Fantasy Football Impact: NFL Key Match-Ups (Weeks 10 to 17)

Last week, Bruno Boys Kyle took a look at the NFL schedule from Weeks 1 to 9, examining the one game per week that could have the biggest impact for fantasy football owners. This week he'll continue that theme, scrutinizing the biggest games for fantasy owners from Weeks 10 to 17.

 

Week 10 – New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts

There was really no other option to go with this week other than what has become one of the NFL’s juiciest rivalries. The two best quarterbacks in the league go head-to-head, with fantasy supremacy at the position on the line, not to mention possible playoff implications. What else is there to say?

 

Week 11 – Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears

The Eagles have a plethora of enticing fantasy options, although by this point in the season, running back Brian Westbrook will probably be hurt, driving his fantasy owners up the wall with his never-ending status on the injury report of “questionable.”

But, even if Westbrook is out, Donovan McNabb will be on the field in his hometown squaring off against Jay Cutler and Matt Forte, so there should still be fantasy points falling out of the sky in this one.

 

Week 12 – Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills

In an old-fashioned AFC East rivalry, fantasy owners will know by now if Trent Edwards and the Bills have turned their offense around from the dink-and-dunk style of 2008 with their talented receiving core. And, Miami exec Bill Parcells will have a front-row seat to watch Terrell Owens—or “The Player” as Parcells liked to refer to him—do his thing.

 

Week 13 – Minnesota Vikings at Arizona Cardinals

This match-up pits the No. 1 running back in Adrian Peterson against the No. 1 wideout in Larry Fitzgerald. Peterson has pretty much avoided the injuries that befell him in college at Oklahoma and made some teams downgrade him in the 2007 draft. Can he keep that streak up?

 

Week 14 –Seattle Seahawks at Houston Texans

Andre Johnson should have about 165 catches by this point in the season. Okay, so that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but there’s no doubt he’ll be one of the premier players at his position this season, and he faces a team that allowed the fourth-most receptions in the NFL last year.

Obviously, things can change quickly from year-to-year in the NFL, but Seattle has been 28th or worse in completions allowed three times since 2003, and have finished better than 15th only once.

 

Week 15 – Dallas Cowboys at New Orleans Saints

I love the smell of shootouts on Sunday mornings. And that’s clearly what could be happening in this contest right in the midst of the fantasy playoffs. Brees vs. Romo, Bush and Thomas vs. Barber and Jones, Williams vs. Colston, Witten vs. Shockey—a fantasy owner’s delight.

 

Week 16 – Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers

This contest is dramatically different than the week 15 affair between the Cowboys and Saints in that it presents an intriguing question in what is the final week of the fantasy playoffs for many owners.

These two defenses are sure to be two of the best in the NFL once again, so can you really trust any offensive performer in this game? Should you play Ben Roethlisberger, Willie Parker or Santonio Holmes? How about Le’Ron McClain, Willis McGahee, or Derrick Mason?

 

Week 17 – Cincinnati Bengals at New York Jets

Most fantasy leagues should have ended in Week 16, but if they did not, this game is as good as any. Why? Because it’s pretty likely that neither of these two teams will be resting anyone for the playoffs.

Which means Carson Palmer will still be slinging it and Mark Sanchez will have just completed his rookie year—so we can start evaluating his fantasy value for 2010.

 

If you enjoyed this article by Bruno Boys Staff Writer, Kyle Smith, check out his breakdown of Weeks 1 to 9 by clicking here.