The Scoop

By Dalton Del Don

The Ravens had high praise for JaMarcus Russell after Sunday’s game, but I’m still not quite sure what to make of him. He gets little help from his receivers, but a 50.3 completion percentage is unacceptable. The jury remains out, and it’s definitely too soon to make a call, but I still say the organization blew it by passing on Calvin Johnson…The next time Darren McFadden takes the field, his toe better be 100 percent healed. Rushing back from this injury has done no good…Seriously, what happened to Mark Clayton? And the same could be said about Todd Heap too.

It’s too bad the Cardinals don’t have a defense, because their offense is good enough to win the Super Bowl. Kurt Warner is playing exceptionally well…When he and Jake Delhomme are both healthy, Steve Smith is basically the best fantasy receiver alive…Muhsin Muhammad’s drop in the end zone qualified as one of the worst so far this season…Step aside Edge, time to see what Timmy Hightower can do.

Chad Pennington looks like Jay Cutler compared to Brad Johnson’s arm strength. This Dallas team is in a lot of trouble if Tony Romo doesn’t come back at 100 percent…No matter how good of a job he does taking care of his body, it looks like Terrell Owens is losing the battle with age…Wade Phillips acted truly dumbfounded when reporters asked about a possible QB switch during his Monday presser, wondering why he would replace Johnson after a win. He just doesn’t get it.

Santana Moss and hamstring injuries don’t go well together. Hopefully it’s not serious, because leg injuries are Moss’ kryptonite…Is there any sane reason whatsoever for Detroit continuing to give Rudi Johnson more carries than Kevin Smith? Nice Gosder Cherilus draft pick, Matt Millen…Clinton Portis is on pace to finish the season with 374 carries, so while I’m not recommending trading him at all costs, be aware there’s a real chance he wears down over the second half of the season.

The Dolphins were nothing short of terrible tackling Sunday, but Joey Porter has been a force this season…Jason Peters has been one of the most disappointing players in football this year…The Ronnie Brown/Ricky Williams split needs to be more 3:1 than 2:1…Miami hit a home run with the Jake Long pick, and there’s a real chance they did the same with Chad Henne. For someone who no longer looked useful as a head coach, Bill Parcells has sure been a valuable asset to the Dolphins…Looks like I was one year too soon jumping on the Lee Evans bandwagon…In case you weren’t invited, Ted Ginn had his coming out party Sunday, absolutely abusing a hobbled Terrence McGee. He’s actually been much more involved in the passing game over the last few weeks, making him an intriguing pick up. Chad Pennington isn’t an ideal fit for his deep speed (half of Pennington’s throws Sunday looked like they were shot mid-air), but Ginn looks like a playmaker. He’ll probably remain inconsistent, but he’s a sneaky play against the Broncos this week.

It looks like BenJarvus Green-Ellis’ relevance will be short-lived, which is a shame. Fantastic name…Torry Holt has fallen off the planet. The warning signs were there, but no one could have predicted this type of decline…Donnie Avery, meanwhile, looks terrific. Remember when everyone went crazy when the Rams took him over Devin Thomas?

I’ll eat some crow regarding LaDainain Tomlinson, as he looked pretty good last week. The Chargers have a very easy schedule moving forward as well…The only thing less surprising than Ted Cottrell ruining a defense would be Tim McCarver stating the obvious. Seriously, why are two of the worst announcers in the business involved in the World Series?…San Diego sure does know how to draft quarterbacks, as Philip Rivers and Drew Brees have been fantastic this season.

Where did that come from Tyler Thigpen? The Jets’ secondary is bad, but that was still highly unexpected…Those Brett Favre interceptions were horrid. Simply brutal. He’s not playing very well right now, and that team is a fraud…It probably wouldn’t be the worst idea to get Leon Washington a few more touches each week…Larry Johnson is awfully tough when it comes to women. Seriously, your next transgression better involve a male, LJ…For some reason, I’m a big fan of the name Connor Barth.

Roddy White is officially a star. He’s been targeted on more of his team’s pass attempts than any player in football this season…Only health prevents Brian Westbrook from being the greatest fantasy asset alive…Michael Turner is the perfect back to have if you’re loaded with RB depth – he destroys bad defenses and is almost worthless against tough ones. He’s a must-start this week in Oakland…Matt Ryan continues to impress…Thanks for costing me a win ATS refs! What a blown call, looking even worse with no challenges available and only 22 seconds away from it being subject to booth review. Ugh.

Maybe now I’ll finally stop getting “should I pick up Matt Schaub” questions. This Texans offense has a lot of upside…Andre Johnson is on pace to finish the season with 128 catches and 1,765 yards. Some more touchdowns would be nice though…The attempted tackle on Kevin Walter’s second TD catch after he was already on the ground was an embarrassment. The Bengals are a joke.

Shaun Rogers was flat-out dominant Sunday, shutting down the Jaguars rushing attack. Put a fork in Fred Taylor, he’s done…Kellen Winslow isn’t a bad buy-low target right now…Nothing like a looming suspension to get motivated, as that was Matt Jones’ best game of his career…Braylon Edwards has been one of, if not the biggest healthy busts so far this season.

I find it hard to believe Pittsburgh wouldn’t be downgrading by switching back to Willie Parker…Playing without Santonio Holmes, or as Dick Stockton calls him, “San Antonio Holmes,” hurt, but a poor offensive line is a recipe for disaster against that Giants pass rush. Imagine if New York hadn’t constantly stalled in the red zone…Still, Pittsburgh remains the third best team in the league.

J.T. O’Sullivan was awful Sunday. Leading the league in sacks, interceptions and fumbles is quite an impressive trifecta…I guess the Mike Singletary/Vernon Davis situation is uncommon, but was it really that big of a deal?…Nice disappearing act, Josh Morgan…It’s not often a team that gets 1.4 YPC, while their opponent gets 5.2, wins 34-13.

LenDale White is on pace to finish the year with 747 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns. As a proud Chris Johnson owner, I loathe the fat man…Sitting at 3-4, don’t be shocked if the Colts finish 10-6 and in the playoffs. Tennessee is legit, but the team really could use even an average option at wide receiver. To win the Super Bowl, would you take the Titans/Giants/Steelers trio, or the field?