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Teams on bye: Broncos, Seahawks, Rams, Browns, Bengals, and Cardinals.
Quarterbacks
Start Em
Matthew Stafford, DET at NYJ - After starting out the season with 346 passing yards and three total touchdowns, Stafford has struggled in the last two weeks. He has thrown for 537 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions in the last two games. He's been sacked six times in the last two weeks. This week he takes on a Jets defense that can blitz the quarterback, but, they have allowed the second most passing touchdowns this season (7). Stafford needs to get back on track and what better way, than to play a suspect secondary. He and Calvin Johnson haven't connected for a touchdown since week one. That could possibly change this weekend.
Other Starts
Ben Roethlisberger, PIT vs. TB
Philip Rivers, SD vs. JAC
Tony Romo, DAL vs. NO
Colin Kaepernick, SF vs. PHI
Sleeper Alert: Eli Manning, NYG at WAS
Sit Em
Joe Flacco, BAL vs. CAR- Flacco is having a "Flacco-like" season. He's thrown for 728 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions in the first three weeks. This week, he's facing a pretty good Panthers defense. The Panthers are allowing 199 yards per game and have allowed five touchdowns while getting three interceptions. As I mentioned in one of my previous articles, they held Matthew Stafford to just one touchdown in Week 2. Last week, they gave up two passing touchdowns to Big Ben, but he failed to throw for 200+ yards. Flacco lost a big piece of the offense last week, as Dennis Pitta will miss the remainder of the season with a dislocated hip. It may be tough for some owners to bench Flacco during byes, but I will say this, if you start him, it's at your own risk. There are other QB's with better matchups this week that are far more appealing.
Other Sits
Mike Glennon, TB at PIT
Geno Smith, NYJ vs. DET
Alex Smith, KC vs. NE
Ryan Fitzpatrick, HOU vs. BUF
Bust Alert: Cam Newton, CAR at BAL
Running Backs
Start Em
Donald Brown, SD vs. JAC - With Ryan Mathews out for the next couple of weeks and Danny Woodhead out for the season, the Chargers have turned to Brown as their guy. Last week, Brown carried that ball 31 times for 62 yards. He also caught five passes for 27 yards. This week, the Chargers will host the Jaguars defense who ranks 32nd against the run. The have allowed the most rushing yards this season (480). They've also allowed the 2nd most rushing touchdowns (4). Last season in 102 attempts, Brown averaged 5.3 yards per carries. He's proven that he can run and he should get tons of volume this week against the Jaguars. For owners dealing with injuries or those who have running backs on bye, Brown is a great option to fill that void.
Other Starts
Rashad Jennings, NYG at WAS
Ahmad Bradshaw, IND vs. TEN
Pierre Thomas, NO at DAL
Fred Jackson, BUF at HOU
Sleeper alert: Matt Asiata, MIN vs. ATL
Sit Em
Chris Johnson, NYJ vs. DET - The Jets will host the Lions this week. The Lions defense is currently ranked 2nd against the run. They have yet to allow an opposing running back to rush for 100 yards this season. Keep in mind they've faced Rashad Jennings and Eddie Lacy. The Lions defense has allowed just 191 yards in three games this season. After a strong start to the season with 91 total yards, 5 catches, and a touchdown; Johnson has been a complete disappointment. In his last two games, Johnson has rushed for a whopping 55 yards combined and has one catch for zero yards. Not to mention he hasn't scored a touchdown either. There's absolutely no reason why any fantasy owner would take the risk at starting Johnson this week. There's just no upside here.
Other Sits
Toby Gerhart, JAC at SD
Steven Jackson, ATL at MIN
Reggie Bush, DET at NYJ
Shonn Greene, TEN at IND
Bust Alert: Darren Sproles, PHI at SF
Wide Receivers
Start Em
Jeremy Maclin, PHI at SF - Maclin is off to a great season thus far, scoring a touchdown in each game. To date, he has 16 catches for 296 yards and three touchdowns. He also leads the team in target (32). This week he heads to the West coast to take on the 49ers. Surprisingly, the Niners defense has allowed the second most receiving touchdowns this season. They are also allowing 237 receiving yards per game. Maclin's issue has always been durability, but when healthy, he has proven that he can produce quality numbers. He's looking to extend his touchdown streak to four consecutive games and has a good enough matchup to make it happen.
Other Starts
Terrence Williams, DAL vs. NO
Keenan Allen, SD vs. JAC
Pierre Garcon, WAS vs. NYG
Michael Crabtree, SF vs. PHI
Sleeper Alert: Allen Robinson, JAC at SD
Sit of the week
Torrey Smith, BAL vs. CAR - It's only a matter of time before Torrey Smith has his blowup game. The issue is that fantasy owners can't play that guessing game and plug him into their lineups. The truth of the matter is that Steve Smith is the Ravens leading receiver, and until the game plan changes, that will remain the same. Joe Flacco clearly has a high comfort level with his new receiver. As far as Torrey Smith, he's caught six passes for 85 yards and no touchdowns in the first three weeks. His matchup is no walk in the park either, as the Panthers rank 8th against receivers. Many have high expectations for Smith this season, but he's off to a slow start. That could change at some point, but the chances are slim this week.
Other Sits
Robert Woods, BUF at HOU
Eric Decker, NYJ vs. DET
Kelvin Benjamin, CAR at BAL
Greg Jennings, MIN vs. ATL
Bust Alert: Vincent Jackson, TB at PIT
Tight Ends
Start Em
Dwayne Allen, IND vs. TEN
Martellus Bennett, CHI vs. GB
Larry Donnell, NYG at WAS
Sit Em
Owen Daniels, BAL vs. CAR
Scott Chandler, BUF at HOU
Heath Miller, PIT vs. TB
Defense
Start
New England Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs
Baltimore Ravens vs. Carolina Panthers
Sit
New Orleans Saints at Dallas Cowboy
New York Jets vs. Detroit Lions