If anything was more baffling than the post-game ruckus between the San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions, it has to be how David Stern is still the commissioner of the dysfunctional National Basketball Association.
In case you missed the incident, a scuffle erupted between the two teams because of the coaches. Yep, that is not a misprint. The coaches got into a scuffle that resulted from too exuberant of a handshake on the part of 49ers’ coach Jim Harbaugh, which led to Lions’ coach Jim Schwartz chasing him down the field.
The two eventually had to be separated by multiple personnel members from each team. It was a rare display of unsportsmanlike conduct by someone other than the players.
In other news, the Green Bay Packers remain the only unbeaten team left in the National Football League, with few signs suggesting they will have a mid-season meltdown.
This week’s slate of games is rather unenticing, in my opinion, as some top notch teams have a bye this week. Those teams are the 49ers, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and New England Patriots. This will be a week where scouring the waiver wire could provide enough of a boost to propel your team to a victory, so take advantage of this resource.
Speaking of waiver wire, some additions you might consider this week for bye week replacements are Delone Carter, DeMarco Murray, Demaryius Thomas, Arrelious Benn and John Beck.
As I write this, the trade deadline is approaching. The deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m. but do not get overly excited. It is difficult for players to learn a whole new system mid-season. Roster changes clearly change the value of players, but do not expect any water-to-wine miracles.
As of this writing, wide receiver Brandon Lloyd has been traded from the Denver Broncos to the St. Louis Rams. This is a scenario which is beneficial to all parties involved, as Lloyd is reunited with ex-head coach Josh McDaniels, who is now the offensive coordinator of the Rams. This should help to negate Lloyd having to learn an entirely new offensive system.
With Tim Tebow taking over the quarterbacking duties in Denver, the move is an upgrade for Lloyd, who ditches the conservative John Fox system in Denver for a more capable quarterback in the Rams’ Sam Bradford. Bradford’s value should see a slight increase, as Lloyd instantly becomes the top target in an underachieving wide receiving core. Downgrade all Broncos receivers now, too, as the top threat becomes Eric Decker, who will see double teams with Lloyd’s departure. You can give slight bumps in value to Demaryius Thomas and Eddie Royal, but they should never see your starting lineup.
The Oakland Raiders lost quarterback Jason Campbell to a broken collarbone, so stay tuned as to whether they make a move to land a quarterback. Whoever they land should be a major improvement over Kyle Boller and will have marginal fantasy usage.
