Chris Farmer

James Casey on the other hand brings a whole lot more to the table. He is a 25-year old rookie for a reason—he spent three years in the White Sox farm system before retiring from baseball to enroll at Rice to play football. This guy is a gifted athlete, as evidenced by the fact that he played seven different positions for the Rice Owls in 2007 on his way to earning Conference USA consensus all-freshman honors.

The Mort report tells us that no team is likely to pursue Larry Johnson. One surprise highlight from Week 10 was the play of Justin Forsett, RB for the Seahawks. He came in to replace Julius Jones who ended up in the hospital with bleeding in his lung and ran wild with 149 total yards and a TD. The only problem is that he faces a stout Vikings defense next week. To my eyes Forsett deserves a chance to showcase his talents the rest of the season and replace Jones as starter, but coaches don’t always see things the way fans do. Stay tuned and certainly give Forsett a chance to ride your bench this week just in case.

Also, Falcons RB Michael Turner suffered what they are calling a high ankle sprain, and is questionable to return. My bet is that he is done for the day, but watch this one closely to see if there are fantasy implications for next week. Jason Snelling looks to get a lot of second half action.

It could also be that coach Fox shuts down Williams altogether, confident enough in Jonathan Stewart and backups Tyrell Sutton and Mike Goodson to get the job done in DeAngelo’s absence.

Yes, it is the dreaded game-time decision for a 1:00 game. What is your back up plan?

The former college walk-on made the Cardinals’ practice squad last season after making just about every catch thrown his way, some reportedly on acrobatic leaps and dives. After a repeat performance this preseason, his hard work paid off. Long was one of five players featured on NFL.com’s “On The Fringe”, and he ended up beating the odds to make Arizona’s final 53-man roster to begin the 2009 season.

Lance Long. As a Cardinals fan I had been pulling for this undrafted player to make the Cards’ squad for two years. He did make it this year but was waived after a week or two. Kansas City head coach Todd Haley was familiar with him from his days as Arizona offensive coordinator, and picked him up. Long had a team-high 11 targets, 8 catches, and 74 yards.

Since you were quick to the wire and nabbed Ryan Moats before most of the world even knew what hit ‘em, do you start him in your fantasy lineup?

Ryan Moats- I picked him up at 4:18 pm Sunday, and he was likely gone from some waiver wires an hour or more before that. Here are my thoughts. Moats is quick and had an incredible day, 23 carries for 126 yards and 3 TDs. I am happy for him since he has been a career backup having what may go down as his best NFL memory of his life. But Steve Slaton is the starter for a reason, and I can’t see Houston leaving him on the bench to rot.

With Finley out again, Havner responded with a two catch, 21-yard, 2 TD performance that has to make you stand up and take notice. Not in a Chris Johnson, 24 Rush, 228 yds, 2 TDs kind of way. More like a Samkon Gado kind of way.

It just seems to me to be the perfect game to give Beanie a chance to breakout. He had a career high 14 carries last week and the Panthers are exploitable on the ground. These three stars should have an asterisk though; three stars for those willing to gamble. This is no lock, just a hunch.

Shonn Greene finally got his chance for the Jets due to an unfortunate injury to Leon Washington. He made plenty good by romping for 144 yards and 2 TDs on only 19 carries. Again, I’d be shocked if he is still available, but you never know. Go take a look and scoop him up if you are lucky. Still, he will be sharing the workload with Thomas Jones, and they won’t be playing the Raiders every game.

Tate has been inactive while recovering from ACL and MCL tears he suffered last season while at UNC. Despite missing the last eight games of his senior year he is still is the all-time combined return yards leader in NCAA history.

Which brings me in a roundabout, long-winded way to this week’s Cardinals-Giants matchup. Its a tough call across the board. On the one hand you have the Cardinals’ No. 1 ranked rush defense versus the Giants’ No. 5 rushing offense, but are you going to sit Ahmad Bradshaw? Or how about the Cardinals’ sixth ranked passing offense versus the Giants top ranked pass defense? If you saw the Saints-Giants game you know that being ranked No. 1 means nothing when you are being absolutely shredded by Drew Brees.

RB Beanie Wells cannot be counted on until the Cardinals begin to count on him, and their rushing attack. Tim Hightower has more value because he is second on the team in receptions, is the better blocker, and gets the goal-line carries. Still, who isn’t waiting for that breakout game from Wells? Give him time, its coming. While I think Hightower’s value will remain relatively steady and solid, once Wells gets warmed up his value has the potential to surpass Hightower’s. This potential however, is squarely in the hands of play caller Ken Whisenhunt. If Arizona remains near the bottom in rushing attempts per game, Wells will be a non-factor this fantasy season.

Like Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola is another Wes Welker clone. Danny is probably sick of hearing about the comparison, but the similarities cannot be denied. He is 5′11 and 183, or two inches taller and a tad lighter than the now immortal Welker. Where did he go to school? You guessed it, Texas Tech, Welker’s alma mater. What position did Amendola play there? Why of course, slot receiver and return specialist, where else? To ice it, after a stellar college career, including his senior season when he caught a whopping 109 balls for 1,245 yards and six TDs, Amendola went on to be, yes, undrafted.

Yes, I sat Matt Ryan okay? Sometimes when your fantasy team is struggling, you do illogical things like sit your #1 QB. Shake things up, try some bold moves. Sometimes it works. Other times not so much.

Austin Collie: See above. Austin had a two TD performance vs the Titans last night on eight catches. While Pierre Garcon’s stats have cooled off, Collie’s are now burning hot. He is still available in my league, probably because the Colts have a bye this week and opening day starter Anthony Gonzalez is set to return for Week seven. Pick him up. He is worth the chance because he may keep his touches if he outperforms Gonzalez.

If you are a Benson owner and believe in handcuffing, you need to pick up Scott. If you are not a Benson owner, bookmark Scott and monitor his touches. He has big play ability more so than Benson, and his opportunities may increase over the course of the season. If he becomes the primary kick returner and can also attain 10-15 touches from scrimmage, there may be a flex option slot for him.

Versus the Titans, Thomas recorded a 34-yard punt return, a 42-yard kickoff return, an 11-yard run and a 10-yard reception. Snaring 5 balls and given the right to tote the rock 3 times as a WR, shows Jacksonville’s confidence in him and the potential for Mike Thomas to be one of their primary weapons in the near future.

Matthew Stafford had some nice stats considering he only played 3.5 quarters, 296 yards and a TD. He led a Lions team that registered a total of 25 first downs and nearly 400 total yards. Stafford was injured in the game but its too early to know at this point if he will miss playing time. If he doesn’t, grab him. His confidence is growing and the Lions aren’t afraid to have him air it out.