 | ||
 | | |
Week Four | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Byes: Jacksonville, New Orleans, Tennessee, Washington Baltimore at Cleveland Bench: Jamal Lewis, RB, Browns: Look elsewhere, if you can, as opposing runners usually get shut down by the Ravens so much so that they usually don’t even see their normal allotment of carries. Also, Lewis just isn’t very good. Start: Willis McGahee, RB, Ravens: Nothing gets a running back going like facing the Browns, so McGahee should be good for 100 yards and a score this weekend. Chicago at Detroit Bench: Tatum Bell, RB, Lions: Hasn’t topped 20 yards rushing in a game since week one, and that doesn’t figure to change this week. Start: Jon Kitna, Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson (if healthy), Mike Furrey, Lions: The Bears secondary is hurting, and the Lions have the best pass offense in football. Brian Griese, QB, Bears: Rex is on the bench, for now, and Griese gets a chance to start against the team that makes quarterbacks look great. If you need a bye-week filler, Griese could be your guy. Cedric Benson, RB, Bears: The Lions have given up an astonishing 6 rushing TD’s thus far, which should mean good things for Ced. Green Bay at Minnesota: Bench: Vikings QB’s: Regardless of who gets the snaps at QB, the fact of the matter is that this passing game is going nowhere fast it’s AD’s show now, for better or worse. Start: Donald Driver, WR, Packers: He’s never a sexy pick, but is an every-week start as Favre’s security blanket. The Pack can’t run, so they’ll throw enough to get Driver his numbers each week. Houston at Atlanta Bench: Matt Schaub, QB, Texans: Still operating without his top wideout (Andre Johnson) and lost his second-best option (Jacoby Jones) last week. Start: Joey Harrington, QB, Falcons: I can’t believe I’m typing this, but Joey looked good last week, and the Texans are vulnerable through the air. Owen Daniels, TE, Texans: Is quietly putting together another nice season, and should benefit from the Texans injury woes with more looks his way. New York Jets at Buffalo Bench: Trent Edwards, QB, Bills: Until someone proves they can throw the ball in this offense, steer clear. And continue to downgrade Lee Evans accordingly. Start: Marshawn Lynch, RB, Bills: Lynch has quietly had a very solid season for a very bad team. His aforementioned bad team can’t throw, and he plays a Jets D that can’t stop the run. Thomas Jones, RB, Jets: The Bills lost ILB Paul Posluszny for the season to a broken arm, so Jones should find additional running room. Chad Pennington, QB, Jets: The Bills rank dead last against the pass, and figure to be sieve-like again this week against Pennington, who looked sharp in Week 3. Oakland at Miami Bench: LaMont Jordan, RB, Raiders: He was a steal in most drafts and is now basically an every-week start, factoring in byes. The fact that the Raiders suck through the air and have no other runners means that LaMont will get his touches. Start: Chris Chambers, WR, Dolphins: It’s easy to forget about C-Chamb, given the fact that he’s played with such notables as Jay Fiedler, Cleo Lemon, and Joey Harrington, however, he has developed a nice rapport with Trent Green and should post solid numbers against Oakland. St. Louis at Dallas Bench: Julius Jones, RB, Cowboys: He’s a backup RB now folks, plain and simple. However, all of your other ‘Boys Witten, TO, Romo, and Marion Barber are good plays. Start: Brian Leonard, RB, Rams: Filling in for an injured Steven Jackson, Leonard gets a start against a defense that has proven vulnerable. More intriguing is Leonard’s versatility in the pass game. He should find the end zone at lest once. Seattle at San Francisco Bench: Marcus Pollard, TE, Seahawks: Simply hasn’t done much this season, as the Seahawks seem to have gone away from the TE after letting Jerramy Stevens go. Start: Frank Gore, RB, 49ers: Gore should find room against a Seahawk D that surrenders over 100 yards per game to opposing backs. Darrell Jackson, WR, 49ers: D-Jax has struggled to get going this season, but will be motivated to break out against his former club. Tampa Bay at Carolina Bench: Carnell Williams, RB, Bucs: Jon Gruden re-pledged his loyalty to Williams this week, which usually means that a committee situation is not far down the road. The Bucs, historically, fail to get it done on the ground vs. Carolina, so if you have a better option this week, go with it. Start: DeShaun Foster, RB, Panthers: Seems close to winning the lions-share of the carries in Carolina, and faces a defense that gives up 124 YPG on the ground. Denver at Indianapolis Bench: Tony Scheffler, TE, Broncos: Big things were expected from the second-year TE, who was a sexy sleeper pick as a downfield threat. Needless to say, big things haven’t yet happened . Start: Travis Henry, RB, Broncos: Indianapolis isn’t as embarrassing against the run as they’ve been in years past, but they still surrender 95 YPG. Expect Henry to be more involved this week. Joseph Addai, RB, Colts: The Broncos are awful against the run (166 YPG), and Addai is an every-week start as the only show in town. Kansas City at San Diego Bench: Philip Rivers, QB, Chargers: While I like Rivers over the long haul, the Chiefs have been stingy against the pass (5th in the league), so there are probably better options this week. Larry Johnson, RB, Chiefs: The Chargers are only giving up 88 YPG on the ground, and LJ has yet to get goingÉit may not happen this week either. Chances are, you have a Derrick Ward, Travis Henry, or LaMont Jordan type on your roster who will yield more production. Start: Tony Gonzalez, TE, Chiefs: Gonzo had seven catches last week, and will continue to be a security blanket for whoever the Chiefs roll out at quarterback. Pittsburgh at Arizona Bench: Matt Leinart, QB, Cardinals: Leinart follows his poor performance against Baltimore with a matchup against the NFL’s 2nd ranked pass defense. Use someone else if you can. Start: Willie Parker, RB, Steelers: The Cards have given up three scores on the ground and surrender around 100 YPG. This should add up to another solid outing for Fast Willie. Philadelphia at New York Giants Bench: Derrick Ward, RB, Giants: It’s been a nice run for D-Ward, but he faces a defense that has yet to surrender a rushing TD, and gives up around 70 YPG. It’s also worth noting that Reuben Droughns seems to get most of the goal line touches. Start: Donovan McNabb, Kevin Curtis, Brian Westbrook, Eagles: Two of these three are every-week starts, but the Eagles offense should continue its success vs. a Giants D that has given up 8 scores through the air already. New England at Cincinnati Bench: Donte Stallworth, WR, Patriots: Seems to be the odd man out in New England, as the only receiver not to be reaping the bounty of playing with Tom Brady. Start: Wes Welker, Laurence Maroney, Patriots: The Bengals defense has forged a reputation for making opposing offenses look great that said, this is a great week to start your borderline Patriots, including Welker and Maroney, who should have a good yardage night. Sleepers: Jason Avant, WR, Eagles: Is a better receiver, and is posting better numbers, than Reggie Brown. Avant will continue to get looks, and should post nice numbers this week against a bad pass defense. Samkon Gado, RB, Texans: Ahman Green won’t play, and Ron Dayne is also nicked-up, which should mean more work for Gado. Ted Kluck is the author of three books, including “Paper Tiger: One Athlete’s Journey to the Underbelly of Pro Football.” Visit him online at www.tedkluck.com. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| | | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[Home] [Newsletters] [FREE Plays] [Publications] | ||
| | |