Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

- Written by Rich Arleo
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

While the New York Jets (11-5) may have made the most noise, AFC East fans watched the New England Patriots (14-2) once again clinch the AFC East  title in dominating fashion, while the Miami Dolphins (7-9) and Buffalo Bills (4-12) struggled to compete. After a huge playoff win over their division rivals, the Jets have their sights set on the conference title in 2011, but quarterback Tom Brady, head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots should have something to say about that. The Dolphins will look to put a wrench in both their plans while the Bills will look to address some glaring needs.

NEW YORK JETS

The Jets may not have technically won the division title but they certainly “won the war” with the Patriots after a big statement win over their rivals in the divisional round of the playoffs. Talkative head coach Rex Ryan, loudmouth defensive back Antonio Cromartie and clinically insane linebacker Bart Scoot shot off their mouths and backed it up in a 28-21 win in Foxboro that told the Pats that the Jets are here to stay. They will have a lot of roster turnover in 2011 after a bunch of one-year deals expire, but their core is strong enough that with a few pieces here and there they can finally make that push to the Super Bowl that head coach Rex Ryan has been talking about since he joined Gang Green.

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- Written by Rich Arleo
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

While the New York Jets (11-5) may have made the most noise, AFC East fans watched the New England Patriots (14-2) once again clinch the AFC East  title in dominating fashion, while the Miami Dolphins (7-9) and Buffalo Bills (4-12) struggled to compete. After a huge playoff win over their division rivals, the Jets have their sights set on the conference title in 2011, but quarterback Tom Brady, head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots should have something to say about that. The Dolphins will look to put a wrench in both their plans while the Bills will look to address some glaring needs.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

It was business as usual for the Patriots during the 2010 regular season. New England overcame some early issues with their backfield and a young, inexperienced secondary to finish the season 14-2 after an eight game winning streak. They earned a first round bye, which set the stage for a matchup with an aggrandizing Jets squad that talked trash about the Patriots all season. As it turned out, the Jets were speaking the truth as some of the Patriots’ weaknesses were evident in a 28-21 divisional playoff loss. New England’s core is still strong but they will have to address some issues if they want to hold back the Jets and repeat as division champions.

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- Written by Cory Steger
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

Want to know which quarterbacks you should think twice about drafting before your fantasy football league kicks off in 2011?  The Bruno Boys have you covered as we run through potential RED FLAG quarterbacks in 2011 from the AFC. Make sure to check back on a daily basis as we will breakdown each position in both the AFC and NFC.

AFC RED FLAG QUARTERBACKS IN 2011

Ryan Fitzpatrick (Buffalo Bills)

Let’s get one thing straight before we start on Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick: His 2010 season was stellar and blew away any expectations we had of him. For a guy who had never thrown more than nine touchdowns in a season, Fitzpatrick finished the season with a career-high 23. Trent Edwards, now with the Jacksonville Jaguars, won the starting quarterback job in Buffalo out of camp but was quickly replaced by Fitzpatrick, who filled in as admirably as he could’ve for a team as bad the Bills. The thing about Fitzpatrick is he has been nothing more than a stop-gap on every team he has played for, and even though he was stellar last season, it could be hard for him to repeat. Even with Fitzpatrick expected to be the starter at the beginning of the 2011 season, there is no guarantee he finishes the season as the No. 1 quarterback. He struggled at the end of 2010, throwing just five touchdowns against 11 turnovers in his final five games and it seems that NFL defenses figured him out after studying the film. Unless you are targeting a QB2 in a deep league it would be best to stay clear of Fitzgerald when 2011 rolls around.

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- Written by Rich Arleo
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

While the New York Jets (11-5) may have made the most noise, AFC East fans watched the New England Patriots (14-2) once again clinch the AFC East  title in dominating fashion, while the Miami Dolphins (7-9) and Buffalo Bills (4-12) struggled to compete. After a huge playoff win over their division rivals, the Jets have their sights set on the conference title in 2011, but quarterback Tom Brady, head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots should have something to say about that. The Dolphins will look to put a wrench in both their plans while the Bills will look to address some glaring needs.

MIAMI DOLPHINS

The Dolphins finished 2010 with their second straight 7-9 record and third place finish since winning the AFC East title in 2008. They couldn’t get anything going on offense and were ranked No. 21 in the league in yards per game and No. 30 in points per game with 17.1.  Their defense was actually very good as they were in the top 10 in both pass and run defense. The Dolphins aren’t awful, but they have some glaring weaknesses that need to be addressed before they can compete with the two beasts of the AFC East.

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- Written by Rich Arleo
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

While the New York Jets (11-5) may have made the most noise, AFC East fans watched the New England Patriots (14-2) once again clinch the AFC East  title in dominating fashion, while the Miami Dolphins (7-9) and Buffalo Bills (4-12) struggled to compete. After a huge playoff win over their division rivals, the Jets have their sights set on the conference title in 2011, but quarterback Tom Brady, head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots should have something to say about that. The Dolphins will look to put a wrench in both their plans while the Bills will look to address some glaring needs.

BUFFALO BILLS

It was such a bad season for the Bills that they couldn’t even LOSE right. The Bills started the season out 0-8 and looked primed for the No.1 overall pick in this year’s draft, however they decided to go 4-4 in the second half of the season and dropped to third overall where they could potentially miss out on their two top targets. The Bills lost Marcus Stroud to free agency and could also lose arguably their best player, Paul Posluzny, to free agency as well. It’s likely going to be another long season up north for the Buffalo faithful in 2011.

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- Written by Lane Rizzardini
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

The AFC South has been rather easy to predict since its creation in 2002. The Indianapolis Colts have won the division seven out of nine years, with the Tennessee Titans winning it the other two times. The Titans are a bit off the radar now with a new head coach and no suitable quarterback to speak of. The other two members, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, have failed to get over the hump despite having promising pieces in place. The Texans are in a much better place than the Jaguars to make a run with an electric offense, but are held back by one of the worst defenses in the league. It is of course the Colts and Peyton Manning who seem to continue getting richer, especially if they can bring back all of their walking wounded. With Matt Schaub and the Texans the only team capable of contending with Indy in 2011, the AFC South shows how important the quarterback position is in the National Football League.

TENNESSEE TITANS

It has been a tumultuous offseason for the Tennessee Titans, who dealt with a very public fight between head coach Jeff Fisher and quarterback Vince Young which surprisingly ended with both members of the team leaving. The team promoted its offensive line coach Mike Munchak to head coach, but it will be hard to replace Fisher who was the longest tenured head coach in the NFL at the time. On top of that, star wideout Kenny Britt has been arrested not once, but twice in a two month stretch. They will also have to find a suitable starting quarterback, as Rusty Smith and Kerry Collins have proved they are not anywhere near being the long-term answer. Filling this important position must be the team’s top priority this offseason, not only to improve the passing game but to keep teams from stacking the box on elite running back Chris Johnson.

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- Written by Lane Rizzardini
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

The AFC South has been rather easy to predict since its creation in 2002. The Indianapolis Colts have won the division seven out of nine years, with the Tennessee Titans winning it the other two times. The Titans are a bit off the radar now with a new head coach and no suitable quarterback to speak of. The other two members, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, have failed to get over the hump despite having promising pieces in place. The Texans are in a much better place than the Jaguars to make a run with an electric offense, but are held back by one of the worst defenses in the league. It is of course the Colts and Peyton Manning who seem to continue getting richer, especially if they can bring back all of their walking wounded. With Matt Schaub and the Texans the only team capable of contending with Indy in 2011, the AFC South shows how important the quarterback position is in the National Football League.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Despite being one of the weakest teams in the division on paper, the Jacksonville Jaguars managed an 8-8 record and a second place finish to the Indianapolis Colts last season. The record doesn’t really tell the story, as the season wasn’t as good as the .500 winning percentage would suggest. Their offense runs primarily through running back Maurice Jones-Drew, who battled knee problems for a second consecutive 1,300 yard season. Yards don’t score points though, and with the poor play of quarterback David Garrard and total flop of a year for 2009 breakout-wide receiver Mike Sims-Walker the team finished in the bottom half of the league in points scored. If it wasn’t for this amazing play to sink the division-rival Houston Texans in Week 10, the Jaguars would have not been a .500 football team in 2010.

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- Written by Lane Rizzardini
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

The AFC South has been rather easy to predict since its creation in 2002. The Indianapolis Colts have won the division seven out of nine years, with the Tennessee Titans winning it the other two times. The Titans are a bit off the radar now with a new head coach and no suitable quarterback to speak of. The other two members, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, have failed to get over the hump despite having promising pieces in place. The Texans are in a much better place than the Jaguars to make a run with an electric offense, but are held back by one of the worst defenses in the league. It is of course the Colts and Peyton Manning who seem to continue getting richer, especially if they can bring back all of their walking wounded. With Matt Schaub and the Texans the only team capable of contending with Indy in 2011, the AFC South shows how important the quarterback position is in the National Football League.

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

The story of the Indianapolis Colts season was the substantial number of injuries they sustained, including tight end Dallas Clark, wide receiver Austin Collie, safety Bob Sanders and a myriad of others. Still, behind the always strong play and leadership of Peyton Manning the team went 10-6 and won the AFC South, eventually falling to the New York Jets in the AFC Wild Card Round. Still, it’s continually amazing how well the team does even under such adverse circumstances, and when they get healthy they’ll yet again be a force to be reckoned with.

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- Written by Lane Rizzardini
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

The AFC South has been rather easy to predict since its creation in 2002. The Indianapolis Colts have won the division seven out of nine years, with the Tennessee Titans winning it the other two times. The Titans are a bit off the radar now with a new head coach and no suitable quarterback to speak of. The other two members, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, have failed to get over the hump despite having promising pieces in place. The Texans are in a much better place than the Jaguars to make a run with an electric offense, but are held back by one of the worst defenses in the league. It is of course the Colts and Peyton Manning who seem to continue getting richer, especially if they can bring back all of their walking wounded. With Matt Schaub and the Texans the only team capable of contending with Indy in 2011, the AFC South shows how important the quarterback position is in the National Football League.

HOUSTON TEXANS

With all of the offensive weapons the Houston Texans had you would think they would have done much better than 6-10 this season. Alas, it was their play on the defensive side of the ball that sunk them is most of their games this season, finishing No. 30 in points allowed and dead last in passing yards allowed per game. It was truly horrific to watch at times and clearly the team was hurt by the departure of cornerback Dunta Robinson in the offseason. If they can make some moves this offseason to shore up that side of the ball they will surely be able to contend for the AFC South title or at least a Wild Card spot.

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- Written by Ryan Czopek
- Edited by Marc Caviglia

The AFC North much like it’s NFC North counterpart has great rivalries and an ongoing tradition of playing smash mouth defensive football. Players like Ray Lewis, James Harrison and Troy Polamalu are the faces of this division on defense, while Ben Roethlisberger and Ray Rice fit the bill on offense. The majority of the players in the AFC North aren’t glamorous, but are scrappy and hardworking, much like the people of their cities. No team preaches hard work and dedication more than the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are the class of this division. Pittsburgh won the AFC title last season, only to lose to the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl. Pittsburgh’s biggest challenge each year comes from the Baltimore Ravens, who have made the playoffs in each of Joe Flacco’s first three seasons in the NFL. He has that franchise heading in the right direction. The bottom feeders of the divisions are the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals. The Browns have put together just one winning season since 2003, however with Mike Holmgren running the front office they seem to be on the rise. As for the Bengals, they have talent, but look to rebuilding after their star players Carson Palmer and Chad Ochocinco both want out of town.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Despite not having Ben Roethlisberger (suspension) for the first four games of the 2010 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers finished with a record of 12-4 and won the AFC North last season. The team would comeback to beat the Baltimore Ravens and then the New York Jets to reach Super Bowl XLV. The Steelers would end up losing to the Green Bay Packers, but they are primed to make another Super Bowl run this season.  Except for the majority of the offensive line, the Steelers have strengths at virtually every position.

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