As we all know by now, Shaun Alexander suffered a broken foot Sunday and is out indefinitely. Alexander is now the latest victim of the Madden video game cover jinx. Kudos to all the owners with the first and second picks in the draft that choose Larry Johnson and LaDainian Tomlinson and stayed away from Alexander for this very reason.
Many owners have rushed to the waiver wire to pick up Maurice Morris. I think they?ll need to look elsewhere for a starting running back this week for two reasons. One, Morris doesn?t have a favorable match-up. The Seahawks play at Chicago Sunday night. And two, he only had 47 yards on 20 carries against the Giants last weekend. Those are some pretty disappointing fantasy numbers. So go ahead and take Morris, but I wouldn?t start him this week.
Recommended Stories
Can you believe it? Rex Grossman is turning into a pretty good fantasy quarterback. On Sunday, he completed 23 passes for 278 yards and one touchdown. So if you are having quarterback issues, Grossman might not be a bad option.
Another quarterback who?s looking pretty good is Jon Kitna. On Sunday against the Packers, he threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns. He has the chance for a good game this week when he faces the Rams, Detroit offensive coordinator Mike Martz?s former team. Look for Martz to give Kitna plenty of passing attempts as he tries to beat the team that ran him out of town.
Keep an eye on Kurt Warner and Matt Leinart in Arizona. It looks like Warner will remain the starter for now, but he won?t be there for long if he continues to fumble and throw the ball away. All Warner owners may want to take their insurance policy out now and pick up Leinart if he is still available. He?ll probably run the offense much better than Warner has. Very disappointing for me because I thought Warner would take advantage of all the talent around him and have an excellent fantasy season.
Here?s my fantasy advice for week four:
Give them the ball
» Larry Johnson: Look for LJ to return to his 2005 form as the Chiefs face the 49ers. LJ will break the century mark and cross the goal line for the first time this season.
» Randy Moss: This is the week Moss and the Raiders break out of their funk and post some excellent numbers as they face the hapless Browns. Rumor has it Moss prefers Andrew Walter?s deep ball to Aaron Brooks?.
» Steve Smith: He looked good in Week 3 against the Bucs; he should look better at home against the Saints.
» Marc Bulger: The Rams-Lions game could be a shootout. Look for Bulger to go for 300 and at least two touchdowns.
Show them the pine
» Mark Brunell: His 22 straight completions against the Texans won?t happen against the Jaguars.
» Darrell Jackson: No Shaun Alexander plus the Bears? defense equals a bad week for Jackson.
» Willis McGahee: The Vikings? defense will slow McGahee and his counterparts.
» Deuce McAllister: The Panthers? defense will shut down McAllister and the Saints.
Good luck in Week 4 … and keep in mind, I?m only an accountant.
Ryan Wilson is the controller for the Baltimore Examiner. You can reach him at [email protected].
