*Game is being played in Toronto

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Studs

Calvin Johnson, WR, DET - I wonder if Megatron is happy to have his franchise QB back at the helm?  In his first game after being reunited with Matthew Stafford, Calvin makes the most of it, hauling in 9 catches of the 15 thrown his direction to total 101 yards and three scores.  Calvin should be able to validate your decision to draft him with ease in the 2nd half of the season as the Lions continue their crawl out of the shame of their 2-30 record from the ’08 and ’09 seasons.

David Garrard, QB, JAC - Well, this is why Garrard is so frustrating for fantasy owners.  5 total TDs this week in a dominating performance against the helpless Dallas Cowboys. I still couldn’t trust Garrard in a one QB league, but if you were in bye week hell this week, you were rewarded for digging deep and starting Garrard.  Stay away from Captain Inconsistent from here on out unless you have to start 2 QBs every week.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, NE – The law firm had a MONSTER second half Sunday to finish with 112 yards and 2 scores on just 17 carries.  This performance came out of left field given his committee situation and tough match up, but he has done a lot to ensure he will see a lion’s share of the carries in the Patriots backfield.

LaGarrette Blount, RB, TB – Blount, in the past two weeks has taken over the feature-back role in the Buccaneers’ offense and vaulted himself to a top 25 RB option for fantasy owners.  The success of the Buccs offense has centered around young talent like Freeman and Mike Williams.  I was not surprised to see this type of performance from Blount in that offense with the great match up, but it was far from a lock that he saw the same amount of carries.  After Sunday, these questions are no longer a concern and Blount should be used as a great flex option from here on out… or a RB 2 if you’re hurting!

Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI - When it looked like it couldn’t get any worse for Fitzgerald… it didn’t! Fitzgerald returned a little bit of value to fantasy owners who drafted him and hadn’t abandoned him to their bench.  Fitz caught two TD passes from two different QBs this week and totaled 72 yards.  We can’t expect to see scores every week from the NFL’s most talented receiver, but he should probably be started weekly still, whether you like it or not!

Brandon Lloyd, WR, DEN – After two straight quiet weeks, Lloyd hauled in 7 catches for 169 yards and a score Sunday in England.  He has been a HUGE value for the lucky owner in each league who grabbed him off waivers early in the year.  I do have concerns for Lloyd down the stretch as continuing to lose only speeds the emergence of Tebow as the Broncos starting QB… which turns every offensive player in Denver into one giant question mark.

Jamaal Charles, RB, KC - I still don’t know what Todd Haley and Charlie Weiss are thinking making Charles split carries with Thomas Jones.  Charles saw only 3 more carries than Jones did and has an extra ONE HUNDRED YARDS to show for it.  It’s great to have an adequate backup that can fill-in when your lead guy gets tired… but to force him to see half the carries at the expense of the success of your offense and team is just idiotic.  Charles had double the yards per carry that Jones did and had he run it 30 times instead of 22, there would not have even been an over time in this game.  Even with his current coaching staff, Jamaal Charles is a top 15 RB and a must-start every week.

Jason Witten, TE, DAL - With uncertainty at QB and one of the most talented Tight Ends in the NFL, we should see the re-emergence of Jason Witten as an elite fantasy TE.  Very often when a QB is struggling, they use the TE as a safety-valve because they are so difficult to cover in space, due to their large size.  That combined with how good Witten is at stretching the field and going deep over the middle should lead to him being Kitna’s new best friend.

Duds

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, PIT - The Saints defense looked a lot like their opponent usually does… dominant.  Ben was not able to stretch the ball down the field to his receivers who all could take a spot on this list. This won’t be the norm, but highlights why Big Ben is not an elite fantasy QB at this point in his career.

Chad Ochocinco, WR, CIN – The Bengals continue to deny their identity as a run-first offense and they continue to lose.  I don’t know why Marvin Lewis is the last person on the planet to realize that Carson Palmer is not the QB he once was and as long as they continue to go to the air twice as often as handing the ball off, they will continue to lose.  Chad’s owners might disagree with me, but if they would run as often as they did last year, he would be open much more often.

Zach Miller, TE, OAK – With his first terrible game of the season behind him, we still have to start this guy every-week.  I was big on him as a value pick in this year’s draft and he has not disappointed.   Look for him to remain the Raider’s leading receiver throughout the season and continue to be productive regardless of who starts at QB.

Felix Jones, RB, DAL – All I can say is you’re sure not starting ANY Dallas RBs until further notice.  What a mess.

Marshawn Lynch, RB, SEA – I am speechless, the matchup was right… but the whole Seahawk offense was silenced Sunday against the Raiders.  We can’t expect anything THIS bad again, but it puts a halt on the top 20 RB expectations I had for Lynch for the past couple weeks.

Mark Sanchez, QB, NYJ - The whole Jets offense struggles when Sanchez does and the Dom Capers blitzing scheme shut Sanchez down this week.  All we really learned from this game is that the Jets are indeed human and even with all the injuries, we still need to take the Packers seriously.

Randy Moss, WR, MIN – Moss did so bad this week that his head coach told the Vikings players that Moss was no longer a part of their team on Monday morning.  Now, no such move was officially made yet and we need to watch this unfold to know how his fantasy-value will be impacted.  However, I saw a lazy player not trying his hardest on Sunday… unless this serves as a humbling experience for Moss, his attitude will need to be monitored closely for the rest of the season.

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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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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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1. Roddy White
2. Reggie Wayne
3. Miles Austin
4. Calvin Johnson
5. Andre Johnson
6. Greg Jennings
7. Randy Moss
8. Hakeem Nicks
9. Anquan Boldin
10. Larry Fitzgerald
11. DeSean Jackson
12. Marques Colston
13. Donald Driver
14. Malcom Floyd
15. Chad Ochocinco
16. Santana Moss
17. Mark Clayton
18. Austin Collie
19. Steve Smith (NYG)
20. Jeremy Maclin
21. Eddie Royal
22. Dez Bryant
23. Percy Harvin
24. Dwayne Bowe
25. Pierre Garcon
26. Braylon Edwards
27. Johnny Knox
28. Santonio Holmes
29. Brandon Lloyd
30. Kevin Walter
31. Terrell Owens
32. Derrick Mason
33. Louis Murphy
34. Michael Crabtree
35. Lance Moore
36. Mike Williams (TB)
37. Kenny Britt
38. Mike Thomas
39. Legedu Naanee
40. Demaryius Thomas
41. Jacoby Jones
42. Jabar Gaffney
43. Roy Williams
44. Jason Avant
45. Lee Evans
46. Mario Manningham
47. Mike Sims-Walker
48. Nate Washington
49. Devin Hester
50. Steve Johnson

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Question 1: Asked by @DeepinURtonsils

@BigJim_SFL advice? Giving Boldin and s-jax for C Johnson. This is a very shallow league. My other WRs are Fitzgerald, Collie, Lloyd, & Percy

Answer

This is a pretty balanced trade, I would hope that you could get him to take Fitzgerald instead of Boldin, but as I said on Twitter… I can’t find a solid argument against buying low on Chris Johnson.  Every year people panic about their number 1 pick because they are mad he isn’t the number 1 producer in fantasy.  This almost never happens, so you draft the guy MOST LIKELY to top that list.  The same thing happened with AP last year because he didn’t have any huge games in the first half of the year… He still finished as the number 2 back in the NFL.  Make the trade even if you need to give up Boldin, who rarely lasts a full 16 games.

Question 2: Asked by Aaron K

Big Jim need some WR help.

Need to start a 3rd WR in a PPR league. Who do I start?
Holmes, Bowe, or Williams from TB?

Answer

Well you are in a tough spot… but I have to give the edge to Bowe here.  The concern I have with him is because of Cassel’s arm strength, not in his ability.  Bowe is still a nightmare to cover in the red zone and is in much better shape than at any other time in his career.  It will be tempting to start Holmes… but I would wait a week to see him get acclimated to his new team after missing the first month of the season.

Question 3: Asked by Computex13

Would you start Peyton Hillis or Jahvid Best?

Answer

Well I am just a sucker for a question that puts guys ranked next to each other in my rankings.  I have Best at 15 and Hillis at 16 and this is essentially a coin flip.  Most people think that because Best played last week with his turf toe he is back to 100%.  They called it a “grade two turf toe“, which is significant and causes limited motion, you can get all the gory details about the injury in that link.  While Hillis is also banged up, it is not serious and he will be active.  I think you have to expect Jerome Harrison to step in and take some of Hillis’ opportunities soon and because of that I would still play Best against the Rams.

Alright everyone, good luck this week in your match ups.  As always you can ask me your start/sit questions anytime on Twitter (see above for a link), as a comment on this post, or by email (just use the contact tab).

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1. Roddy White
2. Reggie Wayne
3. Miles Austin
4. Andre Johnson
5. Calvin Johnson
6. Hakeem Nicks
7. Greg Jennings
8. Randy Moss
9. Anquan Boldin
10. Larry Fitzgerald
11. DeSean Jackson
12. Marques Colston
13. Austin Collie
14. Donald Driver
15. Mark Clayton
16. Malcom Floyd
17. Chad Ochocinco
18. Santana Moss
19. Steve Smith (NYG)
20. Jeremy Maclin
21. Eddie Royal
22. Dez Bryant
23. Dwayne Bowe
24. Braylon Edwards
25. Johnny Knox
26. Percy Harvin
27. Santonio Holmes
28. Brandon Lloyd
29. Terrell Owens
30. Derrick Mason
31. Kevin Walter
32. Louis Murphy
33. Michael Crabtree
34. Lance Moore
35. Pierre Garcon
36. Mike Williams (TB)
37. Mike Thomas
38. Legedu Naanee
39. Mike Sims-Walker
40. Kenny Britt
41. Demaryius Thomas
42. Jacoby Jones
43. Jabar Gaffney
44. Roy Williams
45. Lee Evans
46. Nate Washington
47. Mario Manningham
48. Devin Hester
49. Robert Meachem
50. Steve Johnson

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1. Randy Moss
2. Brandon Marshall
3. Andre Johnson
4. Roddy White
5. Reggie Wayne
6. DeSean Jackson
7. Greg Jennings
8. Calvin Johnson
9. Larry Fitzgerald
10. Chad Ochocinco
11. Marques Colston
12. Santana Moss
13. Austin Collie
14. Jeremy Maclin
15. Steve Smith (CAR)
16. Hakeem Nicks
17. Anquan Boldin
18. Donald Driver
19. Malcom Floyd
20. Steve Smith (NYG)
21. Wes Welker
22. Louis Murphy
23. Johnny Knox
24. Mike Wallace
25. Mark Clayton
26. Mike Sims-Walker
27. Terrell Owens
28. Michael Crabtree
29. Eddie Royal
30. Legedu Naanee
31. Hines Ward
32. Demaryius Thomas
33. Derrick Mason
34. Pierre Garcon
35. Jacoby Jones
36. Braylon Edwards
37. Kenny Britt
38. Lance Moore
39. Devin Hester
40. Mario Manningham
41. Lee Evans
42. Kevin Walter
43. Mike Thomas
44. Nate Washington
45. Jabar Gaffney
46. Davone Bess
47. Mike Williams (SEA)
48. Josh Cribbs
49. Robert Meachem
50. Josh Morgan

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