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Time to break out the 10-foot pole

By Bob Harris, Special to SI.com

Given the nature of our hobby -- specifically the way we assemble unique talents from a variety of teams to create our own lineups -- it should come as no surprise that fantasy owners make individual statistics and circumstances a focal point of their weekly preparation.

You have to. But not at the risk of missing the bigger picture.

In my opinion, looking at situations rather than individuals is a great starting point for weekly preparations. With that thought in mind, I thought it might be useful to review some examples of situations you might want to avoid.

Or if you prefer, situations I wouldn't touch with your 10-foot pole.

Arizona's Offense

Emmitt Smith had a nice first week, but it's hard to expect him to put up those numbers on a regular basis. Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Josh McCown completed only three passes longer than 11 yards -- one a 37-yard flea-flicker to rookie Larry Fitzgerald on the first play of last Sunday's loss to the Rams. Another was a 24-yard completion to Nate Poole on the last play of the game. Neither led to points.

As the East Valley Tribune noted this week, the Cardinals completed four third-down passes short of the first-down marker.

Head coach Dennis Green told the Tribune that had more to do with how the passing routes were structured and mentioned that McCown did not have the protection to wait and look downfield.

But I think McCown described it better.

"Obviously, the inconsistency was there," the youngster said Monday. "But there were things they didn't stop us on. We killed ourselves."

Is anybody really surprised? If so, why?

This is a team still learning a new offense, led by a quarterback heading into Week 2 with just four NFL starts under his belt and without two key weapons -- Anquan Boldin and Marcel Shipp, who were lost to preseason injuries.

All of which means it's now a team relying on an aging Emmitt Smith and rookie receiver Larry Fitzgerald as primary weapons.

A 30-something running back and a rookie wideout?

You can do better.

Miami's Passing Attack

As The Associated Press suggested Wednesday, "A.J. Feeley is no Dan Marino. But he's also not Jay Fiedler, and with the Dolphins seeking a spark on offense, Feeley will make his first start for them Sunday night at Cincinnati."

"It's an exciting time," Feeley said. "It's everything you ask for as a player -- an opportunity to play. Hopefully I'll take it and run with it."

Fiedler, who took over when Marino retired following the 1999 season, lost the job when he threw two interceptions in the first half of Miami's season-opening loss Saturday against Tennessee.

The scary part?

Head coach Dave Wannstedt declined to say whether he expects the change to be permanent

Scarier still would be Wannstedt's reluctance to give either man a season-long endorsement is because he is planning to start each at different times this year.

The weekly matchup will decide the starting quarterback -- unless one player improves so much, he becomes the clear choice.

"I called Bill Parcells and he told me, 'You gotta do whatever you need to do every week in this league to win,' " Wannstedt told Sports Illustrated. "This will give us the best chance."

However, teammates have no interest in a quarterback rotation.

"Stick with somebody," tight end Randy McMichael said. "It's not college. You can't keep having the quarterback shuffle, because that's only going to destroy the offensive chemistry."

As if it already hasn't.

Tampa Bay's Offense

As the St. Petersburg Times put it, "The collection of over 30-year-olds who made up the Bucs offense had trouble recapturing their glory days," resulting in the worst offensive showing under Gruden."

Tampa Bay was held without a first down until the second quarter, rushed for 30 yards, its fewest since 24 in October of 2001 and committed two turnovers against a relentless array of Redskins blitzes.

Free-agent running back Charlie Garner, 32, (11 carries, 25 yards) was ineffective behind a rebuilt offensive line and Joey Galloway dropped a potential touchdown in the end zone. Worse yet, the veteran speedster was injured on that same play and will miss four to six games.

"It's just unfortunate. We're going to miss him," head coach Jon Gruden said.

The loss is especially damaging because the Bucs also are without last year's leading receiver, Keenan McCardell, who is holding out for a new contract after catching 84 passes for 1,174 yards and eight TDs last season.

The team is also missing Joe Jurevicius, recovering from back surgery after missing most of last season with a knee injury. Charles Lee, who got a chance to play last year when Keyshawn Johnson was sidelined by problems with Gruden, has been slowed by a sore hamstring and did not play in the opener.

Galloway, obtained in the trade that sent Johnson to Dallas during the offseason, is still considered one of the fastest players in the NFL and Gruden was counting on his addition to add another dimension to the offense.

And make no mistake about it: We're talking about a unit that could use another dimension.

For the first time, a team quarterbacked by Brad Johnson, who turned 36 on Monday, and coached by Gruden failed to score an offensive touchdown while being held to 169 net yards, the fewest in the Gruden era.

In fact, the Bucs' only touchdown came when cornerback Ronde Barber scooped up a botched handoff and returned the fumble 9 yards for a tying touchdown late in the third quarter.

"Is that any different from any other season?" Barber said when asked about covering for a lackluster offense. "We pride ourselves on being a defensive football team. Bring in all the free agents, all the coaches or whatever you want. This team has been built on defense."

Do I detect a note of frustration?

Sure I do. So do you. With good reason. Just ask McCardell, who stopped by the set of CBS' The NFL Today last Sunday to make sure we all know he's had enough.

"I'm prepared to write [the Bucs] a check," McCardell said. "That's how bad I want out of Tampa Bay."

Until this offense proves otherwise, I'm with him.

There you have it. As I noted above, these are only a few examples. There are others -- San Francisco and Baltimore's passing attacks come immediately to mind. Hopefully, some of yours will be different than be different than mine.

But that's OK, as long as you're looking at the big picture first.

Bob Harris is Editor and Webmaster of the TFL Report and Senior Editor for Fantasy Sports Publications.