This week was a very interesting one for players on the waiver wire and past players worth picking up. One receiver that everyone was talking about two weeks ago was Cowboys’ receiver Miles Austin.

This week we needed to see if Austin could produce as Tony Romo’s main man. For the game Austin had another fabulous stat line as he totaled over 170 yards receiving and two touchdowns.

Austin is a true starter every week and is fast becoming one of the more dangerous fantasy receivers in the 2009 season.

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.

Running Backs

Jets- Shonn Greene- Bye Week Nine

The time has come for Jets’ rookie running back Shonn Greene to be a fantasy football factor. Greene had been a non factor this year until Leon Washington went down with a broken fibula this past weekend.

Greene stepped in against the Raiders and did a heck of a job as he rumbled for 144 yards rushing and two scores.

Since Greene will now be Thomas Jones backup and will play every week you should pick him up in your league.

Cardinals- Chris “Beanie” Wells- Bye Week Four (Done)

Many fantasy football owners that drafted Chris “Beanie” Wells already gave up on him a few weeks ago. This past week Wells started to show why he is the better running back in Arizona with 67 yards rushing and a nice touchdown run.

For the game, Wells had 14 carries as Tim Hightower only had four. Look for Wells to slowly take more of a work load in the Cardinals’ offense.

Wells is at least worth holding onto for the fantasy playoffs in weeks 14 through 16. In those games, he plays the 49ers, Lions and Rams. This young man could do a lot of damage for your fantasy team in those weeks.

Wide Receivers

49ers- Michael Crabtree- Bye Week Six (Done)

I watched the 49ers – Texans’ game this weekend and was blown away by Michael Crabtree’s performance. Sure, he only had five catches for 56 yards, but he played nearly every snap on offense.

It is easy to see why Crabtree was a two time Fred Biletnikoff winner in college as he has a great pair of hands. On one play, he caught the back end of the football. To do something like that only shows that this youngster could be the real deal.

To see that Crabtree could play all the downs and play effectively, speaks volumes about what this kid was doing in his off time.

Crabtree may not be a fantasy starter right away, but he is no doubt worth holding onto.

Vikings- Sidney Rice- Bye Week Nine

I recommended Sidney Rice as a waiver pickup last week, and I’m doing it again. This kid is Brett Favre’s top target and is worth starting on your fantasy team. If you are in need of a receiver than this young man is a good option.

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

Beyond all the blowout wins this week we actually have a few notable players that broke out in a big way. Players like Michael Crabtree, Shonne Greene, Miles Austin and Cedric Benson all had strong days.

In Crabtree’s case, I was amazed to see a rookie receiver come in and not just catch five passes but play almost every snap. Crabtree’s success is a testament to his conditioning and studying when he was on his own.

Below I have some observations from the seventh week of the regular season and how I see those points of interest playing out from a fantasy perspective.

2009 NFL Regular Season Week Seven

• Texans vs 49ers
• Steelers vs Vikings
• Bengals vs Bears
• Cowboys vs Falcons
• Saints vs Dolphins
• Jets vs Raiders
• Cardinals vs Giants

Regular Season First Six Weeks

• Week One
• Week Two
• Week Three
• Week Four
• Week Five
• Week Six
  

Fantasy Football Regular Season Week Seven Notes:

Shonn Greene a Hot Waiver Pickup

This weekend Jets’ rookie running back Shonn Greene saw his fantasy football value sky rocket with Leon Washington breaking his fibula. Washington went down in the game and is already declared done for the rest of the season.

Greene got the opportunity to back up Thomas Jones in this game and didn’t disappoint as he rumbled for 144 yards on 19 carries. Beyond the very impressive yardage numbers from the rookie, he also found the end zone twice.

This running back is a very hot waiver pickup as he will now be active in the Jets’ offense every week.

Austin Goes Wild

For the game Austin had six receptions for 171 yards receiving and two touchdowns. No doubt, Austin is now the true No. 1 receiver on this team and is a scary fantasy football receiver to face.

Look for the Cowboys to continue to make a drive for a wild card spot as they have a good team. This game was a big one for Dallas as they needed to show they could beat a good opponent.

Next week they play the Seahawks at home and should roll to an easy win.

Running Like a Beast

Benson had his revenge on the Bears as he carried the football and amazing 37 times for 189 yards and a touchdown. This was a complete blowout by the Bengals as they crushed the Bears 45 to 10.

Not only did Benson have a great game but quarterback Carson Palmer also had a solid performance as well. On the day Palmer had five touchdown passes as the Bengals had it going from the first quarter to the fourth quarter.

Now, the Bengals are 5-2 and are still a top the AFC Central. After their bye week in week eight they have to play the Ravens and Steelers again.

We will see if they can produce wins against these competitive teams once again this season.

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

The New York Jets looked to snap their three game losing streak against the Raiders this week by pounding the football and playing shut down defense. In this game, the Jets did just that as they rolled to a huge shutout victory.

Shonn Greene a Hot Waiver Pickup

This weekend Jets’ rookie running back Shonn Greene saw his fantasy football value sky rocket with Leon Washington breaking his fibula. Washington went down in the game and is already declared done for the rest of the season.

Greene got the opportunity to back up Thomas Jones in this game and didn’t disappoint as he rumbled for 144 yards on 19 carries. Beyond the very impressive yardage numbers from the rookie, he also found the end zone twice.

This running back is a very hot waiver pickup as he will now be active in the Jets’ offense every week.

Raiders Suck

Well, it didn’t take long for the Raiders to start sucking again after they beat the Eagles last week.

JaMarcus Russell was benched in the second half of the game, and he is probably going to be a bust for his entire career.

Raiders are going to lose for a long time if they don’t get things turned around.

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

This off season I thought Thomas Jones would end up being a bust pick in fantasy football for this season. My reasoning for this is that he was coming off of a 15 touchdown season and his fantasy football ranking would be higher than ever.

Another reason why is because I believed New York would use physical rookie runner Shonn Greene for goal line work.

This preseason I was interested to see that the team was using Jones as the goal line back and not Greene. Then I found out that Greene was having problems in pass protection and just wasn’t up to the level of play the team could get out of Jones and Leon Washington.

In the past couple of week Greene has gotten a few touches here and there but with Jones playing so well at the goal line, Greene is not fantasy worthy.

Jones Needs More Touches

Last week Jones had a couple of cheep touchdown runs as he gave fantasy football owners a second consecutive scoring week.

For the season, Jones now has a total of five touchdown runs, and he is well on his way to another double digit touchdown fantasy football season.

While the touchdown production is solid his rushing totals since week one are not. Jones has failed to produce one game in his last four with at least a four yard per carry average. Not only has he been slow in that category, but he has also failed to produce more than 54 yards rushing in that time.

Part of the reason for this lack of production is that fellow running back Leon Washington has been spiting carries with Jones. Neither running back has had more than 14 carries in a single game since week one.

Turning Things Around

This week is a great time for the Jets to get both of their running backs over 15 touches a piece as they play against the Bills poor run defense. Last week the Bills let a 70 year old man (Jamal Lewis) run for over 100 yards against them.

If Lewis and the anemic Browns’ offense can run the ball against the Bills than I would suspect the Jets can dominate.

While this week should be a good one for Jones and Washington, but I’m not sure what to expect week in and week out. If these backs continue to split carries like they have been than it will continue to dog Jones’s fantasy football value.

Fantasy Football Ranking for Jones and Washington

As the weather changes the Jets will probably lean on their running attack more often. Jones was not a top fantasy football play last season, until this point in the year. From around week six on he was a consistent fantasy producer just about every week.

I don’t think he will produce the same numbers this season as a year ago, but he should be a good fantasy football play.

Washington, on the other hand, is a hit and miss fantasy football player. If he hits the big touchdown, then that will be a great week to have him starting.

Last year he had eight touchdown in the running game and passing total. This year he has zero touchdowns. If you need a pinch flex play for this weekend he makes for a good start, but I would bench him against hard defenses.

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

September 10 Team Mock Draft Board for Standard Performance Fantasy Football Leagues

September Standard League 10 Team Mock Draft Board

With the fantasy football season starting in just a short while from now I thought it would be a good idea to have one last mock draft for standard league play. This mock is for all of you fantasy football owners that like drafting your team as close to the start of the season as possible.

Below I have a link to our mock drafts for standard league play from June, July and August. If you like you can click on the link and see where different players have gone as the season has drawn closer.

After the monthly mock draft postings, I have selected a player from each of the first three rounds of your September mock to talk about.

June Standard League Mock Draft Board

July Standard League Mock Draft Board

August Standard League Mock Draft Board

First Round: Chicago Bears Running Back Matt Forte

While Matt Forte went fourth overall in this draft I have him as the third best running back to take in standard league play. Forte has all the attributes you want in a fantasy running back as he can run, catch, score and break the occasional big play.

Not only is this runner talented but he has a head coach in Lovie Smith that is committed to the running game. Beyond his coaches commitment, Forte also has a quarterback that defense have to respect in Jay Culter and he has an upgraded offensive line.

In the past two preseason games against the Giants and Broncos we have seen the Bears find success in different ways. At home against the Giants the Bears took advantage of a defense that was on short rest and made them pay.

It was nice to see Forte and the offense look sharp that week but I was more impressed with how the team handled the loud crowd noise in Denver, as Cutler returned to a hostel home coming. At first the Bears offense didn’t do much but they settled down and Forte had two touchdowns by the end of the first half.

To see this team handle a situation like that on the road so early in the year, only boosts my confidence that Forte will succeed in hard road games this season.

Take Forte with confidence and expect a great season in 2009.

Round Two: New York Jets Running Back Thomas Jones

While Thomas Jones did go late in the second round, it was the first time I’ve seen him drafted in this area all summer long. In all fairness to Jones he probably deserves to be drafted as a second round pick as he did have 15 touchdowns last season.

It looks like we can forget about the rumors of Jones being traded as he now looks like he will in fact be the main runner on the Jets again. With Shonn Greene sidelined because of injury, we have seen Jones find success this preseason converting touchdowns at the goaline.

Until last year Jones was never a great touchdown maker and if he is to deliver for fantasy owners this season (as a second round pick) he will need to have at least 9 touchdowns. If Greene does not become the goal line back at any point this season than Jones should deliver for fantasy owners, even with a rookie quarterback.

Third Round: Indianapolis Colts Quarterback Peyton Manning

Earlier in the summer I was very concerned about Peyton Manning and the Colts offense as they had lost both their offensive coordinator and their offensive line coach. But by the end of July the Colts had hired on both coaches as consultants and the NFL told all teams that consultants can call plays during games.

With the coaching staff now intact and a new offensive minded head coach, the Colts could play a more aggressive style of offense in 2009.

If this hold true and the Colts do in fact attack more in the passing game than Manning should easily throw for around 35 touchdowns this season.

With a strong season I have Manning right in the middle of the top six quarterbacks for the 2009 fantasy football season. Below I have my top six overall.

1.- Tom Brady
2.- Drew Brees
3.- Peyton Manning
4.- Kurt Warner
5.- Aaron Rodgers
6.- Philip Rivers

Fantasy Football Information Writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com