2008 College Bowl Picks 2

Poinsettia Bowl
Boise St vs. TCU
In what could be the best matchup of the non BCS bowls undefeated Boise St looks to complete their perfect season furthering their argument that they should have been included in the BCS games. This matchup will pit a high scoring offense against a fast stingy defense. TCU's only losses came to 2 teams that ARE playing in BCS games Oklahoma and Utah. Unless Boise St has some more trick plays, I'm picking TCU. PICK:TCU RESULT: TCU 17-16, Boise State scored 10 quick points then the TCU defense took over and finished the game with an INT. (2-4)

Hawaii Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Hawaii
Hawaii is not as good as they were in the June Jones/Colt Brennan days but they get a home game against a highly disappointing Notre Dame team. Poor Jimmy Clausen will be lucky to survive 4 years of the beatings his O-Line allows him to take each game. Notre Dame should enjoy the warm weather because that may be the only fun part of this trip. PICK: Hawaii RESULT: Notre Dame 49-21, Good for Notre Dame proving me wrong, Jimmy Clausen finally got some support from his teammates. (2-5)

Motor City Bowl
Central Michigan vs. Florida Atlantic
CMU's QB Dan LeFevour is one of the best QBs that nobody knows about and is a major offensive weapon both with his arm and legs. FAU QB Rusty Smith has also put up some big numbers in the past 2 seasons, so this could be a high scoring game. PICK:CMU RESULT: FAU 24-21 (2-6)

Car Care Bowl
West Virginia vs. North Carolina
Early in the season both of these teams had BCS aspirations. This will be the final game for WVU QB Pat White and his stellar college career, and with a few weeks to rest all of his injuries should put on show. PICK: WVU RESULT: WVU 31-30, Pat White led WVU from behind to get the win (3-6)

Champs Sports Bowl
Wisconsin vs. Florida State
Two disappointing teams from this year, neither of which could win any of their must win games. Both teams rely on the run, and I'm picking FSU for no reason but their near home game advantage. PICK: FSU RESULT: FSU 42-13, All FSU as expected (4-6)

Emerald Bowl
Miami vs. California
Miami QB Robert Marve has been suspended for this game for missing classes (In Miami, can you blame him?) So QB Jacory Harris who splits time will play the whole game and I think he will play well, just not well enough. Cal's RB J. Best will prove too much for the Hurricanes . PICK: Cal RESULT: Cal 24-17, a whole lot of J. Best, as expected (5-6)

A little bit of a comeback with the picks.

Check Back for Results.

Contact Tony at TTOHblog@hotmail.com

2008 College Bowl Picks 1

Bowl Picks are back!

After taking the regular season off, I have decided to once again pick all the Bowl games.

Last season I wen 21-11 for the Bowls which gave me an overall record of 43-20.

Here we go;

Eagle Bank Bowl
Navy vs. Wake Forest
A rematch from earlier this season that saw Navy win 24-17. Navy's Defense finished the season strong with 2 shutouts and they run a a tricky triple option offense that gives teams a lot of trouble. Wake Forest was a disappointment this year on offense. PICK: Navy
RESULT: Wake Forest 29-19, Wake scored 15 points in the 4th quarter to come from behind
(0-1)

New Mexico Bowl
Fresno State vs. Colorado State
Fresno State was a top 25 team earlier in the season and will get back a few offensive weapons from injury. PICK: Fresno State
RESULT: CSU 40-35, Another come from behind victory 20 points in the 4th quarter, Colorado State RB G. Johnson's 285 yds/2 TDs was the difference. (0-2)

St. Petersburg Bowl
South Florida vs. Memphis
When was the last time anyone said South Florida's season was a major disappointment? After a strong 2007, the Bulls had high expectations for 2008, but inconsistent play plagued the Bulls. My money is on QB Matt Grothe and South Florida playing up to their capabilities and making amends for a lost season. PICK: South Florida RESULT: USF 41-14, as expected a one sided affair. (1-2)

Las Vegas Bowl
BYU vs. Arizona
Arizona makes its first bowl appearance since 1998. BYU is a high scoring offense led by QB Max Hall and RB Harvey Unga, as long as they continue to score they should win despite a defense that gives up a ton of points. PICK: BYU RESULT: AZ 31-21, BYU was pretty disappointing on offense and their defense gave up some big plays to the Arizona offense, this is the type of game that voters point to when non BCS conference teams campaign for BCS games as to why they don't belong with the big boys. (1-3)

New Orleans Bowl
Troy vs. Southern Miss.
Southern Miss needed to win their last 4 games to become bowl eligible and have RB Damion Fletcher. Troy won the Sun Belt after losing their starting QB early in the season. I think Southern Miss' momentum comes to a halt. PICK: Troy RESULT: Southern Miss. 30-27 OT, I only saw the OT of this game due to the much more important Giants/Panthers game and both teams looked bad. (1-4)

Not a good start, but maybe this is an argument for a playoff system, who cares about unispired teams going through the motions in low level bowls.


Check back for more Bowl picks and Results

Contact Tony @ TTOHblog@hotmail.com

Mets offseason plans for 2009

Another season that came down to the last day for the New York Mets, that ended in disappointment and another year of playoff tickets for me to throw away. Here are some of Tony's Thoughts on how the Mets will approach the offseason.

2008 said goodbye to Shea Stadium, 2009 will say hello to Citi Field, probably the only reason I will keep my season tickets after the way the last 2 seasons ended.

GM Omar Minaya-He was heading into the last year of his deal and has already been rewarded with an extension? huh? Shouldn't Omar have to prove he can do more than spend the Wilpon's money? Make the Playoffs? He over paid Carlos Beltran and Pedro Martinez (when everybody knew he had a torn labrum) He traded for Johan Santana but only because the Red Sox and Yankees wouldn't give up prospects and give Johan the money he wanted. He signed Luis Castillo to a 4 year deal after having knee surgery that would take away his greatest asset his speed? He traded away Brian Bannister for hit and run driver A. Burgos. He refused to trade Milledge and Heilman for Dan Haren or Joe Blanton a few seasons ago? The only successful move I can think of during the Minaya era is the Ryan Church trade. He threw Willie Randolph under the bus for a team he built, I think the Mets should have made him wait until after this season to EARN an extension.

Manager Jerry Manuel-Manuel had his interim tag removed and was given a low cost deal that makes him expendable should the Mets struggle again. The Mets did play better once Manuel took over but, its hard for a team to relax and play good baseball when they know the manager (Randolph) could be fired if they lose. Manuel is guilty of the same bullpen abuse Randolph was, he uses almost all his guys every night, for one batter. Does he not realize that even though each pitcher may only throw a few pitches, it takes a toll on their arms to warm up every night? The Bullpen was not very good this season but their workload was definitely a factor.

1b C. Delgado-The Mets have already told Delgado they will pick up his 09 option which could be a bargain at 12 million if he plays more like he did from June-Sept and not like he did in April and May. Delgado will be a cheaper alternative than the 200 million plus it will take to sign Mark Texiera.

2b As mentioned above Luis Castillo is signed for another 3 seasons and hopefully will never have to play another game for the Mets. 08 saw the Mets so desperate that they used 38 year old D. Easley, all field, no hit A. Reyes and career AAA guy R. Martinez, who was their guy down the stretch. Well the good news is that the Mets have asked slick hitting LF Dan Murphy to learn 2b in the Arizona Fall League, Murphy was a 3b in the minors but was obviously blocked by one Mr. Wright. If Murphy can not make the switch, a name being thrown around is Orlando Hudson.

LF-Not even urinating on his hands could keep Moises Alou healthy in 08. LF saw the likes of Murphy, Endy"the catch" Chavez, Trot Nixon, Fernando Tatis and another 3b turned OF Nick Evans. A priority for the offseason is finding a power hitting LF most likely a right handed batter. One possible cheaper alternative would be Raul Ibanez, who is 37 (just the age Omar likes them) he keeps putting up solid numbers with little fanfare in Seattle. Ibanez would likely ask for a 3 year deal in the 10-14 million per season range, he could play LF this year then switch to 1b for 2010, and 11, after Delgado leaves, this option would allow the Mets to target LF Matt Holliday who will be a FA after 2009. Some other alternatives would be Manny Ramirez, Omar has a major man crush on the eccentric Manny, but new agent Scott Boras will want atleast a 4 year 100 million deal, and whats to say Manny's phantom knee injury doesn't rear its ugly head again. He quit on his team, and would not be a good example for the already easily distracted Jose Reyes. And can you imagine Manny in his pajama size uniform running around LF in Citi Field without the protection of the Green Monster? Another target would be On Base/HR Machine/Strikeout King Adam Dunn, He too can play LF this season and move to 1b but he is another lefty bat. Another aging star Minaya will like is Bobby Abreu, also a lefty. One other option is Met killer Pat Burrell who the Phillies may try to replace with Manny Ramirez.

Rotation-The Starters should be solid, Santana, Pelfrey and Maine provided his shoulder surgery went as well as expected. Pedro will be gone and proved he is no longer capable of giving more than 4 innings in the NL which means he is just about done. The Mets need to resign big game pitcher Oliver Perez, even if they give him 4 years, 60 million, he is a better value than an AJ Burnett, Derek Lowe, Ben Sheets or Andy Pettite, and if Carlos Silva got a 12 million a year deal , come on, Perez has some rough outings but he pitched gems in big games; Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS, the last game of 08 was going well until he got into trouble with walks in the 5th, and he was pitching on 3 days rest. The Mets do need to find a 5th starter and the name on everyone's mind is CC Sabathia, but can the Mets really tie up 2 pitchers that will make 22+ million dollars per year? Would you even want CC after watching the Brewers let him throw something like 8 CGs down the stretch many over 130 pitches? He is not in good shape to begin with and is a good candidate for an elbow/shoulder explosion within the next 2 seasons. I would prefer the Mets to sign a veteran to pitch out of the 5 hole and hope that Jon Niese can be ready by midseason or make a trade at that time.

Bullpen-As I mentioned above, they were severely overworked but with the exception of Wagner there was no consistency in this group. Heilman should be traded, all these other teams value him as a potential starter and the Mets should get something while they can. Schoenweiss is awful, the Tigers were willing to trade the Mets LF Marcus Thames last season for him, betcha they were glad they kept Thames. When Wagner went down, so did the Mets season, Peter Gammons had a stat that showed if the Mets would have ended games after 8 innings, they Mets would have won the division by 8.5 games! Wagner is out for all of next season. This creates a desperate situation for the Mets at the backend of the bullpen, and plays right into the greedy hands of one K-Rod. The Angels seem likely to focus on resigning Big Tex and moving on at closer. The other teams with enough money to pursue K-Rod (Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs) already have closers. The Dodgers could be another suitor, but they have a much cheaper alternative in J. Broxton. Regardless the Mets need major rebuilding in the bullpen.

It will be interesting to see how the Mets attack the offseason, they will want to reverse their fortunes as they move into Citi Field and as always they will be competing for the back pages with the cross town Yankees who are poised to spend a lot of money after missing the playoffs for the first time in Derek Jeter's career.

2008 Fantasy Football Rankings-RBs

Here are Tony's RB rankings;

1.LT-Obvious #1

2. Westbrook-Recs put him at #2, health is always a question, but he has only missed 2 games, the last 2 seasons.

3. M. Barber-He had 975yds and 12TDs last season in 200 carries, look for him to be a monster this season with the increased carries and clear goal line assignment.

4. Peterson-I worry about the injuries and if you take away the 2 huge games he had last year he only averaged 72 yds per game. And he had games of 3, 27 and 36 rush yards in the last month of the season, otherwise known as the Fantasy Playoffs.

5. Addai-He scored in 10 of 15 games and but you have to worry about the Colts shutting down at the end of the season, Addai only had 10 total carries in Weeks 16 and 17.

6. S. Jax-I worry about the holdout (See LJ 07) but Bulger and Pace are healthy this season, and Jackson's season should look more like the way he finished last season.

7. Portis-Look for the skins to rely on the run while Campbell tries to learn another new offense.

8. Gore-Does Martz make him look like Faulk? Most owners would settle for something closer to the Gore of 06 and not the Gore of 07. Teams will stack the line until O'Sullivan can prove he can run the Martz passing O.

9. Lynch-Still no real passing game in Buffalo, but he is supposed to get more recs this season.

10. LJ-Healthy this season, LJ should bounce back as KC will lean on him as usual.

11. MOJO Drew-He manages to score a healthy amount of TDs and catches a good amount of passes. He is a Fred Taylor injury away from being a stud.

12. R. Bush-NO-This ranking is purely on recs, if you don't play in a PPR league drop Bush down into the 20's.

13. Grant-His body of work is only 8 games, but what an 8 games it was, draft with a little bit of risk, much like D. Anderson at QB.

14. J. Lewis-Lewis saw a resurgence in Clev and with the Browns on the way up could have another solid year.

15. McGahee-Knee injury is a concern and the emergence of R. Rice could cut into what was supposed to be a big year for Willis playing the LT role in Cam Cameron's O.

16. E. Graham-Much like Grant, can he keep it going this season? Dunn is only competition so it looks like the Bucs will sink or swim with Graham, and they gave him the big deal he wanted.

17. B. Jacobs-Beast, if he can stay healthy for a season, he is a top 12 back. He drops a ton of passes though.

18. McFadden-Looks like he has passed Huggy Bear Jr on the depth chart, Run DMC is an injury risk b/c of his height and the hits he takes.

19. Turner-Atl is weak in the pass game, but Turner has some fresh legs and could have a Priest Holmes like emergence after leaving SD.

20. James-He has been solid averaging almost 1300 yds over the last 3 years.

21. Maroney-If the Pats run him like they did at the end of last season, I would move him up, but with the Pats you never know, they may pass the whole game.

22. T. Jones-With Favre and a new O Line things are aligned for Jones to have a nice season, but he has struggled in the pre season.

23. Parker-He is returning from a broken foot, and after having 16 TDs in 06 he had only 2 last season and figures to lose goal line touches to Mendenhall.

24.L. White-His season will depend on how many carries C. Johnson steals, White should get the goal line touches.

25. D. Williams-Held off J. Stewart and looks to prove he should be the featured back in the Panthers time share.

26. S. Young-Denver backs always seem to do well, but could be benched at any moment.

27. K. Smith-Starter by default who had over 400 carries last season at UCF, Lions signed Rudi Johnson to compete.

28. R. Brown-Was well on his way to being an elite back last season until his knee injury. He is coming off an ACL injury, is dealing with a thumb injury, and it looks like Ricky Williams will share the carries in the early part of the season.

29. M. Forte

30. F. Taylor-I don't expect him to have as good a year as he had last season, but Jax is a run first team and its possible for Taylor and Jones-Drew to each get 15-20 carries per week

31. J. Jones

32. C. Perry-Gets the starting nod, but has never been able to stay on the field.

33. J. Stewart-Could be a star if he gets passed the toe injury that has bothered him since last season. Looks to split carries with D. Williams.

34. C. Taylor-Stock rises if/when Peterson gets hurt.

35. M. Morris

36. F. Jones

37. C. Johnson

38. R. Rice

39. R. Williams

40. J. Fargas-Huggy Bear Jr. got paid so they should use him right? Ask Rhodes and Jordan how their 07 went.

41. J. Norwood

42. R. Mendenhall

43. K. Watson

44. A. Green-Starter by default, he will get hurt and Slaton could be the man in Houston

45. D. McAllister

46. L. Washington

47. S. Slaton

48. W. Dunn

49. D. Rhodes

50. D. Ward

51. L. Booker

52. T. Bell-Cut by Detroit could be the answer in Houston, he played in Kubiak's zone blocking scheme in Denver.

53. B. Jackson

54. C. Taylor-Somebody is going to end up getting the carries in Houston.

55. D. Foster

56. K. Jones

57. F. Jackson

58. P. Thomas-Finished strong last season when Bush and Duece were hurt.

59. L. Betts

60. D. Sproles

61. A. Bradshaw

62. R. Johnson-Could be your last pick, and end up the starter in Detroit.

2008 Fantasy Football Preview - WRs

For WRs, I'm going to rank my top 30, then list some other guys I like this season.

Here are Tony's WR rankings;

1. R. Moss-NE-Even if Moss has half the TDs he had last year he is a star.

2. T. Owens-Dal-Averaging 14 TDs over the last 2 seasons, he has stayed out of trouble in Big D, since his overdose, he already signed an extension, and is BFF with his QB.

So a Happy TO = a productive TO

3. R. Wayne-Ind-Took over the WR1 role in Indy with Harrison out last season, 3 year avg, of 91/1292/8.

4. M. Colston-NO-I moved him up over the past few weeks due to some injuries, but if Brees looks more like he did at the end last season and TE Shockey attracts some attention in the middle of the field look for Colston to keep improving 100/1200/12 is not out of the question.

5. B. Edwards-Clev-he drops a notch because of his foot injury which may cost him a few early season games or being a Brown, possible staph infection. The Browns offense has a lot of potential but QB Anderson is dealing with a concussion and Edwards injury may lead to a slow start.

6. A. Johnson-Hou-Could be #2 on this list if he and his QB could stay healthy.

7. L. Fitzgerald-AZ-Likes playing with K. Warner, Fitz scored 9 TDs in the final 7 games last season.

8. TJ Housh.-Cin-Tied for the league lead in recs (112) Should be the Bengals #1 with the shoulder injury to Ocho Cinco.

9. Chad Johnson-Cin-Shoulder injury is a concern, but he has been super consistent over the past 5 years, and last seasons 93/1440/8 was considered a down year despite being in line with his 3 yr avg.

10. T. Holt-Stl-Getting up there in age, that knee is always a concern but can't argue with the numbers he puts up.

11. P. Burress-NYG-We saw what he could do with a severe ankle injury. Its a good sign that he has practiced more in the preseason than he did all of last season.

12. W. Welker-NE-Welker is a stud in PPR leagues, he won't score a bunch of TDs though.

13. S.Smith-Car-Starts the season with a 2 game suspension for rearranging his teammates nose, but he is falling in drafts and should be in line for a big year with the return of a healthy Delhomme.

14. B. Marshall-Den-Lots of off field problems earned Baby TO a 3 game suspension, reduced to 1 game. Marshall has had a big preseason and should be drafted a lot higher then he is falling in drafts.

15. A. Bolden-AZ-WR is disgruntled and wants to be traded, but I think he benefits if Warner is the starter.

16. R. Williams-Det-with the departure of Martz, the pass happy O, will see more of a balance hurting Williams, not to mention the further development of Calvin Johnson.

17. G. Jennings-GB-My question is can he have the year he had last season without Brett Favre or is he the next Lee Evans?

18. S. Holmes-Pit-Primed for a big season as the Steelers let the ball fly last season.

19. M. Harrison-Ind-If healthy could be a draft steal.

20. H. Ward-Pit-Battled some injuries last season but he averaged 5.5 recs per game and scored 7 TDs.

21. J. Cotchery-NYJ-Seems to be the major benefactor of the arrival of Favre, he could be this years Greg Jennings.

22. L. Coles-NYJ

23. D. Bowe-KC

24. D. Driver-GB

25. R. White-Atl-White had a breakout season last year, because the Falcons played from behind most games, this year should see a lot of the same and Ryan should be a better passer than Redman/Harrington.

26. C. Johnson-Det-Back injury limited him last season, should continue to improve.

27. N. Burleson-Sea-He becomes the defacto WR1 with the injuries to Branch and Engram, He had 9 TDs last season playing behind Branch, Engram and Hackett.

28. B. Berrian-Min-He moves from one team with an awful QB to another team with an awful QB.

29. S. Moss-Wash

30. L. Evans-Buf

Here are some other guys I like;

A. Gonzalez-Ind-He gained a lot of experience with Harrison's injury and could do some damage out of the slot in Indy like Stokley did a few years back.

R. Brown-Phi-His recs have increased every year, and he had 9 TDs 2 years ago, with the injury to Curtis, Brown could see a lot of action early in the season.

K. Walter-Hou-Another good guy in PPR leagues, I don't see him scoring more than 6 TDs though.

D. Hester-Chi-Don't Laugh, Hester may actually finish the season as Chicago's #1 WR, they don't have much else and they will get him the ball. If you play in a league that counts his return yards he is an easy top 15 WR.

R. Meachum-NO-Last season's 1st round pick missed last year and has had a big preseason could beat out Patten for the #2 job and seems to have already passed Henderson for #3.

J. Gaffney-NE-Its always hard to predict what the Pats will do, but Gaffney could be solid he scored in 4 of the last 5 games last year and Stallworth is gone this season but he has to hold off former #1 pick Chad Jackson.

DJ Hackett-Car-If he can ever manage to stay healthy he could put up big numbers, playing opposite S. Smith could give him a lot of room to work and he is a nice red zone target on a team without an elite TE.

2008 Fantasy Football Preview-QBs

Here are Tony's QB rankings;

1. T. Brady-NE-Pats offense should be just as potent as last year, expect Brady to reach about 35 TDs, not the 50 he had last year.

2. P. Manning-Ind-Doesn't get more consistent then Manning, knee injury is a concern but still one of the top 2 QBs

3. T. Romo-Dal-Romo has one of the top WRs and one of the top TEs to target. Can carry you some weeks with 4 TDs, but he tends to throw a good amount of INTs (19)

4. D. Brees-NO-After a strong 2006, the Saints started off slowly, but Brees threw 27 TDs in the final 12 games last season in 2007.

5. C. Palmer-Cin-A good candidate for a bounce back season, He has 85 and Housh to throw to and the Bengals added TE Utecht, C. Henry was resigned but chances of him making the team seem slim once the other WRs are healthy.

6. B. Roethlisberger-Pit-The Steelers opened up the passing game last season and Big Ben threw 32 TDs, 25 this season doesn't seem out of the question.

7. D. Anderson-Clev-He was at the helm of a strong offense last season, but can he do it again? Anderson is already dealing with the effects of a concussion and has the pressure of holding off 06 1st rounder Brady Quinn. He is a high risk, high reward player.

8. B. Favre-NYJ-Favre is known to throw with reckless abandon, he should be able to get 20-25 TDs but he may throw that many INTs

9. J. Cutler-Den-He threw 20 TDs last season, while unknowingly suffering from diabetes. He has his health under control and plays with a cast that includes Baby TO and Scheffler. Look for Cutler to continue to improve.

10. M. Bulger-Stl-Al Saunders a Mike Martz disciple takes over as OC, Bulger was hurt most of last year and was also without S-Jax a good deal of 07.

11. D. McNabb-Phi-When he plays, he is usually solid, and that is with no name WRs, but he will break your heart and kill your season with his almost yearly season ending injury. If you take him as your QB1, make sure you have a good backup.

12. M. Hasselbeck-Sea-Seahawks offense should be a little less potent this year, with Hackett gone to Carolina, Engram and Branch injured to start the season, but expect him to be a solid backup for your team.

13. E. Manning-NYG-Don't be fooled by his postseason run, the Giants didn't ask him to win games with his arm (Tyree catch excluded) as they relied on the run. Manning will get you about 25 TDs, but will throw about 20 INTs.

14. J. Delhomme-Car-Another bounce back candidate, he had Tommy John surgery in the off season, the Panthers added 2 WRs and a RB to their offense. Good pick as a backup who could become a #1.

15. P. Rivers-SD

16. D. Garrard-Jax

17. A. Rodgers-GB

18. J. Campbell-Wash-New HC Jim Zorn brings his passing O from Seattle, Wash added 2 WRs in the draft, but I think Campbell needs one more season, and he will be a breakout candidate for 2009.

19. M. Schaub-Hou

20. J. Kitna-Det

21. K. Warner-AZ-Warner is expected to be named the starter, he threw 27 TDs after taking over for Leinart, He has 2 high level WRs but he throws a bunch of picks and fumbles at least once per game.

22. V. Young-Tenn-He can't get any worse, can he?

23. C. Pennington-Mia-He may make a living throwing screen passes to Ted Ginn Jr.

24. J. Garcia-TB

25. T. Edwards-Buf

26. J. Russell-Oak

27. JT O'Sullivan-SF-Most people don't know who he is, but he takes over the Martz offense that made Warner and Kitna stars and nobody knew them either.

28. T. Jackson-Min-He will be asked to handoff almost exclusively.

29. B. Croyle-KC

30. K. Orton-Chi

31. M. Ryan-Atl-Expected to be named starter, he worked magic with sub par talent in college he will have better WRs in the pros, but will still struggle as many rookie QBs do.

32. M. Leinart-AZ-He has value if you have the oft injured Warner. The Cards have tried to hand him the job, but he chooses to party with high school girls in his hot tub instead.

33. B. Quinn-Clev-Anderson is not a sure thing, and his concussion could open the door for Quinn to step in and run this talented offense.

34. R. Grossman-Chi-Chances are he will start a few games this season.

35. C. Redman-Atl-Will regain the job if Ryan struggles more than expected.

36. T. Smith-Balt-Likely starter who will keep the seat warm until Flacco is ready.

37. J. Flacco-Balt-Will start when team thinks he's ready.

38. JP Losman-Buf

39. A. Smith-SF

40. K. Boller-Balt

41. C. Simms-TB-Expected to be cut by TB, pay attention to where he ends up, he could be a fit in Chicago, or may settle for a backup job (Dal, NE, NYG)

2008 Fantasy Football Preview - Tight Ends

Here are Tony's rankings for TEs;

1. J. Witten-Dal-T.O. draws the double teams and Witten was the most targeted Dallas receiver last year, no health concerns makes him my top TE.

2. C. Cooley-Wash-New coach Jim Zorn brings a TE friendly offense to Washington, and his 3 yr avg 66/765/7 should improve.

3. A. Gates-SD-He is the #1 TE if healthy, but for where you need to draft him, I'm not taking that chance. His numbers dropped last year after the arrival of Chambers and the emergence of V. Jackson. If you can get him after the 5th round he is a great value, but not in the 3rd or 4th.

4. T. Gonzalez-KC-He is getting older but has still been consistent, He is the #1 receiving option, playing with a young QB, more valuable in PPR leagues.

5. K. Winslow-Clev-The "Soldier" has had 2 consistent seasons but had yet another knee surgery in the offseason, and is an injury risk every week. High upside, but draft at your own risk.

6. J. Shockey-NO-Shockey will be reunited with former OC Sean Payton, and should be out to show the Giants that he is still a top TE. Should benefit from Colston drawing double teams. Also an injury risk, returning from a broken leg.

7. Da. Clark-Ind-Clark had a huge season last year in the absence of M. Harrison. If Harrison is back I see Clark returning to his previous #'s about 35/400/4.

8. T. Heap-Balt-He is on the injury list every week, but until last year rarely missed a game. Cam Cameron's offense is TE friendly. If you miss out on the top 7 TEs Heap is not a bad option.

9. O. Daniels-Hou-He was a major benefactor of Andre Johnson's injury last year making 63 recs, but still only scored 3 TDs, he is the #2 option behind Johnson and should be a top 10 TE.

10. V. Davis-SF-2 years of hype and 2 years of disappointment, he is a freakish athlete, but runs poor routes and drops a lot of passes. Mike Martz comes to SF, he has never relied heavily on the TE but has never had an athlete like Davis. He was the #3 TE last season during the fantasy playoff weeks, while S. Hill started for SF.

11. H. Miller-Pit-Miller posted career highs in recs/yds/TDs. He has averaged 6 TDs in the last 3 seasons.

12. T. Scheffler-Den-A favorite target of Cutler, who should see a lot of targets early with Marshall missing the first 3 games due to suspension.

13. G. Olsen-Chi-Athletic TE, who should see more targets this season, due to the Bears lack of quality WRs. The downside is he spilts time with Desmond Clark.

14. A. Crumpler-Ten-Crumpler is joining a new team, but a team that has little in ways of wr, so Young may rely heavily on him.

15. LJ Smith-Phi-Injured last season, could be a good value if he can return to his 55/650/4 #'s from 05-06.

16. B. Watson-NE-Another athletic TE, who could put up monster #'s if he was on another team. the Pats just spread the ball around too much to rely on him, and Moss gets a lot of the red zone chances, not to mention all the TDs LB Vrabel steals from the offense.

17. K. Boss-NYG-Great hands, will feel the pressure of justifying the Giants trade of Shockey.

18. B. Utecht-The Bengals have not had a receiving TE in awhile, he should get the balls that normally went to the departed #3 wr C. Henry.

19. Z. Miller-Oak-Had 44 recs as a rookie, young QB Russell will rely on Miller like he did in the last 2 games of 2007 (16 targets, 11 recs.)

20. D. Lee-GB-Was a surprise last year, I'm not sure what to expect from him as Rodgers takes over.

21. M. Lewis-Jax-Another one of these young athletic TEs, but he plays for a run first team.

22. R. McMichael-Stl-Had his worst season last year, and may be past his prime.

23. D. Keller-NYJ-Rookie TE is more of a WR, with Favre under center the Jets could throw a lot more this season.

2008 Fantasy Football Preview - Defense/ST

Here is Tony's D/ST rankings;

1. San Diego-Strong in every category

2. Chicago-Not as good as 2 years ago, but Hester alone is worth the pick.

3. Dallas-Demarcus Ware keeps getting better, a strong secondary and Adam "rain man" Jones in the return game.

4. Minnesota-Too bad you don't get fantasy points for stopping the run, J. Allen should help increase sack total.

5. NY Giants-Even without Strahan the sacks should keep coming in bunches, secondary should be improved with the addition of Philips.

6. New England-Despite age and secondary losses, Pats have the easiest schedule and the offense should force opponents to play from behind most weeks.

7. Green Bay-Solid LBs and secondary, division opponents are weak.

8. Seattle-Quick, athletic D strong in all categories.

9. Indy-See Seattle, gets Freeney back from injury.

10. Jacksonville-Drafted two pass rushers, who should benefit from strong secondary. MOJO Drew returns kicks.

11. Pittsburgh-Always a strong unit

12. Tennessee-5th best D in ypg last season.

13. Philadelphia-Maybe a little disappointed when they realize Samuels isn't a cover corner.

14. Baltimore-Getting older but still a solid unit.

15. Washington-Taylor brings a much needed pass rush to a strong unit.

Fraud Alert!

This is a notice to any of my readers/visitors;

DON"T order any tickets from Ticketsmyway.com, The website is a complete fraud, they cancel your order a few weeks before your event, they promise you a refund, which you never get. Their policies say that even if they give you a refund they will keep 45% of your total order. All calls, emails and letters go unanswered. Some online complaints even said that after contacting their credit card company about the fraud, they were then sued in Nevada state court for violating their policies against refunds. There are over 4000 complaints made against this company on line, and with the Nevada FBI office and Better Business Bureau. I hate ticket agencies and I hate them even more after dealing with this place.

2008 Fantasy Fooball Preview - Kickers

Here are Tony's Kicker Ratings;

1. S. Graham-Cin-Very consistent, 3 year avg. of 125 points, Cinci offense should be on the rebound this season.

2. J. Brown-Stl-FA from Seattle moves inside to the Edward Jones Dome, where Brown has only missed one career FG. Brown made four 50+ yd (bonus pts) FGs last season. Rams O should stall enough to give Brown a lot of 3 point chances.

3. R. Bironas-Tenn-If anybody plays for a team that can't score TDs its this guy. He attempted the most FGs last season 39, he attempted at least 2 FGs in 13 games last season. He also had an 8 FG game.

4. N. Folk-Dal-A lot of people's #1 K this season, He plays for a great offense but its hard to trust him after only 1 year and 2 of his misses last year were from under 29 yds.

5. M. Crosby-GB-The rookie lead the K's in scoring last season and he kicked in cold GB, with Favre out, Crosby could get more FG chances. Same trust issues as Folk.

6. S. Gostkowski-NE-scored a ton of PATs, and would be ranked higher if the Pats actually kicked FGs instead of going for it on 4th and 8. Still a solid pick.

7. A. Vinatieri-Ind-He struggled last season, but he plays for a high scoring offense, and kicks in what should be a mostly inside Lucas Oil stadium this year.

8. N. Kaeding-SD-3 yr avg of 122 pts, 5 games with 3+ FGs

9. R. Gould-Chi-2 straight solid seasons for a team that scores more on special teams than on offense, Dec. games in the windy city are a concern though.

10. P Dawson-Clev-Offense should be better than last season.

11. J. Scobee-Jax-Missed 8 games but still had 62 pts, (7.75 per game) 124 full season pace.

12. K. Brown-Hou-Another offense on the rise?

13. R. Longwell-Min-Indoor kicker for a one dimensional offense, should get a lot of chances.

14. N. Rackers-AZ-122 pt 3 yr avg, three 50+ yd FGs last season.

15. M. Nugent-NYJ-Jets offense has new O line and QB, should get more chances, Dec. wind in Jersey is tough to kick in though.