Not Quite an Antelope – As almost everyone has heard already, Tom Brady is out for the season with a torn MCL and ACL. Harkening back to the Drew Bledsoe days, Brady went down more of a moose than a Giselle – I mean gazelle. The good news coming from this story is that when Brady returns, his knee should be stronger. The bad news is, he most likely will not return until next season, if not a couple of week in. Until then, Bill Belichick will be holding auditions for someone to play the part of Tom Brady.
First up will be Matt Cassell, the aspiring actor from the University of Southern California. Cassell's last starring role came in high school. While the Patriots obviously have some like for Cassell (they did draft him), it's highly unlikely that he will be the big time star they need to lead this cast.

Instead, look for the Pats to go out of their way to sign a QB from outside the system. There has been speculation that it could be Chris Simms, formerly of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Daunte Culpepper. Neither would seem like a big lift over what the Pats already have, but don't discount Culpepper so quickly. Don't forget who was tossing to Moss when he was putting up big numbers in Minnesota.

The Royal Treatment – With Brandon Marshall out Week 1 due to a league suspension, Denver QB Jay Cutler had to find a new target to look for. Instead of leaning on slot receiver Brandon Stokely, Cutler went to relatively unknown Eddie Royal. Royal proceeded to grab 9 balls for 146 yards and a TD. This all coming from a guy who was expected to barely make the team at the start of camp. Instead, Royal may push Darrell Jackson for playing time and could make the Denver air attack (not the ground) a powerhouse this season.

If You're Going to San Francisco– Please be sure to bring some extra bags for Alex Smith. With news that his 2008 season is all but over, Smith will most likely be remembered as that guy who picked high and burned out. Maybe Smith can come back and play decently for another team, but I highly doubt that at this point. Instead, expect Smith to end up backing someone up and slowly drifting into oblivion. The Niners could have done so much better than grabbing Smith, a spread offense specialist, but decided to take the flashy route and have suffered dearly for it. Now they will be forced to watch TJ O'Sullivan tossing picks to opponents as Bryant Johnson falls into his perpetually injured state.

Stump the Schaub - Seems like Chris Simms might not be the only Tampa QB that could be moving along. Local sources believe that head coach John Gruden and Jeff Garcia could be having trouble seeing eye to eye. Garcia has quietly come out and said that he does not agree with Gruden's decision to start Brian Griese. Yet still, Griese is penciled in as the probable starter and rumors are swirling that Garcia could be getting a plane ticket out soon. New England and Minnesota are both teams looking for possible replacement QB's and Garcia is a proven veteran that could help a possible playoff team  

Who is the AFC East Favre-rites now? – With Tom Brady out for the season the question has to be asked: Who will take down the AFC East? The answer most writers will have you believe is the Favre led New York Jets. While this is the easy pick and the bandwagon pick, the better choice would be the New England Patriots. Even with Cassell in, Bill Belichick will find a game plan that suits his team and leads them to the playoffs. Favre will find a way to win his share of games, but a suspect running game will leave them as a wild card team only. In New England, the balance that the Patriots have achieved will help ease the load on whoever is under center and the weapons around that QB will be enough to help them overcome their flaws.

Hurricane Mike – Like another Turner, Mike laid a beat down like Tina burnt the toast. Unfortunately for the Lions, they were on the receiving end. Turner ran for 220 yards and 2 TDs on the day en route to a 34-21 Lion taming. Turner seems to have stolen the spotlight from Jerious Norwood in what could be a very efficient backfield. Of course, this was against the Lions so the numbers must be taken with a grain of salt. Turner does have the opportunity to dominate this season and especially with someone like Jerious Norwood (the next Michael Turner anyone?) spelling him, defenses will be getting very tired, very quick.

Jake Gott is a writer for FantasyPlaymakers.com. An all around fan of sports, Jake follows the Cardinals of both St. Louis and Arizona as well as the Boston Celtics and the whole NHL. A proclaimed "fantasy nerd", he has hoisted many a belt above his head in league championship glory. To reach Jake, email him at pick_six@hotmail.com or by sending him a message on the FPM site under the name of TheSnake.