The Scoop

By Dalton Del Don

I hate to brag, but then again, my good friend Bobby De Niro once told me never to name drop, so go figure. Anyway, my Week 7 consisted of going 11-3 against the spread and 9-0 in all of my fantasy leagues, making it so epic, I’d be remiss not to mention it. And I hate being remiss. Now, onto the notes:

First TBS misses the beginning of Game 6 of the ALCS, and now CBS misses more than half of the Bills/Chargers game? What decade is this again?…For someone who hadn’t been targeted once in the red zone this season, Lee Evans sure did look good on his goal-line score. Might want to continue looking his way there…I’m doing my very best biting my tongue regarding LaDainian Tomlinson, but let’s just say this decline hasn’t quite come as a shock. Folks, the writing was on the wall all along…Down six in the fourth quarter, Norv Turner elected to punt on fourth-and-one from the Buffalo 40. Now that’s exhibiting some confidence in your team!

I’ve grown tired of Jeremy Shockey’s act and inability to stay healthy. He’ll never be on my team again…This Saints team has one of the very best passing attacks in the league, but if you lack any ability to stop the opposing team, especially when outdoors, you simply won’t make the playoffs…I’d give Marques Colston a mulligan. He should be fine…Steve Smith is a bad, bad man…Devery Henderson’s 15.5 YPA is the highest in the league (minimum 30 targets)…NFC South teams are 14-1 at home this season, 3-9 on the road.

I didn’t have any action on it, but I’m guessing the Vikings/Bears game went “over”…Kyle Orton continues to impress. He and Greg Olsen are forming quite a duo. Orton looks like a borderline QB1 and a fine QB2, whereas Olsen has the potential to finish as a top-five fantasy tight end…The weird thing about Minnesota’s disappointing season is that their two main acquisitions, Bernard Berrian and Jared Allen, have actually been really good…Brad Childress is clueless, and he needs to go. Immediately.

Finding MeMo! How good is Mewelde Moore? He’s definitely earned himself a role in Pittsburgh’s offense even when Willie Parker returns. Good thing the team spent a first round pick on a running back when they already had a superior option in a backup role on its roster. All Moore has ever done is produce when given the opportunity…If anyone is still holding out hope for a Carson Palmer return this season, stop. He’s an IR placement waiting to happen…Hines Ward is having a fantastic season, and that block delivered on Keith Rivers was life-changing. Might want to keep your head on a swivel when facing the Steelers.

Think about all the underachieving teams this season: Dallas, New Orleans, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Minnesota, Seattle. The one common denominator? Poor defense. My point? The Titans aren’t undefeated by accident and are a serious contender, despite the lack of passing game…Call me crazy, but Larry Johnson seems like kind of a punk…Anyone who thinks LenDale White had a better game than Chris Johnson wasn’t watching. Johnson is the guy getting the carries when it counts, and if they start utilizing him more in the passing game, he’s a top-10 back. White, meanwhile, could still be looking at 15 touchdowns, although his 80-yard TD run says more about the Chiefs rush defense than it does him…Down 27-0 with less than five minutes left Sunday, Herm Edwards elected to kick a field goal. I got nothing, that act pretty much speaks for itself.

Willis McGahee and the Baltimore offensive line were impressive Sunday, dominating a Dolphins front seven that had been playing well, although the early Jason Ferguson injury forced Miami to change schemes and had a lot to do with it…John Harbaugh has been brilliant and fully deserves to be on the short list for Coach of the Year honors right now…Remember when Todd Heap was relevant? Me neither.

Mike Nolan cared and it wasn’t for a lack of effort. Also, GM Scot McCloughan has been a joke of a talent evaluator (last year’s draft class ranks as one of the worst ever, for any team). Still, Nolan needed to go, and I’ll call it right now; Mike Singletary is going to be one hell of a coach in this league. Hopefully, San Francisco gives him a legit opportunity for it to happen with them…The one rookie who is making an impact, however, is Josh Morgan, who looks like a potential star…With the game an 11-point spread, how sweet was the safety with the Giants up 10 late in the fourth quarter?

Steven Jackson had to be one of the most impressive players Sunday. He can still be a force…Looks like the Donnie Avery over Devin Thomas pick wasn’t so crazy, after all…I wanted to continue going off on Wade Phillips’ aww shucks attitude, but Mike Lombardi had an interesting take on Phillips’ approach so I’ll defer to him: “The Cowboys are not a technique based team.  They rely on their talent and their scheme to make plays, so when I read a coach saying he is worried about the execution of the team, it makes me wonder.  When you are scheme oriented, you never can get better during the season because each week is a new design and there is never a foundation.  The Cowboys need to become better at their fundamentals and their techniques and this can only happen in a reduction of the scheme and trying to make sure there is more attention to detail.  And details have never been the trademark of a Wade Phillips defense.”

I liked how “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” lost the second half of its title during the commercials Sunday. Made it sound like some sort of chick flick. Either way, let’s hope Kevin Smith got his mojo back. Speaking of commercials, if I see a “Cash4Gold.com” ad one more time, I’m going to gouge my eyes out.

Andre Johnson is the No. 1 fantasy WR, Owen Daniels is a top-five tight end, and Kevin Walter is a serviceable WR3….Ahman Green may hurt Steve Slaton’s value in the short-term, but he may also prevent him from hitting the rookie wall later on, and it’s not like there’s any chance Green remains healthy when it comes to crunch time…Just forget about Rudi Johnson. He doesn’t belong on any rosters right now…Calvin Johnson’s 154 yards on two catches is probably not a sustainable ratio, but expect more targets in the future. He made his 96-yard TD look positively easy.

So I guess the Colts aren’t quite back on track…Nice to see Ryan Grant break 100 yards, but it’s clear the explosive runner we saw last year just isn’t the same. At least he’s finally moved into positive receiving yards for the season…Charles Woodson has really impressed.

The Raiders don’t have a great interior, but the Jets blocked well Sunday, and Thomas Jones looked rejuvenated, at least for one week…He’s alive! I seriously forgot for a second what “Walker” was on Oakland catching those passes Sunday…Jerricho Cotchery owners don’t get too down, as long as his injury isn’t significant. He was still targeted eight times in the loss and drew Nnamdi Asomugha in coverage for the most part. He’ll bounce back…Right before Jay Feely lined up for a 52-yard field goal attempt to tie the game at the end of regulation, I turned to my friend and said: “Tom Cable will call a timeout at the last second, Feely will miss the field goal and then later make it when it counts.” I wish I could say I’m clairvoyant, but that was very predictable. So what if it worked once or twice last year, it definitely backfires more often. Why give a kicker a practice shot?…No doubt, Darren McFadden has been a disappointment, but the fact remains he’s gotten 5.1 YPC and has plenty of skills as a receiver. If utilized better, there’s still a ton of upside. But don’t expect it this week, as Baltimore hasn’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 25 games…I watch very little college football, yet before last year’s draft I called Vernon Gholston an obvious bust. How can I know this and not the Jets?

Brady Quinn’s not a bad guy to stash (again) right now, as Derek Anderson’s time as starter is nearing an end. He’s been pretty awful since the first half of last season ended…It’s not like Braylon Edwards has been much of a help. His hands are just brutal…Not much more can be said about Clinton Portis’ 2008 season; he’s been fantastic…Whether or not Kellen Winslow should have talked to the media is debatable, but one thing is for sure – Cleveland has a serious problem with staph infections. How can this “continuously continue” to happen?

I like baseball, don’t get me wrong, but I much prefer to watch football. But even with no fantasy players involved, nor a wager, I watched very little of the Bucs/Seahawks game Sunday night, as I was glued to Game 7 of the ALCS. Of course, it was horrible scheduling by NBC, but still, what an awesome ALCS that was, TBS’ broadcast notwithstanding. Congrats to the Rays, who will absolutely kill Vegas if they win one more series…Speaking of Vegas, Seneca Wallace’s late TD pass was one of the greatest backdoor covers in recent memory. Forget the 3.2 YPA, he came through in the clutch!…Maurice Morris is better than Julius Jones, this much I know.

Pop quiz, hot shot. Which defensive unit was/is better, the 2000/01 Ravens, or the 2008 Broncos?…Even when playing the best game of his life, Matt Cassel takes six sacks…If you’re counting touchdown totals at home, that’s Laurence Maroney 0, BenJarvus Green-Ellis 1…I loved Jay Cutler’s garbage stats more than anyone, but why did Mike Shanahan have his franchise still in the game down 34-0 and later 41-7 late in the fourth quarter while playing with an injured finger? He’s officially made one too many trips to the tanning salon.