Take It To The Bank- NFL Week Three
Another week is here and you know what that means! Here is week three’s installment of Take it to the Bank:
Take a Chance(llor)
After weeks of frustration in Seattle, strong safety Kam Chancellor ended his holdout and returned to practice this week. The Seattle Seahawks are 0-2 headed into their home opener on Sunday, and with Chancellor back in the mix, look for this defense to return to being one of the league’s best.
While we’re on the topic of the Seahawks, tight end Jimmy Graham made headlines this week when it came out that Graham was frustrated with his reduced role. Now as I pointed out a few weeks back, we knew that this would happen. With an elite running back like Marshawn Lynch, the Seahawks are destined to run the ball. Graham is being utilized as a blocker right now, but don’t expect him to NOT make an impact. Graham has the second most red zone targets (four) out of all of the league’s tight ends (New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has the most with five). Expect Graham to catch some for touchdowns. Now is the time to buy low on Graham.
Now is the time to buy low on Jimmy Graham (Via USA Today)
Fitz and the Tantrums
I think we were all shocked by the three touchdown performance by Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Now, this was against a weak Chicago Bears defense, but the hype is real. I believe that Larry Fitzgerald proved that he is not done yet. Expect a healthy dose of Larry Fitz as he takes on a weak San Francisco 49ers defense.
Devin’s Day
With news that New York Jets wide receiver Eric Decker is out this week, the number-two receiver slot is up for the taking. With Chris Owusu also out this week, timing couldn’t be better for second round pick Devin Smith to make his NFL debut. Smith was a long ball threat and speed receiver at Ohio State, and I’m expecting him to channel that with the Jets. You probably won’t see a big impact immediately, but with the possibility that Decker might miss multiple weeks, Smith could be a sneaky addition to your fantasy team in deeper leagues.
Matthews, Matthews, Matthews
With news of the Philadelphia Eagles setting DeMarco Murray inactive for week three, running back Ryan Matthews will get the start against the Jets. This is where I stay away, as the Jets have the fewest fantasy points allowed to opposing running backs. Then we head to the other Matthews for the Eagles at wide receiver with Jordan Matthews. This is my “buyers beware” player of the week. Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis will likely be on Matthews for the entire game. This matchup would essentially take Matthews out of the game and out of your lineup.
Brett Malamud is an English Rhetoric Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy
Take It To The Bank- NFL Week Two
The second week is here and there were many surprises in week one. From the four-touchdown game by Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota, to the 27-point fantasy outburst from Patriots Tight End Rob Gronkowski. We look back on those performances, and look ahead to the upcoming week with our weekly prediction column: Take it to the Bank.
AP Gets It Together
Last week, we watched as Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was held to just 31 yards on 10 carries. Not really the numbers that fantasy owners were expecting after almost all took him in the first round. This week, Peterson and the Vikings return home for the first time this season. I’d expect AP to get his regular workload and should make an impact against a Detroit Lions team who lost some big guys off their line this offseason.
Adrian Peterson looks to get back on track (Via Fantasy Pros)
It’s On Like Gronky Kong
This past week, Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan said that he may have to opt to put three defenders on New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. While I found this a bit humorous, I don’t really think that Rex was kidding. There will be times where Gronk has three players covering him. I’d expect Gronkowski to have a below average game, but anything is possible. Pats wide receiver Julian Edelman is expected to have a good fantasy outing, and Danny Amendola is a sneaky play this week.
Super Mariota
Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota was in for a huge week in week one, becoming just the second rookie quarterback ever to throw four touchdowns in his first career game. This week, Mariota turns his attention to the Cleveland Browns, who just allowed a big game to New York Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick last week. Expect big things for the rookie this week.
Macaroni and Brees
The search party is out for New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees this week. Listen, I know that he still threw for 355 yards last week against the Arizona Cardinals, but the stat that stood out to me was that Brees had only one touchdown pass on four trips to the red zone. Now while there is concern about Brees, the veteran will get to try in week two against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who allowed four touchdown passes in the first half to Marcus Mariota. We’ll see how much easier that makes it for Brees. Start him as normal.
Gurley Birds…Again
In case you haven’t heard, the St. Louis Rams have been practicing with running back Todd Gurley this week. The rookie halfback isn’t supposed to return to the lineup until week four after tearing his ACL last season at the collegiate level with Georgia. This is great news for Gurley owners, as it signals the possibility of a week three return. Currently, Gurley is listed as questionable for this week’s matchup against the Washington Redskins, but I’m not confident that Gurley will play this week. Look for Tre Mason to get the start at running back for the Rams.
UPDATE (Sunday 9/20 @ 11:30 AM): Gurley is inactive today. The Rams are targeting a week three return.
Brett Malamud is an English Rhetoric Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy
2015 NFL Season Predictions
By Brett Malamud
Football fans, your day has come. Today marks the the start of the NFL season. For many teams comes a fresh start, a clean slate. For others, comes a window of opportunity. As is tradition, the opening day of any of the big four sports leagues means that it is time for me to unveil my season outlook. Here’s my division and playoff picks for this year.
AFC
AFC East
| Team | Record |
| New England Patriots | 11-5* |
| New York Jets | 9-7* |
| Miami Dolphins | 8-8 |
| Buffalo Bills | 6-10 |
NE- Tom Brady’s “suspension” would have been a major blow but now that they’ll have him for all 16 games, the Patriots are the team to beat.
NYJ- The Jets made some major acquisitions this offseason in Revis, Cromartie and Brandon Marshall, just to name a few. Losing Geno Smith for a few weeks will hurt, but with an easy schedule, the Jets will coast.
MIA- The Dolphins defense will carry them, but ultimately the AFC East will be run by the Patriots and Jets.
BUF- Last year I wrote: “Sammy Watkins could be a great addition but it doesn’t mean anything if he doesn’t have a strong QB.” The same holds true for this season. LeSean McCoy will help, but they’ll need that next level quarter back if they want to take the next step.
AFC North
| Team | Record |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 10-6* |
| Baltimore Ravens | 8-8* |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8-8 |
| Cleveland Browns | 5-11 |
PIT- This Steelers offense will be ready to go deep into the playoffs
BAL- I feel like the Ravens have an easy schedule right in the middle of the season, but at the end of the season they won’t be able to get it done.
CIN- Andy Dalton and AJ Green will carry the team, but will fall just short of the playoffs.
CLE- I’m not sure that Johnny Football and Josh McCown have what it takes to bring the Browns very far. They’ll struggle.
AFC South
| Team | Record |
| Indianapolis Colts | 11-5* |
| Houston Texans | 7-9 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 6-10 |
| Tennessee Titans | 5-11 |
IND- Last year’s prediction: “Andrew Luck will lead one of the top offenses in the league on a journey that could go deep into the playoffs.” Ditto this season.
HOU- I think that this is the year that Houston takes the next step. This will be a fun defense to watch. Watt rushing from one side, Clowney from the other side, and Wilfork up the middle. Scary.
JAX- They still have much room to improve but Bortles will be good this year.
TEN- Marcus Mariota will help, but not in this division.
AFC West
| Team | Record |
| Denver Broncos | 11-5* |
| San Diego Chargers | 9-7* |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8-8 |
| Oakland Raiders | 4-12 |
DEN- I think that Peyton is still a top quarterback, and he’ll carry them back to the playoffs again.
SD- Philip Rivers will have another good year, and Melvin Gordon will be a top 10 rusher.
KC- I like this team but can’t take them to go into the playoffs. Jamaal Charles will be a top 5 rusher though.
OAK- Another year, another tough schedule. Sorry Raiders fans but the AFC West is tough.
NFC
NFC East
| Team | Record |
| New York Giants | 10-6* |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 9-7* |
| Dallas Cowboys | 7-9 |
| Washington Redskins | 5-11 |
NYG- This is the year of the Giants. I think that Eli is back (Yes, really.) and OBJ will have another huge year.
PHI- I really like the Eagles this year. Sam Bradford is due for a great year and the running game led by DeMarco Murray will dominate the league
DAL- The Cowboys will be ok this year. The loss of DeMarco Murray will show though.
WAS- A QB controversy will overshadow this season, and that will be the downfall of this Redskins squad.
NFC North
| Team | Record |
| Green Bay Packers | 12-4* |
| Minnesota Vikings | 8-8* |
| Detroit Lions | 7-9 |
| Chicago Bears | 6-10 |
GB- Aaron Rogers will be the top NFC QB. Period. He’ll lead the Jordy Nelson-less Packers on another deep playoff run.
MIN- AP is back and that means big things for the VIkings. Teddy Bridgewater must rise to the occasion though.
DET- The loss of Suh will hurt but not too much. Matt Stafford will still lead the Lions offense to a seven win season.
CHI- Brandon Marshall is gone. While many Bears fans think it’ll be a good thing, I’m saying that it won’t be. They’ll struggle.
NFC South
| Team | Record |
| New Orleans Saints | 10-6* |
| Atlanta Falcons | 8-8 |
| Carolina Panthers | 6-10 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5-11 |
NO- I think that the Saints will be the top team here.
ATL- I believe they’ll scratch their way to .500
CAR- Kelvin Benjamin will be missed. Not sure that Cam Newton can get much done without him.
TB- Jameis Winston will come in and will be pretty good. Not to many pieces around him though
NFC West
| Team | Record |
| Seattle Seahawks | 13-3* |
| Arizona Cardinals | 7-9 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7-9 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 4-12 |
SEA- They’re still elite. The addition of Jimmy Graham doesn’t hurt either.
ARI- It’ll be interesting to see this team. Carson Palmer is aging though and so is Larry Fitzgerald
STL- Nick Foles comes in and I like him this season. Todd Gurley will make noise when he plays too.
SF- Carlos Hyde will power this team. Kaepernick won’t. Since their entire defense left, I’ll take them out of the playoff picture.
*Denotes that the team will clinch a playoff spot
AFC Championship
I’m going to take the Colts over the Patriots
I think that the Colts get to the Super Bowl after a rematch of last season’s AFC Championship.
NFC Championship
Packers over Seahawks
I know. I’m big on the Packers this year, but for good reason. Eddie Lacy gets it done in Seattle and powers the Packers into the Super Bowl.
SUPER BOWL XLIX
Colts over Packers
In a battle of the QB’s, Andrew Luck comes out on top. TY Hilton catches three touchdowns and is named Super Bowl MVP.
Andrew Luck will lead the Colts to a Lombardi Trophy (Via AP)
I hope that everyone enjoys this NFL season. Stay tuned in to Dabuzzza this season as we bring you weekly analysis and fantasy football picks.
Brett Malamud is a English Rhetoric Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy
Take It To The Bank- NFL Season Kickoff
By Brett Malamud
Another NFL season is finally here! In seasons past, we have published our season predictions on the opening night of the season. Don’t worry! Those will be published on Sunday. However, over our first two years, we’ve received multiple requests for fantasy football advice. Well today, we’ll be introducing a new weekly section called “Take it to the Bank” where we’ll offer up a few bold predictions for the upcoming week. We hope that this section helps you in those last-minute lineup-tinkering situations. We’ll start off week one with a few bold predictions for the entire season. Enjoy tonight’s season kickoff and here is the first installment of Take it to the Bank:
Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood
We’ll begin with the question brought up recently in Wisconsin. Can quarterback Aaron Rodgers win a Super Bowl without top target wide receiver Jordy Nelson? The short answer is yes. The Green Bay Packers are extremely deep and Rodgers is still going to be one of the league’s top quarterbacks. Rodgers still has top wide receivers in Randall Cobb and Davante Adams, along with a fantasy sleeper pick in tight end Richard Rodgers. But wait, there’s more! Running back Eddie Lacy is the top fantasy pick out there in my opinion and will help Rodgers power this team deep into the playoffs.
The Newest Seahawk
Tight end Jimmy Graham was shipped out west this offseason and joins a hungry Seattle Seahawks offense, which fell one yard shy of a Super Bowl title last season. Will the offense succeed? Yes. But don’t expect Graham to put up the numbers that he did in his time with the New Orleans Saints. Thanks to running back Marshawn Lynch, the Seahawks will run the football A LOT. New Orleans ran a very pass heavy offense and that is where Graham found his success. I’m not saying to beware of Graham in fantasy because he’ll still be reliable, but I will say don’t overvalue him.
The Book of Eli
The last year has been a shaky one for New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning but I think that we’ll see the Eli of years past this season. I’m not saying that they’re Super Bowl bound, because the Giants still have some work to do, but it’ll be a noticeable improvement. Wide receivers Odell Beckham Jr., Victor Cruz and Ruben Randle (a sleeper that you should take in the last round of your draft) and tight end Larry Donnell give Manning an arsenal of weapons to throw to. With no clear cut top running back, look for Eli to throw the ball more and return to his old self this season.
Turn Down for Watt
The Houston Texans D/ST is definitely a unit that you want on your team if you can’t grab the Seahawks defense in your draft. With defensive end J.J. Watt and outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney rushing from either side, this defense is scary. I’d also take a look at the New York Jets defense if you can’t get Houston or Seattle due to their stacked offensive line and upgraded secondary.
The duo in Houston will be a force to be reckoned with (Via SBNY)
Gurley Birds
I am putting this in writing. Todd Gurley will be a great addition to any fantasy football team. He’s slipping in fantasy drafts due to the torn ACL he suffered last November, but as the saying goes, buy low and sell high. I managed to grab Gurley at pick number 86 and for good reason. The St. Louis Rams going to be back in action around week four, and should be a force for the rest of the season. Take him on your team, sit him on the end of your bench while he’s out, and then you’ll have the last laugh come playoff time in your league.
Brett Malamud is an English Rhetoric Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy
Follow Us!
Dabuzzza 