Quarterback Jeff Garcia vs. New Orleans - Obviously a great matchup here and the Saint secondary has struggled all season. David Garrard at Houston - We know his OL has been bad, but so has been the Texan defense. Garrard should post good numbers here. Matt Ryan at San Diego - He's been a better NFL QB than for fantasy, but the Charger secondary is one of the worst in the NFL. There could be more passing than first expected. Joe Flacco at Cincinnati - He'll face an injury depleated defense. Running Back Le'Ron McClain at Cincinnati - We're expecting a blowout here so McClain could pile up the yards late in the game. Darren McFadden vs. Kansas City - We know he's been bad for most of the season, but he did go off against KC in the first matchup, and the Raiders are a running team. Justin Fargas vs. Kansas City - He was solid for a change last week and you know they will run the ball a ton in this game. Jonathan Stewart at Green Bay - He's been up and down all season, but the Packer run defense isn't very good. Not a bad low-end starter/flex player here. Fred Taylor at Houston - He's done ...

  EAGLES OFFENSE VS. RAVENS DEFENSE Eagles ran 64 offensive plays, and had only 206 total yards Eagles 3-13 on third down conversions, making them 6-31 (19%) in the last 2 games Second play of the game Celek wide open in the middle of the field, McNabb did not pull the trigger, Instead checked down to Klecko – Left a 15-20 yard play on the field McNabb not seeing the field clearly, A little slow in processing information – Sack to end the first series was a good example, Jackson wide open on shallow cross with running room but McNabb never got to him McNabb had Jackson running free on a go route versus zone coverage on first play of the third series, Either didn’t see him or didn’t feel comfortable making the throw; Checked it down to Klecko on the same side – Again, another example of a QB struggling with clarity and confidence Westbrook limited burst and acceleration, Clearly does not have the same lateral agility and explosiveness we are used to seeing when healthy – On some runs, not even getting what’s blocked First play of second quarter Curtis open to the deep post on “78 pump”, a deep route combination; Pressure forced McNabb out ...

Houston Texans at Cleveland Browns Texans - Nice job by Sage Rosenfels on their first drive of throwing with good timing. He read the defense well and got the ball to his receivers on time with anticipation. - With Houston doubling Andre Johnson, Kevin Walter got one on one coverage and he easily beat short CB Brandon McDonald for a TD. Rosenfels threw it up to Walter who made a nice adjustment on the ball. - Ahman Green got lots of work in the first half before he injured his knee. - Nice mixture of run and pass in the first half. They kept the Cleveland defense guessing. - The Texan OL gave Rosenfels plenty of time to throw the ball in the first half. The Brown defense got next to no pressure on Rosenfels and when they did, he easily stepped up in the pocket to make his throws. - Andre' Davis had a nice long kickoff for a TD called back due to a penalty. - Walter was getting open all the time in the first half. It was just a matter of the ball being spread around to other options and in the running game. - Rosenfels missed Walter late in the first half for a ...

TITANS OFFENSE VS. JETS DEFENSE Titans ran only 51 offensive plays, and had the ball for less than 20 minutes Titans play breakdown: 40 called passes / 11 called runs DT Jenkins once again dominant, and it showed up right away, both in the run game and as a pass rusher – Jenkins controlled and shed C Mawae on 3rd + 1 on Titans second series, White 1 yard loss Jets a high percentage of man coverage concepts, especially in long yardage situations: “2 man” and “man free” Gholston played some snaps as OLB in the base 3-4 front, He was the strong side OLB – Also played some snaps at DE in the dime package Jets front seven an excellent of shedding blocks and finding the football in the run game Scaife a big drop on 3rd + 7 on first series of second quarter: Scaife offset in backfield, DB Barrett had him man-to-man, Scaife beat him on a seam route – Again, Jets “man free” with lurk element Jets had Barrett on Scaife in their man coverage schemes, Clearly game planned Titans had a hard time blocking Jenkins, He was very disruptive versus both run and pass Titans OL overmatched in the first half, Did not sustain blocks ...

Quarterback Jeff Garcia at Detroit - While Jake Delhomme couldn't do it, Garcia will against the weak Lion secondary. Tyler Thigpen vs. Buffalo - He faces an injured Bill secondary. Kyle Orton at St. Louis - He didn't look that good in last week's game, but he faces an injured and struggling Ram defense. Sage Rosenfels at Cleveland - He's very frustrating to watch so I'd suggest just checking his box score after the game, which should be good enough against the weak Brown defense. Running Back Warrick Dunn at Detroit - You couldn't ask for a better matchup against the undisiplined Lion defense. Peyton Hillis vs. Oakland - He'll get enough carries against the weak Oakland defense for you to start him as your #3 RB. Derrick Ward at Arizona - He should get enough touches in this game for you to start him as your flex player. Wide Receiver Antonio Bryant at Detroit - He should have scored a bunch last week and he matches up well against the weak Lion secondary. Bernard Berrian at Jacksonville - He's been struggling of late, but he faces a weak and struggling Jaguar secodnary which gives up big plays. Donnie Avery vs. Chicago - He'll face a struggling Bear secondary which is giving ...

FALCONS OFFENSE VS. BRONCOS DEFENSE Falcons ran 68 offensive plays, and controlled the ball for almost 34 minutes Falcons gained 364 total yards – They were 11-18 on third down conversions Broncos starting LBs: Winborn and Woodyard on the outside, MLB Larsen Falcons again used the unbalanced OL with Dahl, Blaylock and Weiner on the left side with Clabo at RG and Hartsock at RT Broncos dime package featured Williams and Paymah as the extra cornerbacks – Winborn was the only LB Falcons version of the “Wildcat” featured Norwood in the shotgun – Also direct snapped the ball to Snelling Ryan a playmaker element to his game, Can make throws on the move outside the framework of the offense – Great example was White 37 yards versus “cover zero”, Blitzing DB Williams got in clean Ryan overthrew Finneran in the second quarter, Finneran beat CB Bell and it would have been a TD Moss aligned all over the formation in the Broncos dime package, both with his hand on the ground and standing up as a LB Manuel was always the box safety Broncos DL more stout versus run Ryan third quarter interception came against “cover zero”, Again blitzing DB Williams got in clean, Ryan threw it to White without any definition ...

VIKINGS OFFENSE VS. BUCS DEFENSE Vikings only 52 offensive plays, and 210 total yards - They had the ball for only 26 minutes Ruud sack to end Vikings first series came out of “man free” coverage concept in which Bucs had DE Adams man-to-man on TE Shiancoe – This speaks to the athleticism and versatility of Adams Bucs continue to play more man coverage concepts that they have in past seasons under Kiffin S Piscitelli showed some speed on Peterson 22 yard run, He just about ran down Peterson DT Sims giving the Bucs some solid snaps – Sims beat LG Hutchinson on 2nd + goal from the Bucs 3 yard line and stopped Peterson for a loss of 1 Vikings split TE Shiancoe a number of times and had success: He was matched man-to-man versus LB Brooks in the first quarter and caught a fade for 23 yards; In the second quarter, he caught an 18 yard slant against Barber in a “cover 3” zone concept – Vikings clearly trying to create and dictate matchups with Shiancoe There is absolutely no pop or physicality to LT KcKinnie Frerotte not very relaxed, Played fast and undisciplined, Left some plays on the field – He was far too frenetic, ...

BUCS OFFENSE VS. VIKINGS DEFENSE Bucs ran offensive plays, and gained 363 total yards Bucs 5-12 on third down conversions – They got in the red zone 5 times, and scored only 1 TD Gruden a lot of shifting and motion to create the illusion of sophistication Bucs failed to convert on 3rd +1, and 4th + 1 on their first series Dunn 36 yard catch on 3rd + 3 on first quarter FG drive was vintage Garcia: He couldn’t see the throw to Bryant in the middle of the field because of all the big bodies in front of him, so he left the pocket and extended the play; His movement broke down the defense and Dunn worked with him to find an open area down the right sideline – Garcia at his best Bucs version of the “Wildcat”: Direct snap to Dunn in the shotgun, He was flanked by FBs Askew and Cook with Garcia split left – Dunn2 yards Gruden a lot of 2 TE personnel packages, and a lot of tight splits and bunch concepts: He does not have WRs who can consistently win on the outside with isolation routes against corners, including Bryant – Gruden needs to help them with formation, route ...

Editor’s Note: Welcome to a new blog here on FantasyGuru.com. This blog will include the raw notes taken by our own Greg Cosell as he prepares for the Matchup Show on ESPN by analyzing NFL coach’s tape. Greg is Senior Producer of the show, and he’s been a producer at NFL Films for over 20 years. JETS OFFENSE VS. PATRIOTS DEFENSE Jets 375 total yards on 75 offensive plays Jets 9-16 on third down conversions Jets 5 trips inside the red zone, 3 TD Jets play breakdown: 38 called passes / 37 called runs Warren and Thomas inactive for the Patriots; Wright started at DE, Woods at OLB DL Green and LB Guyton played in the nickel package Washington 7 yard TD catch on 3rd + 2: Washington motioned out of the backfield outside of Smith, WR screen to get the ball into Washington’s hands in space Wright not as physical at the point of attack in ...

Here's a look at 11 games from last week with detailed "what you might have missed" observations: DEN-ATL Denver    - It was noticeable that Atlanta wasn't doing to allow the deep ball. Everything thrown was in front of them. - Eddie Royal dropped a wide open throw in the red zone with no one any where near him. - Peyton Hillis is a powerful, decisive runner but he has no lateral quickness. On one of his runs in the first quarter, he could have made a 4-yard gain into a big one had he had any ability to cut back and explode. - Tatum Bell got a carry late in the first quarter. - Brandon Marshall had two bad drops in the first half. He's going to drop at least a few passes each game based on what we've seen this season. He's trying to run first before he catches it. - Bell opened up in the backfield to start the second half. P.J. Pope came in later in that drive. - On the next drive, Pope had a very nice cut back run. He's not fast at all but he'll get down hill. - Hillis almost scored for a third time. He had a few goalline carries but was ...