Defensive Notes
We can all agree Bill Belichick’s Patriots are a bunch of cheaters. Roger Goodell says so, and his word is law in the NFL. What’s more debatable these days is whether New England – not Chicago, not Baltimore – deserves to be called the No. 1 fantasy defense. Maybe they do.
The Patriots, for example, are No. 4 in sacks, and the three teams ahead of them have faced, collectively, sack-prone guys like Charlie Frye, J.P. Losman, Jon Kitna, Vince Young, and Joey Harrington (twice). New England has scored defensive or special teams touchdowns in each game, and would have one more had Adalius Thomas not dropped an easy interception against Chad Pennington.
Consider also that while the Bears and Ravens theoretically play in weaker divisions, the other teams in those teams’ North divisions are a combined 9-3 thus far. The AFC East’s other three teams, in contrast, are a dismal 0-6. New England still gets five games against those currently winless franchises. That’s only part of the equation in giving the Patriots a seemingly favorable schedule: Somehow, in the key fantasy weeks of 14-16, the NFL decided to give the Patriots three consecutive home games against the Steelers, Jets and Dolphins. The first of those occurs on December 9th; winter weather in Massachusetts could be a factor.
The Patriots’ schedule isn’t all fun and games, of course, with matchups at Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Dallas yet to come. And we don’t have the guts to move the team ahead of the Bears in our ranking; thank Devin Hester for that. Still, if you’re the kind of owner who likes to look ahead to the playoffs, a straight-up deal of Chicago for New England isn’t as criminal as you might think.
Other Notes
We jumped the gun in presuming Ray Lewis had suffered a serious arm injury in week 1; he zips back into our IDP rankings this week. Not so fortunate is Ravens teammate Trevor Pryce, who broke a wrist in week 2. He falls, and the defensive projections for this increasingly banged-up group follow suit.
Atlanta quarterback Joey Harrington has taken 13 sacks through just two games. Needless to say, whoever faces the Falcons (Carolina, Houston and Tennessee the next three weeks) will receive favorable placement in our weekly projections for the foreseeable future.
Cincinnati: As good as they were in week 1 (6 turnovers and a defensive TD), or bad as they were in week 2 (51 points to the Derek Anderson-led Browns)? Let’s call them somewhere in the middle, and say you probably want no part of them against Seattle and New England the next two weeks – but may be able to start your week 1 waiver pickup again after their week 5 bye, with Kansas City and the Jets on tap in weeks 6-7.
How good might the Green Bay defense turn out to be? We’ll stick with our top-10 projections, especially when you consider that their first two games against the Eagles and Giants featured – on paper – two of the best offenses they’ll see in the first half of the season. After hosting the likely ticked-off Chargers this week, the Packers get a string of games against the Vikings, Bears and Washington; have a tough matchup in Denver; but then play Kansas City, the Vikings again and Carolina.
Looks like Tampa Bay’s Barrett Ruud will do OK as the starter at middle linebacker. Through two games he leads the NFL in tackles and has forced two fumbles. Jeremiah Trotter, who the team seemingly signed as insurance, hasn’t been active the first two games.
- Andy Richardson
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