The start of this season was a rough one for Rams’ receiver Donnie Avery. In the preseason Avery injured his knee and this help contribute to his slow start.

After the first eight weeks of the season Avery had only 22 receptions for 286 yards and two touchdowns. Since the Rams’ bye in week nine Avery has turned his production around with 12 catches for 180 yards and three touchdowns in his past three games.

Part of the turnaround for Avery has been his new attitude and approach to the game of football since embarrassing his team in week five against the Vikings. That week Avery scored a touchdown late in the game and started dancing around.

Seeing that the team was losing by four touchdowns at the time it didn’t seem to be the greatest time to celebrate and Avery took heat from local and national media.

Since that time Avery has dedicated himself to turn his game around and the performance from a fantasy stand point is starting to look good.

Can Avery Be Trusted?

This week Avery makes for a good third receiver option as he plays on the road against the Bears. After that game Avery and the Rams will travel to Tennessee and face the Titans, now healthy secondary.

I wouldn’t recommend using Avery next week against the Titans as he will be blanketed by corner back Cortland Finnegan all game long.

After that game Avery finishes up with three games that fantasy owners can take advantage of. In the final three weeks of the NFL season, Avery will face the Texans, Cardinals and 49ers.

Look for Kyle Boller to go Avery’s way often from this point on as he is the one solid target this team has in the passing game.

Heading into 2010

Next year Avery will be in his third year as a receiver and I believe he will be a good bet for consistent production. This season the Rams new offensive line has had a full year to work together and by next year they should be ready to provide good protection in the passing game.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Rams draft a quarterback like Colt McCoy or Jimmy Clausen, so Avery may have a rookie under center next year.

At this time, I would say one of those rookie’s can’t do much worse than Boller or Marc Bulger have done this season.

With a new dedication to the game, Avery should be a nice late round pick in 2010.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

For the past couple week’s Texans running back Chris Brown has split time with Steve Slaton in the back field. In that time Brown has run the ball hard but failed to receive a bulk of carries that could make him a fantasy football starter.

On Friday the Texans revealed that Slaton’s neck injury was very likely to keep him out of action for this week’s game against the Jaguars. In light of this information, Brown should receive a bump in touches and is worth a start in fantasy leagues.

Slaton Out, Moats In

It seems like ages ago that Ryan Moats touched the Bills’ defense for over a hundred yards rushing and three touchdown scores in week eight. Moats was given an opportunity to shine in that game because of Slaton’s fumbling issues.

The very next week Moats got the start against the Colts but ended up splitting time with Slaton throughout the game. Since that game Moats hasn’t touched the football one time as Slaton and Brown received all the work on the ground.

This week Moats will be Brown’s backup if Slaton is, in fact, out for the game.

It does seem that Brown is ready for his best game of the season, but if the Texans fall behind or Moats runs more effectively than expect Brown’s production to be disappointing.

Even if Slaton misses more than one week with his neck problem and Brown plays well this weekend, I wouldn’t recommend Brown as anything more than a flex option.

The reason I say that is because at this time of year in the NFL you know the makeup of what a team is and how the coaching staff will use their personnel. In Houston’s case the team loves to throw the football and will abandon the run if they fall behind.

Secondly, head coach Gary Kubiak has shown little belief in just one running back to carry the load in a full game.

With that being said, look for Brown to produce, just don’t expect him to carry your team to a fantasy football championship.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

The Texans had a great opportunity to make a playoff surge with two straight games at home against the Titans and Colts. While the Texans started each game strong, they gave both games away late in the fourth quarter will unfortunate play.

Giving Away Playoff Dreams

The Colts were down until a 4th quarter touchdown from Peyton Manning to Dallas Clark. After that touchdown throw the Colts took the lead 21 to 20 and never looked back.

Matt Schaub could have been a hero but on the next drive, he threw an interception for a touchdown and the score was 28 to 20.

Then on the next drive Schaub fumbled the football and the Colts ran a touchdown in from 23-yards out to put the game away.

This was a very disappointing ending for the Texans for the third straight week in a row as they are now five and six on the season. Unless they can win out for the rest of the year the Texans will miss the playoffs once again.

Manning and Colts have Game Handed to Them

This was another shaky game for Manning and the Colts’ offense as they had to play from behind most of the game.

If this team is going to stay undefeated next week against the Titans one has to think they need to pick up their play for the future.

From a fantasy perspective, Manning has been slipping for the last month and today was just a continuation of his struggles. If fantasy owners with Manning hope to make a dent in the playoffs, they will need Manning to turn things around fast.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

Last week was definitely a weird one in the world of fantasy football. Players like Bernard Scott and Jason Snelling came out of the wood work and helped fantasy owners win crucial games down the stretch of the season.

We even saw a flash from the past as players like Ricky Williams and Chris Chambers help lead their teams to victory.

Below we have a short right up on the top ten teams on our power rankings for this season. These teams are important to know as they are playing well and should continue to help fantasy teams.

Furthermore, pay attention to the worst teams on the list as they are the teams you want to have your players going against down the stretch.

1. Colts (10-0)

The Colts made it out of Baltimore with another victory but just barely as they won the game 17 to 15. This up coming week the Colts will travel to Houston to take on the Texans. The last time these two teams played in Indianapolis the Colts won a close game.

Look for the Texans to give the Colts everything they can handle, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they win.

2. Saints (10-0)

The Saints beat the Buccaneers for their tenth win of the season. Next week they will play the Patriots on Monday night, and I believe they will lose that game.

Fortunately the Saints will get back key players on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Drew Brees should have a huge fantasy football scoring day against the Patriots as the game will be a scoring extravaganza.

3. Vikings (9-1)

If it wasn’t for the Saints and Colts being undefeated the Vikings would be on the top of our list of the power rankings. This team is strong in just about every category and this team should have home field advantage in the NFC when the regular season is over.

With Brett Favre playing on top of his game and Adrian Peterson in the backfield the Vikings should roll to the super bowl.

4. Patriots (7-3)

The Patriots bounced back strong after losing to the Colts at the last minute. This week they should put up a big scoring game against the New Orleans Saints on Monday night.

Look for Brady, Moss and Welker to have big days as the Patriots need to put up a lot of points to win in New Orleans.

5. Chargers (7-3)

Since losing to the Broncos in week six the Chargers have won their last five games. Just when you thought this team was down for the count with a bad offensive line, a defense that couldn’t stop the run and LT not playing up to his standards, they turn it all around.

Expect the Chargers to win the AFC West and probably finish in the AFC with the third or fourth best record.

6. Bengals (7-3)

After two big division wins the Bengals dropped a disappointing game to the Raiders in Oakland. This week they will come back home and play their final game in their division for the regular season against the Browns.

Look for Bernard Scott to continue as the starting tail back if Cedric Benson is out for this week. Carson Palmer and Chad Ochocinco should have strong games.

7. Cardinals (7-3)

The Cardinals are moving past the Cowboys in our NFL power rankings more because Dallas has played that bad than the Cardinals have played that good. Last week the Cardinals held on to beat the Rams without Kurt Warner, but it wasn’t pretty.

It looks like Warner will be a go this week against the Titans and that is good because they wouldn’t win this game without him.

8. Cowboys (7-3)

This season has been a major up and down year for the Cowboys’ passing game. All of a sudden, defense are putting their top corner on Miles Austin, and he is having problems beating coverage.

If the Cowboys’ struggle on Thanksgiving against the Raiders I wouldn’t be surprised.

9. Steelers (6-4)

The Steelers lost a gimmy game against the Chiefs and one has to think it’s because they failed to dominate in the running game. Rashard Mendenhall is a capable running back but if the Steelers don’t start showing a need to run the ball they will lose more games like this past week to the Chiefs.

Sooner or later the Steelers will have to run the ball to either keep Ben Roethlisberger healthy or because Roethlisberger is knock out and injured.

10. Eagles (6-4)

The Eagles make it back to the top ten teams on our NFL power rankings because the Broncos are backsliding into outer space.

This past week the Eagles won a hard hitting road game and proved they could run the football when they needed to. Running the ball is very important for all teams in the NFL and now that the Eagles have shown success under pressure it should help open up the deep ball again.

• 11. Packers (6-4)
• 12. Broncos (6-4)
• 13. Giants (6-4)
• 14. Jaguars (6-4)
• 15. Titans (4-6) Still a very good team when healthy
• 16. Ravens (5-5)
• 17. Falcons (5-5)
• 18. Texans (5-5) Need a new kicker
• 19. Dolphins (5-5)
• 20. 49ers (4-6)
• 21. Panthers (4-6)
• 22. Seahawks (4-6)
• 23. Jets (4-6)
• 24. Bears (4-6)
• 25. Chiefs (3-7)
• 26. Bills (3-7)
• 27. Redskins (3-7)
• 28. Raiders (2-8)
• 29. Lions (2-8)
• 30. Rams (1-9)
• 31. Buccaneers (1-9)
• 32. Browns (1-9)

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

The Texans and Titans squared off for the second time this season and in the end the Titans pulled out a victory. Tennessee has now won their last four games in a row after starting the season losing their first six games.

Vince Young is Making a Difference

You can tell that Vince Young has matured since the last time he was the Titans starting quarterback. Tonight Young did an excellent job of managing the game and giving his team a chance to win.

Young isn’t the great fantasy football play as he only threw for 116 yards passing and one touchdown pass, but he is helping his team win ball games. One area Young is excelling at for a quarterback is in the running game as he rushed for 73 yards in this game.

Another player that is making a huge impact is running back Chris Johnson. This running back is on pace for over 2,000 yards rushing this season as he rushed for another 151 yards on the ground.

Look for Johnson to continue his serious run towards 2,000 yards on the season with an effective game next week against the Cardinals.

Steve Slaton Starts

Texans running back Steve Slaton did start this game as this coach promised on Saturday, but he only touched the football ten times. On the positive side Slaton had a touchdown catch and didn’t fumble the football for the second game in a row.

If Slaton is going to be a strong fantasy impact player again he will need more touches. Look for Slaton to start again next week again the Colts.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This season has been a bumpy ride for Texans star running back Steve Slaton. The season low for fantasy football owners with Slaton had to be when he was benched against the Bills and Ryan Moats had a huge game.

Because of Slaton’s fumbling issue’s head coach Gary Kubiak continued to go with Moats as his starter when the Texans faced off against the Colts a week later.

Bye Week Magic?

After the Texans lost a close game to the Colts they went into their week ten bye with question marks still looming around their running game.

Over this time off Slaton was busy working on his ball handling skills and watching film of Tiki Barber running the football. Barber was a smaller running back like Slaton and in the early part of his starting career, he had trouble holding onto the football.

Barber corrected his fumbling mistakes with a new ball holding technique, and it saved his career as a starting runner.

Not only did Slaton watch film of Barber, but he went back and talked to old college coaches from West Virgina to see if they had any pointers on what he was doing different.

This commitment and attention to detail must have paid off in the eye’s of his head coach because two days before their Monday night game against the Titans, Slaton has officially won his starting job back.

Fantasy Game Plan for Using Steve Slaton

This week is a tough matchup for Slaton and the Texans running game, so I wouldn’t recommend starting Slaton as more than a flex play at best. However, if Slaton shows that he has used his off time well and starts playing the way we all know he can then he could do some damage down the stretch.

After this week Slaton has the Colts, Jaguars, Seahawks, Rams and Dolphins for the rest of the fantasy football season. Those last three opponents listed are all games during the fantasy football playoffs.

Look for Slaton to shine now that he’s back in the saddle again.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This is the final bye weekend on the NFL schedule and only two team will be off. Both the Giants and Texans will be out this week so make sure your fantasy football players on these teams are out of your lineup.

Other than that every other team in football is back on the field again this week and that means most of your fantasy team is at your disposal. Hopefully, you already have a set lineup of players your routinely starting by this point of the season.

However, there may be a position or two your having trouble getting consistent production from.

Below we have our top border line players at different positions that are worth starting and worth sitting for the tenth week of the NFL fantasy football season.

Start’Em

Quarterbacks

• Brett Favre vs Lions
• Tony Romo @ Packers
• Jay Cutler @ 49ers

Running Backs

• LeSean McCoy @ Chargers (If Brian Westbrook is Out)
• Knowshon Moreno @ Redskins
• Joseph Addai vs Patriots

Wide Receivers

• Sidney Rice vs Lions
• Steve Breaston vs Seahawks

Tight Ends

• Greg Olsen @ 49ers
• Dustin Keller vs Jaguars

Kickers

• Rob Bironas vs Bills
• Ryan Longwell vs Lions

Defense/ ST

• Ravens @ Browns
• Saints @ Rams
• Broncos @ Redskins

Sit’Em

Quarterbacks

• Carson Palmer vs Steelers
• Vince Young @ Bills (Don’t Start….Yet)

Running Backs

• LaDainian Tomlinson vs Eagles (Washed Up)
• Justin Fargas vs Chiefs (If McFadden is Back)

Wide Receivers

• Anquan Boldin vs Seahawks ( Injured)
• Malcom Floyd vs Eagles
• Mohamed Massaquoi vs Ravens

Kickers

• Steven Hauschka @ Browns (May be Cut Soon)

Defense/ ST

• Packers vs Cowboys
• Eagles @ Chargers

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

Just a season ago Houston Texans wide receiver Kevin Walter proved that he could help fantasy football owners. For the season Walter accumulated almost 900 yards receiving and posted eight touchdowns.

This season Walter has been quiet as many fantasy owners dropped him off their respective team(s) weeks ago.

Seeing Walter on fantasy waiver wires shouldn’t be surprising when you consider that in eight games this season, he has only posted 22 receptions and one touchdown.

New Life

Last weekend the Texans pro bowl tight end Owen Daniels unfortunately tore his ACL and is now done for the rest of the season. Daniels was a huge part of the Texans offense and now quarterback Matt Schaub will have to lean on other players to move the offense.

Sure, Andre Johnson will get his production because he’s to top target on the team and one of the best receivers in football.

Other than Johnson, Schaub will now turn to Walter and Jacoby Jones for more targets in the passing game.

Because of this need in the offense Walter now has a new lease on life and should become a fantasy relevant receiver once again.

Fantasy Football Ranking for Kevin Walter

The Texans have one of the best passing games in football, because of this, I suggest you take a look at picking up Walter on your waiver wire.

At this time, I wouldn’t recommend you start Walter, unless you are in need of a bye week fill in for a receiver. If Walter can find the grove he had in the Texans’ offense last year he will be a decent fantasy receiver for the rest of the season.

We just need to see him actually go out there and start playing to his capabilities.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

Week nine marks the final week that we will see a significant amount of NFL teams on bye weeks. After this week only the Giants and Texans will have bye weeks left on their schedule and that mean fantasy owners will have their full rosters.

This week the Bills, Browns, Vikings, Jets, Raiders and Rams are all on bye weeks and fantasy owners will be in need of production.

Below we have our top border line players at different positions that are worth starting and worth sitting for the ninth week of the NFL fantasy football season.

Start’Em

Quarterbacks

• Matt Ryan vs Redskins
• Jay Cutler vs Cardinals

Running Backs

• Jamaal Charles @ Jaguars
• Ryan Moats @ Colts (If Moats Gets a Chance to Start)
• Ryan Grant @ Buccaneers

Wide Receivers

• Devin Hester vs Cardinals
• Austin Collie vs Texans
• Michael Crabtree vs Titans
• Steve Breaston @ Bears (Boldin may Sit this Week)
  

Tight Ends

• Jeremy Shockey vs Panthers
• Fred Davis @ Falcons

Kickers

• Josh Schobee vs Chiefs
• Rob Bironas @ 49ers

Defense/ ST

• Packers @ Buccaneers
• Falcons vs Redskins

Sit’Em

Quarterbacks

• Kyle Orton vs Steelers

Wide Receivers

• Ted Ginn Jr. @ Patriots (Great on Kickoffs but Not Starting)
• Roy Williams @ Eagles (Austin has Taken Over)

Defense/ ST

• Dolphins @ Patriots
• Bears vs Cardinals

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This week’s waiver wire pickups are all about bust franchise quarterback coming back and playing well. Vince Young and Alex Smith have had their share of problems in the past but now both have a new opportunity to prove themselves. Not only are both quarterbacks receiving an opportunity, but they are both producing for their teams. Below we have the top players you might want to pay attention to, for waiver pickups. Even if you don’t select a waiver (or have already done so) it’s good to keep these names in mind for the future weeks.

Quarterbacks

Titans- Vince Young

Now that Vince Young as the starting job and has a win under his belt it is safe to pick him up off the waiver wire. Young may not have that bad of a second half of the fantasy season if the head coach Jeff Fisher opens up the offense.

With receivers like Justin Gage, Nate Washington and Kenny Britt, Young now has good weapons in the receiving core. This is different than when Young used to be the quarterback in years past.

49ers- Alex Smith

Former top pick Alex Smith is back and looking better than ever before. Smith also has added fantasy value now that Vernon Davis is the stud tight end the 49ers drafted him to be a few years ago.

Not to also add that rookie Michael Crabtree appears to be the real deal as he followed up his good debut against the Texans with an eight catch performance last week.

If Smith can get his career started again it would be a very nice story.

Running Backs

Texans- Ryan Moats

Last week Steve Slaton went into the dog house for good as he fumbled once again in the first quarter against the Bills. This was the fifth game that Slaton had lost a fumble this season and head coach Gary Kubiak had seen enough.

After Slaton was benched Ryan Moats got into the game and had a great performance. For the game Moats had 126 yards rushing and three touchdowns.

Moats may not be a starting fantasy football running back right now but fantasy owners should stash him away.

Chiefs- Jamaal Charles

Larry Johnson will be out for at least this week, and we will have to see if he retains his starting job when he comes back. For this week Jamaal Charles isn’t a bad play against the Jaguars’ defense that gave up two long touchdown runs and over 200 rushing yards to Chris Johnson.

Charles is a speedster like Johnson and can take it the distance if he finds a crease.

Raiders- Justin Fargas

While it’s hard to recommend anyone on the Raiders sorry offense for fantasy football, I do believe Justin Fargas has earned a roster spot. Darren McFadden won’t be back with the team for awhile and fellow runner Michael Bush has struggled.

In the past two weeks Fargas hasn’t run that bad and last week he plunged in a touchdown score. If you need a pinch starter, Fargas could be serviceable.

Wide Receivers

Chargers- Malcom Floyd

On Monday the Chargers released veteran wide receiver Chris Chambers and will now move Malcom Floyd into official starting line up. Floyd has been coming on in recent weeks and makes for a solid fantasy pickup.

49ers- Michael Crabtree

I recommended fantasy football owners grab Michael Crabtree up and stash him away last week. This week if you can still get Crabtree on your team, I suggest you nab him up right away.

This kid is the real deal, and he is worth starting in PPR fantasy leagues right now.

Tight Ends

Redskins- Fred Davis

After the Redskins past game against the Eagles it was reported that tight end Chris Cooley would be done for the season. Cooley now is saying that he thinks he might be able to play in a month.

While that may be wishful thinking, I do believe you should pickup Redskins new starting tight end Fred Davis as a replacement. Davis may not be a very good blocker, but he is a solid pass catcher.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com