Posts tagged MarionBarber at FanHouse

It's quite OK to claim that LaDainian Tomlinson's big toe is killing your fantasy season. Seriously, you drafted the guy No. 1 overall and you, like most people, have come to expect a little more from him. The same can be said about Peyton Manning and probably a handful of other projected "studs."

Look, there's no such thing as sink or swim when it comes to the stars. That's what can make it as equally maddening as losing a key player to injury when your first- or second-round pick just ain't picking up his end of the bargain. It's not as if these guys are flirting with being complete busts, but the early or current returns aren't in your favor.

As the stock market plummets in the real world, in the fantasy football world stock values fluctuate day in and day out as they should in a perfect world. Hero one day, on the block the next. Well, trading "studs" is always a risky proposition, but today I'm taking a look at three guys that are at the crossroads better known as "stick or deal."

Let's ante up and take a look.

During this morning's NFL GameDay Morning, NFL Network's Adam Schefter reported that the Lions are looking to trade wide receiver Roy Williams. Hardly news -- we heard such rumors all spring -- but with Williams now in the last year of his rookie contract, something could happen in the next two weeks leading up to the trade deadline.

Schefter also mentioned that last year, the Lions offered Williams to the Cowboys for DeMarcus Ware, but, obviously, nothing came of it, even though speculation had owner Jerry Jones lusting after a big-play No. 2 receiver to line up opposite Terrell Owens.

Good thing it didn't happen; not so much because the Cowboys couldn't use Williams, but because a) T.O. would've given his "I NEED THE BALL" speech after the second preseason game instead of last week, and b) Williams probably wouldn't have been all that excited about his new, smaller role in Dallas. Although, to be fair, he's the second option in Detroit behind Calvin Johnson; at least the Cowboys win.

Whatever, Williams isn't sure where he'll be in a couple weeks:

Much has been made of the Cowboys' decision to build last week's game plan around Terrell Owens -- even at the cost of winning, apparently -- and today, Emmitt Smith, by way of example, explains to the Dallas Morning News' Jean-Jacques Taylor why the Cowboys can't be afraid to run the ball just because they face eight-man fronts.

"We always believed the eighth man was my responsibility," Smith said. "I either had to make him miss or run him over." So why did the Cowboys let the Redskins discourage them from running against an eight-man front?

"They didn't have the confidence or the commitment to the running game," Smith said. "They had a different agenda. They had an agenda to get T.O. the ball and make plays in the passing game, hence they throw him 18 passes and only make seven completions.

"I've never seen Michael Irvin have 18 passes thrown his way. Even when we played against eight in the box, we were committed to running the rock regardless. There was a commitment that I touch the ball 20 times a game running or receiving."

FanHouse fantasy positional rankings are compiled weekly by the staff in order to provide answers to possible lineup questions. These are assuming most leagues use Fleaflicker's standard scoring structure. If you need clarification, you need more players ranked, or have funky league rules, feel free to shoot us an email question.

This rookie class for running backs is absurd. It could easily go down as the best RB draft class of all-time. Darren McFadden, Chris Johnson, Rashard Mendenhall, Felix Jones, and Jonathan Stewart all were drafted in the first round. There are a handful of other backs with the potential to make something of their NFL careers, and this week two should be stellar contributors to your fantasy team.

Matt Forte gets to face the league's worst rushing defense after facing the best last week. He's gonna be in heaven.

Steve Slaton will take on the swiss cheese known as the 31st ranked Colts' run defense.

Both should find it quite easy to pile up stats.

- Ryan Grant ... it's now or never, man. The Falcons this week and the Colts next. If you have Grant, you have to stick with him for the next two games, but if he does nothing the writing is on the wall that last year was a fluke. I like him this week ... (fingers crossed).

1. LaDanian Tomlinson, @ MIA
2. Adrian Peterson, @ NO
3. Marion Barber, vs. CIN
4. Frank Gore, vs. NE
5. Matt Forte, @ DET

Value Machine checks out the overall perceived value of fantasy players. If you want to commit a fantasy felony, you'll sell high on the up arrow guys and buy low on the down arrow guys.

Hopefully you traded Rashard Mendenhall, as we insinuated last week when we said his value will never be higher. Remember, fantasy sports are all about value and perception is reality in between games. Many owners flocked to Mendenhall last week because he was "replacing" Willie Parker. His perceived value skyrockets, which means it's the perfect time to spin him. Just keep this in mind as we move forward.

Top week four : Laveranues Coles ... He busted loose for 30 plus points in most leagues. The problem is that he didn't receive the majority of Brett Favre's attention and rarely will this result in three scores. Jerricho Cotchery, Chansi Stuckey, and Dustin Keller all take looks away from Coles. This was a one week ride, so hopefully you enjoyed it and can move him for good value this week.

Top week four : Carson Palmer ... He comes off his one good game of the season -- against a solid defense, no less -- and decides to not fully disclose his injury. Owners found out he couldn't go right before game time, and surely some guys were screwed over by this. Keep an eye on his health, because if he can come back, his owners will surely be pissed enough to deal him for less than market value.

There are a few people in the Cowboys locker room who should complain about their loss to the Redskins yesterday. They didn't get the ball enough to help their team win.

One of those guys wouldn't be Terrell Owens, who spent the postgame press conference complaining that he didn't get the ball enough.

"Everybody recognized that I wasn't really getting the ball in the first half," Owens said. "I'm pretty sure everybody watching the game recognized it, people in the stands recognized it. I think my team recognized it."

I watched every snap from that game and thought that statement was ridiculous. The Cowboys ran 58 offensive plays. Twenty of those plays went to T.O. On many of them, Owens wasn't open yet Tony Romo forced it to him.

Romo threw 18 passes at T.O. and completed just seven. The Redskins' Shawn Springs and Carlos Rogers did an outstanding job being physical with Owens and getting their hands on those passes. Dallas also used T.O. on two end-around runs. He may think we all forgot about how he dropped a TD pass late in the game, too.

Each week in the NFL, there are players that impress and players that distress. One week a certain quarterback might toss four touchdowns and run around with his finger in the air while the next he's laying on his back, holding his face-mask as the other team returns one of his three interceptions for the game-winning score. With that in mind, here's our new feature, Studs and Duds:

Here's Week 4 at a glance, where we point out the horses destined for the Kentucky Derby and jeer those headed to the glue factory.

Studs

Matt Bryant, K Tampa Bay (3 - 3 FG, 3 - 3 XP) -- A day after burying his 3-month-old son, Matthew Tryson, Bryant decided to suit up for the Buccaneers, and in an emotional battle most could never imagine, didn't miss a kick all game, helping Tampa Bay beat Green Bay. Some things in this world make absolutely no sense, this being one of them, but the toughness of Matt and his wife is something to be respected. Amazing effort Matt, we are all sorry for your loss.

Texas Stadium has been a house of horrors for the Washington Redskins. Coming into today's contest, the Redskins have lost 26 of their 35 games at Texas Stadium ... including 11 of the last 12.

That made the Redskins 26-24 win over the Dallas Cowboys tonight all the sweeter. This is most likely the final time these two bitter rivals will meet on that field.

Santana Moss is moving himself higher and higher in Redskins lore. He'll hate to see Texas Stadium go as he put up eight catches for 145 yards and was virtually unguardable in the first half. Since the Cowboys had to concentrate on him, guys like Chris Cooley and Antwaan Randle El started getting open and holes started opening up for Clinton Portis.

Jim Zorn is new to this whole thing so he doesn't see it as a big win over a longtime rival. He sees it as the coming out party for him, his team and his quarterback. Zorn's playcalling was outstanding and Jason Campbell just exuded confidence. This is a far cry from the last time they were on national TV when the offense looked lost against the Giants on Week 1.

And shame on you morons for failing to believe in the Z-man.

Sportscenter has Emmitt Smith on every Sunday morning to talk about football; yes, he is by himself, but it's early enough where he can only do so much damage. While he's on, some anchor asks him questions posed by reader emails. How spicy! Not really, but it was kind of interesting to get his take when someone wrote in to ask how, paraphrasing, the trio of Tony Romo, Terrell Owens and Marion Barber compared to Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin.

After laughing a little bit and dogging the younger crew, Emmitt pointed out that:

Terrell Owens is not a true Cowboy.

I think the whole "true" (see: A-Rod) business is overplayed. It's not like Emmitt was the first Cowboy to ever put on a uniform, even if he is the all time leading rusher and clearly one of the most popular Cowboys of all time.

That being said, three Super Bowls aside, there's at least some sort of argument for the Romo Trio in terms of individual talent. But because you can't actually toss away three Super Bowl victories, clearly the nod goes to the Aikman group. How-EVA, should Romo, Owens, et al grow up and win a playoff game or 15, they could certainly rub this stuff in Emmitt's face one day.

There are six NFL teams that have yet to lose a game this season. All are sitting at 3-0 (except the 2-0 Baltimore Ravens). Some of these teams entered the season with high expectations; Some are kind of surprising.

Here is a quick look at the undefeated teams and if they can keep it up.

Dallas Cowboys

Why they are here: They trot out the NFL's top offense. Tony Romo, Terrell Owens and Marion Barber have all been their usual dominant selves. Now they are getting production from guys like Felix Jones and Miles Austin. On the defensive side of things, they are quite stout but still aren't elite.

Why it could all go away: As scared people are that Sarah Palin would be a heartbeat away from the Presidency, Cowboys fans are scared that they are a Romo injury away from being the Houston Texans. Dallas' eggs are all in Romo's basket and they are trusting that massive offensive line can fully protect him. Also, Dallas plays in the brutal NFC East where anything can happen.

Outlook: Dallas will be in the playoffs and should be the odds-on favorite to get to the Super Bowl. The issue is the postseason, where history hasn't been on their side. Romo has yet to win a playoff game, Owens' teams haven't performed well in the postseason and the organization hasn't won in a decade. Despite how great Dallas could be during the season, people will stay skeptical when January rolls around.