ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly from training camp through Super Bowl with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them: Which player has been the biggest disappointment so far? Will they turn things around?
JAY HARDING
The Houston Defense and NO I don't believe they will get it turned around. Please don't ask me how or why I had them at No. 1 this year. The gentleman I believe it was Sam Hendricks in the FFI Auction commented in the follow up Q&A for worst buy of auction said simply: "$6 for The Houston D, seriously?" He nailed it. If you're going to be in this business you must learn to love eating crow and very quickly too!
Harding, owner of The Fantasy Football Firm has been playing and winning fantasy football since 1987. The Firm specializes in helping fantasy owners win in three key post-draft areas. Senior Partners at The Firm get all three publications: “Effective Team Management”, “Waiver Wire Wisdom” and “The Trade Maker” a combined 57 pages packed with sound, proven and effective strategies focused solely on helping partners win their league championships and to do so more consistently than ever before. On Twitter: @UDONTWINONDDAY.
MICHAEL NAZAREK
It has to be Peyton Manning, playing like a shell of his former self. I see his season continuing to be an inconsistent mess moving forward. I did not draft him anywhere this summer due to his injury from last year and his age. I do own his brother in most of my leagues.
Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc. His company offers a preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, a multi-use fantasy drafting program including auction values, weekly in-season fantasy newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its web site. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is a four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. For more info go to www.ffmastermind.com. Nazarek can be reached via email at miken@ffmastermind.com.
JOSHUA SIMMONS
There are numerous opinions floating about, with regard to Eddie Lacy's fantasy stock going forward. I think to some degree it behooves us to parse the words of his coach, who essentially said Lacy and James Starks will both see plenty of work. Beyond just their backfield, I have found the Packers to be disappointing across the board -- at least in terms of fantasy upside. I find it difficult to recall many other situations like this one, wherein the team keeps on winning yet somehow its players afford us fantasy scraps. James Jones has been a nice get, to be fair. Otherwise what we have here is a collection of players who were drafted to be difference makers, but aren't delivering on that front. Honestly, I think fantasy owners need to give serious thought to selling off Aaron Rodgers, Randall Cobb and Eddie Lacy while their name recognition fetches something of value.
Simmons has been a contributor for FantasySharks.com since 2007. His responsibilities include dynasty rankings, weekly projections-driven content and staff representation in various leagues.
ALAN SATTERLEE
For me personally, that player would be Brandin Cooks who I thought would really deliver this year. I think Cooks will be hit or miss. He still is due for some big games here or there. For many, I am sure Eddie Lacy has to be on the short list. Lacy is now averaging just 43 yards rushing per game and has started since week one. I think Lacy will continue to frustrate, but I would be good with trading for him if you can get super cheap.
Satterlee is a co-owner and senior writer for Dynasty Football Warehouse. DFW is comprehensive site covering dynasty, redraft, IDP and Daily formats. DFW has a large writing crew with many people from the DFW community contributing to the insights and discussion. Alan is also the Fantasy Football Insider for the Charlotte Observer and is syndicated in a few other newspapers in the southeast.
IAN ALLAN
I’ll go with Peyton Manning. We all knew he was an older quarterback, and that he’d lost some arm strength. But he seems to have passed the tipping point. He just can’t play anymore. He’s 39 years old, but he moves like he’s in his mid-50s. Strange to say, but he’s not physically capable of lining up under center any more. He can’t move well enough to drop back. And he’s simply lost too much zip and accuracy in his arm. His head is writing checks that his arm can’t cash. We’re at the point where it wouldn’t surprise me if the Broncos have to plug Brock Osweiler into the lineup at some point.
Allan is the senior writer for Fantasy Football Index. He's been in that role since 1987, generating most of the player rankings and analysis for that publication. His work can be seen in Fantasy Football Index magazine, and also at www.fantasyindex.com.
SCOTT PIANOWSKI
I talked myself into Sam Bradford and his teammates during the preseason. After all, if Chip Kelly made fantasy-viable players out of Michael Vick, Nick Foles and even Mark Sanchez, surely he could do the same with Bradford. I'm no longer bullish on Bradford, or really anyone in this offense. I don't like Bradford's pocket decisions and how he handles pressure. The offensive line has been a mess. The DeMarco Murray signing was likely a mistake. And perhaps the biggest disappointment of all, Jordan Matthews leaves plays on the field every week, largely due to suspect hands. Perhaps Chip Kelly the head coach is being undermined by Chip Kelly, personnel director.
Pianowski has been playing fantasy football for 20 years and writing about it for 17. He joined Yahoo! Sports in 2008 and has been blogging 24/7 on RotoArcade.com ever since.
SAM HENDRICKS
Kansas City is going down and nothing in my opinion can save them. Their schedule is brutal. Granted they do now play 6 of their remaining 10 games at home. But even Arrowhead does not look like it can save them. They have lost their star RB in Jamaal Charles. Their OL looks middling at best. Alex Smith does not seem to have caught on fire (was he ever going to?) although he is a QB15 averaging around 19 points per game. The defense is giving up 26 points per game this season. 1-5 could turn into 3-13.
Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at ExtraPointPress.com, at all major bookstores, and at Amazon and BN.com. He is a 20-plus year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC). He won the Fantasy Index Open in 2013. Follow him at his web site, www.ffguidebook.com.
ANDY RICHARDSON
Ameer Abdullah. It is a hard thing to admit, but maybe I overestimated him. Early on I felt he wasn't being used properly, or enough. And clearly, the blocking on this team is terrible; too many formations with tight ends incapable of blocking. But I can't blame his fumbles on anyone else but him. It just doesn't look like he's going to get things sorted out this season, and at this point I can't even argue he should have passing downs work ahead of Theo Riddick. Disappointing indeed.
Richardson has been a contributing writer and editor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and www.fantasyindex.com since 2002. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual experts draft and auction leagues since their inception. He previews all the NFL games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays during the NFL season.