Bill Belichick has a saying that team doesn’t really start to figure out who it is until Week 8 or so. Ok, maybe that’s paraphrasing a bit, but you get the gist. All that pre-season hype and projections don’t really mean a whole lot when your back-up quarterback needs to drive the field for a game-saving touchdown.

 

Same for fantasy.

 

You could have been pleased as punch on draft day with Travis Henry and Laurence Maroney as your one-two at RB. But now you're just happy you have Selvin Young on and Ryan Grant on your bench.

 

It’s a game of adjustments, of seeing your weaknesses before they manifest into black marks on wrong side of the win-loss ledger, of realizing just one wrong move can cost you a spot in the playoffs, and still having the fortitude to take a chance, to take it all very seriously and write about it like it’s a freaking existential exercise.

 

These are the dog days of fall.

 

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For Week 9, we can finally get a break from the heartbreak that is the Dolphins, Rams and Bears. There’s no Steven Jackson or Marc Bulger to torment you, no Bears D to disappoint, no … Dolphins. Just a weekend of great football, highlighted by the game Jesus himself would come back for, Colts-Pats.

 

But let’s look a bit further ahead, to The Week After (aka Week 10), when the Pats get a break with a perfectly-timed bye (win or lose against Indy) and the Colts get another mammoth test at San Diego.

 

Keep an eye on:

 

QB: Kurt Warner, Arizona (Detroit): The Lions defense held the Bears in check, which is kind of like saying the Republicans goaded Nancy Pelosi into saying something inflammatory. In other words, it’s not exactly climbing Mount Everest. (I’m all over the place, I know.) Anyway, the Lions are 30th in pass D and only Miami, Cleveland and Cincinnati have given up more TD passes. With a healthy Anquan Boldin back, Warner is a good bet for a great game.  

 

RB: Aaron Stecker, New Orleans (St. Louis): The focus was on the passing game instead of the run game in the 31-10 beating of the 49ers in Week 8, but lost in the highlights is the fact Stecker got more carries than (12 to 10). That’s not to say Stecker is anywhere near Bush’s equal, but they’re playing the Rams, and that means it’s good times all around.

 

WR: D.J. Hackett, Seattle (San Francisco): Hackett was set to be the starter going into the year, then sprained his ankle in the first game and has been out since. Watch their game against the porous Browns pass D in Week 9 to see how Mike Holmgenr works Hackett (and Deion Branch) back into the mix. (That’s also a warning to Bobby Engram owners.)

 

TE: David Martin, Miami (Buffalo): He’s hurt right now, so obviously follow his recovery closely before pulling the trigger. But in a year that’s gone terribly wrong for the Dolphins, Martin is establishing himself as a good fit in Cam Cameron’s offense. He’s a definite sleeper for 2008.

 

K: Jeff Wilkins, St. Louis (@New Orleans)

 

D: Buffalo (@Miami): It’s not every day you get to plan ahead to the debut of a rookie quarterback, but it’s looking more and more like that’s what the Bills will be facing in John Beck. Good luck, fella.

 

Possible bad match-ups:

 

QB: Vince Young, Tennessee (Jacksonville): 46 passing yards he had in Week 8 against the Raiders. 48! Somebody poke Norm Chow, make sure he still has a pulse.

 

RB: Ryan Grant, Green Bay (Minnesota): Nobody runs on the Vikings (third in rush yards per game allowed behind Tennessee and Baltimore).

 

WR: Braylon Edwards (@Pittsburgh): Assuming the Browns beat the Seahawks (a horrible road team) on Sunday and the Steelers beat the Ravens at home on Monday night, we’ll be talking about 5-3 Cleveland at 6-2 Pittsburgh for a huge advantage in the AFC North. If anybody had this in their pre-season predictions, go ahead give yourself a pat on the back.

 

TE: Jason Witten, Dallas (@NY Giants): With the Giants D unleashed, Tony Romo is going to be running for his life.

 

K: Joe Nedney, San Francisco (@Seattle): Don’t be surprised to see the Niners get shut out.

 

D: San Diego (Indianapolis): If the Colts beat the Pats, they come in on a high. If they lose, they come out extra focused. Either way, I don’t see a still-shaky Chargers secondary stopping Peyton Manning.

 

In addition to the Pats, the Jets, Bucs and Texans are also off.

 

Week 11

 

Back to the full slate of 16. Got to love it.

 

Keep an eye on:

 

QB: Steve McNair, Baltimore (Cleveland)

RB: Chris Henry, Tennessee (@Denver)

WR: Joey Galloway, Tampa Bay (@Atlanta)

TE: LJ Smith, Philadelphia (Miami)

K: Rob Bironas, Tennessee (@Denver)

D: Seattle (Chicago)

 

Potential bad patch-ups:

 

QB: Jay Cutler, Denver (Tennessee)

RB: Thomas Jones, NY Jets (Pittsburgh)

WR: Lee Evans, Buffalo (New England)

TE: Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City (@Indianapolis)

K: Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland (@Minnesota): Shutout alert

D: NY Giants (@Detroit)