Fantasy Football Week 2: Start'Em/Sit'Em

Start Em

Mark Sanchez QB –There was one thing that was apparent to me after watching the Jets vs. the Cowboys on Sunday night; New York is going to let Sanchez air it out.  Sanchez threw the ball 44 times in week one and it won’t surprise to me to see the Jets to rely heavier on the passing game than in years past. With Santonio Holmes here for 16 games, with the wide receiver upgrades of Plaxico Burress and Derrick Mason, Sanchez could be steallar. The Jaguars have a laughable secondary that allowed the second highest QB Rating at 98.5 from a season ago. Look for Sanchez to have his best statistical game of the season on Sunday as the Jets blowout Jacksonville.

Fred Jackson RB – After watching the Bills trounce the Chiefs, Jackson is officially the lead back in Buffalo.  On 20 carries Jackson rushed for 112 yards, while being taken out in the 4^th quarter because the Bills benched their starters. Jackson is arguably the most underrated player in the entire NFL, and this includes fantasy football fans because of his lack of touchdown production. Every week Jackson puts up eight points and while that doesn’t seem like a lot, he’s a safer bet then Joseph Addai and Cedric Benson who are touchdown dependant. The Raiders defense did a solid job against the Broncos run game but let’s not forget they allowed 133.6YPG on the ground last year. Start the Coe College graduate with confidence as the Bills improve to 2-0 on Sunday.

Nate Burleson WR – Matthew Stafford is still healthy, therefore Burleson is a solid flex or third receiver play for Sunday’s game against the Chiefs. Burleson was solid in his season debut grabbing five balls for 60 yards as the Lions defeated the Buccaneers. With Calvin Johnson likely to see double teams, Burleson should see lots of single coverage vs. a depleted Kansas City secondary that lost Eric Berry for the year.

More Start/Sit after the jump:

Brandon Pettigrew TE – Sticking with the theme of Lions pass catchers, Pettigrew should have a field day vs. the Chiefs. Last week Scott Chandler scored two touchdowns after having one catch in his entire career before that matchup. The Bills do not use the tight end and last season the tight end position scored one touchdown total. While Pettigrew’s final numbers in 2010 weren’t groundbreaking he was the third highest targeted tight end last season. Pettigrew is a top 10 tight end for the season, and top six for this week.

New Orleans DEF /ST – Yes, in their last two games including the playoffs the Saints have given up 83 points. One of them was the biggest upset of all time and the other game was against the best offense in the NFL in the defending Super Bowl Champion Packers. The Saints are going to bring pressure all game to what might be the worst offensive line in the entire league. With the turnover friendly Jay Cutler under center this could be a big day for a Saints secondary that got burned a week ago. Look for the Saints in the dome to get back to their winning ways led by their defense.

Sit Em

Jay Cutler QB – Liking the Saints defense means that I am not a fan of Cutler in this matchup. I don’t trust Cutler’s offensive, meaning Greg Williams will be bringing to tons of blitz packages to disrupt Cutlers timing in the pocket.  New Orleans should have success getting to Cutler, but they should also do well in their matchups against Johnny Knox and Roy Williams. The Saints gave up 194YPG through the air which was the best in the NFC last season.

Shonn Greene RB – Until proven otherwise, I refuse to get on the bandwagon of Greene. Against an average Dallas run defense Greene put up 26 rushing yards on 10 carries as the Jets. After watching the Jaguars stop an elite running back in Chris Johnson, Greene owners should be concerned that the third year pro could repeat last year’s performance. BTW, LaDainian Tomlinson is still on the team and while Greene should get the majority of carries, but Tomlinson will be the red zone back just like last season. Until proven otherwise, I will be lower than most on Greene who is nothing more than a flex play this weekend.

Julio Jones WR – The rookie had a solid debut at Soldier Field ripping off five catches for 71 yards on Sunday. The Bears secondary is a little different then the Eagles secondary that bring three pro bowlers to the table. Not only am I not a huge fan of Jones in this game, but I don’t believe Roddy White is a top three receiver this week. The way to beat the Eagles is on the ground, so expect a heavy dose of Michael Turner on Sunday. Jones has a bright future, but Sunday evening you might want to go with Robert Meachem or Deion Branch in your flex spot.

Scott Chandler TE - Chandler was a hot pickup this week coming off a five catch 63 yard two touchdown game against Kansas City. As I previously mentioned the Chiefs are horrible against the tight end which opened up an opportunity for Chandler to succeed. While I am not low on Chandler, in the Bills passing game he’s the fifth option. The Bills having a solid number one in Steve Johnson and big target in David Nelson who will emerge as Buffalos number two as the season goes along. It’s not that Chandler won’t be good, but it’s hard to trust an unproven commodity this early.

New England DEF/ST – No one will question the Patriots offense, but I can’t get behind a defense that just gave up over 400 passing yards to Chad Henne. Its possible Henne has improved, but the Dolphins offense isn’t good as they lack talent outside of Brandon Marshall. Now Philip Rivers, an MVP candidate comes into Foxboro with Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates and people are telling me that I should have confidence in the New England defense. In what should be a high scoring affair, bench both of these defenses for Sunday’s most entertaining game.