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Love

Matthew Stafford, QB, DET – The Chiefs looked bad on both sides of the ball last week against Buffalo and they also have officially lost Eric Berry for the season.  I expect a  lot of big plays for the Lions this week and with a receiver like Calvin Johnson, it’s easy to be excited about the Lions passing game for week 2.

Steve Johnson, WR, BUF – The Bills offense opened a lot of eyes in Week 1 when they trounced a Chiefs team that looks to be far from what they were last year.  With the Raiders traveling across the continent to play at 1 pm on Sunday, I think the Bills are very likely to start the season at 2-0.  The Raiders defense IS underrated in my opinion, but Johnson has just been fantastic since early last season and seems to always find a way to be a factor on the scoreboard.

Cedric Benson, RB, CIN – With the Broncos as opponents in Week 2, I think you’ll be hard pressed to keep Benson out of your lineup after a pretty great week 1. The Broncos allowed a total of 27 fantasy points to the Raiders running backs last week and Benson is pretty much the entire Bengal rushing attack.

Jermichael Finley, TE, GB – The Panthers impressed in Week 1 against the Cardinals in a losing effort, but I think we can all agree that the Packers are going to have an easy road to victory in week 2 against the Panthers. They simply do not have good enough linebackers to contain Finley, who is a match up nightmare for opposing defenses.

Rex Grossman, QB, WAS – This is by no way saying you should sit Big Ben or Matt Schaub for Grossman, but if your in a 2 QB league, why not play the guy whose opponent just let Cam Newton throw for over 420 yards?  It is worth noting that Rex looked pretty good against the Giants, who have a much better defense than the Cardinals do.

Rashard Mendenhall, RB, PIT – Boy, the Steelers sure took one on the chin in week 1 and they look to rebound against Tavaris Jackson and the Seahawks in week 2.  I think the Steelers will alleviate a lot of concerns in this game and I expect a big day from all the play makers.  They will also try to re-establish their identity as a run-first team in this one and Mendenhall should have a very nice outting for his fantasy owners.

Calvin Johnson, WR, DET – There aren’t too many guys out there as consistent as Megatron.  He is such a dominating receiver in the red zone and as I said in the Stafford section, with no Eric Berry, I don’t see the Chiefs as able to contain Calvin Johnson that well at all.

Hate

Matt Ryan, QB, ATL – The Falcons struggle last week against the Bears and with the Eagles in week two, it is not an ideal time to bet on a rebound.  The Eagles secondary looks more like an all-star team’s secondary and unless Turner has a big game, the passing game is not likely to hold up well either.  I didn’t have Ryan rated as a #1 QB, so hopefully you have someone else you can play until the match up is a bit more favorable.

Chris Johnson, RB, TEN – He did so bad in week 1 that I still expect him to do better and you should be starting him anyways, but just don’t have high hopes for a big game.  If he gets to double digit points, he did his job.

Danny Woodhead, RB, NE – He saw a lot more snaps than BenJarvus Green-Ellis did in week 1, but that won’t remain the case all season.  The guy to be featured will depend largely on the match up and against San Diego I expect the Pats to want a more physical, punishing runner.  And Law Firm will be getting all the goal line work anyways.

Brandon Lloyd, WR, DEN – Lloyd had a good game and I think he will be ok this week, I just don’t have any faith in the Denver offense anymore and under John Fox, it is going to be about establishing the run.  Which will be harder to do with Moreno banged up.

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What a crazy start to the 2011 season. We saw proven, storied franchises collapse completely and we saw a rookie debut record from a class of QBs that no one was excited about. So lets get this week 1 recap started!

Studs

Tom Brady, QB, NE – Over 500 yards and 4 TDs. I’ll excuse the INT because he probably single-handedly won your week 1 match up if you had him.

Cam Newton, QB, CAR – Newton was not expected to be an immediate success in the NFL.  He came from an option-style offense after just one year and one NCAA championship. Many people, including myself, felt that he was not worth the number 1 overall draft pick.  24 completions on 37 attempts, 422 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT. That shut me up. This yardage total is a record for rookie’s in their debut, beating out Peyton Manning’s first ever rookie performance.

Ray Rice, RB, BAL – Wow. Are the Raven’s that good or are the Steelers that bad? Honestly, probably neither.  But Rice’s performance was outstanding considering how dominant the Steelers defense has been.  He was certainly helped by 7 turnovers increasing his number of chances, but I am interested to see just how big of a season Rice will have running behind Vonta Leach.

Steve Smith, WR, CAR – Smith definitely helped Cam look good Sunday as he faced off against Patrick Peterson and made him look foolish all day in coverage. After last season, in my Year in Review article, I discussed how if Carolina could land a decent QB then Smith would return to fantasy relevance. I am still not betting on Newton’s consistency, but Newton sure looks like he will be enough to make Smith into a startable option for fantasy owners.

Mike Tolbert, RB, SD – He may not have racked up too much yardage, but any fantasy owner loves to see a 3 TD performance and that’s what Tolbert did this week. He did appear to be hurt late in that game, but all reports have been great since the game and we can expect Tolbert to be at 100% for week 2.  His usage in the passing game and especially in the red zone makes Tolbert the clear guy to own of the Chargers running backs.  At least for now.

Matt Forte, RB, CHI – The Bears offense looks to be building off their success from last season and Forte is going to be a big part of that with his pass catching ability out of the backfield. I was surprised to see Khalil Bell get 10 carries in the win over the Falcons, but in a Mike Martz system, you want the guy that catches the ball so I am not concerned.  Especially not following 158 all-purpose yards and a TD.

Kenny Britt, WR, TEN – I love to talk about this guy, I don’t think people are giving him the credit he deserves.  He tallied 136 yards on 5 catches and scored twice in Week 1.  This is going to be a season to remember for Britt and it will be without an elite QB.  This guy has a really bright future and will be a big part of your season if you were lucky enough to draft him.

Darren McFadden, RB, OAK – 150 yards on 22 carries? I guess he isn’t a one-year wonder.  While the match-up wasn’t great, neither was anyone else on the Raiders.  He will remain an integral part of the game plan and he is a number 1 caliber back in my opinion.

Chad Henne, QB, MIA – People might not have noticed exactly how good Henne was in a losing effort on Monday night.  His opponent Brady overshadowed him pretty bad, but Henne finished as the 2nd highest point total among all QB’s in the NFL in week 1 and should not be on free agency if you have serious QB concerns.

Duds

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, PIT – Ben committed FIVE turnovers this week with three interceptions and two lost fumbles as the Steelers looked completely inept against division rival Baltimore Ravens.  A bad game doesn’t make me as nervous as the loss of right tackle Willie Colon for the season as the offensive line was weak already.  You need a good, servicable back up for Ben this year.

Vincent Jackson, WR, SD – Rivers ended up with a decent enough point total that he evades a spot on this list, but Rivers did not play that well in Week 1.  The Chargers are known to start slow and managed to claw their way to a win… but special teams hurt them again and Jackson was not a factor in the vertical passing game, which will need to change for the Chargers to be a Super Bowl contender as they hope to be.

Chris Johnson, RB, TEN – Holding out as long as he did really slowed the start of the season for CJ2k as he had just 24 yards rushing and 25 receiving. I thought he was supposed to be one of the top playmakers in the NFL? I guess he’ll have to earn that pay check next week.  If you own him, your starting him.

LeGarrette Blount, RB, TB – The Buccs have some work to do because despite how close the score looked at the end of the game, the Lions really controlled the game from start to finish and Blount was rendered ineffective by a need to pass to try and get back into the game.  Blount needs carries to get into a rhythm and wear down the defense so I am not too concerned, but we can expect at least a few more games like this by the end of the season.  He is still a solid RB2.

Dwayne Bowe, WR, KC – I kinda called this one, the Buffalo pass defense does not get enough credit and they really shut down the Chiefs in week 1.  I have concerns going forward for Bowe, but I had them before and he is no more than a low-end WR2 in my eyes.  He will drop further if KC can’t get their running game going either.

Matt Ryan, QB, ATL – The Falcons offense looked out-matched against the Bears D and Ryan was not a very effective passer in this game. I think the Falcons will get ti figured out and I am not overly concerned with Ryan going forward.

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Pickups

Cam Newton, QB, CAR – The though of drafting Newton was absurd to me a week ago, but after a rookie debut record 422 yards and two TDs, he MUST be owned.  I won’t pretend like I thought there was a chance that Newton would blow up at any point this season, but regardless of who your starting QB is, your backup spot is about upside. Newton has the potential to be a HUGE surprise as a top10 QB on the season and with bye weeks a bit away, feel free to drop your backup on the off-chance you get to trade Newton away for a starting WR or RB.

Randall Cobb, WR, GB – This rookie receiver for the Packers tied an NFL record for longest play with is 108 yard kick return for a TD in the kickoff game on Thursday night. I didn’t think of him as much of a sleeper before he demonstrated how dynamic of a playmaker he is due to the resigning of James Jones and the lack of a retirement announcement from Donald Driver.  We can be sure that the Packers will be looking for ways to get the ball in Cobb’s hands now and he is worth a spot on your bench to see how he develops over the next few weeks.

Scott Chandler, TE, BUF – I’ve gotten a few questions about Chandler already as a Buffalonian.  People have expected me to have inside info about this guy but honestly, I don’t have much.  He had, I believe, just one career reception before this 5 catch 63 yard performance in which he also caught two TD passes. The TE position is pretty wide open and since there are only 4 or 5 of them who I am comfortable starting on a week-to-week basis, I think Chandler is a risky pickup and start this week.  The reason im willing to do it after just one good game is because of the match-up against Oakland being decent.

Jacoby Jones, WR, HOU – Kevin Walter hurt his collar bone in week 1 and I believe he will miss some extended time early in this season.  With Jones at number two on the Texan’s depth chart, I think he is going to see enough targets that he will be worth a shot in deeper leagues and as an injury/bye week fill-in.

Cadillac Williams, RB, STL – If your draft didn’t pan out at the RB position, Williams may make a good fill-in next week as Steven Jackson appears to be unlikely to play in week 2 against Carolina. He has no value when Jackson is active though in my opinion, so don’t think of it as an long-term solution.

Robert Meachem, WR, NO – I don’t like Saints receivers for fantasy purposes. A lot of people think the Colston injury is going to open up room for either Meachem or Henderson, but the absence of Lance Moore is the most intriguing absence to me. Colston was best utilized as a goal line target and none of these receivers can fill that void in my opinion, so that work will go to Jimmy Graham. Meachem will benefit from increased targets in the short to intermediate passing game where both Colston and Moore were used.   I think when Moore is back, Meachem and Henderson are very probably not going to be at all reliable enough to start again.  Until then, don’t leave them on free agency for an opponent to use.

Fred Davis, TE, WAS – Rex Grossman impressed a lot of people this weekend.  He looked like an effective leader of the offense and led his team to a win against their division rival New York Giants. I don’t think Davis is as good a pick up as Chandler, but if you had Cooley and there isn’t much talent on waivers, I would probably grab Davis.

Dump List

Peyton Manning, QB, IND – This one is fairly obvious but I don’t believe in over reacting to a poor week 1 and dropping someone because of one bad or mediocre performance so I have to have SOMETHING for this list. If you don’t have an IR spot and aren’t in a keeper league, there is no reason to hold Manning any longer. He will not likely see the field this season unless the Colts are somehow still in the playoff hunt late.

Thomas Jones, RB, KC – Dexter McCluster seemed to be the secondary back in week 1 for the Chiefs as Jones only saw two carries throughout the game.  His age made him a late round pick in drafts and I’m convinced that it is now the Jamaal Charles show in KC.

James Jones, WR, GB – Jones was, I thought, no lower than 4th on the depth chart at receiver for the Packers.  This made him an ownable player to sit on your bench but with the emergence of Randall Cobb in week 1, I see no reason to hold Jones any longer.

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Early Games

Arian Foster, RB, HOU - Inactive

Austin Collie, WR, IND - Active

Steve Smith, WR, PHI - Active

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Question 1. Asked by @Dantvman

@BigJim_SFL with no manning, should i play d branch or d amendola over austin collie?

Answer

Without Peyton, I don’t trust Collie very much.  Manning made a lot of the Colts better players than they can be without him.  I’m not saying that Collie wont be a factor anymore, rather than I want to see him play some in this new offense before I risk starting him.  Amendola is third on the depth chart at receiver so this week he’ll be covered by either Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie or Asante Samuel… I’d just sit him down as I think the Rams are going to get crushed.  That leaves you with Branch, who is a fine play considering Tom Brady is still the QB in New England.

Question 2. Asked by @KifuTheGREAT

@BigJim_SFL I must decide to play Braylon Edwards or Mike Sims-Walker. Any suggestions. Thanks.

Answer

Sims-Walker is too risky against the stacked Eagles secondary and with Crabtree injured I think Edwards has a decent chance for a big game.  To me, the choice is pretty easy as Edwards is both the safer pick and he has higher upside.

Question 3. Asked by @MFarrell21

Who to start as my 3rd WR in a PPR league? Amendola or Harvin and why?

Answer

Amendola is third on the depth chart and likely to face off against Rodgers-Cromartie. I don’t like this match up.  Harvin does also have an unfavorable match up, but he has a more reliable QB and running game to take the pressure off the passing game.  Also, he is the only viable receiver for McNabb to throw to and I expect them to use him.

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