Ask the Experts

ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them:

Which surprising star should fantasy coaches be most thankful for?

SCOTT SACHS

How can you not love Steve Johnson? I know my sleepers, but this 7th rounder was in deep coma at the season's start. He has wowed Bills fans, plus all the fantasy owners alike who've picked him up and taken advantage of his 9 TD's in just over a half season. Johnson's production has come at the expense of fantasy tease Lee Evans, who has always had "all the tools", but has only shown glimpses in his career of any true fantasy value. Evans, Buffalo's clear No. 1 WR back in September, has just 4 scores this year. In fact, Johnson's 9 TDs in 10 weeks matches Evans' career high of 9 for an entire season.

Scott Sachs is “The Coach”, at Perfect Season Fantasy Football, offering live talk and advice from early August through the NFL playoffs. The Coach has 22 years experience in a 24-team league, 19 years in playoffs with multiple Championships, including the league’s only perfect season! The Coach has a knack for Sleeper & Rookie picks, too! Free content and subscriber options on the website: www.perfectseasonffb.com. Email questions or info requests to perfectseasonffbquestions@gmail.com.

LOUIS TRANQUILLI

Break off a big turkey leg and say THANKS for Brandon Lloyd of the Denver Broncos. Not only did you select him in the 12th round or later you probably thought of him much like a Turkey. Kind of ugly and certainly not something you would like to see on your Fantasy Table. Yet, as the Indian showed the way to settlers. Kyle Orton showed the way for owners of Brandon. Be thankful. I know I am where I have him....

Tranquilli is the founder and the primary "brains" (if you stretch it) of BFDFANTASYfootball.com. BFD is about delivering the information players want, not fluff, just opinions that matter to fantasy football players. Lou has worked with NFL players and gives a unique perspective because of it.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI

Peyton Hillis wasn't high on anyone's draft board in August but he's turned into a matchup-proof stud at the running back position. Hillis has at least one score in nine of his ten starts and he's useful as a runner and a receiver; add it all up and he's a Top 5 back in every scoring system I've looked at. I've got next to nothing invested with Hillis - just one share over my many teams - but I can't help but pull for him every Sunday.

Pianowski has been playing fantasy football for 15 years and writing about it for 12. He joined Yahoo! Sports in 2008 and has been blogging 24/7 on RotoArcade.com ever since.

MIKE NAZAREK

That's an easy one. RB Arian Foster has not only been the biggest surprise, but also the most consistent fantasy producer and the No. 1 STUD RB of the season. Even against the tough NY Jets run defense the guy scores twice for his fantasy owners! Thank you, thank you very much, Arian!

Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc. His company offers an online rookie draft kit, preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, fantasy auction & regular drafting programs, weekly in-season fantasy newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its web site. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is the one and only four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. For more info go to www.ffmastermind.com. Nazarek can be reached at miken@ffmastermind.com.

JEFFREY KAMYS

No doubt about it fantasy owners should be thankful for Michael Vick. No brainer, if you were lucky enough to grab Vick in week 2 or 3 off the waiver wire, he is delivering dividends way beyond expectation. A one man wrecking crew capable of winning your fantasy football league for you, these type of numbers haven't been scene since the days of Steve Young.

Kamys is president of Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports. His company, via the web, offers player news, injury reports, cheat sheets, projections, weekly matchups, statistics, and a customized team tracker. Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports also e-mails preseason newsletters and reports throughout the season. For more info visit www.docstats.com or send email to webmaster@docstats.com.

TIM HEANEY

If we're talking about surprising overachievers, Peyton Hillis is top turkey. A workhorse back you can grab off the waiver wire usually is the pumpkin pie of a championship fantasy season; he has been just the right mix of a power back and a pass catcher in a QB-weak offense to make him an automatic meal for most of the season ... enough Thanksgiving puns for you?

Since 1996, KFFL.com has been combining its award-winning news service with top-notch fantasy analysis. KFFL.com offers industry-leading services, including daily news, draft guides and in-season advice. Now 100 percent free, KFFL.com is your destination for fantasy baseball, football and NASCAR cheat sheets, tips, sleepers and much more. KFFL.com has won more than a dozen expert championships and was listed as "One of the 10 essential sports-related online destinations for fans, athletes and fantasy owners" by Time.com. KFFL.com has provided content to USA Today, Yahoo! Sports, FOXSports.com and many other quality organizations.

SAM HENDRICKS

Toss up between Brandon Lloyd and his 200 FPs (54 catches, 1056 receiving yards and 7 TDs) or Peyton Hillis (213 FPs) and his 1,125 combined yards, 40 catches and 10 TDs.

Sam Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at his website, www.ffguidebook.com, at all major bookstores, and at www.amazon.com. He is a 20-year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the World Championship of Fantasy Football (WCOFF), National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall (out of 228 competitors) in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC).

DAVID DOREY

Hands down – Peyton Hillis. You could argue for Aaron Foster but he had crept up to the second round by late August. Hillis was a blocking back in college, the third running back drafted from his college two years ago (behind Felix Jones and Darren McFadden that year) and almost was not drafted as the 7.20 pick. He had never gained more than 350 rushing yards in four years of college or two years in the NFL. He is heavier than almost any running back who has turned in top five numbers. He is the NFL version of the bumblebee – there is no scientific reason why he can fly but he does and he packs quite a wallop.

Dorey is the co-founder and lead NFL analyst for The Huddle and author of Fantasy Football: The Next Level. He has projected and predicted every NFL game and player performance since 1997 and has appeared in numerous magazines, newspapers, radio and television.

KEVIN PAYNE

I own him in zero places but Peyton Hillis has to be the biggest surprise in fantasy. If you want to see the definition of breaking tackles, go back and watch the game against the Ravens. He likely wasn't even drafted in the majority of leagues yet he's been a fantasy and real-life monster this season. You can look at a guy like Arian Foster but he was drafted in the 40-50 range, so it's not like he came out of nowhere, especially after the Ben Tate injury.

RotoWire.com is a fantasy sports news site that focuses on MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, auto racing (mostly NASCAR), golf, college football, college basketball and soccer. The web site features player news, draft kits, mock-draft software, in-season tools, feature stories and statistical data to help fantasy players in each sport. RotoWire hosts a three-hour daily radio show on Sirius-XM, XM 147, Sirius 211 11 AM - 2PM ET, has partnerships with Yahoo! Sports, ESPN, NFL.com and FoxSports, among others. To sign-up for a free-trial to RotoWire.com, go to RotoWire.com/trial..

ANDY RICHARDSON

I'd certainly like to vote for someone besides Peyton Hillis, since I dealt him away after Week 2 in one league, unwilling to believe in him. But for a guy as low on the depth chart as him -- I think he was listed as the backup fullback on Cleveland's initial depth chart -- to be such a reliable and productive starting running back this season, scoring almost every week, is just remarkable. Brandon Lloyd is another good option, but I'll go with Hillis.

Richardson has been a columnist and contributor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and web site for the past nine years. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual draft and auction leagues since their inception. He previews all the NFL games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays during the NFL season.

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