Fantasy Football Failure: Week 2

Thank God for Bernard Pollard.

Okay, not really. The hit on Tom Brady was all to reminiscent of Kimo von Oelhoffen's hit on Carson Palmer in the 2005 Playoffs. So while I'm not happy Brady is injured (I only root for injuries on AFC North teams), I am happy he didn't play longer than 8 minutes last week (because in those 8 minutes, Brady outscored Palmer, who played the whole damn game, 3 to 2- just pathetic).

Speaking of Week 1, even with Palmer's shitty performance, I was able to eke out the win 72-37. Okay, not really "eke out," especially since I had two guys (Deuce McAllister and Alge Crumpler) put up goose eggs. Sure, it helped that Brady only played 8 minutes, but it helped even more that his other skill position players (that's RB, RB, RB/WR, WR, WR, and TE) garnered a grand total of 17 points (I got 22 points from Marion Barber alone).

So after a triumphant Week 1, it's on to Week 2 against Team Dreher, who beat Kwijybo Killer Clowns last week 81-72. Here's how the lineups stack up right now (again, my guys on the left):

QB: Carson Palmer vs. Jake Delhomme
RB: Marion Barber vs. Marshawn Lynch
RB: Earnest Graham vs. Thomas Jones
RB/WR: Chris Johnson vs. Willie Parker
WR: Reggie Wayne vs. Anquan Boldin
WR: Dwayne Bowe vs. Jerricho Cotchery
TE: Bo Scaife vs. Dallas Clark
D/ST: Patriots vs. Colts
K: Jason Hanson vs. Nte Kaeding

Like last week, ESPN.com's projections again have me winning, but not by much. I honestly think this one's a toss up, if not me behind by a bit.

QB: Assuming Carson Palmer (and the rest of the Bengals offense) shows up this week, I should be fine. If he has another game like he did in Week 1, I'll lose and you'll see David Garrard in the lineup for Week 3. I would think that Palmer has the edge here (and he does), but given how bad he looked in Week 1, I think this is a push.

RB: After McAllister's 0 point effort (he's battling injuries), I've decided to drink the Chris Johnson Kool-Aid and ride the wave of recent East Carolina success. He got most of the carries in Week 1 and was successful, so against the Bengals piss-poor defense (you know, the one that made Joe Flacco look like the white Michael Vick) and with Vince Young out with a knee injury (aka- on suicide watch), I'm expecting more of the same from Johnson (only this week, he'll get a touchdown or two). And I'm going to need it, because I'm up against a pretty formidable RB trio in Lynch, Jones, and Parker (and Parker should have a big day going against that same sad Cleveland D that Barber shredded last week). Even with Johnson's breakout week, I think RB is a push as well, with the slight edge going to Team Dreher.

WR/TE: Again, push, and only because Dallas Clark is questionable for this week. I picked up another TE (Bo Scaife, the Titans TE that actually gets the ball thrown to him) to replace my old one (Alge Crumpler, the Titans TE that doesn't get the ball thrown to him). As for WR, I think we're pretty even, though I think I'd give the slight edge to Dreher. Boldin's the top guy in Arizona and its clear that Cotchery has become Favre's go-to guy in New York. Wayne's still #2 in Indy but he'll get his catches, and Bowe plays for one of the worst teams in the NFL, so I think I'm a little behind here.

DEF/K: Not much to say here other than his DEF (the Colts) are playing a lesser team (in the Vikings) than my DEF (the Patriots) is (in the Jets). Though if the Pats D sets up and locks down Brett Favre and company, it could potential swing the week in my favor (given that Dreher's got 2 Jets on his team in Jones and Cotchery). But I'd again call this one pretty even.

So unless Carson Palmer has a huge day, I think I lose I close one this week. I don't care what ESPN.com's projections are, I just think Dreher's got a slightly better team than me. But you never, know- Jake Delhomme could go down with an injury in first quarter this week. Hey, it's happened before.