FANTASY FOOTBALL IN-SEASON FEATURES

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Prediction: OAK 14, GB 34

Players to Watch: Brandon Saine

Update: Both Jacoby Ford and Denarius Moore will miss this great opportunity for fantasy points. Darren McFadden remains out and may not even be in the country for all we know.

The 7-5 Raiders are tied with Denver for the AFC West lead thanks to losing in Miami and now are 4-2 on the road to visit the perfect Packers. The Packers cut it close last week but back at home have won all their games by nine points or more. And usually a lot more.

QUARTERBACK: Carson Palmer is still learning the offense but he has passed for eight touchdowns in five games and gained 300 or so yards in three of those. He has been very good in yardage and now faces the #31 defense against quarterbacks in a game certain to demand a lot of passing. Expect higher yardage and two scores. Three is possible but Palmer is still trying to get back up to speed. This could be a very big game if the right wide receivers return from injury.

RUNNING BACKS: Darren McFadden is still out with a foot injury and Michael Bush will take his sixth start trying to make amends for last week when he was held to only 18 yards on ten runs in Miami. Bush had been on a very nice streak of games with over 100 total yards and a touchdown in each. Marcel Reese chips in as a receiver but Bush has been mostly alone as the rusher and carried the ball 103 times over a four game period until the Miami fiasco.

There is a chance that McFadden may be back in a week or two but until then, Bush has been as good as you could ever hope for as an insurance for a first round draft pick. The Packers are only average against the run but control the scoreboard and forced all but one opponent from getting more than 19 rushing attempts for their primary runner. Bush can do well here if they will use him as a receiver but he's likely to get just moderate rushing yards and a touchdown is very hard to rely on.

WIDE RECEIVERS: Even though this is the best matchup of the year, this week is hard to gauge because of all the injuries. Denarius Moore is out with an sprained ankle but may return and Chaz Schilens injured his foot in the Miami game but is expected to play this week. Jacoby Ford has an outside chance of returning from his foot injury from back in week nine. This mishmash of players is hard enough to project when they are healthy. I will assume that all can play and adjust later in the week as needed.

There will be some nice fantasy points come out of this unit - there always are in Green Bay. I'll temper my speculation with knowing that practice reports could change it up markedly. assuming all can play including T.J. Houshmandzadeh,the yardage and scores are mostly speculation in this case.

TIGHT ENDS: No fantasy value.

Pregame Notes: It just keeps rolling along. The Packers are moving in on the Patriots record for most consecutive wins that stands at 21 but the Packers are at 18 and could then break it with the final win against the visiting Lions. The Packers have not only made themselves everyone's most desirous victory for their own hometown., they are looking as unstoppable as any team ever has.

RUNNING BACKS: James Starks rolled his ankle and may not play though the injury is considered to be nothing long term and really a re-aggravation of a week 11 sprain. In his place will be Ryan Grant and the undrafted rookie Brandon Saine who filled in last week for six carries for 16 yards and four catches for 29 yards. Saine becomes of great interest now because he touches a football while wearing a yellow helmet with a big "G" on it. That is about all you need to know.

Saine will likely take third down duties and catch passes but could play a slightly bigger role given that Grant has been consistently under performing and his only real worth has been as a blocker. Starks will be back but watch Saine just to see if anything develops. Packer running backs are never born, they are discovered on the roster late in the season.

The Raiders are plenty soft against the run but the Packers always prefer to throw anyway. I'll credit one rushing score to Saine only because it could go anywhere and I hate adding John Kuhn in when he has one touch per game. The score could happen in any number of ways.

WIDE RECEIVERS: You do not project stats for Packer wideouts, you just fill in the check boxes. Jordy Nelson at home - big check yards and scores. Greg Jennings at home - check for less yardage and probably one score. James Jones at home - probably just one catch again. Donald Driver - check for minor yardage and small chance for a score. Bottom line - Nelson and Jennings in every game must be started. The rest are a risk for a low game.

TIGHT ENDS: The oddity about Jermichael Finley is that he has six touchdowns and not one in a home game. In fact most of his worst games came in Green Bay - just do not need him at home.

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