Fantasy and Reality

MVP

If you would have asked me 2 weeks ago I would have said Marion Barber, no questions asked. He was dominant and putting up exceptional numbers. However another NFC east running back has stepped up and ran to the top of the MVP race. Clinton Portis is not only putting up awesome numbers but running well at key points and late in the game to preserve leads on the road none the less. If the Cowboys get back to running the ball Barber will get back into the race. Another player to watch is Marshawn Lynch, who is playing very well and helped the Bills get to 4-1.

Rookie of the Year

Offensive

Chris Johnson and Matt Forte are my pick right now. Both of these guys have given huge lifts to their team and helped their teams win games. Johnson is splitting carries which is hurting his numbers but has made plays when it was his turn to play and running well late in games. Jeff Fisher is trying to save Johnson for late in the season when they are pushing deep into the playoffs. Forte has been exceptional and has allowed the Kyle Orton and the Bears passing attack to be effective. Others to watch as the season goes are DeSean Jackson and Felix Jones who have big impacts on their teams.

Defensive

: Chris Horton is the leader in the Clubhouse. He has been nothing short of stellar. He has 3 interceptions which is near the top in the NFL not just rookies. He also has 18 tackles from the safety position. Jerrod Mayo and Keith Rivers are also putting up solid number from the linebacker spot.

Coach of the year

Jim Zorn has made a huge splash. The Redskins have found a coach that meshes well with his players both scheme and personality wise. He led them to victory over the Cowboys and Eagles on the road. He has this team poised to make noise in the tough NFC east.

Never draft teammates at the same position

With combinations like Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh or Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin it isvery tempting to take both players during a draft especially when they are the best players on the board. However this can lead to serious issues down the road. The biggest problem occurs when that team enters its bye week. You now have to replace to studs and the chance of getting the points are very small. Also if the Injury bug hits their quarterback their production will diminish also.
Running backs are safer to have from one team. In most cases they are both no high draft picks and you have one as a handcuff incase the other gets hurt. Such is true for teams that have Marion barber and Felix Jones or Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor.

(images courtesy Getty images/AP Photo)

Avoid time splits

A team that has two or three running backs that could be tempting are situations to be avoided. Places like Seattle where Maurice Morris and Julius Jones look to share the load causes only problems. You will be forced to start one and hope that the player you started gets the carries and scores the touchdown. Also a situation like Cincinnati may look like a place where Rudi Johnson is the guy and maybe shares some time with Kenny Watson can and will be a time share. Also Chris Perry looks to be back in top form and should see a majority of the snaps on third down. The only way I draft a player in situations like these is if I can get them late in the draft and let them sit on my bench until a bye week or one player steps up and becomes the guy. Even then there are some other players with upside you can grab at the same time I’d rather have.

Sleepers

Denver’s Ground Game

Every year they have some running back that is productive and gives fantasy owners a nice boost. This year the talk surrounds Selvin Young who had a nice rookie campaign and only looks to improve on last season. However, Ryan Torain could have a fantasy impact assuming he is fully healthy. The Broncos consistently make an unknown back into a legitimate performer.

Alge Crumpler

Alge will make his way back into the elite tight end group. He is again paired with a mobile qb where Alge saw his biggest successes. Vince Young will take full advantage of Alge, especially with their lack of talent in the receiving core.

Kevin Curtis

Kevin Curtis put up solid numbers last year in Philidelphia with McNabb hurt for a good portion of the season. A healthy McNabb and Brain Westbrook taking pressure of the passing game will help Curtis be a breakout player this year.

Vincent Jackson and Chris Chambers

Vincent Jackson became a go to guy and touchdown machine in the playoffs for the chargers last season. The Addition of Chris Chambers also opened up oppertunties for Jackson and gave Phillip Rivers another target. They should both be very effective fantasy options and should help Rivers have a breakout season as well. Without Michael Turner the Chargers will throw more to spell LT.

Busts

Larry Johnson and Clinton Portis

These two guys have a ton of talent and should be fantasy studs year in and year out, however their always seems to be some issue that derails their season. They both play in passing deficient offenses. Also they are injury prone and losing a 1st round pick can significantly hurt your season.

Eli Manning

After the playoffs where Eli played really well, stock is way up on him, However Eli will revert back to his old self. The loss of Jeremy Shockey will hurt and the pressure of being the reigning champs will also bring a lot of pressure. This will cause Eli to be erratic and make throws he shouldn’t make.

Steve Smith

The Carolina offense has gotten significantly worse over the past couple seasons. Jake Delhomme has not played even close to the level seen in the super bowl run. This coupled with the addition of Jonathan Stewart to add to the ground game should take opportunity away from Smith. Smith still has no receiver to line up opposite him, thus he sees constant double team pressure. His latest tirade only worsens the issue. He will be missing two games for hitting his teammate.

The trade deadline proves to bring more thunder. Another all-star changed teams as the trade deadline passed Thursday. Manny Ramirez is now a Los Angeles Dodger, after much talk and complaining on Manny’s part, the Red Sox made his wishes come to fruition. As this deal happened the Pirates joined the party to make the trade work. The Pirates sent Jason Bay to Boston and the Pirates got prospects in return, including touted prospect Andy Laroche who joins his brother Adam in Pittsburgh.

In a move that shocked baseball fans and media alike the Detroit Tigers sent Future first ballot Hall of Famer Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez to the Yankees for Kyle Farnsworth who was pitching well of late. The move was made to fill the vacancy left by Jorge Posada’s injury that sidelined him for the season. The acquisition of Farnsworth will sure up the Tigers bullpen and Farnsworth could become the closer if newly anointed closer Fernando Rodney does not produce in the roll. This move will allow Brandon Inge to return to his old position and catch full time. Inge has been playing very well and is a big part of the tigers upswing after a terrible start. This is the latest trade in one of the biggest trading deadlines in recent history and i don’t foresee the trade barrage slowing down until the deadline passes

(images courtesy www.espn.com)

Tuesday Mark Texeira became the latest big name to swap teams before the trade deadline. The Braves got Casy Kotchman who was making strides and becoming a solid everyday first baseman. Kotchman is the player the braves coveted. They were also looking to aquire pitching and wanting top pitching prospect Nick Adenhart but the Angels were unwilling to part with Adenhart, however they were able to get Stephen Marek in addition to Kotchman who could provide help to the Braves pitching staff. This trade improves an already potent lineup. Texeira will provide power to the lineup and should produce a ton of RBIs with people like Torri Hunter and Chone Figgins getting on base in front of him. Texeira just wants to be part of team, “Hopefully I can just go over there and be one more piece of the puzzle.” The Angels were a title contender before the deal but they just catapulted themselves to the top of the list with this trade.

(images courtesy www.espn.com)

With the Playoffs gearing up to start Sunday, i figured now was as good of time as any to chime in with some thoughts. The western conference race should be awesome. I have never seen so many intriguing match ups from top to bottom. I think the best first round series will be between the Suns and Spurs. The Spurs are the defending champs but Shaq gives the Suns a different look and makes Duncan work hard on both ends of the floor. The other series I am really intrigued by is the Hornets and Mavericks. The Mavericks were shown up by the Warriors in the playoffs last year and they need to make up for that loss. However the Hornets have a similar style and MVP candidate Chris Paul. The east will have some great games as well. I really want to watch the Cavs and Wizards series. The Cavs and Lebron started their run to the finals last year by beating the Wizards. There has been some nice trash talk of late between these two teams and that should add to an already very interesting match up. That said heres how i see the Playoffs playing out. I think the Lakers will not have too much trouble with the Nuggets and should win no more the 6, probably 4 or 5. The Rockets will put up a fight but without Yao i don’t see them beating the Jazz. Suns and Spurs will be an epic battle but i think Amare will break out and win the series for the Suns in seven games. I think the Mavericks experience will out last the Hornets youth and the Mavs will pull out a tough series in 7. Shifting to the east the Celtics will sweep the Hawks, although people will start to learn the name Joe Johnson as he tries to beat the team that drafted him. I think the Wizards will beat the Cavs in 6 and Lebron wont be enough for the Cavs to advance. The Magic will win against Toronto with the Chris Bosh vs Dwight Howard will show off the NBA’s future in the front court. The Sixers will play well and make each game interesting but the Pistons should sweep with the outside chance the Sixers get a game in Philly.

The Second round will also bring some great games and awesome finishes. With the Lakers and Jazz meeting in round 2, The Lakers will edge out the Jazz in 7 games and make it to the Western Conference Finals where they will meet the Suns who will handle the Mavericks in 6. This will set up and amazing Western Conference Final. So many plot lines Shaq vs Kobe, Shaq vs Phil, Raja Bell vs Kobe. Should be an intense and thrilling series. As a Suns fan it hurts me to say this but the Lakers will win in 7 games.

As for the East the Celtics will beat the Wizards and face the Pistons who will take care of Orlando in round 2. The Celtics and Pistons will pit the 2 best teams against each other and will be one of the best series in a long time, maybe even since the days when Bird and Isiah used to match up in the 80′s. The Celtics will edge out the Pistons and keep the resurgence going in Boston.

This years playoffs will bring back the amazing basketball that was in the 80′s. With the Resurgence of the Lakers and Celtics along with the talented Pistons it will remind NBA fans of yesteryear (Bird, Magic, Thomas)

That said, the Lakers and Celtics will be one of the best NBA finals in the past 10 or so years. This will be the will of Kobe vs the 3 headed monster in Boston. This is the year Kobe goes into the the top 5 all time players and proves he can win without Shaq. He will be dominant and win the Finals MVP award.