Although I got word that Chad Ochocinco has stopped using the phrase “Child Please”, I will continue on as I believe there are still many of those moments out there every week. So please enjoy…..

Pink says Child Please to Breast Cancer – The NFL involvement in support the fight against breast cancer was great, as all teams wore some type of pink, including: hats, cleats, towels, gloves and any other outerwear. Kudos goes out to all involved. However I thought my TV was messed up when I saw the Broncos game and they were wearing pink gloves. Child Please.

Brandon Marshall says Child Please to Terrance Newman – When the Broncos needed a play Marshall came up big. Terrance Newman had great coverage on Marshall but Marshall jumped up and snatched the ball from over Newman’s head and took off down the field. He then reversed direction and continued on for a 51 yard touchdown. Child Please.

Denver Broncos Defense says Child Please to all non-believers – I was a non-believer but they are starting to get my attention. The D is back in Denver. They have been very impressive. The Cowboys scored the most against the Denver defensive unit. 10 points. Child Please.

Brett Favre says Child Please to all NFL teams – What a great game against the Pack as Favre literally led his team to victory over his old team. Favre has effectively beat every single NFL team in his career, with the Packers being the last. Right now if you think Favre is washed up. Child Please.

Aqib Talib says Child Please to Jason Campbell – It’s one thing to throw 3 interceptions in one game, but to throw 3 interceptions to the same person is just a bad bad day. The only bright spot for the Bucs right now could be those 3 picks by Talib because Washington still pulled off the win. Child Please.

Darrelle Revis says Child Please to all number one receivers –Andre Johnson, Randy Moss, and now Marques Colston all have been shut down by Revis (Tennessee doesn’t have an outstanding #1). Colston was held to just 2 catches for 33 yards. Next is Miami, which he will effectively shut down any of their receivers. If you think Ted Ginn, or any of those receivers will be able to have a big day against Revis. Child Please.

Saints Defense says Child Please to Mark Sanchez – Hmmmm. I believe I mentioned that the Jets defense would say child please to Drew Brees, but it seems like it was the other way around. Sanchez finally showed that he was a rookie, while the Saints defense showed that they are pretty darn good. They had two defensive touchdowns and gave Sanchez his worst game of the season. Sanchez threw for just 138 yards, 0 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Child Please.

Rashard Mendenhall says Child Please to Willie Parker…..for good – After the Sunday Night performance, Mendenhall might have taken the torch from FWP for good. He had an amazing game and ran with the toughness that Coach Tomlin likes. What did he do? Just ran for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns. Child Please.

Playoff history says Child Please to the Tennessee Titans – Coming in as one of the top in their division, the Titans are a longshot even for a wild card spot. The only team in NFL history to recover from a 0 – 4 start and make the playoffs are the 1992 San Diego Chargers. Guess who they play the next two weeks. Indianapolis and New England. Child Please.

Completion percentage says Child Please to JaMarcus Russell – There has to be a better option anywhere in the league. Any second string, third string, anybody….Russell completed just 12 of 33 passes against the Texans. Which means he was completing passes just 36% of the time. I’m starting to think Heyward-Bey just got the short end of the stick. Also remember that Houston has one of the worst defenses in the league, but managed to bottle up McFadden and Russell. Child Please.

We’re four weeks into the season, and 28 of the NFL’s 32 teams have played their first four games. There was a lot to glean from these games, and an important aspect of fantasy football is recognizing trends and adjusting to them. This series of posts hopes to shed some light on all 32 teams through statistical analysis.

1) Fred Jackson’s value is declining rapidly. Though Buffalo’s third-year running back has already carried 70 times and has 88 total touches through four games, the return of Marshawn Lynch spells trouble. Furthermore, Jackson has only scored once in the first four games (on a reception), and he hasn’t scored since week one.

(Below is a graph of Fred Jackson’s fantasy points this season on a week-by-week basis.)

2) The addition of Terrell Owens isn’t living up to the hype — yet. Owens has 8 receptions this season and week three he was held to zero. He’s been targeted 20 times this season, and he was even targeted five times week three. Trent Edwards wants him to get the ball, but defenses have been all over it. It also means that if the rapport between Edwards and Owens heats up, Owens could develop into a bigger feature. Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened yet.

3) Fred Jackson has been the most targeted receiver in Buffalo’s offense. If Marshawn Lynch steals carries, he probably won’t steal (many) receptions. Expect Jackson to play a vital role in the Bills’ offense all season long.

(The graph below displays the leading “targeted” receivers.)

4) Trent Edwards has not improved significantly since last season, but his touchdown numbers have. In spite of the addition of Terrell Owens, Edwards’ efficiency numbers haven’t risen significantly. He’s completed under 60 percent of his pass attempts for five touchdowns and five interceptions. He is on pace for nearly twice as many touchdowns as last season, but he’s also set to throw twice as many interceptions. Furthermore, his yards per attempt has actually declined 0.4 points since last season.

5) Josh Reed might be the most consistent receiver in Buffalo’s offense. He’s played just three games but is already second on the team in receptions. He caught 10 passes for 106 yards between weeks two and three, and though he caught just one pass week four, it was a touchdown. His production isn’t overly impressive, but it is somewhat striking that he’s ahead of both Terrell Owens and Lee Evans in receptions.

Rant of the Week

Before we get into the Child Please moments I have to
mention a couple things. I read Peter King’s Monday Morning
Quarterback every week and I absolutely hate two thing about
it. (Everything else I like). The first thing is that he
writes about politics, even though he gave his word that he
would never put politics in his article again, after fans
told him they do not appreciate him doing it. So much for
his word.

Second is he can not stop putting baseball in his column.
His article is called Monday Morning Quarterback. Honestly
if he wants to talk about baseball become a baseball writer.
He will do anything to include baseball in his article every
week. I guess I will file this under Factoid that will only
interest me. End of Rant.

Child Please Moments of Week 3

The Lions say Child Please to the Loss Column – After 19
straight losses the Lions should us that they did not forget
what winning was and topped the Redskins 14 to 19.
The Lions held the ball 22 of the first 30 minutes of the
game and converted 9 of 12 3rd downs. Controlling the game
helped them put the Redskins away. You think the Lions care
about Jim Zorn’s job security. Child Please.

Greg Lewis says Child Please to the Patriots – Greg Lewis
caught the game winning touchdown on a play that he wasn’t
even supposed to be in on. That was supposed to be Percy
Harvin, but he was too tired to go in. Well Lewis made an
amazing catch and managed to get both feet in. He stepped up
when needed. Brett Favre didn’t even know who he was before
that play. The Patriots are probably kicking themselves for
cutting Lewis earlier this month. Now they are stuck with
Joey Galloway. Child Please.

Mark Sanchez says Child Please to the Titans goal-line
defense – Sanchez became the 1st rookie QB to win his 1st 3
NFL games since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. He also scored
his first rushing touchdown on a 14 yard play where he met
the defender head on, bounced off of him and ended in the
end zone. No defender was going to stop him on that play.
Child Please.

Injuries say Child Please to Frank Gore – Gore seemed to be
picking it up after the 207 yard, 2 touchdown day last week.
However, injuries will always stop someone from performing.
It is stated that Frank gore has a high ankle sprain and
probably won’t be back until after the bye week in week 6.
Those who were riding the Gore train better pick up Glen
Coffee, and if he is not available, that owner picked him up
before you just said Child Please.

The 49ers say Child Please to Adrian Peterson – AD has been
a fantasy beast as expected for the 1st two weeks of the
season. He has had 4 touchdowns in the first 2 weeks.
Normally you would expect him to do well against the 49ers,
but the much improved unit kept Peterson to under 100 yards
rushing and no touchdowns. Child Please.

Pierre Thomas says Child Please to the passing game – If you
thought the Saints could only win if they air it out, I
guess Thomas proved us wrong. He came back with vengeance, I
guess he might have been mad that Mike Bell temporarily took
the spotlight. He had 126 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns.
All well Brees had a very normal day, many fantasy owners
are mad about that. Did I mention Thomas didn’t get any
carries until the second half. Child Please.

Pierre Garcon says Child Please to Marvin Harrison and
Anthony Gonzalez – Another Pierre is making some noise.
People thought the Colts would take a hit when Harrison was
released, but they had a good replacement with Anthony
Gonzalez. After Gonzalez went down they thought for sure
Manning and Co. would have problems. However, Garcon has
stepped up and is showing that he might be the better
option. Don’t hurry back Anthony. Child Please.

The ball says Child Please to Kerry Collins – Kerry Collins
tried to bring the Titans back but ended the game with 13
consecutive incompletions. Child Please.

Willis McGahee says Child Please to everyone – Many peeople
wrote off McGahee and went for the high potential Ray Rice.
Even McClain had more value in many fans eyes. Well McGahee
has a league leading 6 touchdowns and he doesn’t even start.
Child Please.

Trent Edwards says Child Please to Terrell Owens and Lee
Evans – Not that this is on purpose but Edwards is killing
the value of Owens and Evans. Both are big play threats, but
Edwards can’t seem to get it to them down the field. He has
to stick with the short dump off type routes, which in turn
is pretty much saying. This could cause problems if the
Bills can not get the ball to Owens. In which he might be
saying. Child Please.

Potential Week 4 Child Please Moments

The Jets D might say Child Please to Drew Brees – Brees will
get his first tough match-up. Jets are for real. Colston
better watch out for Revis.

The NFL Schedule might say Child Please to the Broncos –
What is given can be taken away. The Broncos enjoyed their
cupcakes early and got off to a 3-0 start. I have to give
them some credit. However their next opponents – Dallas, New
England, San Diego, Bye, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh. Child
Please.

Brett Favre could say Child Please to The Pack, or the other
way around – Either way neither one of them are missing the
other.

Winning and Losing Line-ups

You probably won with this surprising line-up

Kevin Kolb – 327 Pass Yds, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 1 Rush TD – We can
wait, McNabb
Willie Parker – 95 Rush Yds, 2 Rec, 36 Yds, 1 TD – He does
exist
Julius Jones – 98 Rush Yds, 0 TDs, 3 Rec, 38 Yds, 1 TD
Santana Moss – 10 Rec, 178 Yds, 1 TD – He exists too
Derrick Mason – 5 Rec, 118 Yds, 1 TD – Bounce back from
retirement
Vernon Davis – 7 Rec, 96 Yds, 2 TDs – Its about time

You probably lost with this star studded line-up

Drew Brees – 172 Pass Yds, 0 TDs, 0 INTs, 1 FL – He’s not
superman
Clinton Portis – 42 Rush Yds, 0 TDs, 1 Rec, 6 Yds – Hope you
chose the other Cane
Darren McFadden – 45 Rush Yds, 0 TDs, 2 Rec, 3 Yds, 1 FL –
Broncos run D, much better
Terrell Owens – 0 catches – Here comes the meltdown
Roddy White – 4 Rec, 24 Yds, 0 TDs
Tony Gonzalez – 1 Rec, 16 Yds, 0 TDs

The Overview

Despite a strong effort against the Colts week one, Jacksonville (0-2) fell to Arizona a week later by a margin of 14. In the same day, Houston’s offense found its spark in a shootout win at Tennessee. The Texans (1-1) were reeling after a smothering defeat at the hands of the Jets, 24-7, the week before.

Both teams have displayed serious inconsistency through two weeks, and this division game will come down to which team shows its best face.

When Jacksonville has the ball …

The Jaguars best weapon, Maurice Jones-Drew, was one of the most underutilized players on offense last week against Arizona. Despite his 5.1 yards per carry average in the game, Jones-Drew carried just 13 times, while David Garrard went to the air 43 times.

Garrard wasn’t too spectacular in that game. In fact, he hasn’t been very good at all this season. His completion percentage has hovered around 50 percent in both games — it’s 52.1 percent this season — and his touchdown percentage (2.8 percent) is quite low.

Meanwhile, against the Cardinals, Jones-Drew was stopped for a loss once, and he picked up three or more yards on 11 of his 13 carries. When he carried 21 times the week before, he rushed for 97 yards and a touchdown in a much closer game. Furthermore, David Garrard didn’t throw an interception or fumble three times.

Considering Houston’s defense allowed Chris Johnson and Thomas Jones to rush for 197 and 107 yards, respectively, a big dose of Jones-Drew could be exactly what Jacksonville needs to win its first division game of the season.

When Houston has the ball …

Matt Schaub lit the Titans up for 357 passing yards and four touchdowns last week and it proved to be enough to get Houston past division foe Tennessee. Schaub’s stellar performance was matched only by Andre Johnson who caught 10 of Schaub’s 25 completions for 149 yards and two touchdowns.

The week before wasn’t the same story; Schaub struggled to pass the ball against the Jets’ defense, putting up just 166 yards, while completing just a tad over half his pass attempts. Andre Johnson caught just four passes for 35 yards in that game.

Steve Slaton is the one player who has noticeably struggled in both games this season. Slaton is averaging just two yards per carry this season, and he hasn’t broken that mark in either game. He has 51 rushing yards this season, and is still yet to score a touchdown. Whether he’ll turn it around soon is a big question mark for the Texans this season.

Jacksonville has been weaker against the pass this season, partly due to facing two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL: Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner. Schaub can hold his own, too, so the passing game will be crucial to the Texans’ success.

The advantage goes to …

Houston at home. The Texans finally found a spark last week, whereas Jacksonville only found more struggles. Unless Jacksonville can contain the Texans potentially lethal offense, this will be a very difficult road game.

Booms, Busts, and Sleepers

Boom: Matt Schaub — Matt Schuab was outstanding last week against the Titans, and considering the Jaguars’ trouble getting pressure to opponents’ quarterbacks, this could be another big week for the Texans’ passing game.

Bust: Steve Slaton — The Texans have the 22nd ranked passing defense, so the odds of this game turning into a high scoring affair is relatively high. That means less carries and touches for Slaton, and more pass attempts for Schaub.

Sleeper: Omar Daniels — He has 10 receptions for 116 yards and one touchdown this season, and last week was a big game for him: 6 receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown. He could be primed for another solid showing this week.

 This week’s Child Please Moments are a little more interesting since players were dominating more things than just other players and teams. There was no shortage however. Before we get started I had a Child Please Moment of my own. This past week my fantasy football line-up had:

Philip Rivers - (55 pts)

Chris Johnson - (66 pts), along with Steven Jackson, Reggie Wayne, Terrell Owens, Tony Gonzalez, Ryan Longwell, and Steelers D.

Do you think I lost. Child Please. I scored the most points in my league last week…Anyway here we go.

Darrelle Revis says Child Please to all the top NFL
Receivers – So far Revis has shut down Andre Johnson ( 4
rec. 34 yards) and Randy Moss ( 4 rec. 24 yards) The weeks
they have not played the Jets, Johnson and Mosee both had
spectacular days. At this point if a top receiver thinks he
will post big stats on Revis. Child Please.

The Endzone says Child Please to the Cleveland Browns – The
Broncos have an improved defense but nothing too special,
but the Browns still could not stick it in the endzone. The
Browns have scored just one touchdown is 32 consecutive
quarters. Child Please.
The NFL Scheduling committee says Child Please to the Kansas
City Chiefs – The NFL must dislike the Chiefs or really like
the Broncos, because the Chiefs have a tough schedule coming
up. They have lost 25 of its 27 past games, but no mercy.
They get Philadelphia, NY Giants and Dallas for their next
three games. Child Please.

Chris Johnson says Child Please to all track stars around
the world – Who needs goalline carries if you just keep
scoring for 50+ yards out. Not a single person can catch
him. He scored from 91, 57 and 69 yards out, with amazing
speed. Not to mention he has a helmet and shoulder pads
holding him down. Put Usain Bolt in pads. Child Please.

Ray Lewis says Child Please to Darren Sproles – Sproles has
been playing very well so far this season but it looks like
experience can trump youthfulness. The Chargers were on
their way to another comeback with a 4th and 2 on the Ravens
15. Sproles got the ball but Lewis shot the gap and held
Sproles to a 4 yard loss. Sproles has amazing quickness but
Lewis ended any chance of the Chargers being 2-0. Child
Please.
Kurt Warner and Brett Favre says Child Please to age – Maybe
their arm strength is not as good as it was in their younger
days but Warner was 24 of 26 with a 92% completion rating.
Favre went 23 of 27. This is compared to the much younger
JaMarcus Russel going 7 of 24. Child Please.

Frank Gore, Carson Palmer, Andre Johnson, Matt Shaub and
Jake Delhomme all say Child Please to week one – All of
these players had trouble in week one and made many fantasy
owners doubt them in week two. Well they all responded and
put some doubt to rest. Shaub and Johnson had trouble in
week one but exploded for 357 yards and 4 touchdowns (Shaub)
and 10 catches for 149 and 2 touchdowns (Johnson). Gore did
score 2 times in week 1 but had 22 rushes for 30 yards and a
fumble. That is a 1.4 YPA. Horrible. He came back with 207
rushing yards and two touchdowns and five catches for 39
yards. Palmer had 4 touchdowns this week, after a bad outing
against Denver. Lastly Delhomme showed he was still alive
with 308 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. If you doubted them in week
two. Child Please.

Fred Jackson says Child Please to Marshawn Lynch – Fred who?
Sometimes you just need an opportunity to porve what you
got, and Jackson is definitely taking advantage. He is
making the Bills forget about Lynch with two great weeks. He
rushed for 163 yards and caught 6 passes for 25 yards. Lynch
we are ready for you. Child Please.

Jay Cutler says Child Please to Brandon Marshall – Cutler
showed that he no longer needs Brandon Marshall to be
successful, since he has his new target, Johnny Knox…..Yes
Johnny Knox. He had 6 catches for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Marshall had 3 rec. for 34 yards. Child Please.

Child Please moments are when a player or team makes a great play to embarrass or dominate another player or team. They might have even played better than another teammate. Here are this week’s moments.

Drew Brees says Child Please to the whole Detroit Lions defense – Drew Brees shredded the Detroit Lions defense with 6 touchdown passes. He ended up with 385 yards passing. This is the first quaterback in NFL history to open the season with 6 touchdown passes. He even threw two touchdowns to MIA Jeremy Shockey. Child Please.

Al Harris says Child Please to Jay Cutler – On the last comeback attempt for Cutler and the Bears, Cutler attempted to throw a stop route to one of his receivers and Al Harris stepped in front to pick it off and ended any chance of a comeback. That was Cuter’s 4^th interception of the night. Child Please.

Atlanta’s D says Child Please to the Miami’s Wildcat offense – With Pat White and Ronnie Brown, you already knew the Dolphins would try out their Wildcat against the Falcons. Well they did, and it resulted in 3 plays for 4 yards. Child Please.

Adrian Peterson says Child Please to the Cleveland Browns defense – Peterson continues to amaze everyone when he breaks a long run to the zone. This time it was a 64 yard scamper, where he literally grabbed a defender with his right hand and threw him off of him on his way to a score. He ended up with 180 yards on 25 carries. He gets the Lions next week. Child Please.

Brandon Stokley says Child Please to the Bengals – Although it was a miracle, Stokley made a very smart play by being in the right position for a tipped ball. The ball was tipped and Stokley caught it and ran for the TD. On top of that he burned 5 seconds off the clock at the one yard line before scoring. The only person trying to chase him down was linebacker Dhani Jones. Child Please.

Mike Bell says Child Please to Reggie Bush – With Pierre Thomas out, Reggie Bush seemed like the man to go to. Well that was not the case. Mike Bell ended up rushing for 143 yards, 1 of 5 backs to go over 100 yards in week 1. As for Reggie Bush? 7 rushes for 14 yards, and 55 receiving yards. Child Please.

Madden Curse says Child Please to Troy Polamalu – The streak continues as Polamalu made a Madden cover appearance just to get a sprained knee in week 1. If you think you can avoid the madden curse, Child Please.

Tequila says Child Please to LenDale White – LenDale White supposedly gave up Tequila, which should improve his on field performance. Week 1 stats – 28 rush yards, 1 rec. 5 yards. Child Please.

Winning and Losing Line-ups

You probably won your league game with this surprising line-up

Joe Flacco – 307 Pass Tds, 3 TDs, 1 INT, 18 Rush Yds

Willis McGahee – 44 Rush Yds, 1 TD, 4 Rec, 31 Yds, 1 TD

Thomas Jones – 107 Rush Yds, 2 TDs

Patrick Crayton – 4 Rec, 135 Yds, 1 TD

Devery Henderson –5 Rec, 103 Yds, 1 TD

John Carlson – 6 Rec, 95 Yds, 2 TDs

You probably lost your league game with this star studded line-up

Jay Cutler – 277 Yds, 1 TD, 4 INTs, 16 Rush Yds

Michael Turner – 65 Rush Yds, 0 TDs

Steve Slaton – 17 Rush Yds, 0 TDs, 3 Rec, 35 Yds, 1 FL
Anquan Boldin – 2 Rec, 19 Yds, 0 TDs

Andre Johnson – 4 Rec, 35 Yds, 0 TDs

Greg Olsen – 1 Rec, 8 Yds, 0 TDs

Eddie Royal is turning into a big fantasy prospect this season, drawing comparisons to New England’s Wes Welker, and with Brandon Marshall creating a stir, his stock continues to rise.

The question that must first be answered, however, is whether his numbers can remain steady in the face of Denver’s quarterback conundrum.

Kyle Orton and Chris Simms are both mediocre quarterbacks on paper. Furthermore, they’re both jotted down on the team’s list of injuries. Orton dislocated his finger Sunday night and was forced to leave the game; Simms has been MIA for some time now and doesn’t figure to be ready before the season starts.

Both these issues are exacerbated because what these players have displayed this preseason is anything but heartening. Simms played in the first two games and looks like the superior quarterback against second team defenses, while Orton has looked awful at points during preseason.

Orton opened up against San Francisco with three turnovers on three drives, and a week later against Seattle he tried lofting a wobbly left-handed pass into the endzone; not surprisingly, he was intercepted. Against the Broncos Sunday night he looked a bit uncomfortable in the pocket and was consistently throwing passes behind his receivers. He struggled to hit anyone in stride and it no doubt cost the Broncos yardage after the catch. Overall his numbers were the best they’ve been this preseason, but he didn’t move the chains enough and the offense finished with three first half points.

Getting back to the receiver in question, Eddie Royal has remained mostly immune to these struggles during the season. He has 13 receptions for 134 yards this preseason and is clearly a possession receiver. Unfortunately, Royal has no touchdown receptions yet, no doubt because the Broncos have thrown just three during the preseason.

Royal’s numbers are also being inflated a bit because Brandon Marshall is suspended. When he returns, the reception distribution will shift, and Royal might not get as many receptions.

Assuming he does get 100 by the end of this season, however, that translates to about 1,000 receiving yards; one can only hope he’ll get a few touchdowns to complement those yards.

Unhealthy quarterbacks are hindering Denver’s offense and creating a stir with the fans, especially after the Denver faithful watched Jay Cutler enter Invesco to give the Bears a 17-3 halftime lead. He looked solid and unshakable; the same can’t be said of Orton or Simms. The Broncos need more offense and that will need to start at the quarterback position; a lack of offense will lead to a lack of points, and as fantasy players are concerned, Royal needs endzone receptions; there is no avoiding it. Whoever lines up at quarterback is going to feed him the football, but if the offense can’t get down the field he can’t score.

By now everyone knows Brandon Marshall’s name. The young and prolific wide receiver has gained substantial attention the past two seasons for good reasons: he’s big, athletic, and his numbers have been through the roof.

Lately, however, other antics have earned him scorn.

The most recent incident occurred during Wednesday’s practice when Marshall refused to show Josh McDaniels the least bit of respect. Marshall was caught on tape walking through drills while the rest of the team jogged, punting a ball away from a ball boy standing just feet away, and swatting down passes with both hands during receiver drills.

Denver’s wide receiver tried to explain that his actions weren’t his way of trying to get traded; they were just the result of a build up of emotions.

“I think everybody knows there’s a lot of stuff built up there, and me handling it that way wasn’t good,” Marshall told ESPN.

Marshall of course wants to be traded, and he’s doing what he thinks is best for himself. Unfortunately, his selfish acts aren’t drawing him any sympathy from either the media or his teammates. All it’s brought him so far is a preseason suspension, the ultimate slap on the wrist. It’s Josh McDaniels’ way of saying, “If you don’t straighten up soon you’ll really get it!”

The worst part of the situation is it isn’t getting him anywhere. He wants to be traded, but the Broncos are tired of giving in to upset Pro Bowlers. There’s no reason for Denver to trade him; the greatest punishment they can hand down is suspension after suspension, hanging on to his mere $2.2 million contract this season and let it expire afterwards. Let him test his free market value now that childish behavior is his calling card.

His only accomplishment this offseason is causing more detriment to his image, and in no way will that help him. He is neither remorseful nor apologetic, explaining the situation as one “blown out of proportion.”

“Some of it is blown out of proportion,” Marshall said in an interview broadcast on ESPN Thursday night. “It was an error in judgement. There was some frustration, but some of it was blown out of proportion.”

Video can be spliced together in such a way as to not show the whole picture, but explain to us, Brandon, what part of you punting a ball away from a ball boy was blown out of proportion? What part of walking while the rest of the team ran was blown out of proportion? How is video evidence of you swatting away a pass with both hands blowing the situation out of proportion?

Marshall has always been the subject of some criticism. Last season Jay Cutler was ridiculed by some for calling Marshall out after he injured himself while wrestling, evidently slipping on a McDonalds bag. It doesn’t seem fair to attack Cutler now, though. Marshall’s lack of maturity runs deep, his actions painting him as poor man’s T.O.

B.M. Maybe that’s how we should refer to him.

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P.S. If you want more reason to be a Marshall-hater, check out this article by Sports Data Hub’s own Kyle Smith. Then check out this article by the Football Scientist, KC Joyner. He describes Marshall as “overrated.” It’s a very interesting read.

Brett Favre may have been one of four for four yards in his preseason debut last Friday, but it was refreshing to see him back on the field. His numbers didn’t sparkle, but did anyone expect more from a man who had been signed just days earlier, someone who hadn’t participated in training camp with his teammates for more than a handful of hours?

At one point he bit the turf after getting rid of the football, prompting the on-air talent to zing Favre with an obnoxious, “Welcome back to the NFL, Brett.”

Welcome back? Where did he go? When did he leave?

Favre has been playing professional football since 1991, making this his 19th NFL season. He hasn’t missed a start since 1992, when he became the Green Bay Packers starting quarterback after Don Majkowski went down with an injury.

He’s bounced around a bit the past two offseasons, but has he missed a game during the season? He tore his bicep last season and managed to extend his streak of consecutive starts to 269, an almost unfathomable number.

He’s been the NFL’s iron man athlete for years, playing through broken bones and despite family tragedies, all because he loves the game and felt it was what he need to do.

On Wednesday Favre was called out by Colin Cowherd on SportsNation for being a whiner, the show’s host no longer considering him a “man’s man.”

When did he stop being the everyman? The “everyman” on the street tends to suggest that if he made millions of dollars, nothing would ever keep him off the field. Yet when Favre returns in the face of fans’ crticisms and cynicisms, after an offseason surgery that nearly made up his mind for him, we stop respecting his decision, arguing his legacy will be shattered, as if such a thing was possible.

18 NFL seasons, a Super Bowl ring, three MVP awards, more than 65 thousand passing yards, and 464 passing touchdowns. And counting.

That legacy will be shattered because Favre wants to don a purple jersey this season, playing for a team some now consider contenders for the Lombardi Trophy this season?

Legacy is created by media, but not even the media can tarnish it now. He will forever be known in Green Bay as the greatest quarterback to step foot on Lambeau Field, and that can never be taken. His legacy is too great to be the least bit dented by signing with the Minnesota Vikings, a team on the verge of considerable success.

Consider Michael Jordan’s 2001 return to play for the hapless Washington Wizards. He was 38 years old, four years removed from his final season with the Chicago Bulls. Both seasons he was a Wizard the team finished fifth in the Atlantic division, and many were questioning his decision, worried his greatness would be forgotten.

Does anyone care now? Does anyone believe Jordan tarnished his legacy, a legacy built on dominance as an individual and as a team player for an unstoppable franchise. Of course not. He remains in the minds of most the greatest basketball player ever to grace a court, regardless of whether he backed out of retirement.

Brett Favre is no different. In a league in which we celebrate brutal hits and statistical achievement, he has surpassed every one of his peers. He has played the game nearly six times longer than the average player, and returning this season was a decision he made without regret. The Vikings may be one of the Green Bay Packers’ most hated rivals, but his signing wasn’t out of spite or revenge as some would imply.

Understand, the Green Bay Packers didn’t want Favre a year ago. The front office believed it was time to move in a different direction with Aaron Rodgers and that’s fine, but don’t paint Favre as a traitor because he still wants to play the game and has found a team that genuinely wants him and staked its offseason on his signing. It is far from treasonous for him to sign with a competitive team that can offer him talented teammates and almost assure him a playoff berth.

But even if you still consider him the Benedict Arnold of professional football, in the end, it’s his legacy, his career, and his life. His decisions are not ours to make or criticize.

Thanks for playing one more season, Brett. I and many others welcome another year of seeing you in a jersey, always the kid at the heart who just wants to play for love of the game.

Kurt Warner was one of the NFL’s most prolific quarterbacks throughout the 2008 season, leading the Arizona Cardinals to the postseason and eventually the Super Bowl. Warner’s season wasn’t enough to convince most fantasy owners to draft him higher than the fifth round this year, however, due mostly to questions concerning his health, especially when combined with his age.

Here are the ten facts and factors you should consider when thinking about Kurt Warner this year.

(1) Let’s start with the health: Warner has played three complete seasons in his career – 1999, 2001, and last season. That makes fantasy players a little bit skittish, especially when combined with a hip surgery he underwent in March. Reports suggest it will be 12 months before he’s fully recovered from the injury, making him a fantasy gamble of sorts. He said August 6th that he was at 85 percent, so be sure to keep his injury status in mind when considering him.

(2) Warner hasn’t missed a game since filling in for Matt Leinart week 3 of the 2007 season. He hasn’t started all those games and he missed significant playing time in a couple, but it remains that he’s played 34 consecutive games.

(3) Statistically speaking, last season was the third best season of Warner’s career. He finished with 598 attempts (1st - personal high), a 67.1 percent completion rate (3rd best) 4,583 yards (2nd best), and 30 touchdowns (3rd best).

(4) Though he passed for more touchdowns in 2008 than the season before, Warner posted a significantly lower touchdown percentage: 6.0 in 2007 vs. 5.0 in 2008. For what it’s worth, Ken Whisenhunt was calling the plays in 2007, a role he will resume this season.

(5) Warner’s completion percentage last season — 67.1 — was second in the NFL to Chad Pennington. Warner also finished 3rd in passing attempts, 2nd in passing yards, and 3rd in passing touchdowns.

(6) Only Drew Brees, Tony Romo, and Peyton Manning have thrown more passing touchdowns than Warner the past two seasons. Both Brees and Manning have also played more games the past two seasons.

(7) Warner is third in the NFL in passing yards per game the past two seasons, behind only Drew Brees and Tom Brady. He’s averaged 266.7 yards per game during that span.

(8) The Cardinals’ gunslinger hasn’t been perfect, though. He’s thrown 31 interceptions the past two seasons, placing him fifth in the NFL behind Brett Favre (who knew?), Drew Brees, Tony Romo, and Jay Cutler.

(9) In seasons he played at least 16 games, two things have held true: Warner has never thrown for fewer than 4,353 yards or 30 touchdowns. In other words, when he’s healthy and starting he’s one of the best options in fantasy football.

(10) Warner has a career 8-2 record in the postseason with a Super Bowl win and two Super Bowl losses. But how has he been in the fantasy postseason lately? Assuming your championship is week 16, these numbers are probably relevant:

• in week 16 of 2006, Warner was 9-of-13 for 105 yards
• he threw 3 touchdowns each game between weeks 14-16 of 2007
• he also threw 5 interceptions week 14 and 1 more week 15
• he averaged 313 yards per game during the three week span
• during weeks 14-15 of 2008 he averaged 275 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception
• week 16 of 2006: 369 passing yards and 3 touchdowns
• week 16 average the past two seasons: 68 passing yards
• week 16 of 2008: was 6-of-18 for 30 yards