If you’re an Eagles fan, you probably didn’t wake up on Tuesday morning feeling good about the state of your team.
Losing to the Packers and Redskins is no way to kick off a Super Bowl season, and you’re contemplating the replacement of one of the best QB’s your franchise has ever known with a rookie from the University of Houston. And, for some reason, it’s starting to sound like a good idea.
But it’s not.
Sure, Donovan McNabb was erratic. Sure, he missed some open throws. But he’s going to turn it around. He’s too good not to. He just needs a little help from his friends.
And that’s where we come to the subject of our story, heretofore overlooked, soon to be go-to guy, Jason Avant.
Not by any means the fastest or most hyped of the Eagles receivers, Avant is listed somewhere around fifth on the Eagles depth chart. But he proved against the Redskins he may be the most dependable, and could develop into Donovan McNabb’s “need to have it” guy before too long.
To whit:
On third and four early in the second quarter, McNabb to Avant for 8.
Down two scores and needing to put together a drive in the fourth quarter. First and 10. McNabb to Avant for 12.
Same drive. Fourth and four. McNabb to Avant for 14.
One possession game. Under four minutes left. Final drive. First and 10 at their own 34. McNabb to Avant for 17.
Five catches doesn’t make a season (he caught and did not fumble a 4-yard pass on second and eight early in the third quarter). But Avant’s performance is going to show up on the coaches’ tape. And come this Sunday against Detroit, don’t be surprised to see Avant add on to those 15 career receptions he’s racked up so far.
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In the first edition of Advanced Scout last week, we took an early look at possible Week 3 waiver wire pick-ups, hoping to spot a few gems before they come up on radar to the rest of the fantasy football-playing public.
The pro is that you might pick up somebody before the crowd (ie. Avant), giving you a competitive and bragging rights advantage. The con is that you might trick yourself into thinking the Cincinnati Bengals have a good defense.
So there you go. Risk-Reward. It’s all part of the game.
After watching Week 2 action, here’s a review of the Week 3 selections (green = go, yellow = maybe, red = never mind), before we go on to Weeks 4 and 5.
Week 3
QB: Jake Delhomme, Carolina (@Atlanta). That Rajun’ Cajun had another good game against the Texans, throwing for over 300 yards with 3 touchdowns and an interception. Atlanta, meanwhile, gave up 272 yards and a touchdown to David Garrard and the Jaguars. Status = Green, though he’s probably available in a lot fewer leagues than he was this time last week.
RB: Leon Washington, New York Jets (vs. Miami): We knew Baltimore wouldn’t be a prime time to shine for the diminutive third-down back, but zero carries was still fewer than expected. Status = Yellow (Miami ain’t Baltimore, and I’m guessing the Jets coaches will watch the tape and show a new resolve for the run game.)
WR: Avant (vs. Detroit).
TE: Zach Miller, Oakland. When your quarterback ends up with a whopping 73 total yards passing, as did the Raiders’ Josh McCown in a Week 2 loss at Denver, it’s hard to have great production as a tight end. Still, Miller “led” the team in receptions (3), and Cleveland just gave up 45 to Cincinnati. Status = Green (especially once Lane Kiffin makes the inevitable move to Daunte Culpepper).
D: Minnesota (vs. Kansas City): You have to worry about Minnesota just a little because of their offense, which looked like ... well ... the Kansas City offense. Fortunately for Vikings fans, their defense likes to score, with 3 in two games. Status = Green.
K: Shaun Suisham, Washington (vs. New York Giants): The Giants defense has given up 80 points in two games. Anybody you can pick up on the Redskins is probably going to score, including the kicker. Suisham looked smooth and strong against the Eagles on Monday night. Status = Green
Week 4
Byes: Tennessee, New Orleans, Washington, Jacksonville
Pick-Ups:
QB: Steve McNair / Kyle Boller, Baltimore (at Cleveland): I know the Browns are the feel-good story this week after beating Cincinnati, but Carson Palmer still lit up that defense for six touchdowns and more than 400 yards passing. Boller looked considerably better against the Jets in Week 2 than he did in his last incarnation as a starter.
RB: Sammy Morris, New England (@Cincinnati): 1. The Bengals just gave up 215 yards to Jamal Lewis. 2. Morris has the look of a touchdown stealer, plus he looks like he runs stronger than Maroney.
WR: Vincent Jackson, San Diego (vs. Kansas City): Despite the complete lack of cohesion by the Chargers offense against the Patriots, Jackson still came down with some nice grabs and looks like the clear #2 passing game target after Antonio Gates (not counting LaDainian Tomlinson).
TE: LJ Smith, Philadelphia (@NY Giants): I don’t like what I’ve seen from Smith so far, but any time you can get a starter against this Giants defense, you are morally obligated to do so.
D: Houston (@Atlanta): More impressive than the Texans’ offensive outburst against Carolina is the complete domination of the Houston run defense against the very good Panthers tandem of DeAngelo Williams (8 carries for 31 yards) and DeShaun Foster (9 carries for 22 yards). Houston hosts the Colts in Week 3, so they should be available for Week 4.
K: Nick Folk, Dallas (vs. St. Louis): When you can pick out your Survivor League choice two weeks in advance, you know it’s a mismatch. The Dallas offense is on fire and the Rams defense is in shambles. Folk is 4-4 on FG attempts and already has 10 extra points.
Potential bad match-ups:
QB: Matt Leinart, Arizona (vs. Pittsburgh). Steelers have only given up 10 points over the first two.
RB: Steven Jackson, St. Louis (@Dallas). The combination of a bad defense and shaky offensive line can be fatal to a power running game. Such is life for the Rams workhorse.
WR: Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis (vs. Denver). Since Champ Bailey came to Denver in 2004, Harrison’s totals vs. the Broncos: 4 receptions for 50 yards, 0 TD; 5 receptions for 33 yards, 1 TD; 5 receptions for 38 yards, 0 TD.
TE: Alge Crumpler, Atlanta (vs. Houston). It’s hard to be a top-line fantasy TE when your offense completes fewer than 15 passes per game.
D: Chicago (@Detroit). Not only are the Lions on fire offensively (second most points in the NFC against two decent defenses in Oakland and Minnesota), this is a rivalry game where the team that’s taken the beatings recently may finally have a chance to put on a show at home.
K: Stephen Gostkowski, New England (@Cincinnati). The Patriots have had holder issues over the first two games, but the real reason to avoid Gostkowski is that he’s too much XP (10-10) and not enough FG (2-3).
Week 5
Byes: Cincinnati, Oakland, Minnesota, Philadelphia
Keep an eye on:
QB: David Garrard, Jacksonville (@Kansas City)
RB: Ron Dayne, Houston (vs. Miami)
WR: Drew Carter, Carolina (@New Orleans)
TE: Chris Baker, New York Jets (@NY Giants)
D: Tennessee (vs. Atlanta)
K: Rob Bironas, Tennessee (vs. Atlanta)
Potential bad match-ups:
QB: Tony Romo, Dallas (@Buffalo in the first Monday Night game in Orchard Park since 2000)
RB: Cedric Benson, Chicago (@Green Bay)
WR: Darrell Jackson, San Francisco (Baltimore)
TE: Antonio Gates, San Diego (@Denver, where he has never scored a TD in his career)
D: Miami (@Houston)
K: Josh Brown, Seattle (@Pittsburgh)