Something happened as we crossed the halfway point of the 2008 season. After weeks of scavenging for boring, low-impact bye-week and injury replacements, opportunities were served up on golden platters for Week 10. Brady Quinn, Ryan Torain and Jamaal Charles are just a few of the high-ceiling players getting their first chances to start, giving fantasy owners more meaningful transactions to ponder on a shortened week.

Quinn may be the next big thing in Cleveland. He may fall flat on his face and lose the job to Derek Anderson once again. The unknown is exciting and sure to draw attention from owners in most leagues, likely making him the object of most of their affection. He has a strong matchup against Denver on Thursday, but only three days to prepare for his first career start. Read more »

Between draft day busts, first half injuries, and bye weeks fantasy owners have had their work cut out so far in 2008. With the options listed below, many owners will have the opportunity to bolster their rosters before they have to struggle through the middle of the season.

Pay close attention to the matchups every week because often times a player’s opponent is more important than the player himself. Especially with D/ST’s, it may be easier to pick up a team playing an awful offense than it is to pick up a quality defense. Read more »

Short-term versus long-term thinking is the theme for free agents this week. Whose bandwagon do you hop on with expectations for future results, and whose best days are behind them? Blips on the radar are a dime a dozen in fantasy football, so we must consider all factors to predict who’s here to stay.

The big question for those seeking wide receiver help is, Ted Ginn Jr. or Donnie Avery with a waiver wire pick? Really, you can’t wrong with either one of these guys, but if you ask us, we like Ginn Jr.’s chances to out-produce Avery. The reason? Experience and learning on past mistakes. Read more »

“Flux” is a positive term in fantasy football. Positions or situations that remain unsettled leave opportunities for less heralded players to make contributions. Of course, who’s getting chances and what they’ll do with them are two things that will challenge owners on the waiver wire each week.

The modern NFL, with team and league-mandated suspensions being handed down, has even more challenges. Is Chiefs running back Larry Johnson going to be suspended this week? Are either Kolby Smith or Jamaal Charles worth pickups in his place? Read more »

We all know that an opportunity lost for one fantasy owner is an opportunity gained for another.
But, in the last few weeks, opportunities lost in the form of Tom Brady, Tony Romo or Matt Hasselbeck have yielded far lesser opportunities in Matt Cassel, Brad Johnson, Charlie Frye and Seneca Wallace.

All of these guys demand waiver wire consideration, but can they serve any purpose to fantasy teams other than acting as warm bodies during bye weeks? The answer, in most cases, is a resounding “not really,” but help has to come in any form an owner can get. Read more »

Current and former Bears are among the most desirable players on waiver wires this week, with quarterback Kyle Orton generating major buzz with a second straight career day. One of the beneficiaries of Orton’s stellar play has been punt-returner-turned-receiver Devin Hester, who has found paydirt in each of the last two weeks. Meanwhile, former teammate Cedric Benson finds himself in a good situation in the Cincinnati Bengals backfield.

Orton is surprisingly the most explosive quarterback available in most fantasy leagues. Few would have predicted that he would throw seven touchdown passes over any three-game stretch during the season, but he has over Chicago’s last three.

Reclamation project Marc Bulger is also a good pickup after being announced as the Rams starter for the rest of ‘08. JaMarcus Russell has quietly been better than expected, making the former No. 1 pick an intriguing pick as a bye-week fill-in. Read more »

In a majority of leagues there are still plenty of capable tight ends available, but few can be trusted to produce on a weekly basis. Take, for example, Greg Olsen and Zach Miller, two gifted second-year tight ends emerging as good intermediate targets. Both struggled through three weeks but broke out in Week 4. Which version will show up in Week 5 and beyond?

Defenses are a little easer to predict because matchups often times dictate success or failure. Pickings are slim among defensive units, which makes schedule hawking all the more important. That’s where the New York Jets come in, a group that could thrive in the coming weeks despite allowing a combined 83 points in its last two games. The Carolina Panthers, meanwhile, have little upside to speak of, but allow few points and can serve as a quality bye week replacement. Read more »

The ebb and flow of the waiver wire always leaves viable options for managers in need of bye week help, but this is a week where no players will act as saviors for your floundering playoff hopes. Three distinct concepts can summarize the quarterback, running back and wide receiver positions, as owners must ponder the good and bad in potential bye-week fill-ins.

For the quarterbacks, “young vs. old” can sum up your available options. Brady Quinn, JaMarcus Russell and Joe Flacco all present some sort of upside, but their merits must be weighed against veterans lower-ceiling, more reliable veterans Brian Griese, Kerry Collins and Gus Frerotte. Chicago’s Kyle Orton falls right in the middle of the age spectrum and may just be the best, most trustworthy signal caller available after throwing three touchdown passes in Week 4. Read more »

Week 3 likely left many fantasy owners fretting about the next couple weeks in regards to the “bottom of their order”. Jeremy Shockey (sports hernia) is M.I.A. for the next 4-to-6 weeks, Jason Witten missed the end zone for the third straight game, the Pats D might as well have sat out a 38-13 loss to Miami, and the immortal Adam Vinatieri has just three field goals this season.

But fear not. With the bye weeks looming ahead in this weekend’s forecast, here are some suggestions on how to stay dry when injuries, draft busts, and inconsistent performances threaten to rain out a Week 4 victory. Be sure to act fast; with players dropping due to injuries, teams taking the week off, and owners giving up on current starters, these guys won’t stick around on waivers much longer. Read more »

Let the bye weeks begin! Now, more than ever, fantasy owners will be scrambling to the waiver wire to find help in keeping their teams together for the next six weeks. And while there are no fantasy saviors available in most leagues, help can still be had in the form of “upside-challenged” veterans and young, emerging talent.
 
More change could be in the air in coming weeks, especially at the quarterback position, but for now, Brian Griese, Kerry Collins and Gus Frerotte can keep teams afloat. Youngsters Brady Quinn and Drew Stanton could be getting their shots in Cleveland and Detroit, respectively, any day now, but aren’t worthy of full endorsements just yet. Read more »