Jon Lester Served First Loss in 6-4 Defeat to Adam Dunn, Chicago White Sox

Avery Bradley’s Role With the Celtics: Present and Future

Connelly’s Top Ten: Bruins Up 2-0

2013 NBA Playoffs Expert Picks: Third Round

---

Fantasy Football Report: Week 11

I hate my team in the SoB league. I wish I had my juggernaut offense from last season when I had Kurt Warner, Philip Rivers, and Michael Turner. I’ll tell you another thing, Ladell Betts screwed me over for the second week in a row. Last week, he had ankle problems and didn’t practice, so I benched him. He had over 100 yds and a TD. On Sunday, I play him, and he tears his ACL and MCL. What a jerk!

Headlines

Kurt Warner Takes Blow to Head

Arizona QB Kurt Warner left Sunday’s game after taking a huge hit to his head in the second quarter. No concrete word on his availability for this Sunday, but the team is optimistic that he will play. Warner owners should pick up Matt Leinart (they already should have done so) just in case.

Ben Roethlisberger Has Concussion…Will Play Anyway

According to the Associated Press, Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger did suffer a concussion during the loss to the Chiefs on Sunday. Despite the head injury, coach Mike Tomlin expects Big Ben to start this week against Baltimore.

Gobble Gobble, It’s Thanksgiving Day!

The time is here once again for the annual Thanksgiving Day games in the NFL. The Lions will host the Packers, the Cowboys will host the Raiders, and the Broncos will host the Giants. Make sure you have your lineups set accordingly.

Week 11 Top Performers

Matthew Stafford (QB), Detroit Lions

Proving that anybody can have a good game against Cleveland, the rookie busted out for one of the best games for any QB this season as he threw for 422 yds and 5 TD.

Week 12 Outlook

Thanksgiving Day is this Thursday, but Stafford’s shoulder may hold him out against the Packers. Don’t worry, it’s not like Stafford was going to have another game like that again anyway.

Ricky Williams (RB), Miami Dolphins

What would he do without Ronnie Brown to support him? How about 119 rush yds and 3 total TD!

Week 12 Outlook

More good news for Williams as he gets to face Buffalo this Sunday. The Bills have the 2nd worst rush defense in all of football and have allowed 160+ rush yds in two of their last three games and six rushing TD in their last three.

Terrell Owens (WR), Buffalo Bills

It was like watching the T.O. of old on Sunday as he caught nine passes for 197 yds and a TD.

Week 12 Outlook

Owens had more yds on Sunday than he had in the previous four games combined, so we can’t logically expect an encore. Miami does allow over 230 pass yds per game, but they have been good in recent weeks with an average of 191 pass yds allowed in their last two games.

Vernon Davis (TE), San Francisco 49ers

Davis continues to have a breakout year with 108 yds and his eighth TD reception.

Week 12 Outlook

Davis should be in store for a productive game against the Jaguars. Despite their 6-4 record, the Jaguars are not a good defensive team. Their pass defense is in the bottom-10 of the league and most recently, they let Ryan Fitzpatrick throw 297 yds and a TD.

Billy Cundiff (K), Baltimore Ravens

The recently signed Cundiff set a franchise record by making five field goals against the Colts.

Week 12 Outlook

Cundiff will get more opportunities against the Steelers. Pittsburgh is once again without safety Troy Polamalu, which leaves a huge hole in the secondary, and gives the Ravens the chance to move the ball effectively.

New England Patriots Defense/Special Teams

The Pats avenged their loss to the Jets earlier in the season by shutting down Rex Ryan’s squad. New England came away with two sacks, four interceptions, a fumble recovery, and a TD, all while allowing 14 points.

Week 12 Outlook

The Patriots won’t be as dominating as they travel to New Orleans to face the NFL’s best offense on Monday Night. Drew Brees can do whatever he wants with the ball, so the Pats won’t shut him down.

Week 11 Duds

Matt Hasselbeck (QB), Seattle Seahawks

Hasselbeck couldn’t move the ball well against the Vikings as he threw for 231 yds with no scores and one INT.

Week 12 Outlook

A game against the Rams will cure what ails Hasselbeck. The Rams are in the bottom-10 in pass defense and Hasselbeck has 19 TD and 9 INT in 13 career games against St. Louis.

Matt Forte (RB), Chicago Bears

After three straight weeks of 110+ total yds, Forte only had 54 total yds with no scores.

Week 12 Outlook

I wouldn’t play Forte against Minnesota this week. The Vikings allow just 85 rush yds per game and on Sunday, they held the Seahawks to just four total rushing yds. Yeah, FOUR RUSHING YDS! However, Forte is a pass-catching back, and the Vikings did let Seattle’s Justin Forsett accumulate 80 receiving yds.

Vincent Jackson (WR), San Diego Chargers

Jackson had another stinker as he caught four passes for 56 yds and no scores.

Week 12 Outlook

Jackson has been in a funk recently with only 124 yds in his last three games. He could snap out of it against the Chiefs, who have the 5th worst pass defense in football, and gave up over 400 pass yds on Sunday to the Steelers.

Dallas Clark (TE), Indianapolis Colts

OK, so he found the endzone, but he only had three receiving yds on the day. Gross!

Week 12 Outlook

Clark likes to face the Texans. Earlier this season against Houston, he had one of his best games of the season with 14 catches for 119 yds.

Kris Brown (K), Houston Texans

Brown missed another game-tying field goal on Monday and that now makes two missed field goals in two straight games. For the season, he is just 11/17 on field goals.

Week 12 Outlook

Brown is unreliable, given his recent inability to make field goals. Don’t play him until he gets his head on straight.

New York Giants Defense/Special Teams

Another disappointing performance as the Giants allowed 31 points with two sacks and a pick.

Week 12 Outlook

The Giants certainly have a good matchup this week when they face Denver. The Broncos have been struggling lately, losing four straight while scoring an average of less than 10 points per game.

Unexpected Stars

The Cleveland Browns Offense

• Brady Quinn (QB): 304 yds, 4 TD
• Mohamed Massaquoi (WR): 115 yds, 1 TD
• Chansi Stuckey (WR): 76 yds, 1 TD

Week 12 Outlook

It is back to normal for Cleveland this week against the Bengals. Cincinnati has allowed 163 pass yds per game over the last three weeks, and they haven’t allowed over 100 rush yds in a game since week 4.

Jason Snelling (RB), Atlanta Falcons

With Michael Turner out, Snelling turned in another good game with 76 rush yds and two TD.

Week 12 Outlook

It looks like Turner will miss this week’s game and Snelling will get a shot at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and (literally) the worst rush defense in football.

Kevin Boss (TE), New York Giants

Boss hauled in five catches for 76 yds and 2 TD.

Week 12 Outlook

Boss has found the endzone in three straight games, amassing 3 TD in that time. I won’t rule out the chance that Boss gets another look in the redzone, but I see the Giants rushing against Denver this week. The Broncos have allowed over 170 rush yds per game in each of the last three weeks.

Laurence Maroney (RB), New England Patriots

Maroney delivered once again as he rushed for 77 yds and two scores.

Week 12 Outlook

Believe it or not, Maroney has scored a TD in five straight games (six TD total). A high scoring game is in the works for Monday against the Saints. New Orleans may be undefeated, but their defense has been struggling recently by allowing over 360 total yds per game in the last five weeks.

Bernard Scott (RB), Cincinnati Bengals

Scott filled in for the injured Cedric Benson and rushed for 119 yds on 21 carries.

Week 12 Outlook

Benson is still doubtful for this week’s game against Cleveland. This is good news for Scott, as the Browns allow over 150 rush yds per game.

Sports of Boston Football League

• I lost for the 2nd straight week to SoB’s Brian by a score of 106.68-89.04.
• Our friend Dan moves into first with a 105.60-103.70 win.
• Recent pickups include: Austin Collie, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Brady Quinn, Kevin Boss, Fred Jackson, and Matt Leinart.

Tags: Ben Roethlisberger, Bernard Scott, Brady Quinn, Chansi Stuckey, Dallas Clark, Fantasy, Fantasy Football Report, Jason Snelling, Kevin Boss, Kurt Warner, Laurence Maroney, Matt Forte, Matt Hasselbeck, Matthew Stafford, Mohamed Massaquoi, Ricky Williams, Terrell Owens, Vernon Davis, Vincent Jackson

© 2013 Sports of Boston, LLC.