Breaking down the Bucs' backfield

There was a lot of preseason discussion about how the Bucs would divy up the carries among their running backs. New coach Raheem Morris eventually announced he'd be primarily using a "2-2-1" rotation, giving Cadillac Williams (remember him?) the first two series, free-agent signee Derrick Ward the next two and then holdover Earnest Graham a series.

That's more or less how it played out Sunday against Dallas. Cadillac was the most effective runner (13 carries, 97 yards, TD) and is looking about as good as he ever has after years of injuries. Caddy alternated with Ward (12 carries, 62 yards, TD), the popular pick among fantasy drafters. But surprisingly, Earnest Graham was a non-factor (1 carry, 1 yard). In fact, he didn't even want the ball when his coach offered to get him in the game. Unselfish, or just strange? I'll let you be the judge.

Cadillac has to be picked up off the waiver wire this week, even though there's a decent chance his weary legs won't last 16 games. I stil believe Ward will end up being the most valuable Bucs running back by season's end. And Graham obviously belongs on your bench until further notice.

Three teams I'm trying to avoid

Call me crazy, but an NFL team firing its offensive coordinator less than two weeks before the start of the regular season usually isn't a formula for offensive excellence. That's why I'm trying to avoid most players from these three franchises:

CHIEFS

Of all three of these revamped/reworked/rebuilt offenses I'm talking about, the Chiefs were perhaps the most intriguing. Even though now-departed Chan Gailey was a holdover from the previous (unsuccessful) coaching regime, new K.C. head man Todd Haley is the mastermind behind the Cardinals' electrifying offense from a year ago. The firing of Gailey might not make a huge difference, but there were already warning signs about this offense: the poor offensive line play of the past few years, the decline of Larry Johnson and his various issues, the departure of Tony Gonzalez and the preseason injury suffered by new QB Matt Cassel. The combination of all red flags makes K.C.'s playmakers a little less desirable than they seemed during the offseason. WR Dwayne Bowe and Cassel should probably drop out of the preseason top 10 at their respective positions, and I don't trust LJ as anything more than a No. 3 RB at best. Still like Jamaal Charles as a deep sleeper though.

BUCS

The firing of OC Jeff Jagodzinski kind of came out of left field. Remember when the guy was a big NFL head coaching prospect? Well whatever, I guess being faced with the prospect of Byron Leftwich or Luke McCown as his starting QB, he was probably set up to fail anyway. McCown was traded to Jacksonville over the weekend, and Leftwich is officially the Bucs' Week 1 starter now, which shouldn't excite you much. It doesn't bode well for Antonio Bryant or Kellen Winslow either, so bump them down a peg from wherever they would be with a better QB at the helm. The Bucs do have a promising offensive line and should be able to to run the ball; the problem is they have three decent RBs to share the load, which means you have to be a bit skeptical of Derrick Ward, Earnest Graham and Cadillac Williams until we see their roles.

BILLS

Buffalo's Turk Schonert is another assistant coach who never even got to start the season in his new position. He's blasting head coach Dick Jauron because the offensive playcalling "wasn't simple enough." A little imagination might not hurt after the Bills have been so ineffective on offense the past few years. Terrell Owens certainly livens things up a bit, but I'm proceeding with caution and treating him like a No. 2 fantasy receiver. Trent Edwards is no Tony Romo (or Donovan McNabb or Jeff Garcia) at this point and has a long way to go before he's anything more than a low-end fantasy backup. Lee Evans is tantalizing as always but seems perpetually bound to disappoint no matter what you expect out of him. And it's tough to take a chance on either Marshawn Lynch or Fred Jackson when you know there will be a major shakeup in their roles once Lynch serves his season-opening four-game suspension.

Cadillac rides again

The Cadillac is back!

Cadillac Williams, who starred at Auburn and burst onto the NFL scene with a 1,000-yard, six-touchdown rookie season in 2005, was activated from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' physically unable to perform list and practiced Wednesday.

As big of a fantasy stud Williams was in '05, he was that much of a dud the following year, when his yardaged total plunged to 798 yards and scored just one time. Then came a fateful 2007 season, when Caddy sustained a career-threatening knee injury just four games in. But he's worked his way back and is now in the mix in the Bucs' backfield after they waived Michael Bennett. With Earnest Graham (knee) and Warrick Dunn (back) both dealing with injuries of their own, Williams may eventually get a shot to show he's got something left.

I'm skeptical, and you should be too, but the situation bears monitoring in the weeks ahead. Caddy's still got young legs and a lot of talent, and is perhaps better suited than any of the guys on the Bucs' roster to serve as a feature back. If you have a spot to spare for a fourth or fifth running back, it might pay off with a big week or two down the stretch from Williams.

All-Dolphins lineup? Why not?

If you’ve been tinkering with the idea of starting an all-Miami Dolphins lineup, this might be the week to do it.

Normally this would sound a little crazy, unless we were talking about the Dan Marino-Mark Clayton-Mark Duper days of the mid-1980s, in which case it’d be totally radical.
But seriously, submitting a fantasy lineup of QB Chad Pennington, WRs Ted Ginn Jr. and Greg Camarillo and RBs Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams this week might not be such a wacky idea.

That’s because the Fish are facing the Denver Broncos, who hold the distinction of being one of only two NFL teams (along with the Detroit Lions) ranked in the league’s bottom five in both passing defense and rushing defense.

Discombobulated Denver is 28th against the pass (240 yards a game, 12 TDs allowed) and 30th against the run (154 yards a game, nine TDs). They’ve been responsible for some of the biggest individual efforts we’ve seen this season – Drew Brees’ 421 passing yards in Week 3; Larry Johnson’s 198 rushing yards in Week 4; Sammy Morris’ 138 rushing yards in the first half alone last week.

The Broncos are coming off a bye, so surely they spent some of that time rewriting the defensive playbook. But it’s still not a bad idea to dive in with at least some of the Dolphins this week for their favorable matchup in South Florida.

Miami’s offense is clicking right now, with Pennington (314 yards, TD) and Ginn (seven catches, 175 yards) each coming off their best outing while wearing aqua and orange. Brown has had some big weeks running in the Dolphins’ trendy “Wildcat” offense this year (519 total yards, seven TDs). And Camarillo and Williams, usually bit players, are certainly worth consideration this week as bye-week fillers.

The point is this: Never discount the matchup when assembling your lineup. Familiarize yourself with the NFL’s weakest Ds – not by reputation, but statistically – and use that information to your advantage. For instance:

g The Indianapolis Colts are atrocious against the run; New England Patriots no-names Kevin Faulk and BenJarvus Green-Ellis are fantasy-worthy this week.

g The Kansas City Chiefs are equally allergic to playing run defense; Earnest Graham, it’s your time to shine.

g The Seattle Seahawks secondary has struggled; Donovan McNabb, Kevin Curtis, DeSean Jackson and crew could have big days Sunday.

g The Detroit Lions are inept in all areas of defense; Kyle Orton and Matt Forte will prove it.