Steven Jackson Landed a New Deal

News/Notes
• It’s been a couple of years since Joe Horn has been a prominent fantasy wide receiver, but maybe there is one last hurrah in the 36 year old’s legs. Horn got his wished for release from the Falcons and has said he’d like to finish his career in either Dallas or Philly. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, he hasn’t looked healthy in camp but if one of these teams picks him up, he could be worth a late round flier.

• First Chad Johnson injuries his shoulder over the weekend. Then the Bengals re-sign the often troubled Chris Henry when they swore they were done with him. Perhaps Ocho Cinco’s shoulder is much worse than originally feared. Henry isn’t eligible to play until week 5 because of a suspension, but when healthy, he is just as dangerous as 85 and Housh.

• Have no fear; Steven Jackson ended his holdout with the Rams. Early word is that he won’t play in this weekend’s game, but he should still be ready by Opening Day. Depending on what the passing offense is like in St. Louis this year, Jackson could be anywhere from elite to mid-level when it comes to running backs.

• Darren McFadden may be the sexier name, but the #1 running back in Oakland is still Just Fargas. The former USC tailback is reportedly in no danger of losing that spot, although McFadden will see plenty of time on the field this year. What will be interesting to see is who gets the goal line carries early in the season.

• Peyton Manning participated in a walkthrough with the rest of his teammates on Wednesday. He’s not going to play this weekend, but Coach Tony Dungy didn’t rule out him playing in the Colts’ preseason ender.

• Browns WR Braylon Edwards is coming along after receiving stitches on his foot after cutting it. He probably won’t play in the last 2 Browns preseason games, but he should start week 1. This doesn’t look too serious and shouldn’t deter you from drafting the big time wide receiver early in your draft.

Stock Market Report

• Buy: Steve Slaton- After a 13 carry, 57 yard and 1td performance against the Saints on Saturday night, Slaton is scheduled to get first team carries on Friday night in Dallas. He’s had a great camp so far and with Ahman Green seriously hurting; his main competition is now Chris Brown. Although he may never be a fulltime back, Slaton for 15-17 carries a game could be enough to boost your fantasy team.

• Think about selling: Derek Anderson- Last year’s breakout star was just 4/10 for 20 yards before being knocked out of the game by Osi Umenyiora. It looks like DA may have suffered a concussion as well as a bruised right hand. Brady Quinn came on in relief and was great, throwing for 124 yards and a score. Obviously there is no QB controversy yet, but with Anderson looking like he will miss this week’s game, Quinn can make those whispers a little bit louder with a good performance against the Lions

• Helium Watch: Domenik Hixon- With the Giants main WR threats out with injury last night, Hixon decided to make a name for himself scoring 3 touchdowns in the first quarter. The first was an 11 yarder where he had to tip-toe the sideline and the second was a 24 yarder, this time having to tip-toe the end line. Just when you thought his day might have been done, he scampered 82 yards on a kickoff return after the Giants had forced a safety just moments before. Hixon’s playing time is all about injuries here, but if he can continue to keep up some kind of rapport with Eli Manning, he could go flying up the Giants depth chart

• Sell: Kevin Curtis- He had a real surprising season last year in Philly and was looking to repeat that success in year 2 with Donovan McNabb as his quarterback. Unfortunately, Curtis underwent sports hernia surgery and will miss 6-8 weeks recovering. He could still be a steal very late in drafts, but don’t count on him to do much of anything as these kinds of injuries/surgeries can be unpredictable.

Sleeper Watch

• Although he’s just had one catch in two preseason games, Buffalo Bills WR James Hardy is someone to keep an eye on. The former Indiana basketball player is an absolute monster in the red-zone. The 6-7 Hardy had 16 touchdowns last season for the Hoosiers and proved to not just be a possession receiver as 6 of those touchdowns went for 38 yards or more with one going for 79 early on in the year. He will pair up with speed-demon Lee Evans to try and form the Bills best duo since Moulds and Price. Although Hardy might not pile up the yardage as a rookie, he should see his fair share of looks in the red zone. And did I mention that his one reception on the preseason went for a 16 yard score?

• Detroit WR Calvin Johnson is poised for his second season to be a huge one. Last year as a rookie, he caught 48 passes for 756 yards and saw the endzone 4 times. He had also been dealing with a lower back injury since week 4. Being Roy Williams teammate is only going to help him too, as Roy will see more double teams. CJ looks great in preseason thus far, making a couple of highlight reel catches and averaging 22 yards per reception.