Ryan Dembinsky Posts

Given my two week streak of relative bricks on the No. 1 picks -- last week with the Bengals and two weeks ago with the Saints -- we need a rebirth of sorts. Hence, we look to the Eagles and their cupcake against the league's fourth-worst offense in terms of total yards per game, the Redskins. The Eagles rank third in the league in interceptions (16) and second in sacks (30), so coupled with no Portis, no Betts, and three offensive linemen on the injured reserve, the Skins are in trouble. Look for the Eagles to pad those sacks and interceptions a little more, as this could get ugly.

The next two spots go to the usual suspects, the teams who play the Browns and Lions, respectively. While Cincinnati and Green Bay typically fall around the low teens in our defense rankings, they are certainly solid enough to dominate these two lousy offenses. The Lions look to be playing without both Matt Stafford and Calvin Johnson, so the old Turkey Day tradition will likely be a feast only for Green Bay (again).

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Weeding through those unwieldy waiver wires requires a keen eye and a quick trigger. Thus, Waiver Wire Wonders provides a weekly snapshot of players worthy of consideration who should be available on a good portion of league waiver wires.

Just because those trade deadlines passed doesn't mean it is time to rest on your laurels and ride out the rest of the season with the team you currently hold. On the contrary, the unavailability of the trade option makes the waiver wire all that much more important. And while we likely will not see another week with the potential fantasy impact of last week yet again this season, there is still plenty to do before playoff time.

This week, the biggest waiver wire benefactors came as a result of some huge passing efforts. Among others, we witnessed two scoops for scores from a tight end, a two-catch, two-touchdown effort by a repeat waiver wire wonder, and a rookie play-maker with a solid performance.

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For anybody paying close enough attention to realize the offering by the fantasy gods that is the Bengals' home stretch, you begin your three-game win streak here in Week 11. Starting with this week's matchup against the Raiders, this marks the beginning of an Oakland, Cleveland, Detroit three-game run -- all of which are sure to be top-five matchups in our rankings. This week, we mark the Bengals at numero uno.

The second best start this week goes to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who should avenge a tough loss against the aforementioned Bengals with a cupcake matchup versus a Kansas City team that has now lost its starting running back and best receiver in two short weeks. Coupled with a Pittsburgh defense that is tied for third in the NFL in sacks and have forced eight fumbles, the Chiefs are in trouble and Pittsburgh fantasy owners can sleep well.

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Fantasy FanHouse's "Bust a Move" segment provides quick-hitting insight on the most popular adds and drops across Fleaflicker fantasy leagues between Tuesday and Wednesday of each week. Knowing who is on the move during this 24-hour period often provides a valuable edge with regard to outperforming or underperforming players, injuries and depth chart shifts. So do as the man says, "Don't just stand there..."

The Adds

Justin Forsett (RB, Seahawks, 2,952 adds) - I'm a bit surprised to see Justin Forsett ahead of Jason Snelling here given the news that Julius Jones only suffered a bruised lung as opposed to what was previously thought to be a broken rib, but he'll get at least one week of a guaranteed full load and most likely a couple more than that.

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Weeding through those unwieldy waiver wires requires a keen eye and a quick trigger. Thus, Waiver Wire Wonders provides a weekly snapshot of players worthy of consideration who should be available on a good portion of league waiver wires.

Week 10 dealt some potentially critical blows in the form of injuries, as two of the game's elite running backs -- as well as another solid weekly starter -- left their respective games due to injury. For waiver wire cherry-pickers, this spells opportunity as the backups here all provide potential additions. Beyond that, there is not too much else for this week on the wires, but we saw a big game from a quarterback on one of the league's worst teams putting up a fight against one of the best, a sage old receiver return to form, and a couple potential up-and-comers.

Start licking those chops folks, because we have not seen such a potentially impactful bunch of defense-friendly matchups since very early in the season. A number of the league's best defensive units play cream puff games this week, which means the return of some big scores.

The top slot goes to the Saints, who get the honor of walking all over the hapless Rams. What do you get when you cross a team that scores an average of 9.6 points per game with a team that has 16 interceptions, 7 forced fumbles, and 7 defensive touchdowns? The answer: about 25 fantasy points for the Saints' defense.

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Fantasy FanHouse's "Bust a Move" segment provides quick-hitting insight on the most popular adds and drops across Fleaflicker fantasy leagues between Tuesday and Wednesday of each week. Knowing who is on the move during this 24-hour period often provides a valuable edge with regard to outperforming or underperforming players, injuries and depth chart shifts. So do as the man says, "Don't just stand there..."

The Adds

Ladell Betts (RB, Redskins, 1,896 adds) -- We told you to add him on Sunday and again on Monday, so it's great to know you were listening. You were listening, right? Well, either way Betts makes a solid pickup while Portis recovers from his concussion and ankle injury, especially since he's very doubtful for Sunday. It's not like he was ever that healthy to begin with, so Betts exhibits a lot of upside particularly considering he showed the most life of just about any Redskins player this season. The X-factor with this pickup is a rumor floating around that Washington is looking at Larry Johnson, but go ahead and cross that bridge if/when you come to it. Besides, Zorn already said no.

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Weeding through those unwieldy waiver wires requires a keen eye and a quick trigger. Thus, Waiver Wire Wonders provides a weekly snapshot of players worthy of consideration who should be available on a good portion of league waiver wires.

It looks like we have the makings for some steamy waiver wire action as Week 9 provided a host of interesting plays. In the "one man gathers what another man spills" department, we saw a perennial backup step in as a fantasy big shot suffered a concussion, a couple of forgotten old-timers break out for their new teams, a couple of deep-on-depth-chart overachievers make a name for themselves, and we even saw a Lion play a good game. With the trade deadline looming, waiver wire moves get even more important down the stretch, so stay on your toes. Let's go.

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In preparing this weeks defensive unit rankings, I came upon a glaring oddity. The Seattle Seahawks rank dead last at intercepting opposing quarterbacks. Why you might ask then, do we rank them number one this week?

Well, first of all the Lions passing game continues to struggle with both Matt Stafford nursing and injury and Calvin Johnson looking unlikely to return (check back for the game-time call) in time for Week 9, but also Seatle cornerback Marcus Truffant has something to prove. After missing the first six games of the season, the 2007 pro-bowler played like absolute garbage last week, earning three pass interference calls that led to touchdown drives. Hence, look for Truffant and company to take it out on Detroit.

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Fantasy FanHouse's "Bust a Move" segment provides quick-hitting insight on the most popular adds and drops across Fleaflicker fantasy leagues between Tuesday and Wednesday of each week. Knowing who is on the move during this 24-hour period often provides a valuable edge with regard to outperforming or underperforming players, injuries and depth chart shifts. So do as the man says, "Don't just stand there..."

The Adds

Ryan Moats (RB, Texans, 5,087 adds) - With over 5,000 adds in a single week, Moats becomes the most added player of the year (for one week). Three touchdowns and 126 yards will do the trick every single time. Frankly, I'd file this one under "big time fluke" and expect to see Steve Slaton back in the lead role by week's end. Coach Kubiak already gave Slaton the pep talk and said he expects him to remain a key part of the running game. So the bottom line here is as follows: go ahead and add Moats, but unless you are in dire need of a leak plug at running back, wait to see how this shakes out before making him your starter.