We Were Right About, We Were Wrong About…

September 7, 2008 at 6:48 pm | Article by Paul Hickey |

We Were Right About, We Were Wrong About... We were uneasy about Patriots QB Tom Brady this week, and he went down early with a knee injury. We were also extremely high on Eagles QB Donovan McNabb and Lions signal caller Jon Kitna in Week 1, and they came through for us huge. Find out where we went right, and where we steered owners wrong in Week 1.

We Were Right About…

Donovan McNabb, Eagles QB - Not only did we name McNabb as one of our top comeback players in 2008, but we also made it very clear that he’d be a top QB in Week 1, naming him as our top sleeper at the position this week. He took advantage of a great match-up against the lowly Rams defense, tossing the rock for 361 yards and three scores. Who says he doesn’t have weapons? He found Brian Westbrook, Hank Baskett and LJ Smith for scores, while finding rookie DeSean Jackson six times for 106 yards. Look for McNabb to cool off a bit next week on Monday Night Football against a very solid Cowboys defense.

Jon Kitna, Lions QB - Like McNabb, we also named Kitna as one of our top sleeper QBs of the week. The game was a shootout, with the Lions playing from behind - just like thought - and Kitna threw for 262 yards and two scores. He could have another solid week against the Packers next Sunday.

Tom Brady, Patriots QB - We advised owners to be very wary of Brady this week, due to health issues. Sure enough, he went down with a torn ACL in Week 1 against the Chiefs. He’s out for the season folks, so look for more in-depth content from us throughout the week as to what exactly that means for the Patriots. Matt Cassel stepped in and threw for 152 yards and a score in his absence.

Reggie Bush, Saints RB - With many fantasy football websites down on the Saints runner, we had faith and remained extremely high on him in PPR leagues this week. In a solid match-up at home against the Buccaneers, he hauled in eight passes for 112 yards and a score, while rushing for 51 yards. We also like him a lot next week against Washington, in what could be a shootout.

Jonathan Vilma, Saints LB - We told fantasy owners that Vilma would resurrect his career with the Saints, as their starting MLB in a 4-3 defense. So far, so good, as he racked up a team high seven solo tackles and two assists, giving his IDP owners something to smile about.

Larry Johnson, Chiefs RB - In our video content, and our weekly RB questions article, we warned owners not to lean on Larry Johnson against the tough Patriots defense in Week 1. He rushed 22 times for only 74 yards, but should bounce back against Oakland in Week 2.

Felix Jones, Cowboys RB - Well, we had a feeling he’d make an impact in his NFL debut, and in limited touches, he had a very impressive 18 yard TD run. Let’s face it, he looked like Barber, and when we all saw the “2-8″ on the jersey instead of the “2-4″ - we were all surprised it was Jones. The kid is versatile, and worthy of starting at a flex spot every single week in deep leagues.

Steven Jackson, Rams RB - We told fantasy owners to avoid SJax in Week 1, following a prolonged holdout during training camp and the pre-season. He responded by rushing 14 times for only 40 yards and catching three balls for 34 yards - nothing to write home about at all.

Willis McGahee, Ravens RB - When McGahee went in for arthroscopic knee surgery just a few short weeks ago, we knew he’d be useless to fantasy owners in Week 1. It’s sad though, because when healthy, he’s a perfect fit for what Cam Cameron is trying to do in Baltimore. Although there were some bright spots, and Baltimore ended up beating the Bengals, we weren’t very impressed with performances by rookie Ray Rice, WR Derrick Mason and TE Todd Heap. Look for Rice, and Le’Ron McClain - who rushed 19 times for more than 80 yards - Mason, Heap and Mark Clayton - who had a 42 yard TD scamper - to have solid outings against the Texans next Sunday.

Chad Ocho Cinco, Bengals WR - New name, new results. Chad sucked in Week 1, and we called it. Bad match-up against Baltimore, bad shoulder and a bad ankle equals - a bad Chad. The name on the back of his jersey didn’t matter, as he only caught one pass for 22 yards.

Chris Johnson, Titans RB - He started the game, even though LenDale White was announced as the “starter,” he rushed the rock 15 times for 93 yards, and caught three passes for 34 yards and an impressive score. Not only that, but the phenomenal rookie from East Carolina also returned from a scary looking leg injury to finish the ball game. Look for Johnson - who we’ve jocked hard since the NFL Draft - to have a very solid season and potentially become a must-start every week in 2008.

Fred Taylor, Jaguars RB - Quite simply, we said AVOID HIM, and he only garnered 27 total yards from scrimmage. Enough said.

Calvin Johnson, Lions WR - Although the king of nicknames, “Megatron” and “Bolt” didn’t get into the end zone, he still produced, catching seven balls for more than 100 yards in Week 1, and should remain in all fantasy line-ups in Week 2 against the Packers.

Kevin Walter, Texans WR - We listed Walter among our sleeper WRs for Week 1, and he made us look great, hauling in three passes for more than 40 yards and a score against a tough Steelers D. We also called Matt Schaub a solid sleeper, and the signal caller rushed for a score, making himself a solid option for all owners in Week 1.

David Patten, Saints WR - Even though the veteran only had one catch in Week 1, it counted. His 39 yard TD reception from Drew Brees proved that we were right about the fact that he’d be a deep sleeper WR3 in super deep formats.

Anthony Fasano, Dolphins TE - We’ve jocked Anthony Fasano as a fantasy sleeper since NFL Draft day when he was dealt to the Dolphins. After eight catches for 84 yards and a score in Week 1, we were right about Fasano. Is he the next Jason Witten? Quite possibly - and he has a great match-up next week against the Cardinals.

Darrelle Revis, Jets CB - The Jets’ 2007 first round pick had a modest three tackles, but hauled in the game clinching interception, putting a smile on the faces of “big-play” IDP owners. We haven’t waivered on Revis, keeping him in our top 10 DB rankings throughout the entire off-season and pre-season.

Cortland Finnegan, Titans CB - Throughout the entire off-season, in our video predictions and in our Week 1 IDP Questions article, we made it very clear that the Titans’ third year cornerback Cortland Finnegan was the man to own and start not only in Week 1, but during the entire 2008 NFL season. So far, after five solo tackles and two interceptions in Week 1 against Jacksonville, we’re right about Finnegan.

Curtis Lofton, Falcons LB - Although we were very clear that we really like Lofton to become an IDP stud at some point this season, and we love him in dynasty formats, we stated on our video predictions for Week 1 that Lofton hasn’t yet earned the starting MLB gig from Tony Taylor, and probably shouldn’t be in fantasy line-ups just yet. Sure enough, he only had three solo tackles, a number he’ll surely improve upon as the season goes on.

Chris Cooley, Redskins TE - Cooley had one reception in Week 1 against the Giants. We knew it would be a tough start in Jim Zorn’s new offense, and wow - was it ever. Next week should be different at home against New Orleans.

Chris Chambers, Chargers WR - We mentioned Chambers would be a very solid WR3 in deep leagues this week, and a 44 yard TD reception from Philip Rivers solidified that prediction. We were also right about his teammate Vincent Jackson, who caught three balls for 47 yards and a score. We called VJax “this year’s Brandon Marshall” - and while the verdict is still out on that, he’s off to a good start.

Justin Tuck, Giants DE - Four tackles, two assists, and a sack on the Giants’ first defensive play from scrimmage in the 2008 season means so far we’ve made good on our prediction that Justin Tuck would be a top five fantasy defensive end in 2008. He should be in all IDP line-ups all season long.

LaRon Landry, Redskins FS - We expected solid tackle numbers from the second year safety from LSU, and he racked up five solo tackles, one assist and a half of a sack (that should have been credited as a full sack, as he got to Eli Manning first on the play).

Aaron Ross, Giants CB - We really like the second year CB from the University of Texas. He should be utilized well in Steve Spagnuolo’s defense all season, and be a valuable IDP in both tackle-only and big play IDP leagues. He recorded seven solo tackles and an assist against Washington in Week 1 - solid digits that can be expected from him all season if he stays healthy.

Brandon Jacobs, Giants RB - While many were down on big BJ this off-season, citing Ahmad Bradshaw as a threat to his carries, we knew he’d be the man. Bradshaw is fool’s gold, and Derrick Ward is the true back-up there, as we predicted as well. Big BJ looked phenomenal, wrecking the Redskins’ defense for 116 yards on 21 carries. He should absolutely murder St. Louis’ defense in Week 2.

Lee Evans, Bills WR - One thing we wrote about the 26 year old Bills’ WR this off-season is that he should be able to do something he’s never been able to before - become someone capable of having “average” games. Prior to 2008, he’s been known as a “boom or bust” guy, but his four catch, 102 yard performance in Week 1 proves he can contribute even when he doesn’t have a HUGE week.

LaMarr Woodley, Steelers LB - Well, we proved we know what the heck we’re talking about when it comes to predicting IDP play. We jocked Woodley all off-season, and he lit up the big play board in Week 1, with three tackles, a sack and an interception. Look for more where that came from.

Braylon Edwards, Browns WR - Believe it or not, we were NOT high on Braylon going into Week 1, and that was well represented in our player rankings. We also were not high on Derek Anderson or Jamal Lewis against a stacked Cowboys defense. We were right about them all this week, but look for them to bounce back at home next week against Pittsburgh in a potential shootout.

We Were Wrong About…

Plaxico Burress, Giants WR - We were definitely concerned about Plax entering Week 1, and with good reason. He hadn’t practiced in about nine months, and had nursed severe ankle injuries. Well, he and Allen Iverson should start an anti-practice alliance, because Plax was freaking dominant, hauling in 10 passes for 133 yards.

Laurence Maroney, Patriots RB - Maroney didn’t play horribly, averaging more than five yards per carry on 10 attempts. The only problem is, he didn’t play as well as we thought he would. The other problem is, unless Sammy Morris gets injured, we can’t say for sure whether he’ll get the opportunities to have the season we thought he would either.

Santonio Holmes, Steelers WR - We weren’t the only ones who thought Holmes would have a solid Week 1 performance and at least get into the end zone once. We weren’t as high on him as other sites were, so we don’t have quite as much egg on our face, but still, two catches for less than 20 yards is nothing to be proud of at all. He should bounce back in Week 2 against Cleveland though.

Dwayne Bowe, Chiefs WR - We told owners to avoid the second year man from LSU in Week 1, as the Chiefs faced the Patriots. As it turned out, the stud WR was basically the only Chiefs player to have a solid fantasy day, hauling in five passes for 49 yards and a score.

Hank Baskett, Eagles WR - We had no faith in “a tisket, a tasket, a TOUCHDOWN Hank Baskett” in Week 1 against the Rams, as he’s a pre-season wonder at best (or so we thought). Well, he proved us wrong, catching two balls for 102 yards and a score.

Nate Burleson, Seahawks WR - We felt the hype regarding Burleson was a bit overblown this off-season, with Deion Branch and Bobby Engram out with injuries. He came though, however, catching five balls for 60 yards and a score.

L.J. Smith, Eagles TE - Unlike other sites, we were NOT high on L.J. Smith heading into Week 1, calling him “fool’s gold.” Five catches for 39 yards and a score later, we’re eating our words on that one. If he stays healthy, look for him to be a solid TE play all year in deep leagues.

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