Waiver Wire Tuesday - WWT Week 6

I recommended Tebow as my POW last week when nobody even whispered his name and now this week he's at the top of everyone's list. That's how you win fantasy championships and that's why you should be reading my column on a weekly basis. As the Guru mentioned I've been busy planning a wedding and this past Saturday was the big day. That's me and my pretty bride above, rockin out to "Sweet Child O' Mine"... we were pretty sauced up by this point in the evening. She is my POW. The Guru, for those who don't know, is actually my cousin and he was a part of my bridal party AND as his gift to me, he handed me my first loss of the season this weekend. I'm in 3 twelve team leagues and I am now 14-1 thanks to him. Some cousin... can't even let me stay undefeated till I go on my honeymoon. He claimed beating me was his "Superbowl" but that should never be the case in week 5. My hat's off to him nonetheless. He beat me fair and square. Being as busy as I was I didn't keep up with any of the games this week so it'll be tough treading for me to make recommendations but I'll give it a shot. One quick note, next week I'll be abroad on our honeymoon with no internet connection so a WWT post for Week 7 will be impossible. My apologies in advance.

Curtis Painter (QB - IND) - I had him on this list 2 weeks ago before he threw for an average of 280 yards and 2 td's. But he's still available in my leagues so maybe he's available in yours. Not only does he get an upgrade but the whole offense does. Don't drop guys like Dallas Clark and Austin Collie like I've seen some sites recommending. Now is the time to ADD those guys to trade requests at rock bottom prices (as throw-in's) because their owners are likely ready to "throw in the towel" on them.

Earnest Graham (RB - TB) - again, this dude doesn't get the respect he deserves. Blount could be down with a knee and even with him in the lineup Graham is a starter in PPR leagues. He will share the load for sure but he should be a viable starter. Guys you see touted on other sites like Jackie Battle are probably already owned in your league. I'm not here to list names of players that are unavailable to you. I'm trying to dig a little deeper than that.

Greg Little (WR - CLE) - I drafted this guy in a keeper league and had to drop him to make room for injuries and byes. But I'm telling you it's time to add this guy to your roster. Colt McCoy won't light up the scoreboard but Little is a talent that could put up some solid numbers with an efficient QB like Colt. Plus, he's already had his bye so grab him now and don't look back. He is my (POW) Pickup-Of-the-Week.

Jake Ballard (TE - NYG)- Giant tight ends have always been useful in fantasy. Ballard is no different. The Giant offense rises and falls with the up and down play of QB Eli Manning. So he'll have some weeks where he disappoints. If you're looking for a bye week filler he's not a bad gamble though.

POW by week (no reason for waivers suggestions for Week 1 as you just drafted your team)

W2 - Nick Novack

W3 - Antonio Brown

W4 - Stevan Ridley

W5 - Tim Tebow

W6 - Greg Little

Colts to sign Orlovsky, Painter back to working on his hair.

Kerry Collins was a terrible signing, Orlovsky may be a little better..  Do you think the Colts skipped on David Garrard because of money?  I hope not.  Do you think the Colts are throwing away the year to get Andrew Luck and groom him like the Packers did with Aaron Rodgers?  Crazier things have happened.

I don't care what the Scholar says, This guy is a clown:

WWT pickups for week 4

Curtis Painter QB: COLTS – You may be tempted to wait another week on waivers but Jim Irsay admitted it’s unlikely Manning will play this year. Silverback Collins was a waste of a signing so I think Painter is the guy for the majority of the season. With this supporting cast, his upside is huge. If you have the space and are thin at QB he’s worth a stash on your bench. It’s going to take some time for the Colts to learn to play without Peyton as he was a pseudo head coach but I think the team is rounding into shape. If they can hang with the Steelers they have a shot in any game. With 12 team leagues and everyone having at least 2 qb's and only 32 starters, owning any starting QB becomes a premium as the season gets a bit long in the tooth. Owning the QB in this offense could pay huge dividends. I’m not saying Painter will be a stud, but you don’t have to put a lot of scratch together to find out.

Stevan Ridley RB: PATRIOTS– I’ve owned this kid in a keeper league I’m in since draft day. And I already like what I see. Belicheat has inserted Ridley at key spots of the game the last two weeks. We’re not talking garbage time reps here. He’s basically garnered at least a 65/35 share of the RB reps and last week he led the team in rushing with 7 rushes for 44 yards and added one catch for 8 yards. If you missed it this kid lit it up in preseason and I am a firm believer that he becomes the lead back in this RBBC. Now the beauty of this kid’s skill set is he won’t be marginalized by Brady throwing it 50 times a game. He’s got great hands and can contribute mightily in the passing game. Woodhead and BJGE get downgrades this week and Ridley gets a HUGE upgrade. He’s my (POW) Pickup-Of-the-Week.

Antonio Brown WR: STEELERS – He was my POW last week but in case you missed it or you just ignored my advice I’m putting him on here again. He didn’t disappoint with a 4 for 75 performance. Back to back weeks putting up decent stats now… he was targeted a team high 8x by Roethlisberger this week. It’s only a matter of time before he BREAKS OUT and you want him on your team when that happens. I’m begging you, if he’s still available in your league, put a claim in. He’s going to be starting in your lineup sooner rather than later.

Jared Cook TE: TITANS– I was high on this kid in the preseason and he’s disappointed me and everyone else since. And it’s not because the passing game wasn’t clicking. Hasselbeck has been a great addition for the Titans. The loss of Britt for the season means someone has to pick up the slack. Nate Washington seems to have a great rapport with Tim but the remaining depth chart leaves something to be desired. Lavelle Hawkins, Damian Williams? C’mon… please. They’ll probably sign Justin Gage who’s a free agent and maybe Randy or TO’s agents will get a call. Either way the running game is struggling and the main benefactor of Britt’s untimely demise will be Jared Cook. Another repeat appearance on this list along with Brown means two things. If you picked him up, don’t drop him based on his weak performance the last three weeks (5 for 56 and zero td’s on the year). That’s on the order of what I will come to expect to be an average DAY for Cook going forward. Secondly, if you didn’t pick him up, he might not be high on your competitions waiver priority lists so you might be able to grab him as your second waiver addition of the week.

Hopefully you already own Brown based on my recommendation last week. This week it’s time to add Ridley first and foremost and then Cook if you can. Ridley is the priority add this week.

Colts are now Painted!

Although Big Ben Rothlessrapest squeezed out of that bathroom stall of a Sunday night game with a win, the steel city almost was left with the taste of Paint(er) chips in their mouth. Once I saw Kerry “Silverback” Collins go down, I knew exactly what would follow, due to previous performance. Curtis Painter single handily blew a 2nd half lead in week 16 of 2009 season, which allowed the Jets to make the playoffs and brought on their 1st of two AFC championship runs. "The Painter" (given the nickname for his weekday job) played his usual game, doing everything humanly possible to lose.

The Colts are fully feeling the wrath of not having an NFL caliber back up QB. Colts owner, Jim Irsey had this to say about Painter before tweeting that Peyton Manning may be back in the end of 2011, "Isn’t our current quarterback the guy that recently painted my house?" Yes Jim, he is!