Studs

Darren McFadden, RB, OAK - Here is hoping that you didn’t keep DMC on your bench this week as he returned from injury to have an amazing 40+ point game for fantasy owners.  I saw a lot of questions about him on game day and shortly before, I told them all that if he plays he is healthy and should be started.  For the future, when someone takes a long time to come back from an injury it is typically because the team was waiting until he was 100%. Welcome back to the top 10 Darren.

Kenny Britt, WR, TEN - Holy crap was this game completely out of left field… Kerry Collins has never been able to find Kenny Britt in the past and a game of 225 yards and 3 TDs obviously is impossible to predict.  Hopefully, you weren’t like me and traded him away on Saturday night!  Be cautious here, Young will come back and Britt should fall back to under 100 yards a week.  It all depends on whether or not he can find the end zone to know if he can remain a WR 2 or flex play.

Roddy White, WR, ATL - What more can ya say about this guy that hasn’t already been said? Not much. He is truly a special player and has earned the right to be called the best receiver in fantasy football.  White currently leads the league in receptions, yardage and targets.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, BUF - As a Bills fan, I am still speechless that this guy has been able to make the Bills offensive weapons viable to fantasy owners.  There are still some serious issues for the Bills to sort out before they can start to win some games, but since Fitzpatrick has taken the reins of the Bills offense everyone but CJ Spiller has benefited and now there are two WRs on this team who should be owned in all leagues.

Michael Turner, RB, ATL – Turner’s success was quieted Sunday in the wake of how absurd of a performance Roddy White had.  But fantasy owners appreciated 121 yards and 2 scores no matter how many White got.  Turner will prove to be a top 5 guy by the end of the season if he is able to stay healthy.

Marques Colston, WR, NO – I am torn about which occurrance is more surprising… Colt McCoy beating Drew Brees or Marques Colston finding the end zone this year.  Ok clearly it is the McCoy victory but Colston is the only player on this Saints offense you can rely on for the next few weeks as a #2 WR.  Lets hope this offense rebounds before too long.

Duds

Wes Welker, WR, NE – After two straight disappointing weeks since Randy Moss was traded, Welker’s fantasy owners have to start asking questions.  It is looking like Wes is not going to benefit from from Moss’ departure like I had thought… Instead I believe he will hold his previous value as a #2 WR ranked somewhere between 15 and 20.  There is also an interesting buy-low opportunity here if you think he still has the opportunity to be a top 10 guy.

Donald Driver, WR, GB – Driver was shut down on Sunday night, 0 catches.  Now, he was not considered a top 10 guy in the past, because he never has a huge game… but his value has been consistency.  It won’t take many games with no catches before owners panic… but there shouldn’t be any just yet.  This should be treated as a fluke unless it happens again soon.

Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI - I am officially concerned now. Max Hall is not going to be capable of leading a consistently producing offense and Fitzgerald is out of the top 10 and it won’t take long before he falls out of the top 20 if there isn’t a nice game soon.

Jay Cutler, QB, CHI - Ok, so this week was statistically terrible, but you were robbed of 8 points on the goal line “fumble” that was never challenged.  If you haven’t seen it watch the highlights on the NFL.com game center and you will see it… clearly a rushing TD. Even if that play was reversed… then Cutler would still have been a disappointment going against what has been a pretty bad defense.

Rashard Mendenhall, RB, PIT - Not much to be concerned with here, You are going to need to start this guy and he will do just fine.  Miami’s defense is very underrated and they did an excellent job of taking the run game away from the Steelers and it almost got away with a big win.

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Question 1: Asked by Emily

Should I drop D. Driver and pick up Britt??

Answer

No, even though Britt has been surprisingly consistent at finding the end zone this season, Driver is an integral part of one of the best passing offenses in the league.  The Packers are riddled with injuries and they will get better.  This week Britt’s TD streak is in question as we do not yet know if Vince Young will be playing.  You very well may have someone worth dropping for him on your team, but you can’t do it for Driver.

Question 2: Asked by Anonymous

I drafted Finley, then traded for Clark and now I am screwed! Which TEs that are likely to be on free agency do you like the most?

Answer

I feel your pain, but luckily for you there are a TON of serviceable replacements.  You will likely need to swap them a few times throughout the year, but I will list off some of the options you have to chose from.  They are in order of how much I like them: Tony Moeaki, Heath Miller, Marcedes Lewis, Benjamin Watson, John Carlson and if Chris Cooley sits, Fred Davis ought to be a great play this week.

Question 3: Asked by @benstori

BenJarvus Green-Ellis or Brandon Jacobs as a flex play this week? #fantasyfootball

Answer

I am pretty well known for disliking Brandon Jacobs. I don’t tend to have any nice things to say about him, most adjectives including fat, slow, worthless, etc. When I read this and didn’t know my answer immediately… I surprised myself.  Once I thought about it, I did end up realizing that Jacobs is still fat, slow and worthless so I have to say go with the law firm this week.  Despite how unpredictable his value is sure to be all year long, he is going to be the back that the Patriots trust on the red zone.  His membership in the committee backfield is always something to be concerned with, but he is more than just a goal line back.  Jacobs is able to be dropped in a standard ten-team league and has no big games left in the tank.

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Love

Ray Rice, RB, BAL – It is almost inevitable that the running back that has to face the Bills each week will be on this list.  It didn’t pay off for MJD owners, but you can’t ignore the numbers. The Bills give up over 20 points a game to opposing RBs and are allowing an AVERAGE of 182 rushing yards per game.

Frank Gore, RB, SF – The 9ers, under Mike Singletary, are a run-first team and despite their struggles this is not going to change.  With their new offensive coordinator, they are striving for more balance but they are still running to set up the pass… not the other way around.  With the Panthers giving up 134 yards per game to the run, Gore is sure to at least tally a hundred yards.

Dwayne Bowe, WR, KC – The Jaguars pass defense is just about as bad as the Bills run defense. The corner backs of the Jaguars have not been able to stop opposing WRs all season and after his best game in years, you may as well use him in the best match-up possible.

Matt Forte, RB, CHI – The Redskins have the worst overall defense in the NFL.  They allow over 100 yards per game rushing and just under 300 yards passing.  This suits Forte and the Bears offense perfectly, The Skins have not been able to generate much of a pass rush and with Forte being an integral part of the passing game and running game… as scary as this sounds Forte could have his best game of the season this week. (but, given he has two 30 point games so far this season I am not making that prediction… just saying it is possible)

Ryan Mathews, RB, SD – As the injuries stack up for the struggling Chargers offense, the likelihood that they lean on Mathews over the next couple weeks increases.  The Patriots defense has been terrible this season and if Gates and Floyd are out, expect a lot of carries for Mathews.

Josh Freeman, QB, TB – The Buccaneers defense has been solid against the pass, but has struggled with the run.  This will be a game of two franchises struggling to return to playoff form and the Buccaneers have been far more consistent and successful thus far.  After seeing the Rams completely collapse to the Lions two weeks ago I am expecting big games from both Freeman and Mike Williams this week.  What has really turned me into a Freeman believer is his ability to close out games in the 4th quarter.

Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI – Max Hall is definitely not the reason that Fitz is on this list, but the Seahawks pass defense is.  Seattle allows 290 yards per game through the air and while that wont happen, I would say it is likely that the best receiver in football is able to beat a bad defense deep at least once.

Marques Colston, WR, NO – I understand your frustration about him having yet to score a receiving TD, but I am seeing flashbacks of Anquan Boldin scoring three times in one game against this secondary.  Colston may not have reached double digit points yet this year, but this is the week that changes.

Todd Heap, TE, BAL – Believe it or not there are two things that the Bills suck at.  First is defending the run… but after that its defending opposing Tight Ends.  They are the only team to give up 5 TDs to the TE position and Heap will match up well against the Bills linebackers and secondary.

49ers, D/ST, SF – The Panthers offense has been inept all season.  DeAngelo Williams has been their only bright spot and with zero consistency at the QB position the 9ers defense should have little trouble containing them.  So far this season the Panthers offense has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing defenses (averaging 13 per game).

Hate

Fred Jackson, RB, BUF – He ran very well in his first game after the Marshawn Lynch trade, but going up against the Ravens is not where you want to start someone on this struggling Bills offense.  I expect a very lopsided game this week, even with the Bills having an extra week to prepare.

Ricky Williams, RB, MIA – Apply this to Ronnie Brown too.  The only person on the Dolphins worth starting against the Steelers is Brandon Marshall.

LeSean McCoy, RB, PHI – The Titans defense has been quietly great this season and especially against the run.  The Eagles also have some injury concerns on the offensive line so given the pass rush of the Titans I think the Eagles lose the game before their bye week.  With a bad match up and being on an almost pass-only offense, McCoy’s only chance at a big day will come through the air.  With his high level of play so far this season you still need to start him, but lower expectations.

Kenny Britt, WR, TEN – With all the talk about the Eagles being about the Quarterback position, it has largely gone unnoticed how effective their pass defense has been.  The Eagles have only allowed an average of 15 fantasy points per week to all WRs on the opposing offenses.  Since we can’t assume that Britt catches every pass in this game, its is extremely unlikely he is able to have a good week.

Michael Crabtree, WR, SF – I think he will be able to maintain value for fantasy owners, but this is not the best week to use him.  The Panthers are 5th in the NFL in pass defense and it is largely due to the ease in which people are able to run on them.  Knowing this makes it all the more likely that Frank Gore has a huge game and Crabtree sees his lowest targets in 3 weeks.

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Question 1: Asked by @LSUGelpi

What do you think about Roy Williams? Think he’ll continue to put up numbers like last week? I am debating between him and Hines Ward.

Answer

I think Roy has found himself a very nice spot in this Cowboys offense that might keep him on the team past this season.  He is not the dynamic play maker that they went out and signed a few years back, but finally he is showing that he can be a decent receiver.  He has earned a spot on someones roster in every league, but the Steelers receivers have been dying to get their starting QB back and with the Browns coming to town you have to go with Ward here.

Question 2: Asked by joeyb4228

Play Hillis or Britt?

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Love

Philip Rivers, QB, SD - Rivers did everything in his power to continue the Chargers dominance over the Raiders last week.  He has turned Malcom Floyd into a serious receiving threat and this week he gets to play the team that allowed the Lions to score over 40 points.

Joe Flacco, QB, BAL - Flacco had a tough start to the year, with some very difficult defenses.  Looking at the Ravens schedule now, they only have one bad match up for the rest of the year… the Steelers in week 13.

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, PIT - Usually I would be wary of a guy coming into his first game of the season in Week 6… but he has been practicing for 2 weeks and has one of the easiest match ups you could ask for.

Michael Turner, RB, ATL – The Philadelphia Eagles are allowing an average of 19 points per game to opposing running backs.  Turner has been consistent, productive and gets over 90% of the workload in the Falcons rushing offense, so 100 yards and a score seems automatic.

Matt Forte, RB, CHI – So far this season, RBs have not been too productive against the Seahawks because of how bad their secondary is.  The Seahawks are currently ranked 31st in the league against the pass and are allowing just over 300 yards per game and with Cutler expected back, we should see Forte having better receiving numbers than rushing again.

Mike Wallace, WR, PIT - The Steelers receivers have been waiting patiently for big-time play maker QB to get back in the lineup.  Now that he is here, how can you not like the home run threat that was even able to hook up for two scores with Charlie Batch.

Kenny Britt, WR, TEN – Britt and the Titans passing offense looked great last week against the Cowboys in a big win for them and their playoff hopes.  The Jaguars have allowed an average of 31 fantasy points per week to the opposing WRs.  Britt seems to be a shoe-in to get open deep a lot in this game.

Hakeem Nicks, WR, NYG - Nicks was a very fashionable sleeper this year and if you bought in, it paid off.  He quickly rose to the level of a WR1 and will stay a top 10 receiver unless he has a Revis-like match up.

Anquan Boldin, WR, BAL - The corner back situation in New England is pretty abysmal.  The Ravens offense is starting to click again and with a slew of great match-ups coming up, Boldin will have a monster 2nd half of the season.

Malcom Floyd, WR, SD - It would probably be pretty hard to talk you out of starting Floyd after last week and given they face the Rams this week.  You can’t expect 200 yards again, but 100 seems pretty reasonable to expect.

Tony Moeaki, TE, KC – This guy has made great catches consistently so far this year and is developing very nicely with Matt Cassel in the Chiefs offense.  Playing against the Texans can make your passing offense seem a lot better.  Look for Moeaki AND Dwayne Bowe to have big games this week.

Steelers, D/ST, PIT – The best defense in the league so far this year goes against a rookie QB that fell pretty far down in last years draft, Colt McCoy. This poor kid does not have a chance at being successful in this contest and the Steelers are a lock to dominate in every phase of the game.

Hate

Kyle Orton, QB, DEN – If you are starting him over whoever you drafted as your starting QB then you are expecting 300 yards and 3 scores, because that is what he has done thus far.  The Jets, with Revis active are one of the best two Defenses in the NFL.  If you still have that original starter on your team… use him.

Peyton Hillis, RB, CLE – He is banged up and going against the Steelers defense this week.  With Colt McCoy at QB, he should see plenty of carries but not so many yards or TDs are likely!

Roy Williams, WR, DAL – The Cowboys are in for a dog fight this week against a Vikings team that is also 1-3 and attempting to cling to Super Bowl aspirations from the preseason.

Matt Cassel, QB, KC – I don’t care how good the match up is, don’t do it.  He has not been able to put together any sort of consistency for fantasy owners that haven’t bailed out.  He just barely cracked my top 20 against a team allowing an average of almost 330 yards per game.

Willis McGahee, RB, BAL – The fact that Ray Rice got 2 goal line carries has me concerned for McGahee.  Stay away even if you’re having bye-week concerns if you can afford to.

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Pickups

Danny Amendola, WR, STL - Mark Clayton has said that he believes his injury is season-ending.  Whether or not this is true, he will miss significant time and lose his rhythm in the offense and with Sam Bradford.  Amendola hauled in 12 catches for 95 yards on 19 targets in week 5, combine that with amazing catches like the one below from Week 4 and you have Sam Bradford’s new favorite target.

Michael Crabtree, WR, SF - The new Offensive Coordinator of the 49ers has done a good job thus far getting the ball in the direction of Michael Crabtree.  Last week was the best game of his young career, catching 9 balls for 105 yards and a score. If you own Crabtree you may want to wait a week before you start him… but if you have some bye-week concerns or injuries then go ahead and start him.

Roy Williams, WR, DAL – He isn’t getting his job back, but he does have Dez Bryant hovering just above my Dump List at the moment.  His emergence has provided the balance in the passing game that we thought Bryant would.  Opposing defenses can’t double cover both guys and still contain Felix Jones who had a big game in the Cowboys tough Week 5 loss.

Pierre Garcon, WR, IND – No one expected there to be only one TD in this game and that it would go to Mike Hart.  Peyton Manning had a pretty bad game by his standards with below a 60% completion percentage, but Garcon was on the field for most of the 2 WR sets and led the team with 14 targets. The Colts are banged up and seeing Manning look to Garcon that much definitely means he deserves a spot on someone’s roster in every league.

Kenny Britt, WR, TEN – A general rule of thumb recently is “don’t start your Titans receivers” is still in effect… but the Cowboys don’t have a terrible secondary and Vince Young made them look pretty silly. Britt is a home-run threat and if you are in serious trouble at the WR position, he could have a couple of huge games in good match-ups this season.

Buccaneers, D/ST, TB – In week 8 they are at Arizona, at home against the Panthers in Week 10, and facing the Redskins, Lions and Seahawks in Weeks 14-16 for your playoffs.  If you are struggling with your defense, snatch these guys up after their second 14 point game of the season.  The Buccaneers are the real deal.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, BUF – What is this? Consistent play from a QB in Buffalo? REALLY? Over 200 yards, 3 TDs and no INTs for Fitz this week make him a surprisingly valuable backup QB.  I know had I went with him over Sam Bradford this past week, I would have won my match-up.  I know it feels dirty to pickup a Bills QB… but as long as you don’t need one in Week 6 Fitz needs to be seriously considered.

Felix Jones, RB, DAL – When I was on @ThaSPORTSKRIB last Thursday, we all joked about how it is an annual tradition that the Cowboys “want to give Felix Jones more touches”.  While I don’t blame us for taking it with a grain of salt… looking back we should have upgraded him a bit more than we did.  It appears to finally be something they are going to DO rather than TALK ABOUT.

Marcedes Lewis, TE, JAC – It seems that every week a TE makes this list… and that speaks to the depth of the position that I have been talking about all season.  If you need someone this week, look no further after the Titans allowed Jason Witten’s best game of the year.

Steve Johnson, WR, BUF – You will need to be in a deep format, or major injury/bye week concerns… but since that sure does happen Steve Johnson has 4 TDs in the past 3 games.  Too bad he is on the Bye in week 6, but keep an eye on this surprisingly productive receiver from a bad offense.

Dump List

Ladell Betts, RB, NO - Ivory and Betts split carries evenly this week, but Betts will lose almost ALL of his carries when Thomas returns.  Ivory is a much better pass catcher and third down back that Ladell is despite catching 5 passes this past week.  The fumble he had also makes it more likely that the Saints look to Thomas to handle the goal line duties as well.

Mark Clayton, WR, STL - Usually I don’t put injuries in this list… but not everyone closely watches the Rams and Lions so they may not be aware of his injury yet.  Get rid of him.

Lance Moore, WR, NO – Given the recent struggles of the Saints offense, I am staying far away from everyone but Brees, Thomas and Colston.  Moore did nothing in Week 5 and proves to be too inconsistent to ever be comfortable with him in your lineup.

Kevin Walter, WR, HOU – Andre Johnson WILL get his targets and catches.  He is too difficult to cover anywhere on the field.  Jacoby Jones was always the guy that soaked up too many targets for Walter to be valuable to fantasy owners.  Jones was out this week and Walter did terribly.  He wasn’t alone as a disappointment on the Texans, but I couldn’t start Walter if I owned him so why keep him?

Kenneth Darby, RB, STL - I still got some Darby questions this week.  Steven Jackson is the reason that Steven Jackson is so productive.  It has NOTHING to do with the offensive line, or the QB.  He has the ability to overcome any obstacles his own team can throw at him.  Darby is not that guy and even remotely considering him with a healthy Jackson is a terrible idea.  He isn’t even a valuable handcuff… go get Javon Ringer or something.

Jason Snelling, RB, ATL – A terrible game against the Browns brings Snelling out of fantasy relevance almost as quickly as he emerged.  The Falcons don’t use him unless they have to and unless you want him as a handcuff to Turner he needs to go!

Legedu Naanee, WR, SD – If you were wondering why you saw that much of Buster Davis… Naanee left early with a hamstring injury.  He was on the bubble before this game and getting hurt pushes him to the Dump List.  You can do better than him.

Cadillac Williams, RB, TB - The RB situation in TB is a mess.  A successful mess.  They will ride the hot hand until someone proves that they deserve feature carries.  No need to own any TB RB so drop Blount if you picked him up last week too.

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This year is unique in Fantasy Football, the Wide Receivers are in a position of importance.  In the Running back article I talked about how the use of RBs has changed in the NFL.  This change has caused different statistical outcomes for the wide receivers as well.  With offenses like the Colts and Saints emerging throughout the league, a premium wide out is essential.  The increased reliance on the passing game has lead to more receptions, yards and scores from wide receivers.  Historically consistency was a problem at this position and it forced us to put our emphasis on RBs during our drafts, but this year is a different story.  You can see my top 50 WR’s here.

The Top 5

If you told me last year that Larry Fitzgerald would not be a top 5 WR on my rankings in 2010 I would have probably laughed inappropriately at you, but here we are going into week 4 of the preseason and we aren’t sure who the starting QB will be for week 1.  Andre Johnson is EVERYONE’S number one WR this year, and deservedly so… he is a shoe-in for 1400 yards and 10 TDs.  Last Year AJ lead the league in targets and yardage.  Many people are predicting the beginning of the end for Reggie Wayne, but I am not one of them.  He looked very sharp in the preseason and last I checked he was still the guy Manning looks for when he needs a big play.  You always run the risk of not having him in your Super Bowl since the Colts love to bench starters at the end of the year, but on Draft day… lets focus on getting to that game! Last year Miles Austin was the third best receiver in fantasy football, which is even more impressive when you consider he didn’t start for the Cowboys until Week 5 when he had a monster breakout game against the Chiefs.  With a full season and a better receiving corp to draw the double coverage away from him, Austin should be a special player again this year.  He is not higher than 4th because of the offensive line issues the Cowboys have to figure out.  Once you are facing the decision of whether or not to draft a slightly questionable running back, consider one of these consistent stud receivers.

The Second Tier

My 2nd tier of  wide-outs covers ranks 6-13 and starts to include people that will lack in consistency.  At the top of this group is Calvin Johnson, a Detroit Lion.  That is a big enough question as it is, but this guy is a freak of an athlete and is the only one in this group capable of scoring more points than Andre Johnson.  We have seen flashes of brilliance with Calvin, but mediocre-at-best quarterback play has been his limiting factor.  Matthew Stafford showed us his leadership abilities and toughness last year that compliments his throwing ability quite nicely.  If Detroit can continue to develop Stafford and the rest of the team, Megatron could have a career year.  Brandon Marshall has been too widely praised by fantasy owners this year, I think people confuse him for a home run threat… and that is not what he will be.  Marshall will see his fair share of scores, don’t get me wrong… but he is much more of the Wes Welker type than that of Randy Moss.  You should feel much more comfortable reaching for Marshall in a PPR format.  Larry Fitzgerald terrifies me this season, Leinart is being shopped around on the trade market, he took a pretty nasty shot on a crossing route early in the preseason and has yet to come back and they lost some significant talent on the defensive side of the ball.  The Cardinal’s offense will spend a lot less time on the field this year, and wont come close to the number of TDs they had last year.  Fitzgerald is a supreme talent but has no upside attached to him.  Best case scenario he finishes as the number 8 WR at the end of the season… exactly where he is ranked today.  DeSean Jackson will not produce what he did last year, but I am encouraged by his involvement in the intermediate passing game this preseason.  He is the key to the Eagles’ offensive success this year and they have to find ways to get him the ball.  Anquan Boldin can vastly exceed his ranking this year… if he stays healthy.  It has been a little while since we have seen Boldin play in 16 games, but if he can do it this year he will be a top 5 fantasy receiver. It probably won’t happen though.

Second, Third and Flex Receivers

So far this preseason I have seen this group (ranks 14-27) of guys FLY off the draft board in the 3rd and 4th rounds.  Wes Welker is back in full speed action during the preseason… he won’t be missing any time in the regular season.  If he recovered that quickly from his injury then it is fully healed and I do not anticipate any drop in production from this PPR gold mine.  With a full preseason under his belt, and a clear number one QB at the helm, we should be about to witness the start of a very good career.  We all remember that he held out to start last season and there was good reason he was able to do it.  He is incredibly talented.  Dwayne Bowe has gotten back into shape this season and with a much more balanced offensive attack he could have the best season of his career this year.  Pierre Garcon has done a great job cementing his number two role in Peyton Manning’s offense.  We saw Reggie Wayne excel in this role behind Marvin Harrison and the Colts have a knack for drafting talent.  Popular sleeper picks Hakeem Nicks, Jeremy Maclin and Mike Wallace round out this group all of whom have big play ability and an offense capable of utilizing their talents.  Wallace is ranked last of these three solely because of Big Ben’s suspension.

Spot Fillers and Sleepers

In the last half of the rankings (28 – 50) comes guys you will use to fill in for bad match ups and bye weeks. Vincent Jackson is an elite talent that needs to sign with a team by Saturday or else he will be ineligible for the first six weeks of the season.  Santonio Holmes is another guy that would be ranked much higher, but he will be missing the first four games for a suspension.  Malcom Floyd could be a huge bargain as he will be filling in for VJax while he holds out/is suspended.  Sidney Rice will miss at least 6 games and this brings up the value of teammate Bernard Berrian.  Kenny Britt and Vince Young appear to have some chemistry between them and Britt has huge upside this year, I could see him getting to 1,000 yards receiving.

Sleepers

Greg Jennings, Michael Crabtree, Pierre Garcon, Dwayne Bowe, Johnny Knox, Kenny Britt, James Jones, Jacoby Jones, Legedu Naanee and Mike Williams (TB)

Busts

Larry Fitzgerald, Chad Ochocinco, Hines Ward, Braylon Edwards and Steve Breaston

Recap

You definitely will need an elite WR this year.  Do not get left without one in my top two tiers you will have headaches.  I know it feels funny, but don’t be afraid to reach for a 2nd guy as well.

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Photo by Mark Humphrey / Associated Press

I still cannot decide what was more surprising last season, the Titans starting 0-6 or still coming close to making the playoffs despite that start.  Recently, the bar fight incident makes the QB situation a little shaky but barring any disciplinary action taken against Vince Young I expect the Titans to make a push for the playoffs in a wild card spot.  Being without Young for anywhere near a 4 game stretch would make this goal near impossible to attain as it is a tall order to begin with.

Top Fantasy Players

Chris Johnson – Not much you can say about this guy’s season last year, it was just that good.  CJ is the consensus number one pick in every league for this coming season and he has earned it.

Kenny Britt – Britt had some nice plays last year, but as there was a QB change midway through the season we still have not seen exactly how good this guy can be.  Britt is a sleeper this season that could make a splash similar to what Robert Meachem did last year.

Vince Young – he is a mobile QB and they are bad from a fantasy football perspective… But last year Young was a leader and had quite an impressive run that started the moment he was handed the ball. From a fantasy perspective he put up QB2 numbers every week and will be an adequate backup QB.

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San Diego Chargers vs Tennessee Titans

This really should be a VERY entertaining game for us to watch on Christmas.  I expect a high scoring affair so go ahead and bench these defenses for your playoff or super bowl match-up.  Rivers should do very well this weekend as well as Gates with Keith Bulluck out the middle will be much easier to attack.  Obviously Johnson is a must start as he is almost a shoe-in for a hundred yards on the ground and a score.  You may see a bit more receiving yards than normal here as like with Benson last week the Chargers are good at marginalizing their opponents rushing attack.  They can’t make CJ irrelevant as he is just as big a threat out of the backfield.  Britt is still your fantasy option at QB but Gage will vulture a few targets from him so town down expectations.

Baltimore Ravens vs Pittsburgh Steelers

Rushing yards are at a premium so tone down expectations on Ray Rice and Rashard Mendenhall.  Rice is a must start however because of his worth in the passing game but you shouldn’t expect a huge day.  Mendenhall would likely be sitting but other starts from this game are Derrick Mason, Ben Roethlisberger, Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward.  I like Holmes quite a bit, more than Ward this week as the Ravens are vulnerable to the deep threat and thats what he is so he has a huge upside.  Downgrade Heath Miller as the Ravens have the line backers to cover a TE in man coverage pretty well.

Denver Broncos vs Philadelphia Eagles

This game could have its fair share of fireworks as the Broncos are desperate to prove that last week was a fluke and the Eagles are one of the hottest teams in the league.  DeSean Jackson is an obvious must start as there really doesn’t appear to be any defense that is prepared for his speed.  They do have a good secondary and should do an okay job limiting him from too big of a game, but Celek should should benefit from all the cover three and quarters coverage that Jackson will force.  Stay away from Kyle Orton, and every Eagle running back you may have.

Jacksonville Jaguars vs New England Patriots

The Jaguars have to win to stay in the playoff hunt and the Patriots can clinch the division with a win so both teams have something to prove.  The normal cast of starters will still apply and you can expect a big day from the Patriots receivers as the Jags are pretty bad at corner back.  Downgrade Garrard some as he never looks quite as good away as he does at home, but I do expect Mike Sims-Walker to do just fine as the Patriots secondary is pretty weak itself.  Oh and Maurice Jones-Drew… rumor has it he’s pretty good so go ahead and start him too. =P

Have a Very Merry Christmas, I will have player rankings updated tonight or before the game Christmas Day!  Please forgive me if I don’t do a mailbag article though, I don’t see me nieces and nephew enough as it is!

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Cowboys at Saints – This is a match-up between a team struggling for a playoff birth and another team striving for a perfect season.  There is a lot of emotion involved in a game like this.  If the Cowboys lose to the perfect Saints their playoff hopes are all but gone, and many people with-in the organization will need to update resumes.  I actually think that this Cowboys offense is playing well and that despite everything that is stacked up against them, the Boys will find a way to win this one.  They are a desperate team that has struggled as of late, however good games from Romo and the receiving core could give the Saints their only loss of the year if they can force a couple turnovers on defense.  Upgrade Miles Austin, Tony Romo, Marques Colston and Reggie Bush as this should be a game of big plays.

Dolphins at Titans – This is a battle for the inside track to the wild-card seed in the playoffs.  The Titans need to win out, and the Dolphins still have the division within their grasp, though they need some help from the Patriots to over take them.  Both teams are fighting for their lives and this always leads to some exciting football.  Williams owners should curb your expectations for him… he is still as a RB2 or a great flex option but he wont be having a huge yardage game this week.  Davone Bess is the best fantasy option at receiver from the Dolphins but you’re digging deep if your going there anyways because there are no big play threats in that receiving core which was built for Pennington and can’t take advantage of Henne’s deep ball ability.  Kenny Britt should be fine as a flex or WR3 play in 12 team leagues (or more) assuming VY is active, and of course Chris Johnson is the best back in fantasy this season and there is no reason that should change this week.

49ers at Eagles – DeSean Jackson is set to go off this week against a 9ers secondary vulnerable to the big play.  They beat up on the Cardinals because they got so much pressure, they wont have as much luck against this offensive line.  Gore is a great play at RB as last week there was an excellent balance in the San Francisco offense which is the environment that Gore thrives in.  Maclin is going to be inactive for this week so Jason Avant is a great play at WR this week, and Michael Crabtree is also a great play.  As this offense matures so does Crabtree, excellent flex option this week in what could be a shoot out.

Bengals at Chargers – Two AFC studs meet this weekend in a potential playoff preview.  The Chargers don’t lose in December, and the Bengals have only been beaten twice this year (I know they have three losses, I just don’t count that fluke play against Denver as being “beaten”) and are coming off a loss and want the momentum back for going into the playoffs.  The Chargers are pretty decent at stopping the run but Benson gets so many carries that he overcomes bad match-ups and he remains a good start this week.  Temper expectations on players in this one, as there are good defenses on the field and big plays wont come easy.  Vincent Jackson should stay on track as an elite receiver.

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