalo Bills which may be a good game to start the rookie over some big names like Flacco(vs. Den), Cutler(vs. GB), Luck(vs. Hou).

At the moment Wilson is available in eighty percent of fantasy leagues but how can you make a case against him at this point? His 9 touchdown/0 interception streak came against the Vikings, Jets, Dolphins and Bears… so there were not any defensive pushovers in that span. Seattle is one of the most run heavy teams in the NFL but Wilson has averaged 32 passing attempts over his last two games. The Seahawks are in the thick of the NFC playoff race and will certainly rely on his arm going forward and that is a good thing for his fantasy football value.

Streaming Defenses- Week 6

The New England Patriots have been playing solid defense this year while their offense gets all of the attention.

Analysis: The Patriot D isn’t a great unit but they are significantly more athletic this season. Expect New England to get an early lead on Seattle in week six and expect a solid performance from their defense in the process. Seattle won’t be able to keep up with the Patriots. The Seahawk offense ranks 27th in yards per game, 28th in points per game and 31st in passing yards per game. Simply put… Seattle will make offensive mistakes as Russell Wilson will try to keep up with the high powered Patriot offense which leads the NFL in points per game.

The Patriots don’t have crazy good numbers in the sack department or in interceptions but they do lead the NFL in fumbles forced and fumbles recovered. The unit may not be special but they have only had one down fantasy game this year to Baltimore. The defense is available in well over half of fantasy leagues and they are the choice to stream in week six.

Buying Low- Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson is the Seattle week one starter but is he in a position to put up QB2 numbers?

Analysis: If Russell Wilson does indeed struggle Matt Flynn will always be there lurking around this year. Flynn is capable and is being paid the sizable contract but he’s also one of the top thirty most owned quarterbacks while Wilson is still available in the majority of leagues as well. You know what you’re going to get with guys like Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jake Locker(tons of picks) but Russell Wilson just may be something special.

Wilson certainly has the weapons with guys like Sidney Rice and Braylon Edwards. If those two receivers can stay healthy with Marshawn Lynch pounding the rock, Seattle will have the best offense in the NFC West. Throw in a motivated Kellen Winslow and Zach Miller and you have yourself a very solid offense built around one athletic rookie who has rushed for 150 yards in three preseason games. If you already had your draft and got stuck with a Ryan Fitzpatrick it is a no-brainer here… pick Russell Wilson up and just see what happens. Worst case scenario is that Wilson loses his job by week four while Fitzpatrick is vying for the league lead in interceptions.