Sorry for the delay on this, but today was extremely hectic and I also received some news about a death in the family. Nonetheless, there are some interesting pickups this week and I wanted to give my take on the specifics. Last week was a slow week, but this week while there aren’t too many pickups, it’s quality over quantity. The Following are ranked in order.
Jon Baldwin, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Baldwin is another one of those young, big, extremely talented wideouts. This talent was displayed on Monday night when he caught that bomb from Cassell in the endzone. Baldwin finished with 5 catches for 82 yards and the score. He’s 6-4, 230, runs solid routes and is extremely athletic. As long as he stays healthy, Baldwin is going to have some nice games to end the year this season. He is a must-add in all formats.
Kevin Faulk, RB, New England Patriots
Faulk has been out a year and half, but last week he came right in and played more than any other New England back. Faulk had 6 carries and was targeted 5 times in the passing game. It looks like he will now be a factor once again. The Pats trust him in the passing game and in big spots, because Faulk has been in those situations time and time again. Look for Faulk to give you similar numbers to what Danny Woodhead produced last year making him a fairly nice add in PPR leagues.
Javon Ringer, RB, Tennessee Titans
Chris Johnson is shot out and the coaching staff is finally starting to realize this. He’s worn down from Fisher running him into the ground and obviously wasn’t in great shape coming into this season. It now looks like Ringer will get at least the split of the carries as he is out-producing Johnson. He makes for a decent flex in deeper leagues.
Heath Miller, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers
Heath Miller is back. I thought this guy was in his 30’s because he has been playing so long but to my surprise he’s only 29 years old. It appears Miller is healthy, he’s running solid routes and Ben has been targeting him a ton the last two weeks. I don’t think this is a 2 week hot streak, I believe Miller is going to be consistent for the rest of the season. He could finish the year as a Top 10 TE in PPR leagues.
Brent Celek, TE, Philadelphia Eagles
Brent Celek is back as well as he has returned to fantasy prominence. Celek has scored in back to back weeks and last week finished with 7 catches for 94 yards. Michael Vick historically has favored the Tight end and with defenses so concerned with Jackson and Maclin deep, Celek has been the benefactor. The Eagles and Vick have been heating up and Celek is joining them in that ride. Celek could have a strong finish to the 2011 season.
Laurent Robinson, WR, Dallas Cowboys
This is mostly for deeper leagues, but Robinson hasn’t been terrible this year. He has two games with over 100-yards receiving and last week found the endzone while finishing with 7 catches and 103 yards. Romo likes Robinson and while defenses are focused on Bryant, Austin and Witten, Romo is finding Robinson open.
Lastly I want to talk about adding some key backups now that we are 8 weeks in. Some guys you should be looking to add are Kendall Hunter, Dion Lewis, Ben Tate, Issac Redman, Phillip Tanner, Benard Scott and Chris Ivory. Now is the time to cut any waste on your team and get creative. All of these backs could step in and produce if there is an injury to the starter. We have mentioned some of these players in the past, but I specifically like Hunter, Lewis and Tate the most. Finally, we didn’t do our radio show tonight but will be on Wed or Thurs or both nights to review Week 8 and Preview week 9. You can check for updates at Blogtalkradio.com/Fantasy. Also Start Em Sit Em’s will be released on Thursday and the Rankings on Friday.
Fantasy Savvy 