Things we may have learned from this weekend

[IGotWorms 4,060]

Yes, pre-season games do not matter much. That said, the third week of pre-season (this weekend's games) are generally regarded as the least unimportant of the lot. During the first two games teams are just playing scrubs to see what they've got, and trying to make sure none of their main guys get hurt for no reason. During the last week, teams want to rest up their main guys so they don't go into the regular season already battered. But during the third week, teams want to see what they've got.

 

So, that said, what can we take away from this weekend's games? Please list your insights here. I will start:

 

1. Laurence Maroney will be a workhorse back: He carried the ball on 15 of the Patriots' first 19 snaps. More importantly, he said that his surgically repaired shoulder held up very well, even better than he expected.

 

2. Ahman Green could be a steal this year: Carried the ball 8 times for 65 yards. Gotta like that production, especially from a guy who may well be available in the 5th round (according to his ADP).

[Quickolas1 80]

i'd be curious to hear about jacoby jones & brady quinn for those that watched

[MTSkiBum 1,625]

How did the texans run all over the cowboys when the broncos couldnt???..........

 

 

Samkon gado 4 for 32

Ron Dayne 8 for 25

[FeelingMN 273]

......Troy Williamson still cannot catch!

 

Had an opportunity to haul in a perfect pass from Jackson, and simply couldn't grab it; would have been a 40 yard TD strike.....his only look of the game. He didn't exactly drop it, but was a catchable pass where he didn't extend. The trip to Nike has done him little good on the deep routes.

 

Wade was targeted often and looked good. His overall numbers this year won't be much to look at but if you're in a PPR, I'd look at him as a sleeper. Will get lots of looks and will be plenty involved in the Vikes O.

 

Both Taylor and AD looked good tonight. AD was in at the goal line, but Taylor ran well when given the opportunity; especially runs to the left. Full blown RBBC with AD getting the looks at close range.

 

As for the 'Hawks: Hass looked pretty good. There was a drive in the 2nd when it seemed they were intent on scoring a TD; pretty much marched down the field. SA was typical SA; couple good runs, ran with power and speed at times, but only when there were open lanes with which to run.

Hackett was targeted in the red zone one drive; Branch was targeted once, in the red zone on another drive, and caught a WR screen that nearly went for a TD.

[WR Guru 31]

As Ben Franklin once said, there are 3 kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and pre-season statistics.

 

They tease you and poison your mind. My advice- do not even look at them.

[NCNickNasty 0]

Being a Panthers homer, as much as I hate to say this, our offense will be horrible this year. I would move Steve Smith to the bottom of the first tier wr's.

[Eriadoc 4]

Since I am a Texans PSL holder and just got back from the game, I'll only speak to that game (well, and from everything I've seen in TC and other preseason games).

 

Jacoby Jones is the real deal. He's a rookie, he's raw, and he'll make mistakes and disappear for stretches. Give him a year or two, though, and he's going to be a star in the NFL. He's fast, he can leap like nobody's business, and he just has that knack for making plays - something that can't be taught.

 

AJ is as good as we all have known in Houston, but with Schaub at QB, the rest of the world may soon find out as well.

 

Ahman Green will make a major impact this year, if he stays healthy. I don't know if he can stay healthy, but what the heck.

 

Owen Daniels is a very good young TE. I don't know how things will shake out as far as stats go, because so much of the TE's production is tied to scheme and opportunity, but keep him on your radar.

 

The Houston O-line is still bad, but not historically bad. Schaub is also very decisive, and gets the ball out quickly. I don't think you'll see more than 35 sacks on the QB this year, and the production across the board will improve because of it. An injury at LT will hurt, though. Depth in other positions is OK< but not at LT.

 

The secondary is bad. Really bad, IMO. Dunta Robinson looks like he is a man on a mission this year, but aside from him, not one player in the secondary should be starting for an NFL team. The team is also not getting much of a pass rush. They go hand-in-hand, but I continually see players getting mixed up on routes, leaving their zone assignments, and just flat getting beat, even when there is a pass rush. As a result, this team is going to have problems getting off the field defensively. The thing is, they stop the run very well. So it could end up being a situation where they can make the opponent one-dimensional, which might result in some interesting defensive situations. At any rate, IDP players should target Demeco Ryans early, and probably bumb Dunta Robinson up your boards. Greenwood is probably good for tackles as well.

 

HTH.

[jcuadrado 0]

I learned that ADP means jack shiot....

 

I learned that the internet has made ff very easy for the casual ff player giving them as much as a chance as the addicts such as myself...

[Reality 3,121]

R. Brown and C. Benson are both fools gold.

 

V. Jackson could be set for a huge year. 8 in the box and special attention on Gates. Sky is the limit.

[jeffuconn 0]

Since I am a Texans PSL holder and just got back from the game, I'll only speak to that game (well, and from everything I've seen in TC and other preseason games).

 

Jacoby Jones is the real deal. He's a rookie, he's raw, and he'll make mistakes and disappear for stretches. Give him a year or two, though, and he's going to be a star in the NFL. He's fast, he can leap like nobody's business, and he just has that knack for making plays - something that can't be taught.

 

AJ is as good as we all have known in Houston, but with Schaub at QB, the rest of the world may soon find out as well.

 

Ahman Green will make a major impact this year, if he stays healthy. I don't know if he can stay healthy, but what the heck.

 

Owen Daniels is a very good young TE. I don't know how things will shake out as far as stats go, because so much of the TE's production is tied to scheme and opportunity, but keep him on your radar.

 

The Houston O-line is still bad, but not historically bad. Schaub is also very decisive, and gets the ball out quickly. I don't think you'll see more than 35 sacks on the QB this year, and the production across the board will improve because of it. An injury at LT will hurt, though. Depth in other positions is OK< but not at LT.

 

The secondary is bad. Really bad, IMO. Dunta Robinson looks like he is a man on a mission this year, but aside from him, not one player in the secondary should be starting for an NFL team. The team is also not getting much of a pass rush. They go hand-in-hand, but I continually see players getting mixed up on routes, leaving their zone assignments, and just flat getting beat, even when there is a pass rush. As a result, this team is going to have problems getting off the field defensively. The thing is, they stop the run very well. So it could end up being a situation where they can make the opponent one-dimensional, which might result in some interesting defensive situations. At any rate, IDP players should target Demeco Ryans early, and probably bumb Dunta Robinson up your boards. Greenwood is probably good for tackles as well.

 

HTH.

 

Schaub was not decisive and did not get the ball out quick in ATL when he was here. He is a sack waiting to happen.

[tru_blu 0]

Jamal Lewis looks like a steal to me, running hard and breaking tackles again.. looks fresh.. gets a chance to catch some passes in the cleveland system

 

Lamont Jordan looks a TON better then he looked last season.. could be a major steal

 

A Green looks solid.. maybe a dominique davis type year for him??

 

Maroney got alot of chances, but didnt look as good as he did last season, gets tackled by first guy alot doesnt push forward for extra yardage like last season

 

 

Lee Evans has Losmans undivided attention it would seem a great year coming

 

 

Saints offense is going to be insane everytime I look they are in scoring position again --

 

Rivers looked excellent to me, and vincent jackson looks like a true #1 wr, could be in the 75-80 catch range for 1100 yds and 10+ tds Rivers in the 3500+ yard club with over 20 tds.. which is insane with LT grabbing 18+ again

[fantasymind 1]

I learned that ADP means jack shiot....

 

I learned that the internet has made ff very easy for the casual ff player giving them as much as a chance as the addicts such as myself...

 

 

You must be a Phil Helmuth fan...

[CBFan 0]

Quinn looked really good again. Assuming Frye continues to trust his feet and not his arm, Quinn should hopefully take over the starting job after the bye week (week 5 bye). Lewis had some real nice runs, especially getting 6 on 1st and goal at the 7 - that would have never happened the last few years. Edwards and Winslow should both have strong years. Then again, this was against Denver's Defense, so take it for what it's worth, which probably isn't much. Denver still has too many former Cleveland players on defense (> 0) to be any good.

 

On defense, Cleveland should be much better, with D'Quell Jackson and Wimbley having a year of experience behind them, Peek added opposite Wimbley and Wright playing well. It was still frustrating to see them hold Denver for a play or two, but not get the stop when they really needed it. Too many WRs were wide open on 3rd and long.

[murf74 461]

I learned that player X does really well vs. team Y, when team Y is running a vanilla defense and do not game plan as they would in the regular season.

 

Don't let the meaningless preseason factor any more than about 5% of your fantasy pre-draft rankings.

[IGotWorms 4,060]

Ah, gotta love the know it alls. "Don't factor the pre-season in too heavily." No shiot guys, didn't you notice that my entire first paragraph was a qualification of how the pre-season doesn't matter?

[OD99 0]

I would temper the whole, "Pre-season doesn't matter" talk with the fact that most of the games this week has starters on both sides playing into the 3rd quarter.

 

While the D may be vanilla for the most part there are some good signs for players that can't be ignored:

 

1. V.Jackson is going to be very good

2. Lamont is also going to be very good and the Raiders O in general will have a marked improvement over last year

3. Minny will be RBBC

4. Vince Young could be right up there in FF points at the end of the year (our scoring is only 3pts for throwing a td but 6 for rushing - levels the field with Manning a little)

5. All 3 RB's in SD are sickly explosive...

6. Schaub is going to make AJ a top 7 WR

 

There are more I am sure...

[Savage Beast 1]

I have learned that pre-season numbers don't mean sh__ when it comes to fantasy football.

[Eriadoc 4]

Schaub was not decisive and did not get the ball out quick in ATL when he was here. He is a sack waiting to happen.

 

*shrug*

 

I really don't care what he did or didn't do in ATL. He's here now, getting coaching from Kubiak, and I can only tell you what he has been consistently doing all TC and preseason. Our O-line doesn't form pockets worth a damn, yet he is still getting the ball out quickly and decisively. He's anticipating, and the WRs are turning around with the ball already there. If that's different than it was in ATL, then hooray. Whatever.

[IHEARTFF 0]

You must be a Phil Helmuth fan...

 

awesome

[Phurfur 70]

As Ben Franklin once said, there are 3 kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and pre-season statistics.

 

They tease you and poison your mind. My advice- do not even look at them.

 

 

We have a winner!

[IGotWorms 4,060]

I'm glad I could provide a forum for pompous know-it-alls to flex their considerable mental might.

[mggoilers 0]

I would temper the whole, "Pre-season doesn't matter" talk with the fact that most of the games this week has starters on both sides playing into the 3rd quarter.

 

While the D may be vanilla for the most part there are some good signs for players that can't be ignored:

 

1. V.Jackson is going to be very good

2. Lamont is also going to be very good and the Raiders O in general will have a marked improvement over last year

3. Minny will be RBBC

4. Vince Young could be right up there in FF points at the end of the year (our scoring is only 3pts for throwing a td but 6 for rushing - levels the field with Manning a little)

5. All 3 RB's in SD are sickly explosive...

6. Schaub is going to make AJ a top 7 WR

 

There are more I am sure...

 

Vincent is a nice player, but Arizona has a terrible secondary. Vincent also is like Samuel L. Jackson in Unbreakable, he always gets dinged up in limited time...bring on the everydown playing and he's liable to get really hurt. He's a nice size blocker for LT though

[Buck Naked 0]

Quinn looked really good again. Assuming Frye continues to trust his feet and not his arm, Quinn should hopefully take over the starting job after the bye week (week 5 bye). Lewis had some real nice runs, especially getting 6 on 1st and goal at the 7 - that would have never happened the last few years. Edwards and Winslow should both have strong years. Then again, this was against Denver's Defense, so take it for what it's worth, which probably isn't much. Denver still has too many former Cleveland players on defense (> 0) to be any good.

 

On defense, Cleveland should be much better, with D'Quell Jackson and Wimbley having a year of experience behind them, Peek added opposite Wimbley and Wright playing well. It was still frustrating to see them hold Denver for a play or two, but not get the stop when they really needed it. Too many WRs were wide open on 3rd and long.

 

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Lives in Cleveland.

[HilltopperVike 0]

......Troy Williamson still cannot catch!

 

Had an opportunity to haul in a perfect pass from Jackson, and simply couldn't grab it; would have been a 40 yard TD strike.....his only look of the game. He didn't exactly drop it, but was a catchable pass where he didn't extend. The trip to Nike has done him little good on the deep routes.

 

What?! That pass was overthrown. Sure he shoulda dove for it, but it was by far an easy pass to catch. I wouldn't judge his trip to Nike on that one pass.

[CBFan 0]

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Lives in Cleveland.

 

Well, yeah, there's nobody else who would want to watch them. I'm not saying Cleveland's players are first round worthy picks. However, I see a lot of things in Cleveland football to be hopeful for - and I think Denver's defense is highly overrated to make Cleveland's offense look like it did. I think Cleveland will be better this year simply because players won't give up on the season the way they seemed to last year. The talent taken in the last few drafts far exceeds anything they've gotten in recent years. I think they'll have a number of players this year that will exceed what they've done in the past, and I think Quinn will be a good future pick.

[Ryedog 0]

Things we learned this weekend?

 

The Lions still suck!

[Sho Nuff 720]

- it does not matter who Green Bay's RB is if the line blocks that poorly you are only going to get points if they get to the 1 yard line and can get a cheap rushing TD.

- Vince Young cannot be sacked ...well, he can be, but the guy is crazy good.

- James Jones will have one of the better rookie WR seasons...maybe not #1...but top 5 as far as this rookie class. If Driver gets hurt, Jones will be #1 for rookies.

- Willie Parker will be a complete beast this year and will be a great value for those drafting in the later parts of the 1st round.

- Along with my first point...Favre's shoulder might fall off as many times as he will throw the ball this year.

[Four More Beers 0]

I learned that ADP means jack shiot....

 

I learned that the internet has made ff very easy for the casual ff player giving them as much as a chance as the addicts such as myself...

 

But then you can play a new game - Guess the Draft List. There were a few guys in my draft last night who drafted the next guy on the FFT rankings pretty much every time.

 

Nobody has a total chump draft anymore it seems. You gotta beat the chumps on the waiver wire.

[shredhead 21]

But then you can play a new game - Guess the Draft List. There were a few guys in my draft last night who drafted the next guy on the FFT rankings pretty much every time.

 

Nobody has a total chump draft anymore it seems. You gotta beat the chumps on the waiver wire.

I used the FFT rankings for both of my drafts so far because I found it was one of the better liststs I could find. That being said, I most definately did NOT draft the next person on their rankings every time. If you had people in your draft that did then you have your chumps right there.

 

Ranking sheets, even good ones like the one at FFToday are merely guidelines. Every draft is a little bit different and you have to adapt accordingly.

 

Let the draft come to you grasshopper.

[jgcrawfish 232]

Here's my thoughts from last night's game...(trying to be objective despite homerism)

 

- If Ben Roethlisberger gets even slightly more accurate, he's gonna have a big year.

- Willie Parker is worth the pick, however, any more fumbles on the goalline may hamper his value.

- Big Ben looks for checkdown guys (read: Heath Miller/RB) an aweful lot right now

- The Steelers defense really cracked down on a pretty good Eagles offense

- Donovan McNabb is fine

- McNabb spreads the ball around a lot, but he's looking at Kevin Curtis quite a bit.

[swirvenirvin 25]

Do not draft any Lions RB's

 

Their defense is horrible may be the worst in the league, they will not be able to stop anyone, and will always be down in games. Their passing defense more so than their running defense. Since they will be down all game Martz will not run they will again have the leagues least rushing attempts. Bell, Jones, Duckett doenst matter these guys will have to be your 4th or 5th RB if you draft them cause you are only going to get 30 yards a game rushing from them

[Andrew C. Wozniak 0]

Green Bay has a playmaking defense.

 

Adrian Peterson is the real deal.

 

Chad Pennington is holding the QB spot for the guy who's taking his job. Damn shame.

 

Donovan McNabb is motivated.

 

The bears still suck.

[FeelingMN 273]

What?! That pass was overthrown. Sure he shoulda dove for it, but it was by far an easy pass to catch. I wouldn't judge his trip to Nike on that one pass.

 

 

The pass was overthrown by like 2 inches. Troy didn't even break stride. Just put his arms up like he was going to catch it, but didn't. Looked to me he thought he had it....until he didn't.

[Perennial Contender 18]

1- Vince Young is really really good. Top 5, maybe top 3 QB by season's end.

2- Troy Williamson is a bust.

3- Vikings will suck.

4- Lee Evans is a stud WR, possibly top 5 by season's end.

5- There is still life in D. Culpepper. Thought he was done.

6- Chad Pennington sucks.

7- Pat's & Colts are on a collision course to meet in AFC Championship (Super Bowl) again.

8- No one in the NFC has a chance to win the SB.

9- Byron Leftwich sucks.

10- Packers have a couple of really good LB's (Hawk & Barnett) but they still suck.

11- Bears will never win a SB w/ Grossman as their QB.

12- 49ers will surprise some people this year.

13- Mike Vick is a freaking idiot.

14- And rock and roll will never die.

[Belushi 9]

Been watching allot of the games replayed on the NFL Network:

 

1. Jamal Lewis is looking good. I hadn't even considered him before, but he looks to be in great shape, and the O-line was opening good holes against first-string defences. He's undervalued in drafts, and he's got no one behind him to take touches.

2. Willie Parker is going to catch allot more balls in that offence this year. And he'll be in for all 3 downs. To all the people worried about Barlow, last I read he was likely going to get cut.

3. Kellen Clemens is the real deal. Yeah, it was against backups, but the team around him was also backups. Throws a nice deep ball and makes quick decisions. If the Jets falter, we could very well see Clemens in there by mid-year.

4. Packers D looks very good. Good linebackers and defensive line, great cornerbacks. Saftey is the big question, but looking at the offences they'll be up against they should put up some good fantasy numbers.

5. Either Adrian Peterson is better than Cedric Benson.

6. Denver D is going to take a while to get used to the new system. They've looked bad in preseason, but the talent is there.

7. It's going to be a long season for Bills fans. The D is terrible, and the new O-line looks bad on run blocking.

8. Vikes offence could be surprisingly average this year. I was expecting them to be terrible. Bobby Wade actually looked like an NFL WR, but it is only preseason. That run game could be scary.

9. Rex Grossman still sucks.

10. Manning may actually be even more determined than last year. Scary.