Projo Fantasy Sports Blog

By Michael Salfino

Fantasy scoreboards lit up like a pinball machines in Week 6. Some owners were still outgunned by Tom Brady (five more TD passes) and LaDainian Tomlinson (four TDs, doubling his total the first five weeks). Here's what I took out of the weekend's action.

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Laurence Maroney, RB, Patriots: He was inactive again last week with an injured groin, but did practice last week. Sammy Morris is out indefinitely with a badly bruised sternum and the Pats are so desperate for a back that they're working out Kevan Barlow. You want to be one week early here, because if Maroney returns and gets feature-back duties with goal-line carries, he'll be an untouchable.

Michael Bennett, RB, Bucs: He's still fast but has never been able to handle a full workload. So odds are, he'll join the other Bucs backs in the ER. Once he learns the playbook, he'll get 70 percent of the carries at least for as long as he holds up. That's worth a serious free-agent flyer in every league.

Chris Chambers, WR, Chargers: He's a guy who gets by on his athletic gifts, which will speed the adjustment in San Diego. He also has a solid QB for the first time ever and will face a lot of single coverage. The Chargers' pass defense is bad. Short-term, he takes a hit. Medium- and long-term, give him an upgrade to borderline Top 25 WRs.

Hines Ward, WR, Steelers: He's healthy and probably in for a tough matchup versus Champ Bailey, also recovering from injury over the bye week. He'll be the Steelers' possession receiver and No. 1 red-zone guy going forward, and I think he'll be more productive than Santonio Holmes.

Roddy White, WR, Falcons: The QB situation is terrible, but White has great speed and runs like a RB when he gets the ball. There will be plenty of passing opportunities with the Atlanta defense 23rd in yards allowed per play and 27th in yards per pass.

DeShawn Wynn, RB, Packers: Brett Favre is throwing it up for grabs again, and the coaching staff is going to have to rein him in given their solid defense. Wynn has been anointed the clear starter with Vernand Morency the third-down back and Brandon Jackson in the gutter.

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Wes Welker, WR, Patriots: Ben Watson is out for at least two weeks with a high ankle sprain, and the Patriots have three or more WR on the field for 86 percent of passing plays. Plus, all the backs are banged up, so the throw percentage for New England should hold steady, even with the Pats blowing teams up early with the pass. Hold Donte Stallworth, too.

Steve Smith, WR, Panthers: We've been through this before with Vinny Testaverde, in 2005 when he had a solid first game against a great Buc defense and then faded badly. Smith owners are hoping that a soon-to-be 44-year-old ends up being his QB for the year. Find someone in your league who views Testaverde as a solid battery mate for Smith, and get back 95 cents on the dollar.

Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings: You always need to consider trading a guy off a monster day like Peterson had last week. When that guy didn't even get the most carries on his team, it's a slam-dunk sell. I reiterate that Peterson is from the Planet Krypton, so sell high. But the Vikings offense is not remotely explosive enough for Peterson to continue to be a top RB with less than half his team's carries.

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Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Cardinals: Kurt Warner's status (torn non-throwing elbow) is uncertain for this week, and WR Anquan Boldin is back and likely to reassume his role as No. 1 receiver. Fitzgerald is probably the most gifted WR in the sport. But the Cardinals don't play to his strengths: incredible size, wingspan and hands to make plays deep down the sidelines on alley-oops.

Vincent Jackson, WR, Chargers: He was overdrafted everywhere, as I suspected he'd be, because it's always a big adjustment to step into the ring as a No. 1 WR. Now Chris Chambers has been brought in, and Antonio Gates is cemented as the first read. There are at least 35 or 40 better WR options going forward.

Alge Crumpler, TE, Falcons: When you take on the coaching staff, you better make sure you're doing your job. Crumpler acts the part of malcontent while dropping passes and looking out of shape. He's not on the field anymore on third downs. That's the kiss of death for a would-be top fantasy TE. Crumpler is a JAG (Just Another Guy) at the position now, in reality and in fantasy.

Brandon Jacobs, RB, Giants: After spraining his knee opening night, Jacobs finally came back in Week 5 only to suffer two more minor injuries in Week 6. He runs upright and is a huge target for linebackers at 6-foot-4, 270 pounds, so expect lots of time at the shop.

Ahman Green, RB, Texans: There's no gas in the tank. Always expect that when a back turns 30. Green owners should be grateful they're not stuck with similarly spent Shaun Alexander. Keeper alert: Houston and Seattle seem to be the most likely landing places for unrestricted-FA-to-be Michael Turner (Chargers) come March.

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