NFL WEEK 12 RESULTS/FANTASY FALLOUT

Well after last weeks picks, Aaron went 9-7 while I struggled at 7-9. This brings the up to date totals through Week #13 to Jason-100-73/ Aaron-99-74. So the standings are so close. We both picked Denver to win and cover against Oakland. Stay tuned for the rest of our picks tomorrow. This has been a fun season as it was my first year of blogging and picking against the spread, even if it was just for fun. Next year we will have to make it more interesting with some type of bet. Anyways, in Fantasy I won my 4th straight to go 7-6. I am one win away from a playoff birth. Pretty good comeback considering I was 1-3 at one point and 3-6. I have to win my game to clinch, but I can still win with a loss as long as I score more than 30 points. Joey Clemments gets in with a win against Aaron. This has been a crazy season for my fantasy team. My running backs have been decimated by injuries, while Peyton Manning, Calvin Johnson (Megatron), and Bandon Marshall have been beasts for my team. My best waiver pick ups were Josh Freeman, The Giants Defense, and Alfred Morris. I feel confident in my team this week although Peyton Manning only got me 22 points on Thursday despite throwing for 300 yards. He only had one touchdown and that hurt me. No matter what happens…it has been a fun ride for me being the first year in three years that I joined a fantasy league. I almost gave up halfway thru the season, but Aaron talked me out of it citing the fact that I had great stats, especially from the wide receiver position. Tomorrow I will preview Sundays picks as well as a synopsis on Fantasy starts and sits.
Here are my Power Rankings:
1) Atlanta Falcons
2) Houston Falcons
3) New England Patriots
4) Denver Broncos
5) New York Giants
6) San Francisco Giants
7) Chicago Bears
8) Baltimore Ravens
9) Seattle Seahawks
10) Pittsburgh Steelers

Bottom Feeders:
1) Jacksonville Jaguars
2) Philadelphia Eagles
3) Kansas City Chiefs
4) Oakland Raiders
5) Cleveland Browns

******My Superbowl Pick:
New England Patriots VS Chicago Bears….NFC Championship- Chicago Bears @ Atlanta Falcons
AFC Championship- Denver Broncos @ New England Patriots.

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WEEK #11 RESULTS/THURSDAY NIGHT PICKS/FANTASY FALLOUT

So Week #11 of the NFL Season is in the books. This season is winding down. So Far the best teams are pulling away from the pack, Atlanta in the NFC and Houston in the AFC. Week #11 saw Aaron go 9-5 against the spread….while I had my best week yet going 12-2. So far this years standings are as follows:
Jason: 83-60
Aaron: 80-63

So we are still neck and neck as this race is going down to the wire. Here are my NFL Power Rankings as of today.
1) Atlanta Falcons
2) Houston Texans
3) San Francisco 49ers
4) Denver Broncos
5) Baltimore Ravens
6) Green Bay Packers
7) Tampa Bay Buccaneers
8) Chicago Bears
9) New England Patriots
10) New York Giants….

Bottom Feeders:
1) Philadelphia Eagles
2) Cleveland Browns
3) Jacksonville Jaguars
4) Carolina Panthers
5) Saint Louis Rams

Week# 11 Featured some more key injuries as Willis McGahee of the Denver Broncos went down with a torn MCL and will likely miss the rest of the season. In Philly, Andy Reid made yet another huge coaching mistake as he had LeSean McCoy, the team’s running back and arguably MVP playing in the last two minutes of a blowout to the Washington Redskins. Well, McCoy suffered a concussion and will miss substantial time. And probably the worst injury as far as a team goes, The New England Patriots lost All-Pro Tight End Rob Gronkowski to an arm injury on a PAT at the end of the game. Injuries are a major part of the game and sometimes they really do make a difference in the fate of a teams playoff chances. Injuries definitely effect Fantasy Football Leagues in tremendous ways. My pick of RJ3 as a fantasy standout last week stood true as did my pick of Nick Foles as a Fantasy goat. If course, Nick Foles is in a no win situation.
Now to Thursdays Picks….There will be 3 Games played tomorrow on Thanksgiving, one extra than the traditional Thanksgiving special.
1) Houston Texans @ Detroit Lions- The Texans were lucky to escape with a win in Overtime last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Houston is making the big play at will this year and their defense is playing big as well. They are favored by 3 points in the road in Detroit. The Lions always play well on Thanksgiving, but I cannot see them beating the best team in the AFC. The Texans will win and cover but expect the game to be Competitive. Megatron will have a huge game and this matchup will favor two of the top receivers in the league in Andre Johnson and Calvin Johnson.

2) Washington Redskins @ Dallas Cowboys- The Cowboys are favored by 3 points at home. This is an excellent Divisional Rival game with huge playoff implications. The Redskins will hang in there but Dallas will pull away in the end. Dallas wins and covers.

3) New England Patriots @ New York Jets- The Jets have been a circus, despite their win last week. New England just lost one of their best weapons. However, they are always able to recover from key injuries and this is the time they usually make their run. The Patriots are favored by 6.5 on the road and I say they win and cover. Expect Tom Brady to shine and take over the game.

Stay tuned for Aaron’s picks. Ok…as far as Fantasy Football goes my team won and my record went to 5-6. I still have a slight chance to make the playoffs, but I must win out. I lost Willis McGahee, my 3rd starting running back to miss significant time this year. Peyton Manning continues to be my leader and Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall are the top of the list as far as wide receiver points go. Hopefully I can even up my record this week and edge closer to the playoffs. Till next time….HAPPY TURKEY DAY everyone!

NFL WEEK 7 RESULTS/Fantasy Fallout

Ok….Well Week #7 was a doozy…many close games. While my picks were an even 6-6…Aaron had a huge week ATS going 11-1 with his picks!!!!! I sense a familiar theme here. Aaron is 5-2 in Fantasy… I am 2-5. So here are the up to date standings this far:
Aaron: 60-42
Jason: 56-46.
I must admit…I was having a bad week last week and was starting to feel very negative about my performance on both sides of the spectrum…Fantasy and Reality. But then a light bulb went on…a revelation…the season is not even half way over and there is still a lot of Football to play!!!! So far…The Giants are the toast of the NFC and the Texans are the Beast of the AFC. The Vikings, Tampa Bay, and Atlanta have been major surprises in the NFC, while the Raiders, Colts, and Broncos have been a surprise in the AFC. Stay tuned to next week where I will provide a special 2012 NFL Season in Review post that will focus on the highs, lows, best teams, worst teams, players that have shined, players that have declined, overachievers, underachievers, injuries, Statistical Leaders and Fantasy Overview. Speaking of Fantasy…Week 7 Provided some high and low points as always. Let’s start with my team. Both of my Quarterbacks were on byes so I picked up the surprising Josh Freeman who was going against Drew Brees so I had hoped to just keep it close at the QB position. Well…Freeman performed well above expectations and finished with 41 points, only 1 point less than Drew Brees. Where I got killed…Maurice Jones Drew got hurt and gave me a big ZERO…Vernon Davis (Top 3 TE in points) gave me a big ZERO…Baltimore’s Defense who I should have dropped after all their injuries gave me a whole ZERO…and my Kicker (Jason Hanson) the number 1 kicker in Fantasy Points gave me a superb 1 point! WTF….not a good week. With all all the 0fers…I only ended up losing by 30 points. That’s how Fantasy Football goes…you win some and you lose some and some weeks there is just nothing u can do but put your tail between your legs and take it like a man. Anyways…at 2-5 it’s not looking good for my team so I am at the point where drastic measures are needed to be taken to try and salvage my team. Maybe a big trade…a free agent who blossoms at the end of the season…a waiver wire steal…all of these options will be looked at. Michael Vick and Calvin Johnson are officially on the trading block as of today. Also Jason Witten. I will be open to any offers…no one is untouchable. So there you have it. I am ready to take some chances and be proactive. Nonetheless…I said to sit Owen Daniels and he got 30 points. So sometimes even playing the matchup does not end up working out the way it was expected. So until Thursday…that is my NFL WEEK 7 in review. At least Fantasy can keep us occupied in World that is full of negativity and violence. Special condolences go out to Autumn Pasquale’s family and friends…the 12 year old girl whose life was viciously ended by two minors over a bike. This world is getting worse by the day so this should put things into perspective. Sports is only sports…it does not transpire real life and the tragedies that occur everyday in this world. For that reason…any of us who are able to even interact in the sports world must realize that we are blessed and be thankful that we are given these chances to enjoy things in life. Unfortunately…too many people have this opportunity taken away by some inauspicious tragedy. HUG YOUR NEIGHBOR FOLKS.

NFL WEEK 6 RESULTS/FANTASY FALLOUT/INJURIES

Week 6 has come and gone! Thus far, this season had been the craziest one in recent memory. Underdogs are winning at a much greater pace, which is making it very difficult when picking winners and losers and even the spreads are out of whack. Nonetheless…us Football pundits cannot stop the urge to pick each week and join Vegas in the fun. Ok…Well after a stellar week last week, Aaron and I had a difficult time as we both went 6-7 with the spreads and that brings our season totals to:
Jason: 50-40
Aaron: 49-41.
You cannot get closer than that. Needless to say…we were both wrong about the Patriots, Eagles, Texans, and Vikings. We had all these teams winning and none of them came close to sniffing a win. We also had the Colts upsetting the Jets which did not happen. So as mentioned…this season is going crazy and could end up totally different at the end and going into the playoffs.
The Baltimore Ravens barely squeaked by the Dallas Cowboys after having a 10 point lead at halftime almost slip away. However…they received some terrible injury news as both Pro-Bowl
And future Hall of Fame Linebacker Ray Lewis and Pro-Bowl Cornerback Ladarius Webb are out for the season. Webb tore his ACL and was put on injured reserve today and Lewis tore his triceps muscle. Haloti Nhada also was injured in the game, but it is not clear how much time he will miss. This is a huge blow to a Baltimore Defense that is always at the top of the NFL in statistics and you definitely can’t replace Lewis’ Leadership on the field…especially amongst the younger players. The Ravens did receive some good news as Terrell Suggs was taken off the PUP list and will officially practice this week. Baltimore is still in trouble and mat want to focus more on containing the clock with a consistent running back instead of their all around Arial Assault.
In other league news…The Philadelphia Eagles fired their defensive coordinator Juan Castilla on Tuesday. The Eagles team, which was expected to compete for a Superbowl has been inconsistent at best and have made so many mistakes. Where to start…Andy Reid (as good a coach he has been for the past 15 years) is a weak game strategist and their game plans seem to get worse and worse each week. Reid is so stubborn and will never commit to a consistent ground game. They have one if the most talented all purpose Running Backs in LeSean McCoy an they don’t even use him. It is unacceptable for a team to drop back and pass the ball 60 x a game…especially when their offensive line is absolutely pathetic. Michael Vick has not been great, but I don’t know too many quarterbacks that would play much better considering the pressure and duress that he has been under all season. It really is a travesty…the Eagles high power offense has been under seige. While the offense continues to play horrible, the defense has not fared much better. They have went 3 consecutive games without a sack, which is the first time that has happened since 1983! Wow! 1983! And their defensive game plan had fallen apart in the fourth quarter of every game. Today…Juan Castilla was fired (he’s obviously a scapegoat) and there may be more changes coming. If I were Jeff Lurie…I would fire Reid and get rid of Vick. I would also get rid of Joe Banner who hasn’t made a good decision in forever. This team needs a new identity and a coach that can get respect of the team. Reid ha lost this team. Stay Tuned.
Well, well, well another Patriots Loss! This time to the very young Seattle Seahawks team. One thing is for sure…mediocre offenses are scoring at will against the Patriots defense. I can see Bellichek switching it up and this team will come around. Bellichek is the Anti-Reid as he is the best game plan manager in Football and holds his entire team accountable. The Houston Texans were destroyed by Aaron Rodgers, who had a career high 6 touchdown passes, and the Green Bay Packers. The Broncos came back from a 24-0 point halftime deficit to win 35-24! Wow…never count Peyton Manning out.
Onto Fantasy…my team lost another close one and this week I head into a tough week as both of my Quarterbacks are on the bye. I’m scouring the waiver wire now for talent. So now I sit at 2-4. Aaron on the other hand won again and leads the league in power rankings. Fantasy Football has been just like the regular league…so hard to predict. It’s going to come down to the wire because each week their is a different set of superstars as well as scenarios and circumstances. Coming soon…Thursday Night Pick and waiver wire steals and duds. These are the weeks that make and break many fantasy owner’s seasons with injuries mounting and byes being taken. Oh well…hopefully we can get some mire consistency.

WEEK 3 WINNERS & LOSERS/FANTASY RESULTS

Wow….Thank God Aaron and I aren’t picking these games with money on the line! This week we both went 6-10 with our picks so for those of you keeping score after 3 weeks….
Jason-24-24
Aaron-21-27.
Each week we have went backwards as far as the results of our picks. There have already been more upsets this year than the entire last season. San Francisco losing to Minesotta…New Orleans losing at home to Kansas City to fall to (0-3)….Detroit losing to Tennessee in overtime after coming back from 17 down in the 4th quarter…Washington losing to Cincinnati at home…Philly losing to Arizona in the desert (they got destroyed)….Oakland beating a ferocious Steelers defensive attack…and then Monday Night’s Officiating debacle notwithstanding, The Seahawks beating Green Bay on a last second Hail Mary. This is a topic we will cover in another post…the negative outcome of replacement referees.
I don’t know too many people that picked Seattle…I was one of them, but the outcome truly came on a bad call so technically I was 5-11. That last minute gaffe was a bad call that I’m sure will be debated from now until next season. San Francisco was also upset in dramatic fashion as the Vikings played a near flawless game against the 49ers Top Rated Defense. Philadelphia was humiliated by the Arizona Cardinals! How many more times do I have to hear those infamous words out of Andy Reid’s Mouth…”Well they outplayed us and out coached us…I have to put my team in a better position…I have to be more prepared to play these games…we were not prepared”. This is getting so old. He is the most stubborn coach in the history of the NFL, as he never learns from his mistakes. With a banged up offensive line and many other weapons out of action…..why in the hell would you attempt 60 passes and run for less than 20x….especially when you have LeSean McCoy that is arguably a Top 3 Running Back! Andy never learns…every analyst could see this coming.
In Fantasy…I actually won my first game as I am now (1-2). My big stars finally performed….Calvin Johnson, Brandon Marshall, and Maurice Jones Drew. Like my best friend said, our daily numbers are right in line…only the two prior weeks I face 2 teams that scored league highs, so I could very have well been 3-0 This point. I’m really hurting at Quarterback and may have to make a trade in order to get more suitable Passing Game. Vick has been a tremendous disappointment thus far. Stay tune till tomorrow…when I will pick my Winner/Loser for Thursday Night Football and any Fantasy must starts and sits. It is what it is!

Winners and Losers/More Fantasy Fallout

Ok….well Week #2 was a crazy week and also a disappointment for me in Fantasy and also picking winners and losers. In Week #1 I was 11-5 with my picks. Week #2 was a whole different story with more than a few upsets and also outcomes that no one saw coming (a la New England only suffering it’s 2nd Home Loss in 4 Years….wow what an accomplishment to say the least and kudos to Arizona for taking the Patriots to task. My record in Week #2 was 7-9 and I was bit by a few of the upsets. Aaron was also 7-9 after going 8-8 in Week #1. So the standings after 2 weeks:
Jason: 18-14
Aaron: 15-17.
I guess both of us have some flaws in our game lol. I mean…we can only get better from here. In other news…my Fantasy Team got completely destroyed!!!!! It was so embarrassing…one of those weeks that you get beat so badly and wish you never joined the league lol. Anyways, it wasn’t that my team did horrible…I scored over 100 points for the 2nd week in a row…(119) to be exact. However, my opponents team Franky beat me by almost 100 points…he finished with 206 a league season high…Wow! His team went off! I mean…all of his players scored more than 15 points a piece besides his kicker who had 11 points. It was the battle of the Manning Brothers and his Manning (ELI) torched me for 35 points. Peyton on the other hand only had 15. This brings up an important debate. Year in and year out Eli Manning continues to be passed up in all varieties of Fantasy Football Leagues. The crazy thing is that he may be the most consistent Quarterback in Fantasy Football over the past 5 years. This year he dropped to the 9th round where Frank stole him in my opinion. I mean…Eli couldn’t have had a worse First Half…however he threw for 241 yards in the 2nd half alone and ended the game with over 500 yards passing…a career record for Manning. Manning every year puts up solid fantasy points week in and week out and no one seems to ever think highly of him. In my opinion…he is the most underrated fantasy player today. Last year he set a record for 4th Quarter Touchdown Passes and this year he is on the same pace. Not only did Frank benefit from having Eli, but he also had Victor Cruz who put up 34 points of his own with his 190 yards and 2 TD’s along with 11 receptions and also his other sleeper Percy Harvin, who had over 100 yards in the return game along with being the Vikings number 1 target in the passing game! I mean…even Franks Defense, the Green Bay Packers put up 26 points…wow. Well…I’m not giving up because I have been down this road before. A few years back I went 0-3 and ended up in the Final Championship Game only to lose. However, anything is possible. So far…I have been hit by the injury bug in a minimal way…however my star players have not performed up to par. Injury Notes: Ahmad Bradshaw of the Giants left the game and did not return. Steven Jackson of the Rams was not used in the 2nd Half which brought up a controversy of wether he was benched or if he had a “groin injury”…as his coach lamented. The play that he may have benched for was when he apparently thought he had scored a touchdown, but was ruled down at the 1….he celebrated and received a misconduct penalty for celebrating. He did not return after this play. In other major injury news…the Patriots list Aaron Hernandez until at least October with a leg injury. That is a big blow to fantasy owners. Jeremy Maclin reagrated his injured groin and may miss some time. The list of injuries continues and will be updated daily. Stay tuned for tomorrow, where Aaron and I will have our picks and I will share my start ems and sit ems. This is turning into a crazy season already. I’m looking forward to next weeks action, which actually begins Thursday with this years addition of Thursday Night Football. Till next time this is DA BIRD saying good night and be safe!