FANTASY FOOTBALL IN-SEASON FEATURES

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Prediction: ARI 20, STL 13

Update: Mark Clayton was placed on injured reserve thereby making him a poor start this week.

This is a replay of week nine when the Cardinals beat the visiting Rams 19-13. Now the Cardinals bring their 1-5 road record to St. Louis where the Rams are just 1-4 at home.

QUARTERBACK: John Skelton remains the starter even after getting the hook in the 49ers game but his first start was the 222 yard effort against the Rams and he scored once with no turnovers unlike the five interceptions over the last two weeks.

RUNNING BACKS: Beanie Wells turned back into a pumpkin three games back and stopped scoring and took a big step back in effectiveness because of his sore knee. Just last week he was limited to only eight carries but did gain 33 yards. Local reporters watching practices have noted that he seems to be regaining his burst but the Cards are going to manage his workload ongoing to prevent making the knee any worse or causing a setback.

Wells only managed 20 yards on ten runs in week nine when his knee was injured but the Rams have one of the worst rush defenses in the league and if Wells is improving in healthy, he should rack up a score here and decent yardage. He gets a break too since the Rams just placed NT Dan Williams on IR with a broken arm. Expect a better showing by Wells who should score if he is really healthier this week. This offense operates much better with him as a factor.

WIDE RECEIVERS: Larry Fitzgerald may not be a yardage king, but at least he has scored for three straight games including the previous tilt with the Rams when he caught four passes for 43 yards. Early Doucet did not score in that game but did bring down six passes for 78 yards and he scored in three of the last five weeks. Doucet rarely has more than 50 yards but enjoyed one of his better outing against these Rams.

Fitzgerald is always a must play anyway but he has an excellent chance of a score for the fourth time in a row and even slightly better yardage if the running game can improve and help to balance the offense.

TIGHT ENDS: No fantasy value.

Pregame Notes: Tough sledding for the Rams with an offense that just has never gotten off the ground. With 120 points on the year, they rank dead last by five points and that includes the freak win over the Saints. All but two games have only produced a single touchdown if even that. The offensive line is losing tackles faster than they can replace them and the result is that Sam Bradford is the second most sacked quarterback in the NFL. The problem is less about the offensive scheme so much and more about having the time for Bradford to properly direct it.

QUARTERBACK: Sam Bradford continues to struggle to remain upright in this offense that has allowed ten sacks over just the last three games. Bradford has only passed for six touchdowns all year and never more than one per week. He had no scores in Arizona earlier this year and ended with 255 yards and one interception (and four sacks).

The continued drain of blockers from the offensive line will only make matters worse. Expect no more than one passing score if even that happens.

RUNNING BACKS: Steven Jackson was better over the last month when he produced three games over 100 yards and scored three times. Against the Seahawks last week he was held to only 42 yards on 15 runs. Jackson rumbled for 130 yards on 29 carries in the previous meeting with the Cards and should have success again this week but it will be tempered by the loss of starting tackles. Jackson is making his own holes in many cases.

WIDE RECEIVERS: Danario Alexander remains out with his hamstring strain and has been gone long enough now that he is more myth than wideout. Austin Pettis suffered a knee sprain last week and played through it but may not show up this week to rest the knee. It doesn't matter in the long run since only Brandon Lloyd apparently understands the offense and is the only receiver the entire year that has carried any realistic fantasy value. Lloyd has scored in three of the last four games with the lone exception being the previous game in Arizona.

He is worth a start every week with consistent yardage around 50 or 60 and a touchdown more often than not.

TIGHT ENDS: No fantasy value and Lance Kendricks has a concussion anyway.

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