OUCH – THAT HURTS Vol. 15

No I’m not talking about yours or my FANtasy Football won-lost record. Nor am I going to discuss the different choices we have for presidential nominees. And I ‘m not even going to mention the ouchies that from time to time all of our kids or grandkids get.
What I do want to mention though is that THIS IS FANtasy FOOTBALL WEEK 11. What that means is EVERY ONE IS PLAYING HURT. After 10 weeks of 200-300 lbs (and more) full grown men slamming and crashing and doing whatever they can to stop the guy with the ball, every player in the NFL is playing hurt.
When you set your roster for week 11 make sure to read the info on each player. NO EXCEPTIONS. Well maybe one, some guy from Green Bay that refuses to play by the rules and is throwing 4-5 touchdowns each week. Probably could do the same throwing left-handed. And I’m sure his O-line isn’t letting anyone get within 30 yards of him. Would you? Probably could throw a TD between his legs, standing on his head and bouncing the ball off all of the other 11 players on defense. Betcha he goes number 1 on everybodys Player Rankings next year. Some guy named Rodgers. I was lucky to draft him on my two Flea Flicker teams. (Re: check my links at the end of this report). I also just read that he’s on pace to throw 350,000 yards and 437 TDs. This year!

 
Now, back to the band-aides. Every NFL team has either lost players for the year, or had to rest and heal some key players for a few games due to injuries. And some big names to boot. Kenny Britt made it through two games. I was planning on a big year from him. Tim Hightower made it though six. Earnest Graham-lights out. And just when Denver was about to proclaim Knowshow Moreno their feature RB, he decides to take a break, for the rest of the season. Even James Harrison, Pittsburgs’ very violent middle linebacker, who made a living at knocking out other players,  knocked himself out for several games. As I mentioned in a previous report, it’s a war out there.
You might ask, if everyone is hurt, why reseach the injury?  Here’s a couple of reasons.  If a QBs throwing hand has a broken finger-not good, you should think strongly of benching him. Unless you have Big Ben from the Steelers. He has a broken thumb but was lucky to catch a BYE this week. So he’ll have an extra week to heal but trust me, if Pittsburg played this week, so would Ben. If the broken finger is on your QBs’ non throwing hand, start him. If an RB has a groin or foot injury, sit him. He needs those body parts to get you FANtasy points. If his neck hurts a little, give him a pain shot and start him. Same with WRs. If they have foot or leg injuries , well that’s their bread & butter, it’s what they use to get us FANtasy points. Sit them. If they have a slight wrist ouchy, start them. Oh, don’t forget the Demoral. Then on the other side of the coin you have guys like Tony Romo who played a few games with a body cast and LOTS OF DEMORAL.  And this goes without saying, if your kicker has a broken foot and your not sure what to do, you probably should switch to FANtasy Bowling.

Most of the FANtasy leagues will say if a player is either Probable or Questionaable. Or what I like to refer as The Kiss of Death, A GAME TIME DECISION. The NFL states that each team must submit to the opposing team if a player is playing or not 1 1/2 hours before game time. That should give you time to make a switch if need be. However,  most NFL coaches will not disclose the extent of a players’ injury during the week. How dare they do that to us FANtasy players? If one of your players is listed as Questionable and your roster could afford it don’t start him. Another great tip is to go to the teams web site. On the NFL.com league you can click on the players’ info page and it will take you first to the team name and if you click on that it will take you to the teams actual web site where you get up to the minute injury reports. I’ve used that several times when not sure what to do. And when things just don’t or won’t go the way I planned I turn to this site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJaIDr8MRDI&feature=BFa&list=PL6B9E348D58CFB1A4&index=20

 We also have to consider the attitudes of the average NFL player. Here’s adirect quote from Detroit defensive tackle, Ndamukong Suh, “I like to punish the QB. I like to punish RBs for them trying to make plays on my defense.” Guess no one is trying to intentionally hurt the opposition in this league.

TIP OF THE WEEK: If you need a QB for the last few weeks ADD Tim Tebow. He is still available in a lot of leagues. I guess people still don’t believe he is a starting NFL QB. I have followed Tim for his 5 years as a Gator and now the last two in Denver. What I’ve always liked about Tebow is his attitude. He may not be fancy and/or polished. He may not have the best delivery (passing) techniques. But he DOES have the BEST attitude. And don’t they tell us that attitude is 90% of the game?  The guy FLAT OUT WINS. Two college championships. A Heisman trophy. And now after  five NFL games, he is 4-1 as a starter. He is also going to be good for at least one Rushing TD, unlike some of the greats like Brady and Rivers. Pick him up and enjoy the solid 20-30 FANtasy points he’ll get you each week.

So it’s week 11. In most FANtasy leagues there are only four more games to go. It’s time to either make a run for the playoffs or put your team in the best position to win those last two playoff games. With just a very few exceptions, using a key player that is only 75% healthy could  do more harm than good. Sometimes a second tier player that is 100% is better. Sometimes, not always, but stranger things have happened in this FANtasy year.
Stick to the basics. If you have a winning team, tweak it if neccesary. If not, leave it alone. If you are near a chance for the playoffs, let it all hang out. For that matter even if you are out of the playoffs, have some fun. Be a spoiler.  What have you got to lose if you pick up a Free Agent or two? Drop the lowest guy in points for the year. Of course just when you decide to do that, he racks up 35 points that week.  I tried to tell you at the start of the season that FANtasy Football brings on premature grey hair. Make sure to check each players’ Oppositions’ Ranking. This is one of the most valuable tools you can use. After 10 weeks of averages, go with the numbers. FANtasy Football is a numbers game. That’s all, don’t complicate it. Play with your head, not your heart.  And, if all else fails, make sure you start your own league next year so you get the first draft pick and you can draft Aaron Rodgers. I hear he’s projected to throw 57 more TDs, while he’s vacationing at Disney World during the off season.
For those of you brave souls that enjoys a laugh and are following my five teams, here are the links:
On
http://fantasy.nfl.com/league/349053/team/1       7-3
On
http://games.espn.go.com/ffl/standings?leagueId=359076       5-5
On
http://www.fleaflicker.com/nfl/league?leagueId=47203&teamId=497789      6-2
On
http://games.espn.go.com/ffl/standings?leagueId=206092      1-9   (Ouch) This is my so called experimental team and the experiment has still gone terribly wrong.   
On
http://www.fleaflicker.com/nfl/team?leagueId=116416&teamId=838261      2-3

HAVE A FANtastic WEEK 11

MIKE ON MONDAY

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