Fantasy Week 4 - Who’s In? Who’s Out?

September 24, 2008 at 7:32 am | Article by Paul Hickey |

Fantasy Week 4 - Whos In? Whos Out? Just when fantasy owners thought things couldn’t get any crazier this season, Week 4 hit with full force. We’re not even halfway to game day, and there have already been several line-up changes. While all of them have an impact of some sort, perhaps the most intriguing change is that rookie Rashard Mendenhall will make his first career start in place of the injured Willie Parker (knee) on Monday night.

During a season when rookie RBs Darren McFadden, Jonathan Stewart, Kevin Smith, Steve Slaton, Chris Johnson, Felix Jones, Tim Hightower and Matt Forte have combined for 13 touchdowns already, only two rookie RBs with fantasy value have yet to score - Mendenhall and Baltimore’s Ray Rice. Those two square off on Monday night, and Mendenhall will get a chance at 20 carries as the Steelers’ starter. Make no mistake about it folks, this is a HUGE opportunity for the rookie from Illinois to prove to his doubters that he can be productive and hold onto the football. He faces a tough Ravens defense who haven’t allowed more than 60 yards rushing to any one RB this season. He is also running behind an offensive line that seems to have lost some confidence over the last two ball games. The good news, however, is that he’ll see the bulk of the rushing load, and do so at Heinz Field - where the Steelers are next to unstoppable.

Look for Mendenhall to take advantage of his opportunity this week and join the group of other successful rookie rushers. If he’s available in your seasonal leagues, go get him now, and if you’re a dynasty owner of number 34, there will be a lot riding on Monday night’s game for you, as Mendenhall needs to carve out a roll for himself and this is the perfect opportunity for him to do just that.

Staying in the same state for a moment, the report on stud RB Brian Westbrook’s ankle injury is that it is very likely an ankle sprain of the “high” variety, and that isn’t referring to Dave Chappelle in Half Baked. Rather, it could very well mean Westy is out for Week 4, and even if he tries to give it a go against the Bears, he likely won’t see much success. Look for veteran Correll Buckhalter, who played well in Week 3 in Westy’s absence, and second year man Lorenzo Booker to see significant time regardless of whether or not number 26 suits up. Making this difficult for fantasy owners is that the Eagles-Bears match-up is NBC’s Sunday Night game, meaning many line-up decisions will have to be submitted without knowing Westy’s status. This usually results in a scenario where we tell folks to avoid all Eagles RBs in Week 4.

Jeremy Shockey is out for three to five weeks with a sports hernia, and while initially this may seem like horrible news for Drew Brees, we’re actually not that concerned. Brees has spread the ball around so much this season, and Shockey has yet to reach the end zone. Brees is still a must start, and Billy Miller is likely to step in and be the top TE in the passing game in New Orleans, making him pretty darn fantasy-worthy at this point in the season. Another TE worth picking up for Shockey owners is Jets’ rookie Dustin Keller, who had a mini coming out party against San Diego on Monday night, hauling in four passes for 41yards and a score.

St. Louis front man Scott Linehan has announced that old man Trent Green will be the Rams’ starting signal caller in Week 4 against the Bills and not Marc Bulger. Honestly, this should make any difference what-so-ever with regards to the team’s chance of winning, and shouldn’t really have an impact on Rams studs Torry Holt and Steven Jackson. Look for TE Randy McMichael to maybe be a little more involved with Green at the helm, and we’re intrigued by rookie Donnie Avery, who caught three balls for 24 yards in Week 3 at Seattle. Owners in incredibly deep leagues could consider picking up Green, but he’s no better an option than Brian Griese in Tampa or Kyle Orton in Chicago.

More changes to come?

With stud RBs LaDainian Tomlinson, Adrian Peterson and Darren McFadden firmly supplanted back in their team’s starting line-ups after fighting through nagging injuries in Week 3, there may be a new set of former fantasy starters that could find themselves on the pine soon - and both happen to be signal callers. Although Browns head coach Romeo Crennell has named Derek Anderson as his starter in Week 4 against Cincy, he’s one or two more mistakes away from eating pine in favor of Brady Quinn. Same with Texans QB Matt Schaub, who we believe will be benched in favor of Sage Rosenfels if his play doesn’t improve very quickly. Consider putting Quinn and Rosenfels on your free agent short list for next week. Donte’ Stallworth - quad injury - could return in Week 4 for the Browns, who desperately need an offensive boost.

Also, don’t forget that the Seahawks are on a bye this week. What does this mean? It means now is the time to go pick up Bobby Engram and Deion Branch off of waivers, and rid yourself of all other Seahawks pass catchers. The organization has said all along that Branch and Engram are expected back full strength in Week 5 against the Giants. With Julius Jones running the ball well, and Matt Hasselbeck’s two favorite targets returning, now would be the time to buy low on Hass as well.

We’re hearing the Chiefs could be ready to dump the Tyler Thigpen experiment and go back to Damon Huard this week against the Denver Broncos. If this is the case, consider Tony Gonzalez a must start, and consider Dwayne Bowe a great sleeper against an inadequate Broncos secondary.

Lastly, Eric Mangini is saying Brett Favre will play against the Cardinals despite rolling his ankle on Monday night against the Chargers. Look for Chansi Stuckey, Jerricho Cotchery and even rookie TE Dustin Keller – who caught four balls for 41 yards and a TD in Week 3 – to be solid options in deep leagues.

Looking for more solid fantasy advice? Sign up for the USP today and let us help you win your leagues. It’s not too late!

Subscribers get the following for only $9.99 a year:

- Unlimited year-round personalized line-up advice and team management advice.
- Updated printable draft kit rankings leading up to your drafts.
- Rankings include multiple scoring systems for Seasonal, Keeper and Dynasty formats.
- Rankings also include both IDPs and team defenses.
- Updated customized printable weekly cheat sheets during each week of the NFL Season.
- “Sunday Brunch” - including last minute inactives and game-day updates every Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET.
- Exclusive information, including bonus “Our Sources Tell Us” blurbs and more.
- For a limited time, subscribers get a free Rototimes.com Guide To Winning Fantasy Football.

HOW TO SIGN UP AND GET STARTED:
The Ultimate Strategist Package forum is handled in a private paid-access sub-forum on the No-Offseason.com Forums. It’s an easy process with only a few steps, and you’ll be well on your way to insider-quality advice to give you the fantasy edge.

Simply register for the No-Offseason.com Forums (or login if you’re already a member).
New members need to merely follow the on-screen instructions. New accounts will be confirmed in e-mail, and you’ll be ready to login! Current forum members can skip this step.
After logging into the forum, visit the Payments page.
Instructions for placing an order for the USP service will appear on the screen. On the “COST” drop-down menu to the right, select the $9.99 option, and then click “ORDER”. You’ll confirm one more time, and select the Paypal payment processing.
You’ll be taken to a Paypal.com payment page, where you can either pay with your Paypal account or with a debit/credit card (joining Paypal is not required). Paypal is a secure payment processor. Once the payment is processed (it should be instant for most Paypal payments), you can log into the forum and visit the private-access Ultimate Strategist Package area.
Post your questions, and prepare to be given the hot answers you need to win.