FANTASY FOOTBALL WEEKLY FEATURES

MIA (1-8) vs SEA (5-4)

Game Prediction: MIA 10, SEA 23

If Seattle cannot win this week, Holmgren should shave his trademark moustache and stop riding his motorcyle where he can be identified in public.

Update: Marty Booker has missed practice time with a sprained ankle and is questionable to play. I have lowered his numbers and there still is a chance that he may not play.

Notable too is that Matt Hasselbeck has not practiced due to a thigh bruise but he is expected to start so I have not altered his numbers.

Pre-Game Notes - MIA

Now that Wannstedt is out of the picture, the Dolphins get to play the rest of the season with even less direction and consistency. There's no doubting the talent, at least on the defense, but the tougher forecast is how well this team will show up from now on knowing that the offseason will bring many changes.

Quarterback: Jay Fiedler has scored in each of his last five starts but he's never had more than two scores and only once managed not to turn the ball over. Now A.J. Feeley has been given the reins because the Dolphins find something attractive in his two scores versus seven turnovers.

This is test. This is only a test. In the event of an actual quality quarterback appearing in Miami, you should... well.. no one really knows what happens then. Seems like years since the last one.

Running Backs: While Sammy Morris scored in two of the last three games, he was outplayed by Travis Minor last week. Morris had 56 yards on 16 carries compared to Minor gaining 90 yards on 11 carries. This is what you want. A poor backfield that still shares carries so that even marginal fantasy points cannot be relied on.

Wide Receivers: If the first two weeks of the season under Feeley taught us anything (besides the fact that Ricky ruined this team with surprising ease), it's that Feeley does like to throw to Chris Chambers. Chances are very good he will need to this week and yet Marty Booker only had five catches for 41 yards total in the first two starts by Feeley.

Tight Ends: While Randy McMichael had two scores in weeks seven and eight, he only had one catch in his last games because you thought he was "back". Notable is that his best week of the year was in week one with Feeley throwing him eight receptions for 79 yards and one score.

Match Against the Defense: How this team responds to massive emotional upheaval and temptation to just stop trying now will be hard to gauge. This team will be likely very different next year and while they are all playing for jobs now, that's really no different thanany of the last nine games anyway.

There's an excellent chance that Feeley throws at least one score this week but he should remain around 200 yards or so as most opponents have. That score is a near lock to go to Chambers or McMichael but this is a situation to avoid for now if possible since the Dolphins without Wannstedt need to show who they are.

Pre-Game Notes - SEA

The reality about the Seahawks this season is that they are 5-4 because they have played five teams with losing records and four that are at least .500. Congratulations - here come the 1-8 Dolphins!

Quarterback: It is almost inexplicable how badly Matt Hasselbeck has played this season. He comes off his worst game of the year with 172 yards and one interception against the Rams - the one team he needed to beat the most. It is not all his fault since his receivers are playing like it's volleyball in December and they are wearing mittens. This offense and Hasselbeck in particular struggles against even average defenses.

In Hasselbeck's defense, he had a bruised leg early last week and yet still played. He will likely sit out some practices but should play this Sunday.

Running Backs: The lone bright spot in the offense is clearly Shaun Alexander who leads the NFL with 1055 rushing yards. In the last three weeks, he has never rushed for less than 160 yards and with the passing game struggling, no doubt he will once again be carrying a heavy load.

Wide Receivers: Koren Robinson has his appeal scheduled for this week and if it is denied, he'll miss this week. Darrell Jackson and Jerry Rice will take the starting spots but so far Rice has only been good for one catch each game. Expect updates here if the suspension goes through and I will include Robinson since he is innocent until reminded that he is guilty.

Tight Ends: With the wideouts dropping passes and Hasselbeck looking for a receiver, you'd think that the tight ends would matter here. You would be wrong, my friend.

Match Against the Defense: The biggest weakness of the Dolphins has been against the run and therein lies the key to this game. Expect Alexander to again carry the load and prevent the offense from needing to throw to stay ahead. If Robinson is out this week it will make Alexander even more important.

Jackson draws Patrick Surtain this week and that should be a problem. Look for lower passing numbers though one or two long passes could happen if the Dolphins get lulled to sleep after tackling Alexander every play.

There is a decent matchup for a tight end here but so far Jerramy Stevens hasn't taken a step up to make it seem likely.