Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

Week eight brought about an interesting development at the quarterback position. A pair of high first-round draft picks that had fallen into back up roles, now find themselves as starters again, and they played pretty well on Sunday. Alex Smith of the San Francisco 49ers and Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans, both, earned their starting jobs back this season after lackluster performances by the players in front of them - Shaun Hill and Kerry Collins, respectively. They do have some value in fantasy football, but to find out where they stack up continue reading the Fantasy Football Week 9 Waiver Wire - Pick Them Up article below.

Note: If you’re debating on who to drop to pick these guys up, you should be checking out the Bruno Boys’ article, Fantasy Football Week 9 Waiver Wire - Cut Them Loose and see if anyone on your roster is a Bruno Boys’ recommendation to drop. And, remember you can always visit our FORUMS to get your questions answered about waiver wire candidates, players to drop or anything at all related to fantasy football.

QUARTERBACKS — PICK THEM UP

Alex Smith (San Francisco 49ers)

Since he took over for San Francisco last week, Smith has put together consecutive double digit fantasy-football performances while throwing four touchdowns and two interceptions. He’s also kept the 49ers competitive in both of those games, including a close loss to the Indianapolis Colts this past Sunday. Smith is somewhat of an enigma because the talent is there, but it has never been fully displayed. Since he has never shown the ability to be a consistent player, he should only be targeted in deep leagues. However, it is worth noting he has favorable match-ups coming up against the Titans, the Chicago Bears, the St. Louis Rams and the Detroit Lions.

Vince Young (Tennessee Titans)

Once the Titans decided to switch to Young at quarterback, it was a decision that was made with the intent of him being the starter for at least the rest of the season. And, in his first start this season, Young played well as he went 15-for-18 for 125 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. He, also, rushed for 30 yards on 12 carries. He didn’t attempt many hard throws and didn’t go downfield, but we’ve seen Young be a force in fantasy football before. For those desperately seeking a quarterback, you could do worse than Young.

RUNNING BACKS — PICK THEM UP

LeSean McCoy (Philadelphia Eagles)

With starter Brian Westbrook out because of a concussion sustained in week 7, LeSean McCoy got the call at running back for the Philadelphia Eagles last week. In a win over the Giants, McCoy rushed 11 times for 82 yards and a touchdown, and he also caught two passes for 10 yards. Westbrook did not practice at all in the week leading up to the game this past weekend and concussions are a weird thing. Sometimes players can come back from them quickly, and other times it takes a while. Even if Westbrook does return next week, he would at the very least share carries with McCoy. Monitor Westbrook’s situation this week, and if it appears he’s not going to play, McCoy would be a good pickup in any league.

Ryan Moats (Houston Texans)

A fumbling problem by starter Steve Slaton opened the door for Houston Texans’running back Ryan Moats in the team’s win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Moats came in and absolutley took over the game as he had 126 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries. He also had two receptions for 25 yards. Given Slaton’s problems with fumbles - he’s had seven this season, five of which were lost - and the way Moats played against the Bills, it’s likely he’ll continue to start. This is the type of player any fantasy team should pounce on right now if the opportunity is available because Moats could have some more big games in him before the season is over.

Maurice Morris (Detroit Lions)

Starter Kevin Smith left this past weekend’s loss to the Rams with a shoulder injury, though Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz insisted he could have returned had he been needed. Maurice Morris took over for Smith and finished the game with 63 yards on 11 carries, compared to Smith’s 45 yards on 14 attempts. Smith has been injured and inconsistent this season and Morris ran well, leading us to believe that Morris will continue to see about 5-15 touches of the ball in the future. Since that isn’t a whole lot, Morris should only be considered in deeper leagues.