Need a last-minute fill-in for this week? 4th and 26 is here to throw you a couple deep sleepers, guys available in at least 90% of Fleaflicker leagues that could give your fantasy football team a big boost.
Whether you're an unlucky Pierre Thomas owner that was late to the free-agent pool for Mike Bell, or someone looking for a Kevin Walter replacement for the week, time is running short to find a player to plug into your lineup. If you're in a standard-sized league, you should have plenty of options -- just check out this week's Passed Out at Your Desk for some. But if you play in a deep league, the FA pool could already be barren. Read on to find a few guys that could have decent Sundays; odds are at least one is available to you.
Training camps have wrapped up, the NFL season is right around the corner, and it's still hot as sin outside. But instead of cooling you off with a warm island song, FanHouse break out ye old heat check for our 2009 NFL Season Previews. " We'll rate each club in 5 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.
Offense -- They stormed out of the gate last season, on the shoulders of Clinton Portis. In the second half of the season, though, the offensive line began to wear down and Jason Campbell wasn't productive enough downfield to take attention away from CP26. This season, there are reasons for optimism. The offensive line has been retooled. The growth of second-year wideouts Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly will give Campbell more reliable options in the passing attack in addition to the solid Chris Cooley and Santana Moss.
Cut-N-Go is Fantasy FootballFanHouse's daily gathering of links from around the web, covering the goings-on in NFL Training Camp which have an impact on fantasy value.
The third week of the preseason is officially underway with Michael Vick coming at you live right now. For most teams this is a dress rehearsal to see just what they've got. Yup, the stars will get some extensive first-half action and then it's on to prepare for Week 1 or the first meaningful games. Remind me why they play the final preseason game again? Anyhow, for us fantasy football pundits our drafts have already taken place or are right around the corner, and thus this is our last chance to get a glimpse at certain players or prospect potential sleepers.
(Quick Update: Michael Vick finished the game 4-for-4 passing).
So, let's dive right into what's going on around the league on this Thursday.
From now until the regular season begins, Fantasy Flings is where you'll find interesting story lines about your favorite teams from training camp. If there is a position battle, a nagging injury, a comeback story or a youngster rocketing up the depth chart, we'll let you know the fantasy implications.
Dallas Cowboys What if I told you that one of the most impressive players for the Dallas Cowboys thus far has been quarterback Tony Romo? In two preseason games he's completed 22-of-30 passes and thrown for 228 yards and a touchdown. In camp he's building a nice relationship with Roy Williams and he's making good on his off-season promise to work on protecting the ball. He's going to miss the top-tier talent of wide receiver Terrell Owens, but not the antics. Even without Owens, Romo is showing that by spreading the ball around he's going to produce this season very similarly to years past, maybe even more.
When it comes to training camp in Redskins Park, it's pretty easy to find the question marks, or -- probably a better way of putting it -- areas in which the team needs to improve. The defense is dominant, and it is already showing as much in practice. And you more or less know Clinton Portis is going to be the rock of the running game.
Washington's aerial attack, however, is where most of the focus will fall in the preseason, even with Washington's questionable offensive line scrambling to gel. In addition to the stupendous amount of attention quarterback Jason Campbell will receive for the rest of 2009, the receiving corps bears watching as well.
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 ... Second consecutive season under the same playbook. This is quite significant because the Redskins' current signal-caller hasn't been afforded this "luxury" since his senior year in high school. I can't even imagine what Jason Campbell has done with all his extra time this offseason, what with not having to learn an entire new playbook. Every other player has to know his own job on each play. The quarterback has to know the job of all 11 players on each play. Comfort matters.
As the Redskins go through mini-camps this spring, the most important development will be how things progress with their starting quarterback, Jason Campbell. It's no secret the Redskins pursued other options during the offseason, only to come up short and end up "stuck" with the 27-year-old Auburn product.
After three seasons, and finally one full one, under his belt, it's time for Campbell to take the next step and become a franchise quarterback. Finally getting a second season in the same offensive system -- 2009 will be the first time -- is a great start for the 6-foot-5 signal-caller. He's also getting more comfortable in his leadership role.
Twelve months ago, Devin Thomas was making his way up draft boards after an outstanding junior season at Michigan State and impressive combine and Pro Day performances. The previous fall, he had hauled in 79 passes for the Spartans, and then busted out a 4.40-40 in Indianapolis in February. By April, He would be the second wide receiver selected, going 34th overall to the Redskins.
In the weeks leading up to the draft, NFL Network's Mike Mayock admitted that Thomas had all the physical attributes teams look for in a wideout -- deep speed, the ability to get off the line of scrimmage and a knack for coming down with jump balls -- but he also cautioned that Thomas' junior season could be an anomaly.
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.
The Redskins stormed out of the gate in Jim Zorn's first season as head coach, running their record to 6-2 at the halfway point. The second half of the season, unfortunately, was perfectly symmetrical -- they went 2-6 to finish 8-8.
They could have won three of those games in best-case scenarios, but the best teams come through instead of talking about what could have been. The reality is that the Redskins only played a half-season in '08.
Four months ago, the Redskins used their three second-round picks on skill-position players. Specifically pass catchers, presumably in an effort to bolster a pretty pedestrian offense. Makes sense and unlike previous Danny-tastic personnel moves, selecting Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly and Fred Davis was understandable (if excessive).
Well, Washington's season begins Thursday night against the Giants, and both Thomas and Kelly have been supremely ineffective. This makes Jason Campbell very, very sad.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed about that," he said about Thomas and Kelly. "We had so much expectation for those guys contributing to our offense. I thought we'd grow together quickly. I went over to their place and visited with them about everything. I told them this was the real deal. They needed to show up on time for meetings and to study. We need them out there."
Need a last-minute fill-in for this week? 4th and 26 is here to throw you a couple deep sleepers, guys available in at least 90% of Fleaflicker leagues that could give your fantasy football team a big boost.
Training camps have wrapped up, the 
From now until the regular season begins, 
When it comes to training camp in Redskins Park, it's pretty easy to find the question marks, or -- probably a better way of putting it -- areas in which the team needs to improve. The defense is dominant, and 
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. 
As the Redskins go through mini-camps this spring, the most important development will be how things progress with their starting quarterback, 
Twelve months ago, 
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 
