In a business where you are only as good as your last pick, The Machine is on fire! T.Y. Hilton and Colin Kaepernick exploded last week; if you needed them in a pinch last week they more than delivered. And in C-Kaps case he could be a huge asset during the fantasy playoff push with tasty matchups on the schedule (St. Louis, Miami, New England, Seattle).
The Machine likes these players chances to come through for you this week….
1. Rashad Jennings, RB (58%Y!) – It looks like a typical December Sunday morning in Western New York as arctic winds and ominous rain clouds move in over the despondent and hopeless fan base. While the Bills have tighten their defence in the last month or so, they are still a mess. Jennings, who showed absolutely nothing while filling in for MJD (subsequently losing his job to Jalen Parmele) gets a second shot at redemption. He should be able to muster 85 total yards and a score in a game that should feature the run. A solid flex and low-end option.
2. Russell Wilson, QB (22%Y!) – A rookie QB, playing on the road, two time zones from home against a top 3 defense. It doesn’t add up right? Wrong! The Bears are going to focus their attention on BeastMode, leaving some opportunities on the back-end for the passing game. The thing you have to like about the undersized Wilson is that he is a gamer. He has some mobility so he could move the chains a couple of times with his legs. Plus, if this game gets out of hand there will be a chance for GTP. Certainly not someone you can rely on, but he could be a sneaky play this week. Proceed with caution.
3. Brandon LaFell, WR (29%Y!) – The Machine was a big time believer in the Carolina passing attack heading into this season (hey, we don’t get them right all the time). Cam Newton and offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski simply haven’t made the necessary adjustments for this offense to take the next step. That said, there has been a shift of philosophy in Carolina, with the firing of GM Marty Hurney (that’s what you get for drafting Jimmy Clausen!) and demotion of DeAngelo Williams. The changes and decisions made behind the scenes have resulted in a more wide open offensive attack; with LaFell being a beneficiary, with a combined line of 8/167/2 in his last two games. LaFell has a great shot of scoring his third TD in as many weeks, as the Panthers take on the Belcher-less Chiefs (too soon?!).
4. Mario Manningham, WR (22%Y!) – Two words: Colin Kapernick. This offense has a completely new identity and philosophy with the gifted young QB under center. While it’s hard to figure the niners from week-to-week (see Vernon Davis’s zero catches last week), Manningham has shown decent rapport with C-Kap. He is a high WR4, low WR3 option this week.
Others to consider: Chad Henne, QB (12%Y!), Micheal Floyd, WR (5%Y!), Marty Bennett, TE (51%Y!), Dallas Clark, TE (22%Y!)