FAABulous: Fantasy Football Pick-ups Week 6

Stay sharp grasshopper. Stevan Ridley has become the apple of Bill Belichick's eye. (ESPN.com)

FAABulous will recap the week of football activity and point fantasy owners where to spend their hard earned (not really) FAAB or waiver priority. Players will be owned in at most 30% of Yahoo! FFL. This is the one time where mo' money probably wouldn't mean mo' problems.

Guess who's back? The running backs.

We were supposed to be entering the decade of the quarterback. Guys throwing the ball 50 times a game and racking up more 5,000 yard passing seasons in a year than had previously ever existed. Oh, if only Dan Marino were still around. Hell, maybe this would be promising if Don Majkowski were still around.

But, poof, just like that we've returned to the seemingly bygone era of running back heavy football, and needing those players to carry our fantasy squads.

This past week, 16 rushers had more than 15 attempts carrying the rock, and two of them - Jamaal Charles and Ahmad Bradshaw - reached the 30 carry mark. They also ran for 200 and 140 yards respectively.

What could have been for the Majik Man.

The 49ers were "Down" for 311 rushing yards against a shockingly poor Bills defense. On the 666th Monday Night Football game, the Texans opted to run the ball heavily to set up their play action to wear down the Jets. And don't look past a team like Pittsburgh, who with a healthy Rashard Mendenhall back could easily become the running force with Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer they usually are.

Ten teams thus far are averaging over 30 rush Att/G. Of those ten teams that average over 30 rushes per game, only Kansas City has outright fallen on their face. Washington and Miami have losing records, but have exceeded expectations to this point, and the rest of the teams have winning records, including the top two teams in rush attempts - New England and Houston - who are both candidates for best team in football.

What's been the cause of this? Well there are a couple of factors that jump out after 5 weeks.

1. Two Back System

What started as the perceived as the death nail for 30 carry per game rushers, the two back system has become all but mandatory in today's NFL. For every running back no matter how elite, there needs to be a more than qualified back-up to keep the top RB on the depth chart rested, healthy, and keep the offense moving for the team. Even Arian Foster, who just signed a monster deal to stay in Houston, has Ben Tate backing him up. If Tate was traded tomorrow and given the lion's share of the carries, he'd be a top 10 back, easily.

2. New Blood

There have been a lot of impact running backs this year, that were injured, ineffective, or not even in the league in 2011. Guys like Alfred Morris, Trent Richardson, Stevan Ridley, Doug Martin, and Mikel Leshoure have all turned teams with limited run presence into run threats. Aside from Leshoure who just returned form injury, all have helped fantasy teams as well.

3. Offensive Line Value

While manning the o-line will hardly ever be glamorous, it's without a doubt that teams are focusing more and more on developing and paying these players. Pass and run protection are key, and as Michael Lewis pointed out in The Blind Side (it's not just about Michael Oher) that the players on the offensive line are as important as ever. While his initial take is about the development of the left tackle, you can see how every position has increased in significance.

If your team loses a center, all you hear about is the fret and concern about pass protection calls, snapping the ball cleanly to the quarterback, knowing the audibles and everything else that goes into running a smooth offense. Well, with this increased value in the o-line, wouldn't it make sense that players develop and embrace this role more? Become better players at run and pass blocking?

We've yet to have a dominant batch of offensive linemen in a draft class, but there have been linemen emerging on a year to year basis. Last year I had never heard of Josh Sitton, but commentators were talking about him like he's the best player in football.


4. Old Dogs Learning New Tricks

The main reason this is happening is due to two of the most stubborn coaches in the NFL. Bill Belichick and Mike Shanahan have both learned to love the run game and one running back. How this happened I have no idea. In all of Belichick's hubris did he choose to zig with the run game when everyone thought he'd zag and throw the ball 50 times a game? Perhaps his offensive line's trouble pass blocking for Tom Brady made running the ball more of a necessity to keep teams at bay. Maybe Aaron Hernandez's injury caused a dramatic shift in strategy, when it appeared BB was looking to unleash Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski on unlucky defenses. For whatever reason, he found Ridley/Brandon Bolden/Shane Vereen/Danny Woodhead and he's trudging along.

The bigger shocker is Shanahan. He's never stuck with a RB like this since Clinton Portis. Alfred Morris has been a beast thus far. With Robert Griffin III getting dinged up, you would imagine Shanahan would rely on Morris even more this week if RGIII can't go. Has Shanahan finally bought in to a running back? Is this his last ploy to suck all fantasy owners in only to have him pull the rug out from under us one more time? Get out of my head Mike Shanahan, get out!

And yes, I know I picked Morris as a stay away in Week 2. If you added him, then hey, you definitely got value. He's even getting the Terrell Davis comparisons I joked about! As far as a season long player, I need two more weeks. If he does that, I'll throw in the towel on Alfred.

Can Alex Green get the Packers' offense back on track? (Andy Lyons/Getty)

Those waiver picks are getting slimmer and slimmer. Time to look at some players with $$ signs in our eyes.

Brandon Bolden, RB - NE (47% owned)

It'd kind of kill the momentum of the article if I didn't suggest a running back add this week. Bolden is clearly behind Ridley in carries, but he has the ability and the opportunity to emerge any given week. He's more of a straight line back than Ridley, so he's not going to break out on a lot of long runs, but with Ridley's potential fumbling issues, Bolden could sneak his was in as a goal line back. Sort of a Kevin Faulk/BenJarvus Green-Ellis hybrid player.

Davone Bess, WR - MIA (32%)

For all the Brian Hartline love that was going around last week, I feel that Bess is the better play in Miami. If you had the will power to pass on Hartline, you should invest in Bess. With Ryan Tannehill getting more and more comfortable, he'll be throwing a lot more, and I would look for the Dolphins to increase their play action pass plays with Reggie Bush running so well. He'd be a WR3 start for me this week in St. Louis.

Alex Green, RB - GB (10%)

Let's not get all Brandon Jackson 2.0 over here. With Cedric Benson injuring his foot, he could be out 6 weeks in the cheese state. Some things to keep in mind is that the Packers are having trouble running the ball, and on top of that they aren't much of a run team. However, with their recent struggles and a clear need for a change in mentality among the offensive players, the 2nd year man Green could take this opportunity to impress. He was a yards per carry beast, leading NCAA Division 1-A with 8.2 YPC in 2010, and in his first limited action last week, he pulled off runs at a 6.1 average (granted with a 41 yard run thrown in). He looks to be tough to bring down, and the Pack just may look to feature him a bit more.


PENNY SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED

Santana Moss, WR - WAS (33%)

Is he really owned in a third of leagues? He's the 3rd WR on the Redskins when everyone is healthy, and there's nothing to look forward to here as far as upside. With the lack of chemistry he's created with RGIII along with doubts Kirk Cousins will be throwing many more 77 yard TD's, this is a stay away. Many better wide receivers to click on for your roster needs.

THE 1%

Josh Gordon, WR - CLE (2%)

I'm filing this one under the "Someone has to Catch Passes" corollary. It's Cleveland. Someone has to catch passes! Brandon Weeden has been sneaky not terrible since his Week 1 fiasco, complete with getting sacked by the American flag. I wouldn't look to much into a 2 catch day against the weak Giants secondary as a coming out party, but he can serve as a big play threat for the Browns.

FAABulous: Fantasy Football Pick-ups Week 5

Brian Dawkins emerges from the inflatable Eagle head one last time. (AP)

FAABulous will recap the week of football activity and point fantasy owners where to spend their hard earned (not really) FAAB or waiver priority. Players will be owned in at most 30% of Yahoo! FFL. This is the one time where mo' money probably wouldn't mean mo' problems.

The Philadelphia Eagles retired the #20 from their uniform line this week. Honoring safety Brian Dawkins in a week long celebration of his career that culminated on Sunday Night Football with a halftime ceremony that nearly muted Bob Costas (if only).

The Eagles went on to beat the Giants to go to 3-1 on the season. With all the energy surrounding Dawkins' return to Lincoln Financial Field, I was partially serious when I posted to Facebook to see if the Eagles could hire Dawkins as Pre-Game Fire Up Coordinator/Last Player to Run Out the Tunnel-er. No one hypes up the fans like B-Dawk.

As a lifelong Eagles fan, Dawkins is without a doubt the most revered athlete in Philadelphia history. That's saying a lot considering 1. How bad Philadelphia sports teams have been and 2. How prone Philly fans are to destroy their athletes that fail to meet expectations (Eric Lindros, Donovan McNabb) (3a. Or even destroy those that do (Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins). There are few free passes in Philadelphia sports.

Not that Dawkins got one, but he was able to ascend the height of Philly fandom not by winning a championship (he never did), but by playing football the way Philly fans want the sport to be played. It's contrived to say it like that, but there was never a time watching Dawkins play where you ever felt he wasn't giving everything he had. The hustle was always there. The aggressiveness was always there. He was respected by the fans and feared by the opposition.

Even when he left Philadelphia for Denver in 2009, no one really held it against him like fans do Jayson Werth who moved to Washington for $126M*. He got paid like a top 3 safety, which he no longer was, and people knew Dawkins was past his prime.

*It's funny that Werth, who left for probably double of what he could have got in Philly get's crap from fans when he returns. People thought he was leaving for the money, and even if he was, he earned it. The guy had a broken wrist and was barely a utility guy in the majors when he revived his career in Philly. He way outperformed what he was getting paid, and at his age new this would be his last pay day in baseball. He'd be insane to not go to Washington. And as for people saying he was just about the money? The Nationals just won the NL East Title and the Phils have been out of playoff contention for 87% of the season. 

I think that the image of Dawkins really downplays just how good of a player he was. Everyone remembers the big hits and the timely interceptions, but Dawkins was able to do everything on the football field. Perhaps his most underrated trait was his ball hawking and coverage abilities. Look at the "Pro Bowl" corners the Eagles had while Dawkins was patrolling the secondary. Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, Rod Hood...these were dominant cornerbacks in the NFL. As soon as they left? After thoughts. Dawkins covered for a lot of mistakes in the secondary, and his pressure on the QB surely helped some interception numbers.

Behind Reggie White, Dawkins was the best player I've ever seen play for the Eagles. He's certainly left the most indelible images I have for football as well as Google (seriously, if you Google him, lots of cool/demon looking photos).

Any attempt to spit out how important Dawkins was to the Eagles fans would be a failed attempt. Great writers probably can, but I haven't seen anyone sum up exactly what this guy means. It's an honor to have his number retired forever. It's how it should be.

As NFL 2012-2013 Season: Revenge of the Replacement Refs reaches the quarter point, let's see who could still be out there to help your woebegone team.

Jackie Battle could find the end zone more this year than Ryan Mathews. (Getty)

Jackie Battle, RB - SD (24% owned)

People love Ryan Mathews. I'm not sure why, but they do. Norv Turner doesn't love Ryan Mathews. Norv Turner controls Ryan Mathews carries. I'd rather see how the head coach of the football team handles Mathews rather than fantasy fans. Mathews is too talented to be benched, but I could certainly see Battle getting a fair amount of carries and especially on the goal line. Plus, it's not as if Mathews has been the picture of health in his young career. Good flex play here.

Andre Roberts, WR - ARZ (17%)

I believe in the Cardinals a little. Confidence is a hell of a drug. While people are busy doubling Larry Fitzgerald, Roberts has come into his own as Kevin Kolb's possession type guy. Beanie Wells is hurt, again, and I don't like Ryan Williams much at all, so shockingly, this offense will have to go - conservatively - through Kolb. Let's file Roberts under the Titus Young/Alshon Jeffrey category.

James Jones, WR - GB (34%)

Maybe the Packers haven't been the juggernaut many people were expecting. Aside from Aaron Rodgers performance last weekend, he's left a lot to be desired. The key with Jones is that with Greg Jennings tweaked and pulled muscles there's a real opportunity for Jones to step up. He's been in this offense for a while, and he has caught an escalating number of TDs over the past 3 years (5, 7, and 3 already this year).

Greg Zuerlein, K - STL (17%)

A kicker? Yes, a kicker. Kickers should always be the last pick in your draft and Zuerlein is Exhibit E double F in the case for it. The rookie kicker crushed boots of 24, 48, 58, and 60 last week. He's got legit power in his leg, and kickers that explode onto the scene happen all the time. Don't they Dan Carpenter or Neil Rackers? Aside from his bye week, Zuerlein should be your starting kicker every week. He's in that nice cozy spot for kickers where he plays in a dome for his home games and his offense is good, but not great - leading to a lot of field goal opportunities.

PENNY SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED

Brian Hartline, WR - MIA (28%)

I'll give it to Ryan Tannehill (man, how many Ryan's have been mentioned already) he didn't look overwhelmed last week. He's definitely gotten a lot better since Week 1 when I was cackling with joy every time he attempted to throw a pass. His growth though does not equal to me buying Hartline. This early in the season, a monster game like the one Hartline put up would vault him to the top of the WR list, but his struggles against tough defenses along with the possibility of him getting #1 WR attention instead of Davone Bess makes Hartline a match-up only play, and not worth a splash of cash.

THE 1%

Here's something I've noticed in Week 5. The amount of players that are 1% available are basically 3rd stringers or players that are inactive. With that being said, I will now change The 1% section to include players owned is less than 10% of Yahoo! leagues! Makes sense, doesn't it?

Tim Tebow, QB - NYJ (9%)

As Dez Bryant showcased last night, there is a difference between being a good fantasy football player and a good football player. Tim Tebow is a good fantasy football player, and his resurrection in New York appears imminent. Mark Sanchez has been a total flop. You can factor in as many reason as to why this has happened, but it boils down to Sanchez not being good. If Sanchez can't show marked improvement in two weeks, you can expect Tebow to take big boy snaps with the starters. I would expect to see more Tebow oriented plays in the coming weeks. Tebow did finish with 18 total TDs last year and ranked 55. If you're like me and have Russell Wilson hanging around as QB2, may not be a bad option. I will be sad to see Sanchez go though. He will instantly make the Jets from a gambling perspective a "bet against," to an "I don't know what the hell to do" with Tebow involved.

FAABulous: Fantasy Football Pick-ups Week 4

Time to get real about replacement officials. (cbssports.com)

FAABulous will recap the week of football activity and point fantasy owners where to spend their hard earned (not really) FAAB or waiver priority. Players will be owned in at least 30% of Yahoo! FFL. This is the one time where mo' money probably wouldn't mean mo' problems.

Well that was a nice dream.

The idea that these replacement or SCAB officials could step in for proven or veteran NFL officials officially was lowered into the ground and covered in terra firma in week 3 of the NFL season. The cherry on top was of course the monstrosity of a miss-call on the game ending Hail Mary from Russell Wilson  to M.D. Jennings Golden Tate.

There will be more than enough reaction pieces, pundits screaming, and treating the NFL's inability to find some change in their $9 billion budgets to pay the actual refs. By the afternoon news cycle Skip Bayless is going to need to be hooked up to an IV to replenish the fluids he's going to lose screaming all morning. Around the Horn will probably cut the wire on the Mute button, and Pardon the Interruption will bring things home with Michael Wilbon in utter disbelief while Tony Kornheiser brings everything back in perspective with his intense stare, open palm down on the PTI table and telling all of America this has to be the end of the line for the NFL's posturing with the real officials.

Like Weezer said, "If you want to destroy my sweater / pull this tread as I walk away...".

That call was the errant thread on your finely-knit sweater and fans, players, and NFL intelligencia are starting to pull, and the whole system is breaking down.

People will talk about player safety and greed as factors for why this is or isn't getting done, but after last night, what we've really seen is the degeneration of the replacement refs, and the realities of week in, week out calling NFL games catching up to these refs who mean well and try hard, but in reality are completely unqualified for this job. A job where hundreds of millions of people watch you perform every week, everyone thinks they know as much or more than you, and there are a dozen cable channels whose jobs are to talk about sports and more than likely pick you apart even more. It's a no win for the refs, and now a no win for the NFL.

Above all, once the integrity of the game is called into question, you have to react. More than injuries, more than money, more than anything if the sport you put out there isn't deemed legit?...well, that's a big problem. The NFL isn't going anywhere. They could send an email to every season ticket holder in the league with two big middle fingers and say tough shit and it would survive. But it is embarrassing that the most lucrative and popular sport can seemingly let this pass.

Roger Goodell has been contradiction thus far as NFL commish. He is known mostly as a disciplinarian. Trying to clean up the players off the field as well as on it. Stricter fines and closer examination of hits that may lead to concussions. However, as the link and Jason Whitlock's piece beautifully illustrates, he's also been looking to endanger players vis a vis Thursday night football every week, an 18 game regular season, and while throwing some money at brain studies or trying to eliminate kick returns (still never understood that) sounds good, ultimately compared to what he's tried to implement, they are empty gestures.

This all brings us to fantasy football, where let's face it, with poor officiating, affects points. Players are getting or being denied opportunities based on the poor discretion of the officials. If you had Wilson last night, that TD is a gift. If you lost by 2 and you had the Packers D, well that should have been a tick in the W column.

Integrity of the game, both real and fantasy, is why Goodell needs to do something.

Let's see what players need some cash splashed on them...

Hip hip hooray for big plays. (Getty)

Nate Washington, WR - TEN (64% owned)

Granted spectacular catches and blown coverage aside, Washington owns the best receiving yard average in the NFL through three weeks at 26.4. Washington has always had ability, but now with Jake Locker more relied upon in the Titans offense since Chris Johnson is laying an absolute stink bomb, you can count on a couple of deep plays getting called for #85 in the coming weeks. Plus, you can't begrudge a receiver some luck. It worked for Victor Cruz last year.

Kyle Rudolph, TE - MIN (40%)

I'm going to try not to repeat people on this, but Rudolph has a special place in my heart. This is the last stop on the bandwagon. Food and drink carts will be coming down your aisle shortly.

Jerome Simpson, WR - MIN (11%)

Strike while the iron is hot in the Twin Cities. Simpson is coming off his 3 week suspension, and with the Vikings looking more than competent with Christian Ponder delivering passes at a high efficiency, Simpson could add a deep threat to all the ruckus Adrian Peterson and Percy Harvin cause underneath coverage. SKOL!

Ronnie Hillman, RB - DEN (9%)

I can't tell you why I like the 5'9 tailback from San Diego State. The 3rd round pick hasn't made an impact yet, but with Willis McGahee nursing some bruised ribs and the mercurial Knowshon Moreno serving as back-up, I find it hard to believe that Hillman doesn't fit what Peyton Manning needs more than Moreno or anyone else on the depth chart. Work on that play action fake, Ronnie.

PENNY SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED

Jake Locker, QB - TEN (38%)

The first three weeks have been kind for Locker. He's put up big numbers and looked good doing it. However, even with playmakers in the route running department, the biggest crux of Locker's success is the dreadlocked one in the backfield. It's still early in the season, so teams preparing for the Titans probably have Chris Johnson on their mind. Three weeks in and he's produced zero. This may be a Jamaal Charles situation where Johnson could bust out in a big way, but probably not. Johnson just has to be somewhat effective at some point this year, but starting now, I would imagine a defensive coordinator would be a lot more focused on pressuring Locker, forgetting about Johnson. An increased focus on taking away potential targets for Locker at the expense of Johnson potentially gaining more that 2 yards will be well worth it.

THE 1%

Damaris Johnson, WR - PHI (0%)

This would be a total speculative add. Johnson is the 4th WR on the Eagles, but with Jeremy Maclin battling injuries already and DeSean Jackson waivering between wanting to play and not, a spot could open up for Johnson to get on the field and make plays. He did have 84 yards against Arizona, and his speed could make him a tasty option for the struggling offense.

Also, should Michael Vick be replaced or more likely injured from the punishment he is taking by a pass first offense behind a depleted offensive line, then Johnson does have a lot of reps with back-up/potential savior Nick Foles.  

FAABulous: Fantasy Football Pick-ups Week 3

The last person to arrive on the Danny Amendola band wagon was Danny Amendola.(Getty)

FAABulous will recap the week of football activity and point fantasy owners where to spend their hard earned (not really) FAAB or waiver priority. Players will be owned in at least 30% of Yahoo! FFL. This is the one time where mo' money probably wouldn't mean mo' problems.

It's only been two weeks, but that's been enough time to subsequently shatter our concepts of what we thought 2012 fantasy football was going to be.  The top point producer is a rookie QB in Washington whose filmed more commercials than TD passes thrown. Two consensus top 10 RBs have less rushing yards combined than one Reggie Bush game, or just 7 yards (21 feet) more than the 1,831st ranked player in Yahoo. And a team that was a favorite to be the worst team in football is 2-0 and just defeated a pre-season favorite to win the Super Bowl in their home debut. Oh, and their best player had 1 catch for 4 yards.

Crazy enough? That leaves plenty of us searching the waivers. Let's see who is deserving of your time.

Danny Amendola, WR - STL (52% owned) 

The diminutive WR draws lazy comparisons to Wes Welker was late to his own fantasy football party. Coming off an 85 catch season in 2010, Amendola was pegged to be quite Welkerish in 2011. Well, that ended rather abruptly as Amendola suffered a season ending injury in week 1. While he was certainly forgotten by many pretend pigskinners, he's come back to remind us that his 2011 hype was more than just some experts grasping at straws.

Through the first two games, Amendola has been targeted 25 times and after a huge week 2 ranks 3rd in the league in receiving. He's worthy of a hefty portion of your FAAB because he gets the looks, he gets open, and... 

Sam Bradford, QB - STL (22%)

Sam Bradford is his QB. Remember Sam? #1 pick. Threw the ball all over the field. He too was hyped up in 2011 before he too was injured and limited to 10 games. Injuries are nothing new to Bradford's game, but with new found health, he has the talent and the time in the film room to take a big leap this year in the Gateway to the West.

His skill players are lacking, and he doesn't have the big arm of another former #1 pick who was injury prone in Matt Stafford, but could a poor man's Stafford performance be out of the question?


Andrew Hawkins, WR - CIN (12%)

You thought Amendola was short? At 5'7, Hawkins would be up to the 5'11 Amendola's shoulder. But, the great equalizer in sports is speed, and Hawkins is crazy crazy fast. I was thinking about putting him in last week's FAABulous column, but I wanted to see if the Bengals would continue to utilize Hawkins' strengths. It appears his touches will only be growing. People may be waiting for Randall Cobb to break out, but Hawkins is there already.

Andre Brown, RB - NYG (15%)

Tom Coughlin doesn't have a dog house to put the players that catch his ire. When you get in trouble with Coughlin his version of a dog house more closely resembles Bane's prison in Dark Knight Rises. And deep, buried down there is rookie RB David Wilson. After a fumble in the first game of the season, he's been, well under utilized. Ahmad Bradshaw picked up a neck injury, opening the rushing duties to Brown.

PENNY SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED

Donnie Avery, WR - IND (8%)

Avery got some Andrew Luck love on Sunday, but Avery has never been a consistent force. I don't expect him to develop on a young Colts team where Reggie Wayne still owns the targets and Colby Fleener has great chemistry with Luck. Close your pocket books and look elsewhere for catches.


THE 1%
Brandon Myers, TE - OAK (1%)

There's not much anyone can take from what Oakland has done thus far. Coming off a short week and flying cross country ended up costing Oakland a brutal loss to Miami, but the 6'3 6th round pick has done enough to gain Carson Palmer's attention. While you would think this team would be built around a vertical passing game utilizing Denarius Moore, Darius Heyward-Bey, and Rod Streater with Darren McFadden storming up and down the field, the passing and running game has been very muted. Myers has averaged 75.5 yards per game thus far, and while he hasn't grabbed a ball in the painted part of the field, he does appear to be building trust with Palmer which can translate to red zone opportunities when they happen.

Looking for a Fight: Will You Be Entertained at UFC 153?

Aldo and Rampage's injuries almost dealt another blow to the UFC. But then something different happened...

From the ashes of UFC 151: Never Happened and on the verge of another Popeiian disaster, the UFC was at risk of probably not cancelling UFC 153 in Rio, but rather putting together a shaky card at best. At best because with both the main event and co-main event fights being pulled due to injures to Jose Aldo and Quentin "Rampage" Jackson, even the myth of Glover Teixiera couldn't pull in the PPV buys or fan excitement Dana White would be looking for.

It hasn't been a great year for White or the UFC. With all the hype surrounding the FOX deal, injuries swept through the UFC like a glacier coming out of the ice age.

The two top PPV fighters of 2011 have been gone all year. Georges St-Pierre to an ACL tear, due back in November, and Brock Lesnar is back to being BROCK LESNAR, although he got to keep the gloves.

All the next top PPV fighter did in 2012 was become the youngest, most dominant champion on LHW history, crash his Bentley and get a DUI, sign a Nike sponsorship, get an entire PPV cancelled for the first time in the UFC's 12 year history, and become the most polarizing (as in probably just as many fans hate him as like him at this point) fighter in the UFC, and get publicly roasted by White during a media conference call. So, yeah.

From a business standpoint, sometimes it's good to be Dana White (from a business standpoint because, personally, it must rock to be Dana White). When you have the best fighter ever on speed dial, and the stars align just right, he was able to make some phone calls and save the card. White recruited middleweight kingpin/champ/overlord/God/whatever...Anderson Silva to take a fight with Stephan Bonnar in a 3 round main event fight at 205. Along with finding a replacement for the hyped Teixiera and Antonio "Big Nog" Noguiera hopping on board, this trinity of Brazilians assembled like Voltron to form, not a more powerful PPV, but as entertaining a card as one could have hoped for with a month left to go.


People are already complaining. Comments of "are you serious?" or "why would I pay to see Bonnar get KO'd in a minute" were already flooding message boards. Personally, I have no idea what people could be complaining about.

Let's take a moment to think about what has to take place for this to even come together. First off, if this isn't in Brazil, I'm not so sure these fighters get on board. Silva mentioned fighting someone to save UFC 151, but on 8 days, no one was too eager to face the baddest man on this orb. Big Nog scored a big win his last time in Brazil, so he's eager to get back. For Teixiera, this will be his big coming out party. It's not Rampage, but a lot of eyes will be on him.


Kudos need to go out to all of these fighters, especially Stephan Bonnar who took on the biggest challenge of them all. He will truly earn his "American Psycho" nickname with this one.

Critics of the new UFC 153 will be quick to throw out names, and play matchmaker, but with a month to go, fighters are normally well into training at this time. No one of Silva's quality would come in unprepared to fight a guy like a Rashad Evans. He took this fight because it was in Brazil, he could do 205, and a guy like Bonnar isn't likely to give him issues.

Ah, ha! So you know where I fall on the whole Jon Jones fiasco at 151. Not exactly. Bones had 2 distinctly different things from Silva.

1. Jones was training, healthy, and ready to fight. He was ready to fight Dan Henderson but still ready. Silva was probably training and marginally healthy, but he wasn't supposed to fight again until 2013 (possibly in a super fight against GSP).
2. There have been ups and downs with Silva regarding fans, but for the most part (the whole part if you're asking me) he's must see television. The fans love him. One of the overriding reasons JBJ declined to fight Chael Sonnen was to protect his brand. Which, as rational as I try to be, annoys me to no end. This concept of branding.You know what's a form of branding? How people think of you. Whether it's Dwight Howard, Jones, or LeBron James. Jones wasn't scared of Sonnen, but rather, I think, he hinged his decision on if I lose, then what?

This is still a combat sport, so anything can happen. So it does take on some risk to step into the Octagon with anyone, and as much crap as Bonnar is getting, he's a fighter. The fight will be entertaining no matter what.

I have no doubt Dana opened up the roster to Silva and said, you pick, we'll see if we can get him, and Bonnar was loony enough to say yes. 

Ultimately, what we received yesterday when this news broke, was a chance to see the Spider in the Octagon another time. I'd head to my local bar and pay a $10 cover to see Silva fight a garbage can as the main event, but for a chance to see him let loose? To fight carefree against a soft hitter like Bonnar, who if you gave him 3 clean shots to Silva probably couldn't wobble him, who knows what can happen? Will it be like Silva against Forrest Griffin? Awesome. I watched that fight over and over and over again. Silva's performance was a spectacle. 

Put that along a still strong card, man, if you can't see paying $54.99 for that, I don't know what to tell you.