Free Agent Running Backs 2012
By Gayle Saunders
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Running Backs
OFF THE MARKET:
Ray Rice - 3/2 Franchise tagged
Matt Forte -3/2 Franchise tagged
Marshawn Lynch -3/4 Signed 4 year deal for $32 Million, $18 Million Guaranteed
Peyton Hillis -3/14 Signed 1 year deal with Kansas City Chiefs for $3 Million
Michael Bush -3/22 Signed a 4 year deal for $14 million $7 million guaranteed with Chicago Bears
Mike Tolbert -3/19 Signed 4 year deal for $10 million $2.7 million guaranteed with Carolina Panthers
BenJarvus Green-Ellis 3/21 Signed three year deal for $9 million with Cincinnati Bengals
Tashard Choice -3/24 Signed undisclosed deal with Buffalo Bills
Rock Cartwright- 3/15 Signed one year deal with San Francisco 49ers
Jason Snelling- 3/8 Signed a 3 year deal for $4million with Atlanta Falcons
Lex Hilliard -3/19 Signed a one year deal for $615,000 with Minnesota Vikings
Steve Slaton -3/19 Signe a one year deal with the Miami Dolphins
Kevin Smith -3/27 Signed a one year deal with Detroit Lions
Brandon Jacobs - 3/28 Signed one year deal worth $1.575 million up to $2 million with San Francisco 49ers.
ON THE MARKET:
Cedric Benson
Justin Forsett
Joseph Addai
Tim Hightower
Cadillac Williams
LaDainian Tomlinson
Ronnie Brown
Ryan Grant
Jackie Battle
Sammy Morris
Mewelde Moore
Maurice Morris
Earnest Graham
Chester Taylor
Kevin Faulk
Derrick Ward
Thomas Jones
Jerious Norwood
LenDale White
OTHER FREE AGENTS
QB / RB / FB /WR / TE /OL / DL /LB / CB / S /K /P
TOP RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
Fantasy Football – Week 3 Pickups
By Gayle Saunders
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QB’s
Week 3 Pickups
Josh Freeman – Buccaneers Believe it or not Freeman has been a top-10 quarterback each of the first two weeks and is also tied for sixth-best on the season, Freeman has four TDs . He’ll face the Steelers in Week 3, and then he’ll be on a bye. You might be ready to play him after that.
Kyle Orton – Denver Orton has produced for the Broncos and for fantasy owners in 2010. Orton’s targets are Eddie Royal, Demaryius Thomas, Jabar Gaffney, and Daniel Graham. There is some potential in that group, especially with Thomas back and healthy. .
Alex Smith – San Francisco Smith has some nice weapons to play with in San Francisco, which always make him worth a start depending on the opponent. Right now he’s struggled to get Crabtree in the mix…once they get their chemistry back things could get brighter.
Mark Sanchez – New York Jets Sanchez got busy in the 2nd half against the Patriots. He had 3 passing touchdowns. You have to remember that the Jets will continue run the rock with Greene and Tomlinson, which doesn’t mean huge numbers in the passing game but he has his good days ahead of him as Dustin Keller has come alive.
Bruce Gradkowski – Raiders Bruce gets the nod. either way you can expect a gutsy performance. Keep a watch on him, he could provide a spark plug for the passing game in Oakland. But don’t plan on relying on Gradkowski as your savior.
Jimmy Clausen – Carolina Clausen is a shaky start, but if you need someone to fill in he’s worth putting in. The Panthers tote the rock heavy and will rely on the run game more than Clausen’s shoulders.
Ryan Fitzpatrick – Buffalo Fitzpatrick has been named the starter in Buffalo, Its tough to see a huge upside for the Buffalo offense. But Ryan is 5-4 as a starter that is the only positive I have for you. The Bills offensive line is really suspect and their big receiving threat is Lee Evans. (I’ve been waiting years for him to produce for fantasy) No Bueno!
RB’s
Thomas Jones – Kansas City Todd Haley continues to rely heavy on the savvy vet Thomas Jones. Jamaal Charles is always a threat to steal carries or some how take his position. Charles is the more explosive option, but Thomas Jones is getting more touches case and point.
Marshawn Lynch – Buffalo Lynch got allot of love and was used heavily on Sunday, but will still has Fred Jackson and CJ Spiller to deal with going forward. He might be worth a bench spot depending on your situation and desperate need.
Donald Brown – Indianapolis Brown got a nice amount of touches on Sunday. He touched the ball 17 times against the G-men and brought in a score. Brown is def worth a bench spot on your roster.
Michael Bush – Oakland Problem is Darren McFadden has been doing his thing this season, where does that leave Michael Bush. Bush is no longer a starting option however he should steal touches from McFadden down the road.
Jason Snelling – Atlanta Snelling had a tremendous game filling in for Turner and Norwood. The Falcons will rely on the run as much as possible, Michael Turner pays the light bill, but Snelling will get his “shine on” from time to time. Turner’s groin is back to normal so they say but keep Snelling on your bench in the time being.
BenJarvus Green-Ellis – New England Patriots did have the Wutang of Running backs however, Maroney and Faulk are now gone…that’s right gone! So between Fred Taylor & Sammie Morris look for Green-Ellis to get some carries in there. Bill Belichick will rely on no feature back, which scares us all!
Mike Tolbert – Chargers if you own Ryan Mathews Tolbert should be looked at. He had a good game in his opener against the Chiefs, he had two carries for 26 yards. Mathews left with an injury and Tolbert got 95 total yards and two scores. Important fact is Tolbert got his first score while Mathews was still in the game. Looks like you can add “vulture” to Tolberts resume. He is a must-grab for any Mathews owner.
John Kuhn – Green Bay Brandon Jackson didn’t quite impress like we thought he would as a starter, Which allowed Kuhn to steal some carries. Kuhn could likely see 5-8 carries a game. Kuhn is an option if you are desperate.
Rashad Jennings – Jacksonville Maurice Jones-Drew didn’t play the whole game, which opened up a window for Jennings to get some stats. Jones-Drew will lock on to the starter position as the main feature. Jennings is worthy to hold a spot on your bench, nothing more nothing less. Maurice Jones-Drew goes down he’s your guy!
Chris Ivory /DeShawn Wynn– New Orleans
Reggie Bush is probably out up to 4-6 weeks, DeShawn Wynn or Chris Ivory will be happy to take some snaps from Thomas. Ivory is still nursing an injury so Wynn looks like he has a slight advantage. If healthy Ivory is my pick though.
WR’s
Devin Hester – Chicago Many people let Hester go after week 1, It might be time to go scoop him back up! He rebounded nicely in week 2 and is worthy of starting position, especially since Devin Aromashodu got the bench. Jay Cutler has out performed himself this season and with the numbers up as well as attempt he’s bound to get in the mix. Knox is considered thee guy in from the WR corp. If you cant get him your next best target is Hester.
Demaryius Thomas – Denver Thomas was out week 1 due to injury. He made his NFL debut last week and he had an impressive 8 grabs with 97 yards and a TD. Denver has a need for a big wide receiver, and Thomas is that guy!
Louis Murphy – Raiders With Gradkowski in the mix he could be targeted early and often. Last week Murphy had 6 catches for 91 yards and a score. He was the No. 1 receiver for the Raiders this past Sunday. Raiders next 3 opponents are Arizona, Houston and San Diego expect them to try and air it out.
Kevin Walter – Texans You cant ignore that he now has scores in both games this season. His stat line in the comeback against the Redskins were 11 receptions and 144 yards. With Owen Daniels not completely healthy they look to involve Walter a bit more.
TE’s
Dustin Keller – New York Jets In week 1 Keller was a no show stats wise. However Keller pulled in 7 receptions, 115 yards, and a touchdown PLUS 9 targets in week 2. Look for Mark Sanchez’s to favor Keller down the stretch. Even though the Jets are run heavy, Keller could still be productive.
Marcedes Lewis – Jacksonville In week 1 Lewis had 2 targets BUT they were both for touchdowns. In week 2 he pulled in 5 receptions and 70 yards with 9 targets however he did not score. If your in need grab him up now..but if you can wait make sure you keep your eye on him this week and act fast…that’s if he is still there by then.
Tony Moeaki – Kansas City Moeaki has a whopping 14 targets and a score in 2 games which has put him on the fantasy map. Look for Matt Cassel to rely on him in the passing game. The kid has upside, and could possibly be the teams second leading receiver behind Bowe
Aaron Hernandez – New England Hernandez had 6 grabs for 101 yards against the Jets, In week 1 he was targeted only twice. But for a rookie you have to admit he’s off to a good start, he has to compete with the like of Moss & Welker and fellow rookie TE Rob Gronkowski. Keep your eye on his production, It looks like Brady’s confidence is already there with the youngster.
Brandon Pettigrew – Detroit Against the Eagles Pettigrew pulled in 7 receptions and 108 yds with 8 targets. Pettigrew is definitely talented but you have to remember Tony Sheffler is still hanging around as well. Either way you look at it, he’s worthy of keeping your eye on for the next couple of weeks until he shows us that he can be consistent.
BREAKDOWN – AFC West
By Steve O’Reilly
In the Wild Wild West one thing that is constant lately is change itself. The Chargers have been the stalwarts of the Division over the last half decade with the Broncos, Raiders and Chiefs constantly changing direction. Phillip Rivers and Co’ have played exceptional football in the latter half of every season he’s been in the league, to the point that he is Undefeated during his career in the month of December. Their late season charge coupled with the Broncos trend for a late season collapse has led to the Bolts owning the AFC West. This season, the Raiders seem to be catching some attention with a new QB and some continuity from the coaches. The Chiefs proud franchise is in a rebuild and Matt Cassel heads into his second year under the Scott Pioli regime. Gone are some Pro Bowlers, entered are some young Rookie studs but it appears as though the outcome will likely remain the same! Let’s Breakdown the AFC West! Read more
Thomas Jones gets a two year deal in Kansas City
By Gayle Saunders
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The Kansas City Chiefs just strengthened their running game with the signing of Thomas Jones. The Chiefs signed the free agent running back, who was a big reason the New York Jets reached the AFC Championship.
People tend to forget that Jones was the NFL’s third-leading rusher last season. Jones had career highs of 1,402 yards and 14 touchdowns last season, a year after being selected for the Pro Bowl following a season in which he ran for 1,312 yards and 13 touchdowns. Even though Jones rushed for 1,000 or more yards for five straight seasons, the Jets cut ties with him when free agency started last Friday. The biggest concern for the Jets was paying his $3.3 million roster bonus on top of a $2.8 million base salary this season. The Jets failed to reach a compromise with Jones on restructuring his contract. The team wanted him to take a pay cut, and Jones was not interested. Last off season, Jones sat out voluntary activities while trying to renegotiate his deal, which was front-loaded over the first two seasons. He made only $900,000 in base salary last season, but didn’t let that affect his play.
The 31-year-old Jones is expected to team up with third-year running back Jamaal Charles in the backfield, who had his best season in Kansas City with 1,120 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.
Thomas Jones was a major reason the New York Jets ranked first in the league with 172.2 yards rushing per game, However he seemed to tire down the stretch as rookie Shonn Greene came alive, which allowed Greene to take more of the carries down the stretch, but Jones is confident that he can play another four or five seasons because of the unbeleivable shape he keeps himself in.
He was drafted seventh overall in 2000 by the Arizona Cardinals and then was traded to Tampa Bay in 2003, went to Chicago the following year as a free agent and was traded to the Jets in 2007. Jones also ranks second only toLaDainian Tomlinson, who is also a free agent, in yards rushing since 2005. Jones ranks 28th on the career list with 9,217 yards, 190 behind Earl Campbell.
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