Paper Pigskin Point Potential 2014 - Dallas Cowboys

This is a series on my 2014 outlook of players you would want to have on your Paper Pigskin team (fantasy football).  What you'll find here are my views based on years of playing experience and countless hours of geeking out researching stats, trends, and film.  I'll advise where to reach and whose hype not to believe.

DALLAS COWBOYS - Passing 247 ypg     Rushing 94 ypg

The Cowboys ran the fewest offensive plays of any team in the league last year, yet they were still able to finish in the middle of the pack in total yardage as well as top-5 in points scored. Seeing as they have three different play calling gurus in tow, the Paper Pigskin Point Potential for this team remains high. Now that Scott Linehan has been added to the mix - as the passing game coordinator - with Bill Callahan and Jason Garrett, the aerial attack should only improve. The defense, now that's another story.

NFL Brain Dump - Playoff Race of Disgrace

So many teams had a chance to make a statement in week 15 and strengthen their playoff position but failed to capitalize on their opportunities. The top three seeds in the AFC all lost and gave other teams hopes of getting either a playoff bye or home game. Outside of the West division, the top teams in the NFC are falling by the wayside. Now there are teams whose life lines were weak just a week ago, are now revitalized.

NFL Brain Dump - Sleeping In Seattle

No! I don't mean "sleeping on Seattle", although I'll be the first to admit I had my doubts about the offense being able to produce points on a consistent basis. I actually mean that any NFC team with Super Bowl aspirations will have to sleep in Seattle, Washington in order to accomplish that. After beating up the New Orleans Saints in front of the entire school, The Hawks are now 2 games clear of the closest challenger for the best record in their conference.  Carolina and New Orleans (both 9-3) face each other twice in the final four games. Seattle is brash and they love to talk trash . . . boy are they fun to watch?

NFL Brain Dump: Checking The Climate

This week's brain dump will take a brief look at some of the league's on-goings.  Even though we're approaching week 9, we haven't quite reached the half-way mark because only half of the teams have completed half of their schedule due to the bye weeks.  There have been a few surprises and many disappointments.

Aaron Rodgers continues to lead the Green Bay Packers to victory.  There are some quarterbacks who have been under performing  this season and the media have given them outs by saying this is the result of injuries to their top wide receivers.   No such excuses are coming from the Packers' organization.  Green Bay has lost their top three wide receivers from last season and Rodgers just keep piling on the wins.  This is nothing new.

Colin Kaepernick isn't playing like he's the future of the NFL.  This shouldn't be a concern for any fan of the San Francisco 49'ers because he is doing what he is supposed to do, which is executing the game plan set forth by his head coach.  If anything, the underwhelming performance early in the season can be attested to Coach Harbaugh wanting to show off his toy but it can't work right without the proper accessories (Crabtree).  What they have done in the bay is revert back to running the ball which has been a recipe for their success in the past. This shouldn't surprise anyone.

Alex Smith is a terrible quarterback.  No, I don't really believe this.  This is something that people like to say because he isn't putting up flashy numbers and doesn't take chances beyond the intermediate level of the defense.  He is a game manager who is completing the assignment given to him by Kansas City Chief's head coach Andy Reid.  Are we really going to argue with the results he has produced? Many quarterbacks in his situation will listen to the chatter from the peanut gallery and try to show people how wrong they are.  Alex Smith is is playing within himself and being the best that he can be.  I thought KC would do good but being undefeated is surprising.

There is something really wrong with the Dallas Cowboys.  This has nothing to do with Tony Romo choking away games because he is playing some amazing football this season.  This has nothing to do with the over-hyped outburst by Dez Bryant in last weeks loss; I love the passion he displayed.  I'd much rather go to battle with somebody that I know cares about me surviving than somebody who acts like everything is cool.  Over the years, Dallas has put talented players on the field but have lost a lot of close games.  Maybe it's the coaching.  Maybe its the owner that doesn't know how to chill.  They have the best team on paper in their division.  Their results have been a disappointment.

Greg Schiano has no idea how to lead a group of men.  Neither the old players or new players like him.  I'm really surprised he hasn't been fired yet; I can imagine this is disappointing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans.  Tony Dungy put in work during his tenure in Tampa and built a culture of winning football, just to have ownership sacrifice that for a quickie super bowl win.  Now it seems like they've chosen to fully embrace their traditional losing culture.

That's all I really have to say this time around.  Next week will bring a full mid-season report.

Let me know what you think of these musings in the comments section.

Paper Pigskin Point Potential NFC East

This is a series on my 2013 outlook of players you would want to have on your Paper Pigskin team (fantasy football).  I'll be organizing them by division.  What you'll find here are my views based on years of playing experience and countless hours of geeking out researching stats, trends, and articles.  I'll advise where to reach and whose hype not to believe.

Philadelphia Eagles  237 passing ypg  117 rushing ypg  (posted August 28, 2013)

QB:  Fans in Philly and around the NFL have been used to Andy Reid pacing the sidelines for the last 14 years methodically calling intricate pass plays.  Reid is no longer in town and his successor has a style that is the polar opposite.  Chip Kelly is implementing a system that advocates getting plays started without using much of the play clock.  What this means for the quarterback is that he'll have an abundance of opportunities to score points.  It's unknown what the ratio of run to pass will actually be, what is known is that Michael Vick can run very well and is encouraged to do so.   Vick's value is predicated on his ability to gain rushing yards in large chunks even though it's common knowledge that he has one of the strongest arms in the league albeit he isn't very accurate.  Vick is a high end QB2 with top five upside.