Ask the Experts

ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them:

Which players will flop in the fantasy playoffs?

DAVID DOREY

Marion Barber will end the regular season on a down note thanks to having a dislocated toe but mostly because he has his next three games of @Pittsburgh, the Giants and then the Ravens. That would slow down any running back and Barber is not completely healthy. The Cowboys have to win as much as possible so there will be no resting for Barber either.

Dorey is the co-founder and Senior NFL Analyst at The Huddle since 1997. He has produced award winning rankings and has projected the fantasy stats for every game over the last 13 years. David produces the bulk of The Huddle rankings and his “Predictions and Projections” breaks down every single NFL game every week through the Super Bowl. You can find more about David at TheHuddle.com.

LOUIS TRANQUILLI

Steve Slaton. He's a rookie, and already the coach has talked about him being tired. His schedule is looking difficult, traveling to Green Bay then home against Tennessee and out to Oakland. Only the Raiders look like a good matchup from here, because as bad as Green Bay has been against the run I don't like a rookie on a bad football team traveling to the Frozen Tundra to take on a team that will be in dire need of a win.

Louis Tranquilli is the founder and the primary "brains" (if you stretch it) of BFDFANTASYfootball.com. BFD is about giving advice to players from a player. Lou's been a highly successful owner in many high stakes contests. BFD is giving away 50 fantasy football teams in 2008.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI

It could get ugly for Marion Barber in a hurry -- he's got the bad toe and a month of awful matchups (Steelers, Giants, Ravens, Eagles). The story is much the same with Clinton Portis: he's hurt (too many ailments to list), and he's looking at the Ravens this week and the Eagles in Week 16. As for players who aren't hurt, maybe it's the right time to trade DeAngelo Williams. He's hotter than a pistol, but he won't get anything easy against the Buccaneers this week, and although the Broncos wait after that (a great matchup), he faces the Giants in Week 16.

Pianowski is a fantasy expert for Yahoo! Sports. His work regularly appears on Yahoo's Roto Arcade Blog (rotoarcade.com), and you can also email him at pianowski31@yahoo.com.

IAN ALLAN

The Cowboys have an awfully tough schedule the rest of the way — at Pittsburgh, Giants, Ravens, at Philadelphia. With that kind of murderer’s row in front of them, I think it will be hard for their stars to put up big numbers. That schedule is bad news for Marion Barber (especially him), Tony Romo and Terrell Owens.

Allan is the senior writer for Fantasy Football Index magazine. He’s also one of the main content contributors for that company’s website, www.fantasyindex.com. His IAN ALLAN’S MAILBAG column is posted on Fridays.

SAM HENDRICKS

Marion Barber is my choice for dud for the next 3 weeks. Why? Well he is banged up with a dislocated toe injury that he will play on (expect him at less than 100%). He faces the #1 defense in the NFL at Pittsburgh this week before coming home to play the New York Giants and then Baltimore. His QB is back and connecting with T. Owens more and more and the Cowboys have a rookie in 4th round pick Tashard Choice that they may want to see more of based on his week 13 performance. It all spells less fantasy points for MB3.

Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook and the recently released Fantasy Football Almanac 2008 which are both available at his website, www.ffguidebook.com, at all major bookstores, and at www.amazon.com. He is an 18-year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the World Championship of Fantasy Football (WCOFF) and will participate this year in the inaugural season of the Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC).

JEFFREY KAMYS

Look for some of the Cowboys stars to struggle a bit over the final four weeks they face four very good Ds: Baltimore, NYG, Pittsburgh and the Eagles. Barber will have a very tough schedule against the run and he has also been carrying a big load, more than he is used to.

Kamys is president of Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports. His company, via the web, offers player news, injury reports, cheat sheets, projections, weekly matchups, statistics, and a customized team tracker. Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports also e-mails preseason newsletters and reports throughout the season. For more info visit www.docstats.com or send email to webmaster@docstats.com.

BOB HECK

We were big fans of Marion Barber coming into the season but for starters the toe injury has us a bit concerned even though we have no doubt about his toughness. As Darren McFadden or even LaDainian Tomlinson owners know all too well, running on a bad toe is simply not a recipe for maintaining a back's level of excellency. To make matters worse, the Cowboys are about to face a brutal stretch in their schedule: at Pittsburgh, home for the Giants and home for the Ravens over the next three weeks - each of those teams rank in the top five against the rush (Pittsburgh #1, NY Giants #5 and Baltimore #3). Those are typically the playoff weeks for fantasy football but if you also play in week 17 it doesn't get a lot easier for Barber as he faces the Eagles who rank #8 against the rush. We would have been willing to saddle up with Barber without the injury as he is no slouch either, but the toe and bad schedule combined multiplies the risk. Sadly, we think Barber will struggle down the stretch.

Heck is a founding partner at Dynasty Rogues, a fantasy football website filled with football enthusiasts, run by football enthusiasts. The company provides year-round dynasty and redraft fantasy football coverage and analysis, including Dynasty Rogues Radio and the Rogues Forum. The site can be reached at www.dynastyrogues.com.

ANDY RICHARDSON

After the way things went late last year, I'm looking at some players with a lot of bad weather games, notably quarterbacks and receivers. Green Bay has two home games and plays at Chicago. The Giants are home this week and in week 16. The Bears have a three-game homestand to open December. The running backs from those teams should be fine, but I wouldn't be eager to start any of those quarterbacks in a playoff matchup.

Richardson has been a columnist and contributor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and web site for the past seven years. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections, as well as various site features. He has run the magazine's annual draft and auction leagues since their inception. His A DAY OF FOOTBALL wrap-up column appears Mondays during the NFL season. For more information go to www.fantasyindex.com.

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