UNCBears2010
September 11th, 2008, 01:33 PM
I'm the fantasy columnist for the UNC campus newspaper. This was my column this week. Comments, criticism, etc. is appreciated.
It is a nightmare scenario for all Fantasy Football players, your first round draft pick suffers a season-ending injury in Week One.
That happened to many fantasy players last Sunday, as Patriots quarterback Tom Brady tore his ACL in the first quarter of New England's game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The injury will have an effect all over fantasy leagues, increasing the value of some players, decreasing the value of others and raising a lot of questions.
The biggest impact of the injury is obviously on those who had Brady on their team. If that is the case for you, then you have several options.
First, look at your backup quarterback, if you have a guy like Jacksonville's David Garrard or the Texans' Matt Schaub, you should be fine, just find a backup off the waiver wire.
Speaking of the waiver wire, all owners that have any kind of quarterback issues should take a flier on Brady's backup, Matt Cassel. Cassel has never started a game in the NFL, but Bill Belichick is no dummy, he will put Cassel in a position to be successful. Other waiver options for Brady owners are Buffalo's Trent Edwards and Miami's Chad Pennington.
This also affects all of New England's receivers. Randy Moss is no longer the clear No. 1 fantasy receiver in the league. If you can trade him for a guy like Terrell Owens or Andre Johnson, it might not be a bad idea. Wes Welker also becomes somewhat of an unknown now, so I would keep an eye on him regardless of whether he is on your team or not.
The guys who see an increase in value with the Brady injury are New England's running backs. Laurence Maroney is a guy you might want to trade for if you can get a good deal for him. Also, Sammy Morris is a good free agent pickup for a spot start.
Week Two Stud: Frank Gore, running back, SF.
I wasn't high on Gore in the preseason, but Seattle's defense looked positively horrible last week in Buffalo.
Week Two Dud: Derek Anderson, quarterback, CLE.
Braylon Edwards has nagging injuries and Donte Stallworth will miss this game against Pittsburgh, and the Steelers look like the clear favorite in the AFC after week one.
Week Two Sleeper: Kerry Collins, quarterback, TEN.
Titans' starter Vince Young will miss a couple weeks with a knee injury, and Collins did take the Giants to the Super Bowl in 2000. He is a good temporary stopgap for Brady owners.
It is a nightmare scenario for all Fantasy Football players, your first round draft pick suffers a season-ending injury in Week One.
That happened to many fantasy players last Sunday, as Patriots quarterback Tom Brady tore his ACL in the first quarter of New England's game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The injury will have an effect all over fantasy leagues, increasing the value of some players, decreasing the value of others and raising a lot of questions.
The biggest impact of the injury is obviously on those who had Brady on their team. If that is the case for you, then you have several options.
First, look at your backup quarterback, if you have a guy like Jacksonville's David Garrard or the Texans' Matt Schaub, you should be fine, just find a backup off the waiver wire.
Speaking of the waiver wire, all owners that have any kind of quarterback issues should take a flier on Brady's backup, Matt Cassel. Cassel has never started a game in the NFL, but Bill Belichick is no dummy, he will put Cassel in a position to be successful. Other waiver options for Brady owners are Buffalo's Trent Edwards and Miami's Chad Pennington.
This also affects all of New England's receivers. Randy Moss is no longer the clear No. 1 fantasy receiver in the league. If you can trade him for a guy like Terrell Owens or Andre Johnson, it might not be a bad idea. Wes Welker also becomes somewhat of an unknown now, so I would keep an eye on him regardless of whether he is on your team or not.
The guys who see an increase in value with the Brady injury are New England's running backs. Laurence Maroney is a guy you might want to trade for if you can get a good deal for him. Also, Sammy Morris is a good free agent pickup for a spot start.
Week Two Stud: Frank Gore, running back, SF.
I wasn't high on Gore in the preseason, but Seattle's defense looked positively horrible last week in Buffalo.
Week Two Dud: Derek Anderson, quarterback, CLE.
Braylon Edwards has nagging injuries and Donte Stallworth will miss this game against Pittsburgh, and the Steelers look like the clear favorite in the AFC after week one.
Week Two Sleeper: Kerry Collins, quarterback, TEN.
Titans' starter Vince Young will miss a couple weeks with a knee injury, and Collins did take the Giants to the Super Bowl in 2000. He is a good temporary stopgap for Brady owners.