Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 9: Greg Salas's New Lease On Relevance

Fantasy Football Week 8: Sam Bradford's Injury Leaves Room For A Tim Tebow Pickup

I don't think I'm telling any tales out of school to say that Sam Bradford has officially been one of the less impressive coups of the 2011 fantasy football sleeper season. After five games in which he failed to make much progress at all from his 2010 debut, Bradford suffered a high ankle sprain in the closing minutes Week 6, and the injury has caused him to miss one game already and looks like it might keep him out of another. This leaves the Rams' big midseason trade—acquiring Josh McDaniels disciple Brandon Lloyd for a 2012 draft pick—unconsummated for yet another week. and A.J. Feeley the only thing standing between the St. Louis Rams and an 0-7 start.

To say the least: If Sam Bradford is somehow your potential starting quarterback in Week 8—your starter must be on a bye—you're going to want to find another option. Might I recommend, if your league doesn't have anyone from Denver or Florida in it, Tim Tebow? I realize that nobody's convinced he's an actual starting quarterback, but at this point the Denver Broncos' offense has to run through him. If you don't like the guy, try to convince yourself you're starting an extra running back who throws a surprise pass every now and again. 

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 8: Tight Ends New Targets In Rams' Triaged Offense

If you were checking the St. Louis Rams game for fantasy football purposes during their entirely predictable 34-7 loss to the Dallas Cowboys it was probably in your capacity as a nervous Brandon Lloyd owner. Which is understandable—Sam Bradford was injured, and Josh McDaniels's vaunted offense has almost relentlessly underperformed. But fantasy football waiver-wire followers and bargain hunters might take note of what happened in the Rams' bye week: The second tight end, supposedly one of the primary features of the Rams' new offense, came back into view, while Lance Kendricks disappeared completely. Michael Hoomanawanui, catching his first ball in almost a month, might return to the fringes of fantasy respectability as soon as next week.

"Illinois Mike," an unpronounceable 2010 draft pick, had an exciting rookie season derailed almost entirely by a series of high ankle sprains last year; in eight games, and just three starts, Hoomanawanui caught 13 balls for 146 yards and three touchdowns, including two in his last two games as an active player. After more injuries in 2011, Week 7 was what amounted to his coming-out party—despite Feeley's legendary mediocrity, Hoomanawanui caught three passes for 44 yards. 

He and Kendricks were supposed to revolutionize the Rams' offense, which hasn't put much stock in its tight ends since Joe Klopfenstein was The Future, but so far they haven't been able to get on the field together—Billy Bajema was his partner in crime for Feeley. With Brandon Lloyd stretching the field and Sam Bradford on his way back, we might see a little two-tight-end play after all. If that's any consolation. 

Fantasy Football Week 8 Start/Sit: Sam Bradford Still Questionable, Questionably Valuable

With Sam Bradford's injury still dogging him days after he missed the first start of his career in the St. Louis Rams' loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Week 8 is looking like a tenuous bet for fantasy football owners looking to take advantage of his new number-one wide receiver, Brandon Lloyd. If he begins practicing—the Rams plan on checking the status of his non-plant-leg high ankle sprain Wednesday—that part of the risk involved in starting him begins to dissipate, but the major question still remains: Is Sam Bradford a starting quarterback in deep leagues? 

More importantly, will he be one? Numberfire fans get this terrifying set of similar players for the Rams' savior: Joey Harrington, Trent Edwards, Matt Leinart, Damon Huard, and Charlie Batch. While Bradford's coming off a solid game in the Rams' Week 6 loss to the Green Bay Packers—he was 29-for-45 with 328 yards and an interception—on the whole he's regressed from his solid but still questionable debut, just barely increasing his yards-per-attempt despite throwing the high-reward passes he didn't get turned loose for under Pat Shurmur's offense. 

Fantasy owners are beginning to understand the extent of his learning period: He's now owned in 59.4% of ESPN fantasy football leagues, down 10% in the last week. 

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire: Brandon Lloyd And Hopping Off The Brandon Gibson Bandwagon