http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/3605 Recent articles about Chester Taylor en-us Whatifsports looks at the NFC North, where the Vikings will have the best defense in the league, led by Jared Allen. In Green Bay, Aaron Rodgers and Ryan Grant will help prevent a post Brett-Favre retirement letdown and the Pack will make another playoff appearance. Kevin Smith is going to be big for the Lions, while Matt Forte will benefit the most from Cedric Benson's troubles. Click below to read more, including team analysis, projected scores for each game, and fantasy numbers. Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:59:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279515 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279515 The last few seasons, the two back system has become a very popular trend in the NFL. Teams are noticing that the two back system keeps both backs fresh and avoids them from taking a pounding. Most two back systems have a combination of power and speed. Almost all of the teams on this list have that. So without further explanation, here is my list of the top ten running back tandems in the NFL. 1. Fred Taylor, Maurice Jones-Drew Jaguars: Many people wouldn't agree with this but both Taylor and Jones-Drew are among the top 20 backs in the league. Taylor hasn't really gotten much national attention but is one of the most consistent backs in the league. Jones-Drew is a touchdown machine as he has 22 career rushing touchdowns in two years. The two back system has also helped both of them as well as Jones-Drew is learning from one of the best backs in the game while Taylor has added at least 2 years onto his career. 2. Adrian Peterson, Chester Taylor Vikings: Many people would have put this tandem at number one on the list. But to me their is more of a drop off from Peterson to Taylor then with the Jaguars tandem. Peterson had an excellent rookie season and if he keeps it up will be one of the best backs in the league for a long time. Taylor also had a solid season with 844 yards and 7 touchdowns. It seems hard to believe but this tandem can be even more effective when the Vikings develop a passing game. 3. LaDainian Tomlinson, Darren Sproles Chargers: It's hard to beat a tandem with the best back in the league and a shifty scat back who can score everytime he touches the ball. They may have lost Michael Turner in the offseason, but that won't stop Tomlinson from having a great year as he is always good for at least 14 touchdowns. Sproles also played very well last year and showed he is a good receiver out of the backfield. 4. Marion Barber, Felix Jones Cowboys: This is the perfect example of a thunder and lightning tandem. Barber is one the best brusing backs in the game as he had 10 rushing touchdowns last year. While Jones has great speed and will run all over defenses after Barber has worn them down. This tandem could be much higher next year. 5. Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts Redskins: Portis had another great season last year as he had 1262 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has established himself as one of the best backs in the game. While Betts even though he didn't play that well last season, he is one of the better backups in the league and has the potential to start for some teams. 6. Brandon Jacobs, Ahmad Bradshaw Giants: Considering Jacobs missed 5 games, he had a very good season last year as he averaged 5 yards a carry and had over 1000 yards. The only problem was with his size he should score more then 4 touchdowns. Bradshaw was a great find for the Giants late in the draft last year as he was very elusive and had a big part in the offense during the playoffs. 7. Justin Fargas, Darren McFadden Raiders: This group has the potential to be in the top 4 in this list next year. Fargas had a very good season last year as he had over 1000 yards in 14 games. While McFadden was too good for the Raiders to pass up with the 4th pick. This tandem will really shine once JaMarcus Russell develops but even if the passing game struggles, this duo will be fun to watch. 8. Michael Turner, Jerious Norwood Falcons: This group compliments each other very well as Turner is more of a bruiser while Norwood is among the fastest backs in the league. Both of these guys also have fresh legs as neither of them started last year. Until Matt Ryan develops, these two will be the majority of the Falcons offense. 9. Willis McGahee, Ray Rice Ravens: McGahee had a solid first year in Baltimore with over 1200 yards and 7 touchdowns. Rice was drafted in the second round and due to the fact he is very durable,has the ability to give the Ravens 12-15 carries in his first season. Both of these guys will benefit from having Cam Cameron as offensive coordinator as he loves to utilize his running backs. 10.Willie Parker, Rashard Mendenhall Steelers: This group could become one of the top tandems in the league if Parker stays healthy and if Mendenhall lives up to the billing of a first round pick. Mendenhall has the ability to become a back who can handle 25 carries a game while Parker is a threat to score everytime he touches the ball. Mike Tomlin will love coming up with ways to get both of these guys on the field at once. Sat, 14 Jun 2008 19:14:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278036 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278036 Let's have a look at how the player on each team with the highest average of carries per game stacked up against the average carries per game for the team. This will give us the average carries that each player lost per game. I think you may be surprised by how some of these guys rank... Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:41:59 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277665 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277665 Adrian Peterson is an exciting fantasy player by any measure. Besting the NFL single-game rushing record in his rookie season was a feat for the ages. Many a fantasy football trophy was won last year thanks to his statistical brilliance. I certainly wouldn't be incredibly surprised if he has an even better season in 2008. Even though I think he has a higher ceiling than any running back in the league, if I were drafting with the #2 pick tonight, I'd be taking Addai over Peterson (assuming, as I think we can, that LT goes #1 almost universally). Here's why. Thu, 12 Jun 2008 10:20:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277208 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/277208 A fantasy owner must prepare properly and have a draft strategy in order to assemble a winning team. These are three ways to help ensure your fantasy team's success. Fri, 06 Jun 2008 10:53:22 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275272 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275272 john clayton really did a good job on this article. its broke down well an has some really good points. (personally i think that DJ Hackett is also a conciderable risk. due to the point that he has not played all than much. he is a big body to throw at but still only has 9 td's in his carrer.) Thu, 13 Mar 2008 13:16:12 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/196097 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/196097 The 2007 fantasy football season may be over, but it's already time to be thinking about 2008. The Fantasy Football Experts are already hard at work completing a 2008 Fantasy Football Mock Draft. Here are the contestants: 1. Rob Shaw, Lead Expert for FantasyFanatics.com 2. Dan Cypra, Marketing Director for FantasyFanatics.com 3. Phil Jean, Fantasy Football Expert for FantasyFanatics.com The rules are simple: 1. This is a standard Yahoo scoring league. 2. Each Expert is responsible for four teams, so there are 12 total teams in the league. 3. Rookies were not eligible to be drafted since their NFL teams and use are unknown. 4. Each roster consists of one quarterback, three wide receivers, two running backs, one tight end, one kicker, and one defense. 5. There are 13 rounds total. Here are the first three picks of Round 10: ROUND 10, 109TH OVERALL: BERNARD BERRIAN, WR, BEARS Bernard Berrian will be a free agent this off-season. He'll either be slapped with a franchise tag by the Bears or sent somewhere else. The latter would help his fantasy value tremendously as a home run threat. San Diego, Miami, and the New York Jets would make for good fits for this talented wideout. Don't let his 11 touchdowns in the last two years fool you. If you had Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton throwing you the ball, you would underachieve too. ROUND 10, 110TH OVERALL: MATT LEINART, QB, CARDINALS The 3rd QB to be picked up by this fantasy squad. He is a talent and you have to love the Cardinals offense with James, Fitzgerald, Boldin and Pope. He gained a big vote of confidence by the Cardinals coaching staff when they announced that he would start as long as he's healthy in 2008. ROUND 10, 111th OVERALL: ELI MANNING, QB, GIANTS An unbelievable post-season has this pick looking more and more like a steal. For three consecutive years, Manning has tossed at least 23 touchdowns. The flaws come with the interceptions, and his lack of mobility. This past season, Manning tossed 20 interceptions. The former Ole Miss Rebel seems to be forming a connection with former USC Trojans wide out Steve Smith. I believe that is a foundation that will be built upon in 2008. Mon, 28 Jan 2008 04:29:54 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/106782 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/106782 The season is what it is and Running Backs just aren't playing consistent enough to post the huge numbers that we fantasy owners have grown accustomed to them posting. Of the top backs poster here the average falls right around 12 points per game and it is absurd that I have any one of these players with a projected point total higher than fifteen. However, due to the inconsistency it is necessary that I take the time review match-ups and trends in order to get as close as possible to their weekly potential. Remember, "The Gospel" is not a start'em sit'em list, but more of a guide when determining the tougher match-ups or when deciding whom to draft in weekly cash competitions. Let's take a look at what to expect in Week 13. Thu, 29 Nov 2007 16:37:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/39459 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/39459 Saturday's FIO weekly fantasy football column deals with the injury report for the coming weekend - co-founder & editor Matt Hinzpeter lists those players who may be in question for their respective games in Week 12. Check this article each and every week on Saturdays. Sat, 24 Nov 2007 21:49:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38467 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38467 Listen at the site listed! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! You have to love this holiday! Lots of food, drinks, and football – how could you go wrong? You know what else would make it better though, a new episode of Around the Spectrum: LIVE… and here it is! I was happy enough to bring back "Mr. Movies" Steve Miller onto the show to talk various sports topics as well as Thanksgiving and holiday movies. NFL Turkey Day Trifecta Thanksgiving features three great match-ups for football-hungry fans. The Packers visit Ford Field to take on the Lions, the Jets meet the Cowboys, and on the NFL Network, the Falcons meet the Colts. Get predictions on each game from T-Money and Steve. No Longer the Priest of the NFL Kansas City Chiefs running back Priest Holmes retired on Wednesday, giving room to rookie RB Kolby Smith. Find out who else will not be playing on this week. MVP! MVP! MVP! Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins nearly beat out Rockies OF Matt Holliday for the National League honors, while ARod was a unanimous decision in the American League. Signings and Trades Galore Lots of moving and shaking throughout the world of Major League Baseball. Find out where everyone went! Agent Injured Find out how long "Agent Zero" Gilbert Arenas will be out due to a meniscus injury. How Do You Fix This Mess? How do you fix the Miami Heat? Even better question, how do you fix the New York Knicks? And are the Boston Celtics truly the team to beat in the East? Turkey Talk and Holiday Movies What does Steve like on his Thanksgiving platter and what are some of our favorite holiday movies. Listen now to hear all this and more! Listen Live this Sunday as T- Money welcomes fantasy sports writer Mike Muyskens to his debut on Around the Spectrum: LIVE at 11am EST. The pair will discuss fantasy football, including actives and inactives, and will also discuss the impacts of the MLB transactions on fantasy baseball. Call-ins are encouraged at (718) 664-6559! Listen live at www.blogtalkradio.com/tmoneysports. Also, send you fantasy questions in for Mike and T-Money to answer on the show by simply filling out the form on the side of this page. And as always, send in your sports question for Money Mailbag by simply filling out the form on the side of the page. In turn, T-Money will answer your questions on an up coming edition of Around the Spectrum: LIVE. Fri, 23 Nov 2007 00:42:58 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38254 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38254 One of FIO's weekly fantasy football columns, staff writer Tim Hays recaps Week 11 of the NFL - noting some stars and the busts who left fantasy owners crying. Check this article each and every week on Tuesdays. Wed, 21 Nov 2007 02:40:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37819 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37819 Here's a look at the guys who spent their time in week 11 doing one of three things: rumblin' up the player value charts with big performances, bumblin' through a rough week and making their owners nervous, or stumblin' so badly that their fantasy value took a major hit. Tue, 20 Nov 2007 16:06:38 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37674 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37674 Chester Taylor will keep on running until Adrian Peterson gets back. Then, Taylor will be a back-up once again. Mon, 19 Nov 2007 18:06:19 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37151 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/37151 To say the Minnesota Vikings were reeling after being blown-out by the Packers 34-0 would be an understatement. They were, in fact, a team suspected by some of being well on their way to surrendering altogether. And added to the humiliation of that loss was the fact that their top offensive weapon, Adrian Peterson, had to be shelved after tearing a ligament in his knee. Sun, 18 Nov 2007 22:32:51 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/36869 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/36869 Another one of FIO's weekly fantasy football columns, staff writer John Ward discusses some of the key match-ups to look at for Week 11 by looking at season stats and past success. Check this article each and every week on Thursdays. Fri, 16 Nov 2007 23:59:21 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/36509 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/36509