Start of the Week

I normally do not advocate a player in this column who should be starting for you on a weekly basis, but this week I am going to make an exception. Tennessee Titans RB Chris Johnson was most likely drafted high in your league and should be started on a weekly basis except in the most extreme of matchups.

If you owned Johnson in a standard yardage-league this year, he has rewarded you with 146 fantasy points. But notice that he  has rewarded 107 of those points in three weeks. What about the rest of the weeks?

He produced only 39 points in five weeks, but that was when the team as a whole was losing. So, if you're scared of his inconsistency, fear no more. The good news is two of those three outburst weeks have come in Week Eight and Nine, which was after the Titans’ bye.

It appears that the Titans have turned a corner and have ratcheted up their offense and there is no reason to believe the Tennessee offense will revert to what is was in the run game. Go ahead and ride him out the rest of the season. You may want to trade him if your fantasy playoffs are in weekend 16 and/or Week 17 when he plays San Diego and Seattle respectively.

If your playoffs end then, you may want to ride him this week versus an incredible matchup vs. the Buffalo Bills. After that, try trading him for another No. 1 running back. One that comes to mind would be Atlanta Falcons RB Michael Turner. He has great matchups in Week 16 and Week 17.

Quarterbacks to Start

If you have one of the top six or seven quarterbacks, you are going to start them in all but the most extreme matchups. However, if you don’t, you will look to employ the QBBC approach. This week two lesser-considered options have good matchups. If you need a bye week replacement, or are looking to shake it up in the QBBC approach consider these two quarterbacks.

The first is Carolina Panthers QB Jake Delhomme. Delhomme has not been a model of consistency. In fact, he has played horribly often this season. While I do not expect 20 plus fantasy points from him, hiis matchup versus the Atlanta Falcons is still pretty good this week.

Over the past three games, Atlanta has given up six touchdowns passing and 826 yards to quarterbacks. It is likely Delhomme can put up similar numbers as Washington Redskins QB Jason Campbell did last week, when he played the Falcons. In standard yardage leagues, Delhomme is capable of a 12-15 point week.

The other QBBC match up is Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford. This week the Lions play the Minnesota Vikings, who, this season, have given up 2,083 passing yards and 13 touchdowns. Minnesota is coming off a bye and I expect them to play a little better than these numbers suggest because of the time off. If your league penalizes you for interceptions, then Stafford is not the guy you want. I expect him to throw a few. I do think Stafford can post 200 passing yards and a touchdown.

Running Backs to Start

Running Back Larry Johnson owners must be unhappy with him being released by the Kansas City Chiefs. Hopefully, over the last two weeks you have taken the time to pick up his backup Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles. I expect there to be a committee approach to the running back situation in Kansas City. Charles is the starter. He is also a decent back who can catch the ball out of the backfield. If you need a bye week replacement or a flex option, Charles can be your guy. This week he plays the Oakland Raiders. Over their last two games, the Raiders have surrendered five touchdowns and 373 yards rushing. Look for Charles to be a decent start for those who need it.

The Cincinnati Bengals play at Pittsburgh this week. The Steelers have been known as a force to stop the run. Because of the matchup, it is tempting to sit Bengals RB Cedric Benson. I would not do it.

When you drafted Benson it was to be either as a RB2 spot or a bench slot. Despite this, Benson has delivered on value and performed well as a RB2. In fact, Benson is second in the NFL in rushing yards and he has already faced Baltimore twice, Pittsburgh once, plus Chicago and Denver. He has scored under 10 fantasy points only once this season. Even though the matchup suggests benching Benson, don’t do it. Put him in your RB2 spot and reap the benefits of a consistent performer.  

Wide Receivers to Start

The Buffalo Bills have an offense that has underachieved this season. Despite this, there are times that Bills, WR Lee Evans can be a reasonable play. Week Two, Six and Seven showed that Evans could be a fantasy viable player. This week the Buffalo Bills will play the Tennessee Titans. While the Titans have come on since their bye, and I expect a non-exciting kind of outing from Bills QB Trent Edwards, I do think the numbers are there for Evans to produce this week as a low-end WR2 high end WR3. Give him a start in this capacity.

Another receiver not to give up on is St Louis Rams Donnie Avery. While he plays for a bad offense, he is still their No. 1 option and will be targeted as such. He had some injury issues but is coming off a bye where he had time to get healthy. This week St Louis plays the New Orleans Saints. Most of the football pundits will say that this game should be a blowout. If that is, indeed, what happens, St Louis will have to throw the ball often and will look for Avery to make plays. New Orleans has been giving up an average of 19.2 fantasy points per game in yardage leagues to WRs.

Tight Ends to start

Minnesota Vikings TE Visanthe Shiancoe faces the Detroit Lions this week. The Lions have been vulnerable to the tight end. Over their last two games, they have given up an average of 14.2 fantasy points per game. Brett Favre also likes to throw to his TE in the red zone. This looks like it will be a good week to start Shiancoe.

Just as Minnesota likes to throw to the tight end, they are also very vulnerable to opposing tight ends. This week the Vikings will face 2009 top rookie TE in the Lions' Brandon Pettigrew, who finally scored his first career touchdown last week. He should continue his effectiveness this week.

Sit of the Week

Washington Redskins RB Clinton Portis left Sunday’s game with a concussion. As is the case with most concussions, it is very unlikely he will play this week. Even so, the Denver Broncos are no easy matchup for running backs. Excluding Monday nights game, the Broncos had surrendered three touchdowns and 552 rushing yards.

 It might actually be better if Portis does not have to play them and avoid the punishment the Broncos defense will give out. Sit Portis because of his injury. Sit Redskins RB Ladell Betts because the Broncos defense is good enough to shut down the Redskins running game.

Quarterbacks to Sit

Denver Broncos QB Kyle Orton will play the Washington Redskins this week. If you are playing the QBBC approach, you will want to avoid him this week. Orton has played well in stretches, but he has struggled lately versus tougher defenses. The Washington Redskins are a better pass defense than some may think. They are overlooked for the same reason a lot of the Tennessee Titans get overlooked. They have lost most of their football games. Last week Washington gave up seven fantasy points to Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan. If Washington can shut Ryan down, they should also be able to shut Orton down.

Jacksonville Jaguars QB David Garrard has played pretty well this season. However, he is susceptible to the occasional game where he just does not perform. He scored five fantasy points at Indianapolis, three at Seattle and three points at Tennessee. This week the Jaguars face a tough defense in the New York Jets. Over the last three weeks, the Jest have been first in the league with least fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks (12.1) in yardage leagues. The Jaguars also play the Jets in New York. This game has all the hints that suggest Garrard will underachieve this week. Sit him.

Running Backs to Sit

One player I have been critical of all season has been San Diego Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson. I have nothing personal against Tomlinson as he has led me to fantasy championships in the past. Tomlinson is 30-years-old and like most aging RBs should not be in your lineup. I repeat: he should not be in your lineup.

Tomlinson has not broken the 75-yard rushing mark all season and has only three rushing touchdowns (all three against the Oakland Raiders). Unfortunately, Tomlinson does not play the Raiders this week. Instead, he plays the Philadelphia Eagles, who over the last three weeks have surrendered 78 rushing yards per game. If this average holds somewhat close this week, Tomlinson will have to share those seven fantasy points with fellow Chargers RB Darren Sproles. I would find another option at running back.

Arizona has shifted completely to a RBBC. Week Eight saw Cardinals RB Tim Hightower have eight carries for 39 yards and Cardinals RB Chris Wells eight carries for 47 yards. Week Nine saw Hightower have 15 carries for 77 yards and Wells 13 carries for 72 yards. This drops both running backs to a flex option. This week the Cardinals will play the Seahawks defense. The last two games the Seahawks have surrendered 108.5 rushing yards with 0.5 touchdowns per game. Without the aid of a touchdown, these numbers indicate each running back should accumulate between five to seven fantasy points. It is likely you have better options. If you do, then keep this Cardinal duo on your bench.

Wide Receivers to Sit

One bright spot in Buffalo is their pass defense. This season they rank second in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers. In eight games, they have given up 74 receptions for 893 yards and one touchdown. This is bad news for a Titans' receiving corps that has yet to have a consistent receiver emerge.

So far this season Tennessee wide receivers Nate Washington (23), Justin Gage (22) and Kenny Britt (20) are all within three receptions of the team lead. With the lack of clarity at wider receiver, it is a huge risk starting any of these receivers verses the Bills secondary. I recommend you avoid them all.

I feel it is almost impossible to bench Falcons WR Roddy White. Even in bad weeks, he is the type of wide receiver who still fills a WR2 or flex spot well. This is the case this week versus the Carolina Panthers. This season the Panthers are giving up an average of 15 fantasy points to wide receivers. It is just as likely that Ryan will target TE Tony Gonzalez instead of White in the red zone. Look for White’s production to be down this week. He is still worth a WR2 play, but look for another option to fill your WR1 spot.

Tight Ends to Sit

Arizona Cardinals TE Ben Patrick has caught a touchdown pass in each of the last two weeks and is now on the fantasy radar. While this may be the case, this week his matchup indicates that he will not do it again. The Seahawks have given up two total touchdowns to tight ends over eight games this season. Avoid the temptation to pick him up and start him.

New York Jets TE Dustin Keller has been a little inconsistent this year. Expect Week Ten to be one of the down weeks for him. This week the Jets will play the Jacksonville Jaguars who have given up 292 receiving yards and only one touchdown to tight ends this season. Expect these numbers to hold. If you have another tight end option, use it.