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
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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week 13
By Brett Malamud
Here’s week 13’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Houston Texans
Fitzpatrick had a great day on Sunday, throwing six touchdowns and 358 yards in Houston’s rout of the Titans.
Dud: Cleveland Quarterbacks
Down in the fourth quarter, the Browns brought Johnny Manziel into replace Brian Hoyer. Manziel rushed for a touchdown and in doing so, sparked some controversy in Cleveland. After announcing that Hoyer will start this weekend against the Colts, be sure that Johnny Football fans will be outraged for no good reason at a team that still has a winning record.
Stud: DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans
Hauling in most of Fitzpatrick’s throws was DeAndre Hopkins, who had 238 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Dud: Jets antics
The Jets are in a bad place right now. It was reported last week that head coach Rex Ryan was forced by the “higher ups” in the Jets organization to start Geno Smith at quarterback on Monday night against the Dolphins. Then the antics continued when the Jets announced the entire offense on the PA system, but didn’t announce Geno Smith. The speculation is that the Jets tried to avoid fans booing Smith.
Rex Ryan was forced to start Geno Smith this week. (Via AP)
Stud: Tre Mason, St. Louis Rams
Mason was great on the ground and in the air. He finished with 117 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Mason also added 47 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown.
Dud: Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
Romo didn’t throw a touchdown pass, but did throw two interceptions. He also threw for just 199 yards.
Stud: Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Brees hit nine different receivers in route to his 257 yards, five touchdown passing performance.
Dud: Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers
Kaepernick couldn’t handle the Seattle defense. He threw for just 121 yards and no touchdowns. He also threw a pair of interceptions in the 49ers Thanksgiving loss to the Seahawks.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Ten
By Brett Malamud
I was pretty impressed in many of this week’s performances. Of course, with great success from your team comes great failure from your opponent. Here’s week ten’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Marshawn Lynch, Seattle Seahawks
Beast mode is an understatement as Lynch was phenomenal against the Giants. He had 21 carries for 140 yards and four touchdowns. His fantasy owners must have been happy as he scored 40 points this week in ESPN standard leagues.
Marshawn Lynch had a huge week against the Giants, rushing for four touchdowns (Via Getty)
Dud: Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals
Dalton was awful on Thursday Night Football. He completed 10-of-33 passes and finished the night with just 86 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions. He’ll try to refocus for next week’s him matchup against the Saints.
Stud: Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Rodgers torched the Chicago Bears on national television Sunday night. He threw six touchdowns, with all six coming in the first half. He was pulled in the third quarter.
Dud: Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers
Brown’s numbers dropped off this week. He caught eight passes for 74 yards, which isn’t really that bad. Well why is he on the duds list then? Oh, that’s right. Brown had two lost fumbles, giving him just three fantasy points for the day in ESPN standard leagues
Stud: Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos
Were you expecting anything else? Manning threw five touchdown passes in the Broncos’ rout of the Oakland Raiders.
Dud: Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
Newton, who hadn’t thrown a touchdown pass since week 7, finally threw one to kelvin Benjamin for a score. The only problem? The Panthers were so far out of reach that the game didn’t matter anymore. Newton threw three interceptions and lost a fumble in a very shaky performance in week 10. He’ll return to Carolina to face a favorable matchup with the Atlanta Falcons in week 11.
Stud: Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys
After two straight games that had Bryant with less than 35 yards receiving, Dez came alive on Sunday in London. Facing the Jacksonville Jaguars, Bryant hauled in six catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns. He’ll head into the bye week this week.
Stud: New York Jets
Finally! The Jets took it to the red-hot Pittsburgh Steelers and came away with a 20-13 win for just their second win of the season. They’ll have a bye in week 11.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Nine
By Brett Malamud
Here’s week nine’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
Who saw this coming? Big Ben had yet another monster game this week, throwing six more touchdowns and a total of 340 yards. Over the last two weeks, Roethlisberger has racked up 862 yards and 12 touchdowns. He became the first quarterback in NFL history history to throw six touchdowns in two consecutive games. Fantasy owners will be pleased to find out that Big Ben’s next game comes against the New York Jets, who sit at 1-8.
Roethlisberger has been fantastic over the last few weeks (via USA Today)
Dud: Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
Again I can say…who saw this coming? Rivers was 12-for-23 with 138 yards and zero touchdowns. Rivers also threw three interceptions and lost a fumble.
Stud: Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots
The pair ends up on the Stud list for the second straight week. Highlighted by one of the best catches of the year, Brady and Gronkowski turned in a fantastic performance in a rout of the Denver Broncos.
Dud: Zac Stacy, St. Louis Rams
Stacy appears to have lost the starting RB job, finishing week nine with ZERO touches.
Stud: Matt Asiata, Minnesota Vikings
Asiata was a dominant force in the red zone this week. He had 10 carries for 26 yards and three touchdowns.
Dud: New York Jets
Not only did the Jets lose to push their losing streak to eight games, but when they arrived back in the locker room they got to see their former quarterback Mark Sanchez winning a game on the road for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Stud: Jeremy Hill, Cincinnati Bengals
Coming in for the injured Giovani Bernard, Hill was amazing, taking 24 carries for 154 yards and two touchdowns. With Bernard out this week, Hill will have the reigns against Cleveland on Thursday night.
Stud: Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia Eagles
Maclin scored another two touchdowns last week and finished with six catches, half the amount of catches he had in week eight, but finished with 158 yards
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Six
By Brett Malamud
There was a lot of good action out on the fields this week, including many big fantasy performances. The injury bug may have ruined some fantasy owners seasons, in addition to the players’ respective teams. Here’s this week’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
Flacco came out firing and finished the day going 21-for-29 with 306 yards and five touchdowns in route to a 48-17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Dud: Chris Johnson and Chris Ivory, New York Jets
The running duo for Gang Green were halted this week against the Denver Broncos. The pair combined for 11 carries and just 16 yards in the Jets 31-17 loss. I’d like to take this time to call out the offensive line too. They didn’t help the cause either.
Stud: T.Y. Hilton, Indianpolis Colts
Normally, you might see Andrew Luck here in the studs list, but not this week. Instead, his receiver T.Y. Hilton takes the spot after hauling in all nine of his targets for 223 yards and a touchdown.
Dud: Mike Nugent, Cincinnati Bengals
It not fun that one play can dictate whether you end up on this list or not. That’s the case here with Mike Nugent. The kicker Nugent came into the game this week for the last play of overtime between the Bengals and Carolina Panthers. Nugent kicked a 36-yard field goal wide right as the clock expired to end the game in a tie. Teammate Adam “Pacman” Jones wasn’t afraid to call out his kicker after the game.”We were in a perfect position to win the game, two seconds left on the clock, we’ve got to win the game,” Jones said. “Everybody in here gets paid to do a job and that’s what everybody needs to do.”
Mike Nugent Looked down in frustration after missing the game winning 36-yard field goal. (Via CBS Sports)
Stud: Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
Cam was the man this week against the Cincinnati Bengals. The quarterback finished with 284 passing yards and two touchdowns through the air. In addition, Newton had 17 rushes for 107 yards and a rushing touchdown.
Dud: Injured Wide Receivers
Victor Cruz, Calvin Johnson didn’t practice all week and missed this week’s game in Minnesota, nursing an ankle injury. Johnson was pulled just a week earlier after injuring the ankle in week five’s matchup against Buffalo. A.J. Green was taken off the practice field on a cart on Wednesday after hurting his toe. The Bengals wide receiver missed Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers and will also miss this week’s matchup against the Colts. The Giants lost their top wide receiver in Victor Cruz this week after he tore his patella tendon this week in the Giants’ matchup in Philadelphia on Monday night. Cruz will likely miss the remainder of the season.
Stud: Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles headed into this one fired up. They dubbed the game “the blackout” and wore their black uniforms. Philadelphia shut out the Giants 27-0.
Dud: New York Giants
Eli Manning didn’t look great, but I don’t think that it was his fault. The offensive line looked shut down this week, much like their New York counterparts, the Jets. The Giants also lost Victor Cruz for the season. They looked flat for most of the game and in the end, the G-men were shutout 27-0.
Stud: Tom Brady, New England Patriots
There were questions headed into this week about Brady’s health, but Tom Brady shut those questions down. He stepped into the AFC East matchup against the Buffalo Bills and fired four touchdowns over 361 passing yards.
Stud: Oakland Raiders
Now I know people will look at this and say, “Hey Brett, the Raiders lost,” and I know. Look at the other side of the field though. You’ll see the San Diego Chargers, a team that shutout the Jets 31-0 last week. Many including myself would argue that the Jets are a much better team than the Raiders despite their struggles. That said, the Raiders came into this one with a new coach in Tony Sparano and came within a field goal of the Chargers, ultimately surrendering a touchdown in the final two minutes of the game to lose 31-28. The winless Raiders should be proud of their effort this week, even though the outcome wasn’t in their favor.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Five
By Brett Malamud
This week, Peyton Manning came back in full force and the Jets ended their day with zero points on the scoreboard. Here’s week five’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos
Although he threw 2 interceptions, he finished with 479 yards and 4 touchdowns against a tough Arizona Cardinals defense. Next week, Manning heads into MetLife stadium for the first time since losing last season’s Super Bowl. The only difference? He’ll be facing the awful New York Jets defense rather than the Seattle Seahawks.
Dud: Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins
The Redskins just couldn’t get anything going on the ground against the Seattle Seahawks, and Alfred Morris’ stat line reflects that. Morris finished the day with 29 on 13 carries. Washington will take on the tough defensive team in Arizona, when they face the Cardinals.
Stud: Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos
Thomas set a franchise record against the Arizona Cardinals when he racked up 226 receiving yards on eight catches. Thomas will face the Jets and their weak secondary next week. Expect big points, fantasy owners.
Demaryius Thomas had a lot to celebrate this week after setting a franchise record this week (Via AP)
Dud: Chris Johnson, New York Jets
Johnson disappointed many this week, gaining just 24 yards on seven carries, and losing a fumble. Next, he’ll face the Denver Broncos and that doesn’t pose well for him.
Stud: Arian Foster, Houston Texans
Foster came off of a week in which he had six yards on eight carries, and impressed. He finished the day with 157 rushing yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns. In addition, he also had two catches for 15 yards against the Dallas Cowboys.
Dud: Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are still winless, falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers this past week by the score of 17-9. They dropped to 0-5 with the loss. Their schedule becomes much easier over the next three weeks, facing the Tennessee Titans at LP Field in Nashville, before coming home to face the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins. I’d like to think they’ll compete and escape one of these matchups with a win, but with the football that they’ve been playing lately, it’ll be a tough task.
Stud: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Playing on Monday Night Football, Wilson completed 18-of-24 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns. Normally that would be ok and could help to win a football game. But the ground game from Wilson added to his great performance. In addition to the passing game, he had 11 carries for 122 yards and another touchdown. He had two more touchdowns that were taken away by penalties.
Dud: New York Jets
The New York Jets thought that they were escaping from this studs and duds list, however they are not. The Jets were shut out 31-0 by the San Diego Chargers in a complete letdown out west. They’ll host the Denver Broncos next week, and I’d be shocked to see them compete with them after watching this week’s performance in San Diego.
Stud: Branden Oliver, San Diego Chargers
Coming in for the injured Donald Brown, Oliver had 114 yards on 19 carries with a touchdown in the Chargers’ rout of the New York Jets. In addition, he had four catches for 68 yards and another touchdown. He plays the Oakland Raiders next week in another favorable matchup.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Four
By Brett Malamud
Week four was full of blowouts, and it was pretty easy to point out the studs and duds of the week. The week began on Thursday night with a 45-14 Giants blowout in Washington, and ended with a 41-14 Patriots blunder in Kansas City on Monday night. It was quite the shock for many, and even though it feels like the season just started, the week could play a big role in the end of season standings for certain teams. Here’s week four’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Eli Manning, New York Giants
Eli Manning…a stud? In a shocking twist of fate, Manning finished the week leading the entire league in fantasy points with 32 (in ESPN standard leagues). Talk about a comeback. Eli threw for 300 yards and four touchdowns in what was nothing short of a blowout in Washington.
Eli’s Back! The Giants quarterback dismantled the Redskins defense this week. (Via NYDN)
Dud: Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Tom Brady…a dud? Yes, Tom Terrific wasn’t so terrific on Monday night in Kansas City. The future hall of famer fumbled twice and threw two interceptions. Brady also was limited to one touchdown pass on the day. Brady will not be able to produce anything positive if he’s stuck behind an offensive line that cannot protect him. He was replaced by Jimmy Garoppolo in the fourth quarter in the midst of a slaughtering.
Stud: Andrew Luck, Indianpolis Colts
This is the second straight week that Luck made the studs list, and for good reason. Luck threw for 393 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-17 crushing blow to the Tennessee Titans. Looking ahead, Luck will face the Baltimore Ravens, a team that ranks 24th against the pass, in Indianapolis.
Dud: Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins
This is proof that you can move from stud to dud in one week. Kirk Cousins did just that, after coming out flat against the Giants. Cousins threw four interceptions and lost a fumble. Looking ahead, Cousins could stay on the duds list for another week, as the Seattle Seahawks travel to Washington for a week five matchup.
Stud: Steve Smith Sr., Baltimore Ravens
Smith faced his former team, the Carolina Panthers, in Baltimore this week. A 61 yard capped off a day to remember for Smith. He finished the game with 139 yards and two touchdowns on seven receptions. Smith continues to produce for his new team, and leads Ravens receivers in all major categories.
Dud: LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia Eagles
For the man they call Shady, it was a very disappointing week. The 49ers were ranked seventh against the run headed into this game, and proved that ranking to be true this week. While Darren Sproles only had one carry for four yards, I felt that as a backup, it wouldn’t have been fair to be classify him as a “dud.” Instead I point at McCoy, who ran for just 17 yards on 10 carries. With that, McCoy has ran for just 39 yards on 29 carries in his last two games. I’d tip him about $0.20 for that performance.
Stud: Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs abused Tom Brady this week, and forced a fumble and two interceptions, one of which was returned by FS Husain Abdullah for a touchdown. The entire team was happy to have the return of Jamaal Charles, who scored three total touchdowns in the game. Looking ahead, the Chiefs now will look to pair Charles with Knile Davis, who took over the starting job while Charles was out of the lineup with injury, to create a one-two punch that many teams have this season in the backfield. They’ll travel into San Francisco next week before heading into their bye week.
Dud: Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders have a lot of work to do. The men in silver and black traveled to the beautiful Wembley Stadium in London, England, hoping for a last gasp of air before they head into their bye week. Unfortunately, they failed to get much of anything going. Rookie and starting quarterback Derek Carr suffered a high ankle sprain and sprained MCL and had to be replaced by third-string quarterback Matt McGloin. Why the third-string quarterback, you ask? Backup quarterback Matt Schaub didn’t travel to England with the team after his wife underwent an emergency c-section a week ago to deliver their baby several months prematurely. The team decided that it was best for him to stay home, rather than travel to London. That didn’t help the quarterback troubles. The day can be best highlighted by a shotgun formation snap in the third quarter that went about a foot to the left of Carr, landed behind him, and was scooped up by Dolphins CB Cortland Finnegan, who brought it back 50 yards for a touchdown. The game ended in a in a 38-14 Dolphins victory that sent the winless Raiders to 0-4 on the season. The bad news continued, as the Raiders announced Monday night that head coach Dennis Allen was fired. Allen was 8-28 as Oakland’s coach. An announcement on the interim coach is expected today. Many believe that offensive line coach Tony Sparano will be given the job, after he recently was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins from 2008-11, and has the most coaching experience of the likely candidates. We’ll see what ultimately happens but it’s a relief that the coach will have two weeks to prepare themselves with the bye week coming up.
Stud: Teddy Bridgewater, Minnesota Vikings
The rookie quarterback entered the day with high expectations and finished the day with no regrets. Bridgewater was excellent in the first start of his career, taking over for the injured Matt Cassel. The second round pick out of Louisville threw for 317 yards and rushed five times for 27 yards and a touchdown. He was carted off of the field with a sprained ankle but Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer remains completely optimistic that Bridgewater will start Thursday against the Green Bay Packers.
Stud: Terrance Williams, Dallas Cowboys
Tony Romo attempted just 29 passes in a run-heavy game for the Cowboys. But Williams made the most of his opportunities. The second year wide receiver was targeted a team high seven times, and he hauled in six of those for 77 yards and two touchdowns. As teams focus on stopping the Cowboys run game, Tony Romo will be given the option to pass. The man with the spotlight on him is Dez Bryant and with that, Williams should be able to produce a lot of strong stats moving forward.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Three
By Brett Malamud
In a week that almost saw Peyton Manning on the duds list, there were some exciting moments in a busy week three. While the Seahawks took down the Broncos in a rematch of last year’s Super Bowl, none of Seattle’s players made either of my lists this week. Here’s this week’s edition of Studs and Duds:
Stud: Julio Jones
Jones came into this matchup knowing that he was going to be Matt Ryan’s primary target, with Roddy White sitting out with a hamstring injury, and he was exactly that. Jones was fantastic, hauling in nine receptions for 161 yards and two touchdowns.
Dud: Stephen Tulloch
My first dud handed out for week three has to be Stephen Tulloch. The Detroit Lions linebacker had a great sack on Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on third down, in what was a very exciting moment in the first quarter. Tulloch was excited and opted to taunt rather than go back to the sidelines. While attempting the “Discount Double Check,” Tulloch leaps, lands awkwardly, and immediately goes down. As it turns out, Tulloch tore his ACL and will sit out for the rest of the season.
Stud: Andrew Luck
Andrew Luck was on point again, completing 31-of-39 passes. Luck completed passes to nine different receivers. The accuracy helped his stats, and he finished the day with 370 passing yards and four touchdowns.
Dud: Demaryus Thomas
Fantasy owner have been waiting for Thomas’ breakout game and they’ll have to wait another week. The number one Broncos receiver had four catches for 31 yards. He didn’t score any touchdowns, and heads into the bye week after an outing that was simply frustrating to watch.
Stud: Falcons Defense/Special Teams
The Falcons D/ST had themselves a phenomenal game, highlighted by a 62 yard, record-breaking punt return by Devin Hester. Hester scored his 20th career return touchdown, passing Deion Sanders for the top spot on the all-time return touchdowns list. The Falcons also had a 27-yard interception return for a touchdown and recovered four fumbles.
Dud: Larry Fitzgerald
What ever happened to the Larry Fitzgerald of old? Well, that’s what I’ve been wondering after he was virtually invisible over the first three weeks. This week, he had just three catches for 34 yards. He has yet to find the end zone this season and that doesn’t spell well for his fantasy owners.
Larry Fitzgerald is nowhere to be found this season. (Via AP)
Stud: Kyle Fuller
Fuller played a huge role under the bright lights of Broadway on a national stage. The rookie cornerback had an interception, two forced fumbles and seven tackles on Monday Night Football in a win over the Jets.
Dud: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Yes, the entire team belongs here. The Bucs got absolutely smacked by the Falcons last Thursday. They allowed a whopping 56 points on a total of 488 yards, with 344 yards coming from the air. Tampa Bay will also need to hold on to the football, after fumbling four times. They’re going to have a rough time in the final two games of their road trip in Pittsburgh and New Orleans if they continue to play like this.
Stud: Kirk Cousins
New game, same stud. Cousins has been great all season and this week was no different. Cousins threw for 427 yards and three touchdowns. If he keeps up to the pace that he’s at, Washington D.C. will have a lot to cheer about.
Stud: Nick Foles and Jeremy Maclin
Both Maclin and Foles deserve credit in their win over Washington, so I’m placing them together. The pair hooked up for eight receptions and 154 yards. Foles finished the day with 325 passing yards and three touchdowns.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
Studs and Duds: NFL Week Two
By Brett Malamud
The injury bug seemed to be going around NFL stadiums this week as star after star went down with injuries. Robert Griffin III will likely miss the rest of the season (or most of it anyway) with a dislocated ankle. DeSean Jackson, Jamaal Charles, AJ Green, and Knowshon Moreno all left the field with various injuries. Some players stuck out in good ways, and others in bad ways, prompting this weeks edition of studs and duds.
Stud: Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers saw his Packers down 21-3 halfway through the second quarter to the Jets. He led the charge in what was a wild comeback, throwing for 346 yards with three touchdowns, good enough for 27 fantasy points in ESPN standard leagues.
Dud: Colin Kaepernick
Kaepernick threw three interceptions and looked like he was trying to force passes, resulting in a tough loss at the hands of the Chicago Bears. He’ll try to bounce back in Arizona next week.
Stud: Brandon Marshall
Brandon Marshall was a game time decision headed into the Bears Sunday night contest in the inaugural game of Levi’s Stadium. Marshall hauled in three touchdowns on the most ridiculous catches.
Dud:Matt Cassel
Not much explanation needed here as Cassel chalked up four interceptions this week versus the Patriots. It’ll be tough to bounce back, as the Vikings head to New Orleans to face the Saints.
Stud: Antonio Gates
Antonio Gates was back to his old self on Sunday, racking up three touchdowns. The trend may continue, but based on his inconsistency, I would keep an eye on him as a fantasy owner.
Dud: Rob Gronkowski
Gronk was much of a disappointment this week. The Patriots tight end only lined up for 28 of their 67 snaps and finished with four catches for 32 yards.
Stud: Darren Sproles
What can you say about this guy? The former Saint looked right at home in his new offense, scoring a huge game-tying 19 yard rushing touchdown. But it wasn’t his rushing yards (four carries for 26 yards) that were the story, but rather what he did with the ball in the air. Sproles proved that he is still a threat when Nick Foles drops back to pass. Sproles had seven catches for 152 yards, which not only led all Eagles receivers, but led all receivers on Monday night.
Darren Sproles showed how valuable he can be to the Eagles last night in Indianapolis (Via Philly)
Stud: Kirk Cousins
Coming in off of the bench cold after Robert Griffin III departed with injury was no easy task for Cousins, although it looked that way. He proved that he can lead Washington’s offense while Griffin is out. 250 yards and two touchdowns in route to a 41-10 win over the Jaguars, is something that Cousins should be very proud of. We’ll see how he continues to play next week against Philadelphia.
Brett Malamud is a Computer Science 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
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