NOTE: This list is the NFC only. The list of AFC players is below.

Sleepers

QB

Matthew Stafford – The Lions are going to be behind a lot and Stafford will throw a lot. He has Johnson and that should help him produce more than a 18th ranking would project.

Matt Hasselbeck Seahawks – Yes, he is old and the O line is a little shaky but Matt should have a good year. Check out the handcuffs on this one because you will need some insurance.

Matt Moore Panthers – Moore is better than you think and the D may struggle. That means a lot of opportunities to throw to Smith et. al.

RB

Brandon Jacobs Giants – He is a starter for a playoff team but is ranked 29th RB by NFL. At that point he is a great value but handcuff him. The O line is better and so should the passing game.

Clinton Portis Redskins – He is rated 32nd at RB and should have a better season than most if he can stay healthy. The passing game is better and the system suits him.

Pierre Thomas Saints – This team will be ahead a lot and Thomas is the work-horse.

LeSean McCoy Eagles – The Birds will run more this year without McNabb.

WR

Dez Bryant Cowboys – Dez wouldn’t normally be on this list. But since he was hurt, many have taken him off their draft list. Take him late and he will pay off.

Santana Moss Redskins – He is ranked 26th but should be a prime target for McNabb.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh Seahawks – TJ is healthy and should have a good year.

TE

Tony Scheffler Lions – QB Stafford will be pressured more than the checkout girl at a half price sale of designer wedding gowns. He will need a security blanket and Scheffler is the guy that can bail him out.

Handcuffs

QB

Matt Hasselbeck and Charlie Whitehurst Seahawks – Matt is a little fragile so get some insurance.

RB

Marion Barber and Felix Jones Cowboys – The Boys will use RB by committee but both are injury risks.

Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw Giants – Jacobs runs upright and has a history of injury.

Avoids

QB

Matt Leinart Cards – Cards fans will be saying “I miss Warner. I even miss Josh McCown!”

Josh Freeman Bucs – He has a canon for an arm but has the accuracy of Saddam’s scud missiles. Not a good combination for a team that will behind a lot.

Tarvaris Jackson Vikes – Don’t bother with Jackson. Even if Favre goes down, he won’t help you.

RB

Ryan Grant Packers – He is brittle and he fumbles.

Steven Jackson Rams – He is older, injury prone, and will be playing for a team behind a lot. Not a winning combo for a 1st round rated player.

WR

Percy Harvin Vikes – He is a great player but is having migraines. He may miss large chunks of the season.

Steve Smith Giants – This Steve is hurt. Get an update before drafting him.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library.com/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003

and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.

NFC South

Falcons

1. Is this the year that the Falcons finally put everything together and win the division? The team was a favorite in a lot of preseason publications last year. They are projected to finish 1st in even more this season. The O has been challenged by a lack of a solid #2 WR. WR Jenkins must get it done this year. The D has just been challenged particularly against the pass.

2. Will RB Michael “Burner” Turner return to his 2008 form? Last season he started slow and ended the season hurt. The team has others that can fill in but no one that can turn the game around with a single run like he can.

3. Will the DB play improve? The team ended up 28th against the pass. If HC Smith is going to get this team to the top of the NFCS, that has to improve a lot. One corner and one safety spot are up for grabs.

Panthers

1. Did the team make the right call in letting QB Jake Delhomme go to Cleveland and starting Matt Moore? Moore did well in relief of the horrible season Delhomme had last year. The team hedged their bet by taking ND QB Jimmy Clausen in the 2nd round. HC Fox shocked the team after the OTAs by announcing that there would be an open challenge for the QB spot.

2. Will the combination of RBs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart stay health this year? The two were healthy most of last year but both have a history of injury. The team will lean much more on the running game with a new QB under center.

3. Will the team be able to replace the sacks and QB hurries generated by Julius Peppers now that he is gone? The D backfield depended on steady pressure up front to be effective. The current group will struggle to get as much pressure without the double and sometimes triple teaming of Peppers that left the rest 1 on 1.

Saints

1. How well will the D play without some key losses? FS Darren Sharper is hurt and may not be ready this year. LB Scott Fujita and DE Charles Grant are gone and will be hard to replace.

2. Will the WRs stay healthy this year? WRs Lance Moore and Marques Colston both missed games last year. With a tougher schedule this year QB Drew Brees is going to need the top WRs on the field.

3. Will the Saints suffer the “year after” syndrome that other first time Super Bowl winners have? This year they have a tougher schedule, won’t sneak up on anyone and have had less turn around time than other teams. The coaching staff will have their work cut out to get the team deep in the playoffs again.

Buccaneers

1. Is Josh Freeman going to be the QB the team thought he would be when they drafted him? He started 9 games last year but had a 54.9 passer rating with 10 TDs but 18 picks. The team is not good enough to win unless he is in the 85-90 range this year.

2. Will any of the WRs step up to help Freeman? The WR lineup will change again this year but the team has no sure things at the position. TE Kellen Winslow is still suffering from injuries early in his career but the team will try to help Freeman by using 2 TEs a lot.

3. Is DT Gerald McCoy the Warren Sapp this year or is he Wendy Sapp? The team needs him to be the penetrating pass rush that Sapp did in the Super Bowl years. That can make up for an aging group of DBs.

NFC West

Cardinals

1. Can QB Matt Leinart finally justify his 1st overall selection in the Draft? In a word no. Leinart has been given more chances at redemption than a crooked Congressman. He has been handed the job twice and has not been able to keep it. As insurance Coach Ken Whisenhunt brought in big armed former Pro Bowl QB Derek Anderson. Leinart is due BIG dollars in 2011. If he fails this year he is gone. Look for Anderson to be the starter before the end of the year.

2. Can the team recover from the losses of key players this year? QB Kurt Warner will be the biggest loss. He is headed to the Hall of Fame. WR Anquan Boldin was traded. WR Steve Breaston is good but no Boldin. IB Karlos Dansby is gone and IB Gerald Hayes is recovering from back surgery. They released S Antrel Rolle. LBs Travis LaBoy, Bertrand Berry and Chike Okeafor are also missing. That is a lot of spots to fill in.

3. Will the older incoming players like G Alan Faneca (13th season) and Joey Porter (12th) have anything left? They should provide some leadership in the locker room but the team needs them to produce on the field as well.

Rams

1. How soon will the 50M man QB Sam Bradford be starting? The Rams fans have not had much reason to buy a ticket for several years. Sam is the “the man” but how quickly will he become the starter? Better question yet, how long will it take him to become an NFL Quality player. He is in the right stadium and division with a majority of his games to be played indoors. He does not have an above average arm. This team needs him to be the right guy.

2. Can the Ram O line protect a somewhat fragile Bradford? For the second straight year, the team took a T high in the draft. Rodger Saffold was regarded as a steal with their 2nd round pick. The team is still trying to decide if Saffold will play LT or RT with the other side going to 09 2nd pick overall Jason Smith. OTAs took a toll on the O line with 6 guys ending up hurt including both T prospects. Smith missed games last year with a knee. C Jason Brown and RG Adam Goldberg are OK but the rest including LG Jacob Bell and last season RT Phil Trautwein are barely adequate.

3. Will the D play better with a year under their belts with the D scheme? 2008 2nd pick overall DE Chris Long should play better having to think less than he did last year converting to his 3rd D in 3 years. He started to get it in the last few games of 09. The rest of the D will know the D better this season having the same D scheme as last year.

The LB group will be wearing OSU Scarlet and Gray. MLB James Laurinaitis is a beast and should have all fellow ex-Buckeye guys around him. Na’il Diggs will start at SLB with either Larry Grant or Bobby Carpenter playing WLB. The fact that all 4 played together at OSU should help in communications.

49ers

1. Will former 1st overall pick QB Alex Smith finally look like he deserved the money? Probably not. Smith started 10 games last year and had a semi-respectable 81.5 QB rating. He is in the last year of his rookie contract. Unless he plays better, he will be elsewhere next year. The team needs him to play better than that if they are going to contend for the NFCW title.

2. Will the O line be better? The O line has given up 150 sacks in the last 3 seasons. That kills drives and QBs. LT Joe Staley and C Eric Heitmann are coming along well but LG Davis Baas is hurt again. The right side is questionable at best.

3. Will the DBs play up to the rest of the D? The lock down corner they paid big bucks to LCB Nate Clements had a bad season. He was benched but worked his way back onto the field. RCB Shawntae Spencer should be better with a year of recovery from knee surgery. The Ss play the run better than the pass.

Seahawks

1. Will the Hawks have a good enough running game to take pressure off the passing game? Justin Forsett was brought in to compete with RB Julius Jones. Jones averaged only 3.7 per attempt despite starting 14 games last year. RB Leon Washington will likely be the 3rd down back if he is recovered from a broken leg last year.

2. How long will it take for the new guys to play together? There has been a ton of turnover by the new staff. For several years it was a bad old roster. The new roster looks better but it will take some time to make all the parts work together.

3. Can the O line protect their fragile QB Matt Hasselbeck and open holes for the running game? Long time Pro Bowler Walter Jones retired. Russell Okung takes over LT. Other than LG Ben Hamilton the line is below average. OL coach Alex Gibbs is a magician and he will have to do some neat tricks to make this line perform well enough to win.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library.com/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003

and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.

The Saint D

The early success that the Colts had throwing to TE Clark was the Saints failure to cover the TE. They were trying to cover Clark with a LB and S Harper over the top. When QB Manning looked Harper off, the S couldn’t get back to help out on Clark fast enough. That success passing to the TE

By the 2nd quarter, the Saint D Coordinator Williams made a change. He gave Clark man to man to Harper and let the linebacker give a little help underneath. The looks of Manning had no effect on Harper and the Saints shut Clark down the rest of the game.

The Saints D played tight coverage and changed up their D calls frequently. The combination of varied Ds and bad field position the Colts had in the second quarter kept Manning to just 6 snaps until the last series of the half.

The Saint D also made the big play of the game with the interception that resulted in a TD and took the Saint lead to 14. There were 2 keys to the play. First, CB Porter read the play and knew the ball was coming to his guy–WR Wayne. Porter played the ball perfectly. But there was another factor in the play as well. Wayne was not able to get out of his break fast enough to make the play or at least prevent the pick. As the game wore on, Wayne has lost speed I believe in part due to his injury. On the critical play his timing was off. He was only partially turned out of his break when the ball arrived.

The Saint Special teams and coaching calls.

Another major cause of the win was the aggressive calls of the coaching staff. They were taking risks to win the game. The call for the 4th down run at the goal line was gutsy. I would have tried another pass on one of the 3 attempts but Coach Payton gave the a chance to win by scoring. The onside kick showed guts as well. The bottom line was that the Saints made calls to win while the Colts tried not to lose.

The Colts

When the Colts got up by 10 points early, they changed to a zone D. The Saints QB Brees picked the zone apart like a Thanksgiving leftovers. The Colts D could not get off the field. The Saints kept Manning and Co. off the field. They never made the adjustments to tighten up the coverage or pick up the pace of the D. The entire Colt team played without urgency. That is the best way to lose there is. The team never got the fire in their belly that it takes to win the big game. They played well but just not well enough to win.

Your fantasy football doesn’t have to be over. Run a pro football franchise all year long for free at http://sportsims.net/. Tell them Coach Smith sent you.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He is a regular contributor on Cleveland Sports Radio http://www.sportstalkcleveland.com/ Monday morning at 11. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003 and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.

Overall

This is the game everyone except the fans of the other teams in the playoffs wanted to see–The top team in the AFC vs. the top team in the NFC. The game matches 2 of the top QBs and offenses in the last several years. But that is not going to determine the game. The key to the final score is most likely to be which defense makes the big plays.

Offense

The Saints’ O ranks 4th in passing and 6th in rushing. They are 1st in total yards and total points. While the passing game of Brees is the mainstay of the O, the running game will be just as critical in the Super Bowl. The Saints O balance should help them move the chains and keep the Colts’ O off the field.

While RB Thomas is the workhorse, RB Bush is the wild card. The 2 problems with Bush are inconsistency and fumbling. While he dominates some games, he disappears in others. Then there is the fumbling. In the post season he was as likely to generate a big play for the opponents by dropping the ball as he was for the Saints. He can not do that against the Colts if the Saints are going to win the game. The Vikes converted turnovers into field goals. The Colts will score TDs from Saint errors.

The O line has been banged up but has played well. They lost their outstanding LT Brown who is on IR early in the season. But the unknown third year T Jermon Bushrod stepped in and has done an amazing job. He had never started a game prior to this season and had been active only 3 times in his previous 2 years on the roster. The Colts D will try to put pressure on Brees by attacking the left side of the Saints line.

Defense

As much as the media has focuses on the offenses of both teams, game is more likely to be determined on the D side of the ball. The Saint D has been pushed around a lot this year. It is ranked 26 against the pass and 21st against the run. But it has come up with key turnovers all year. The team ranks 2nd in in the NFC in interceptions with 26 and 1st in TDs from those picks. They rank 10th in the NFC in recovered fumbles. A couple of turnovers would be very helpful in the Super Bowl.

The Saints have suffered some key injuries on the D line including former All Pro DE Grant and vet NT Clancy. Grant’s replacement McCray, DT Ellis and DE Smith are going to have to be able to put pressure on Manning so that the team doesn’t have to blitz as often. Manning picks blitzing teams apart. Smith is an outstanding pass rusher.

The loss of a NT for a 4-3 is not as critical as it is for a 3-4 but the Saints are down to their 3 string DT Ayodele. The 26 year old DT was picked up last year after he was cut by the Cowboys for the second time. He has filled in well but doesn’t collapse the pocket like Clancy can.

The second level has suffered injuries as well. LB Simoneau had been the starter for 2 years but was not able to even start the 09 season. OB Fujita has been in and out of the lineup with injuries but seems to be OK. OB Shanle AND Fujita are good against the run and can cover but are not strong at blitzing the QB.

The last line of defense will be tested often Sunday. The key to the DB crew is S Sharper. He is a vet and is the leader of the group. He needs to make some big plays to give the Saints a chance. CBs Greer and Porter and 5th DB Gay are going to have to be disciplined in their coverage. A broken zone against most NFL teams is a problem. Against Manning, it is a crisis. It will result in TDs more often than not.

The Bottom Line: The Saints are solid. They are the most balanced team in the NFC outside of perhaps the Vikes. The D is a concern but the Colts’ D is not any better.

The Saint offensive game plan should be to take advantage of the rookie corner of the Colts and run the ball to move the sticks so they can keep Manning and Co. off the field. They must be able to run the ball to win. They should also use RB Bush to challenge the LBs ability to cover the pass.

Their D game plan should be to change up their rush and pass coverages often and challenge the O line. They need to get good hits on the receivers early. The Colt receivers are young and may get SB jitters.

Your fantasy football doesn’t have to be over. Run a pro football franchise all year long for free at http://sportsims.net/. Tell them Coach Smith sent you.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He is a regular contributor on Cleveland Sports Radio http://www.sportstalkcleveland.com/ Monday morning at 11. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003 and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.

NFC GAME Saints 31 Vikings 28 Overtime

Vikings

The turnovers killed the Vikes. They lost 3 of 6 fumbles and 2 picks. They totally outplayed the Saints on offense but gave Brees and Co. too many short fields. Even so, QB Favre brought them back to tie the Saints. The game was determined by the turnovers, the lack of protection for Favre, and the toss of the overtime coin flip.

Favre can not be blamed for what happens to the Vikes. The team never would have been in the game with Jackson or any other QB on the roster. Favre got the team there by pulling out so many wins during the season and giving the team the belief that the QB could win a game not just lose one. Now the question is what will Favre decide about coming back?

He had a great season with the fewest picks of his career. He looked like anything but a 40 year old QB and I think he really enjoyed playing with this team. I would guess that he will take his time in making up his mind about coming back. It will probably take until the 3rd game of preseason for him to decide. That way he avoids 2 a day practices and training camp.

The one thing that will help him make his decision is better protection. Favre stood in against a Saint pass rush that the Vike line was unprepared to handle. But despite the punishment, Favre was effective.

The Vikes’ running game was more effective than normal. It averaged 4.6 per carry. The O converted 58% of their 3rd downs and out gained the passing yards of the Saints 310 to 189.

The Viking D line did a nice job given the great field position the O gave up. They held the Saints to 68 yards rushing. They also caused 3 fumbles. They did miss a couple of picks that might have turned the game around.

Saints

Paul Brown once said “I’d rather be lucky than good. Good teams lose.” The Saints got lucky winning the flip of the overtime coin. But it took a good kick return and great drive to get into position to kick the game winning field goal. QB Brees’ numbers are not impressive but he did what he had to do. He was able to take advantage of the gifts the Vikes gave him.

The O line did a very good job. It allowed only 1 sack by a top D. They were not able to get the running game working however. The ground game only averaged 3 yards a carry.

The Saints D played well and created some of the turnovers that determined the outcome of the game. The one thing that the D was able to do was put pressure on Favre all game long. They beat him and therefore the O of the Vikes into submission.

The Bottom line: The Saints got VERY lucky. They won’t have the luck or the crowd when they play the Colts in Miami.

AFC GAME Colts 30 Jets 17

Jets

I have to admit I was wrong about QB Sanchez. He played as well as possibly could have been expected of any young QB let alone a rookie. He was 17-30 for 257 and 2 TDs but one pick. With the Colt safeties playing up to stop the run, Sanchez used a pump fake to help WR Edwards get open and threw a perfect pass for the first TD of the game. For once in the last couple of years, Edwards actually caught the ball and scored. Sanchez led the Jets to a 17-6 lead with less than 2 minutes left in the first half. That is when the wheels fell off the Jet and it crashed on the runway.

The running game of the Jets was nonexistent. It averaged only 3 yards per carry. The speed of the Colts D was too much for the O and they were not able to get the big runs that had helped get the team to the AFC Championship game. The team was also not able to make the 2nd half adjustments to move the ball.

The Jets D gave up a score with less than a minute left in the 1st half. That was a killer. The D couldn’t figure out how to stop Manning in that drive or the entire second half. When they played zone, Manning would look the safety off and hit the open receivers. When the Jets played man, Manning used double moves to get his guys open. The other problem was the lack of pressure on Manning. They were so focused on stopping the pass, they gave up 101 yards rushing and 4.2 per carry.

Colts

The Manning passing game is a thing of beauty. Manning cut up the pass D of the Jets like it was a rare steak. He was sacked twice but had the pass D totally confused. The O line did fairly well holding off the Jet pass rush. Manning showed why he is the best QB in the game right now. He has had his best season this year given the fact that he was working with a lot of rookie receivers.

The Colts D did the one thing they needed to do–shut down the Jet running game. The Jets ran the ball 29 times for only 86 yards. The Jet O line could not get to the LBs to open up the running lanes. The Colts D line played much better than they have in previous games. They bottled up the O line and the LBs cut off the outside run.

The bottom line: The Colts with Manning at QB will be a really tough Super Bowl competitor.

Your fantasy football doesn’t have to be over. Run a pro football franchise all year long for free at http://sportsims.net/. Tell them Coach Smith sent you.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He is a regular contributor on Cleveland Sports Radio http://www.sportstalkcleveland.com/ Monday morning at 11. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003 and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.

Vikings @ Saints

Vikes

QB Farve has brought the passing game that has been missing from the team for years. Prior to this season, the team had the D, the O line, and the running game of an NFL Champion. The one thing they didn’t have was a championship quality passing game. Farve has not only provided the passing, he has helped the receivers develop. WR Rice has gone from “great potential” to one of the best receivers in the league in 1 year. In 08 Rice caught 15 balls. In 09 he caught 83 with a 15.8 yard average for 8 TDs. The rookie that the Vikes drafted Harvin who didn’t have an NFL position. Not only did he become a WR, he caught 80 balls for a 13.2 average and 6 TDs. That didn’t happen by accident. Farve didn’t help them develop out of a desire to be a good team leader. He did it to win a championship. The Vikes have a key injury on O. WR Harvin is questionable for the game. I think he will play.

The problem was that as the passing game developed, the running game withered. RB Peterson is one of the most skilled backs in the league. After his season of 1760 yards, a 4.8 yard average and 10 TDs, he fell to 1383 yards, a 4.4 yard average and has not had a 100+ yard game in the last half of the season. So what is the problem? There are actually a couple of problems. First, there is not nearly enough push by the O line up the gut. The guards are not able to slide off double teams and get to the second level. The line is too often pushed back into the backfield allowing the backs to be hit before they get to the line of scrimmage. The second problem is leakage around the edge. The TEs are receivers more than blockers. In the Dallas game the OLB got to the runner off the edge by pushing past the TE. Those problems are not the kind of thing you can solve in a week.

The D has been solid all year ranking 6th in yards and 10th in scoring D. After holding the Bengals to 10 points in week 14, the D had a pair of bad games allowing 26 and 36 in consecutive weeks in losses to the Panthers and Bears. But they turned it on again and have allowed just 10 total points to the Giants in week 17 and to the Cowboys last week in the Divisional round. The Cowboys were one of the best offenses in the league. The Boys scored just a field goal against the Vikes D. The key to the D is the line. The Williams boys at DT are the best pair in the league. They crush the run and push the O line back into the QB. The DEs Edwards and Allen are as good as any pair in the league. The D has 48 sacks, 23 fumbles forced and 11 picks this year. The D does have injuries as well. Pat Williams and Edwards are both questionable with injuries. The Vikes need both to slow down a great Saint O. CB Sapp is also questionable.

The key to this game may be if the Vike LB can drop off enough to clog the seams and prevent the quick seam pass. The Saints live off of quick passes to the short seam and run after the catch. No catch no RAC.

Saints

The Saints have the top O in the league. They are 1st in yards and points, 4th in passing yards and 6th in rushing. QB Brees is as good a QB as there is in the league. He is under the radar because this is the first time in a while that the team has made it this far. The Saints have 3 WRs, a TE and a RB that each have more than 40 catches. Brees’ favorite receiver is whoever is open. WRs Colston (70 catches) Henderson (51) and Meacham (45) are all dangerous. TE Shockey (48) stretches the D down the middle and RB Bush (47). Bush is perhaps more dangerous as a receiver than a runner. He can take a 1 yard pass out of the backfield and take it to the house. Shockey is questionable as is pro bowl C Goodwin. If Goodwin can’t go it would be a problem for the O. His replacement Leckey struggles to handle big active DTs.

The team has 3 RBs with more than 300 yards. Bush (390, 5.6 average) is Mr. Outside and RB Thomas (793, 5.4) is Mr. Inside. RB Bell (654) can do both. The O line has done a good job blocking the run and the pass. Every lineman can get outside to block the sweep and screen.

The D has been as good as necessary but that is all. They rank 20th in points allowed, 25th in yards, 26th in passing yards and 21st in rushing yards. The D depends on the O to score more points. The loss of DE Grant early in the year hurt the pass rush. DE Smith gets double teamed often. The one weapon the Saints have in the DB is S Sharper. He is a ball magnet and played with Favre in Green Bay. Farve must know where Sharper is. MLB Vilma heads up the second line of defense. If the Vikes can take advantage of a below average Saint D, they can win.

The Bottom line: The Saints are the 3.5 point favorites with an over/under of 52. The Vikes have and outstanding D and an O the equal of the Saints. Despite their D, I think the Saints win but I am not willing to put my money on that. If the game was in Minnesota, I would probably pick the Vikes. I would bet the over as the only pick here.

Your fantasy football doesn’t have to be over. Run a pro football franchise all year long for free at http://sportsims.net/. Tell them Coach Smith sent you.

That’s what I think. Tell me what you think.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He is a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com and edits http://fryingpansports.com. He is a regular contributor on Cleveland Sports Radio http://www.sportstalkcleveland.com/ Monday morning at 11. He has also published several novels on

http://www.eBooks-Library/Contemporary/Author.cfm?AuthorID=1003 and edits http://fryingpanpolitics.blog.com.