Tap's Fantasy Report: Week 1

TFR: Tap’s Fantasy Report Week One

Here at SnoTap, we will be helping you weekly throughout the football season. We will recap what happens each week on Tuesday, and also give you some advice on how to use these happenings to win your league. If you have any questions, put them in the comments below or email SnoTap12@gmail.com, and we will answer them in a future post.

Terrelle Pryor-Pryor was mentioned in our Free Agent Finds article, and while we missed on some guys, the logic we used for Pryor came true Week 1. Pryor is not going destroy the NFL for this throwing ability, his goal in that department should be to improve each week, and hopefully create a successful career for himself. In Week 1 against the Colts, he was able to add 112 rushing yards to his passing statistics. His athletic and rushing ability is what makes Pryor fantasy relevant, as well as the lack of serious threat at the quarterback position (sorry Matt Flynn). It should be noted, that the Colts defense is not one of the league’s strongest, (Erick Walden specifically has proven he can’t chase down running quarterbacks, tough post for former Packers) so there are going to be a few rough games in Pryor’s future. Pick him up as a stash option if you can, as he will have some games where he will be a quality starting quarterback, but if you have a reliable top QB, don’t waste a high waiver claim or a lot of FAB money on him. If you already own him, and someone is offering you someone you might start in return, jump on that deal quickly.

Reggie Bush- Yes, Bush lost two scores that he seemingly earned, but he looked like a complete stud, and it looked like the Lions are finally going to be the team to use him to his full potential. He seemed a lot faster than anyone else on the field, and brought a good rushing and receiving threat. This is exactly what owners who drafted Bush were hoping for. However, this is Reggie Bush, all of our preseason concerns are still there, including injuries, which he battled during this game. If you are able to swing Bush for an under performing top 15 back, perhaps a fellow team panicking on Doug Martin or CJ Spiller, pull the trigger. Bush’s value is never going to be higher, he has a chance for a monster year, but he has a chance to break your heart.

David Wilson-If you own David Wilson, take a deep breath. You went through a tough Week 1, but it will get better. Yes, he was benched due to fumbles, but he had fumbling problems at the beginning of last year, and Tom Coughlin had the same type of issues with Tiki Barber. Wilson will get another chance, likely in Week 2, to redeem himself. He will be motivated, and he has a ton of talent still. If Andre Brown didn’t have a broken leg, Wilson would be in more trouble, but the Giants have nobody else. The opportunity is there. Don’t trade him yet if you drafted him, you won’t get value in return, but if you don’t own him, see if the Wilson owner is panicking yet.

Julian Edelman­-Edelman stepped up in the Patriots lack of playmakers, and caught 7 passes for 79 yards and two touchdowns. This is one of the tougher players to get a read on, as he has flashed potential in the past, and has an awesome quarterback throwing to him, but he also has an injury history, and has a difficult to predict offense.  He is likely owned in a lot of leagues, but if he is on the free agent wire, the time to act is now. There are better targets to go after this week, but Edelman will be a good consolation prize as the waiver order processes. If he is already owned in your league, wait a bit longer to see if this is for real or not, it’s still too tough to tell.

Anquan Boldin­-If I was cooler, like Charlie, I’d have a better way to say that Boldin tore up the Packers secondary, but I’m here for my stat-nerdness, not my cool factor, so that will have to do. If you own Boldin, sell high, sell high, sell high. A lot was made of the Packers inability to stop Boldin, and you have to give him all the credit in the world, but that is not a typical 49ers game plan. For the rest of the season, San Fran will pick up more yards on the ground, and they will face a few more teams with larger defensive backs. Boldin was able to dominate due to his size.  Due to these factors, Boldin will have a decent, but not great year. If there is someone overvaluing him, take advantage of it.

Julius Thomas-Since the game was on Thursday, it has calmed down slightly, but people were losing their mind over Thomas’ performance against the Ravens, and it was deserved. Two of the three tight ends in our Free Agent Find post had huge weeks (Thomas, Jordan Cameron) and one was an absolute dud (Zach Sudfeld). If you were smart enough to pick up Thomas before Week 1, sell high now if you can get a good deal. He still has injury history, there are still a lot of targets in that Denver offense, and they won’t put up that many points each week. If you can get a starter at running back or wide receiver, pull the trigger.

Each week, we will discuss some buy low and sell high candidates. We’ll explain our general rules for these categories since it’s Week 1. Everyone should always be available for trade on your team, don’t fall too in love with any individual player, as if someone offers you a ridiculous value, you should take it. The buy low and sell high designations are reserved for when the general public in a league is likely overrating or underrating the value of specific players. A key to winning is identifying these situations and getting upgrades. That being said, don’t trade for, or trade away any of these players without winning the value proposition, unless it helps you position wise.

Buy Low Candidates: Marlon Brown, David Wilson, Lamar Miller, Stevan Ridley, Eddie Lacy, and Cecil Shorts

Sell High Candidates: Reggie Bush, Anquan Boldin, Julius Thomas, and Danny Amendola.

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NFL Liquor Cabinet: Week 1

We are back for another season of the Liquor Cabinet. Some of you are new to Sports News on Tap so let me explain... I look at the NFL week like I do when I head to Ray's Liquor Store in Wauwatosa. Top Shelf is all the booze I cannot afford to buy because I still work part-time at age 25 but it is the real good stuff thus the NFL moments are the real good ones from the week. The middle shelf is stuff I can afford but it is really not good booze meaning the above average/average moments of the NFL slate. The bottom shelf is the stuff guaranteeing you with a hangover that involving puking more than Jason Witten hence the bad stuff that happened this weekend.  

Top Shelf
Chip Kelly's 'gimmick offense' sure looked great - The Eagles ran 77 plays last night. They had 53 of them in the first half keeping an unreal pace that looked like Chip Kelly's Oregon teams with better athletes. LeSean McCoy looked like a new player and Michael Vick seemed to finally fit in an offense.  Philadelphia struggled a bit in the second half, but still, they looked tremendous. Like I said, this team would be a tough read and they are showing it thus far. Tap writer Pat Luce pointed out to me the Eagles only scored 33 or more points last year and it was in a defeat against the Dallas Cowboys.

Reggie Bush and the Lions defense dazzle - I am still not fully bought into the Lions hype, but I will say they looked great in their first game of the season. Reggie Bush played like a monster including people make ridiculous comparisons to Barry Sanders (SANDERS AND BUSH, ONE IN THE SAME? MY COLUMN:). He did play really well and creates a secondary threat for the Lions offense taking some pressure off Matthew Stafford. Their defense deserves some credit as they held Adrian Peterson to 15 yards after his 78 yard run to begin the season. While Ndamukong Suh gets the headlines, they were strong for the greater part.

Statement win by New Orleans - Like what I saw from New Orleans on Sunday. At least for one game, they showed more of a commitment to run the football by running it 29 times although it is still a running back by committee format which needs to change at some point this month.  They also held Atlanta to 17 points, one of the best offenses in the league. New Orleans forced two turnovers as well including a great stand to end the game. I like what the Saints have cooking here at least for the first game of the season.  

Andy Reid looks like a ketchup bottle and the Chiefs - Man, I love Andy Reid. Maybe it is because he looks like a walrus or Mike Holmgren's brother, but I just enjoy the guy and would welcome an opportunity to eat ribs with him. He looked like a bottle of ketchup Sunday, from now on, he is Mr. Heinz until further notice. The Chiefs played well against the Jaguars, but the jury is still out on them. Kansas City-Dallas at Arrowhead should be fun next week.

Middle Shelf
Smoke and mirrors in Seattle? - If I were a Seahawks fan, I would be concerned about Week 1.  If DeAngelo Williams does not fumble around the goal line, Seattle likely loses their first game of the season. Russell Wilson spent more time outside the pocket than inside as the Seahawks offensive line could not protect him to save their soul. All three NFC West foes have great defensive lines. I will be real interested to watch this line against the Niners next week.

T-PEEZY IF YOU'RE NASTY -  Probably too early to get excited about Terrelle Pryor, but he rushed for over 100 yards and kept the Oakland Raiders in a game on the road against a playoff team last season.  Pryor looked like an NFL quarterback out there, and I have always banged the drum that Pryor played in the wrong college system. If Pryor becomes a competent quarterback, it can make Jadeveon Clowney a no-brainer in the first round.

Still Unknown: Houston and San Diego - I have no idea what happened on late Monday night. The Chargers had a massive first half only to pull their best Norv Turner impression in the third and fourth quarter with the Texas imposing their will on offense.  I cannot believe the Texans found a way to win this game and how San Diego lost it.

Defining the Middle Shelf... Patriots win over Buffalo - Remember how we talked about what the middle shelf was earlier? The Patriots are defining it as of now. The Patriots hung in there for the whole game, but they did not really play well at all. They are all sorts of banged up for their Thursday night game against the New York Jets and I would be a little concerned if I were a Patriot fan.

Future is bright in St. Louis and Phoenix - Arizona and St. Louis played a pretty good game on Sunday. Jared Cook finally looked like he might be worth his potential. Larry Fitzgerald finally has a quarterback. Both defenses did alright. I feel like we are watching two teams on the cusp of really having something with their teams.

Bottom Shelf
Lavonte David... Not a wise move, bro - He is one of the best young linebackers in the league, but right now, the Tampa Bay linebacker is known as the guy whom pushed Geno Smith after he went out of bounds leading the Jets to getting a game-winning field goal. David will be fine, but this defines the Buccaneers right now. They still have yet to fix the undisciplined play and that should concern Bucs fans.

Let's talk about Pittsburgh - I picked this team to go to the Super Bowl and they only scored nine points against Tennessee. The Steelers also lost Maurkice Pouncey, Larry Foote and LeRod Stephens-Howling for the season, all three important players to this team. I am starting to believe the 2010 team sold their soul to the devil to get to the Super Bowl because they have not seem to catch a break in quite some time. It does not get any easier heading to Cincinnati on Monday Night Football.  Pittsburgh does not need to win, but they need to at least look like they have a pulse.

Giants might need a running back - The New York Giants running back combination of David Wilson, DaRell Scott and Michael Cox is not a good look for them right now. They had multiple turnovers and struggled the whole game. Willis McGahee and Michael Turner might be options for them. But the fact the Giants are looking at Brandon Jacobs should scare the complete shit out of New York.

Rey Maualuga loses his cool and the football game for Cincinnati - The Bengals looked like they were going to get another chance against the Chicago Bears and then the former USC standout had an unsportsman-like conduct leading to an automatic Bears first down and a Bears win. Cincinnati had an eleven point lead after having a punishing opening second half drive and they stalled from there. The Bengals had two three-and-outs plus a turnover in the red zone.  A team whose supposed to be a Super Bowl contender does not have games like this one.

Brandon Weeden's hype deflates like a popped balloon - Out of all the people who had bad starts, Weeden probably depressed me the most. I did not really buy into the Browns hype like others, but at the same time, I felt like their offensive could be much better than years past. Weeden had three interceptions in the first half and it was curtains from there. The Browns really do not have much moving forward at quarterback and they have to ride it out.

Charlie.

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Fantasy Football Free Agent Finds

Now that most drafts are done, the second part of the fantasy football battle begins. Too many players will draft their team and stay married to those players, unwilling to admit a mistake or cut a guy they liked preseason. Year after year, fantasy leagues are decided by a few free agent studs that are picked up after week 1 or 2 performances. Just as important however, is finding guys that won’t be stars, but may have solid weeks here or there that can fill in during the bye weeks.

I attempted to find one player from each team in the NFL (key word attempted, more on that later) that is going undrafted in leagues, or is severely underrated that could help you with your team. The advice for most of these guys is not to pick them up, just yet. Watch how the first few weeks of the regular season unfolds, if these guys start getting an opportunity, pick them up and see if they develop. You never know though, since they’re sleepers, some might even get cut before the final rosters come out.  To make matters easier, most of these players fall into a few key groups.

One of these Quarterbacks has to break out eventually

Ryan Tannehill,Miami Dolphins, Blaine Gabbert, Jacksonville Jaguars, Jake LockerTennessee Titans, Sam Bradford , St. Louis Rams.

These are four young quarterbacks that so far have been struggling during their NFL careers. It is likely that none of these guys will eventually break out, but the unpredictable nature of the NFL implies that one could still bloom late. I would recommend watching Tannehill and Bradford closely, both have improved weapons at their disposal and could make the leap to fantasy relevant this year. If you have a low upside backup on your bench (Alex Smith, Phillip Rivers, Matt Schaub) replace them with Tannehill and Bradford, see if either breaks out, the backups will likely be available in free agency if things don’t work out.

Quarterbacks with rushing value to make up for passing troubles

EJ Manuel, Buffalo Bills, Terrelle Pryor, Oakland Raiders.

Fantasy football still gives a huge scoring edge to quarterbacks who are able to run and throw, allowing less talented quarterbacks to have more value than some more talented quarterbacks. Think about Tim Tebow (groan, sorry) while he was with the Broncos. We knew then that he could not throw the ball at an NFL level, but he was valuable in fantasy because he could get the ball down the field with his legs, and got some red-zone TD’s with his arm as well. The additional rushing points will make up for a lot of passing failures. It’s clear due to the QB situations in Oakland and Buffalo that these two will get chances during the season; I expect that they will run it quite a bit. Try to pick these guys up, BEFORE the breakout performance, and either trade while the value is high, or plug them in at QB.

Running Backs that could steal more touches than you think

Bilal Powell, New York Jets, Danny Woodhead, San Diego Chargers, Lance Dunbar, Dallas Cowboys, Joique Bell, Detroit Lions, Mike Tolbert, Carolina Panthers.

Unless you are in a fairly deep league, most of these guys will not be on your roster, however, they will see some playing time on the field. In fantasy, we worry about the starting running back a lot, and the immediate backup to serve as a handcuff. There are times where the number one backup has less value than the third string player, as the third string will see time on the field no matter what happens with injuries. This is true with many of the guys listed above, some are second string, some are third, but each is going to get some work in the passing game, and even some rushing attempts. These guys will all be more valuable in PPR leagues, and might not be the #1 back if the starter goes down, however as a bye week flex option, these guys bring value.

Running Back who actually might be next in line

Stepfan Taylor, Arizona Cardinals, Knile Davis, Kansas City Chiefs, Chris Polk, Philadelphia Eagles, Christine Michael, Seattle Seahawks.

All of these guys have fairly entrenched starters ahead of them on the depth chart, and it would take an injury for them to get fantasy value. In the case of Taylor, Polk, and Michael, there are established number two running backs on their current teams who people are looking at as handcuff options. After looking at some training camp reports and preseason games, there’s a chance that these guys could be next in line. If an injury happens to the starters on any of these teams, look quickly at these guys, they will fly under the radar, but could steal some carries quickly.

Tight Ends with value, but the secret might already be out

Jordan Cameron, Cleveland Browns, Zach Sudfeld, New England Patriots, Julius Thomas, Denver Broncos.

When I first started putting together this list, I had these tight ends picked out. My advice was going to be: pick one of these guys up as your backup tight end, and after two weeks shop either these guys or your starter, because you woll have two high level players. However, in the past two weeks, Cameron and Sudfeld have been getting their name tossed out there a lot, so the secret might already be out. Good job if you were able to pick them up, if they’re still available, grab any of these guys for week 1 and decide if you’re willing to trust them in your starting lineup.

Wide Receivers with talent that might steal some targets

Mohamed Sanu, Cincinnati Bengals, Darius Heyward-Bey, Indianapolis Colts, Ramses Barden, New York Giants, Aldrick Robinson, Washington Redskins, Earl Bennett, Chicago Bears, Jarius Wright, Minnesota Vikings, Kenny Stills, New Orleans Saints, Harry Douglas, Atlanta Falcons, Jon Baldwin, San Francisco 49ers.

Wide Receiver is one of the easiest places to find free agent pickups, since the league is so pass happy now. None of these guys are going to break out and be a number one option in fantasy football this season, but in PPR formats, or bye week flex guys, I could see them getting some playing time. Most of these guys have a good amount of talent and opportunity, something that is important in today’s pass happy NFL. For example, everyone is freaking out over T.Y. Hilton’s value this year (including me) talking about how his speed in the Colts’ offense along with Andrew Luck is a success story waiting to happen. Didn’t Heyward-Bey get drafted way too high in the first round by Oakland because he was fast? I think there’s a chance there. Jarius Wright can serve as a mini-Percy Harvin in the slot for the Vikings if given the opportunity. We all know Earl Bennett and Jay Cutler go back to their college days every once in a while. Cutler likes to stare down his receivers, if Brandon Marshall goes down, Bennett will see a lot of passes.

Wide Receiver with a lot of opportunity

Tandon Doss, Baltimore Ravens, Jericho Cotchery, Pittsburgh Steelers, Kevin Ogletree, Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

I’m not as high on the talent for this group compared to the one directly above it, but I still think that due to the NFL being a pass happy league, there’s a chance that these three will see some targets. All have lost some receiving targets from their teams in the offseason, and these guys appear ready to see a lot of time on the field.

Teams that are too predictable for sleepers

Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans.

First off, we all know the Texans’ rushing depth chart. Secondly, we know their pecking order for the passing game.  It makes it tough to find a sleeper on this team, because it’s such a tightly run offense without room for a lot of depth. When it comes to the Packers, most of our readers follow Green Bay to some extent, so it’ll make it tough to be the first player in your league to hear about someone on their roster. Packers get over drafted in Wisconsin fantasy football leagues as it is. If there’s someone you feel will break out, go ahead and pick them up, I just can’t find anyone not already on the radar.

Let us know what you think. Did we miss anyone? Think these guys won’t be valuable at all in leagues? Got questions for the fantasy football season? Email snotap12@gmail.com. Now that football is coming soon, we’ll have a weekly column going over roster advice, matchup predictions, and reactions to what happened the week below.

Adam

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Manziel's Autograph Scandal lacks Photo Evidence & Comes with NCAA Hypocrisy

The college football preseason should be filled with season previews (Coming maybe today, probably tomorrow), games to watch and other trivial things, but this year, it is Johnny Manziel all the time.  The Texas A&M quarterback cannot keep his name out of the headlines and honestly, it is not his fault entirely. Sports Illustrated and ESPN both did massive features on him with different angles in the same week and then news came out Sunday from ESPN's Outside The Lines, Manziel took money in exchange for autographs.

The most common question is why would Manziel need the money? People see the oil money, the golf courses and the lavish lifestyle, how could Johnny Football possibly need more money?   The answer should be he is a capitalist trying to make some extra money for himself, and he sees Texas A&M making a boatload of money off him thus he cashes some extra beer money which as Kip Moore will tell you, is a good thing.

While there are autograph brokers (This has to be one of the worst jobs in America, right? Grown men or women begging famous people for autographs) saying Manziel taking money, there is absolutely zero evidence Manziel took money for autographs. There is not a bank statement saying Manziel took the money. No pictures of checks made out to Manziel.  Nothing that directly connects Manziel to these supposed autograph brokers.

Many are aware Johnny Football does sign autographs after making mention to ESPN's Wright Thompson, Tiger Woods shafted him and he will not do the same.  Even with ESPN's newest report of Manziel taking $7,500 for signing helmets, there is still no concrete proof.  If the NCAA does not get photo evidence, they probably do not have a case on Johnny Football. This would mean the whole investigation is truly a frivolous one meaning absolutely nothing, just another story to keep Manziel's name in the sports media cycle. 

Because the NCAA is the NCAA, a player cannot take money for autographs. Former Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green received a two-game suspension for selling his jersey for 1,000 dollars.  Former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor received a five-game suspension for trading memorabilia for tattoos. Why players cannot get a little profit on their own name?

Especially when as ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas and noted NCAA basher pointed out on Twitter today if you use 'Manziel' as a keyword, it directs you to all of his jerseys.... WEIRD. Bilas points out this is the case with Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron, Oregon running back De'Anthony Thomas and others. How can the NCAA profit off a man's name, but the man who owns the name, cannot?  It seems like yet another classic NCAA double standard currently denting their overall credibility which is not much at this point.  

Manziel proves to be the one player to make the NCAA cringe.  He can challenge the system better than anyone in the last five to ten years. They see everything as his Twitter and Instagram are public as they can be, and Manziel continues to give zero f---s about what anyone thinks of him. People fret Manziel is too much in the public eye, but really he is just a kid taking advantage of what is given to him.The Manziel college experience is an HBO or Showtime show waiting to happen with different names and characters. 

If anything happens to Manziel, he might get dinged for the first game and be back for Alabama, creating an even bigger hype to probably the most watched September college football game. Even with more evidence coming out, there is not the smoking gun to knock Manziel out for the year. Nothing has come out yet actually showing Manziel accepting cash or check. Until then, it seems unlikey there is enough to suspended Manziel for the entire year or multiple games. Let's hope it stays that way because the college football season without Manziel will be definitely diluted. 

-Charlie.  

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