The final week of the long, arduous journey to the fantasy playoffs is at hand.
It started with another crushing blow to the Philadelphia Eagles. This time, the Eagles traveled to Seattle for a Thursday night affair. Marshawn Lynch remained in "Beast Mode" and Vince Young failed miserably against the Seattle defense.
Golden Tate emerged as a threat in Sidney Rice's absence (four receptions for 47 yards with a touchdown). Hang a star on him - maybe pick him up in deeper league, though I know trusting Tarvaris Jackson is a difficult proposition for you.
* Seattle tackle Russell Okung will miss the final four games of the season after tearing his right pectoral muscle agianst the Eagles.
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Now, let's get down to the business at hand for this weekend.
1. Donovan McNabb cleared waivers. That comes as no surprise. The Bears can still negotiate a deal with him if something occurs with Caleb Hanie this weekend or he pieces together another first half that resembles his effort against the Raiders. The Texans will use Jake Delhomme in the No. 2 spot behind T.J. Yates.
2. The Dolphins parted ways with Sage Rosenfels, thereby allowing the Vikings to bring him back into the fold. It doesn't move the needle, but there was a period where it appeared that perhaps the Texans would have had interest in him.
3. The Jaguars lost another member of the secondary when Will Middleton was placed on injured reserve. Jacksonville has gutted through the first injuries (aided by the schedule and replacement QBs), but face a stiff test Monday night against the Chargers. Can Philip Rivers snap out of his funk? Can this offense finally avoid the turnovers and take advantage of the injury-depleted secondary?
4. The Buccaneers promoted Rudy Carpenter from the practice squad as insurance for Josh Freeman. The third-year quarterback from Arizona State has yet to attempt a pass. Raheem Morris called Josh Johnson's practice week "spectacular" (per NFL.com), so I would expect to see Freeman (shoulder, much talked about thumb) sit.
5. Adrian Peterson has already been ruled "OUT" for Sunday's home game against the Broncos. Toby Gerhart tries to navigate the much-improved Denver defense that will play with Von Miller (he was back at practice after thumb surgery).
6. Malcom Floyd was back at practice for the Chargers. He finally gets back into the mix after missing four games.
7. Denarius Moore and Jacoby Ford will both sit out the Raiders' trip to Miami, and Darren McFadden remains on the shelf.
8. We're keeping an eye on Ahmad Bradshaw, Kevin Smith, Michael Turner and Julio Jones heading into Sunday morning. Bradshaw isn't likely to go. The others will be game-time decisions.
Lock and load with the Fantasy Freaks on FOX Sports Radio Sunday morning for 9a-12p ET/6-9a PT. Jump aboard the Twitter ship @swollendome.
Halpin, Fowler and Beall have you locked and loaded in the chat room for a three-hour marathon.
Finish strong.