Time to Put Up Or Shut Up: Fantasy Focus

There are no more excuses as the final week of the fantasy season is here.  ATP was on point last week as Carson Palmer, Alex Smith and Josh McCown all performed well as predicted from the QB position.  The RB position was just as good as Ben Tate came out of his scoring drought by scoring 3 times.  Spiller and Jackson both did well for Buffalo and hopefully you listened and stayed away from Rainey and Lacey as we suggested.  Our wide receiver picks did okay as Alshon Jeffrey showed why he was a pre-season sleeper for ATP with over 200 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Our only true miss was connected as the Green Bay receivers didn't stand a chance with Matt Flynn playing the way he did.  Hopefully, we will duplicate last week's performance.

Quarterbacks

Alex Smith, expect Mr. Smith to keep his streak of good games going as the Chiefs will be facing the Redskins, who have a hard time stopping anybody.  Andy Reid has this passing offense moving in the right direction and Alex May get you some points running the ball as well.  This is a very good option this week.

Matt Ryan, despite Atlanta's recent woes, Ryan has been doing okay on a personal level and he finally took advantage of having Roddy White back as he hit him up for 143 yards.  Playing against Green Bay this week, expect more of the same as he should throw for a few touchdowns.

Phillip Rivers, Rivers needs to get back on track to keep San Diego in the mix and playing against the Giants may be just what he needs.  This is a big game and they should get back to their identity, which is throwing the ball.  This is as good a time as any to start Rivers despite the Giants recent play, which was not as awful as it was at the beginning of the season.

Carson Palmer, should keep his recent success going as they will play St. Louis, who does pretty good against the run and not as good against the pass.  Arizona is fighting for its playoff life and they need this win.  Look for them to lean on Palmer.

Stay Away

Colin Kaepernick,  I know that they are playing in San Francisco this week, but he does not have a great history against Seattle and more important the 49ers don't necessarily need him to win.  If Seattle has a weakness on defense, besides PED's, it is their run defense.  Expect the 49ers to keep their passes short and focus on the rung game.  The only silver lining here is if Colin K can run the ball, which is a possibility, but I wouldn't want to trust that in such a big week.

Running Backs

Ben Tate looking to make owners
 happy they handicapped Foster
this season.

Ben Tate, now that he showed that he is the man again, he should get plenty of opportunity tonight against the Jacksonville Jaguars. I wouldn't expect 3 touchdowns as the Jags have a better run defense than New England, but he should do okay and most likely find the end zone at least once.

Bobby Rainey, should be back in the mix as Tampa will look to run the ball against Buffalo this week.  Had a few off weeks against some good defenses, but he is a decent back in an offense that wants to run the ball.

Demarco Murray, although he scored 3 touchdowns last week, he did not particularly run well.  He was able to get a lot of goal line looks that should hopefully stay the trend for his fantasy owners.  Playing against Chicago on Monday night in a game with playoff inclinations should be a good fit.  Chicago has a bad defense and they are going to have to worry more about the pass game, which should open up running lanes for Murray.

Desperation

Monte Ball, playing against the Titans this week and Moreno still a bit injured should give Ball plenty of opportunity, especially after a big performance last week.  In a pinch, Ball could be a big pickup to help you get in the playoffs.

Stay Away

MJD, I don't love Jones Drew as his main point threat is by scoring a touchdown as Houston's defense, will look to avenge their loss to the Jags a couple of weeks ago.  I don't see many yards, so if you have a better option, use it.  If not, you better hope he scores once or twice.

Wide Receivers

Roddy White, why not go 3 weeks in a row with White.  He is playing a weak pass defense and with a banged up Gonzales, he is the primary threat and still capable of owning that title.  Go long with White.

Desean Jackson, is usually a must start, but I think that he will be a great start this week.  Detroit is good against the run, which will force a lot more throws, especially short ones to Jackson.  These will act as their first and second down run plays.

Desperation

Mike Wallace,  if you don't have any good options, Wallace may be your guy.  He has been doing fairly well the last few weeks as the Dolphins have actually used Wallace for what he is, a deep threat.  Even if Ike Taylor covers him, it should not be much of an issue as he has had major issues with top receivers as of late and look for the Dolphins to try and exploit that.

Defense

Houston, going against the Jags, that have been doing well as of late, they look to avenge their pitiful loss from a few weeks ago.  The Jags are not explosive, so look for Wade Phillips to do whatever he can to keep his job.  He needs his defense to have  a performance that they were accustomed to before this season.