Fantasy Football: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Well, as we head into the fourth and final week of the preseason (very glad to know that is the last time I will ever have to make that statement), the good, the bad, and the ugly have been shown.

Most starters won’t see the field much, if at all, in this last round of games and with the start of college football, it is easy to get distracted. Over 10 years of experience have taught me a few things: 1) Players get hurt and miss time; 2) Players expected to start and do well sometimes don’t; 3) Things can change in the blink of an eye without your fantasy players even being involved

So, although it is easy to try and ignore the final weeks of preseason games, it is important to keep up with what is going on as, traditionally, a key player on each team emerges, makes the final 53-man team, and ends up as a key waiver wire pickup when one of the above scenarios takes place.  I will try and report next week on some guys who have caught my eye.

For now, I wanted to touch on some of the news and happenings around the league and how it might impact your fantasy teams. Some news that is worth noting:

Matt Leinart/Derek Anderson

Well, I started to touch on this last week, but it is becoming more evident that Leinart is likely out in Arizona, be it to another team or taking back his role as clipboard hero.

Leinart has leveraged a heck of a college career for being God-awful at the quarterback position. From his time at USC I was never sold on him (hell, I could win a Heisman with that lineup), and it is not surprising that without leading the Pro Bowl team that he never lived up to expectations.

Is Derek Anderson going to light the world on fire? Probably not, but if I own any Cardinals WR or TE, I am much happier, as at least Anderson has proved he can put together a good season. I think his departure from Cleveland also brought him back down to Earth and he is motivated to prove he wasn’t a fluke.

Value Getting a Boost: Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Breaston

Value Dropping: Tim Hightower (Leinart’s one value was his check down, which in PPR leagues made TH more valuable. Anderson is erratic at times and prefers to take a deep risk than a safe check)

49ers

I was a big fan of Michael Crabtree heading into the draft season, but some of the news out of Niners camp causes me some concern. Apparently, Crabtree and Vernon Davis got in a pretty heated moment that took Mike Singletary splitting them up in what he referred to as “the elephant in the room.”

That concerns me as there is obviously an issue (perhaps just of egos), but those two were expected to be on the field leaders. For such a young group, this type of chemistry issue is not something you want to hear if you drafted either player or someone like Frank Gore.

Value Getting a Boost: No One, this situation doesn’t help anything.

Value Dropping: Crabtree, Davis, and SF RB corps

Some Key News

John Beck signs 3 year deal with Redskins: With McNabb hobbling and Grossman being, well, Grossman, the Redskins invested in their young third stringer. Dynasty owners should stash him.

Jahvid Best: Kevin Smith may very well be cut by the Lions. Best’s value in drafts just skyrocketed.

Vincent Jackson: Apparently the Chargers are asking for two drafts picks for VJ. Not being an expert on trading in the real NFL, it appears this is a pretty hefty price tag for the WR. Don’t be surprised if you don’t’ see VJ on the field before Week 10, making his value for 2010 zero.

Chad Henne: He has really been better than the numbers show. 29 of 51 is 57 percent, but he has had 11 passes dropped which is a pretty large amount. If just half of those are caught, his completion percentage is close to 70%. Solid Sleeper!

Anthony Armstrong: With the news of Devin Thomas being on IR, now is the time to grab Anthony Armstrong, who surprised a lot of people in preseason and looks to be in great position to fill the No. 2 or No. 3 spot in Washington.

Correll Buckhalter: Buckhalter seems healthy, and with Knowshon still struggling, expect Buckhalter to be a nice early season flex or RB3 option.

Kareem Huggins: If you don’t have him and he is on your waiver wire, get him now. Trust me!

Feel free to email me with any questions for your draft, Week One lineups, and early add/drop advice. It is never too early to get going on your waiver wire. [e-mail]

Also, remember to register with Hatty Waiver Wire Guru as each week on the forums, we will be placing special waiver wire players we reserve only for members. There is no cost to sign up!