Talking Points

Welcome to talking points, my new weekly column. The goal of this piece is to open up dialogue between myself and you, the reader. Every week I will touch on different points that are happening in the news whether it is locally here on Kaua‘i, nationally or internationally. I encourage any reader to email me with feedback or even topic ideas. Nothing is off limits and I look forward to hearing from you.

Start of KIF

• As most of us know the new KIF season is in full swing and under way. We saw the first football game of the season last Friday, where Kaua‘i took down Waimea. The second game of the season will take place tonight as the Red Raiders take on the Kapa‘a  Warriors.

It should be an interesting game as it really is a tale of two completely different styles. Kaua‘i with its pass friendly, air-it-out offense going against the hard-nosed, disciplined Kapa‘a Warriors. However the game turns out, it will definitely set the tone for the remainder of the season.

You have to believe that, if healthy, Kaua‘i would have more offensive prowess than Kapa‘a, however coming off of a huge KIF championship last year something tells me to not count out the Warriors just yet.

NFL opening week

• The NFL season kicked off on Wednesday night with the Dallas Cowboys rolling past the defending Super Bowl Champions New York Giants 24-17.

This weekend is full of great games with some of the highlights being, 49ers at Packers, Bengals at Ravens and Steelers at Broncos. These games could be playoff previews. It is way too early to make predictions on playoffs especially with parity in the NFL these days, but I will definitely be watching and expecting great football. I have the 49ers in a surprise win at Lambeau field, the Ravens taking down the Bengals at home and a not-so-great return for Peyton Manning as they get beat by the Steelers at Mile High.

Fantasy buy and sell

• If you are anything like me, you are obsessed with fantasy football, and even though there has only been one regular season game thus far, there is already a buy and sell list in the fantasy world.

BUY

Kevin Ogletree (Dallas Cowboys) – Ogletree had a huge game one and seemed to stay on the field a lot despite having Dez Bryant and Miles Austin healthy. He finished with 8 receptions, 114-yards and two touchdowns. Definitely an early season buy who can be found in most league’s waiver wire.

Brandon Lloyd (New England Patriots) – Lloyd always seemed to find a way to be fantasy relevant, even when Tim Tebow was throwing him the ball. Put Lloyd in New England with Tom Brady and the Patriot offense and I expect huge numbers from Lloyd this year. Buy now because his stock will only rise.

Robert Meachum (San Diego Chargers) – New Orleans Saints’ receivers can be some of the most frustrating things to deal with in fantasy football. When Meachum was in New Orleans he was no exception to this rule, but now he is in San Diego as one of Phillip Rivers’ main targets. You have to believe Meachum will thrive in the Chargers offense, I look for him to put up numbers similar to Vincent Jackson last year.

SELL

Vincent Jackson (Tampa Bay Bucs) – It’s not that Jackson will have bad year, but whenever a receiver changes teams and systems you never know what to expect. As for right now, Jackson is a questions mark.

Mike Wallace (Pittsburgh Steelers) – Generally when players hold out for extended period of time they don’t come back and perform well especially early in the season. Maurice Jones-Drew (Jacksonville Jaguars) also falls into this category.

Football Frenzy

• Week one of Football Frenzy is over and KONG’s Marc Valentin is in the lead with a 13-2 record. Congratulations to our week one community winner  Leroy Newman of Princeville who also had a 13-2 record.

• Rick Killeen, sports writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 237) or sports@thegardenisland.com. Follow Rick on Twitter @RickKilleen. ‘Talking Points’ appears every Friday.