In Between the Tackles: Get Down and Dirty

It's amazing how much can change in the course of a few weeks in the NFL. Two weeks ago, fans of the New York Jets were surfing the web trying to find deals on flights to Tampa Bay for Super Bowl XLIII. After back to back losses to the Broncos and 49ers, now I can't help but wonder what happened to the team that knocked off the Patriots and Titans in a matter of 7 days. Speaking of Tampa Bay, what happened to that always-solid Monte Kiffin defense? Carolina made them look silly on Monday night by rushing for over 300 yards, with most coming in the second half when the game was on the line. With only a few weeks remaining in the regular season, let's head "In Between the Tackles" and try to make sense of it all.

Quarterbacks

Hopefully if you're still alive in your fantasy football league, you have a solid starting quarterback, so I won't spend much time on this position. For teams looking for last minute replacements and owners who need to start two QB's each week, I will suggest Shaun Hill or Seneca Wallace as possible pickups.

I'm trying to temper my enthusiasm for Hill given the fact that JT O'Sullivan looked like the next big thing in San Francisco and ended up flopping. I can't argue with Hill's production as of late though. With a few starts under his belt, WR Josh Morgan returning to health, and matchups against Miami and St. Louis the next two weeks, I think Hill is a viable fill-in.

A more risky play is Seneca Wallace. I never thought I would be recommending him in this column, but after watching highlights of his recent performance, I think he might be able to put up above average numbers this week against the Rams. He claims his calf injury has affected him all season and seems to finally be healthy and playing with loads of confidence. With no risk of bad weather in the dome of St. Louis, you can do worse than Wallace this week.

Running Backs

If you own Colts RB Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes is still available in your league, you need to pick him up immediately. Don't read any further until you do. Coach Tony Dungy claims Addai is "Okay" for this week's amazing matchup against the winless Lions, but Addai owners have heard this before. Dungy said Addai was "Okay" following his leg injury earlier this year prior to him playing no more than a few plays for a month and a half. Don't buy into it. Want more proof Dungy might be playing games again? The Colts signed former Steelers RB Najeh Davenport today. I have a bad feeling even if Addai does start this Sunday, he won't last more than a few drives before the Colts are up big and Rhodes mops up the yardage in garbage time. Normally I'd say stay away from this mess, but the matchup is just too juicy to avoid.

If you were able to watch Monday Night's performance by Carolina running backs DeAngelo Wiliams and Jonathan Stewart you know how powerful this 1-2 punch has become. Early in the season, I mentioned the fact that their slow start might be a result of the absence of solid offensive linemen Ryan Kalil and Jeff Otah. With both now fully healthy, this makes the RB tandem one of the best in the league. This week they face Denver. If they can put up over 300 yards on Tampa, the sky is the limit this week. Start both of them on Sunday.

It looks as if Jaguars RB Fred Taylor will be placed on Injured Reserve this week with a thumb injury. With FB Greg Jones hopefully set to return soon, Maurice Jones-Drew becomes a very solid play the next couple of weeks against Green Bay and Indianapolis. He might win your league for you.

I'm going to speculate on backup Dallas RB Tashard Choice just because his 166 yards against Pittsburgh's #1 rated defense is too hard to ignore. Choice showed good speed and quick moves, but I'm hesitant to think there's any chance Marion Barber won't be back this week. Their division matchup against the Giants is much more important than last weeks game against the Steelers of the AFC. They hoped to get away with resting Barber and escaping with a win, but it didn't work. Barber will be back this week for the unfavorable fantasy matchup.

Wide Receivers

Last week in this space I told you that Domenik Hixon was a capable replacement for Plaxico Burress and I failed you. Thanks to his pathetic drop of what would've been an 85-yard TD, Hixon put up only 30 yards on 3 catches. Even worse, while it didn't show up in the box score, he came close to muffing a punt in the first quarter...but I watched the game and while a case of the 'drops' scares me in a young receiver, I'm going to suggest you stick with him. Eli Manning struggled to find his receivers the entire day amidst the Eagles' defensive pressure and he actually targeted Hixon 9 times (18 the past two weeks). Eli should have much more success this week against a banged up Dallas secondary and Hixon should be the primary beneficiary.

Three weeks ago, Miami WR Greg Camarillo signed a new contract with the Dolphins only to tear up his meniscus and ACL a few days later. It will take Camarillo quite a while to return from this injury and he may never regain his '08 form, but Dolphins fans can be excited about the production of undrafted rookie WR Davone Bess since Camarillo's injury. For those Hawaii fans out there who stayed up late last year watching Colt Brennan light up the scoreboard, you might remember Bess was his favorite target. Bess only stands at 5'10" but one only needs to look at the success of smallish receivers such as Steve Smith and Wes Welker to understand that heart can make up for lack of size in the NFL. Bess has caught 15 passes over the last two weeks and has upcoming matchups against the weak secondaries of San Francisco, Kansas City and the NY Jets. If you're in a bind, take a gamble on Bess.

Tight Ends

Jaguars WR Matt Jones was finally suspended by the league this week for his lingering cocaine charge. With Jerry Porter also on the shelf with an injury, I tried to think of who would be the fantasy beneficiary from this situation. Aside from Maurice Jones-Drew as I noted above, I think TE Marcedes Lewis might put up production worthy of a fantasy playoff start. Eventually having FB Greg Jones back in the lineup is only more reason to relieve Lewis of some of his blocking duties that have prevented him registering no more than four catches in a game all season. I wouldn't scramble to grab Lewis by any means, but I like his situation with Green Bay and Indianapolis on tap.

You or another owner in your league may have cast off Bears TE Greg Olsen in disgust after he put up a goose egg against St. Louis a few weeks back. After 52 yards receiving and a TD last week, I think he'll be a good option going forward with Kyle Orton back to full health. The Bears face New Orleans, Green Bay, and Houston the next three weeks and I think Olsen is back to being a reliable starting fantasy TE.

Hail Mary

Last Week: LT rushed for 95 yards and 1 TD...short of the 150 yards and 2 TDs I predicted so I will count that Hail Mary as incomplete. What stood out in this game though was Darren Sproles totaled 64 yards and 2 TDs on only 12 touches once San Diego got up big. While I made the mistake of not anticipating such a lopsided win last week, isn't it possible we see Sproles put up big numbers again on the worst run defense in the league, Kansas City?

This Week: I tried to mention most of my fearless predictions in the commentary above, so I will attempt to make up for my Hixon prediction last week. I think he will pull in 7 catches for 120 yards and take advantage of a Dallas secondary without Pacman Jones and Ken Hamlin.

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