As the Giants prepare for their final preseason game of 2012 tonight against New England, and since we now are one week away from kickoff, it's time to really think about fantasy football. I mean really as in "you'd better get ready to set your lineups this coming weekend." As I've mentioned before, I'm going to leave the expert analysis to the fine folks at SB Nation on the official SB Nation fantasy page, including the new SB Nation Fantasy War Room sponsored by Sprint. And I'm just going to spout off and be Mikey, just using the Mikey's Gut Feeling (MGF) to steer my picks for starting and benching each week and then in recapping fantasy happenings on Tuesdays. By the way, our Big Blue View Wrecking Crew league is now viewable to the public.
With that, here are my picks for fantasy MVP, sleeper and bust......
Mikey's Fantasy MVP--Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers. Last year, Rodgers was unstoppable, with 4643 passing yards, 45 touchdown passes and just 6 interceptions--in 15 games. And the Packers rolled over everyone in the regular season, going 14-0 before essentially taking their foot off the gas and losing to the Chiefs, and then losing to our G-men in the divisional round. Of course, Rodgers is projected as a fantasy stud again. But I think that because he's still pissed about losing to the Giants, Rodgers is going to raise his game to an even scarier level--I'm talking 5200 yards and 52 touchdowns. Of course, I also think the Giants will frustrate Rodgers again on November 25.
Mikey's Fantasy Sleeper--Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis, Cincinnati Bengals The Patriots have been a pass-first team for years, but the Bengals are a defensive-minded, run-first squad. That sets up Green-Ellis to actually get the ball quite a bit in 2012. It also puts him behind one of the top offensive lines in football, taking the place of Cedric Benson. And if you think Benson was a nice fantasy surprise these last few years, just wait until Green-Ellis becomes the focal point of his offense. The MGF is really high on this kid.
Mikey's Fantasy Bust--Matt Forte, Chicago Bears This is something that is easy to say after watching the Giants hit Forte behind the line of scrimmage often last week, but it's a harsh reality that the Bears have an abysmal O-line. Also factor in that Forte's season was cut short in 2011 due to a knee injury, and he only had 3 rushing scores when he was shut down; and the fact that Michael Bush may bogart some goal-line carries, and it's just the recipe for a big bust.