Fantasy Playoffs

     I hate to change up the subject with this post, but what an amazing two weeks this has been in College Football. Bedlam today was an amazing game, and I must admit that before the game I did take Oklahoma State. I was very impressed with what Stoops did today. I felt like he coached to win today, and he took chances that set his team up for his success.

    Fantasy playoffs are beginning up in any leagues. This is the last week of the regular season in my South Side OKC league, and I feel like I have a large amount of momentum going into the playoffs. This week will determine what seed I have in the playoffs. If I win this week I will have the number one seed in the playoffs, and would get to face the four seed.

     I have a couple players who have been a surprise to my team going into the playoffs. Alshon Jeffery  (Chi-WR) and Michael Floyd (Ari-WR) have been fantastic additions to my teams. In the past six weeks Jeffery's has had over 15 points in five out of six weeks. Last week he had a season high of 48 points. I love Jeffery's upside with him playing opposite of Brandon Marshall. Floyd has also been a great pickup the last few weeks, and I plan on him having a big week this week as well. Larry Fitzgerald always has the top corner on him, and that allows Floyd to get less attention. I expect a big week for him against St. Louis.

Dirty Dealing

     My post this week will be a little different then normal. I would like to discuss a topic that gets brought up in many leagues. Many fantasy football leagues allows the members to be able to have the ability to veto trades. In some cases the league manager is able to make the decision to veto trades.

     I played in two different leagues this fall, and I regret playing in one of the leagues. Before I began working at the Sports Animal I worked at the Community College I was attending. The guys I worked around were awesome, and we would always do different sport challenges.

     This year we decided to do a cheap fantasy league for $10, and it was the biggest fantasy mistake of my life. I have had an okay team, and at this point I am challenging for a playoff spot. The kicker here is that many of the guys who aren't going to make the playoff are starting to trade their best players to their buddies who have good record.

     Not to mention the trades that been going through are jokes. An example of one of the trades was Jimmy Graham for Tony Gonzalez straight up. Are you kidding me!!!! In a standard league Jimmy Graham has scored double the amounts of point then Gonzalez!!!

     That type of move is such bush league. Not to mention I believe it is some what cheating as well. Why even do fantasy sports if your going to basically cheat your way to victory. You can't even brag at the end of the season. So enjoy cheating your way to a championship.

Week 10

            Well we're at the halfway point of the NFL season, and boy has it been a great one so far. There has been many surprises across the league this season. How about the Kansas City Chiefs? 9-0. Who would have thought at the beginning of the season that at week 10 of the NFL, Kansas City would still be unbeaten.

            I drafted Jamaal Charles with the eighth overall pick in my PPR Southside OKC league. Charles is the number one running back in a PPR league on ESPN, and is the third highest scorer overall. I have enjoyed having Charles as my number one running back, and as long as he stays healthy he should remain as the number one running back.

            Peyton Manning! What more do I have to say about that man at this point. Manning is the number one overall quarterback in fantasy so far this year. I was fortunate enough to play his owner on the week Manning was on a bye. Manning will be tested next Sunday when Kansas City visits Denver in by far the matchup of the year so far. Kansas City matches up well against Denver's offense, and it will be pivotal for Kansas City to jump out to an early lead.

            This week I have an interesting decision to make. I will not be starting Matt Ryan against the Seattle Seahawks, and it will come down to either Jay Cutler (who is probable)or Nick Foles. Cutler is going up against Detroit, and put up a solid 16 points against them week 4. I would be satisfied with Cutler if he could put up over 15 this week. Foles is coming off a week where he put up seven touchdown passes. This is the second time this season that a quarterback has put up seven touchdowns, and of course that man was Manning. And by Manning I mean Peyton Manning, not Eli. Eli this season would be known for putting up more like seven interceptions.

            At the end of the day I plan on starting Cutler if he plays. Foles is going up against Green Bay, and they have only allowed three touchdown passes the past three weeks. My gut feeling says to start Foles, but I feel like Cutler is the safe start. I have a solid team at every other position, so I need to start the safe quarterback. Jay Cutler will be that safe start if he plays.

Quarterbacks

                The quarterback position has been a frustrating position for me this fantasy season. Three weeks ago I picked up Jay Cutler off the waivers, and started him against the Giants, and he did an excellent job putting up 20 points. The next week I loved his matchup against Washington, but Cutler tore his groin in the first half. Matt Forte had an excellent game against Washington with three touchdowns.

                This week in my South OKC league I will be facing the individual who has the number one quarterback in the league, but I’m lucky enough to be facing him on the week he has a bye. Yes, Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos are on a bye week this week. I know this has to just hurt many fantasy owners across the world.

               This week my opponent will be forced to start Russell Wilson, but Wilson has had four straight weeks of over 15 points, but I like my chances against Wilson then having to face Manning. The main challenge I’m facing this week is whether I should start Emmanuel Sanders or Eddie Royal. Royal is going against Washington who ranks 29^th against Wide Receivers. Emmanuel Sanders is going against New England who ranks 5^th against Wide Receivers.

Week 7

     Week 7 is upon us, and the NFL is almost to the halfway point. October has always been an entertaining month when it comes to sports. October means playoff baseball, and both college football and the NFL are in mid-season form. October also brings us NBA training camps, which means that the Thunder season is almost upon us. 
      I found myself in an interesting fantasy predicament this last week. I've had issues all year with my quarterback situation with having both Matt Ryan and Michael Vick, but this week neither of these individuals started for my team. Ryan was on his bye week, and Vick was out with a hamstring injury that he suffered against the New York Giants. I had to go to the waivers, and I picked up Jay Cutler against the Giants.
      He threw for 262 yards with two touchdowns. Cutler will be going up against the Washington Redskins this weekend, and I plan on starting him over both Ryan and Vick. Washington ranks 24th against fantasy quarterbacks. The first three weeks their defense was torched by Michael Vick, Aaron Rodgers and Mathew Stafford. I like Cutler to have a big game against Washington this week.
     Alshon Jeffery is another player for the bears who might find a spot in my lineup this week due to bye weeks and injuries. Before this week, he had two straight weeks of over 20 points. Last week against the Giants he was held to only four points, but Brandon Marshall had an excellent game with 9 receptions for 87 yards. Marshall also hauled in two touchdowns as well. Jeffery seems to be a hit and miss type of guy, but I like him as a flex guy if he's filling in for one of your receivers on a bye week. Marshall will be gaining much of Washington's secondary attention, and DeAngelo Hall will have the task of guarding Marshall.  Washington ranks 27th in the league against wide receivers. I expect Jeffery to have 14 points in a ppr league.
     
  

Okie Funk

     "Okie Funk" is a local blog written by Kurt Hochenauer. Dr. Hochenauer is a English professor at the University of Central Oklahoma. This morning he visited our class to discuss his success with his blog. Dr.Hochenauer began being involved with writing about politics in 2000, and started his blog in 2004 which he named "Okie Funk." When Dr. Hochenauer began his blog he had 15,000 hits a month. Dr. Hochenaur post articles on his blog on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Dr. Hochenauer said the key to having a successful blog is to be a good writer.

       Dr. Hochenauer says that on average he receives 300 hits per month. He has been referenced in the "Dallas Morning News" and the "Washington Post." He has been on numerous radio shows as well for interviews. Dr. Hochenauer also stated that he had an individual from the Department of Justice email him telling him that he enjoyed his blog. He stated that blog classes will be a legitimate class for the next couple of years.

     

Week 4

   Another fantastic week of Fantasy Football is coming upon us. This past weekend was an interesting weekend in my South OKC money league. I was the second highest scorer in the league with 147 points.

 

   I was playing the individual in our league who has put up the least amount of points in our league. He only put up a total of 78 points. He knew it was going to be a rough week when Dwayne Bowe put up one point last Thursday night.

   I had a fantastic Thursday night with Jamaal Charles, LeSean McCoy and Michael Vick putting up a total of 67 points. It was a great way to start off the fantasy week. 

   The main question going into last week was should I start Vick over Ryan. I ended up starting Vick and they both ended up with 15 points apiece. 

   I haven't decided which quarterback I will be going with this weekend. Vick travels to Denver this weekend, and Ryan is going against a tough Patriot's secondary. 

   Another question in my lineup is will I be starting Andre Johnson. Johnson is going up against the Seattle Seahawks who have the best secondary in the league. Johnson has had some injury issues the past couple of weeks, but he's still a guy who is hard to sit. 

 

   I'm going to wait to see who I get off the waivers before I decide on what I'm going to do with Johnson. I fave the defending champ this weekend, and there's nothing more I'd like to do then to beat him. 

   I woke up to news that Nate Burleson had broken his arm in a car crash. I picked him up last week off the waivers, and he showed great potential in a ppr league. He will be having surgery today.