Five Burning Questions
As I sit here in DLF’s luxuriously appointed Las Vegas branch (also known as my home office), I can’t help but wonder why a cooler is still a cooler even if the external ambient temperature is lower than the temperature inside said cooler. Wouldn’t that make it a warmer? I also wonder about nature’s great unanswered questions such as, “Why are plants green?” and “What are McNuggets really made of?” While I can’t answer the unanswerable, I can answer this week’s Five Burning Questions.
1.) How good can Martavis Bryant be?
When I selected Bryant in one of DLF’s rookie mocks I said he reminds me of Randy Moss. I’m not so stupid as to say he has a Moss-level ceiling, but it is hard to ignore their similar size (both are 6’4” and 210 lbs) and play style (great straight line speed, excellent with jump balls, fantastic in the red zone). Bryant’s hands are still relatively unproven and nobody would call him polished, but we’ve seen the upside.
All that said, trading for him now would be a mistake. His asking price is too high considering the warts on his game. My feeling is we will see some rough patches yet this year and when we do, I’d pounce.
[am4show have=’g1;’ guest_error=’sub_message’ user_error=’sub_message’ ]
2.) How will the Bears fare off their bye?
I believe we will see a return to form…mostly. The downswing has been a culmination of a number of factors: Jay Cutler is playing poorly, the offensive line has been injured and not good, the receivers have struggled to get open (I assume due to lingering health issues), and the play calling has not been consistently good. Throw in an injured, not-great defense costing the offense possessions and you have issues.
Luckily, all these problems can be helped with a little time off.
If the Bears come out flat this week, I’ll be concerned for the rest of the year. I’ll also be putting in offers on Alshon Jeffery in hopes his owner is in a state of panic.
3.) What should you do if you own Cam Newton?
If curling up in a corner and sucking your thumb isn’t an option, I’d go with, ”be patient.”
Cam has been relatively awful for much of the 2014 season. While it is reasonable to blame his health, offensive line, lack of a run game and poor receiving corps for his shaky play, none of those things cause you to make overthrow after overthrow as though you are trying to look like a darker complexioned Andy Dalton. (Although it would be a watershed moment if Cam dyed his hair orange. Just saying.)
The good news is the Panthers’ upcoming schedule is easier than correctly guessing whether or not Jerry Jones has had plastic surgery. They face Philly, Atlanta, Minnesota, New Orleans, and Tampa Bay the next six weeks (with a bye sandwiched in there). Those five teams rank an average of 20th in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks.
There isn’t too much reason to downgrade Newton long term based on this season’s showing. We have much more good evidence than bad on the guy, so I don’t really advocate bailing on him in your dynasty league just yet.
4.) What do I do with the Tampa Bay RB’s?
If curling up in a corner and sucking your thumb isn’t an option….
Let’s break them down one-by-one.
Doug Martin – Over the course of the last two seasons, Martin’s run grade (which is based only on performance with the ball in hand) on Pro Football Focus (PFF) has ranked 47th (2013) and 40th (2014). His pass blocking has been worse, ranking 47th and 59th respectively. Considering how much better Bobby Rainey has fared over the same stretch (24th graded runner in 2013 and 27th this season), it is hard to excuse the Muscle Hamster for his performance.
We are at the point where it is time to move on from Martin. I’m not even sure he is a decent buy-low with an eye towards a fresh start somewhere else.
Bobby Rainey – Going back to PFF, Rainey has been decent running the ball, but his overall grade is quite poor as he currently sits 51st among the 61 graded running backs. The former Western Kentucky Hilltopper is a bit small for a lead back and shows nothing more than adequate skills for the position. He is ideal in a change of pace role.
Charles Sims – Picked early in the third round of last April’s draft, Sims is the only back brought in by the current coaching regime. A bit thinner than you’d like, Sims is a sudden one-cut runner with good quickness. He also has enough speed to get to the edge, even if he isn’t quite a 4.4 guy.
Considering what is in front of Sims on the roster and the Bucco’s lost season, it seems like we are likely to get a long look at him sooner rather than later. I think he will handle himself well enough to end up leading the backfield in touches the last month or so of the season and most likely all of 2015.
5.) What are the odds Ben Roethlisberger has a big game against a pitiful Jets secondary?
Despite facing the NFL’s most generous defense (21.3 ppg allowed to QB’s), there is no chance Ben comes close to his last two games. The universe won’t allow it.
I say this tongue in cheek, but we all know how this sort of thing ends. With Pit winning 17-13 and Ben going 240/1/1.
[/am4show]
- How to Win Without Watching Football - July 22, 2021
- 2018 Summer Sleeper: Chicago Bears - July 9, 2018
- NFL Draft Aftermath: Winners and Losers from the AFC North - June 18, 2018
