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Must Start

1. Aaron Rodgers vs. ATL – Rodgers is coming off a 60 point fantasy football day. Atlanta still hasn’t addressed its pass D and will be torched on Sunday.

2. Phillip Rivers vs. Den – The Broncos were on the other end of Rogers’ 60 point day.

3. Drew Brees vs. Car – The Panthers D won’t have answers for Brees and Co.

4. Tom Brady vs. NYJ – Expect your typical 300 yard and 3 TD day from Brady when the Jets come to town.

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Michael Vick vs. Buf –The Eagles are losing but Vick’s still putting up big numbers.

Matthew Stafford vs. Chi – The Bears pass D is susceptible to the deep ball (see Steve Smith from a week ago).

Eli Manning vs. Sea – 6 TDs and 0 INTs over the past two weeks. Manning will pick apart the Seahawks.

The Rest

Ryan Fitzpatrick vs. Phi – Philadelphia’s high priced defense has been a bust in ’11.

Cam Newton vs. NO – Is he a rookie? Newton is putting up big time numbers and will continue that trend vs. the Saints.

Josh Freeman vs. SF – The 49ers secondary is full of holes.

Matt Schaub vs. Oak – If Andre Johnson can’t play, it hurts Schaub. But the Raiders weakness in their DBs and Schaub should still find plenty of success for that reason alone.

Matt Ryan vs. GB – The Falcons could be in pass mode much of the evening. That’d be bad for the Falcons, but good for Ryan’s fantasy numbers.

Kyle Orton vs. SD – The Broncos will likely be playing catch up which bodes well for Orton.

Kevin Kolb vs. Min – If your No. 1 is on a bye week, Kolb’s not the worst option. The Vikings secondary is prone to the big play.

Fantasy Sleeper

Donovan McNabb vs. ARZ – If McNabb doesn’t get it done in this one, he could be long gone. But the Cardinals secondary is atrocious, so look for McNabb to be a decent fantasy sleeper option if your starting QB is out in Week 5.

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Best Bet

1. Detroit Lions (-3.5) vs. Minnesota Vikings – Let’s continue with the feel good story of 2011. The Lions are off to a 2-0 start and will make it 3-0 this week. Detroit’s defense will harass QB Donovan McNabb all afternoon and keep RB Adrian Peterson from busting loose.

On the other side of the ball, even with the return of DT Kevin Williams, we expect Stafford and Co. to keep the good times rolling with another big time performance.

Expect Detroit to cover the point spread with a TD victory.

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2. Buffalo Bills (+9) vs. New England Patriots – Tom Brady and the Patriots will put up points. A lot of them. The problem is their defense will allow them too. The Bills offense is for real and we expect another shootout this week in Buffalo. We like Ryan Fitzpatrick and Co. to keep this game within reach throughout.

3. Oakland Raiders (+3.5) vs. New York Jets – The Jets travel cross country and are a little beat up on the offensive side of the ball. It’s doubtful C Mangold will play and Sanchez, on top of his early season struggles, is a bit dinged himself.

We like to Raiders to play fired up in their 2011 home opener and could easily pull out a win which would make for a solid money line bet (+160) too.

4. Seattle Seahawks (+3) vs. Arizona Cardinals – See money line bet.

The Rest

San Diego Chargers (-14.5) vs. Kansas City Chiefs – The Chargers inexplicable early season struggles under Norv Turner are the only reason they wouldn’t win by more than two TDs. The Chiefs have been beaten 89-10 combined in their 1st two games.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-1.5) vs. Atlanta Falcons – Josh Freeman will be the deciding factor here. He alone is worth the 2 points. The Falcons are clearly not the same team as a year ago and they’re fortunate not to be 0-2.

The Bucs overcame a 17 point 2nd half deficit vs. the Vikings to pick up their 1st win of the season. Look for the confidence they gained to carry over…

Baltimore Ravens (-3.5) vs. St. Louis Rams – Unfortunately for the Rams, they’re staring at an 0-3 start to the season. Baltimore was caught in a trap game last week and unable to carry over their emotion from Week 1 (win over Pittsburgh).

The Rams are banged up and still learning how to win. It won’t happen on this day. Expect Baltimore to pull out the seven point victory.

Money Line Bet

Seattle Seahawks (+170) vs. Arizona Cardinals - This is really a game of two sub par teams in a horrendous division, and one that usually goes to the home team.

The Seahawks are off to a rough 0-2 and were dismantled last Sunday in Pittsburgh. However, a few key players could be getting healthy, namely WR Sidney Rice, and this is the Cardinals, a team that’s 1-1 and very beatable on the road.

Look for the 12th man to play its part in Seattle’s home opener and for the Seahawks to pull out a very close win.

* Pro Football 101 is 2-2 in the money line bet this year.

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Best Bet

1. New England Patriots (-7) vs. San Diego Chargers – Any other time of year and we’re betting the underdog in this match-up.

But San Diego ALWAYS starts slowly under Norv Turner and Tom Brady will eclipse the 39 passing yards Donovan McNabb had last week on his 1st series.

He’ll probably end up with 300 + yards more and 3 TDs. We like the Patriots to pull out the double digit win and they are our top NFL bet in Week 2.

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2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3) vs. Minnesota Vikings - While QB Donovan McNabb will certainly improve, we don’t think his poor passing day last week was an aberration. He’s become a liability in his old (football) age and we expect the Bucs’ D to make RB Adrian Peterson their No. 1 priority and force McNabb to beat them.

He can’t at this stage in his career.

Expect QB Josh Freeman and Co. to bounce back after a poor Week 1 to cover the point spread on the road.

3. Chicago Bears (+7) vs. New Orleans Saints – The Saints are dangerous heading into their home opener but the loss of WR Marques Colston is big. It changes the dynamics of their passing game and will force QB Drew Brees to constantly spread the ball around, which he’s excellent at.

The problem with the point spread is the Bears feature a solid D and their offense will put points on the board against the Saints.

Figure Chicago to keep this one close throughout.

4. Atlanta Falcons (+2.5) vs. Philadelphia Eagles – See Money Line Bet.

The Rest

Dallas Cowboys (-3) vs. San Francisco 49ers – The Cowboys are clearly the better team. The tricky part becomes the back to back coast trips to start the season. We don’t think that’ll be enough to keep them from winning by more than a FG.

Tennessee Titans (+6) vs. Baltimore Ravens – This is a classic trap game for the Ravens. Coming off an emotional home whoopin’ of the hated Steelers, it’s not likely that they’ll be able to carry over that intensity when they head to Tennessee.

Detroit Lions (-8.5) vs. Kansas City Chiefs – The Lions will be the talk of the league after starting out 2-0. And we bet it will be in impressive fashion as they put away the Chiefs by double digits to cover the point spread.

Money Line Bet

Atlanta Falcons (+115) vs. Philadelphia Eagles - Expect to see a completely different Falcons team when they face the Eagles in their home opener on Sunday Night. They were embarrassed by the Bears and can ill afford to drop to 0-2 to start the season.

The final score will be close, but we expect Atlanta to control the tempo throughout. You’ll see a heavy dose of RB Michael Turner as the Eagles were abysmal against the run in Week 1. The front 7 is undersized, DC Juan Castillo has never called a game before, and it’ll take time before the young LB’ers learn how to read run block schemes in the NFL.

Once the run is established, which eats away at the clock, Matt Ryan will attack the middle of the field, avoiding the CB’s on the outside, and finish with a few TDs.

On the other side of the ball, QB Michael Vick will provide plenty of highlights, but the Falcons time of possession will far outweigh the Eagles and keep their offense from finding a rhythm all evening.

The end result will be a 24-20 Falcons win.

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Must Start

1. Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Sea – Get ready to see a completely different defense when Seattle comes to town.

2. Green Bay Packers vs. Car – Cam Newton’s 2^nd start will be much different than his 1^st. There won’t be another fantasy football breakout performance in Week 2 for Newton.

3. Baltimore Ravens vs. Ten – Look for the Ravens to make life miserable for Matt Hasselback and Co.

4. New York Jets vs. Jax – Expect the Jets to force multiple turnovers in Week 2.

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Min – 39 passing yards for Donovan McNabb in Week 1. It looks like a nice start for Tampa.

New York Giants vs. Stl – The Rams are beat up and New York should have DE Justin Tuck back.

Dallas Cowboys vs. SF – Expect DE/LB DeMarcus Ware and Co. to force the 49ers Offense into multiple turnovers.

The Rest

St. Louis Rams vs. NYG – HC Steve Spagnuolo knows the Giants offense inside and out.

Washington Redskins vs. Arz – The Skins look much improved on D in 2011.

Chicago Bears vs. NO – The Bears are good at creating turnovers and returning it to the house. Not the best of matchups however.

New Orleans Saints vs. Chi – Cutler has shown on a number of occasions he’s especially careless with the ball on the road. The Saints are one of the more opportunistic defenses around.

Detroit Lions vs. KC – The hungry Lions will be a handful for the hurting Chiefs Offense in Week 2.

Houston Texans vs. Mia – The Texans look improved under DC Wade Phillips.

Denver Broncos vs. Cin –The Bengals will most likely turn back to rookie QB Andy Dalton.

Fantasy Sleeper

Buffalo Bills vs. Oak – The Bills held the Chiefs to 7 points and forced turnovers. The Raiders are traveling cross country and the Bills have a great shot to start the season 2-0. The D/ST is a solid fantasy sleeper this week.

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Week 1 is always the trickiest for your suicide pool. Nothing is a sure thing (see 49ers vs. Seahawks in 2010).

Top Pick

1. Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts – It’s all but certain that Peyton Manning won’t play this Sunday. The Colts minus Peyton Manning are realistically a 5-6 win football team. That being said, expect the Texans to roll on Opening Day.

Regardless of whether RB Arian Foster suits up or not, the Texans offense will be far too much for a Colts D that will be on the field much of the day. Defensively, expect Wade Phillips’ crew to have an easy go of it with QB Kerry Collins. This is the top suicide pool pick of Week 1.

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2. Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers – This might be one of the few weeks to get away with the Cardinals as one of the best bets on the board. They’re at home, have a revamped offense, and get to face a young, less than inspiring Panthers squad that’s breaking in rookie QB Cam Newton. We expect the transition for Newton to the NFL to be more difficult than it was for Sam Bradford. Early season struggles will be plenty for Newton.

3. San Diego Chargers vs. Minnesota Vikings – The Chargers have disappointed as a Week 1 suicide pool pick before. But we don’t see that happening here. The Vikings are a shell of their former self and Donovan McNabb will be in pass mode the entire 2^nd half. That will lead to a few turnovers. Look for Phillip Rivers and Co. to have their way in an easy romp on Sunday.

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1. Antonio Gates, SD – He’s been the dominant TE in fantasy football and the game for the better part of the last decades and shows no signs of slowing down.  He’s Philip Rivers’ main target.

2. Dallas Clark, IND – An injury ended his season early last year, but Clark’s a blue chipper for fantasy football TEs.

3. Jermichael Finley, GB – Missed most of last season as well, but Aaron Rodgers loves him. He also possesses the ability to get down the field with regularity.

4. Jason Witten, Dal – The outside playmakers will leave Witten in a lot of one-on- one situations.

5. Vernon Davis, SF – Expect Harbaugh to utilize Davis’s freakish skills in his offense.

6. Owen Daniels, Hou – He’s a year removed from ACL surgery and will be on the receiving end of many of Matt Schaub’s passes.

7. Jimmy Graham, NO – The young TE made his presence felt in 2010. Brees felt more and more confident throwing his way as the season progressed.

8. Brandon Pettigrew, Det – So long as the QB position stays stable, Pettigrew will thrive. It’s his 3^rd year, which is when most players take that next step.

9. Kellen Winslow, TB – He and Josh Freeman developed an excellent rapport in 2010.

10. Rob Gronkowski, NE – Became one of Tom Brady’s favorite targets as the season progressed. Not very fast but has sure hands.

11. Tony Gonzalez, ATL – The timeless wonder is back for one more shot at the Super Bowl.

12. Chris Cooley, WAS – Cooley would rank much higher on the list if not for the horrible situation at QB in Washington.

13. Dustin Keller, NYJ – The speedy TE is still improving his game but is often overlooked with the playmakers outside.

14. Zach Miller, SEA – The QB situation doesn’t do him any favors, but he should produce in the weak NFC West.

15. Mercedes Lewis, JAX – Lewis emerged as a viable fantasy option in 2010.

16. Aaron Hernandez , NE – Brady loves his soft hands and smooth route running. Main problem for Hernandez is there’s only so many balls to go around.

17. Benjamin Watson, CLE – There’s not much proven talent on the outside so expect Watson to remain a factor in Cleveland’s passing game.

18. Heath Miller, Pit – He’s one of Ben Roethlisberger’s favorite targets near the goal line.

19. Todd Heap, Arz – The Cardinals brought in Kevin Kolb who looked his TE’s way plenty in his short time in Philly.

20. Visanthe Shiancoe, Min – The acquisition of Donovan McNabb raises his stock in 2011. McNabb loves throwing to his TEs.

1. Aaron Rodgers - The Falcons are exceptionally vulnerable to the passing game. Rodgers is the top ranked fantasy football QB in Week 12.

2. Peyton Manning - No running game has Manning throwing more than he’d like to, which is good in fantasy.

3. Tom Brady - The Lions just allowed 3 TDs (passing) to Jon Kitna.

4. Phillip Rivers - The Chargers only know one way to move the ball: through the air.

Next In Line

Ben Roethlisberger – His 4 TD performance vs. the Raiders bodes well vs. the Bills.

Michael Vick - The Bears aren’t the easiest opponent but Vick is playing at a very high level in ’10.

Drew Brees - Look for him to follow up his 4 TD performance against the Seahawks with another 3 TD game in Big D.

Rounding Out the List

Matt Schaub - Schaub will have a ton of success against a suspect Titans pass D.

Joe Flacco - Flacco will toss multiple TDs against the incoming Bucs.

Mark Sanchez – His game is steadily improving and he and Santonio Holmes are becoming a big-time duo.

Shaun Hill - The Pats secondary is vulnerable to big plays.

Matt Cassel – While Cassel’s yards aren’t overwhelming, he is finding the end zone. That’ll continue this week.

Donovan McNabb – He’ll likely face a different Vikings team but should put up solid numbers

Josh Freeman - He continues to impress. Pencil him in for at least 2 TDs in Week 12.

Matt Hasselbeck - The Seahawks passing game is more efficient at home. Hasselback will be good for at least 2 TDs vs. the Chiefs.

Fantasy Sleeper of the Week

Derek Anderson – The Niners horrid effort Sunday showed there’s not much to look forward to in San Francisco. Look for Anderson to hook up with Larry Fitzgerald and Co. and he’s a good fantasy sleeper in Week 11.

1. New York Giants - Put a fork in them, the Cowboys are done. The Giants will destroy Dallas in the New Meadowlands and are the top ranked fantasy football D/ST in Week 10.

2. New York Jets – Something tells us Colt McCoy‘s success will be limited on Sunday. Look for New York to force multiple turnovers and sack the rookie a few times.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers - The Steelers D will be ready to roll on Sunday Night. Expect a big effort out of this unit.

4. San Francisco 49ers - They’re coming off a bye week and facing the Rams at home.  St. Louis is a different team on the road.

Next In Line

Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Pretty much anyone facing the Jimmy Clausen led Panthers from here on out is a solid start.

Minnesota Vikings - Jay Cutler is a turnover machine waiting to happen.

Philadelphia Eagles – The Eagles tightened up some of their defensive holes last Sunday and know Donovan McNabb‘s weaknesses well.

Rounding out the List

Detroit Lions – The DT Ndamukong Suh led Lions D will harass Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Bills in Week 10.

Baltimore Ravens - Expect the Ravens to force a few turnovers on Thursday Night.

Cleveland Browns - Two solid games becomes a 3rd when “the erratic of late” Mark Sanchez comes to town.

St. Louis Rams – The Niners may have won two in a row but they’re hardly setting the house on fire. The improving Rams will force a few turnovers this week.

Kansas City Chiefs – The Broncos implosion continues on Sunday. Expect the Chiefs to get after Kyle Orton.

Fantasy Sleeper of the Week

Washington Redskins - This unit is excellent at forcing turnovers and is coming off the bye week. Expect them to hit Michael Vick hard and keep the scoring down. They’re a good fantasy sleeper in Week 10.

So, in most fantasy drafts, Brian Westbrook was the third overall choice. And based on his stellar 2007 season, one in which he was able to stay relatively healthy for the first time in his career, the numbers warranted it: 2,104 total yards and 12 TD. If your league gave points per reception, he had 90.

2008 Recap

The season began on a pretty positive note—nearly 200 total yards and three TDs out of the gate, but then the injury bug hit after he landed awkwardly on a players leg in week three vs. the Steelers. And with the exception of 12 carries vs. the Redskins in Week Five, he missed two games and wasn’t back until Week Eight.

He had a big game in his return vs. the Falcons but then his fantasy numbers really fell off as Philly fell into their mid season swoon which ended with a 36-7 romping at the hands of the Ravens. In that four game stretch, he failed to break the 60-yard mark and didn’t score a TD.

However, to provide some value to the fantasy owners that took him so high and were frustrated—myself being one of them—he atoned for that poor stretch by playing out of his mind against the Cardinals and Giants. In that two game stretch, he rang up a total of 333 yards and six TDs.

But the good times were short lived. For the final three weeks of the season, he went back to being a middle of the pack fantasy back and did not reach the 100 yard total or end zone in any of those games.

2009 Outlook

Injuries definitely hampered Westbrook’s production in 2008, but so did Andy Reid’s play calling. Many times he was too quick to pull the plug on the running game. The final numbers weren’t so bad thanks to a few great games sprinkled into the season (1,338 yards and 13 TD), but they could have been much better.

In 2009, it will be important to see how Philly is affected in free agency. Both tackles (Runyan and Thomas) are old and free agents, so it remains to be seen which, if any, will be re-signed. Salary cap issues make it unlikely that they’ll retain both.

It’s also important to see what happens with McNabb and if they can come to terms to keep him around; if he goes, everything changes.

Due to Westbrook’s lack of size, he’s always been injury prone and at this later stage in his career (29-years-old), from here on out he’ll continue to be. But he’s still one of the most electric players in the NFL today, and thanks to his ability to both run and catch, he’ll still warrant going in the top five to 10 picks of your 2009 draft.

Remember that 48-20 beating that the Eagles gave the Cardinals on Thanksgiving? After today, that seems like it happened eons ago.

The Arizona Cardinals came out scorching in the desert on this day, while the Eagles came out as they had in four of their previous five NFC Championship games, ice cold.

The first drive of the game kind of gave you the sense that it would be the WR Larry Fitzgerald show on this day. Warner targeted his favorite receiver for three catches and then hit him on a crossing pattern in the red zone which Fitzgerald was able to take across the goal line.

Philadelphia thought it could come out and rush only their front four and still get the necessary pressure on Warner, but after the first drive, they knew that plan wasn’t going to get it done. The Cardinals were able to keep the Eagles defense off-balance, something not easy to do against the third-ranked defense in the NFL, with a mixture of runs and high percentage pass plays.

And when they got it back after the Eagles had hit a FG, they included a little trickery to their offensive arsenal. On first down, Warner pitched the ball to his RB Edgerrin James, who in turn pitched it back to him. He looked down the field and saw Fitzgerald in single coverage against the Eagles’ third CB. After that, it was a matter of launching it down the field and letting his superstar receiver take over. 14-6.

For the rest of the half, the Eagles didn’t do much else on offense or defense, and found themselves in an 18-point hole.

But in the second half, the story would be very different. Sensing the desperation of their situation, the Eagles’ coaching staff made the necessary adjustments and the defense returned to dominant form. They limited Warner and Co. to just 12 plays on three three and outs.

McNabb also found his stride.

In a stretch which began with about six minutes left in the third quarter, Donovan torched the Cards for three TDs, hitting TE Brent Celek for two TDs and rookie WR DeSean Jackson for one on a 60+ yard bomb.

And with that score, the Eagles had taken a 25-24 lead with ten minutes to play and had all of the momentum.

But they couldn’t keep it up. Warner, who had been ice cold in the second half, orchestrated a 14 play, 72 yard drive that consumed over seven minutes of the clock. And on a crucial 3rd-and-goal from the 10, Arizona called a screen pass – the perfect play call – and RB Tim Hightower executed it to perfection and took it in for the go ahead TD. After the two point conversion, it was 32-25 with just under three minutes left to play.

Now is when legends are made. The one blemish on Donovan McNabb’s career to date has been his inability to perform in big games and clutch situations. Coming into this football game, he was batting .250 in NFC Championship Games and lost his only Super Bowl. Here was an opportunity to change that legacy.

Unfortunately for McNabb, it was not to be. He was erratic on the entire final drive – constantly throwing high or behind his targets, and after an incomplete out pattern to WR Kevin Curtis on 4th down, which could’ve been called for pass interference, he saw another golden opportunity to solidify his legacy and get his team to a Super Bowl slip right through his fingers.

Game over.

So the Cardinals, a team that most will call this year’s New York Giants, (although that comparison would be inaccurate because they played two home games in the playoffs,so the 2006 Colts would be a better comparison), advance to play in the Super Bowl while the Eagles, who had a great year in their own right, will kick themselves over this one because everything was set up for them to advance to the Super Bowl.