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Sporting News, The, Oct 11, 2004 by George Winkler

PLAY ACTION

by GEORGE WINKLER

Whether you're a mover and shaker when it comes to waiver-wire transactions or you tend to stand pat, nobody wants to be burned by dropping the wrong player. Not only does a bad move weaken your team, it also haunts you when another owner benefits from your mistake.

A rash of early-season injuries has caused many teams to look for help. Some tips on adding and dropping players:

Don't touch the untouchables. In a standard league with a 17-player roster, an owner should designate 10 to 12 players who will remain through thick and thin. Typically, the players you drafted early to fill key starting positions--and some guys you believe have potential, such as Lions running back Kevin Jones--will be in this group. It's still early in the season, and these players deserve some time to work through difficulties or recover from injuries.

Watch the injury report. When a team puts a player on injured reserve, his season is over, so cut him immediately. It also is important to stay on top of the latest injury developments by reading Fantasy Source's player updates. You never know when you'll find a gem among the backup players moving into starting roles.

Plan for matchups and open weeks. We're at a point in the season when defenses begin to show statistical trends. If there's a decent free-agent wide receiver available who is facing the worst pass defense in the league, consider adding him. He could provide the boost you need when one of your regular receivers has an open week. Speaking of open weeks, plan in advance. You don't want to be scrambling to find starters the day before the big game.

Stay cool. It's tempting to "punish" a player who has performed below expectations by cutting him. Trust us; he won't know the difference if he no longer is employed by your fantasy team. Making rash decisions is the easiest way to get burned.

M@IL BONDING

ROB HURTT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS

Is T.J. Duckett worth keeping around, or should I dump him?

Gary Cook, Peoria, Ariz.

Gary: The departure of Dan Reeves was supposed to be good news for Duckett, but new coach Jim Mora has used Duckett even less than Reeves did. Duckett was not on the field for a single snap in Week 3. He did come in and score a touchdown in Week 4 when Warrick Dunn left the game because of a hamstring injury. Dunn hasn't been particularly durable, which is good news for Duckett (and fantasy owners who have him on their teams). He's worth keeping on your bench in case Dunn misses time.

TSN Games Tip of the week

Variety is the spice of fantasy football. Don't forget that when setting your Ultimate Salary Cap Football lineup. You don't want to go overboard picking players from one team. Owning Peyton Manning, Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison sounds great, but your team will come up empty if the Colts' offense sputters. Loading up on one team's players also causes trouble when that team is off. (That's Week 6 in the Colts' case.) You might have to use your entire weekly allotment of trades just to cover for players who won't be playing.

STUD, SLEEPERS & STUMBLERS

STUDS, SLEEPERS & STUMBLERS

Week 5 calls from Fantasy Source experts Chris Bahr, Mike Nahrstedt and
George Winkler:

Expert        Stud                      Sleeper

QBs
Bahr          Michael Vick, Atl.        David Carr, Hou.
Nahrstedt     Daunte Culpepper, Min.    Byron Leftwich, Jac.
Winkler       Michael Vick, Atl.        Ben Roethlisberger, Pit.

RBs
Bahr          Shaun Alexander, Sea.     Duce Staley, Pit.
Nahrstedt     Shaun Alexander, Sea.     Michael Bennett, Min.
Winkler       Shaun Alexander, Sea.     Corey Dillon, N.E.

WRs
Bahr          Hines Ward, Pit.          Doug Gabriel, Oak.
Nahrstedt     Randy Moss, Min.          Joey Porter, Oak.
Winkler       Roy Williams, Det.        Peerless Price, Atl.

Defense
Bahr          New England               N.Y Jets
Nahrstedt     New England               Pittsburgh
Winkler       New England               Washington

Expert        Stumbler

QBs
Bahr          Jake Delhomme, Car.
Nahrstedt     Aaron Brooks, N.O.
Winkler       Jeff Garcia, Cle.

RBs
Bahr          Curtis Martin, NYJ
Nahrstedt     Clinton Portis, Was.
Winkler       Marshall Faulk, St.L.

WRs
Bahr          Amani Toomer, NYG
Nahrstedt     Laveranues Coles, Was.
Winkler       David Patten, N.E.

Defense
Bahr          Oakland
Nahrstedt     Tennessee
Winkler       Oakland

Fantasy source

Sporting News, The, Oct 11, 2004 by George Winkler

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