FantasyAces.com presents
The Winning Hands
Every week, the Fantasy Aces will each provide 5 players, that they feel will surprise the fantasy world by having unexpected success in the upcoming week. An Ace, King, Queen and Jack – players who, in our opinion, are currently ranked outside the Top 10 but have the opportunity to produce as Top 10 players at their respective positions. The final selection will be The Wild Card – one player that has the opportunity to far exceed expectations based on a cozy match-up or prior production. Anybody can tell you to Always Start Your Studs but sometimes making the right decision for your #3 WR, flex position, questionable Quarterback or Tight End can be the difference in winning or losing.
Ace of Spade’s Selections
Ace: RB, Ray Rice vs Chiefs ~ If you’ve followed my rankings and projections here at Fantasy Aces, you already know that I’m pretty high on Rice for the coming season. Sure he’ll still be sharing carries with McGahee and McClain but there’s no doubt I’ve believed that he would be the main man, the #1 RB, on the Ravens even before it was announced. In week 1, Rice will get his first opportunity to post excellent stats against a sub par defense that should be playing from behind most of the year. I expect Rice to safely clear 100 total yards, grab about a handful of receptions and cross the stripe at least once. Starting off the fantasy season with a 20+ point performance is exactly the way Rice’s fantasy owners would love to see things unfold. Get him into your line up.
King: RB, Julius Jones vs Rams ~ The vote of confidence was handed out as the coaching staff stated that Julius would be the main RB and tote the load even though Edgerrin James and Justin Forsett are lurking on the sidelines. This is a premiere matchup for Jones to have great success, make the most of his lead RB position and solidify the job. The Rams should fall behind early to the Seahawks in part to damage done by Jones and then Jones should wrap up the game in the 4th quarter capping off a fine day with close to 100 total yards and 1 TD. If you have him, trot him out there as even though Jones may be up and down throughout the season, this should very well be one of the “up” weeks.
Queen: RB, Ryan Grant vs Bears ~ Ryan Grant has had a great off-season, camp and preseason. Grant can certainly perform at a high level when healthy and supported by all the weapons he has around him on the Packers’ offense. Grant also seems to fair pretty well -to- very well against the Bears, especially when playing at home which is the case this week. Last year Grant had 28 total touches in one game against the Bears and 26 touches in the 2nd game he faced them and scored in both games. In the home game, Grant rushed for 145 yards and 1 TD and he very well could do the same again this year. If you took a shot on Grant in the 3rd or 4th round in your drafts, go ahead and slap him into the starting line up and watch him pad his stat-line all day on Sunday. He should once again be at or over 100 total yards and make a visit to the end zone as well.
Jack: QB, Shaun Hill @ Cardinals ~ Hill comes out of the preseason holding the starting QB job for the Niners and in his first game gets the opportunity to play in a possible shootout. What more can his owners ask for, especially if they don’t have a better starting option or their #1 QB has a bad matchup? Warner will come out chucking the pigskin to his STUD targets and lighting up the scoreboard and Hill will more than likely be forced into playing catch-up. In that scenario, Hill could post 230-250 yards and 2 TDs. Don’t be afraid to use him this week if you’re in a tight spot.
The Wild Card: WR, Torry Holt @ Colts ~ Holt will strutting his stuff in his new Jags’ uniform and should find himself pretty busy in week 1 as he’ll be facing Peyton Manning and the Colts’ aerial assault. The Jaguars should certainly have success running the ball with Jones-Drew, however, MJD has been banged up and may not be quite 100%. Therefore, the workload may shift more on the shoulders of Garrard and Holt to keep this game competitive. Holt is in a position to post close to the century mark in yardage on a handful of grabs and a TD isn’t out of the question. Use ‘em if you got ‘em!
Ace of Heart’s Selections
Ace: WR, Justin Gage @ Pittsburgh ~ Kickoff 2009 and I couldn’t be any more excited! So let’s get right to it, last year Tennessee stuck Pittsburgh 31-14 and Gage put up 105 yards and a TD. The Steelers are a solid defense coming off of a Super Bowl win, but like most fantasy owners won’t be paying much attention to Gage, he’s your Ace this week, get him in there and get the points on the board early as he plays Thursday night.
King: RB, Reggie Bush vs Detroit ~ Unfortunately for a lot of fantasy owners who snagged Pierre Thomas in the early rounds, he suffered a sprained knee during the pre-season and might not be ready to go in week 1. While Mike Bell may benefit the most from this, Reggie won’t go quietly into the night against a week Lions defense. He’s great in PPR leagues and he’s looking to prove himself.
Queen: WR, Donnie Avery @ Seattle ~ With Holt gone Avery finds himself as the clear #1 wideout in St. Louis, problem is, he’s nursing a foot injury which may hinder his play. I don’t think so, Avery looked sharp in practice, and was making some nice cuts and catches. He’s worthy of a week one Flex spot.
Jack: RB, Darren McFadden vs San Diego ~ Oakland will kick off 2009 with a Monday night home opener vs San Diego, if you haven’t done so already, take this opportunity to take San Diego in your survivor pools… as a Raider fan this should be painful to watch but I have faith that Darren McFadden will give the home crowd a little something to smile about and show that he’s the top dog in Oakland. RB2 or Flex should net you a decent amount of points from McFadden.
The Wild Card: QB, Mark Sanchez @ Houston ~ Sure I laughed when someone in one of my auction leagues actually paid for Mark Sanchez, who wouldn’t? He’s a rookie QB, and he’s under center for the Jets. Everyone knows the Jets are NY’s football version of the Mets, but come on, this could be his year! Sanchez had a strong pre-season and heads to Houston to open things up, once he dusts off those rookie QB jitters I think he performs well, he’s no top tier QB but he could make for a nice option as a flex. Let’s see what he’s got.
Ace of Club’s Selections
Ace: RB, Julius Jones vs Rams ~ Jones has a very favorable match-up here. It is a Week 1 showdown with a horrible defensive team in the Rams. J. Jones should be able to find open holes all game long with Hasselbeck back under center, making the defense respect the passing game and therefore, providing Jones the opportunity for more running room. The Rams will try to play the pass to stop Hasselbeck from having a field day… enter Jones!!
King: WR, Wes Welker vs Bills ~ What else is there to say… Brady is back! Need I say more? With Brady back in town, Wes and the boys are going to be Top Notch STUDs again. With most teams doubling up Moss (and Welker playing the great role he always does), he will be an excellent play here. Usually getting the favorable one-on-one match- up, Welker should do rather well. Start him without any reservation.
Queen: WR, Roddy White vs Dolphins ~ Here is a tough guy who will always score you some points. White is a good play here because Ryan always finds him and gets him the ball. He is a big playmaker and always a threat with the deep ball! Start him; you will surely not be disappointed.
Jack: WR, Steve Smith vs Eagles ~ Steve Smith and Jake Delhomme have always had excellent chemistry. They go together like Mork and Mindy, Bert and Ernie, Tom and Randy, Steve and Jerry, etc. You get the point! Steve is a great playmaker. Always a threat and should do well even against the likes of the Eagles!
The Wild Card: QB, Shaun Hill @ Cardinals ~ With Singletary taking over the reigns completely in San Fran, the Niners seem to be on the right path. If the Niners want to prove to the NFC West and the rest of the NFL that they can and will be a contender, this is the time! Shaun Hill won the QB job in pre-season and now he will show the fans why he deserves that job. Shaun is not your MVP QB, but he should post big numbers this week against the Cards as they could very well go score for score.
