In the Wembley Watch articles, I’ve taken a look at the Wembley-bound teams each week, but with the International Series game so close, I’m taking a close look at both teams in a bit more detail. Last week I examined the chances of the Broncos against the Jets (and got it wrong), this week I’ll take a closer look at the 49ers against the Carolina Panthers.

Moore hands off to Stewart

The Panthers are struggling. With starting QB Matt Moore turning the ball over for fun, rookie Jimmy Clausen was given the starting job but has failed to get the offence moving (and fumbled a lot). Matt Moore will be starting this game. Any time a team cannot find consistency at quarterback, you know they’re in trouble. Of course, there aren’t any receivers… that’s going to hurt any passing game. Steve Smith is back training as is expected to start and we could see ex-Redskin Devin Thomas getting some looks too.

Frank Gore and Alex Smith

The 49ers have been equally bad at times, but have shown some sparks in their last two games. The defense turned up for the whole game against Oakland and the offense joined them in the second half for what I described before as a comfortable victory. I won’t dwell on them more, as I’ve talked about them a lot in the past weeks.

I see a 49ers win here. Despite the Panthers coming in off a bye-week, they’ve still got troubles and the 49ers will arrive in high spirits and with full confidence. That’ll be enough to get them to 2-5 before they head east to the UK.

Image Credits:
Stewart / Moore – George Beinhart
Smith / Gore – John Martinez Pavliga

The run that the Saints went on took us by surprise. Indeed, from the pre- and off-season Graham and I both fancied the Panthers to be the err, big dogs of the division. As it happened, they were pussycats and the Saints went marching on and it’s now history. But enough of me murdering metaphors…

This NFC South has been particularly well balanced in recent years, with all four teams making the post season and each team has made the championship game and all but the Falcons made the Super Bowl since 2002. That could make things hard, but could make them fun too!

So let’s take a look…

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Ah the Bucs. Our party to Wembley last year for the International Series game were all (except one, Ant!) Bucs for a day but it was hard to cheer them on as they never looked like winning that game. In the end the Pats won at a canter in a pretty one-sided affair. But like with all the teams we’ve had he privilige to see; who’ve made the effort to come to Wembley and put on a display for us, we do feel a certain attachment to them.

Josh Freeman gave the offense a little spark in the second half of the season and we’ll watch his development. Carnell “Cadillac” Williams was back after injury and also did well. Antonio Bryant was released to free agency and has joined the Bengals. The defense has been looked after in the draft, with Gerald McCoy as the 3rd overall pick being the big name here. The Bucs would use 6 of their 9 picks addressing the defense.

But it’s hard to look beyond this team as having anything more than a rebuilding season. I could easily see them doing worse than the 3 wins of 2009. I hope not, but it’s very possible.

New Orleans Saints

As reigning champions, the Saints will have both a natural swagger and a huge target on their backs. Whilst there’s no doubt that this team will put up serious points, they have many frailties on the other side of the ball to rectify if they want to repeat… a task which is a tough ask for any team.

However, expect the confidence to show. To beat this team you have to shut down the offense, and that’s not easy with the weapons they have. But there are still questions here: Can Darren Sharper, coming off knee surgery and 34, be as effective as he was last year. How will Reggie Bush, going into his 5th season, play? He had a poor 2009 and has never been the standout that was expected though he remains a threat catching out of the backfield. Will Drew Brees put up 2008 level numbers again, how will Jeremy Shockey be? Can the defence improve?

This is a team that pretty much everyone is pleased to see doing so well and I hope they can carry that form into 2010. For now, they’re the team to beat in the South.

Atlanta Falcons

It was a strange season for the Falcons. Although the posted a winning record, they only beat one team with a winning record (the Jets in week 15). A result that saw them eliminated from the post-season due to other results. Whenever they faced the ‘better’ teams they seemed wanting. And that’s despite Matt Ryan taking real strides forward in his sophomore season. Michael Turner had a disappointing season after his stand-out showing in 2008. But they remain a team to be wary of. Stats-wise, the offence was steady despite key injuries and the defence improved on 2008 but needs to improve further.

The Falcons play the Panthers in weeks 14 and 17. Those two games will likely be the difference for these teams. What in soccer would be called “six pointers”.

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers were the disappointment of the division last season. Sure the Bucs were terrible, but we all expected that. The Panthers were just as bad considering they should have been contenders. As it happens, they lost key games early on and were always on the back foot. Whilst all the blame can’t be put on QB Jake Delhomme, a lot of it can. The experienced QB threw a career-high 18 interceptions on his way to posting the worst rating of his career… a career which will continue in Cleveland.

The Panthers will look to Matt Moore to take them forward, but were also lucky to get Jimmy Clausen as their first pick deep in the second round of the draft. Considered the most pro-ready of this year’s draft class, there’s a story there to watch. The Panthers will also need continued production from DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart who continue to look like the best running tandem in the league.

Defensively the Panthers were a good unit last year, and tweaks rather than mass changes are needed here. But this is a team defined by its offence. If they can click, move (and protect) the ball, then this will be a team to watch out for again.

Predictions (made 7th June 2010)
It’s very close between the Panthers and Falcons for me, but for now I can see the division shaping up the same way it did in 2009.

Thumbnail Credit: Khaijg

Ah yes, the NFL Fantasy League draft…

Last year I stormed off to a 12-1 regular season before losing both the semi-final and 3rd place playoff. I usually make the playoffs, but with 4th last year and 6th the year before, my solitary victory back in 2006 is looking a little lonely. This year though…

Our league has got very popular over the last few years and this year had the maximum allowed of 20 players. Yes, this was going to be hard.

I got the 6th pick, which I was pretty happy with. Nut the nature of the draft means that my next pick would be the 34th overall. Then 46th, then 74th, add 11, add 29, etc.

The Draft
DeAngelo Williams was going to me my first pick, but he was taken at number 5. Which threw me a bit, as I wasn’t sold on the next few players below him. So I went for Steve Slaton. As I’ve already mentioned here: I like him as a person and a player and think he’s going to have a good year. I then had to sit, wait and watch while most of the high-value players disappear. Come my second pick, I went for another RB. I was tempted to a quarterback, but reckoned (correctly as it turned out) that they’d still be a good choice come my 3rd round pick. So I picked up Ryan Grant then and reached for Carson Palmer next.

Palmer is a risky pick, but I like his chances this year now he’s healthy and has good receivers to aim at.

I’d decided before the draft started not to worry about WRs, as I had in mind a couple that should still be available deep so I went for a solid TE in Greg Olsen in the 4th round. However, one of the WRs was Hakeem Nicks, and he was taken 1st pick of the 5th round so I lifted my targets (a little) and took Muhsin Muhammad

Deep in the 6th I was surprised to see Willie Parker still available, and though I could have gone elsewhere I picked him up. He’ll be on my bench initially, but could be traded or kept for cover. He seems like a bargain all the way down there!

I took Justin Gage in the 7th to essentially fill out the starters, then started looking at backups and value players: Enter Brady Quinn in the 8th and Darrius Heyward-Bey in the 9th.

Shaun Siusham in the 10th is my worst pick, and I’ve already traded him. I’ve never worried too much about a kicker though, and this year is no exception. I’ll just pick up whoever is available if I need to. The same is true of the DEF/ST and my autopick (my connection dropped) of Cleveland won’t set the world alight but will probably be steady enough for me not to worry about it.

In between those, I took Bo Scaife in the 11th then closed out with Michael Clayton and Joey Galloway in the 13th and 14th rounds respectively.

Summary
Generally I’m happy with my team. I managed to stay on strategy for the most part, and didn’t get drawn in when there were runs at certain positions. My receivers could be stronger, but that was conscious on my part so I can’t complain.

[table id=15 /]

To start week 1, against SmallSatsuma’s Saints

QB – Carson Palmer
WR – Muhsin Muhammad
WR – Justin Gage (gameday decision against Darrius H-B)
RB – Steve Slaton
TE – Greg Olsen
W/R – Ryan Grant
K – Steven Hauschka (who I traded Siusham for)
DEF/ST – Cleveland

I’m trying to trade Willie Parker for Percy Harvin. If accepted, I’ll probably start Harvin over Gage and Heyward-Bey.

I’m projected a narrow win, but who can tell? What I can say is that the draft was a good laugh, again, with a good amount of chat and jokes and laughter throughout. The League should be much the same, and we always look forward to it.

Get Playing!
We use Yahoo! Sports‘ fantasy league and live draft, but there are plenty available. Like at nfl.com.

UK fans should also look at the nfluk.com fantasy competition, which works in a different way but has some good prizes on offer.

In the QB battles…

Matthew Stafford struggled against Cleveland, being out-performed by Daunte Culpepper and also by Drew Stanton. On the other side of the field, Derek Anderson was given more attempts and moved the ball well but threw an interception. Brady Quinn only had a handful of attempts, so it’s hard to judge him.

So Culpepper moves in front in Detroit, but probably still too early to call in Cleveland yet.

The Indianapolis Colts did well against an under-strength Eagles. The question of how they’d adjust to the coaching changes seems to be being answered with “Just fine, thanks.”

Matt Cassel looked like a starter again against the Vikings, but most people were watching for another new QB: Brett Favre didn’t play much, but just seeing him in purple was strange. Tarvaris Jackson had a great game, and with rumours circulating that he could be released he reminded everyone out there that sometimes, he’s a decent option.

Elsewhere…

Miami looked good all around against the Carolina Panthers too. Our favourites Ronnie Brown and DeAngelo Williams both did well.

San Diego looked very good against the Cardinals, besting them on both sides of the ball. Of course it’s hard to read too much into these games, but our predictions looked true from this game. The same could apply to the Seahawks who also looked very nice against the Broncos. Kyle Orton looked better – a lot better – than he did last week. So did Jay Cutler in his Soldier Field debut.

The Redskins looked better, but still not great. The 17-13 win over the Steelers papers over the cracks a bit but still… no panic yet.

Chad Ochocinco is the star this week. The frankly bonkers receiver performed some kicking duties this week against the Patriots. He converted a PAT, and also kick-off that went at least a par distance. Watch it at nfl.com.

It’s great to see him enjoying himself.

We reiterate that these are some of our favourite players. We can’t vouch that these will be the best players in absolute terms, have the biggest fantasy football upside or even be any good (though they might be)… but they’re players that we like to watch.

DeAngelo Williams of the Carolina Panthers gets the call this week.

Williams holds a host of college records, including the most all-purpose yards in NCAA history and was strongly thought of heading into the 2006 draft. However, in a class that held Reggie Bush, LenDale White and Joseph Addai (among others) he fell to 27th in the first round where he was snapped up by the Panthers.

Williams escapes Ronde Barber

In 2008, his carries almost doubled from 2007 and his yards per carry rose from an already impressive 5.0 to 5.5 yards per carry. He finished out the season with over 1,500 yards and 18 touchdowns. More than that, he established a formidable partnership with Stewart, who also put up over 800 yards and 10 TDs. This was the running back duo of last season, and they’ll be looking to build on that in the 2009 NFL Season.

I’d been keeping an eye on him all season, interested to see how he’d cope not just as the starter but with a highly rated rookie behind him. He didn’t disappoint at all, and as the season went on he got better and better. In week 15, he blasted through the Broncos line for a 56 yard sprint for a touchdown. He started off heading left, then came back and was gone. The speed was amazing for that time of the season.

But his most impressive stat of all: no fumbles in 2008. In fact, in over 500 carries in his NFL career so far he’s only fumbled twice, and lost the ball once. That’s the stuff of dreams for a coach.

I fancy the Panthers this year to win the NFC South, and Williams will be a big part of that. If he’s healthy, then he’ll beat Foster’s mark to become the all-time Panthers rushing leader. There are a number of factors in which games I’ll watch each week, but the Panthers’ running game in general, and DeAngelo Williams in particular, makes me want to watch them.

Previous Favourite Running Backs
Steve Slaton
Ronnie Brown