The 3M Report: Week Eight

Jeff Haverlack

3msWelcome to week eight’s 3M report!

It was a wild week across the board with many great games to be seen.  It’s safe  to say that offenses have collectively hit their stride and fantasy points are being scored in droves.  Perhaps more noteworthy is the fact that we are, unbelievably, at the halfway point in the NFL season with as few as five weeks remaining until fantasy playoffs are seeded.  There’s not time to waste if you are on the outside looking in for one of your final playoff spots.  At the same time, don’t mortgage your future to the hilt for an outside chance at a playoff berth.  Now is the time to balance an impactful acquisition against the possibility of doing long-term damage.  Be smart out there.

Take a tour with me of the action packed games and stories from the weekend.

I have to admit, I really like the games being played in London.  Not so much that I care about the NFL extending its brand overseas but, instead, because having a single game to watch while waiting for the regularly scheduled games is quite enjoyable.  In some odd way, it takes me back to the days of my youth when there was only a single game at each time slot.  Being a Cowboy fan, before fantasy stripped me of a team that I live or die by, there was still plenty of opportunities to see “my” team.  Even with single games on Thursdays, Sunday and Monday nights, the early games abroad just feel different.  It’s much like the hot wings appetizer before the bleu-cheese bacon burger.

You have to feel bad for the Falcons, unless of course you are a fan of the Lions.  The two halves of football were complete opposites of each other.  I’ve seen similar games in the past, but nothing quite as stark in contrast.  Atlanta seemed to be simply playing afraid, aware of what was to come.  I don’t think there’s a more likable coach in the NFL than the Falcons’ Mike Smith, but he’s not going to survive beyond this year.  I have a great respect for the ownership and coaching staff, they are a class act from top to bottom.  But it’s time for a change. It may be time for a defensive-minded draft as well.

[inlinead]It’s also safe to say that Golden Tate is coming into his own.  I was very high on Tate heading into 2014 as his complementary skill-set is perfect across from Calvin Johnson.  But the fact that he is able to do what he has in the past two weeks without Megatron has been surprising.

Two weeks ago, I wrote about believing it was time for the Titans to turn to Zach Mettenberger, just to see what the rookie could do.  This week, the Titans did just that.  His 299 yards, two touchdowns, an interception and a lost fumble were actually worse than the numbers would suggest but, at the same time, after the rookie calmed down, you could see his confidence growing.  I’m not ready to dub Mettenberger the next Tom Brady, but I think the Titans may have something here.  I hope they stick with him for the balance of the year and allow him to find his way.  That said, much like Case Keenum of the Texans last year, it may be very difficult for the Titans to pass on a top-tier signal caller in the 2015 draft.  Of course, the Texans did just that and tabbed Ryan Fitzpatrick as their starter. One final note on this game:  Bishop Sankey looks like nothing more than a change of pace back.

Has there been a receiver more disappointing that Dwayne Bowe? I’m not going to waste more words on this topic.  You all know what I’m talking about here.

Welcome to the NFL Austin Seferian-Jenkins.  The young tight end pulled in his first NFL touchdown vs. the Vikings – then proceeded to put the ball on the ground on his next reception during the Bucs’ first possession in overtime, which was then promptly returned for a touchdown to end the game.  I can’t imagine what ASJ was going through on Sunday night.   But with only one win heading into the week, it’s safe to say that his gaffe didn’t significantly affect their playoff chances.  For the Vikings, kudos to Norv Turner who has found away to get the rock in to Cordarrelle Patterson’s hands.  Patterson brought down six receptions on 12 targets.  On the other side of the spectrum, to those that been hoping to see more of Matt Asiata, his train has left the station and not in a the way you would have hoped.  He had a few notable fantasy performances but he simply doesn’t have the skill set to be anything other than a roster-clogger.  Something tells me that we’ll see Adrian Peterson back in Purple in 2015.  Time heals most all wounds.

The Seahawks look inept.  There is no addition through subtraction in the locker room, at least when one of the variables is Percy Harvin.  Some players just transcend their statistical output and Harvin is most certainly one of these players.  If you have watched the Hawks at all over the past few weeks, there’s a level of palpable desperation in their play.  Something isn’t right which goes beyond the loss of a single player.  The defense is porous, the offense lacks consistency and the front office has apparently been vocal about the fact they have no intention of bringing back Marshawn Lynch in 2015.  This being the case or not, why give the players any reason to feel commoditized mid-season?  I wonder if the coaching staff and management have been reading a few too many of their own press clippings of late.  The Hawks three best players were Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch and Percy Harvin.  Strikes one and two have been dealt.  What’s next?

I like player-only meetings and sometimes even polarizing locker-room events that teams can grow or rally from.  Last week’s reported closed-door rant by Brandon Marshall had the potential to snap the Bears back to early season form.  Instead, Chicago came out as flat as any team has in 2014, showing no cohesion nor chemistry.  The hosting Patriots have found an offensive rhythm over the past three weeks, but Tom Brady’s five touchdowns were unexpected.  What this tells me is that Brandon Marshall has lost the locker room himself. Some players have the ability to call out the team and raise the level of performance almost single-handedly.  In the absence of respect or leadership, a player attempting to raise the level of competition of his club will simply divide the locker room and tear down chemistry.  I believe we have witnessed this with the Bears in 2014.  It’s going to be a long year and Marshall isn’t a free agent until 2018.  I doubt he’s back in 2015.

What to do with Geno Smith, Michael Vick, Chris Johnson and Rex Ryan.  If any of you are fans of  Breaking Bad, something tells me ownership is likely going to be purchasing a few plastic 55 gallon bins and a large amount of Hydrofluoric Acid, figuratively speaking of course.  I don’t believe there is any going back from Sunday’s benching of Smith in favor of Vick.  The Jets have now lost seven in a row and have a gaping hole at the quarterback position … again. Ryan can’t survive another year.  On the bright side, Chris Ivory has been a bright spot at running back and is amazingly still healthy.

I want to wrap up with perhaps the most exciting game thus far in 2014.  The Colts and Steelers met on Sunday and proceeded to put up nearly 1,100 yards of combined offensive output, a large majority of them through the air.  In the end, the Steelers controlled the game and notched a 51-34 victory, moving to 5-3 on the year.  The Colts fell to 5-3.  It’s not often we can report that if you started players from either team that you are happy with their performance, but that was the case for this game.  All the usual suspects posted well and we even saw the emergence of Indianapolis receiver Donte Moncrief, who reeled in seven receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown.  If there was one disappointing performance it was that of Hakeem Nicks, who figured to see a bump in production with Reggie Wayne down due to injury.  Instead, Nicks could only convert one of his six targets for 27 yards.  He can be dropped in all formats.  We took a lot of grief when we ranked Andrew Luck as the top draft prospect from his draft year.  Now it appears as though he may be the only solid player from the top five fantasy selections from that year, those being Andrew Luck, Trent Richardson, Doug Martin, Robert Griffin III and Justin Blackmon.

Hope you had a great week!

Follow me on Twitter:  @DLF_Jeff

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jeff haverlack