Fantasy Clicks: The calm before the title storm

Recent Fantasy Clicks 12-23-09: All You Need To Know For Week 16 12-21-09: Week 15 Revelations 12-18-09: Thursday Night Revelations (Week 15) 12-16-09: Dontcha Hate When That Happens? 12-13-09: Week 14 Revelations 12-11-09: Thursday Night Revelations (Week 14) 12-09-09: Fantasy Playoff Rules To Live By 12-07-09: Week 13 Revelations 12-04-09: Thursday Night Revelations (Week 13) 12-02-09: The Believers Of Calvinism 11-30-09: Week 12 Revelations 11-27-09: Turkey Day Revelations 11-25-09: All Hail The Perfect Showdown 11-23-09: Week 11 Revelations 11-20-09: Thursday Night Revelations, Week 11 11-18-09: Trade Deadline Rules To Live By 11-16-09: Week 10 Revelations 11-13-09: Thursday Night Revelations, Week 10 11-11-09: The Ballad Of Alex Smith 11-09-09: Week 9 Revelations 11-06-09: The Daffy Dichotomy Of DeAngelo 11-04-09: A Pre-Flight Trade Checklist 11-02-09: Week 8 Revelations 10-30-09: Meet The Avoidables 10-28-09: Rodgers vs. Favre -- A Lambeau Reunion 10-26-09: Week 7 Revelations 10-23-09: Fright ... For Old D.C. 10-21-09: Shoot For The Moon With Brady 10-18-09: Week 6 Revelations 10-16-09: The Pittsburgh Shell Game 10-14-09: The Tailback Honeymoon's Over 9-28-09: Week 3 Revelations 9-25-09: LT -- An Age-Old Question 9-23-09: Don't Sweat The 0-2 Blues

I Tweet, Therefore I Am

Anquan Boldin: Elsa/Getty Images

@B4him13 asks: I need 2 WRs, 1 TE and 1 Flex from Anquan Boldin, Calvin Johnson, Sidney Rice, Vincent Jackson, Antonio Gates, Vernon Davis, Joseph Addai, Laurence Maroney. Thanks!

Answer: Assuming this is for your championship round, let's ride Boldin and Jackson at wide receiver ... Vernon Davis at tight end ... and Addai (barely) over Maroney at the flex spot. Thanks and good luck!

@mscalese wonders: My 3rd and 4th WRs are Joshua Cribbs/Jeremy Maclin (DeSean Jackson/Percy Harvin are 1-2). At $1 each, are Cribbs and Maclin keepers as backups? I have plenty of roster space.

Answer: If you're in a league where kick-return TDs (or yards) are factored in, obviously, you're not going to part with Cribbs ... and you'll probably start him, as well. But if kick returns are nonfactors, you'll want to dump Maclin/Cribbs for any one of the following WRs: Kenny Britt, Justin Gage, Davone Bess, Mike Wallace, Josh Morgan. Now, if we're talking about Cribbs and Maclin as keeper-league options for 2010 ... then yes, I would keep 'em both -- especially at that bottom-barrel price. Thanks!

@saintjonah says: I need three running backs from Thomas Jones, Ray Rice, Ryan Grant, Rashard Mendenhall and Maurice Jones-Drew. Plus, I could still get Jerome Harrison off waivers. (I made the championship round in three leagues!)

Answer: Wow! What an embarrassment of riches at running back on your roster! And yet, I think I'd start Harrison (if acquired) over Mendenhall, Grant and Thomas Jones -- even though they all have somewhat-attractive matchups in Week 16. My big three would be Mo-Jones Drew, Ray Rice and Harrison. Thanks and good luck!

@amtandrew asks: I'm in the championship round! Do I go with T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Braylon Edwards, Robert Meachem? I need to start two. And ... what about Kurt Warner or Carson Palmer?

Answer: Ugh! Are you seriously going for a fantasy championship with either Housh, Braylon or even Meachem as your No. 1 wide receiver? Please tell me that Chris Johnson, Steven Jackson and Frank Gore are your three starters at RB ... otherwise, I don't like your chances of winning it all. Of course, there's still time to find a better crop of receivers on waivers; even in 14- or 16-team leagues, I bet you could find a trio with greater upside for Week 16. As for the quarterbacks, since Arizona still has a shot at the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs, I would go with Warner over Palmer -- regardless of the Cincy weather on Sunday. Thanks!

Just So You Know ...

Based on our research from ProFootballReference.com, Cleveland's Jerome Harrison is a long shot at breaking one of the NFL's most unsung records: The most combined rushing yards in back-to-back games. According to our figures, Harrison needs to follow up his 286-yard day against Kansas City last week -- No. 3 on the list of all-time single-game performances -- with 191 rushing yards against Oakland at home in Week 16. Otherwise, Hall of Famer (and infamous celeb) O.J. Simpson would still own the consecutive-games rushing record of 476 yards (1976). Which brings us to the following list ... the top 10 single-game rushers of alltime -- along with how they fared the following week:

1. Adrian Peterson, Vikings -- 296 + 45 = 341 yards (2007)
2. Jamal Lewis, Ravens -- 295 + 132 = 427 yards (2003)
3. Jerome Harrison, Browns -- 286 + ? (2009)
4. Corey Dillon, Bengals -- 278 + 137 = 415 yards (2000)
5. Walter Payton, Bears -- 275 + 137 = 412 yards (1977)
6. O.J. Simpson, Bills -- 273 + 203 = 476 yards (1976)
7. O.J. Simpson, Bills -- 250 + 103 = 353 yards (1973)
8. Willie Ellison, Rams -- 247 + 48 = 295 yards (1971)
9. Cookie Gilchrist, Bills -- 243 + 114 = 341 yards (1963)
10. Jim Brown, Browns -- 237 + 68 = 305 yards (1961)

QB Locks For 275 Yards and/or 3 TDs

1. Philip Rivers @ Tennessee
2. Aaron Rodgers vs. Seattle
3. Kurt Warner vs. St. Louis
4. Chad Henne vs. Houston
5. Eli Manning vs. Carolina
6. Drew Brees vs. Tampa Bay
7. Donovan McNabb vs. Denver
8. Peyton Manning vs. N.Y. Jets

Target Practice

A receiver is only as good as his quarterback ... and the number of opportunities he gets to make a catch (known as Targets -- an absolutely critical stat for PPR leagues). This underrated category is the best way to safeguard against one-hit wonders during a looooong fantasy season. To wit, SI.com presents a list of the 26 wideouts with at least 36 Targets since Week 11:

1. Brandon Marshall, Broncos -- 65 Targets
2. Wes Welker, Patriots -- 64 Targets
3. Andre Johnson, Texans -- 62 Targets
4. Roddy White, Falcons -- 61 Targets
5. Calvin Johnson, Lions -- 52
6. Miles Austin, Cowboys -- 51
7. Derrick Mason, Ravens -- 50
8. Steve Smith, Giants -- 49
9. Hines Ward, Steelers -- 48
10. Santonio Holmes, Steelers -- 47
11. Steve Smith, Panthers -- 47
12. Brandon Gibson, Rams -- 46
13. Sidney Rice, Vikings -- 46
14. Anquan Boldin, Cardinals -- 45
15. Michael Crabtree, 49ers -- 43
16. Mike Sims-Walker, Jaguars -- 41
17. Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals -- 40
18. Santana Moss, Redskins -- 40
19. Greg Jennings, Packers -- 39
20. Donnie Avery, Rams -- 38
21. Davone Bess, Dolphins -- 38
22. Chad Ochocinco, Bengals -- 37
23. Reggie Wayne, Colts -- 37
24. Pierre Garcon, Colts -- 36
25. T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Seahawks -- 36
26. Mohamed Massaquoi, Browns -- 36

Target Practice, Part II

One good turn deserves another. Here are the 22 RBs with 16 or more Targets since Week 11:
1. Frank Gore, 49ers -- 33
2. Ray Rice, Ravens -- 32
3. Steven Jackson, Rams -- 29
4. Justin Forsett, Seahawks -- 25
5. Chris Johnson, Titans -- 23
6. Pierre Thomas, Saints -- 22
7. Jamaal Charles, Chiefs -- 21
8. Adrian Peterson, Vikings -- 21
9. Matt Forte, Bears -- 21
10. Kevin Faulk, Patriots -- 20
11. Jerome Harrison, Browns -- 20
12. Fred Jackson, Bills -- 19
13. Joseph Addai, Colts -- 19
14. LeSean McCoy, Eagles -- 19
15. Rock Cartwright, Redskins -- 18
16. Darren Sproles, Chargers -- 18
17. Chester Taylor, Vikings -- 18
18. Tim Hightower, Cardinals -- 17
19. Brandon Jackson, Packers-- 17
20. Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars -- 17
21. Darren McFadden, Raiders -- 16
22. Jason Snelling, Falcons -- 16

Leftovers ... Again?

Here are the 10 best available free agents for 12-team, standard-scoring leagues:
1. RB Jerome Harrison, Browns
2. QB Chad Henne, Dolphins
3. RB Michael Bush, Raiders
4. WR Kenny Britt, Titans
5. WR Justin Gage, Titans
6. TE Kevin Boss, Giants
7. QB Vince Young, Titans
8. RB Chris Jennings, Browns
9. RB Maurice Morris, Lions
10. QB Matt Leinart, Cardinals

Welcome Back, Accuscore!

We channeled the lovable eggheads at AccuScore to solve a mini-crisis around the SI.com office: Who are the best five fantasy QBs from this point forward? ... prompting these computer findings (as simulated one billion times -- or something like that):

Passing Yards
1. Kurt Warner, Cardinals (568)
2. Matt Schaub, Texans (561)
3. Drew Brees, Saints (559)
4. Aaron Rodgers, Packers (556)
5. Tom Brady, Patriots (537)
6. Philip Rivers, Chargers (533)
7. Tony Romo, Cowboys (510)
8. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers (503)
9. Eli Manning, Giants (498)
10. Donovan McNabb, Eagles (483)

Touchdowns
1. Kurt Warner, Cardinals (4.42)
2. Drew Brees, Saints (4.33)
3. Aaron Rodgers, Packers (4.02)
4. Tom Brady, Patriots (3.97)
5. Brett Favre, Vikings (3.96)
6. Philip Rivers, Chargers (3.79)
7. Matt Schaub, Texans (3.63)
8. Tony Romo, Cowboys (3.45)
9. Alex Smith, 49ers (3.43)
10. Eli Manning, Giants (3.39)

For more amazing NFL-related information from Accuscore, simply click here.

RB Locks -- 120 Total Yards and/or 2 TDs

1. Chris Johnson vs. San Diego
2. Fred Jackson @ Atlanta
3. Jason Snelling vs. Buffalo
4. Cedric Benson vs. Kansas City
5. Jamaal Charles @ Cincinnati
6. Jerome Harrison vs. Oakland
7. Frank Gore vs. Detroit
8. Ryan Grant vs. Seattle
9. Maurice Jones-Drew @ New England
10. Knowshon Moreno @ Philadelphia
11. Ray Rice @ Pittsburgh
12. Beanie Wells vs. St. Louis
13. Joseph Addai vs. N.Y. Jets
14. DeAngelo Williams @ N.Y. Giants

America's Top 10

It's foolish to guarantee 100 yards and/or one touchdown with tight ends, since their stats -- stars included -- tend to fluctuate wildly from week to week. Instead, here's our top 10 most productive tight ends for Week 16:

1. Dallas Clark vs. N.Y. Jets
2. Vernon Davis vs. Detroit
3. Kellen Winslow @ New Orleans
4. Brent Celek vs. Denver
5. Tony Gonzalez vs. Buffalo
6. Jason Witten @ Washington
7. Fred Davis vs. Dallas
8. Heath Miller vs. Baltimore
9. Antonio Gates @ Tennessee
10. Shawn Nelson @ Atlanta

WR Locks -- 110 Total Yards and/or 1 TD

1. Larry Fitzgerald vs. St. Louis
2. Marques Colston vs. Tampa Bay
3. Greg Jennings vs. Seattle
4. Vincent Jackson @ Tennessee
5. Kenny Britt vs. San Diego
6. Andre Johnson @ Miami
7. Michael Crabtree vs. Detroit
8. DeSean Jackson vs. Denver
9. Austin Collie vs. N.Y. Jets
10. Brandon Marshall @ Philadelphia
11. Anquan Boldin vs. St. Louis
10. Hines Ward vs. Baltimore
11. Randy Moss vs. Jacksonville

The Relentless Pursuit Of Perfection

In case you're scoring at home, here's my dream lineup for Week 16:
QB Drew Brees
RB Chris Johnson
RB Frank Gore
WR Andre Johnson
WR Larry Fitzgerald
RB/WR Jerome Harrison
TE Dallas Clark
PK Joe Nedney
D/ST San Francisco 49ers (simply follow the strench-trail that is the Rams, Browns, Chiefs, Bucs or -- in this case -- Lions)

I Can't Leave Without Saying ...

Merry Christmas to everyone! But NOT a Happy New Year -- for now, that is -- since we'll have more Clicks/Revelations after Week 17. Boom!

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