Bleacher Report - Marques Colston

Fantasy Football's Top Five Matchups For Week 13: A Must-See!

Ray Tannock — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:36:32 -0500

With fantasy football playoffs right around the corner, it’s that time of year where we all need to buckle down and trust not only our instincts as managers, but also the myriad of key matchups out there to exploit.

Usually, a no-brainer start is NOT what a manager wants to hear about, but, at this time of year, it’s most pertinent.

Here we will break down the top five matchups of this week and then some.

Everyone ready?

Denver at Kansas City

The Broncos are in push mode and there is very little room for error, so taking advantage of “easy” matchups is something the Broncos are going to want to do.

The Chiefs have two key issues as a team:

1. They can’t cover at all.

2. They can’t tackle at all.

This makes Brandon Marshall a huge nightmare for the Chiefs.

Marshall should be good for at least 110 yards and two scores, while Chris Chambers and the rest of Kansas City will be as useful as a fork in soup.

New Orleans at Washington

The Redskins tout the No. 1 passing defense, despite never facing a team like New Orleans, and that ranking will be torn to shreds with the fire power the Saints enjoy.

It’s one thing to say that Drew Brees and Marques Colston are a sure thing—which they are—but to add in the emergence of Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson in recent weeks, makes just about anyone on the Saints’ roster a must start, while the Redskins' roster is a must-sit.

New England at Miami

Speaking of the Saints, the Patriots will come into Miami with a huge chip on their shoulder, thanks to the drubbing the Saints put on them, making Wes Welker and Randy Moss must-starts.

The rest of Miami will do literally nothing.

Greg Camarillo and Devon Bess will have their hands full dealing with a very competent Saints’ secondary.

The only weapon the Dolphins have of any worth is Ricky Williams, who will see the end zone at some point, but outside of that, this is about as lopsided as Cousin Eddy’s hair part.

Detroit at Cincinnati

The Lions can’t cover, and they can barely stop the run with a makeshift linebacker corp comprised primarily of rookies.

Ochocinco has been relatively quiet as of late, but expect that to change, and don’t be afraid to start Cedric Benson .

The sentiment around Benson is to sit him because of the hip injury which is baloney. Don’t be a crowd-follower; start him with confidence.

Calvin Johnson, on the other hand, should be sat, considering the Pro Bowl-caliber corners the Bengals have, and the fact that he is not 100 percent—neither is Stafford.

San Diego at Cleveland

Well, I mean, really, you can just pick whomever you want here so long as they don a Chargers’ jersey.

The Browns are about as bad as it gets in just about every aspect of football, and they bring nothing to the table short of shame and disgust.

Vincent Jackson will get back on track, L.T. and Sproles will get some love, and Antonio Gates will be a nightmare for the Browns coverage package, even if Brandon McDonald is roaming around.

Remember, thinking outside the box at this point will give you an edge in your league, and point-and-shoot starts are the name of the game.

For a more detailed look at wide receiver starts, free Start-Sit advice complete with a link to some very tasty unknown Waiver picks that are virtually unowned, please click here for my column.

Good luck this week, everyone!

Read more Marques Colston news on BleacherReport.com

New Orleans Saints: Why Anything Short of 16-0 Would Mean Failure

Alexeiv Goodenov — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 02:08:10 -0500

It's not every season you see two teams start 11-0. Actually it has never happened. So to think 16-0 is a must might be a bit too critical, looking at the facts, the '09 Saints have more than just the pressure of going undefeated due to the fact alone.

The remaining five games are against the Skins, Falcons, Cowboys, Bucs and Panthers.

They will be favored in all of those games, as they should be.

They have beaten their strongest competitors by wide margins, while coming back to beat average teams, almost in a guilty fashion. Their strongest opponent, right now, is the Cowboys. The game will be in New Orleans. The Cowboys almost lost to the Skins, while Romo licks dirt past November as we all know.

But there is a larger focus on 16-0, whenever any team starts off this good the reasoning behind playing for a win becomes less and less. The 11-0 Colts need only win two more games to clinch the first seed in the AFC, the Saints have no such luxury. They have to look at the Favre lead Vikings at 10-1. For going 15-1 in any other season would mean first place in the Conference, this year it may not be enough. Indeed the Vikings are a phantom tripping call away from undefeated themselves. While their remaining five games are against tougher opponents in the Cardinals and Bengals next two week and they will be favored to win both.

Like the 1998 Broncos, the road is clear, the Saints need only to drive through it without hitting a pothole and smashing into the side ditch.

Not to mention their 407 points on offense is set to end in the Top Three all time, first if they can average 37 points a game.

So with all this in mind, a 15-1 finish might mean second place in the NFC, and a visit to Minnesota come January.

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NFL Power Rankings: Week 13

Jordan Schwartz — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 23:39:33 -0500

Well, it's December and we still have two undefeated teams (for the first time in NFL history). The Saints remained unbeaten by blowing out the Patriots, 38-17, a much more convincing victory than the Colts' 35-34 win over New England in Week 10.

Because of that, New Orleans jumps ahead of Indy in the Power Rankings. Could we be headed for a 'perfect' Super Bowl? Still two months to go.

1. (2) New Orleans Saints (11-0)

When talking about the two best current quarterbacks in the NFL, Drew Brees might've snuck ahead of Tom Brady on Monday night to join Peyton Manning in that elite group.

2. (1) Indianapolis Colts (11-0)

Indy has won five consecutive games when trailing in the final quarter.

3. (3) Minnesota Vikings (10-1)

Brett Favre has thrown 12 touchdowns since last being picked off.

4. (5) Cincinnati Bengals (8-3)

The Bengals seven straight divisional wins ties Indianapolis and Minnesota for the longest streak in the NFL.

5. (4) New England Patriots (7-4)

Here are some teams with better road records than the Patriots: Carolina, Miami, Buffalo, Jacksonville and Kansas City.

6. (7) Green Bay Packers (7-4)

After trouncing the Lions on Thanksgiving, the Pack gets 10 days off before hosting the Ravens on Monday night.

7. (8) Dallas Cowboys (8-3)

The schedule makers have smiled on the Cowboys as well. After a delicious Turkey Day serving of the Raiders, Dallas enjoys a long week before traveling to the Meadowlands for a crucial NFC East showdown with the Giants.

8. (9) Baltimore Ravens (6-5)

Yet another overtime game won by the team that didn't start with the football.

9. (10) Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5)

Ben Roethlisberger's late scratch combined with the NFL's current push to force players to sit out a game following a concussion makes me believe the league may have had something to do with the Steelers' quarterback missing the game against Baltimore.

10. (11) San Diego Chargers (8-3)

The Chargers have won six straight, including a string of 15 consecutive quarters with a score, but with their best wins coming over the Broncos, Eagles and Giants, I have a hard time putting San Diego ahead of Baltimore and Pittsburgh, two teams they lost to earlier this season.

11. (12) Denver Broncos (7-4)

The Broncos , who were averaging just 9.25 points a game over their recent four-game slide, put up 26 on the exhausted Giants defense.

12. (13) Philadelphia Eagles (7-4)

Philly is 4-1 when LeSean McCoy leads the team in rushing.

13. (6) Arizona Cardinals (7-4)

That's Arizona's first road loss since Dec. 21.

14. (14) New York Giants (6-5)

The G-Men stood little chance of picking up a victory after traveling to Mile Hile on a short week. We should see a completely different team on Sunday, when a rested Big Blue hosts Dallas.

15. (15) Atlanta Falcons (6-5)

Atlanta escaped with a victory over the Bucs, but the Falcons lost quarterback Matt Ryan and running back Michael Turner to injury. They'll need both of those guys at full strength when they welcome Philly to town on Sunday for a game with big NFC playoff implications.

16. (16) Miami Dolphins (5-6)

With New England, Pittsburgh and a surging Tennessee team still left on the schedule, Miami could not afford to lose at Buffalo this week, especially when they had three extra days of rest.

17. (18) Jacksonville Jaguars (6-5)

The Jags have been outscored, 61-3, in their two West Coast games this year.

18. (19) New York Jets (5-6)

The Jets defense is tied for 11th in the NFL with 11 picks.

19. (20) Tennessee Titans (5-6)

Chris Johnson has been the main reason for the Titans' turnaround, as he's rushed for at least 125 yards in a record-tying six consecutive games, but the victory over the Cardinals was all about Vince Young, who was 9-of-16 for 94 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown to Kenny Britt, which capped the 99-yard game-winning drive.

20. (21) Carolina Panthers (4-7)

Jake Delhomme's broken finger on his throwing hand might be the best thing to happen to the Panthers all season. Look for backup Matt Moore to lead Carolina past Tampa Bay before tossing three picks at New England, leading to Carolina fans clamoring for Delhomme's return.

21. (22) Houston Texans (5-6)

That's the fourth straight time the Texans have blown a second half lead vs. the Colts.

22. (23) San Francisco 49ers (5-6)

Alex Smith has thrown five touchdowns with just one interception over the past two weeks.

23. (26) Buffalo Bills (4-7)

The Bills scored more points (24) in the fourth quarter against the Dolphins than they did in their previous eight quarters combined.

24. (17) Chicago Bears (4-7)

Jay Cutler leads the league with 20 interceptions.

25. (24) Kansas City Chiefs (3-8)

The Chiefs have been outscored, 80-21, by the Chargers this season.

26. (25) Oakland Raiders (3-8)

Bruce Gradkowski's quarterback rating (66.3) is still 18.6 points higher than JaMarcus Russell's 47.7.

27. (27) Seattle Seahawks (4-7)

Over the past two seasons, the Seahawks are 2-0 at St. Louis and 1-12 in all other road games.

28. (28) Washington Redskins (3-8)

That's nine straight road losses for the 'Skins.

29. (29) Tampa Bay Bucs (1-10)

No Buc has rushed for more than 56 yards in their last five games.

30. (30) St. Louis Rams (1-10)

I thought the Rams' 10-game home loss streak would come to an end against Seattle, a team that entered the contest 2-10 on the road over the past two seasons, but St. Louis is simply that much worse.

31. (31) Detroit Lions (2-9)

Six consecutive Thanksgiving Day losses for the Lions, and yet the NFL keeps serving us these putrid holiday games.

32. (32) Cleveland Browns (1-10)

The Browns have lost eight straight divisional games.

Follow me on Twitter at JordanHarrison .

Jordan Schwartz is Bleacher Report's New York Yankees Community Leader. His book "Memoirs of the Unaccomplished Man" is available at amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, and authorhouse.com.

Jordan can be reached at jordanschwartz2003@yahoo.com

Read more Marques Colston news on BleacherReport.com

Patriots Vs Saints Monday Night Football Picks

Vernon Croy — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:46:28 -0500

This week on Monday Night Football, we will be treated to what could be the game of the season. The mighty New England Patriots will square off with the undefeated New Orleans Saints.

If you aren’t excited for this one, you might want to check your pulse.

The game will feature two of the very best quarterbacks in the league with Drew Brees and Tom Brady. One quarterback came within one pass of breaking Dan Marino’s yardage record last year and the other has multiple Super Bowls under his belt.

As far as Free NFL Picks go, this one should be very entertaining to say the least.

The Patriots come into this game with somewhat of a turbulent season. They are still doing great at 7-3 and they definitely have the capability to beat New Orleans.

However, two weeks ago, they lost to the other undefeated team in Indianapolis and many second-guessed their decision in the final minutes to go for it on fourth down.

The offense has been good overall, but the defense has been a little questionable at times. Belichick obviously didn’t have enough faith in them to put the game in their hands against Peyton Manning, so why would anyone think they could consistently stop the juggernaut that is Drew Brees and the Saints offense?

The Saints have been rolling along and got two good games from one-win teams the last two weeks. Even though they have had a few close games, they always seem to find a way to win.

They have so many weapons to choose from with Brees, Reggie Bush, Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell, Marques Colston, Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, and Jeremy Shockey. Besides that, their defense has been one of the best in the league so far this season.

Right now, they really look like the favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. This game should really be a classic battle between two great teams.

Check out Vernon Croy's Expert New England Patriots Vs New Orleans Saints Picks for Monday night.

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