"Studs & Duds" is designed to serve as a "Start/Sit" or "Love/Hate" guide. I'll try to pinpoint players, by position, that I think will have a good chance to deliver better or worse performances in comparison to their season averages. I consider "Studs" as quality starters and "Duds" as possible busts that may deserve to be on your bench, depending on the depth of your league and team. I'll also offer up a couple sneaky sleeper picks for each position. Keep in mind that I won't be including some of the "no-brainer" starting options, nor will I tell you to bench someone who isn't a realistic option. For clear-cut lineup decisions, be sure to check out my rankings and in-depth analysis on a bunch of relevant players. Quarterbacks Studs Cam Newton (CAR) vs. PHI: The Carolina Panthers have been a major surprise thus far, and they have been lead by their unquestioned leader, Cam Newton. Even after losing his top target, Kelvin Benjamin, to a torn ACL in the preseason, Cam has marched on to lead his team to a 5-0 record. As expected, he's had to use his legs to get the job done, but he has looked pretty sharp as a passer too. With Greg Olsen being one of the safest receiving options in the league, Cam has proved that he can make things work even without a premier wideout. With the spotlight shining on Cam and his Panthers this Sunday night, I think he'll turn in a quality performance. Newton may not have been drafted as a top 5 QB, but my gut tells me he'll turn in top 5 numbers worthy of a starting spot in your lineup. Matt Ryan (ATL) @ TEN: With only one 300+ yard performance this year, and zero games with more than 2 TDs, Matt Ryan hasn't been overly impressive for his fantasy owners. He'll face the Titans this week, who have a middle-of-the-road defense when it comes to defending fantasy QBs. However, I see this as a better matchup than the numbers show. The signal-callers that the Titans have faced so far have been a fairly weak bunch, including guys like Jameis Winston, Josh McCown, and Tyrod Taylor. Still, none of the opposing QBs have scored under 14 points in standard leagues against the Titans, which is a decent floor. Oddly enough, "Matty Ice" has had his top three fantasy games this season while on the road. Not to mention, he'll have Julio Jones at full health for the first time in multiple weeks. I'm feeling a big game from Matt Ryan in Week 7. Blake Bortles (JAC) vs. BUF: The Jacksonville Jaguars take on the Buffalo Bills this week in a morning contest across the pond. While the Bills present a tough defensive front that will clog up running lanes, their secondary isn't as daunting. Ranking in the bottom 10 against fantasy QBs this season, it seems obvious that the Jags will need to do most of their damage through the air. While A-Rob might have a tough task of going against CB Stephon Gilmore, he's always viable for a big play. Allen Hurns has stepped up and been a sturdy second receiver for the Jags, and TE Julius Thomas has returned from a hand injury and showed flashes of why he was paid big money in the offseason. Bortles has passed for an average of 311 yards over the past three weeks with a total of 8 touchdowns. If he can keep his turnovers in check, I see him having a top 10 fantasy QB performance in London. Duds Eli Manning (NYG) vs. DAL: Sometimes you'll get "Good Eli", and sometimes you'll get "Bad Eli". While its tough to predict one or the other, I'm leaning towards this being another "Bad Eli" game. First off, I don't think the Cowboys have the firepower on offense to make the Giants try to score a bunch of points. In addition to that, the Cowboys are coming off a bye week with a fierce looking pass rush, featuring Greg Hardy and now-healthy Randy Gregory. Eli Manning only scored 8.4 points on standard ESPN leagues in Week 1 when he squared off against the Cowboys. Sam Bradford (PHI) @ CAR: Based on volume alone, Bradford has the chance to be a QB1 every week. The problem is that he just hasn't looked very good at football this year. Overthrows, underthrows, fumbles, and interceptions have led to his worrisome TD to turnover ratio of 9:10 this season. This week, he'll be without Nelson Algolor against one of the league's toughest secondaries. Josh Norman is a ballhawk and that doesn't add up too well, considering Bradford's INT woes. I feel like he can always go off, but playing on Sunday night in Carolina, I'm not starting him in any 1 quarterback leagues. Joe Flacco (BAL) @ ARI: While he hasn't played all that bad, Flacco has produced two abysmal games to his four quality outings. Behind Steve Smith, he has the thinnest WR corps in the NFL, and Arizona surely has taken notice of this. After being beaten by the Steelers, I look for the talented secondary of the Cardinals to rebound in a big way. His main target (Steve Smith) will probably fair just fine based on volume, but Flacco is probably in for a night of multiple turnovers. Plus, the Arizona offense is one of the highest scoring in the league, and this Ravens team isn't built for offensive comebacks. Keep him out of your lineups. Sleepers Matt Stafford (DET) vs. MIN Ryan Fitzpatrick (NYJ) @ NE Landry Jones (PIT) @ KC Running Backs Studs Demarco Murray (PHI) @ CAR: For the past two weeks, since he has lobbied for more carries, I've been saying that Demarco Murray is finally on the right track. Off of two 18 point fantasy performances in standard leagues, Murray will look to keep things going this Sunday night. While he faces the tough Panthers defense, most of their talent is in the back end of the field. Their defense against fantasy RBs is in the bottom 10 of the league, and Murray will undoubtedly need to be the centerpiece of the Eagles offense if they want to move the chains. While the expert consensus ranks have him at 14, I have him as my 7th ranked back this week. I like him as an RB1. Frank Gore (IND) vs. NO: Gore and the Colts get a bottom 5 run defense against fantasy RBs this week in the Saints. They're allowing nearly 5 yards per carry, and Gore has picked up his play these past few weeks. Assuming he has his fluky fumbling issue from early in the season under control, he should be looking at around 20 touches and has a good chance to hit pay dirt this week. The Colts-Saints matchup is projected to be a high scoring affair, with the Colts favored, so I'm liking Gore's odds to finish as a top 10 RB in Week 7. Dion Lewis (NE) vs. NYJ - OUT: Whether it was because of game flow or his abdominal injury, last week wasn't so great for Lewis. He only touched the ball 7 times and ceded most of the work to LeGarrette Blount. Although he plays the top-ranked defense against fantasy RBs this week in the Jets, I have a gut feeling he makes a big impact for the Pats. While Blount handles the work inside the tackles, Dion Lewis can get the ball in space and gain yards in chunks. I think the Jets are a good team and a solid defense, but if I had to guess, Belichick is scheming up ways to get this Pitt product plenty of touches. All we have to do is monitor his health, but he should be OK. Duds T.J. Yeldon (JAC) vs. BUF: Suffering from a groin injury, Yeldon will try to suit up for this week's game in London. If he doesn't play, this reasoning can be used for any and all of the Jags backup running backs. Yeldon hasn't been overly impressive during his rookie season, but winding up on the lowly Jags wasn't the easiest task to overcome. He has gotten the volume of carries, but they haven't translated into meaningful production. Facing a ferocious Bills defensive front, he's only an option that you call on if you absolutely need to. I wouldn't start him outside of a flex spot this week. Joseph Randle (DAL) @ NYG: I'll start this off by saying Randle hasn't done anything especially bad to lose his starting job, but he certainly hasn't done anything to sustain the job. With Darren McFadden already taking a chunk of the carries, and now the talk of Christine Michael getting more carries coming out of the bye week, he just isn't a very trustworthy option. Surely, one of the Dallas RBs could have a big game against the beatable Giants run D, but I'm not rolling the dice on Randle. I need to see some clarity from this backfield first. Alfred Morris (WAS) vs. TB: In the preseason, nobody considered Washington's backfield being a committee. They had a young workhorse in Alfred Morris that has shined in his first few seasons out of Florida Atlantic University, even with struggling Redskin teams. However, he was always more effective when RG III was under center. Now that Cousins has stolen the starting gig, Morris has averaged only 5 fantasy points per game. Matt Jones returns this week from a toe injury, and that means I have no confidence whatsoever in starting Alf for Week 7. Sleepers Duke Johnson (CLE) @ STL Christine Michael (DAL) @ NYG Matt Jones (WAS) vs. TB Wide Receivers Studs Martavis Bryant (PIT) @ KC: In case you haven't noticed, I'm all in on Bryant for the rest of the year, and this week is no exception. When Landry Jones came in for Vick last week, that's when Martavis put on a show. Still, it wasn't like he was getting perfect passes throw to him by any means. He was turning average throws in highlight-reel plays. When the Steelers are near the end zone, Bryant is actually the best option for a score, even considering all-pro WR Antonio Brown. While Brown has struggled for the last month without Ben under center, Bryant may have proved himself "QB-proof" last week against the Cardinals. This week, against a beatable Chiefs secondary, Bryant is a viable WR2 with upside for more. Mike Evans (TB) @ WAS: Given that he was a third round pick with high expectations in most fantasy leagues, Bucs WR Mike Evans hasn't lived up to the hype. While he started off sluggish due to a hamstring injury, he hasn't turned in any explosive games since returning a few weeks ago. Coming off a bye, he should be 100% over his early season injury woes, and hopefully he and Jameis Winston worked on their chemistry before their next game. Taking on the Redskins, who just let up big games from both of the Jets top two wideouts, I think this is the week that Mike Evans scores his first touchdown. Keep him in your WR2 slot. Eric Decker (NYJ) @ NE: While teammate Brandon Marshall continues to have a resurgent year and garner plenty of attention, I am a bit confused as to why Eric Decker has flown under the radar so consistently. I mean, he has a touchdown in every game he's played in this year, and has made some beautiful, chain-moving grabs along the way. This week, while B-Marsh gets most of the Patriots' secondary attention, I think Decker could be in for another nice outing. With the Jets likely in need of putting up 20+ points to stay in the game against the Pats, I'm thinking Decker continues to chug along as a solid starting option in all fantasy leagues. Duds Julian Edelman (NE) vs. NYJ: I realize this is a very ballsy call, and I don't expect anyone to be sitting Edelman in their Week 7 fantasy matchups. That being said, it has been confirmed he'll be setting sail to Revis Island in his matchup with the Jets. While Revis usually holds down the outside corner position, he plans on shadowing the Pats top WR this week to limit his production, which has been WR1-worthy thus far in 2015. While I don't envision Edelman being shut out completely, I think his ceiling is a lot lower than it would've been without one of the best CBs in the NFL covering him. Golden Tate (DET) vs. MIN: I'll start this off by saying that Tate's output last week would have been very pedestrian had he not gotten a lucky TD call at the goal line. In an overtime shootout, he still only produced 40 yards off 6 grabs. He'll face a tough Minnesota secondary this week, and as always, should take a back seat to Calvin Johnson in terms of yards, targets, and fantasy points. He hasn't gone over 80 yards once this year, and his "touchdown" last week was his only one this season. I'm calling him a low-ceiling WR3 at best in Week 7. Travis Benjamin (CLE) @ STL: In 2015, Travis Benjamin has consistently produced at a high level. While he still lingers as a top 5 wideout in fantasy points, I can't trust him as more than a shaky WR3 in his matchup this week. He'll be on the road, against a surprisingly stingy Rams pass defense, that held all Green Bay Packer receivers to a measly 9 catches for 159 yards prior to their bye week. I'm betting the Browns go with a conservative attack on offense, leaning on their ground game and newly-found stud TD, Gary Barnidge. I could be wrong, but I'm thinking this is one of Benjamin's worst weeks of the year. Sleepers Allen Hurns (JAC) vs. BUF Michael Crabtree (OAK) @ SD Michael Floyd (ARI) vs. BAL Tight Ends Studs Travis Kelce (KC) vs. PIT: I realize he's a locked-in TE1 in all leagues anyway, but I'm feeling a big game from Travis Kelce this week against the Steelers. With a stagnant run game and Maclin dealing with concussion symptoms (even if he plays), I think the Chiefs will need to lean on Kelce to move the ball on offense. The Steelers have failed to cover dominant TEs this season, giving up huge games to Gronk and Antonio Gates. Travis Kelce certainly fits the mold of those studs, which what I'm labeling him for Week 7. Jason Witten (DAL) @ NYG: As the Cowboys come out of their bye week, they're making a QB change to Matt Cassel. While he isn't a major upgrade, I do think it helps the Cowboys offensive weapons, and Witten is one of the few weapons left. With Dez out for another week, I look for Cassel to lean on his veteran TE this week against the Giants, who Witten has success against in his lengthy track record. I see him giving owners mid-to-low TE1 performance this week, and he's definitely worth a start. Duds Zach Ertz (PHI) @ CAR: Ertz has a ton of talent and has received more playing time as the season has progressed, but he doesn't have a reliable QB throwing him the ball. With Bradford struggling badly of late, Ertz doesn't look like he's a safe play for fantasy owners looking to stream a Tight End, even with the extra fun of watching him on a night game. He'll be up against a fierce Panthers defense that just got all-pro Luke Keuchly back in their lineup, while they already ranked top 10 against fantasy TEs. Larry Donnell (NYG) vs. DAL: This week against the Cowboys, Larry Donnell may seem like a streaming option at tight end. But he's turned 19 targets over the last three weeks into only 102 yards with 1 TD. He's been given enough targets to do some damage, but he's simply not athletic enough to trust to score double digits in fantasy games. Now he gets the Cowboys underrated defense with talent at the LB position, ranking as the 7th toughest defense against fantasy TEs. I'm staying away. Sleepers Ladarius Green (SD) vs. OAK Eric Ebron (DET) vs. MIN |
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