Twenty Questions: Week Four of the NFL Preseason
We’ve been here providing analysis all preseason long so you don’t miss anything relevant. With week four on the horizon, most of the competitions are over and depth charts are being finalized. Most of the starters won’t play much this week, if at all. That doesn’t mean it’s a week to just stop paying attention. Rather than going game by game this week, here are twenty questions we’re asking as we hit the last set of games.
1.) Â Will the Jets actually score a touchdown?
New York has had over 30 possessions this preseason and has yet to find the end zone. Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow have both had their problems and this team just needs to do something positive, even if it is from their bench players.
2.) Will Ryan Mallett make some headway in his battle against Brian Hoyer to back up Tom Brady?
We know who’s going to start this year in New England, but Ryan Mallett is starting to make some progress. If he shows well, Brian Hoyer will most certainly be on the move next year as an unrestricted free agent. Keep that in mind as the year goes on.
3.) Will a receiver emerge on the Dolphins?
You may not be able to tell the starters from the bench with this crew. If someone doesn’t step up here soon, this is going to be really ugly for Ryan Tannehill this year.
4.) Will Julio Jones score if the Falcons only have him out there for one play?
Jones has looked absolutely dominant this preseason and I wouldn’t put it past him to score on the first play of the game at this point. Of all the players who could challenge Megatron for the top receiver spot in fantasy leagues, I think Jones may have the best chance to actually do it.
5.) Will Tim Hightower get some extended action?
He’s not in game shape right now, but he looked pretty healthy last week. The Redskins backfield is a mess (shocker), so it would be interesting to see what kind of production Hightower could churn out if he does play some extended minutes. Check out the web poll on the DLF Home Page and you’ll see just how much of a mess this backfield is right now.
6.) Will Ryan Lindley provide some element of hope in the desert?
The Cardinals have seen enough of Kevin Kolb and John Skelton to name a starter between the two soon. We’ve seen enough to know that neither are the future for Arizona. Perhaps Lindley can develop quicker than expected – chances are he starts a game at some point this year. He has a long way to go, though.
7.) Will Dwayne Harris repeat his performance from last week?
The third receiver job still isn’t sewn up for the Cowboys and Harris is the latest player making a run for it. Is he worth a pickup or just another flash in the pan?
8.) Will Bobby Rainey beat out Bernard Pierce for the right to back up Ray Rice?
Rainey has outplayed Pierce for nearly the entire preseason. If he continues to be this impressive, he’s going to move up the depth chart and become an even nicer deep prospect in dynasty leagues.
9.) Will Isaiah Pead show us something positive this week?
Pead has been a total disappointment this preseason, rushing for just 50 yards on 25 carries. He’s had a couple of nice returns, but he looks far from a threat to Steven Jackson’s workload at the moment. In fact, seventh round rookie Daryl Richardson is starting to gain on him. It’s way too early to judge Pead, but the returns so far haven’t been too promising.
10.) Will Nick Foles keep up his torrid pace this preseason?
Foles has unseated Mike Kafka for the backup job in Philadelphia. He’s becoming a player who needs to rostered in dynasty leagues, whether you own Michael Vick or not. It looks like there are going to be five rookie quarterbacks who start a game in week one – you can almost guarantee that Foles will be the sixth rookie to start one this year with Vick’s injury history.
11.) Will Rod Streater continue his preseason dominance?
With the Raiders receiving corps spending most of the off-season on the trainer’s table, Streater has taken full advantage and has made a name for himself already. If he continues to play this well, the Raiders are going to have a hard time keeping him off the field.
12.) Will Travaris Cadet or Chris Ivory stick on the Saints?
It’s likely the Saints will only keep one of these two running backs and the decision is going to be a tough one. They each likely have one more chance to impress the coaching staff. If Cadet gets cut, keep an eye on where he goes. There are even rumblings the phone may be ringing from teams looking to acquire Ivory.
13.) Will Graham Harrell finally look like he’s an adequate backup for Aaron Rodgers?
The Packers were rumored to be interested in Tarvaris Jackson before he was shipped to Buffalo. It was thought that Harrell could step in to spot vacated by Matt Flynn and provide some element of security for the Packers should Rodgers miss time. Instead, he’s looked completely lost so far. If he doesn’t play well, look for Green Bay to be scouring the wire or look to make a deal.
14.) Will Jimmy Clausen get cut?
It’s been quite a fall from grace for Clausen, but there’s no doubt he needs a fresh start somewhere else. Keep your eye on this situation as Clausen could regain a little bit of his lost value if he ends up on a quarterback starved team like Arizona.
15.) Will Ronnie Hillman get on track?
It’s quite possible that Hillman gets some extended playing time this week. He has a long way to go if he wants to cut into Willis McGahee’s playing time. While many dynasty owners expected him to split time with McGahee this year, he still hasn’t even beaten out Lance Ball for time as of yet.
16.) Will Mikel Leshoure look better?
With Kevin Smith hurting already, the Lions may play Leshoure some more this week to get him into game shape. It’s possible they save him for the regular season, but it would be nice to see him produce something positive since last week was less than impressive. Dynasty league owners would like to get another look at Joique Bell, too.
17.) Will Garrett Graham produce another solid game?
Graham is a player who is seemingly on the rise and could be a future option at tight end for Houston. Keep an eye on Graham this week to see how he does. If he performs well again, he could be worth a dynasty roster stash.
18.) Will Damaris Johnson make yet another play?
It seems he’s stepped up every time he’s been asked to by the Eagles. Can he do it again?
19.) Will Terrelle Pryor put up a performance worth of giving us hope?
Pryor was a disaster early in the preseason, but looked much better last week. If he can put together another solid performance, he’d be back on the radar in super deep leagues.
20.) Will Robert Turbin continue his solid preseason?
Russell Wilson isn’t the only Seahawk rookie turning heads as Turbin has looked downright explosive at times. There’s obvious concern about Marshawn Lynch and his long term viability (and availability), but Turbin is making those worries seem much smaller than they were a few weeks ago.
Those are just twenty questions for week four. What do you want answered?
Editor’s Note: DLF set a house record with no less than 90 scheduled and posted articles in August. Many of those are in our Premium Content. If you missed anything, check out the archive.
Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK
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