Week 9 is in the books and team owners are scouring the waiver wire, studying their rosters, noticing strengths/identifying weaknesses, preparing to submit what they hope will be the best possible lineup for Week 10. Part of having a successful season involves the ability to pluck the diamonds from the rough (better known as the free agent market). Here are a few possible candidates we’re suggesting for various reasons (be it as a long-term acquisition or as a one week plug and play)
Quarterbacks
Trent Edwards- Buffalo Bills
After Buffalo has had their bye week, Edwards should be back and ready to run the offense again. However, they are going up against the Titans in Tennessee and with their defense getting healthier in recent weeks, they have been improving and Edwards may have a rough return. Edwards does present another starting QB option and those looking to replace Schaub may be able to rely on him for at least some production.
QBs mentioned before and worth mentioning again…
Vince Young- Tennessee Titans (Vince Young?!? Really?!? I’ve previously mentioned all the possible QB options out their including Josh Johnson. I, along with everyone else know that the Titans need a little spark and I’m not sure that Young can give them anything but headaches. However, going winless into their bye week may force the Titans to give Young another shot. If you’re in a deep league and really desperate at the QB position, why not roll the dice with Young and see if the Titans put him back in there at some point. Sure, the Titans are off this week but there’s word that both Collins and Young will split reps during bye week practices and really, why not make the change to see what Young can do. Week8- Young comes in and completes 15 of 18 passes for 125 yards and 1 TD to go along with 12 rushes for 30 yards. Young usually won’t be a valuable fantasy starter, however, he could fill in, in deep leagues. Week 9 brings another successful outing for Young as he completed 12 out of 19 passes for 172 yards and added 5 rushes for 14 yards and 1 TD.
Alex Smith- San Francisco 49ers (Smith has taken over for Hill and in week 8 completed 19 of 32 passes for 198 yards 1 TD, 1 INT and 1 carry for 10 yards. Smith has kept his team in most games and has looked more efficient than Hill. Smith has also used Vernon Davis a bunch more and has basically made Davis a Top TE target. Add Smith as a backup and know that he’s at least a decent fill-in. In week 9, Smith completed 29 for 45 passes for 286 yards 2 TDs, 3 INTs and added 2 rushes for 11 yards.
Josh Freeman- Tampa Bay Bucs (Who knows what this rookie QB can bring to the table, especially being thrown into the fire? However, the one thing we do know is that Freeman is now the starter and in deep leagues with few options on the WW at the QB position, Freeman is at last one possible choice. The Bucs play the Packers in week 9 and the Dolphins in week 10, which are the last 2 weeks that any teams have off. What a great first start for this rookie QB as he led his team to their first win on the season against the Packers. Freeman completed 14 of 31 passes for 205 yards 3 TDs and 1 INT along with 4 rushes for 20 yards.
Running Backs
Ladell Betts- Washington Redskins
Clinton Portis was knocked out of last week’s game with a concussion and is doubtful to play in week 10. Therefore, that leaves Betts as the main ball carrier. He’s certainly worth adding if he’s available but temper your expectations as Betts himself has an injured ankle and is facing the Broncos in week 10. Mendenhall did go for well over 100 yards (155) against the Broncos in week 9 but you can’t really compare the Redskins to the Steelers.
Derrick Ward- Tampa Bay Bucs
Caddy is still the main RB in Tampa Bay but Ward is getting some touches and is worth looking at if he’s a FA in your leagues. Ward only rushed 4 times for 5 yards but he caught 3 passes for 54 yards and 1 TD. I still can’t believe that Caddy is standing and playing and hats off to him but I really would’ve thought that Ward was going to be more involved. Maybe Ward will be more involved in the 2nd half of the season and grabbing him now will pay off.
Justin Forsett- Seattle Seahawks
Julius Jones is still the main ball carrier in Seattle but with Edgerrin James gone now and the coaching staff liking what they see from Forsett, he should see even more time going forward. In week 9 Forsett carried the ball only once for 14 yards but he also grabbed 5 balls for 45 yards. In deep leagues grab this guy if he’s available and stash him away on your bench in case Julius gets nicked up or the team decides to share touches even more.
Adrian Peterson- Chicago Bears
This move is strictly a move that Forte owners should make as Wolfe went down with an injury and will miss about one month, leaving the backup duties to the other Adrian Peterson. Peterson did rush the ball twice for 23 yards in the game and is basically a must have for Forte owners in the even that Forte were to get injured.
RBs mentioned before and worth mentioning again…
Laurence Maroney- New England Patriots (So Fred Taylor goes out with an injury and some including me, thought that Sammy Morris would see a great uptick in touches and that very well could’ve happened but then Morris went down with an injury and that left Maroney to have a big day. Maroney finished week 6 with 16 carries for 123 yards a TD and 3 receptions for 10 more yards. The Patriots get to face one of the worst rushing defenses in the league, in the Bucs and Maroney and co. should shred them. Maroney was off in week 8 so this just serves as a reminder to scoop up Maroney if he happens to be a FA in your leagues being that he continues to be the most likely candidate to get the most touches in New England at the RB position. As expected in week 9, Maroney was the main rusher, carrying the ball 20 times for 82 yards and 1 TD.
Ryan Moats- Houston Texans (Slaton just couldn’t keep a hold on the ball and because of his butter fingers, he more than likely cost a bunch of fantasy owners a victory this past weekend (I happen to be one of those owners losing by .15 pts-thanks Slaton). Kubiak has not shared yet who will start in week 9 but has said that Slaton needs to keep his chin up because they will “need” him. What that means is anyone’s guess but I can tell you this, Slaton is much more talented than Moats and the Texans will want to get Slaton the ball. However, he cannot keep turning the ball over and even though it was a terrible Bills’ team that Moats went off against, he’ll still at the very least make the coach think twice about giving Slaton the main gig back. I expect Slaton to be back but also think that Moats has earned an increase in playing time. We’ll just have to wait to see how much. For Slaton owners, it makes sense to add Moats and for those desperate at RB, it can’t hurt to add him as well. With Moats and Slaton now sharing touches, things are an ugly mess. Both Slaton and Moats scored, Moats actually lost a fumble and his performance on the whole didn’t inspire anyone. Moats finished with the lions’ share of the touches but only had 16 carries for 38 yards and added 3 receptions for 15 more yards and luckily added a TD, which gave him a respectable fantasy score of 14.3 pts. However, that’s 19 total touches for 53 total yards or 2.79 yards per play and worse yet 2.38 yards per rush.
Jamaal Charles- Kansas City Chiefs (Here’s another RB who will be given a shot to be the main RB for at least the next 2 weeks as Larry Johnson can’t stop being a dope. Charles is more of a CoP runner and will share touches with Dantrell Savage and possibly Kolby Smith but he has already been named the starter for week 9. The Chiefs get to face a bad Jaguars’ team and Charles could actually be worth a start as a flex player with this nice matchup. Give him a look. Okay so in week 9, Charles didn’t set the world on fire especially with Savage and K. Smith also getting touches. However, Charles still finished with 36 yards on only 6 carries and 3 receptions for 19 yards. The better news is that the Chiefs released Larry Johnson and so at least he won’t be back to add another runner to this RBBC.
Wide Receivers
James Jones- Green Bay Packers
As disappointing as Greg Jennings has been on the whole this season is as much as Donald Driver and James Jones have played well. Jones, as the #3 WR, came alive this week with 4 grabs for 103 yards and 1 TD. With all the attention going to Jennings and Driver, Jones has been able to find openings in the opposing defenses and from time to time posts some fantasy viable statistics. If you’re hurting at WR, Jones makes for a decent filler/#3 WR.
Greg Camarillo/Davone Bess- Miami Dolphins
With Henne at the helm, it’s tough to ever bank on production from this passing unit. However, in week 9 against the Patriots, the Dolphins needed to put the ball in the air a bit more and both Camarillo and Bess had nice numbers. Camarillo caught 5 balls for 71 yards and Bess grabbed 6 for 56 yards. Miami gets to face the Bucs this week and should be able to post some fantasy friendly numbers. Scoop up Camarillo and if not him, Bess if you’re in need of WR help.
Earl Bennett- Chicago Bears
Earl Bennett seemed as if he was taking a backseat in the Chicago passing offense with Hester, Olsen and Knox coming on. However, in week 9, Cutler found his ex-college teammate 7 times for 93 yards and has re-emerged as a fantasy threat. Bennett will have productive games like he did in week 9 to go with a couple stinkers here and there but is surely worthy of a roster spot.
Lance Long- Kansas City Chiefs
Some of you are probably saying who? Lance Long was a WR with the Arizona Cardinals last year but didn’t get any time as he was behind that phenomenal group of WRs they have there. However, the Cardinals decided to release him and Todd Haley who was the offensive coordinator for the Cardinals and is now the head coach for the Chiefs knew about this move and added Long. Long spent some time on the practice squad but then played last week and caught a couple balls and now this week he caught 8 balls for 74 yards. That’s a pretty solid game and a bunch of targets going his way. Maybe he’s a one week wonder or maybe he’s just getting started in this offense which he already played in back in Zona. Keep tabs on him and add him in deeper leagues while seeing how it plays out.
Jacoby Jones- Houston Texans
The Texans are off in week 10, however, that shouldn’t stop those out there needed WR help from possibly grabbing Jacoby Jones. With Owen Daniels going down for the year, other players are needed to step up their game and Jones is one of those guys. In week 9, Jones grabbed 4 balls for 67 yards and added 1 rush for 5 more yards. Jones had some minimal value before and with Daniels out, that value should only increase. Add him if you need some depth.
Jason Hill- San Francisco 49ers
Hill is a risky add to make with Vernon Davis playing and being targeted as much he is along with rookie WR, Michael Crabtree starting off very well. However, Hill caught 4 passes for 50 yards and 2 scores. Was that because of the focus being paid to the other more well-known, explosive players? Absolutely. Keep tabs on whether or not Hill can continue to produce on a weekly fashion or if his production in week 9 was a just a mirage.
Justin Gage- Tennessee Titans
Gage was drafted in most leagues over the summer and had a few decent games to start the year but then hit rock bottom. Gage was dropped in many leagues and yet over the last 2 weeks with Vince Young at the helm, Gage is getting more involved and in week 9 he caught 4 balls for 97 yards. It’s very possible that Gage crawls back into the black hole of minimal production but it’s also possible that he continues to contribute on a weekly basis.
WRs mentioned before and worth mentioning again…
Michael Crabtree- San Francisco 49ers (Who the hell knows what Crabtree will be able to do for the 49ers but early word is that the 49ers are prepping him to possibly start in week 7. We know that Crabtree was an unreal talent at Texas Tech and we may very well get to see if he can perform on a high level in the NFL. If he comes in and explodes, adding him next week, won’t nearly be as easy and he’d surely cost more. In week 8, Crabtree grabbed 6 balls for 81 yards. He and Alex Smith (along with Vernon Davis) have really started to form a nice rapport and their future together is pretty bright. Week 9 wasn’t really a bright spot for Crabtree but what was to be expected from the rookie but a roller coaster ride full of ups and downs. However, many owners expected more than 3 catches for 30 yards this week against the Titans but CB, Finnegan was back on the field for the Titans and that solidified the pass defense.
Tight End
Ben Watson- New England Patriots
Watson isn’t the type of TE who’s going to go out there and put up huge numbers from week to week but he’s a guy who can be consistent like he was in week 9. Watson caught 4 balls in week 9 for 49 yards. If you’re in need at the TE position, why not choose the guy who plays for an explosive offensive team like the Patriots and giving several opportunities per week to make plays.
Brandon Pettigrew- Detroit Lions
This guy is an absolute monster at the TE position and as Stafford gets more settled at the QB position in the NFL, Pettigrew has a great shot at becoming part of the upper echelon at the TE position. In week 9, Pettigrew caught 7 passes for 70 yards and 1 TD. Don’t hesitate to add Pettigrew if you were a Daniels’ owner and are left with a huge hole in your lineup to try and fill.
