FanHouse KevinFaulk

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 ...
Troops of Tom Brady. Yes, there are plenty of guys on this team who matter -- not sure if you've heard of Randy Moss, for example -- but this season it is all about the health of Tom Brady. He's going to be nearly a year removed from tearing his ACL in 2008 when the season begins. Now that Matt Cassel is gone, the weight of the team of on Brady's shoulders.

Really, the picture here is perfect. There are guys in the background wearing the same uniform, but they are a bit blurry. Brady is front and center, and the focus of the photo.

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I've often argued -- unoriginally -- that, in general, NFL teams should avoid using first-round picks on running backs. Salary-cap friendly alternatives can often be found later in the draft, and other, harder-to-address needs -- like offensive line or wide receiver -- can be targeted in the early rounds.

There are exceptions: most recently Adrian Peterson, Steven Jackson and LaDainian Tomlinson. But the NFL scrap heap is littered with former first-round backs who never panned out. It's too early to classify Laurence Maroney as such, but his three-year career has, so far, been underwhelming.

I'm one of the 10 people in the world that has yet to make a purchase on eBay, mainly because I have no use for a potato chip that looks like Jesus (that's what people sell on eBay, right?). However, if I had an extra $50,000 burning a hole in pocket, I probably would have jumped at the chance to own a piece of NFL history, as a member of the Super Bowl XXXVI champion New England Patriots recently auctioned his ring on eBay. It received no bids.

According to USA Today's NFL blog, The Huddle, the ring belonged to a player who was on all three Super Bowl-winning Patriots teams.

It's been more than four months since Pat Bowlen fired close friend Mike Shanahan. The subsequent search to replace the man who gave Denver 14 years and two Super Bowls was, at times, bumpy. It got bumpier after Bowlen settled on 32-year-old Josh McDaniels.

A fresh-faced Bill Belichick protégé, McDaniels had coordinated up the most explosive offense in NFL history: the 2007 New England Patriots. As often happens when coaches relocate, McDaniels wanted to bring in his "his" players to run "his" system. Hours into free agency, the Broncos inked former Pats wideout Jabar Gaffney. And then, after Denver tried to acquire Matt Cassel, incumbent Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler demanded a trade, things got messy, and, ultimately, the Broncos ended up with a couple first-round picks, Kyle Orton and a lot of questions.

The Patriots don't have much cap room, but that hasn't kept them from being busy in free agency. NFL.com's Adam Schefter is reporting that New England has worked out a deal with free agent running back Fred Taylor.

Taylor will join a very crowded New England backfield that already includes Kevin Faulk, Benjarvus Green-Ellis, Sammy Morris and Lawrence Maroney. Maroney, the Patriots' first-round pick in 2006, is edging ever closer to bust status, as New England has now brought in a free-agent back in each of the past two seasons (Lamont Jordan was signed last year) because of the team's worries about Maroney's productivity.

After being released by the Jacksonville Jaguars this past week, Fred Taylor is already finding some teams willing to see how much tread is remaining on his tires.

Shalise Manza Young of the Providence Journal reported on Saturday that the Patriots and Bills are likely landing spots for the 33-year-old running back, while Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe says he could be visiting New England as early as this week.

The Patriots need to beat the Bills today if they're to have any chance to make the playoffs. Originally scheduled for a 1PM EST kickoff, 50-mph wind gusts could push back the start, and when the game eventually gets underway, the conditions will almost certainly wreak havoc on the players, strategy, Bill Belichick's wig, etc.

NFL Network's Scott Hanson drew the short straw and is currently on location in Buffalo, and he reports -- between the 50-mph wind-aided punches to the face -- that the goal posts have been blown sideways. And while the grounds crew can fix the problem (with a little rope and a level), it could be an ongoing issue all afternoon.

Hanson also explains that the team benches have been moved against the stadium walls because they had previously been rolling through the playing field like tumbleweeds. Hanson's colleague, Adam Schefter says that commissioner Roger Goodell, currently in Baltimore, "is being apprised of this situation. ... The league will decide whether or not action will be taken."

The Arizona Cardinals have had their playoff tickets punched for a few weeks now, and they pretty much had nothing to play for on Sunday in New England. That might explain why they didn't even bother to show up, as they were systematically dismantled by the Patriots, 47-7, at snowy Gillette Stadium.

Despite playing most of the game in a blizzard, Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel completed 20-of-36 passes for 345 yards and three touchdowns, while New England managed to pound out 183 yards on the ground on 42 carries. Sammy Morris led the way with 88 yards on 18 carries, while Lamont Jordan scored a pair of touchdowns.

New England went into the half with a commanding 31-0 lead, and then continued to pour it on when Randy Moss scored on a 76-yard play just 19 seconds into the third quarter. Kevin Faulk and Wes Welker also caught touchdowns for the Patriots, while Welker was penalized 15 yards after his score for using the snow to create a snow angel. Seriously? A 15-yard penalty for making a snow angel? Is snow considered a prop?

This game wasn't supposed to matter.

If Tennessee had beaten the Texans last week, this would be a rehash of the preseason. Tennessee would have the No. 1 seed for the playoffs wrapped up, while the Steelers would have locked up the No. 2 seed.

Instead, we now have a game that means something (although there is some debate as to how much), which means that both teams have reason to try to prove who's the best team in the AFC, while also saving a little something in the back pocket in case they meet again next month.

Tennessee limps into this game without defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth and defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch, but the Titans also have an outstanding offensive line that has allowed only eight sacks all season--which is 19 less than Steelers outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley have racked up this year. If Tennessee can shut down the Steelers' pass rush, it will give Dick LeBeau plenty to worry about.

This game will mean a lot more if it happens again in January, but as for now, it means more for the Titans. Tennessee needs to prove that they didn't play their best football in September and October, while the Steelers, who just beat the Patriots, Cowboys and Ravens in the last three weeks, could shrug off a close loss as a minor setback.

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...

If you are like me and surrounded by a glass case of emotion after two lousy games that ended your championship hopes in two leagues, making waiver wire moves is not exactly your top priority. Instead, that honor goes to talking yourself off of the ledge and convincing yourself that fantasy basketball is actually sort of fun. Since we all know that is a lie, let's take it for the team and plow on for another round of waiver wire wonders for the lucky few who get to compete for the title next weekend -- and for the rest of us to go out with a bang in the lousy third-place game, or worse, the consolation bracket.

Matt Schaub (QB, Texans) – I'm guessing if you are still reading this column, you probably have a guy named Manning, Warner or Brees on your roster, so at this point, you probably are not scouring the waiver wire too much at your quarterback slot. In the event that you do want a little padding for your QB situation, Schaub is coming off two very formidable performances. He helped propel the vast majority of Andre Johnson owners to a victory and should continue the trend with Oakland this week. After seeing what Cassel did Sunday to the Raiders defense, Schaub looks like a mighty fine start against Arizona.