Where are your butt fumble jokes now? I almost wish Mark Sanchez would have taken the podium following the Eagles win over the Panthers on Monday night, gone double bird and then said, "Later, jerks." and then walked off into the sunset.
But Mark is just way too classy for that.
Instead he took the podium and fielded questions with his usual aplomb and went about his business, even though he proved his doubters wrong.
Well at least for one week.
Sanchez was on point against the Panthers. Of course, some would like to dismiss it as bad defense but Sanchez was pretty accurate on his throws. He did get away with a potential interception but hey, it was a nearly flawless start from a guy who hadn't started since 2012.
The Packers should provide a more accurate test for Sanchez this week. I'm still going to roll with him in my League of Record because I lost Foles. And really, if I have to choose between Sanchez and some of the other guys on this list, I'm going to roll with Mark. The offense is too good, and I'm really just about pot-committed to Sanchez at this point. So why not go all-in?
But while it's good for one former-USC quarterback, the news isn't so great for another. I'm rather bummed about what has happened to Carson Palmer. It's hard to imagine now, but some folks questioned whether he would ever return to the NFL after his injury in 2006. And then he had that regrettable stint with the Raiders. I remember seeing him at Wahoo's Fish Tacos before he went to Oakland and the dude seemed content with life (saw him at a USC tailgate after that, too). But he did go to Oakland and then seemed to have a new lease on life when he went to Arizona. Of course the Birds were rolling to the best record in the NFL and this injury happened. Seriously, this is a total buzzkill.
So where do we go from here? I like Drew Stanton a little bit. I don't care for the matchup this week against the Lions, but he can be a serviceable fantasy option at some point this year. Actually, he still has two games left against the Seahawks and that can be a bit troubling. So I only see him as a streaming option in Week 13 against the Falcons. No reason to keep him on your roster. And even then, the matchup against the Falcons isn't that great. But you're in luck because I have some other quarterbacks you can look at.
Josh McCown, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
McCown seems to have remembered what made him so great in Chicago; namely chucking it up for his big, tall receivers to go up and get it. He's got a pretty great matchup this week against the Redskins who have been very giving to opposing quarterbacks.
Robert Griffin III, QB, Washington
On the other side of the ball, Tampa Bay has been just as plentiful for quarterbacks. RG3 returned two weeks ago and was fine. Nothing special. But you hope with a bye week and some time to get his stuff together, he could be poised for a nice stat line.
Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Minnesota Vikings
Well, I can't guarantee you there is going to be Aaron Rodgers-like production. And the Bears should at some point really put the wood to somebody because they are professionals. So I will lightly endorse this play.
C.J. Anderson, RB, Denver Broncos
Well, you know I've hyped this dude for quite some time. Now he's got a chance, as predicted in the #DangerZone last week. Anderson has looked great in back-to-back weeks and even with Montee Ball back in the mix, the Broncos won't hesitate to go to the hot hand.
Carlos Hyde aka Los Hyde, RB, San Francisco 49ers
These can always be a bit unnerving. The 49ers have a great matchup, but we've seen some great fantasy plays blow up in our faces before. This also depends on Jim Harbaugh. Never a great scenario. But Harbaugh has given the ball to Hyde inexplicably in the past (remember the Monday night game against St. Louis?), so this one is worth a shot if you're in need of a runner.
Branden Oliver, RB, San Diego Chargers
I know, he's slowed a bit. Perhaps it was a bit of a rookie wall with all of the work he's gone through. But I like the matchup against the Raiders. And even if Ryan Mathews does return, Oliver will still have a place in the lineup, similar to what Danny Woodhead would do.
John Brown, WR, Arizona Cardinals
He's done a great job of blowing the top off of defenses around the league. He's caught all of the touchdowns from Stanton, so you would be foolish to ignore him. The Lions are going to be a bit tougher, but you need just one touchdown from Brown.
Andre Roberts, WR, Washington
I kind of like this matchup against the Bucs. This has been kind of a rocky year for Roberts, who thought he was going to be the No. 2 guy in D.C. But it's cool, he has a chance for points this week.
Taylor Gabriel, WR, Cleveland Browns
Yep, the Browns are another one of those teams who engage in the popcorn popper. You never know who is going to present themselves. I like the 5-foot-8 dynamo to give a lot of fits to the Houston Texans, who have given up a ton of points to fantasy receivers this season.
Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers
Yeah, he kind of burnt us over the weekend. I mean, everybody was partying against the Bears but we didn't see much from Adams. Mostly because the Packers chose to go after the Bears with a two-tight end formation for most of the night. Doh! The Packers could use more three-receiver sets against the Eagles.
Kyle Rudolph, TE, Minnesota Vikings
The Bears give up a ton of fantasy points to tight ends. Then there's Norv Turner. So there are a lot of things going for him if he's healthy enough to return.
Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Washington is pretty generous to opposing tight ends, so this is a nice play. The only thing going against ASJ is he scored last week. Now we're just going to look like we chased the points. But if you need a guy, like if you played Owen Daniels last week or something. He's worth a chase, I suppose. I know, hearty endorsement.
Cleveland Browns, D/ST
This was one of our sleepers last week. Wait, let me check that. Oh no, I didn't. I had the Ravens on there. Whatevs. But if you picked up the Browns last week, you should start them. And if you didn't, see if the unit is available.
For the record, you can submit your fantasy questions to NFL Fantasy Live, Michael Fabiano or me on Twitter. But realize, NFL Fantasy Live has 270K followers, and Fabiano has 165K. Me? Just four. See, the odds are better I will answer your question, so hit me up both via Twitter or via Facebook. And if you follow him on Sundays, he'll quote "The Wolf" from "Pulp Fiction" and then it's game on! Although, it's tough to catch me on Facebook. Twitter is your go-to." Plus seriously people, I'm not taking your tweets after Midnight. I'm into the #HashtagWars via @Midnight.
