Empty the Bench

- Chad Johnson did not disappoint fans who were looking forward to his Dawg Pound leap. He recorded 11 receptions for 209 yards and 2 TDs. Chad faked out the Dawg Pound on his first TD in the second quarter, then leaped into the crowd after his second score in the third. Fans who were watching the game live saw one Cleveland fan give him an extended, angry, stubby middle finger and another douse him with a $9 beer. Good stuff Cleveland fans, it had me laughing for a while. Entertaining and classy. Cleveland has now given up an astounding 10 touchdowns through the air in two weeks, and it’s a trend that’s likely to continue for a defense that only has one decent defensive back.

- Watching Sammy Morris carry the ball more times than Laurence Maroney through three quarters against the ‘Bolts had to feel like a kick in the gut for his owners. Two weeks into the season, Maroney ranks 19th in carries, 15th in yards rushing, 18th in YPC, and hasn’t reached the endzone. Don’t give up yet, as the beastly second-year back is still recovering some from offseason shoulder surgery and the staff seems loathe to throw the kind of full load at him that most featured backs carry. Still, this is cause for concern and Morris has become a must-add for Maroney owners everywhere.

- Jamal Lewis is a back ETB was not high on heading into the season, but he had a fantastic game against a Cleveland defense that simply didn’t show up all day. It’s pretty difficult to put up 45 points against the Browns and lose, but that’s exactly what they did. This performance really doesn’t do much to change our opinion of a running back that has been south of 4.0 YPC the last two seasons. Lewis always puts up big numbers against Cincinnati. In 12 games against the Bengals he has 1,458 yards on the ground (5.5 YPC) and 10 touchdowns. With games at Oakland, versus Baltimore and at New England in the next few weeks now is the time to sell high on Lewis. Like, right now. He won’t play Cincy again until week 16. If you own him, go make some offers.

- While we saw some Najeh Davenport in mop up time, Willie Parker continues to be The Man for Pittsburgh and he’s looking like a top-8 back in all formats. Coming into the season head coach Mike Tomlin said they were going to use Fast Willie more on third down and around the goal line, and they’ve been true to their word. He now has 50 rushing attempts in two games, tying him with Edgerrin James for most in the NFL. The Steelers only have four games on the schedule that should give their running game much trouble (weeks 7, 9, 14 and 15) so keep riding Parker, he’s going to be a consistent workhorse all year. With this volume of touches every week, the inconsistency problems that dogged him during an impressive 2006 campaign will be a thing of the past.

- The Lions offense came out gunning, going to the shotgun early and throwing ten passes with only one rushing attempt on the first drive (which ended with a Kitna pick in the endzone). It’s becoming more apparent that they have no faith in Tatum Bell, and with the more versatile and talented Kevin Jones set to return in a limited capacity next week Bell’s fantasy relevance for the season may already be over. Mike Martz is itching to get Jones back in the lineup because he’s vastly superior to Bell in the short passing game, so don’t think that Detroit’s starting running back isn’t worth starting. When Jones is up to full speed in Week 4 or 5, he’ll be one of the best flex plays in fantasy football. And feel free to dump Bell if there’s something else out there.

- The Edge turned in another blast from the past performance in Week 2 with 153 rushing yards and a score on 24 attempts along with two more receptions. He now sports a strong 4.4 YPC, has 262 total yards and a couple of touchdowns, and is tied with the aforementioned Willie Parker for most carries so far. He was a top-5 running back just two seasons ago and is only 29 years of age, so there may still be plenty left in the tank. It looks like Ken Whisenhunt is following through on his promise to get the Arizona running game back on track, and the early returns are promising.

- Week Two was Rivalry Week here at Empty the Bench, with Brian’s Lions facing Andrew’s Vikings late Sunday afternoon, as well as our fantasy teams squaring off in ETB’s Fantasy Football League. We came out even; the Lions pulled out a gutty win and are now 2-0 overall with an overtime victory at home–ending their five-year losing street to the Viqueens–while Andrew’s fantasy squad, led by Carson Palmer, Joseph Addai, LenDale White and Donald Driver thoroughly pounded yours truly by about 50 points (thank you, Reggie Bush, Brandon Jackson, Cincy defense, etc). I’m heavily invested in the Saints offense–Reggie Bush and Marques Colston–and that’s not exactly helping my cause as that team tries to rediscover its offensive identity. More on the Saints below.

- Joey Galloway just keeps producing, much to the chagrin of this ETB writer. I am continually amazed at his steady production over the last few years during what should be the twilight of his career in an offense that features little in the way of offensive explosiveness. Joey was up to his old tricks again Sunday, recording 4 receptions for 135 yards and a pair of TDs. It was a strong performance that included a 69-yard touchdown in the second quarter in which he simply outran the entire Saints defense. As long as he continues to make plays like this Galloway is a must-start in all leagues, but I think the more significant revelation from this performance is how beatable the New Orleans secondary is. They’ve now given up 782 yards and 5 TDs through the air in the first two weeks, and surrendered 72 points total. Start your wideouts with confidence versus the Saints.

- Maurice Jones-Drew owners don’t want to hear it, but stalwart veteran Fred Taylor looks every bit the part of a starting running back. On his early 29-yard scamper against the hopeless Falcons, Taylor looked quick, determined, and like he’s playing at 100%. When he’s healthy, Taylor is still a very capable, if not especially thrilling, RB2 back on most fantasy squads. He knows there’s another guy back there pushing for snaps and carries, and he’s playing like he doesn’t want to give any of them up. Additionally, MJD is keeping Once-Fragile Fred fresh and on the field by giving Taylor breathers, so don’t assume an injury is imminent. On Sunday, Taylor had 5 more carries and 25 more yards rushing than MJD.

- Derrick Ward ended up compiling respectable yardage in his first full week of covering for Brandon Jacobs, rushing 15 times for 90 yards and catching 4 passes for 35 yards. But it was evident from early on that he just isn’t feature-back material and that the Giants will need a healthy, productive Jacobs back in a few weeks if they hope to get back into the NFC East and entertain postseason hopes. The hulking Jacobs could be ready to go earlier than initially indicated, so if you’re planning to float some low-ball offers for him, do it now before his value normalizes again.

- The nerdy world of fantasy football had to wait awhile for their first batch of relevant TDs in Week One, but yesterday almost all of the early scoring came from the traditional studs: Rudi Johnson, Carson Palmer, Joseph Addai, Torry Holt, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson and, of course, Steve Smith, who we nominate for Play of the Day when he reached around a Texans defender in the endzone, flipped the ball up to himself like a volleyball set, then easily pulled it in. Or maybe the play of the day was when Stevonne shed about eight tackles en route to a 74-yard touchdown scamper. The guy just manufactures touchdowns regardless of the play and talent around him.

Smith finished with 8 catches, 153 yards, and 3 TDs. That accounts for all of the scoring in Carolina, and it’s just a shame that the best WR the NFL has to offer is stuck on a team with little to nothing around him and a shaky QB who only looks competent when his All-World receiver makes a play on his own. Can you imagine what Smith would be capable of in, say, a Cinncinnati-style offense featuring a top-tier QB and multiple scoring threats?

- We’ve been saying for a few weeks now that the Green Bay Packers had a fine, talented rookie in their backfield named Brandon Jackson, but now it looks like they just might have two of ‘em–and a new goal line back. We had Jackson pegged for a big afternoon against the non-existent defense of the Giants; early returns were positive, getting lots of carries, decent yards, and looks out of the backfield on short swing passes. That was until little-known DeShawn Wynn, a 7th-round pick out of Florida, pillaged 10 carries for 50 yards, 2 catches for 18 yards, and 2 TDs, the second of which came on an impressive 38-yard run through traffic and down the sideline.

The situation in the GB backfield now seems more complicated than ever: did Wynn do enough to challenge Jackson for the starting job? How does Vernand Morency factor into this now when/if he returns from injury? Chalk it all up to doing what you’re supposed to against a bad defense? Right now, it looks like Wynn might be worth a flyer, especially for those who own Jackson.

- When Vince Young came up hobbling early in the game against the Colts, don’t tell me the first thing you thought wasn’t “Madden Curse.” Thankfully for the Titans, he’s fine (for now).

- Start Andre Johnson with total confidence as your WR1 until further notice. Any questions about how well he’d click with new quarterback Matt Schaub have been answered in great detail. Yesterday, Johnson followed up his kingly 7 catches, 142 yards, 1 TD performance in Week 1 by topping it against the Panthers–on the road–with 7 more catches, 120 more yards, and 2 more TDs. The knock on Andre as a fantasy player was always that he put up fine reception and yardage totals, but that team couldn’t score. Right now he looks like a lock to compile double-digit touchdowns for the first time in his four-year career, and is a big reason why this Texans offense has improved by leaps and bounds, at least so far.

- Coming into the season, the New Orleans Saints looked to employ one of the most fantasy-friendly offenses in the league. Drew Brees was likely one of the top four QBs drafted, Reggie Bush was almost a consensus first-round pick, Marques Colston was a top-10 WR, and many were projecting Deuce McAllister as a solid RB2. Someone please remind this group how talented they are and what they accomplished last year as the NFL’s best offense. We waited until late in the fourth quarter yesterday against the Bucs for the first fantasy relevant TD from the Saints, a garbage 4-yard TD pass to Colston with just under 3 minutes to go. These two performances are just killing any owners relying on these high draft picks to produce; it’s a great time to send trade proposals and see if any impatient owners are eager to sell below market rate. The Saints offense can’t really be this bad… can it?

- Those bold enough to insert Devin Hester into their starting lineup this week–and lawd have mercy, it looks like there were quite a few of you–are feeling pretty smug this morning. Hester took it to the house on a 73-yard punt return against the Chiefs, the only highlight in an otherwise drab matchup. As for Hester, yes, he scored, and he might score again, but you likely didn’t put him into your lineup banking on a punt or kick-return TD: all week, Lovie Smith said Hester would be more involved in the offense, which is the big reason he was added, and started, in so many leagues. The results of his increased involvement in the offense? 0 rushes, 0 receptions, 0 yards receiving, 0 TDs. Keep starting him at your own risk.

- After being iffy all week with injured ribs, Bucs running back Carnell Williams scored 2 TDs in his team’s romp over the Saints. While it’s very thoughtful of Williams to reward his fantasy owners with multiple TDs for their patience in his middling game, his overall stats don’t betray our general thought on him that he’s just not very good. He rushed 24 times for 61 yards, which works out to a measly 2.5 YPC; he also didn’t catch any passes. He’s still nothing better than a flex play, and honestly we would have rather seen his time go to the underrated Michael Pittman. And we still won’t call him Cadillac.

- There’s always at least a sporting chance that 51 points could be put on the board when the Cincinnati Bengals take the field. And it happened yesterday… but by their opponent, the lowly Cleveland Browns, who had not scored 50 or more points in a single game since 1989. Heck, did they even score 50 points total in the entire 2006 season? Total craziness that we probably don’t need to get into much detail for: Derek Anderson throws 5 TD passes, Braylon Edwards shows his stud talent with 8 catches, 146 yards, and 2 TDs, and Jamal Lewis drinks from the Fountain of 2003 by carrying the ball 28 times for 215 yards (7.7 YPC!) and 2 TDs. Oh, right, and Kellen Winslow had a decent game, too: 6 catches, 100 yards, 1 TD. These two teams combined for over 1,000 total yards.

It was a sick offensive showcase for both squads, and the most thrilling game of the day. Cheers to Romeo Crennel and his team for the effort, but don’t expect anything even remotely close to that output again this season for the Browns. Maybe don’t expect it ever again.

- The broken foot that sidelined him last year doesn’t seem to be an issue, and the sprained wrist didn’t seem like much of a bother, but the Seahawks’ Shaun Alexander still hasn’t looked explosive. Yesterday against the Cards, he again recorded respectable fantasy stats–75 combined yards and 1 TD–but he continues to look underwhelming to the naked eye.

Overheard at the Watering Hole on Sunday:
“Cleveland! Super Bowl!” – After Cleveland scored their fifth touchdown of the day

“Hey, I’m a patron too, goddamnit!” – A Vikings fan after leaving his seat to use the restroom and returning to see the bar manager offering his seat to a female patron

“The Jets are playing like Jerry’s kids.” – After another poor offensive series against the Ravens

“Vikings! Super Bowl!” – About halfway through the first quarter, with the score tied at 0-0.