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Mulligans fantasy forecast: Week 14

6 min read

Observer sports writer

For most fantasy leagues, the playoffs are upon us here in Week 14. Congrats go out to those who were smart enough and lucky enough to make it this far because let’s face it, fantasy football takes equal parts knowledge and luck to be good.

As I said last season, this is the time of year when match ups become very important, not that they’re meaningless during the regular season. It’s just that every little thing now goes under a microscope and fantasy owners are faced with some tough decisions. The decision whether or not to play Braylon Edwards this week against the Titans is a prime example of that. (More on that later.)

What owners also need to take into account is a particular player’s playing time. It shouldn’t come into effect this week but say an NFL team has already clinched their division and locked up a first round bye. They’re going to be less inclined to play their star players for the rest of the regular season and more inclined to make sure they do everything possibly to remain healthy for the NFL playoffs.

If you have someone like Titans RB Chris Johnson or Giants QB Eli Manning, this is a scenario you’ll want to pay attention to in the next few weeks. It’s highly possible that if you make it to your fantasy league championship game in Week 16 that you could be without the services of these players for an entire game, thus putting you at a disadvantage. Attention to all details and every player’s individual situation is a must from here on out.

Injury news

Derek Anderson, QB, Browns: First it was Quinn and now it’s Anderson. The Browns have lost Anderson for the season after he suffered what is being reported as a torn MCL last week. Hey, at least Romeo Crennel no longer has to decide who to start between Quinn and Anderson. So he’s got that going for him, which is nice.

Wes Welker, WR, Patriots: For those of you who haven’t seen the highlight yet, Welker was laid out by the Steelers’ Ryan Clark on Sunday. The vicious hit knocked Welker out of the game but there is no word as of late Monday night on whether he suffered a concussion or not. Welker has proven to be quite durable in his career so there’s a good chance he’ll play this week unless it’s revealed that he suffered a serious concussion.

Plaxico Burress, WR, Giants: Accidental gunshot wound. Those three words really sum up Plaxico’s season. Needless to say, he won’t be playing this week and there’s probably a good chance he may not play again this season.

Good match up

Randy Moss vs. Seahawks defense: Moss had himself a tough game last week against what is probably the best defense in the NFL in the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even still, he managed four catches for 45 yards which isn’t good, but it’s not necessarily terrible considering the opponent. This week we can look for Moss to rebound in a big way against one of the worst pass defenses in the Seattle Seahawks.

Actually, the Seahawks are the worst pass defense in the league based on their allowing over 265 yards passing per game this season. Tony Romo and Kurt Warner have shredded their secondary in the past three weeks and I would expect Matt Cassel and Randy Moss to do much of the same this week. Wes Welker may see limited snaps or may not play at all if he’s found to have suffered a concussion in last week’s game so Moss should be targeted more than usual and I would fully expect him to approach 100 yards and a touchdown or two (or three) this week.

Not so good match up

Braylon Edwards vs. Titans defense: Edwards is a must sit this week. I repeat. Braylon Edwards cannot be in your fantasy lineups this week if you plan on winning. And the reason why really doesn’t have much to do with the way he’s been playing lately. It has more to do with the fact that he’ll be going up against the Titans fourth ranked pass defense (in terms of yards allowed per game) and that his quarterback will be Ken Dorsey.

Dorsey gets the start with Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn both lost for the rest of this season. There’s a reason Dorsey is a third string QB so don’t go thinking he’s the next Matt Cassel here. As for the Titans, they’ve been allowing less than 185 yards passing per game this season and just came off a drubbing of the Detroit Lions. This one will likely be just as ugly. I know it’s tough, but you need to sit Edwards this week for your own good.

Waiver wire watch

Joe Flacco, QB, Ravens: Flacco tore up the Cincinnati Bengals last week with his best game of the season by throwing for 280 yards and 2 TDs. However, he hasn’t shown he can do that on a consistent basis and with two tough match ups against the Redskins and Steelers coming up, I would leave him on the waiver wire.

Peyton Hillis, RB, Broncos: Hillis had himself a great game against the Jets last week when he ran for 129 yards and a TD. He’s clearly the man at RB in Denver and has a great match up against the Chiefs this week. If you need a RB for one week you probably can’t do much better of the waiver wire than Peyton Hillis.

Mark Clayton, WR, Ravens: Clayton exploded for his best game of the season last week when he caught 5 passes for 164 yards and a TD against the Bengals. Granted, it was against the Bengals but Clayton has played pretty well over the last several weeks save for one worthless game against the Giants. It may be time to give Clayton a shot on your team but just know that he has some tougher match ups coming against Washington and Pittsburgh in the next two weeks.

John Carlson, TE, Seahawks: Rookie John Carlson is very quietly turning into one of the best tight end options in fantasy football. He recorded his first 100 yard game of his career last week against the Cowboys when he hauled in six catches for 105 yards. If you need help at tight end there probably isn’t a better option available in your league than Carlson. If he’s still there, that is.

Kyle Mulligan is a contributing sports writer for the Observer. He welcomes your fantasy predictions and feedback. He can be reached at kjmulli@gmail.com.