With the second week of exhibtion games in the books, some conclusions will be drawn heading into the most important game of the pre-season. Who starts means something next week.
The first week of the exhibition season saw WR Dave Clowney of the New York Jets raise eyebrows the highest with a 169 yard/ 2 Td effort. His follow-up effort was 4 receptions for 59 yards. Both lead the team, but I'd feel even better if Brett Favre had completed one of those four passes.
In other notes from the 2nd week of regular-season-priced exhibition games:
Seattle Seahawks:
Rb Justin Forsett ripped off 136 yards on 15 carries. With Julius Jones and Maurice Morris unable to separate from each other (more an indictment of Jones than Morris, no?), Forsett's effort has to be noted.
San Francisco 49ers:
QB J.T. O'Sullivan started his second pre-season game and hooked-up with WR Justan Morgan for two long passes, a 22-yard one to the Green Bay Packers' 3 and another for a 59 TD score. Can offensive coordinator Mike Martz make both of these players viable fantasy options?
Philadelphia Eagles:
Rookie WR DeSean Jackson caught seven passes for the second consecutive pre-season game. Could Eagles' Qb Donovan McNabb finally have a settled WR corps with Jackson joining Kevin Curtis?
Denver Broncos:
QB Jay Cutler threw 16 of 20 passes for completions along with 178 yards and a TD to WR Brandon Marshall. Don't let Marshall's suspension allow him or Cutler to fall too far in your draft.
Selvin Young and Andre Hall split carries in the 1st quarter. Is a true RB timeshare going to occur? (read: Neither back will be valuable in fantasy until an injury occurs.)
Houston Texans:
For those not sold on RB Ahman Green as the #1 back in Houston, 3rd round pick Steve Slaton rushed 13 times for 57 carries. He doesn't have the hype surrounding Chris Johnson of Tennessee, but he could be just as productive.
Kansas City Chiefs:
RB Larry Johnson has seen his draft position drop from Top 5 in 2007 into the low teens. He rushed 14 times for 61 yards. Will he be the fantasy football equivalent of Albert Pujols?
Atlanta Falcons:
Big free agent signing, RB Michael Turner, tore off 113 yards on just four carries. That speaks for itself, but I wonder how often he will face a defense as depleted as the Colts' was?
Baltimore Ravens:
With starting RB Willis McGahee out for a month, rookie RB Ray Rice of Rutgers carried eight time for 77 yards and a score. He added three receptions, too.
Pittsburgh Steelers:
Rashard Mendenhall rushed eleven times for 30 yards and a TD. Ben Roethlisberger completed 9 passes for 142 yards. He looks like he could repeat last season's low attempts/high TD ratio.