Here's what KFFL's inside sources are saying this week.
Quarterbacks
As long as Colt McCoy plays well
(i.e., avoids turnovers), expect him to remain the Cleveland
Browns' starter. If Cleveland is on the playoff bubble and they have a
rough couple of games, they could make a switch, but otherwise, it doesn't
appear likely.
The Dallas Cowboys won't tank it this season;
they made the switch to Jason Garrett. Thus,
the likelihood that "The Return of Tony Romo"
will air in December is much greater, assuming he doesn't have a setback in
his recovery from a broken clavicle.
Not "(shoulder), PROB" anymore
Don't scoff at the Miami Dolphins' move to start
Chad Pennington. His mistake-minimizing
approach outweighed his noodle arm in this case; Miami hopes to be more efficient
in the red zone and more careful with the pigskin. If he tanks in the next
few games, expect Miami to decide between the deposed Chad
Henne and Tyler Thigpen and
hopefully identify which has the better long-term potential.
The Minnesota Vikings could utilize the no-huddle
offense more often, maybe as soon as this week against the Chicago
Bears. Brett Favre (ankle, foot,
calf) didn't have many issues running it in crunch time last week.
Tom Brady's inclusion on the New
England Patriots' injury report is a given. But now, there might be legit
reason for concern. This week's practice report isn't the first sign of Brady's
foot injury. It affected his play noticeably against the Browns
and could do so for weeks.
There are strong indications that the Philadelphia
Eagles will approach Michael Vick's
agent about a contract extension. Expect them to be rebuffed. Vick won't get
max dollars right now. But Philly is interested in bringing him back, and
the potential threat of something like a franchise tag (depending on CBA status)
could be a factor.
Somewhat related: Vick, 30, still appears to have no interest in learning
how to slide properly. The Eagles won't force him.
He has to make it to free agency before he can capitalize on it.
Our San Francisco 49ers source is on the Troy
Smith bandwagon. Smith just needs to keep them competitive to hold
off Alex D. Smith (shoulder). Though
Frank Gore and Vernon
Davis are proponents of Alex D. Smith,
head coach Mike Singletary didn't give Alex
job security for a reason. Over the bye week, San Fran worked to incorporate
more running plays for Smith, who didn't have a chance to employ those skills
outside eluding sacks in Week 8.
The Seattle Seahawks were disappointed in Charlie
Whitehurst's first NFL start. He had trouble
hitting open wideouts. The defense wasn't a big problem for Seattle because
they ran a bunch of max protect sets.
Donovan McNabb met with OC Kyle
Shanahan to hash out their differences. The Washington
Redskins' signal caller isn't yet on the same page with his coordinator,
but Shanahan has refuted reports of McNabb's poor work habits. Cue Jimmy Carter.
Running backs
If Beanie Wells (knee), a game-time
decision, can't suit up for the Arizona Cardinals,
Tim Hightower will start and get the
bulk of the carries. If Wells plays, he'll probably cede the majority of the
work to Hightower. Expect a sprinkling of LaRod
Stephens-Howling either way.
Goodson has impressed: His receiving skills are top-notch. He's also at
215 pounds after coming into the league at 185. Goodson could be an every-down
back at some point, especially given how hard he has worked on his blitz pickup.
Even with the uncertainty about the collective bargaining agreement and the
Panthers' coaching staff, an excellent Goodson performance from here on out
might make Williams, an impending free agent, expendable.
Our Chicago Bears source wasn't confident that
offensive coordinator Mike Martz could remain
patient to stick with the increased rushing attack. He's afraid it'll be "bombs
away" once again if the ground game of Matt
Forte and Chester Taylor stalls
anymore.
Peyton Hillis owners don't have to
worry. Cleveland Browns coach Eric
Mangini just wants to give his big back a breather, so he doesn't get
the crap beat out of him. Hillis' running style might draw questions about
whether he can hold up, but there's no evidence yet that it's an issue.
Sooner or later, the Dallas Cowboy have to give Tashard
Choice a real shot, right? New coach Jason
Garrett doesn't appear to be in any hurry to do so.
With their desired offensive line back together, the Denver
Broncos will try to involve Knowshon Moreno
more often. They've been getting into too many unfavorable down-and-distance
situations, and that has prevented the run from stepping up a notch.
To protect active but injured quarterback Shaun
Hill (forearm), expect the Detroit Lions to
try having Jahvid Best (toe) carry
a bigger workload this week.
Waiting for Donald Brown to step
up in the absence of Joseph Addai?
Bring a book. Our insider just doesn't see the spring in Brown's step, and
the UConn product gave up a sack last week. The Colts
need someone to step up NOW. If Javarris James
can pick up the blitz and is at all effective, it wouldn't be a shock to see
the Colts turn to him this week.
The return of Logan Mankins could make what
was already a solid ground game for the New England
Patriots into a top-10 rushing attack. Mankins looked better than expected
last week. He'll play most snaps this week.
This development could mean good things for Fred
Taylor (toe), who may return this week but won't be a factor for a
few. The Pats are hoping to ride a healthy Taylor in December. BenJarvus
Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead
have proven to be reliable, so New England won't be in bad shape, regardless.
The New York Giants' talk of giving more work
to Danny Ware is overblown coach speak.
Their Week 9 blowout win allowed Ware to have a successful day while killing
clock. In normal, non-injury reps, how much can the Giants
really take away from the successful duo of Ahmad
Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs?
Though reports of LaDainian Tomlinson's
demise are greatly exaggerated - he faced some decent run defenses recently
- the New York Jets still want Shonn
Greene involved more. Not in a true 50-50 work split, but as close
as possible. Greene impressed the staff with the way he ran against the Detroit
Lions last week; he looks like a better matchup play against the Cleveland
Browns' 3-4 defense this weekend.
Big blow: losing Max Starks (neck) for the
rest of the season. Insult added: Chris Kemoeatu
(knee, ankle) won't go this week. Who suffers for the Pittsburgh
Steelers? Rashard Mendenhall -
don't expect him to come even remotely close to reproducing Hillis' Week 9
effort versus the Pats.
Clinton Portis (groin) and Ryan Torain (hamstring) are game-time decisions for the Washington Redskins. We probably won't know their statuses until Monday night. We could see an even split three ways if they both play, with Keiland Williams entering the fray. Williams would probably earn 50 percent of the load if it's either Torain or Portis suiting up. Our source guessed Portis will play, based on Portis' pleasant demeanor in practice. Watch to see if Washington makes a promotion from the practice squad Sunday - that'll hint at the backs' availabilities.
Since the Boston University alum joined KFFL in 2006, his work has been featured by USA Today/Sports Weekly and Yahoo! Sports, among numerous publications.
Tim competes in Tout Wars and LABR and appears every Wednesday on 1570 AM WNST in Baltimore, as well as frequently on Sirius XM Fantasy Sports Radio.
