Week 14: Pickups of the Week
WR Andre Roberts, ---
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Andre Roberts has clearly moved ahead of Early Doucet on the depth chart and his big game against the Cowboys (six catches for 111 yards) makes him a player of interest during these waning weeks of the fantasy football season. With most waiver wires picked clean, emerging talent is gobbled up quickly. Roberts' ownership won't stay below ten% for long, though he's probably only worth the risk in deep leagues given QB Kevin Kolb's inconsistency and the fact that Larry Fitzgerald should hog the majority of targets.
WR Golden Tate, ---
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Sidney Rice was placed on injured reserve before last week's game, opening the door for Tate to earn the first start of his fledgeling NFL career. He responded with his second TD in as many weeks and, while the modest stats (four catches for 47 yards) don't show it, he made some electrifying plays and energized the Seahawks' passing game. He drew considerable praise from coach Pete Carroll after the game and seems locked in as Seattle's WR1 for the remainder of the season. This week's match-up against St. Louis offers a fine opportunity for interested owners to test Golden Tate's mettle.
WR Demaryius Thomas, ---
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After Week 8, we thought that a healthy Demaryius Thomas and a newly anointed Tim Tebow were a match made in heaven. We were wrong as Thomas slipped behind Eddie Royal on the Denver depth chart and disappeared from fantasy relevance for the next five weeks. The hope is that Thomas' big day against the Vikings will be enough to elevate him to regular starting duties in favor of Eddie Royal -- who, by the way, has been a been fantasy non-entity despite being the nominal starter.
TE Jermaine Gresham, ---
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At press time, Jermaine Gresham is hovering around 69% ownership. The glut of Fred Davis owners rushing to replace their suspended player should push Gresham past the 70% threshold and bring to an end his stranglehold on Pickups of the Week status. Even though he only had three catches last week, he was targeted seven times, including some crucial end zone looks. He also had a touchdown called back because of an A.J. Green penalty (manifest subconscious jealousy, perhaps?). He could be in store for bigger things in Week 14. On Sunday Gresham faces a defense that allowed a fellow tight end, Tony Gonzalez, to rack up 100 yards on seven catches.
Seattle
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When David Hawthorne picked off a Vince Young throw and returned it 77 yards to the house, he sealed Seattle's improbable destruction of the visiting Eagles. He also put the exclamation point on what had been an outstanding performance by a Seahawks defense that held the league's leading rusher to just 84 yards and harried Vince Young into tossing four interceptions. The Seahawks next host a team they embarrassed back in Week 11. Whether you call it Qwest or CenturyLink Field, the result is the same: Seattle's home turf remains one of the toughest locales for visiting NFL teams. This motivated Seahawks D should have no problems beating up on the hapless Rams, who are still licking their wounds after being shut out by the 49ers.
Remember to read all our columns for this week and use our Who To Start Rankings
