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Armando Marsal
Fantasy Writer
Quarterbacks
Start Em
Matthew Stafford, DET vs. TB - Stafford had a good game on Thanksgiving Day. He threw for 390 yards and two touchdowns. He should carry that momentum over to this week against the Bucs defense that has been vulnerable against opposing quarterbacks. The Bucs have allowed 300 or more passing yards and two or more touchdowns in four of their six road games. They are giving up 16.1 fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Stafford is averaging just under 300 yards per game at home. His job is easy this week, just throw the ball to Calvin and good things will happen. Don't hesitate to get him in your starting lineup this week.
Other Starts
Tony Romo, DAL at CHI
Russell Wilson, SEA at PHI
Ryan Tannenhill, MIA vs. BAL
Jay Cutler, CHI vs. DAL
Sleeper Alert: Colin Kaepernick, SF at OAK
Sit Em
Ben Roethlisberger, PIT at CIN - Big Ben is having a good season, but almost all of his success has come when he plays in Pittsburgh. Of his 26 passing touchdowns, only six have been in road games; and of his eight picks, five have been on the road. It's apparent he struggles on the road. The Bengals have been much better defensively against the pass than they have been against the run. They actually allow the seventh fewest fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks (12.9). The Bengals have allowed just one passing touchdown in the last four games, and have held quarterbacks to less than 15 fantasy points in five of their last six games. A quarterback that has struggled on the road going up against a defense that has played phenomenal against the pass is recent weeks, is not what I'm looking for in the first round of the fantasy football playoffs.
Other Sits
Josh McCown, TB at DET
Joe Flacco, BAL at MIA
Matt Ryan, ATL at GB
Drew Stanton, ARI vs. KC
Bust Alert: Mark Sanchez, PHI vs. SEA
Running Backs
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Mark Ingram, NO vs. CAR - The last four times that Ingram received 20+ carries, he's rushed for more than 100 yards three times. The only game he struggled in was against the league's best run defense. In fact, Ingram faced the Panthers in Week 9. In that meeting, he rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns. The Panthers have been getting burned by running backs for most of the season. They give up 18.8 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs and have allowed 11 rushing touchdowns. Granted, in recent weeks they've held running backs to fewer than 80 yards, but it was against Steven Jackson and Matt Asiata, who haven't been all that great this season. Ingram should have no trouble running against the Panthers this week.
Other Starts
Rashad Jennings, NYG at TEN
Frank Gore, SF at OAK
Joique Bell, DET vs. TB (keep an eye on Reggie Bush's status)
Eddie Lacy, GB vs. ATL
Sleeper alert: Jonathan Stewart, CAR at NO
Sit Em
Doug Martin, TB at DET - Martin led the team in carries last week with 18 carries. Second to him was Charles Sims who received just five carries. Moving forward it's likely that Martin will be the team's lead back. Last week he rushed for 58 yards and a touchdown. It was a good bounce back game, after putting up an 11-27-0 stat line in his first game back from ankle injury the previous week. Even though he is expected to get the bulk of the carries, Martin still has a tough matchup ahead of him. The Lions are one of the better defenses against the run, especially in Ford Field. At home, the Lions haven't allowed a touchdown since Week 1, and have not allowed a 100 yard rushed all season. In fact, they've only given up more than 100 rushing yards in one game this season. I'm not going to let that last game with a touchdown influence any decision, I'm sitting Martin against a tough Lions D.
Other Sits
Alfred Morris, WAS vs. STL
Latavius Murray, OAK vs. SF
Matt Asiata, MIN vs. NYJ
Chris Ivory, NYJ at MIN
Bust Alert: C.J. Anderson, DEN vs. BUF
Wide Receivers
Start Em
Mike Wallace, MIA vs. BAL - Wallace is coming off a nice game against the Jets where he caught six passes for 69 yards. The even better news is that he was targeted 11 times. He also dropped a touchdown. This week he faces the Ravens defense that has been getting smoked by receivers this year. They have surrendered eight receiving touchdowns in the last four games. Not to mention, the Ravens allow 27.4 fantasy points per game to opposing receivers. This would be a good week to redeem himself for dropping that touchdown against the Jets last week.
Other Starts
Kelvin Benjamin, CAR at NO
Kenny Stills, NO vs. CAR
Odell Beckham Jr., NYG at TEN
DeAndre Hopkins, HOU at JAC
Sleeper Alert: Charles Johnson, MIN vs. NYJ
Sit Em
Jeremy Maclin, PHI vs. SEA - It's going to be a tough day for Maclin who will face the best pass defense in the league. The Seahawks have allowed just one receiving touchdown in the last eight games, and only four for the season. They are allowing the fewest fantasy points per game to opposing receivers (14). In the last four games, Maclin has only scored one touchdown, and gone over 100 receiving yards once. I'm expecting him to see a lot of Richard Sherman this week, and not many receivers get the best of him. It could be tough to sit a receiver like Maclin, so if you decide to start him, temper your expectations. However, I'd steer away.
Other Sits
Steve Smith, BAL at MIA
Martavis Bryant, PIT at CIN
Sammy Watkins, BUF at DEN
Pierre Garcon, WAS vs. STL
Bust Alert: Mike Evans, TB at DET
Tight Ends
Start Em
Delanie Walker, TEN vs. NYG
Jordan Reed, WAS vs. STL
Martellus Bennett, CHI vs. DAL
Sit Em
Heath Miller, PIT at CIN
Owen Daniels, BAL at MIA
Zach Ertz, PHI vs. SEA
Defense
Start Em
San Francisco 49ers at Oakland Raiders
Detroit Lions vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sit Em
Cleveland Browns at Indianapolis Colts