Fantasy football guru Todd Prinz with another edition of Let 'em Shine or Ride the Pine:
Let'em Shine
Santana Moss: The Washington Redskins aren't known as an offensive juggernaut. They are currently 21st in rushing and 18th in passing. The Kansas City Chiefs are the cure to their ailment though. They are allowing on average 121 receiving yards and a total of 5 receiving touchdowns to opposing team's #1 wide receivers. Moss has shown he can abuse leaky secondaries. He had 74 receiving yards and a touchdown against the Bucs and 178 receiving yards and a touchdown against the Lions. The Chiefs' secondary isn't leaky. It is more like a busted pipe. Projection: 110 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Knowshon Moreno: The rookie from Georgia has solid start. Since week 2, Moreno is averaging 96 offense yards a game and 18 carries a game. Against New England last week, he had 88 yards rushing and 36 receiving yards. Moreno gets a Chargers defense that recently allowed Mendenhall to run for 165 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. San Diego's defense is allowing on average 151 rushing yards a game and a total of 6 rushing touchdowns. The Chargers defense is so bad that their general manager has publically ripped them. San Diego is probably not a fun place to work right now. Projection: 95 rushing yards, 30 receiving yards, and a touchdown.
David Garrard: The Jaguars quarterback had a disappointing week 5. He threw for 188 yards, no touchdowns, and 2 fumbles lost. Probably the key to the disappointing numbers was that wide receiver, Mike Sims-Walker, was inactive due to missing a bed check in Seattle. In the three weeks that Sims-Walker has played, Garrard has averaged 273 yards passing per game, 31 yards rushing per game, 5 total passing touchdowns, and 1 rushing touchdown. Also factor in that the Jaguars square off with the abysmal Rams this week. St. Louis is allowing on average 237 passing yards and a total of 8 passing touchdowns. Hopefully for Garrard, Sims-Walker is really sleepy on Saturday. Projection: 250 passing yards, 20 rushing yards, and 2 passing touchdowns.
Ride the Pine
Drew Brees: The Saints quarterback started the season on fire. The first two weeks, Brees averaged 334 passing yards and a total of 9 passing touchdowns. In his last two weeks, Brees averaged 181 passing yards and no touchdowns. Fortunately, his earlier production is probably more indicative of his weekly stat line than his more recent work. This probably isn't one of those weeks though. The Giants defense has grounded any air attack this season. New York is only allowing 104 passing yards per game and only 4 passing touchdowns. Their best corner, Corey Webster, is holding opposing #1 wide receivers to only 8.6 receiving yards per game and no touchdowns. They are also holding opposing #2 wide receivers to only 3.6 receiving yards a game and no touchdowns. I wouldn't advise benching Brees, but just realize this is perhaps one of his meager weeks. Projection: 210 passing yards and a passing touchdown.
LaDainian Tomlinson: LDT has been one of most productive backs in the league for quiet sometime. The last three years, he has averaged 1466 rushing yards, 469 receiving yards, and 20 touchdowns. Sadly, those numbers have declined each of those years. Tomlinson will never reach the peak that he attained in 2006, but he still can have a successful season. Unfortunately, the Broncos aren't going to allow him to flourish on Monday. Denver is 9th in run defense and only allows 81 rushing yards per game. Also factor in that Darren Sproles has stolen most of the passing targets that used to go his way. Finally, his offense line doesn't have the personnel right now. Besides McNeill and Deilman, the line is filled with question marks. With Nick Hardwick still injured, Scott Mruckowski, a career backup, has to man the center spot. Rookie right guard, Louis Vasquez, excels at pass blocking, but might never be a mauler. Right tackle, Jeromey Clary, is a solid, but still developing talent. All these elements point to Tomlinson being as productive as Shawne Merriman picking out a new hairstyle. Projection: 50 rushing yards and 15 receiving yards.
Andre Johnson: The best wide receiver in the league gets to face one of rising corners in the league, Leon Hall. The Bengals defender has held Greg Jennings and Derrick Mason to goose-eggs. He also limited Santonio Holmes to 16 receiving yards. Besides the matchup with Hall, the other concern is that Cincinnati will control the clock with the running game. Cedric Benson leads the league in rushing with 487 yards and is averaging 22 rush attempts a game. On the flipside, the Texans are giving up 140 rushing yards per game and a total of five rushing touchdowns. These factors lead to the probable scenarios of Benson frequently driving down the field and the Bengals eating up to 35 minutes of the game clock. This would definitely limit the Texans' possessions and reduce Johnson's targets. You can't sit Johnson. He is the best at his position. Last week, he emasculated three Cardinals while on his way to a second touchdown. Andre Johnson isn't just a man among boys. The guy is the man of steel. I just feel this might be a week where Superman left his cape at home. Projection: 70 receiving yards.
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