Matt Leinart out, Derek Anderson in?

Matt Leinart's out in Arizona. Derek Anderson's in.

At least that's the early indication from Cardinals camp, with reports surfacing that Leinart is on the trading block after failing to grab the starting QB job.

Leinart wasn't a very intriguing fantasy prospect this year thanks to some poor showings in preseason action and an ongoing clash with head coach Ken Whisenhunt. The former USC party guy has had multiple chances to prove he's the Cardinals' answer at QB but failed. Leinart's only fantasy appeal came from the fact he'd be throwing to All-Pro talent Larry Fitzgerald and a few other solid receivers in Arizona. But with Leinart on the trading block - and facing the possibility of being cut by Saturday - it's looking like he'll end up riding the pine somewhere else to start 2010.

That leads us to the Cardinals' next best option at QB, Anderson, a man last seen getting run out of town in Cleveland. Think about that for a second. CLEVELAND didn't want him! That's how bad Anderson was last year (3 TDs, 10 INTs, 42.1 QB rating) and in 2008 (9 TDs, 8 INTs, 66.5 rating). But it's easy to forget DA had an improbable Pro Bowl season in 2008 with the Browns, when he threw for more than 3,700 yards and 29 TDs with 19 INTs. He also helped WR Braylon Edwards join him on the AFC Pro Bowl squad and led Cleveland to a 10-6 record.

Alright, so he's no Bernie Kosar. Derek Anderson isn't even Ken Anderson. But maybe DA still has a few tricks up his sleeve and could come close to reproducing those '07 stats. Having Fitzgerald, Steve Breaston, Early Doucet, Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells around him will help. Do I think you need to run out and add Anderson to your team? Not so fast. The situation in Arizona is still too volatile. But Anderson's somebody to keep tabs on and possibly consider at the first sign of trouble if you're in the market for a fantasy No. 2.

A Bold move by Baltimore

The Baltimore Ravens pride themselves on being a tough, physical bunch.

They've also lacked a playmaking wide receiver for what seems like a decade.

That's why their trade for WR Anquan Boldin makes a whole lot of sense.

Boldin is one tough cookie (see video - he had to have his jaw wired shut after that hit but was back on the field in 4 weeks) and a tremendous playmaker, evidenced by his five 1,000-yard seasons in his seven-year pro career.

The move to the Ravens from Arizona's wide-open offensive attack won't change Boldin's fantasy value much - he's still a dependable No. 2 WR. But his change of address - along with Baltimore's signing of deep threat/manslaughterer Donte' Stallworth - makes Joe Flacco a legit fantasy QB.

As for Arizona, there's probably more double-coverages headed Larry Fitzgerald's way and a potential for former No. 3 WR Steve Breaston to step up - assuming they can find someone to play quarterback.

Sit 'Em: Week 15

- RB MATT FORTE at Baltimore: Even if you've somehow managed to limp into the playoffs with Forte as one of your two starting RBs, you know that outside of a handful of games against the league's worst teams, he's been nothing more than average. And he'll be just average against a Ravens D that hasn't allowed a 100-yard rusher since Week 9. If you have a better alternative, bench the Bear.

- RB LeSEAN McCOY vs. San Francisco: Instead of being the second coming of Brian Westbrook, Shady has been darn near worthless the past few weeks. Besides, FB Leonard Weaver has been the bigger playmaker and gets the carries at the goal line for the Eagles. Don't expect much from McCoy against the league's fifth-ranked run defense.

- WR PERCY HARVIN at Carolina: The rookie sat out last week with migranes, and the trend (thankfully) in the NFL this year has been to be cautious with these kinds of ailments. Harvin was limited in practice Friday, and while the odds seem to favor him playing, he could end up a late scratch. With the Vikings playing the Sunday night game, that could wreck your plans this playoff weekend. Are you willing to take that risk?


LAST WEEK'S PICKS

- Beanie Wells surprised everybody with 15 carries for 79 yards and a TD, maybe surpassing Tim Hightower on the depth chart in the process.

- Steve Breaston had another 1-catch game. Warned you.

- Santana Moss had 4 catches for 58 yardszzzzzzzzz.

Sit 'Em: Week 14

- RB BEANIE WELLS at San Francisco: The rookie's had a rough two weeks - he hasn't reached 30 yards on the ground in the past two games - and the Niners own a top-5 rush defense. Beanie's benched this week (but I'm licking my chops over the next two matchups with Detroit and St. Louis).

- WR STEVE BREASTON at San Francisco: I just can't trust him after last week's 1-catch disaster. He's always been worth a look as a flex player when he's hot, but he's ice cold right now.

- WR SANTANA MOSS at Oakland: He hasn't given us much to get excited about this year (only 1 game with more than 75 receiving yards), and he'll likely be blanketed by Pro Bowl corner Nnamdi Asomugha on Sunday. No thanks.


LAST WEEK'S PICKS

- Not only did Kurt Warner suit up despite recent concussion troubles, but he aired it out for 285 yards and 3 TDs in the Cardinals' surprising thrashing of the previously once-beaten Vikings. Couldn't have been more wrong.

- Brandon Jacobs was bottled up for 39 rushing yards on 13 carries as I expected. Only problem is he ran for a TD and scored another on a 74-yard catch on a screen pass nobody - including the Cowboys defense - expected. Wrong again.

- Willis McGahee vultured another TD to complete a trifecta of wrongness. He also had 4 carries for -4 yards.

Start 'Em: Week 8

-RB LaDAINIAN TOMLINSON vs. Oakland: LT2's looked like a shell of his former self as many (including yours truly) predicted in the preseason. He can't seem to get the tough yards anymore and hasn't cracked 71 in a game yet. Some of that has to do with his offensive line, of course, but here's betting they can get things going against an imploding Raiders team and Tomlinson busts through for at least a TD and his best rushing output to date in 2009.

-TE JEREMY SHOCKEY vs. Atlanta: The Shockster has caught at least 4 passes in every game so far and is coming off his best game, yardage-wise (105) so far this year. Now he faces a Falcons D that's been victimized by Jason Witten (5 for 53), Greg Olsen (5 for 57, TD), Vernon Davis (5 for 51), Chris Baker (2 for 42, TD) and Dante Rosario (3 for 31, TD) this year.

-QB DAVID GARRARD at Tennessee: Garrard had his best game of the season in Week 4 against the Titans (323 yards, 3 TDs), and Jeff Fisher's defense has yet to show any ability to stop an aerial attack.


LAST WEEK'S PICKS

- Frank Gore ran for a pitiful 32 yards on 13 carries against the Texans in his first game back from injury. Huge disappointment.

- Donald Brown was on his way to a great day (2 carries for 58 yards) in a rout of the Rams before hurting his shoulder. Tough break.

- Steve Breaston was another huge letdown (1 catch for 23 yards). Anquan Boldin did end up suiting up against the Giants and hauled in 3 passes for 75 yards, which hurt Breaston's production a bit, but it's still no excuse.

Photo by The Associated Press

Start 'Em: Week 7

- RB FRANK GORE at Houston: We've missed Frankie a lot - remember the 207 yards and 2 TDs he dropped on the Seahawks in Week 2? Well, he's now back from an ankle injury and ready to roll over the Texans. Don't hesitate to use him, espeically on this six-team bye week.

- RB DONALD BROWN at St. Louis: The Colts rookie has averaged 10 total touches a game this season. That should be enough work to do some damage against the Rams' 30th-ranked defense.

- WR STEVE BREASTON at N.Y. Giants: Breaston's always a decent flex option because he gets at least 4-5 targets a game in the Cardinals' pass-first offense. This week he could be more than that with No. 2 wideout Anquan Boldin nursing a high ankle sprain and the Giants' secondary still reeling from last week's spanking by the Saints.


LAST WEEK'S PICKS

- Thomas Jones rumbled for 220 yards on 22 carries (a Jets single-season rushing record) and a TD against the Bills. Patting myself on the back for that one.

- Jonathan Stewart had his best game of the season (17 carries, 110 yards, TD) against the Bucs, and now he faces the aforementioned Bills D. Play on, playa.

- Jermichael Finley had an OK showing against Detroit (5 catches, 54 yards) and should be at least decent again this week vs. Cleveland.

Breaking down a fantasy trade

First trade of the season:

I give up:

WR DeSean Jackson
RB Donald Brown

I get back:

WR Steve Breaston
RB Ray Rice

I like both of the guys I'm giving up. The deal was prompted by my trade partner, who's a big Eagles fan and wants a Philly player (Jackson) on his team. Jackson's my third WR behind Greg Jennings and Roy Williams (I also have Ted Ginn Jr. and Hakeem Nicks). Breaston would be a downgrade from Jackson obviously, but I feel I'm upgrading by replacing the rookie Brown with Rice, a guy I look and who I was targeteting in the draft.

I'm a little thin at WR overall but now I'm stacked at RB (Michael Turner, Marion Barber, LenDale White, Rashard Mendenhall, James Davis, plus Rice). And in this league's format I can start three RBs in a week if I choose, with Rice perhaps being a better every-week fit than White in that flex spot.

Thoughts?

Leave your fantasy prejudices behind

There’s no room for bias or prejudice in fantasy sports.

As much as I personally loathe the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, Terrell Owens and Brian Westbrook have been very, very good to my fantasy teams over the years. And as loyal as I am to the New York Giants as a third-generation fan, I realize Eli Manning isn’t always the wisest fantasy choice (although he’s been pretty good so far for the 8-1 G-Men).

Biases and prejudices in fantasy don’t just extend to your favorite football team and its rivals. Sometimes we hold onto unfair opinions about individual players and teams, even when they run contrary to the facts.

Case in point: Kurt Warner. The knock on him for years is that he’s old, injury prone, fumble prone, and his best years were a product of Mike Martz’s system in St. Louis. Maybe there’s some truth to that, and that’s why Warner was passed over on draft day for a multitude of other quarterbacks, including teammate Matt Leinart, who is younger and more party prone.





But if you’ve seen Warner’s Arizona Cardinals play this year or checked the stat sheet, you’d see they are fourth in the league in pass attempts a game (342) but 20th in sacks allowed (16), a formula that has allowed Warner to stay upright, utilize his talented receiving corps and put together an MVP-caliber performance.



Letting go of your preconceived notions and trusting Warner as your every-week starter would be a wise move. And while you’re at it, here are some other old prejudices that need to be erased:

g Any QB would look good throwing the ball to Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald.

Still not sold on Warner, huh? Having Boldin and Fitzgerald certainly helps, but he’s also made third receiver Steve Breaston (seven catches, 121 yards last week) a legit fantasy pickup and fourth receiver Jerheme Urban (18 catches, two TDs in his past six games) a deep sleeper. So there.

g The Atlanta Falcons stink.

That was the consensus entering this season, and it scared most of us away from anyone wearing black and red other than tailback Michael Turner. But while Turner’s been a stud, Matt Ryan and Roddy White have blossomed into one of the league’s deadliest pass-catch combos in Ryan’s rookie season. All three of those guys are must-starts at this point, particularly against the woeful Denver Broncos defense this week. Even backup running back Jerious Norwood (105 total yards, TD last week) is capable of busting a big play or two.

g The Kansas City Chiefs stink.

OK, maybe this one’s true. But that doesn’t mean quarterback Tyler Thigpen isn’t worth your time. Thigpen, who started the year as KC’s third quarterback, is coming off a three-TD performance against the San Diego Chargers and now faces a New Orleans Saints defense that’s susceptible to the pass. Thigpen has spread the ball around the Tony Gonzalez, Dwayne Bowe and Mark Bradley, plus he’ll have the services of Larry Johnson this week to help take the pressure off through the running game.