Fantasy Football Week Nine Recap

In the world of football, the Heidi game will forever live in infamy, as NBC made the dubious decision to stop coverage of a Oakland Raiders-New York Jets game for a prescheduled showing of Heidi. The Raiders scored 14 points in the last 65 seconds to win the game, while millions of viewers were stuck watching Heidi frolic in the hills. 

How has football not learned from this mistake? This weekend, the Tennessee Titans battled it out with the Green Bay Packers in an attempt to go 8-0. With the game in overtime and the Titans’ lining up to kick the game-winning field goal, due to TV contracts, FOX switched coverage to the pregame of the Atlanta Falcons-Oakland Raiders game.

Completely unacceptable! Roger Goodell please fix this now! With that off my chest, let’s move on to the Week Nine Weekly Words.

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Hightower Riding High

Despite just averaging 2.7 yards per carry, the Arizona Cardinals believed that Tim Hightower could be their featured back. On Sunday, they gave the rookie his first shot, giving him the start over veteran, Edgerrin James. Hightower took full advantage of the opportunity, going for 109 rush yards and a TD on 22 carries, a solid 5.0 yards per carry.

The switch to Hightower was not the result of an injury to James, rather, it was based solely on who the Cardinals feel is the better back right now. Hightower will continue to get the nod as the season wears on, and as the featured running back on a team that moves the ball as well as Arizona does, he should be a solid RB2, at the very least, while moving forward. Meanwhile, James no longer holds any fantasy value, evidenced by the fact that he did not get a single touch in Sunday’s game.

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Raiders of the Lost Offense

There is no other word to describe the Raiders’ offensive outing this past Sunday than abysmal. Through one half of football, the team had a cumulative -2 yards. It took them until under 10 minutes in the third quarter to notch their first first down, and the team failed to put a single point on the score board. Things were so bad for the Raiders on Sunday, that, combined, the team had just 12 fantasy points, with their defense accounting for six of those.

Had this game been against a tough defense like the Baltimore Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers, the lack of offense could be understandable, but to do so poorly against the 25th ranked defense of the Atlanta Falcons is just ugly. I think it’s safe to say that moving forward no Oakland Raiders should be in your weekly lineup.

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Broncos’ Backfield Conundrum

The running back with the most fantasy points in Week Nine for the Denver Broncos? Peyton Hillis with 17 fantasy points. Hillis did all of his damage as a receiver, hauling in seven receptions for 116 yards and a TD. While Hillis didn’t receive a carry, his performance Sunday complicates the Broncos’ backfield situation even further.

There was a lot of hype surrounding rookie, Ryan Torain, heading into Week Nine, but the rookie received just three carries of the team’s 12 on Sunday for a total of one rushing yard. Meanwhile, starter Michael Pittman, ran seven times for just four yards, while Andre Hall had one carry for seven yards.

It’s no secret that Mike Shanahan is no friend to fantasy football owners, and with so many bodies to work with, you can be sure Shanahan will once again toy with fantasy owners nationwide. This is a situation best avoided until one back emerges as Shanahan’s favorite. The smart money is on Torain to be that back.

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Sexy Rexy

While his numbers were not the greatest, Rex Grossman deserves kudos for leading the Chicago Bears back against the Detroit Lions, keeping the Lions as the only winless team left in the NFL. However, while kudos are in order, a waiver wire selection is not.

Grossman's 9-for-19 passing for 58 passing yards, one passing TD, and one INT are evidence that even if Kyle Orton misses an extended period of time, Grossman should not be used as a fantasy football quarterback.

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