Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Philadelphia Eagles at Jacksonville Jaguars
Philadelphia Eagles at Jacksonville Jaguars
Sunday, September 26th, 2010
4:05pm EST kickoff
Current line: Philadelphia by 2½
Mike Vick and the Eagles head to Jacksonville in week two to face a Jaguars defense that has allowed an AFC-most 55 points through the first two games of the season.
Onto the fantasy predictions...
View All of My Week 3 Fantasy Game Predictions:
- Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Philadelphia Eagles at Jacksonville Jaguars
- Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints
- Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Pittsburgh Steelers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Dallas Cowboys at Houston Texans
- Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Cincinnati Bengals at Carolina Panthers
Philadelphia Eagles: Passing Game
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It has been a chaotic week in Philadelphia for the Eagles franchise, mostly stemming from the play of Mike Vick at quarterback, who looks to have returned to glory as an NFL player.
Following a concussion to starter Kevin Kolb, Vick got his first taste of action as an every-down quarterback since 2006 in the Eagles’ eventual loss to the Packers.
Vick looked every bit like the athletic superstar we remembered him to be in the game, leading head coach Andy Reid to make the choice to start him in week two over a the still-recovering Kolb.
Vick took the ball and ran (literally) with it, making the Detroit Lions’ defense look like a pop-warner team as he threw for 284 yards and two touchdowns in a 35-32 victory.
The questions then arose—who should be the Eagles’ starting quarterback going forward? Kevin Kolb, who had looked pedestrian in week one, but had won the starting job in the preseason? Or Mike Vick, who had looked unbelievable in his first two games this season?
We have our first real, honest-to-goodness quarterback controversy of the season that actually has fantasy implications!
Head Coach Andy Reid has since announced that Mike Vick will be the team’s starter this weekend as the Eagles head to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars. An interesting turn of events, but not necessarily one that was unexpected.
Jacksonville’s pass defense, currently ranked 29th in the NFL, has some serious work to do. Though they have intercepted three passes, they have also allowed four touchdowns through the air and an average of 315 yards to opposing quarterbacks.
Fortunately for the Jaguars, Vick isn’t as great of a passer as the Chargers’ Philip Rivers was in week two and he’s probably not as accurate as Kyle Orton was in week one. On the flip side, Vick’s ability to scramble will completely change what they do on defense.
With Mike Vick looking as good as ever, the Jaguars’ secondary could be in for a long day as they try to slow down all the speed in this Philadelphia offense.
Receivers DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin are both very quick and can cause matchup problems for opposing defenses as they are also attacked by tight end Brent Celek and the receiving ability of LeSean McCoy out of the backfield.
With the difficulty that the Jaguars had covering Antonio Gates in week two, Brent Celek may cause many of the same matchup problems in the red zone, giving him a good chance to score his first touchdown of the season after a disappointing start.
Though this matchup doesn’t favor Vick and the Eagles passing game as much as the Lions did last week, there is still a great opportunity for a big fantasy day from everyone involved.
Philadelphia Eagles: Running Game
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After a disappointing week one performance in which he ran the ball just seven times for 35 yards, LeSean “Shady” McCoy got back on track with a huge fantasy game in week two.
McCoy, who has been given the goal line work thanks to Leonard Weaver’s injury, ran the ball 16 times for 120 yards and career-high three touchdowns in the Eagles’ week two win over the Lions.
Perhaps no player in this offense will benefit more, from a fantasy standpoint, with having Mike Vick behind center than LeSean McCoy. Defenses have to key in on stopping Vick’s rushing ability, leading to more holes and opportunities for McCoy to dash through, especially near the goal line.
McCoy had an impressive 7.5 yards-per-carry against the Lions in week two, but this week he faces a Jaguars defense which is a bit less attackable on the ground.
The Jaguars, currently ranked 20thagainst the run, have allowed an average of 120 yards per game on the ground through two contests, but have allowed a tied-for-league-worst three touchdowns in the process.
The Eagles don’t have a power running game, but they do have a ton of speed in the backfield with both Vick and McCoy having the ability to take it all the way on any given carry. With four touchdowns already this year, LeSean McCoy is a must-start in almost any league—especially in PPR leagues.
Philadelphia Eagles: Fantasy Projections
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Mike Vick—235 yards passing / 2 TD / 1 INT / 30 yards rushing
LeSean McCoy—80 yards rushing / 1 TD / 25 yards receiving
DeSean Jackson—80 yards receiving / 1 TD
Jeremy Maclin —50 yards receiving / 0 TD
Jason Avant—45 yards receiving / 0 TD
Brent Celek—30 yards receiving / 1 TD
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Jacksonville Jaguars: Passing Game
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It has been the “tale of two games” for Jaguars quarterback David Garrard so far this season. After lighting the score board up with three touchdowns in week one against the Broncos, Garrard threw just one touchdown while being intercepted four times by the Chargers in week two.
It should be noted that Garrard is generally a very conservative quarterback, so throwing four interceptions is very out-of-the-ordinary and not really something that we should expect going forward. Then again, three touchdowns is also not very like him, so we haven’t seen much of the “real” David Garrard this season.
Despite the disaster in week two, Garrard still sports a solid 85.7 quarterback rating this season and yards-per-completion are at a career-high 7.8.
Mike Sims-Walker, David Garrard’s top receiving option, has been inconsistent at best to start up the year. After a game where he failed to catch a single pass against Champ Bailey and the Broncos, Sims-Walker bounced back with a 10-catch, 105 yard, one touchdown performance on the road against the Chargers in week two.
This is particularly odd considering the difference in Garrard’s statistical output from week one and week two, as well as Sims-Walker’s struggles on the road from 2009. Sims-Walker remains a high-risk, high-reward fantasy option, but does have a decent matchup this weekend against.
Philadelphia’s secondary is coming off a game to remember when they allowed Detroit Lions quarterback Shaun Hill to shred them to the tune of 335 yards and two touchdowns.
Although the Lions offense is improved overall this season, Hill is a career backup quarterback who has little to no chance to start down the road, so giving up such a big game to him has to be a concern.
The Eagles currently rank a sub-par 23rd in the league in pass-defense, allowing nearly 500 yards passing over their first two games.
Though Mike Sims-Walker remains the team’s primary receiving threat, receiver Mike Thomas and tight end Marcedes Lewis have both emerged as legitimate fantasy options through two weeks this season.
Lewis, who caught two touchdown passes in week one, followed that performance up with a five-catch, 70-yard performance in week two. With the Eagles having allowed a huge game to Lions tight end Brandon Pettigrew last week, Lewis may be in for another nice fantasy day.
Mike Thomas, on the other hand, has been Garrard’s most consistent pass-catcher, catching 10 of the 15 passes thrown his way so far and looking like the kind of player who could easily surpass Sims-Walker as the team’s top receiver by year’s end.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Running Game
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The 2010 season hasn’t started off as well as fantasy owners would have hoped for running back Maurice Jones-Drew. Jones-Drew, who is known for his stellar goal line rushing ability, is yet to score a touchdown this season and has just four catches through the first two weeks of the year.
Meanwhile, backup running back Rashad Jennings has played more than many experts would have predicted, having touched the ball 18 times through the first two games. Jennings’ value currently remains pretty much only as Jones-Drew’s backup, but the number of touches he has received has certainly hindered the fantasy production of Jones-Drew.
Though the Eagles currently rank 23rd in the league in run defense, it is worth noting that they did a good job of shutting down the Packers’ rushing attack in week one, and that nearly half of Jahvid Best’s rushing yardage in week two came off of one long run.
Still, it is important to remember that Best hit the end zone a total of three times in week two, which could smell trouble as the Jaguars will be feeling the need to get Jones-Drew involved more in the offense after an awful performance from David Garrard in week one.
Expect the Jaguars to give the ball to Jones-Drew early and often, both as a rusher and as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.
With Mike Vick and the speedy Eagles offense waiting to get on the field, the Jaguars offense will need to try to control the pace of the game and keep their own defense resting on the sidelines. What better way to do that than by giving the ball to Jones-Drew over and over again?
Jacksonville Jaguars: Fantasy Projections
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David Garrard – 190 yards passing / 1 TD / 1 INT / 15 yards rushing
Maurice Jones-Drew – 125 yards rushing / 2 TD / 30 yards receiving
Mike Sims-Walker – 60 yards receiving / 0 TD
Mike Thomas – 50 yards receiving / 0 TD
Marcedes Lewis – 30 yards receiving / 1 TD
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