Question 1: Asked by @Steel_Thoughts

for 3rd place. Pick 2 to start (position doesn’t matter) S.Moss(@NYG), D.Thomas(NE), Mendenhall(@SF) or Spiller(MIA)?

Answer

I am starting Demaryius Thomas and Mendenhall in this situation.  I could see benching Mendenhall for Spiller but the Bills offense scares me at the moment and the only guy I trust is Stevie Johnson. Mendenhall has a tough match-up in front of him and he probably won’t make too much happen but all it takes is one big play on an outside run or a screen play and he’ll be fine for you.  Its a gut call on my part but Mendenhall is worth the risk here in my opinion.

Question 2: Asked by Connor

I need a TE for this week, preferably one that has a chance to get me more than three points. I currently own Heath Miller and have 2 options on free agency that stick out, Gresham and Celek.  Who has the best shot at a nice game this week?

Answer

I would go with Gresham here.  I think that regardless of match up he is the most ownable of the three and with St. Louis as an opponent this week he is likely to do just fine.  There is a concern that the receivers and backs will all be doing so well that they don’t need the TE but Gresham is Cinci’s best possession receiver at the moment and I don’t think they can afford to not use him.

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Patriots at Broncos

Don’t worry, I am not going to go on an on about how awesome Tebow is.  This is however the ultimate test of his abilities as a passer as well as the ultimate test for the Denver defense.  I watched my Bills win a string of close, come from behind games and I can assure you that the bubble has to burst some time. The Patriots have proven to be a beatable team this season because their secondary is the worst in the league and people have been able to keep pace with their offense.  It is really going to take a hell of a performance from the Bronco defense to contain both Welker and Gronkowski throughout the game and I think we would be foolish to expect the Broncos to be able to put up over 30 points.  Either way I think Tebow is in for one of his best statistical performances of the season and he is a great start for fantasy owners this week.  As for your Patriot players, production on the overall might be a little below the normal but you shouldn’t be too scared to play your guys anyways where you normally would.  Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker are both viable flex plays this week, as for the first time there should be enough targets to go around.  I’m not about to predict a Tebow victory here but I do think it will be a relatively close game. I would guess in the area of 35 to 28.

Steelers at 49ers

The 49ers are on a bit of a slump at the moment after a rough loss to the Cardinals last week. They have a tough test this week to try and put this behind them with Pittsburgh coming to town.  In all honesty, I don’t see San Fran pulling this one off because they will need to get the job done in the running game and Pittsburgh has been much improved on defense in the second half of the season.  San Francisco should continue to shut down the running game but Pittsburgh is no longer a run-first team and Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown are going to be able to make a few big plays throughout the course of this game. Do everything in your power to leave Rashard Mendenhall on your bench and lower expectations from Frank Gore too although you likely have to play him regardless this week. Ben Roethlisberger is also worth a start but he is not at all likely to have a really big game against such a solid defense. I think Pittsburgh will likely win this by 2 scores unless Gore can break through the Steel Curtain and the 49ers defense holds the Steelers offense to under 20 points.

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Love

Beanie Wells, RB, ARI – Wells has had a very solid season in spite of some injuries.  When he has been in there, his production can not be denied. He did have a bad week in week 14 but everyone has against San Francisco this season and I am ready to look past it. Joe Haden will be locked up on Larry Fitzgerald, limiting his impact on the game significantly. Arizona is likely going to get another win this week on the back of Wells.

Jordy Nelson, WR, GB – With Greg Jennings on the sidelines for this coming game, Rodgers will be sure to look towards Jordy Nelson and all the rest of his receivers a bit more often.  The match-up is pretty good against the Chiefs and while we may see the starters on the bench by the 4th quarter again but I think all your Packers are good for a start this week regardless.

Tim Tebow, QB, DEN – There is no softer secondary in the NFL than New England’s.  Tebow is very unlikely to get a win this week but I do think he is very likely to have his highest fantasy point total of the season anyways.  Denver’s grind-it-out offense almost definitely can’t outscore the Pats and Brady but they will limit their production and keep it competitive.  This could be a 350+ yard passing day for the promising second year QB.

Cedric Benson, RB, CIN – The Bengals are on a two game losing streak and are looking to cling to their playoff hopes, which are fading fast, against the league’s worst rush defense. They should have little trouble righting the ship against the Rams, who have been inept all season and especially on defense. Benson is sure to play a big role in this game and is a must-start this week for your playoff match up.

Brandon Marshall, WR, MIA – I expect Miami to focus on the ground game early on and it should be effective against the Bills’ soft defense that has really missed Kyle Williams since he went on IR. This is going to open up the passing game and Marshall should have little trouble racking up stats, especially since Buffalo stopped forcing all the turnovers they were able to cause early in the year.

Felix Jones, RB, DAL – With DeMarco Murray on IR, the running game is now in the hands of Felix.  He handled himself well with a good match up last week and has another this week against the Buccaneers, who have allowed an average of 23.5 yards per game to opposing RBs.  You shouldn’t expect him to top 20 but it is possible and he will do just fine for a play as an RB2 this week.

Hate

Rashard Mendenhall, RB, PIT – He has had a disappointing season and plays the 9ers this week, who are by and far the best rush defense in the league. He fell outside my top 20 so don’t hesitate to put him on your bench if you have better options.

Plaxico Burress, WR, NYJ – I am down on both of the Jets’ receivers this week due to the depth of the Eagles’ secondary. With Vick back the Eagles offense is able to stay on the field more and limit opportunities against their defense too.

Jonathan Stewart, RB, CAR – Houston may be without some of their most important offensive weapons but their defense is still in-tact and playing great. The Panthers’ running backs have been thoroughly un-impressive this season and that is not likely to change with such a tough match up in front of them.  Lower expectations on all Panthers this week.

DeSean Jackson, WR, PHI – He rebounded slightly last week but it wasn’t a huge performance and he is on Revis Island this week.  He might draw some added coverage from Antonio Cromartie because Cromartie is slightly better defending vertical routes, which Jackson runs more often than not.

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Studs

Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, JAC – There is certainly no better place to start than the guy who ended my season and the season of many others.  MJD went absolutely crazy this week against the Buccaneers and totalled FOUR TDs on 136 all-purpose yards.  He was the highest scoring player from week 14 and if he can carry the Jaguars’ offense, he can carry your fantasy team too.

Tony Romo, QB, DAL – Yes, Dallas lost the game.  Tony Romo still had a big statistical performance for fantasy owners after starting RB DeMarco Murray went down early in the game.  Felix Jones filled in well against a soft rush defense but it was Romo’s 321 yards and 4 TDs that really kept Dallas in this game and it took some late heroics from Eli to take this game from Dallas.

Shonn Greene, RB, NYJ – Assuming you didn’t reach for him as your RB1 at draft time, you may have gotten by and into the playoffs with Green as your RB2. Good for you if you did because now that he is on fire late in the year, he is fast becoming one of the best second RBs that you could ask for. And you have to love a player that is at his best when it matters most for you.

Julio Jones, WR, ATL – These big-play guys can be frustrating but you have to start them when they have a soft match up.  And if you did this week with Jones, it paid off in a big way.  He only managed 3 catches but they totaled 104 yards and two scores.

Rob Gronkowski, TE, NE – The only thing crazier than how unbelievably good Gronkowski has been this season is how early he will be taken in fantasy drafts next year.  He has already set the single-season TD record which was previously 13 for tight ends.  His current tally is 15 and counting with 3 games remaining. I heard an interesting fact on ESPN’s Fantasy Focus Podcast this week; If you took away all the TDs from Gronkowski and let all the other players keep theirs, he would still be the 4th highest scoring TE in the NFL for fantasy.

Marques Colston, WR, NO – The Saints offense did not look like it has in recent weeks.  They don’t play near as well outside and the Titans secondary did a great job of bottling up the receivers of New Orleans until the 4th quarter.  When it mattered most, to win the game, Brees found Colston twice on scoring plays and managed to squeak out a win.

Duds

Calvin Johnson, WR, DET – The Lions passing game was working pretty well with a soft match up this week and yet Calvin Johnson only had 29 receiving yards and 11 rushing.  Three fantasy points is not enough from the top receiver in the NFL for fantasy football and it hurt a lot of people in a bad way. You have to keep starting him but I don’t expect teams to stop double covering him anytime soon.

Jermichael Finley, TE, GB – Zilch. Zippo. Nadda.  This is exactly how many points and catches Finley had this week.  Just one target too, that is what legitimately scares me. I expected more from Finley this year but his targets have been low and aren’t getting any better.  He is not a top 5 option like he was drafted as.

Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, NYG – Hey, Bradshaw… how about you show up to team meetings…  He was benched for the first half of the game and wasn’t that productive in the 2nd half. Brandon Jacobs ran well in his place but there wasn’t much warning about this and it destroyed a lot of match ups this week.

Greg Jennings, WR, GB – This isn’t the first time Jennings’ numbers have been low but it is the first time that the entire Packers passing game had a mediocre day.  That’s what happens when the running game gets the job done for a change. Don’t be too worried about it if you made it through but you could easily have been eliminated by Jennings’ poor performance.

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