For those who may use a different term or are new to fantasy football, "handcuff" is the term used when you own insurance for one of your players in the form of owning his real-life backup. It's usually a running back, but you could conceivably handcuff a quarterback. The theory is that some or all of the production is automatically replaced should you lose a high draft pick to injury, meaning you need to insure a high draft pick by grabbing his backup.
With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all.
Meet The ... Conclusion of the Butt Chiefs. That lousy 2-14 Chiefs squad from 2008 has nowhere to go but up from here, so they will no longer be the butt of everyone's joke. Remember that explosive offense for the NFC Champion, Arizona Cardinals. Well, former offensive coordinator Todd Haley assumes his first head coaching job this season in Kansas City. In other words, the Chiefs offense just became very relevant for fantasy football owners. Sure, Haley still faces a massive challenge in terms of personnel, but you can rest assured that this season, the Chiefs' offense will make plays just like Haley's Cardinals did.
Last year, the Chiefs put together one of the most impressive two-day draft showings I can remember. Glenn Dorsey, Branden Albert, Brandon Flowers, and Jamaal Charles -- all taken in the first three rounds -- saw significant playing time as rookies, and fifth-round defensive back Brandon Carr started every game. (Worth pointing out: the Chiefs might try to move Dorsey.)
It wasn't enough to save Herman Edwards' job; after taking the Chiefs to the playoffs in 2006, he only managed six wins the last two seasons. But new general manager Scott Pioli and new head coach Todd Haley have plenty of young talent to rebuild the team, and in March, they traded for their franchise quarterback: former Patriots backup Matt Cassel who, according to NFL Network's Mike Lombardi, just signed a six-year, $36 million deal. Not Matthew Stafford money, but it'll keep him comfortable.
Conventional wisdom suggests that such turnarounds might take a couple seasons, but after what the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins were able to accomplish, expectations are almost certainly higher -- which means that Kansas City could be just a few personnel moves from returning to the playoffs. The issue, of course. is which personnel moves will give Kansas City the best chance to make a postseason run in '09.
Looking for the 2009 version of Lance Moore instead? Head over here.
Michael Turner was relegated to mop-up and proverbial "change of pace" duties in San Diego. This past offseason, he was free to sign elsewhere, and the Atlanta Falcons swooped in like any good falcon would. Only Turner wasn't prey, he was a beneficiary. He turned out to be a steal, and he'll be taken towards the top of the first round next season in fantasy drafts.
Like any good dynasty league player would do, we need to start examining who could experience this sort of leap in fantasy football before next season. It's much better to be proactive than reactive, so here are some running back candidates who have a shot at gaining the job on their own team or in a new destination.
Leader in the Clubhouse
Derrick Ward, Giants -- He'll be a free agent when the Giants' season ends, so he's the most obvious choice here for the headline. The Giants likely don't want him gone, but they have to keep Brandon Jacobs, and Ahmad Bradshaw can handle the RB2 duties for them. There will be a team out there so desperate for a featured back that they'll break the bank for Ward -- Seahawks? Broncos? -- and the Giants can't justify a huge cap hit.
First, a disclaimer. This list is not necessarily a go pick this guy up right now type deal. If you play in an 8-12 team league and you don't have injury or ineffectiveness issues, this list is not for you. If you, however, play in a 16 or more team league with a deep bench, and you have been sitting there waiting on Willis McGahee to show up with a pulse for the past couple weeks, well, I may have something for you.
We call them "Hail Mary" choices because picking up some of these guys would be like throwing a Hail Mary pass. The odds of it winding up helping your team are slim, but there's enough of a chance FTW to hurl it up there. If you have dead weight on your deep bench, let us consider the following dudes.
I've attempted to list them in the order of their likelihood at helping you.
And, actually, the top guy is a sleeper is most leagues for this week ...
Maurice "MoMo" Morris, Seahawks He's overtaken Julius Jones in the Seahawks backfield. Sure, he's done very little all season -- save for a 100-yard game in Week 12 -- but he gets the hapless Rams in Week 15. You could do worse.
With Ray Rice and Tim Hightower announcing their presence with authority this weekend, we are continuing to witness easily the best draft class of running backs in NFL history. No class even comes remotely close to this one, should even half of the guys continue to make good on the potential we've seen through just a half season.
You know what that means in fantasy football ... lots of possible horses to lock up for their entire career on your keeper league team. You know there are people out there who drafted LaDanian Tomlinson his rookie year and have enjoyed every single season of his production since. Does this year's draft class sport one of those?
With Ray Rice and Tim Hightower announcing their presence with authority this weekend, we are continuing to witness easily the best draft class of running backs in NFL history. No class even comes remotely close to this one, should even half of the guys continue to make good on the potential we've seen through just a half season.
You know what that means in fantasy football ... lots of possible horses to lock up for their entire career on your keeper league team. You know there are people out there who drafted LaDanian Tomlinson his rookie year and have enjoyed every single season of his production since. Does this year's draft class sport one of those?
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. Enjoy those pickups...
Every week, the waiver wires continue to give us hyperactive fantasy football owners something to do besides work. And Week 9 provides a particularly compelling source of procrastination. Some of the biggest performances came from players simply in fill-in roles for the key starters. Thus, owners cannot just seek out the big stat guys and jump on them, because several of these players require an evaluation of the former starter's worth as well as the severity of the injury to make an informed decision. Still, there is a lot of quality talent available after Sunday's games, so don't get caught sleeping or you will likely be sorry come playoff time. Dan Orlovsky (QB, Lions) - With the news of the Daunte Culpepper signing, Orlovsky's respectable 292-yard, two-touchdown performance in the Lions' closest near-win to date gets diminished a bit. But he is improving and it is not likely that Culpepper will step right in as he needs to learn the offense and presumably get in shape. Thus, keep an eye on Orlovsky since he might be serviceable as -- dare I say it -- the Lions are improving. Orlovsky also threw the ball 47 times, which leads me to believe that Rod Marinelli finally might have realized that you can't just "pound the rock" when you suck. He did ding a finger on his throwing hand early in the game and is going in for an X-ray, so keep this in mind as well.
Ray Rice (RB, Ravens) - Ray Rice posted huge numbers Sunday against the Browns, racking up 154 yards on the ground and another 22 yards on three receptions. Unfortunately for Rice, the 21 carries were the result of Willis McGahee's nagging ankle injury keeping him on the sidelines for the entire duration. Thus, while Rice looks like a good snag this week, his value will probably go right back down unless McGahee's injury keeps him out another week or beyond. McGahee played through this injury for weeks, so he should be back soon.
One of the best things about Fantasy Football is "smack talk." Yup, littering the message board and taunting your friends and enemies at every opportunity. I feel for you if your league doesn't run by such standards, for me it's a must. Anyhow, another aspect of the game that ranks right up there is the "I told you so."
And yes, who doesn't like the right to brag and gloat. Look, when it comes to Fantasy Football we all think we're experts, but when we nail a call --- man, that's gratification. Well, you can probably guess where this going...right? Yup, you may have read Matt Snyder's plea on this very site to NOT draft Larry Johnson. Well, we even subtly suggested you deal him after his huge game against Denver.
For those who may use a different term or are new to fantasy football, "handcuff" is the term used when you own insurance for one of your players in the form of owning his real-life backup. It's usually a running back, but you could conceivably handcuff a quarterback. The theory is that some or all of the production is automatically replaced should you lose a high draft pick to injury, meaning you need to insure a high draft pick by grabbing his backup.
With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all. 
Last year, the Chiefs put together one of the most impressive two-day draft showings I can remember. 
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 
Looking for the 2009 version of Lance Moore instead? 
First, a disclaimer. This list is not necessarily a go pick this guy up right now type deal. If you play in an 8-12 team league and you don't have injury or ineffectiveness issues, this list is not for you. If you, however, play in a 16 or more team league with a deep bench, and you have been sitting there waiting on 
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. Enjoy those pickups...
One of the best things about Fantasy Football is "smack talk." Yup, littering the message board and taunting your friends and enemies at every opportunity. I feel for you if your league doesn't run by such standards, for me it's a must. Anyhow, another aspect of the game that ranks right up there is the "I told you so." 
