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Hache Man · 12-11-06, 05:27 PM

LT29

Chargers 48, Broncos 20
Game Recap by: Gregg Rosenthal

The Big Story

Remember when the Denver defense was one of the best in the league? After giving up 28 first half points, they surrended 20 more in the fourth quarter. LaDainian Tomlinson, you may have heard, scored three more times to set the NFL record with 29 touchdowns in a season. We are contractually obligated at this point to remind our readers we had Tomlinson ranked first all summer, with LJ number two. Of course Shaun Alexander and Ronnie Brown were third and fourth, but let's forget about that.

Beyond The Box Score

The Broncos did a decent job bottling up Tomlinson (28-103-3, 1-9-0) until garbage time. Of course, they did that at the expense of their pass coverage, which was hammered in single coverage. If Tomlinson is going to be mentioned with Peyton Manning and Drew Brees as a possible MVP, his effect on Philip Rivers is one reason why. And it's ridiculous Manning will probably finish third. Take him away from Indy and they are a 4-12 team.

Philip Rivers (15/23-279-2-0) averaged over 12 yards-per-pass against the Broncos. With Keenan McCardell out, Rivers is using Vincent Jackson (3-95-1) more as a downfield threat. Rivers made great decisions all day and doesn't face an above-average pass defense the rest of the way.

Rivers has finally learned that Antonio Gates (7-104-2) doesn't need to be open to make plays. Both of his touchdowns were on jump balls, the first of which came in double coverage. Gates abused John Lynch for a big chunk of the afternoon and will likely end up finishing this "down year" with 10 touchdowns and over 900 receiving yards. The Chargers were more creative than usual lining Gates up wide left, wide right, in the slot, the backfield, and everywhere in between. You can barely call him a tight end.

The one positive in this game for Denver was the development of Jay Cutler (17/30-188-2-0). The Broncos knew they had to score plenty, so they started the game with a lot of shotgun and four wideout formations. After a rough start, Cutler was 13-of-19 in the second half for 152 yards and two scores. He brought the Broncos to within one score by putting up 17 third quarter points. The talent around Cutler isn't great and he was under a lot of pressure, fumbling three times, but it was a step forward.

Tony Scheffler (3-66-2) caught his first career touchdown in the third quarter of Week 14, then caught his second one 48 seconds later on a tipped pass. The rookie should improve along with Cutler and will play a lot down the stretch.

Tatum Bell (17-116-0, 4-15-0) is over his toe problems. But his lack of field awareness may have cost fantasy owners Sunday. On a 51-yard run, Bell stepped out of bounds as he was going for a certain 75-yard touchdown.

Going Forward

Bell is back to being an every-week start, and Javon Walker (4-52-0) owners have some hope for life after Cutler. Next week's matchup at Arizona should be a good one.

You could do worse than Vincent Jackson if you are looking for a wild card play against the Chiefs next week. Kansas City gives up a lot of big plays and Jackson has great speed.

Bills 31, Jets 13
Game Recap By: Evan Silva

The Big Story

The Bills are like a poor man's Bears, with a defense that creates turnovers, unpredictable quarterback play (although J.P. Losman is playing better than Rex Grossman of late), a sound running game, and scintillating special teams. The Jets had the ball most of the game Sunday but couldn't answer back as the Bills returned an interception 58 yards for a touchdown, Lee Evans caught a 77-yard deep ball for a score, and Brian Moorman put three punts inside the Jets' 20. Chad Pennington accounted for three turnovers and Cedric Houston ran in place as the Jets fell to 7-6.

Beyond the Box Score

Pennington (22-35-182-1-2, 4-19) was off his game, as he couldn't lead long drives while being swarmed by Aaron Schobel (three sacks, nine tackles). Schobel forced Pennington to fumble after a sack near the end of the third quarter. The Bills recovered at the Jets' 18-yard line and Losman connected with Robert Royal (2-13-1) four plays later for a six-yard touchdown to put Buffalo up 28-13 heading to the fourth.

Willis McGahee (16-125-1) missed roughly a quarter and a half due to an illness he later attributed to an empty stomach. When McGahee was on the field, however, he was unstoppable, kicking off the scoring with a first-quarter 57-yard touchdown run and returning in the second half for gains of six, eight, 16, and 11 yards. Had McGahee not been under the weather, he likely would've approached 200. Anthony Thomas (15-42, 3-23) lost a fumble but continues to be the third-down back.

Laveranues Coles (4-67-1) got off to a quick start but faded badly late. Jerricho Cotchery (5-32) remains a possession receiver. Chris Baker (2-17) has 12 receptions since Week 6.

Evans (2-91-1) has developed a tremendous rapport with Losman on deep passes. Peerless Price (2-19) is still vying with Alvis Whitted to be the league's worst No. 2 receiver. Royal caught his 17th pass of the season Sunday.

Cedric Houston (18-50, 1-7) had no room to run as the Bills' leaner, quicker defensive line beat the Jets off the ball most of the day. Leon Washington (7-55, 7-28) was more effective on 11 fewer carries and utilized often as an outlet for Pennington.

Going Forward

Pennington was pulled in favor of Kellen Clemens with less than two minutes remaining but his starting job won't be in jeopardy until the Jets fall out of the playoff picture. Clemens did not attempt a pass. He was sacked by Schobel.

Cardinals 27, Seahawks 21
Game Recap by Aaron Gleeman

The Big Story

The Cardinals jumped out to an early lead and held it until midway through the third quarter, at which point the Seahawks did as most Cardinals opponents have done this season and went up 21-17. However, Arizona then flipped the script on its season, refusing to fall apart after a blown lead and instead scoring 10 straight fourth-quarter points before holding off a last-second Seattle drive for the win.

Beyond the Box Score

Darrell Jackson had a good second half, catching four passes for 52 yards while giving the Seahawks the lead with his NFL-leading 10th touchdown, but left late in the fourth quarter with a toe injury. It's unclear how serious the injury is as of Monday morning, but given Seattle's short week—they play San Francisco Thursday—it seems unlikely that he'll play ready to play at full strength.

Edgerrin James got off to a slow start, but found the end zone after getting a rare goal-line carry and then racked up big yardage when the Cardinals uncharacteristically stuck with the running game late. Running behind an much-improved and revamped offensive line, plus a lot of two-tight end sets, James carried 15 times for 81 yards in the second half, including 42 fourth-quarter yards.

Shaun Alexander gained just 26 yards on nine first-half carries, with FOX reporting that he was "banged up" heading into halftime. Not only did Alexander play in the second half, he carried the ball a ton right off the bat and ended up rushing 13 times for 50 yards after halftime. A late 11-yard run gave him an NFL-record 61 straight games with a 10-yard run, which Barry Sanders held (in fact, if Sanders returns from his retirement and breaks off a 20-yard run, he'll reclaim the record).

It was apparent on handoffs that Matt Hasselbeck had some trouble gripping the ball with his injured left hand, but his bum knee didn't look like a problem as he squirted free of pressure and scrambled for a long first down on third-and-11. Hasselbeck went 10-of-14 in each half and is thriving with all kinds of weapons at his disposal.

Not only was Adrian Wilson all over the field, making several big tackles, including the game-ending stop inches short of the first-down marker, he ripped Nate Burleson for his "applying sunscreen" touchdown celebration.

Going Forward

If Jackson is out Thursday and Bobby Engram remains sidelined, Deion Branch's fantasy stock will rise dramatically. Branch has basically been a WR3 since joining the Seahawks, but would be the clear-cut No. 1 receiver against the 49ers, with D.J. Hackett and Nate Burleson also seeing a value boost.

James was showing signs of life a month ago, but his breakout was delayed when the Cardinals inexplicably decided to abandon the ground game completely for a brief time. Now they're back to running and James has responded with back-to-back 115-yard efforts. In a season that once looked like a lost cause, James could prove to be an asset during the fantasy playoffs with relatively favorable matchups against Denver, San Diego, and San Francisco remaining.

Packers 30, 49ers 19
Game Recap by: Gregg Rosenthal

The Big Story

The Alex Smith sophomore meltdown hit a new low against one of the worst pass defenses in the league. While Brett Favre relieved old glory in San Francisco by finding Donald Driver early and often, the 49ers showed how ridiculous their playoff talk of a few weeks ago was.

Beyond The Box Score

Donald Driver (9-160-1) isn't supposed to have great long speed. But his 68-yard score was his sixth play over 30 yards this season. Driver has snuck into the top-five fantasy wideouts on the year and should keep it rolling next week against the Lions.

Smith (12-29-1-2) has David Carr disease. He's starting taking some 15-step drops and throwing the ball away when he has plenty of time. Smith's decisions weren't really the problem, though. He just underthrew passes and looked tentative all day. On one play, he threw exactly between Vernon Davis and Antonio Bryant when they were both wide open. His interceptions were thrown on plays where the 49ers had open receivers.

Frank Gore (19-130-1, 3-38-0) had a typical Frank Gore game. A 68-yard gain early set up his seventh 100-yard game in 13 weeks. His sixth lost fumble of the year marred his great day. What was very encouraging for Gore owners is that he played in short-yardage and goal-line situations. Maurice Hicks and Michael Robinson were non-factors

Fear the turtle. Vernon Davis (3-74-1, 1-9-0), the former Terrapin, is an absolute mercenary when he gets the ball in his hands. His weaving 52-yard score where he bounced off tacklers made him look like a man among boys. He also had a 35-yard gainer called because of a penalty and was open for a touchdown another time but Alex Smith underthrew him.

Antonio Bryant (1-39-0) didn't start because of a disciplinary measure, likely related to his DUI last month. Bryant later showed his displeasure with Smith's inaccuracy by stomping around the field like a fool.

Going Forward

Vernon Davis is a great pickup in all leagues that still have waivers. Once he learns the nuances of pro football, he'll be a TE1. Otherwise, the 49ers are strictly hands off.

Brett Favre just can't perform against above average defenses. But he's facing Detroit next week, which makes all of the Packers good fantasy plays.

Vernand Morency had seven carries for 69 yards, but most of the yards came in garbage time. He doesn't appear to be a serious threat to Ahman Green.

12-11-06, 05:27 PM	#1
Hache Man Moderator Seven Days Without Gambling Makes One Weak Join Date: Aug 19, 2005 Location: Orlando, Florida Posts: 52,523	Fantasy Football News 12/11/06 LT29 Chargers 48, Broncos 20 Game Recap by: Gregg Rosenthal The Big Story Remember when the Denver defense was one of the best in the league? After giving up 28 first half points, they surrended 20 more in the fourth quarter. LaDainian Tomlinson, you may have heard, scored three more times to set the NFL record with 29 touchdowns in a season. We are contractually obligated at this point to remind our readers we had Tomlinson ranked first all summer, with LJ number two. Of course Shaun Alexander and Ronnie Brown were third and fourth, but let's forget about that. Beyond The Box Score The Broncos did a decent job bottling up Tomlinson (28-103-3, 1-9-0) until garbage time. Of course, they did that at the expense of their pass coverage, which was hammered in single coverage. If Tomlinson is going to be mentioned with Peyton Manning and Drew Brees as a possible MVP, his effect on Philip Rivers is one reason why. And it's ridiculous Manning will probably finish third. Take him away from Indy and they are a 4-12 team. Philip Rivers (15/23-279-2-0) averaged over 12 yards-per-pass against the Broncos. With Keenan McCardell out, Rivers is using Vincent Jackson (3-95-1) more as a downfield threat. Rivers made great decisions all day and doesn't face an above-average pass defense the rest of the way. Rivers has finally learned that Antonio Gates (7-104-2) doesn't need to be open to make plays. Both of his touchdowns were on jump balls, the first of which came in double coverage. Gates abused John Lynch for a big chunk of the afternoon and will likely end up finishing this "down year" with 10 touchdowns and over 900 receiving yards. The Chargers were more creative than usual lining Gates up wide left, wide right, in the slot, the backfield, and everywhere in between. You can barely call him a tight end. The one positive in this game for Denver was the development of Jay Cutler (17/30-188-2-0). The Broncos knew they had to score plenty, so they started the game with a lot of shotgun and four wideout formations. After a rough start, Cutler was 13-of-19 in the second half for 152 yards and two scores. He brought the Broncos to within one score by putting up 17 third quarter points. The talent around Cutler isn't great and he was under a lot of pressure, fumbling three times, but it was a step forward. Tony Scheffler (3-66-2) caught his first career touchdown in the third quarter of Week 14, then caught his second one 48 seconds later on a tipped pass. The rookie should improve along with Cutler and will play a lot down the stretch. Tatum Bell (17-116-0, 4-15-0) is over his toe problems. But his lack of field awareness may have cost fantasy owners Sunday. On a 51-yard run, Bell stepped out of bounds as he was going for a certain 75-yard touchdown. Going Forward Bell is back to being an every-week start, and Javon Walker (4-52-0) owners have some hope for life after Cutler. Next week's matchup at Arizona should be a good one. You could do worse than Vincent Jackson if you are looking for a wild card play against the Chiefs next week. Kansas City gives up a lot of big plays and Jackson has great speed. Bills 31, Jets 13 Game Recap By: Evan Silva The Big Story The Bills are like a poor man's Bears, with a defense that creates turnovers, unpredictable quarterback play (although J.P. Losman is playing better than Rex Grossman of late), a sound running game, and scintillating special teams. The Jets had the ball most of the game Sunday but couldn't answer back as the Bills returned an interception 58 yards for a touchdown, Lee Evans caught a 77-yard deep ball for a score, and Brian Moorman put three punts inside the Jets' 20. Chad Pennington accounted for three turnovers and Cedric Houston ran in place as the Jets fell to 7-6. Beyond the Box Score Pennington (22-35-182-1-2, 4-19) was off his game, as he couldn't lead long drives while being swarmed by Aaron Schobel (three sacks, nine tackles). Schobel forced Pennington to fumble after a sack near the end of the third quarter. The Bills recovered at the Jets' 18-yard line and Losman connected with Robert Royal (2-13-1) four plays later for a six-yard touchdown to put Buffalo up 28-13 heading to the fourth. Willis McGahee (16-125-1) missed roughly a quarter and a half due to an illness he later attributed to an empty stomach. When McGahee was on the field, however, he was unstoppable, kicking off the scoring with a first-quarter 57-yard touchdown run and returning in the second half for gains of six, eight, 16, and 11 yards. Had McGahee not been under the weather, he likely would've approached 200. Anthony Thomas (15-42, 3-23) lost a fumble but continues to be the third-down back. Laveranues Coles (4-67-1) got off to a quick start but faded badly late. Jerricho Cotchery (5-32) remains a possession receiver. Chris Baker (2-17) has 12 receptions since Week 6. Evans (2-91-1) has developed a tremendous rapport with Losman on deep passes. Peerless Price (2-19) is still vying with Alvis Whitted to be the league's worst No. 2 receiver. Royal caught his 17th pass of the season Sunday. Cedric Houston (18-50, 1-7) had no room to run as the Bills' leaner, quicker defensive line beat the Jets off the ball most of the day. Leon Washington (7-55, 7-28) was more effective on 11 fewer carries and utilized often as an outlet for Pennington. Going Forward Pennington was pulled in favor of Kellen Clemens with less than two minutes remaining but his starting job won't be in jeopardy until the Jets fall out of the playoff picture. Clemens did not attempt a pass. He was sacked by Schobel. Cardinals 27, Seahawks 21 Game Recap by Aaron Gleeman The Big Story The Cardinals jumped out to an early lead and held it until midway through the third quarter, at which point the Seahawks did as most Cardinals opponents have done this season and went up 21-17. However, Arizona then flipped the script on its season, refusing to fall apart after a blown lead and instead scoring 10 straight fourth-quarter points before holding off a last-second Seattle drive for the win. Beyond the Box Score Darrell Jackson had a good second half, catching four passes for 52 yards while giving the Seahawks the lead with his NFL-leading 10th touchdown, but left late in the fourth quarter with a toe injury. It's unclear how serious the injury is as of Monday morning, but given Seattle's short week—they play San Francisco Thursday—it seems unlikely that he'll play ready to play at full strength. Edgerrin James got off to a slow start, but found the end zone after getting a rare goal-line carry and then racked up big yardage when the Cardinals uncharacteristically stuck with the running game late. Running behind an much-improved and revamped offensive line, plus a lot of two-tight end sets, James carried 15 times for 81 yards in the second half, including 42 fourth-quarter yards. Shaun Alexander gained just 26 yards on nine first-half carries, with FOX reporting that he was "banged up" heading into halftime. Not only did Alexander play in the second half, he carried the ball a ton right off the bat and ended up rushing 13 times for 50 yards after halftime. A late 11-yard run gave him an NFL-record 61 straight games with a 10-yard run, which Barry Sanders held (in fact, if Sanders returns from his retirement and breaks off a 20-yard run, he'll reclaim the record). It was apparent on handoffs that Matt Hasselbeck had some trouble gripping the ball with his injured left hand, but his bum knee didn't look like a problem as he squirted free of pressure and scrambled for a long first down on third-and-11. Hasselbeck went 10-of-14 in each half and is thriving with all kinds of weapons at his disposal. Not only was Adrian Wilson all over the field, making several big tackles, including the game-ending stop inches short of the first-down marker, he ripped Nate Burleson for his "applying sunscreen" touchdown celebration. Going Forward If Jackson is out Thursday and Bobby Engram remains sidelined, Deion Branch's fantasy stock will rise dramatically. Branch has basically been a WR3 since joining the Seahawks, but would be the clear-cut No. 1 receiver against the 49ers, with D.J. Hackett and Nate Burleson also seeing a value boost. James was showing signs of life a month ago, but his breakout was delayed when the Cardinals inexplicably decided to abandon the ground game completely for a brief time. Now they're back to running and James has responded with back-to-back 115-yard efforts. In a season that once looked like a lost cause, James could prove to be an asset during the fantasy playoffs with relatively favorable matchups against Denver, San Diego, and San Francisco remaining. Packers 30, 49ers 19 Game Recap by: Gregg Rosenthal The Big Story The Alex Smith sophomore meltdown hit a new low against one of the worst pass defenses in the league. While Brett Favre relieved old glory in San Francisco by finding Donald Driver early and often, the 49ers showed how ridiculous their playoff talk of a few weeks ago was. Beyond The Box Score Donald Driver (9-160-1) isn't supposed to have great long speed. But his 68-yard score was his sixth play over 30 yards this season. Driver has snuck into the top-five fantasy wideouts on the year and should keep it rolling next week against the Lions. Smith (12-29-1-2) has David Carr disease. He's starting taking some 15-step drops and throwing the ball away when he has plenty of time. Smith's decisions weren't really the problem, though. He just underthrew passes and looked tentative all day. On one play, he threw exactly between Vernon Davis and Antonio Bryant when they were both wide open. His interceptions were thrown on plays where the 49ers had open receivers. Frank Gore (19-130-1, 3-38-0) had a typical Frank Gore game. A 68-yard gain early set up his seventh 100-yard game in 13 weeks. His sixth lost fumble of the year marred his great day. What was very encouraging for Gore owners is that he played in short-yardage and goal-line situations. Maurice Hicks and Michael Robinson were non-factors Fear the turtle. Vernon Davis (3-74-1, 1-9-0), the former Terrapin, is an absolute mercenary when he gets the ball in his hands. His weaving 52-yard score where he bounced off tacklers made him look like a man among boys. He also had a 35-yard gainer called because of a penalty and was open for a touchdown another time but Alex Smith underthrew him. Antonio Bryant (1-39-0) didn't start because of a disciplinary measure, likely related to his DUI last month. Bryant later showed his displeasure with Smith's inaccuracy by stomping around the field like a fool. Going Forward Vernon Davis is a great pickup in all leagues that still have waivers. Once he learns the nuances of pro football, he'll be a TE1. Otherwise, the 49ers are strictly hands off. Brett Favre just can't perform against above average defenses. But he's facing Detroit next week, which makes all of the Packers good fantasy plays. Vernand Morency had seven carries for 69 yards, but most of the yards came in garbage time. He doesn't appear to be a serious threat to Ahman Green.