Random Thoughts From a Fantasy Football Nerd

Sunday, Nov 15, 2009 at 12:00 pm ET

Windows 7 Word Recap - I saw this twice. Once at the end of the Packers/Cowboys and again at the end of the Cardinals/Seahawks game. I'm more of a Linux fan than Microsoft so I found it pretty funny that during both of those segments, the sound went out each time a new word was displayed. At least my television didn't show the blue screen of death and force me to reboot.

It seems I have a love/hate relationship with Chris Johnson. It's great having him on my team in one league, but it really stinks when he's playing against me in another league. "Do well...but not too well." I think it would help if I had a split personality so that we could both enjoy the game.

Brett Favre is like a fine wine - he only gets better with age. In fact, he's gotten much, much better this year but it probably has more to do with his supporting cast. The 2nd half of the season is when Favre tends to blow up. He did that for years with the Packers and last year with the Jets. He's known for it...except for this year. In fact, he's having the best year of his storied career. What a difference a talented running back and a stinging defense can make. He's playing solid football and there's very little reason to expect that to change. What I would like to see change though is the GM position in Green Bay. To quote Jason Whitlock, "The inconvenient, impolite, painful, highly entertaining and worthy-of-ample-discussion truth is Brett Favre wanted out of Green Bay because he believes Ted Thompson is a moron. Favre spent one year in New York just so he could get to Minnesota and prove that Ted Thompson is a moron." I don't want anyone to ever lose their job, but perhaps it's time for Thompson to go. Maybe Justin Harrell can hold the door open for him if his back feels up to it.

The Bengals are for real. Seriously. Their win against the Steelers this week cements them as a playoff-favorite. Let's be honest though. They didn't look very good in their win, but a win against the Steelers is a major win. Ochocinco, Benson, and Palmer weren't the reason that the Bengals won. I'd give the game ball to the Bengals defense. They earned it yet again.

I heard one of those upcoming game commercials earlier this week that I thought was pretty interesting. For those that follow FFN, you know that I'm a Cheesehead and I'll always root for the Packers. With that said, I heard this commercial several times leading up to the Packers/Cowboys game with the tagline "Determining the best team in the NFC". I love the Packers and I was thrilled to see them come away with a win this week, but even I've got to ask "Are you serious?". Neither the Pack nor the Cowboys are the best team in the NFC. Whether you want to make that determination by win-loss record or by sheer, consistent talent in every facet of the game, you've got to put the New Orleans Saints and the Minnesota Vikings in the running for the best team in the NFC. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to see Green Bay representing the NFC in Miami, but I've got a strong feeling that it's going to be the Saints or the Vikings.

Karma definitely plays a role in fantasy football. That's the best way for me to explain how Beanie Wells can suck all year long and then put up a big enough game for my opponent to make me lose. That's also the best way for me to explain how McNabb can throw for 450 yards and a pair of scores the week that I put him on my bench. We all have those games from time to time and it's not fun. Karma is the best answer that I've got right now. I could probably come up with something more intelligent, but I'd need charts and graphs.

If a receiver catches a ball, bobbles it, and then regains control, can I have 2 points in my ppr-league?

Here's a revenue-generating idea for the NFL: Partner with AT&T or Sprint and have people text their verdict (overruled or let the call on the field stand) on a challenge when a team has used up their challenges. Call it a Lifeline. Donate any revenue to a charity of their choosing.

When a player like MJD kneels down on the 1 yard line intentionally instead of scoring, can there be a rule that gives that fantasy owner the TD points anyway? If so, can you make that retroactive for Brian Westbrook's 1 yard line kneel last year?

Side bets make the game even more interesting. I just finished watching Brady toss another TD to Moss and that gives me the win in a league where the loser owes the winner a steak dinner. I won a bet last week where the loser had to post a pic holding a sign saying that the winner was the best. It's great when the pic can get doctored up a bit with Photoshop. It's even better when you're on the winning side and did the doctoring up. Shoot me an email with some of your favorite stories and perhaps I'll share some of them in a future post.