Team analysis

The pressure's mounting. The Vegas bracket is down to 362 teams and I have two of them. Jim Beam is a team that I loved from the start and thought was my best team. The team almost let me down, but a huger than huge game by Jermichael Finley on Monday night kept the team alive. Jager Meister is a banged up team that's very thin. Both teams are led by the top point getter, Aaron Rodgers.

Jim Beam
QB - Rodgers, E. Manning, Young, Campbell
RB - ADP, Rice, Charles, Barber, C. Taylor
WR - S. Smith (NYG), Crabtree, S. Moss, D. Jackson, Jennings
TE - Finley, Heap
K - Mare, K. Brown
TDS - Bengals, Packers

I went with 3 QB-WR combos which I like to do. It allows for big weeks when you get the right match up. I also love that I have flexibility at the OP position with Manning, Young and Campbell.
The RB's have been solid, but not great. ADP and Rice have been my starters most every game except for when Charles played St Louis. Then I benched Rice. Not many teams still alive have ADP, so I need him to go on a D'Angelo Williams-like tear the next few weeks.
No stud WR's. Smith was early in the year, but didn't start a lot for me. DJax has had some great games and some dud games. His return this week could give my team a spark. Jennings has greatly disappointed me and will probably be on my bench again this week as he was last week.

As long as I play the right QB at OP, I like this teams chances to make it through another week. The depth is good so I can play match ups each week. Scott S thinks that defenses are the key and team depth is overrated. Since you can't have 7 super stars to start every week, I feel depth is important, so you can play good match ups such as Charles against St Louis or Barber against Tampa Bay.

Jager Meister
QB - Rodgers, Cassel, Sanchez
RB - MJD, Mendenhall, R. Williams, Wells, R. Brown (IR)
WR - Boldin, Burleson, Holmes, S. Smith (NYG), Crabtree, Collie
TE - Gonzalez, Keller
K - Longwell, Prater
TDS - Vikings, Bengals

This is one of my rare teams that has a solid WR corp. Boldin and Burleson each get at least 8 targets per week. I've started Holmes at the right times and Steve Smith carried me early. The reason I don't like this team is the OP spot. I feel in order to win in the FFOC you need 2 solid QB's. My 2nd QB is definitely well below average. I've been getting away with Cassel and I like his match up this week. However, this will eventually be my downfall the week Rodgers has a down game.
My RB's are solid, but not great. Mendenhall has a great match up this week. I haven't been playing Williams at all, but if the match up is right, I may slide him into the OP spot some week....not this week. With Wayne being covered by Champ this weekend, I'm debating on giving Austin Collie a start. The problem with him is I can't guarantee he'll get a lot of looks. I believe they will have to use him a lot this week, but is it worth risking the benching of a #1 WR that has been producing week in and week out? It's decisions like these that can make or break a team, right Kurt?

If the stars align and both of these teams make it to the final 97 (plus 6 promoted teams), I'll work on my back flip and buy some lottery tickets. However, I'd be very satisfied if only my Jim Beam team advances. All I ask for is a chance! I can't imagine what next week will be like if I get within one week of Vegas and the shot at a million dollars! All I can think about these days is the FFOC contest. Last year was fun following the cut line after I was eliminated in week 13. Actually having a team still alive is 100 times better.