Fantasy Football Mid-season Awards Part 1 of 3

We find ourselves here again; 8 weeks into the fantasy football season. You are either ecstatic about your squad or wishing you hadn’t taken Derek Ward in the 4th round and Lendale White in the 5th. You are either in playoff contention or you’re getting blown-out on a regular basis and researching prospects for next season.

I find myself in playoff contention mostly because of week-by-week pick ups from the waiver wire and sheer luck (what’s up Miles Austin in week 5 and the 49ers Defense/ST in week 4!).

But I digress. Here are the top performers for each fantasy position thus far in the season. Pay attention, you may learn a thing or two.

Best Fantasy Quarterback – Aaron Rodgers

Suck it, Brett Favre. You may have more wins, but Rodgers has more yards and less interceptions. Oh yea, and he doesn’t get to hand the ball to Adrien Peterson. You disgust me, Wrangler Jeans-boy.

Personal nonsense aside, Rodgers has cemented himself  in the top tier of fantasy quarterbacks this season. If he had the kind of weapons that Brady, Manning, or Brees have (or even a decent offensive line), he’d be crazy dangerous.

Season stats – 1989 passing yards, 14 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 1 rushing touchdown

runners-up: Matt Schaub, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees

Best Fantasy Running Back – Maurice Jones-Drew

I miss you MoJo! I had to part ways with this fantasy stud in order to secure depth at wide receiver and I just hated watching him break off two 79+ yard touchdown runs in the same game. He can do it all; run between the tackles, sweeps, draws, counters, catch a pass on the flat and even block.

In his first year as the feature back on the Jaguars Jones-Drew has earned his stellar pre-season ranking. It definitely helps to play in a division with some of the poorest run defenses in the league, too.

Season stats – 640 rushing yards, 10 rushing touchdowns, 27 receptions, 161 receiving yards

runners up – Adrian Peterson, Cedric Benson, Ray Rice, Chris Johnson

Best Fantasy Wide Receiver – Reggie Wayne

There is no one happier that Peyton is healthy this season than Reggie Wayne.  Wayne is second in receptions, second in receiving yards, and tied for first in receiving touchdowns. Every week he pulls in another catch that makes you say “holy shit, did you see that?”

When Anthony Gonzalez went down, I figured Wayne would not be able to get enough room to roam in the secondary with no other deep threats. Enter Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie. With Dallas Clark making moves in the middle of the field and these two rising stars pulling coverage away, Wayne has been given more room than he should to do major damage.

Season stats – 51 receptions, 689 receiving yards, 6 receiving touchdowns

runners up – Andre Johnson, Steve Smith (NYG), Vincent Jackson, Larry Fitzgerald

Best Fantasy Tight End – Dallas Clark

What’s that? Two Colts? That’s what a healthy Peyton Manning can do for his team. No need to get into details about how the Colts offense has been able to get these guys open, although I could talk all day about my boy Donnie Brown, but Clark is an integral part of this offense. Without him moving the chains, the Colts would probably just be an average.

Season stats – 46 receptions, 584 receiving yards, 3 touchdowns

runners up – Owen Daniels, Antonio Gates, Brent Celek, Heath Miller

Best Fantasy Defense/Special  Teams – The Eagles

The Phillies are going to lose the World Series, but this Philly team can play defense. They are the only squad with more than 20 sacks and more than 10 interceptions. They may not get into the endzone as much as the Saints do, but they give up less points and pressure the ball more. The Eagles are second in the league in sacks, third in interceptions, and tied for seventh in fumble recoveries.

Season stats – 23 sacks, 14 interceptions, 7 fumble recoveries, 3 defensive touchdowns, 1 return touchdown

runners up – Saints, Vikings, Bills

Rudy Gay – Tweet of the Week

This will be a short post. In fact, I am posting it simply on impulse. This is a Tweet conversation between Jeff Green of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Rudy Gay of the Memphis Grizzlies.

jeff_green22 @rudygay22 GO HOYAS!!!

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rudygay22 @jeff_green22 what are the HOYAS?

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jeff_green22 @rudygay22 WATCH YOUR MOUTH YOUNG MAN…YOU KNOW WHAT THEY ARE AND WHO THEY ARE SUCKA MAN

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In case do not live anywhere near Storrs, Conn. or Washington, D.C. (or anywhere in between, for that matter), Green went to Georgetown and Gay went to the best school in the country, UConn. They are, and will always be, Big East basketball rivals.

You don’t just leave college behind when you go to the NBA. Michael Jordan used to wear his UNC basketball shorts under his Chicago Bulls shorts for every game. Your university becomes a part of you, and you must show pride in it at all times. This argu-Tweet goes to show that even after leaving school and making millions of dollars in the NBA, these athletes still know their roots and will continue to show their college colors.

Never graduate.

For sticking it to Jeff Green and to the Georgetown faithful, Rudy Gay receives the A.Martin Sports’ “Tweet of the Week”.

Mr. Durant, I Hardly Knew Yee

I didn’t like Kevin Durant in college. I thought he was too small, too lanky, and too raw. I thought his game was great for college competition but was unpolished and would not translate to the NBA. I also thought he was arrogant. Today, I am willing to admit I was wrong on all accounts.

His game has gotten much better; and much more quickly than I could have imagined. He can cut to the basket, hit a mid-range jump shot, drive the lane, and hit the open guy with a pass. He is leading a very young and very talented Oklahoma City Thunder team into the 2009-2010 season with a lot of confidence. He is also very friendly and open to his fans (via Twitter).

The other day he had a “Q&A” session through his Tweets. Fans sent him a message and he would post his reply. I have no idea how many questions were sent to him or how many he was able to answer, but my feed was polluted with Kevin Durant trivia.

Fans asked him things like: what’s the weirdest thing someone asked you to autograph? (a baseball); what has been your best NBA moment? (a game-winning shot against the Atlanta Hawks his rookie season); who is your favorite rapper? (Jay-Z and Lil’ Wayne); what is your shoe size? (18); what position did you play in high school? (center); and when the Thunder make the playoffs, can you hook me up with three tickets? (of course).

I thought this was amazing. I got to know things about Kevin that I may have never been able to find out. News articles and interviews on television only go so far. Most athletes are so image-conscious that they never open up fully to the media. Twitter has allowed the athletes themselves to control the information the public receives. We, the fans, benefit from that more than anyone. Then I read this question and answer:

KevinDurant35 RT @AdotGdot @KevinDurant35 What other schools were you thinking about going to other than Texas?!? ….UCONN and UNC..glad I picked Texas!!

YOU WERE GONNA COME TO UCONN?!?!??!? HOLY SHIT!

Kevin would have been here my freshman year, when the Huskies were transitioning from that terrible George Mason loss in the Elite 8. He would have been here the one year we didn’t even make the God-forsaken NIT. He would have been on the court with A.J. Price, Craig Austrie, a raw and lanky Hasheem Thabeet, and Jeff “I’ll eat your children at half-time while smiling” Adrien. What a line-up that would have been!!! We wouldn’t have needed to put Dougie “No Brakes or Steering” Wiggins in the game at all. And, we could have brought along Jerome Dyson and Stanley Robinson slowly and develop their game so that they reach their immense potential.

You would have walked down the same streets as I do, ate in the same dining hall, “attended” the same classes, chased the same women. We would have been at the same parties, laughed at the same jokes, chant the same chants. We would have become best friends. But no, you went to Texas.

Could you at least send me some autographed merchandise or something?!?!?!

Tweet of the Week – Marcus Williams

I have to be honest – most of the stuff that comes out of Marcus Williams’ Twitter account is nonsense; illiterate, ignorant, ridiculous nonsense. Take these for example:

“A chick ever sent u a pic of herself and her room was dirty but u ezpass it cuz she look good? Hehehe”

or

“Do baseball players have groupies? I wouldn’t know who the 1st basemen from the dodgers was if he walked right in front of me”

or

“Lmao if u remotely fart by someone’s face, it can get very funny if ur just a witness…”

or

“I HATE ppl that follow me and don’t reply to nothin. Its quite creepy, cuz u just in the cut being nosey. Like u in the bushes nearby”

or

“I have the most retweetable tweets”

You see my point. I mean, is a “verified account”even necessary for him? Recently, however, he had a half-coherent thought and decided to Tweet it. He didn’t attribute the information, nor elaborate on it, but I do believe in its validity.

mw1ll Yo, twitter officially gets news faster than CNN!

This is something we’ve talked about all semester in class: how social media platforms are the new newspapers. People hear about something and instantly its on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc. etc. and it spreads across the web. I’m not sure what Marcus means by “officially” but I can see what he means. And if he can get it, mainstream media outlets should definitely be able to get it.

For making a valid point on your Twitter account, proving to me you’re not an idiot 24/7, and showing the effects of social media on the news business, Marcus Williams receives this week’s A.Martin Sports’ “Tweet of the Week.”

Tweet of the Week – Larry Fitzgerald

Larry Fitzgerald is an elite wide receiver in the NFL and is one of the most active Twitter-ers in all of sports. He tweets several times a day – comments on football practice, inspirational words or quotes, and feedback to fans that tweet him. I like to read his updates almost as much as I like to watch him terrorize his opponent’s secondary, but one of his tweets this past week really grabbed my attention and motivated me to act.

Lfitzgerald11 – Support Breast Cancer Awareness, add a #twibbon to your avatar now! – http://bit.ly/WGcGz

The “twibbon” Larry is advocating for is a pink breast cancer ribbon that appears in the lower left hand corner of your Twitter Avatar. It shows up whenever you tweet and shows your followers that you support breast cancer survivors, victims and/or research. Twibbons can be used to show a variety of different things on your avatar- from your favorite baseball team to your favorite brand of coffee.

The NFL, along with other professional sport leagues, have designated days to show support for breast cancer research. In baseball, players wear pink gloves and use pink bats. In basketball, a pink ribbon is painted on the court for the game. In football, players wear pink cleats and coaches wear pink hats.

Tom Brady and his pink cleats

If you have a Twitter account and would like to add the breast cancer awareness Twibbon you can visit this site – http://twibbon.com/join/Breast-Cancer-Awareness-4 .

Breast cancer research has come a long way and with the help of social media and big name advocates it can go a lot further. For supporting breast cancer research on and off the field (and on social media), Larry Fitzgerald is honored with A.Martin Sports’ “Tweet of the Week.”

Tweet of the Week – Marlon Williams

Mike Leach

Texas Tech head football coach does not understand social media. More specifically, he does not understand the purpose and importance of Twitter.

Mike Leach has banned all of his football players from using the social media platform Twitter after he was called out by one of his linebackers, Marlon Williams, for being late to a meeting.

According to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Williams asked on his Twitter account why he was still in a meeting room when “the head coach can’t even be on time.” That tweet has been deleted and his page no longer exists, according to an article by ESPN.

Not only has he banned Twitter use for his team, Leach has pretty much made a mockery of the entire Twitter population, calling them “narcissists.” He added that if his players didn’t get enough attention already, he would be willing to put mirrors in their lockers.

Leach should take a page out of USC head football coach Pete Carroll’s book and embrace Twitter. Carroll tweets multiple times a day about a wide variety of things; from where he’s going to eat, to what he’s watching on television, to boasting about his former players’ success in the NFL. But an event that happened in the past week has shown how different his view about Twitter is to Leach’s.

Pete Carroll

After his running back Stafon Johnson had a freak weight-lifting accident that required emergency throat surgery, Carroll encouraged Johnson to create a Twitter account to interact with fans who want to give him their support and prayers during his recovery. Johnson joined Twitter on September 30 and at the time of this publishing, he had over 7,000 followers.

One coach not only bans all his players from using it but makes fun of the use Twitter whereas another not only uses it but has encouraged one of his players to use the site to connect with fans.

So, are Twitter users narcissists? Absolutely not. Leach is delusional and uniformed. For exposing one  man’s ignorance and arrogance about Twitter, Marlon Williams receives the A.Martin Sports “Tweet of the Week.”

Marlon Williams

Tweet of the Week – Lance Armstrong

The second ever A.Martin Sports’ “Tweet of the Week” comes from Tour de France living legend and cancer-survivor Lance Armstrong. Much respect is due to him for those two facts alone. He is a man among boys, a true American hero, and an inspiration to millions. Aside from all that, a tweet of his this past week has showed me what being a man is all about; on the internet.

lancearmstrong – Dudes shouldn’t ever type “:-)” or any version of it. Fellas, can we make that deal right now ? 5:48 PM Sep 23rd from UberTwitter

Frank Spinelli

Wow! Way to make a stand on a very controversial topic in social media. Armstrong, infamous for technically only being “half” a man (no disrespect intended), has called out the rest of his gender for using the smiling emoticon when chatting on the internet.

What does this all mean? Well, to most guys, absolutely nothing. However, to some guys, like my friend Frank Spinelli, this new “guy code” will shake up their internet world! Spinelli was trying to start a revolution of smiling emoticon use among men, but this blunt position by Armstrong has slammed the door shut on said revolution.

Posting something like “No but really tho. I apologize for the vulgar lingo on ur facebook page. I love u. blood. I love u too. the rest of the league. I love u too ” (actual quote) to one’s fantasy football board is no longer acceptable for “dudes”.

Even subtle uses like “hehe ” (actual quote) are now frowned upon.

Let me be the first to applaud Armstrong on taking a stance. Let me also be the first to follow in his internet-foot steps. This blog’s official stance on male use of the smiling emoticon is to never use it.

Whether or not the use of the smiling emoticon was ever acceptable for guys to use on the internet is irrelevant at this point. Armstrong has made that abundantly clear; in 140 characters or less. That is why Lance Armstrong is the recipient of A.Martin Sports’ “Tweet of the Week.”

Mayweather v. Marquez (via athletes on Twitter)

I think we as students of UConn should get the option of ordering HBO in our dorms, suites, and/or apartments. You could even charge it to our fee bill. We want Entourage. We want Weeds. We want the big boxing matches. We want Mayweather v. Marquez.

Unfortunately, we do not get it. Any of it. I did find a couple websites that were streaming it online but neither had decent quality nor was in English. However, thanks to some of my friends on Twitter, I was able to follow the fight online through tweets.

rudygay22 At the fight yall! Who yall have winning? (Rudy Gay, Memphis Grizzlies)

shawnemerriman Yessssss i got the fight in my hotel room lets go Floyd!!he came out the aggressor i like it (Shawne Merriman, San Diego Chargers)

CV31 Watching the Mayweather-Marquez fight, I give it to Mayweather in the 6th Round. He’s still has the sharp quickness. Any takers? (Charlie Villanueva, Detroit Pistons)

mw1ll Yessir young floyd (Marcus Williams, Memphis Grizzlies)

THE_REAL_SHAQ Money mayweather is the greatest boxer ever, daaaaaaam (Shaquille O’Neal, Cleveland Cavs)

jalenrose Marquez…can’t jab…can’t win (Jalen Rose, former NBA all-star)

dwadeofficial You can’t touch what you can’t see. Money may is a badddd mannn (Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat)

KevinDurant35 Man I thought marquez would win…jus cuz he drink his own pee…bad decision on my part lol (Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder)

shawnemerriman At this point people are watching floyd to see him loose because he is the best

jalenrose Floyd wins by shutout…litterally!..

Best Tweet Award – Kevin Durant – for referencing Marquez’s television program that showed him drinking his own urine in order to not lose any vitamins or minerals when using the bathroom.

Immediate Impact Players of the 2009 NFL Draft

 

The 2009 NFL Draft is complete. Teams have made their selections of former college football standouts whom they hope will take their teams to the next level this season.

 

Some players that have been taken will need a couple years in order to become steady players, others will never pan out at all. However, there are some key players taken in this draft that will make an impact starting on Week 1.

 

Here are those players.

Aaron Maybin – DE – Buffalo Bills

 

Don’t look now, but there’s a decent football team in upstate New York this year.

 

Anchoring a stingy Penn St. defense in only his sophomore year, Maybin found the quarterback 12 times-then the quarterback found the ground. He brings speed, athleticism, and power to the front line of Buffalo.

 

My choice for Defensive Rookie of the Year.

 

 

 

Darius Butler – CB – New England Patriots

 

New England is known for turning out elite cornerbacks: Ty Law, Asante Samuel, Ellis Hobbs, etc. Darius Butler will become the next one.

 

Bringing speed and versatility to both sides of the ball, Butler reminds me a little bit of Troy Brown who also tried to play on almost every down. Butler, however, is actually young enough and athletic enough to do it.

 

Oh yea, he’s one explosive return man, too. The Pats know how to pick ‘em.

LeSean McCoy – HB – Philadelphia Eagles

 

McCoy has questionable speed and agility, mostly because he did not take part in the 40-yard dash at the combine. However, he is an explosive runner who can find a seam and turn a small gain into a big run.

 

What is going to help him make such an impact with the Eagles this year is his hands. Andy Reid loves backs that can run a flat and catch the ball. Look at Brian Westbrook and all the success he is having.

 

I am not saying McCoy is going to be the next Westbrook, but he has all the potential to get to that level in the Philadelphia system.

Aaron Curry – LB – Seattle Seahawks

 

Forget that he’s the best linebacker in his class. Forget that he has an uncanny nose for the ball leading to 200 total tackles in his junior and senior year seasons at Wake Forest.

 

Forget that he beat all other outside linebackers at the combine in the 40-yard dash, the vertical, and the broad jump.

 

No, what is going to make Curry a special NFL player from day one is his passion. Did you see this 6′3″, 250 pound young man break down to tears when he was drafted?

 

This has been his dream since he was a little boy. Football, above all else, is played from the heart. Curry’s got more of that than anyone.

A.Martin

Live Blog Watching the Cavs/Pistons Game

8:04 – Watching TNT’s pregame show.

8:04 – Why is Charles Barkley still employed? 

8:06 – Why does the commercial for Gatorade Tiger feature a brown bear as opposed to an actual tiger? I love tigers – sending Gatorade a complaint e-mail.

8:08 – Mike Brown gets Coach of the Year – he should immediately give the trophy to Lebron James, who is solely responsible for the award.

8:12 – Mo Williams is wet – you got to shift the defense if you’re gonna double Lebron.

8:12 – Williams just hit the deck getting an assist to Big Z. He is the Pippen to James’ Jordan.

8:13 – Richard Hamilton gets on the board. UConn stand up – wonder if he can put up a show like Ben Gordon and Ray Allen did last night.

8:15 – Big Z has range – wow.

8:17 – First commercial break – Cavs up 10-2. Someone from Detroit needs to step up or this game will be over much sooner than they might wish.

8:19 – “If I had Wolverine’s claws I would have gotten five more rebounds a game.” 

8:33 – Lebron now has eight points – from all over the floor.

8:34 – End of the first quarter. Detroit looks dazed and confused. The Cavs are sticking to their game plan and hitting their shots, except Daniel Gibson – he needs the axe.

8:39 – Nice ball movement on the fast break – and Lebron isn’t even on the floor.

8:42 – Mo Williams needs to be hosed down.

8:45 – The Heineken commercial with the beer closet is the best 20 seconds of my day. Bar none.

8:50 – I just love it when Rip hits a shot. One of my favorite basketball players of all time – I met him when I was like 11!

8:51 – Drama on the court! Amir Johnson pushes Lebron in the back of the head on a shot attempt then tries to slap fight Anderson Varejao. Take a seat, young man. 

9:06 – Debating ordering food. Wings over Storrs?

9:11 – You would think the Pistons would understand the concept by now. Lebron drives and then dishes to the corner for a wide open jumpshot. It’s happened maybe a dozen times already.

9:12 – Halftime. Cavs lead it 46-32. Lebron has 16 points, six rebounds, and three assists. I have him going for 36, nine, and 10. He needs to step it up. Williams and Big Z have contributed incredibly, combining for 17 points. Detroit is only two deep so far – Hamilton and Stuckey. If the Pistons want to get back into this game they need to start hitting the paint hard. 

9:18 – Barkley makes reference to making out with Dick Vitale. I may have just thrown up a little bit.

9:33 – Beginning of third quarter. Lebron stuffs McDyess but gets called for the foul. Looked like all ball to me, sir.

9:41 – Lebron has reached my predicted rebound total. Waiting to see if he can get a few more dimes.

9:48 – Flight 23 takes off – look out below!

9:49 – Decided against ordering food – don’t want to miss any of this game.

9:56 – “M-V-P” chants for LBJ. If I had a vote, it would be for him. Hands down.

9:58 – Lebron just barely misses a dime because Joe Smith was fouled on a dunk. Realizing I over-estimated his assist and point total, especially if he sits the fourth quarter.

10:05 – End of third quarter. Pistons down 27. Lebron took more free throws than the entire Detroit team. One sided, or what?

10:07 – Decided on ordering food anyway – waiting on my roast beef grinder.

10:11 – Stuckey is a tough kid. Still playing at full-speed. Acrobratic little and-1 play sends him to the line – completes the three point play.

10:12 – Amir Johnson gets back into the game and picks up his second hard foul in only a little over two minutes of action. 

10:17 – The Cavs play super-sloppy without James on the court. The Pistons are starting to show some life, some hustle, and some skill.

10:20 – James is back on the court but the Pistons are within 11. This could get interesting.

10:27 – Pistons within eight. After getting killed on the offensive class for the first 75 percent of the game Detroit is getting second and third opportunities to score. 

10:29 – Only up seven, the Cavs need to slow this game down and continue getting to the foul line to ice this thing. If Lebron get to the line he needs to actually hit them, though.

10:31 – James falls into the first row of fans. Hugs and kisses a woman. The NBA Cares.

10:37 – LBJ grabs a board and then throws a 3/4 court pass to Williams for the lay-up. He may fill my quota afterall!

10:39 – Detroit bench is out hustling the starters. Several offesive rebounds this quarter. Jason Maxiell in the building!

10:40 – It’s all over now. The Cavs will go up 2-0 on the Pistons and head to Detroit for a couple games. I think the Cavs will take it in 5.

10:42 – LBJ didn’t get 36, nine, and 10 like I thought, but still put on a show. It’s hard to complain about 29, 13, and six. Hamilton made me proud – former UConn player led his team with scoring with 17, also added 3 steals and a block.