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Fantasy Spin: Felix Jones The Next Julius?

Posted: Apr 26th 2008 5:45 PM ET by Will Brinson (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Cowboys, NFC East, NFL Draft, Dallas, Fantasy Football

7 COMMENTS

Fantasy FanHouse will be chiming in throughout the NFL draft with fantasy analysis of each fantasy relevant pick.

The Cowboys, out of the Bill Parcells regime, let Julius Jones go after Marion Barber, III, had become their elite running back. And with good reason. Now, it appears the speedy Felix Jones will be taking his spot as the change-of-pace, home-run type back in the Cowboys offense.

It might be tough for Jones to actually be fantasy relevant next year. Because of MB3's talent, and status as goalline back, Jones will probably only be able to accrue fantasy points for owners in 2008 by breaking off long runs when he's given touches. It still seems likely that he will get at least 10 carries a game though, which could make him valuable. For single league purposes, expect to only draft Jones in the late rounds as a handcuff or upside bench pick, barring a holdout by Barber.

Keeper leagues will be faced with a different quandry though. It seems unlikely that the Cowboys would want to let Barber walk, so Jones may struggle to be really relevant, really quickly. If that's case, meaning Barber stays in Dallas, Jones has to be considered at best the fourth, maybe fifth best fantasy running back option taken so far in the first round (behind Darren McFadden, Jonathan Stewart, Rashard Mendenhall and possibly Chris Johnson) so far.

Brad Richards' Star is Fading

Posted: Apr 4th 2008 2:10 PM ET by Jes Golbez (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Fantasy Hockey, NHL Injuries

2 COMMENTS

When the Dallas Stars spent BIG (Mike Smith and forwards Jussi Jokinen and Jeff Halpern and a 4th round draft pick in 2009) to acquire Brad Richards from the Tampa Bay Lightning, it was seen as the final offensive piece needed to put the Dallas Stars over the hump.

In his first game with the Stars, Brad Richards had FIVE(!) assists, and looked like a whole new man. It was easy for any Stars fan to get excited about their new acquisition.

Since that game, however, Richards has just one goal and four assists in 11 games, and now finds his 'Ironman' streak at an end. Not surprisingly, Brad Richards, who was -25 with the Lightning, is -2 in his brief tenure with the Stars.

Richards said hasn't been feeling well overall and didn't play in the Dallas Stars' game in Phoenix, which the Stars won 4-2.

Richards said it's not flu and it's not lingering effects from the mono he had earlier in the year. However, he has to be feeling really bad because he will stop a streak of 354 consecutive games played by missing Thursday night's game. It was only the third game he has missed in his pro career. The other two were due to a death in his family.

The Stars are 2-7-2 with Richards in the lineup, falling from second overall in the NHL and in the Western Conference to fifth place in the west.

Apparently, Richards has been battling mono all season, and that could account for his poor play. Don't you think, however, the Dallas Stars should have realized they were getting damaged goods, in the first place? Did they not do their homework?

While I acknowledge Richards' awesome playmaking skills, I have to wonder why the Dallas Stars thought he'd fit in well with their team. Richards, despite 500 points in 564 career games, is an overall -57. Even with his great offensive output, Richards is one of the biggest defensive liabilities in the game, and not the type of player usually associated with the Dallas Stars.

If Richards can't shake off this mono cloud over his head, the Stars may very well win the award for worst trade of the season. Don't forget, Brad Richards is a mighty big cap hit for a player who has so many warts.

Mike Ribeiro, Spurned Sharpshooter

Posted: Dec 26th 2007 11:34 AM ET by Jes Golbez (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, General NHL, Canadiens, Stars, Fantasy Hockey

0 COMMENTS

When one thinks of the NHL's best sharpshooters, I'm sure the name Mike Ribeiro doesn't come to mind. Notorious for his embarrassing fake-injury/dive incident years back, and for disappearing come playoff time, few expect a whole lot out of Mike Ribeiro.

Ribeiro was so pissed at being dealt away from his hometown club that he publicly exclaimed his pleasure with the Habs missing the playoffs. Few players are ever so publicly candid about wishing misfortune on their old club.

Now, here we are near 2008, and Mike Ribeiro has quietly become one of the league's better offensive players. After being given to the Dallas Stars for almost nothing, Ribeiro has found a place where he could grow his game, and is now 17th in league scoring with 39 points in 34 games. "Ribs" has an astounding shot percentage near 40%(!), and also led the Stars in scoring last season.

To add insult to the Habs' injury, Ribeiro led the Stars to a 4-1 win over his former club in the first meeting between the two sides since the trade. Talk about salt in the wound.

"I put the disappointment [about the trade] behind me, but I had this game circled for a long time," said Ribeiro, who has 19 goals and 38 points, and is a solid plus-12 for the Pacific Division leaders. "This was a big game for me."

Now, Ribeiro's talent has never been questioned, but his heart certainly has. In 24 playoff games, Ribeiro has just two goals and six assists. After leading the club in scoring last season, Ribeiro disappeared in the playoffs, as he often does, with just three assists in seven games. Hardly the stuff of a team scoring champ.

So, props to Ribeiro for maturing his game and becoming a productive player. Now, it's time to see if he can take the next step and do well in the playoffs ... or will he continue to show us why the Habs gave up on him?

Sergei Zubov Still Rocks Your Socks

Posted: Dec 11th 2007 11:01 AM ET by Jes Golbez (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Fantasy Hockey, NHL Hall of Fame

2 COMMENTS

If somebody asked you to name the NHL's top scoring defenseman, which names would pop into your head first? Nicklas Lidstrom, Chris Pronger, Sergei Gonchar, or Tomas Kaberle, right?

Well, amazingly enough, the 37-year old Sergei Zubov is the king of d-men this year, leading all blueliners with 28 points in 31 games. Trust me, I'm as shocked as you are that Zubov is in the top spot for defensemen scoring.

Sergei Zubov is somewhere near 10th in All-Star voting for defensemen.

But he's first in the league in scoring among blue-liners.

That seems the perfect dichotomy for one of the league's most underrated players.

"He quietly goes about his job, but the guys who get to see it in here understand what he means," Morrow said. "We know how valuable he is."

Given Dallas' stifling defence-first system, and Zubov's age, it's amazing that the veteran Russian is on pace to have one of the best offensive seasons of his career.

Of course, this speaks to how little attention and respect that Zubov gets among the fans and the media. How many of you would consider Zubov a Hall of Famer? Even with 760 points in 1043 regular season games, most would not have Zubov on their Hall of Fame lists beside Nicklas Lidstrom or Scott Niedermayer, the latter of which he has more career points than. The fact that Zubov has just ONE award nomination tells you just how under-the-radar his career has been. It would be nice if he got a little more attention every now and then, wouldn't it?

Slinging the Rock

Posted: Oct 9th 2007 6:51 PM ET by Will Brinson (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, Buffalo, Fantasy Football, NFL Sleepers

0 COMMENTS

Well, I knew Tony Romo would have some "off" games. I did not, however, know that his first bad one would come against the Bills on Monday Night Football (although I did tend to think the Bills were a lock to at least give the Cowboys a decent run for their proverbial money). Anyway, please don't tell me in the comments how I'm a loser or idiot for changing my opinion on Romo. He just threw five (should have been six) picks and fumbled a ball in the middle of primetime. Everyone saw it. His fantasy owners are panicked. And why shouldn't they be? They're "stud" QB looks pretty mortal. Never hurts to ask what they want for him. Of course, I was more concerned with the performance of another MNF star last night.

Straight Cash, Homey (Buy Low)

Marshawn Lynch, RB, BUF - Does anyone really feel like Lynch is making a huge impact on the fantasy landscape? Because he quietly is. He's on a bad team yet he's a top 15 fantasy running back. You might point out that he hasn't cracked 100 total yards yet in a game, but I would counter with the issue of his schedule. He has gone against the Broncos (32 - okay throw that one out), and the Jets (25 - crap). But he did score a touch against each one. And the other three games he's had this year? The Steelers (4), the Patriots (5) and the Cowboys (7). That's beasty, man. He's got his bye this week and he hasn't been a points monster, so he's gettable. Add in the fact that he'll be seeing the Dolphins twice (once in week 15), the Bengals, the Browns and the Jets again, in addition to the Giants (a decent matchup) in week 16 and this is a guy that you want to go out and get in a trade before he blows up. It doesn't hurt that Trent Edwards should mean better offense and at 100 touches through 20 games, Lynch isn't on pace to wear out by season's end.

Major League Mongering: Teixeira to Atlanta

Posted: Jul 25th 2007 5:00 PM ET by Matt Watson (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Atlanta, Dallas, Rangers, Braves, AL West, NL East, Fantasy Baseball, MLB Rumors

3 COMMENTS

Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.

It's becoming more and more rare to see blockbuster deals at the deadline, but that might not be the case this year if there is any truth to these Mark Teixeira rumors. From MLB.com:

But one Major League scout confirmed the Braves and Rangers are still discussing a trade that would be headlined with Teixeira and almost definitely include Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Atlanta's 22-year-old switch-hitting catcher who stands as one of the most attractive prospects on the trade market.

This isn't the first time we've heard this rumor, and with the trade deadline just a week away, it's not surprising to see it pick up steam.

Why does this need to happen? The Braves are desperate for a big stick at first base. How desperate? Their current first basemen have combined for a pathetic .205 batting average and .621 OPS this year, which each rank dead last in the National League by wide margins. Scott Thorman, who's seen most of the starts, has been so bad that the Braves have played Saltamacchia out of position there and even picked up 800-year-old Julio Franco.

What might he bring in return? Like the report from MLB.com suggests, the Rangers probably wouldn't do this deal for anything less than a package involving Saltamacchia, widely regarded as one of the best catching prospects in the game who's unfortunately blocked at the big-league level in Atlanta by the 23-year-old Brian McCann. Other players that Atlanta might deal include young pitching prospect Jo-Jo Reyes or shortstop Elvis Andrus.

Eric Lindros: The Big Gamble That Didn't Pay Off

Posted: Apr 18th 2007 3:26 PM ET by Jes Golbez (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Western, Fantasy Hockey, NHL Injuries

0 COMMENTS

One of my co-workers took Eric Lindros in our annual office pool, hoping to cash in on an extremely risky pick in the hopes Eric might decide to go retro and score 70-80 points. The Dallas Stars, when they signed Lindros to a contract, were also hoping to catch the same lightning in a bottle.

I laughed at both parties, knowing Lindros was likely to be a big bust. They didn't listen, though, as they thought they were smarter than everyone else who knew better.

Coming off of a mediocre season with his hometown (of sorts) Leafs, where he scored just 22 points in 33 games, there were doubts that Lindros could even play half of a season's worth of games. The Stars were obviously quite desperate to expect Lindros to provide something positive, while skilled players like Yanic Perrault sat at home unsigned. It was the hockey equivalent of spending $100,000 on scratch-and-win tickets instead of investing in government bonds.

Things started off well for Lindros (and my co-worker) as "The Big Ego" started the season with one goal and four assists in his first three games with the club! Lindros had seemingly re-found his scoring touch, and brought some life to the moribund Stars power play. Still, I knew Humpty Dumpty would fall from the wall when the clock struck midnight, and all of the Los Angeles Kings' men couldn't put him back together again.

It didn't take long for an acolyte of the Hockey Gods to come and smack him with a +4 Rod of Reality, causing Lindros to go dry with just three points in his next eight games. The oft-concussed Lindros suffered a wrist injury, and was so afraid of suffering another big blow that he continued to play on the periphery like a big scaredy cat.

Can Marty Turco Shed the 'Choker' Label?

Posted: Apr 11th 2007 3:30 PM ET by Jes Golbez (RSS feed)
Filed Under: Dallas, General NHL, Stars, Western, Fantasy Hockey, Stanley Cup, Featured Stories

0 COMMENTS

While it is rather cliché to talk about Marty Turco's playoff history as a choker, the tag has stuck on him so much that he is known for little else, despite his steadiness during the regular season. Be it nerves, bad luck, or just bad technique, Turco has looked shaky in the post-season, often abandoning the fundamentals that normally make him quite a good goaltender.

Regular Season: 320GP 2.11GAA 91.4SV%
Playoffs: 22GP 2.53GAA 89.2SV%

While the 22 playoff games is a small sample size, the nature of the playoff beast does not allow many bad games. One or two bad performances in the playoffs can kill your chances and send you to the golf course, whereas a bad game or two in the regular season will be ironed out over a long schedule of games.

Turco's first foray into the playoffs back in 2003 wasn't all that bad, as he finished with a 6-6 record, 1.87GAA and a 91.9SV%. Sure, it wasn't anything near his jaw-dropping 93.2SV% during that regular season, but it wasn't the worst performance by a goaltender popping their playoff cherry.

It was the next two series, however, that cemented Turco as a playoff turkey.

2003-04: Dallas lost in 5 games to the Avalanche with Turco putting up a 3.32GAA and 84.9SV%
2005-06: Dallas lost in 5 games, again to the Avalanche, with Turco putting up a 3.38GAA and 86.8SV%. Just terrible numbers, overall.

There is no doubt that Turco would like to shut the critics up and forget about past history, but it will take a good performance or two to do that. Perhaps not playing against the Avalanche will help his numbers? :)