Nobody needs to be told
starting Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson, or Calvin Johnson is
a good idea. Duh, right? You can’t have studs at every position,
though, unless you’re in the shallowest of leagues. This
is where the Shot Caller comes in. Need help deciding which bargain
basement QB to use and which to ignore on Rodgers’ bye week?
Let’s talk. Looking for solutions at running back because
Peterson is a game-time decision? Look no further. Need to know
which of your unproven targets to start and which to sit since
you ignored Megatron and went RB-QB-Jimmy Graham in your first
three rounds? I’m your huckleberry. Past results may not
guarantee future success, but I believe ignoring them entirely
can ruin your Sundays in a hurry. Read on for a little history
and, hopefully, a little sage advice..
Note: Fantasy points
based on FF Today’s default scoring system.
Bye Weeks: Buffalo, Cincinnati,
Philadelphia, Seattle
Grab a Helmet
Cam
Newton @ MIA: It was a statement game for the Panthers and
Newton added the exclamation point with a fourth-quarter, victory-clinching
drive featuring two signature third-down scrambles and then, to
top it off, his third and final TD strike of the night, a 25-yard
dart-and-sprint to Ted Ginn (more on that in a bit). You know
a guy has arrived when he outperforms Tom Terrific on the Monday
night stage and beats the future HOF’er at his own game, fourth-quarter
comebacks, to boot. It was the fourth time in six contests Newton
has topped 24 fantasy points, but the more important part for
him and his teammates is that all six of those games have ended
the same way, as victories. Expect this wave of Carolina confidence
to come crashing down on the Fish in South Florida this Sunday
as Miami is still dealing with lots of non-football stuff.
Eli Manning : The Cowboys are giving up
the most FPts to quarterbacks.
Eli
Manning v. DAL: Dallas could probably use some off-field drama
– and certainly needed the Week 11 bye – to draw attention away
from the on-field disaster its defense has become. In their last
three games, the ‘Boys have yielded 103 points and an astounding
1,641 yards. That’s 34+ points and almost 550 yards PER GAME, folks.
Still think Rob Ryan was the problem in Big D? Bear in mind one
of those games was played against the relatively punchless Vikings
at Cowboys Stadium. Next up is old nemesis, Eli Manning, and his
resurgent Giants. All Kid Bro did the last time he squared off against
his NFC East foes was throw for 450 yards and four scores in the
season opener. Uh-oh. That was certainly many moons ago by NFL standards,
but the stars seem to be aligning for another explosive performance.
Start the other Manning with confidence this weekend.
Scott
Tolzien v. MIN: That Minnesota team ultimately dropped a very
winnable game in Dallas for precisely the same reason it’s dropped
most of them this year: Its defense can’t keep anyone out of the
end zone. The Vikes have surrendered 32 points per game thus far
(dead last) and haven’t held a single opponent under 20 points all
year. Unsurprisingly, only one opposing QB has failed to top 20
fantasy points against them (the guy we just talked about). Tolzien’s
as green as they come, for certain, but he looked fairly sharp against
Manning’s G-Men in Week 10 (despite three painful picks) and could
be the next in line to blister Minny’s overmatched secondary. The
game’s not too big for him, he’s displayed good fundamentals, and
he’s got a heckuva receiving corps to work with, even without Randall
Cobb. Consider Tolzien against the Purple People Pleasers in Week
12.
Grab a Clipboard
Matt
McGloin v. TEN: Because my stable of QBs originally consisted
of Aaron Rodgers, Jake Locker, and Terrelle Pryor, I headed into
a critical Week 11 matchup in our two-QB league with a couple
of Value Village options under center, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Matt
McGloin, the latter a Saturday night waiver wire grab. Shockingly,
both men performed admirably, securing the necessary W for me
that was ultimately rendered meaningless on Monday night when
Ted Ginn (TED GINN!) propelled my cousin into the playoffs ahead
of me with that eleventh hour score, his only touch of the night.
Ah, the trials and tribulations of being @GrumpyJDH. I’m not counting
on McGloin to help me lock down the consolation bracket because
Fitzpatrick’s teammates are one of the league’s very best at bottling
up opposing QBs (just 17.3 points/game) and…well, who cares about
consolation brackets? Losing, I like to say, is for losers.
Josh
McCown @ STL: McCown isn’t nearly as talented as the guy he’s
temporarily replaced in Chicago, but Bears fans aren’t going to
care if he keeps leading them to victories. After ending a long
Lambeau drought back in Week 9 and then almost snatching victory
from the jaws of defeat against Detroit a week later (as a late
fill-in for the re-injured Cutler), McCown endured miserable conditions
and a spirited Ravens D in Week 11 to help Chicago pull out a
huge overtime victory. Is the unsung kid from Sam Houston St.
actually a better overall fit for Marc Trestman’s offense? Some
are already saying yes, but I think that talk dies down a bit
after the Week 12 matchup with St. Louis. The Rams have allowed
just one 20-point passer in their last seven games and most of
that QB’s digits (Andrew Luck’s) were tallied long after the game
was decided. Be careful with McCown.
Robert
Griffin III v. SF: Washington players say their locker room
isn’t divided, a sure sign it probably is. RGIII is at the
center of this non-firestorm firestorm, apparently, because he
hasn’t taken full accountability for the Redskins’
season-long malaise. That may be true, but there should be plenty
of blame to go around when you’re playing as poorly as the
‘Skins are. The second-year signal caller is clearly struggling
and I blame a mending knee that he doesn’t seem fully to
trust. In 2012, the former Heisman winner tallied five 80-yard
rushing games and seven rushing touchdowns. In 2013, he’s
topped that 80-yard mark just once and hasn’t scored yet
with his legs. In short, a once-dynamic QB has become considerably
less so and the same goes for his offense. Griffin squares off
against another sophomore slumper on Monday night and I think
Kap’s Niners will get the better of him and his disgruntled
teammates in primetime.
Running Backs 
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