Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Week 8
New England Patriot’s Quarterback Tom Brady
Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports
Quarterback:
Start:
Tom Brady- Brady appears to be somewhat of a mess this season and a majority of fantasy owners like to blame his weak receiving core at the beginning of the season. Tom Brady is an all-star, franchise, and GOAT (Greatest of All Time) potential QB. This week the New England Patriots QB faces a Miami secondary that poses very little threat to his numbers and their TE coverage is currently the second worst in the NFL. Though they have stopped a TE from reaching the endzone in their past 2 games it couldn’t have been too hard against Dallas Clark or Scott Chandler. Tom Brady will look to fix all of the accuracy errors he dealt with last week on his passes to Rob Gronkowski. Brady has potential to be the number one fantasy scorer at his position this week and I don’t think you can afford not to start him.
**Fun fact** (Tom Brady has scored 39 TDs in 22 games with Dolphins in his career)
Eli Manning- Eli Manning and his NYG squad earned their first win against a weak Minnesota secondary on Monday and he had his first game of the season without an interception. Hooray, Eli! This shouldn’t even be a stat I need to mention going into week 8 of the NFL considering the fact that he is a two-time SuperBowl winner. Besides all of that, Manning will be rematching a struggling Eagles secondary that allowed him 334 yards and two TDs. Now that Manning appears to be done adding to that 15 interception count I believe this will be his best game of the season. He is a must-start in every league.
Sit:
Terrelle Pryor- After a whopping 3 interceptions and barely 200 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs in week six everyone started questioning QB Terrelle Pryor. Okay, give the guy some slack. He played the KANSAS CITY CHIEFS! They are dominating the league defensively right now and don’t allow any QB to produce much offense any week. However, after defending Pryor I have to throw him under the bus this week as he plays against the Pittsburgh Steelers incredible defense as well. Poor guy can’t catch a break. The Steelers have allowed only five total TD passes this season and I don’t expect that number to hit seven or possibly even 6 this week! Pryor needs to hit your bench this week unless of course you are forced to play him in that awkward 2 QB league.
Ryan Tannehill- Last week the Miami Dolphins took on the Bills in Miami and lost, sadly. Although Tannehill threw up three TD passes there wasn’t much else to write home about. Two interceptions, a fumble, and not even 200 yards! As my man Stephen A. Smith often says, “That’s just blasphemous!”. Tannehill has shaped up to be somewhat of the QB the Dolphins franchise needs but it won’t be that way for long if he continues to have games like the one against the Bills. This week he goes up against an even tougher match-up on the road in New England. The Patriots currently rank 8th against opposing QBs and if Aqib Talib returns on time for Sunday’s game you can expect Tannehill to lost Mike Wallace as a permanent threat down the field. I think it’s already to safe to write this one in the books as a loss for Miami but you can never be 100% with football. Regardless, you do NOT start Ryan Tannehill this week. Not even if you are 12-14 people deep.
Green Bay Packers Rookie RB Eddie Lacy
Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Running Back:
Start:
Eddie Lacey- I think this has to be the most obvious start of the week and I am so excited to watch this talented rookie EVERY week and you should be too. With the Green Bay Packers losing Jermichael Finley and star WR Randall Cobb for a majority of the season you can look to RB Eddie Lacy to be the first RB in my lifetime to have a major impact on the Green Bay offense. He is smart, strong, and faster than you would think for a man of his size. The Vikings have allowed the second most points to opposing RBs this season and Lacy even appears to be getting involved in the passing game as he had five receptions against the Browns last week. Aaron Rodgers will continue to give Lacy at least 20-25 carries a week and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets up to 30 something this week. With an Arian Foster-like workload I expect Lacy to be a top 3 back this week. Start him everywhere and anywhere.
Le’Veon Bell- I think the Bell start is really simple this week. He has had almost 20 carries in each game he has played this season for the Steelers. This week they go against a horrible Oakland defense that has allowed on average 19 fantasy points per week to each opposing running back in the last four weeks. They Raiders gave up five TDs in the last 4 games to running backs and I am 110% confident that Le’Veon Bell will add to this TD count. Though I don’t think Bell is deserving of a RB1 position in any league under 16 players I am positive he will remain at least a RB2 for the remainder of the season for any team or match-up.
Joique Bell (Last minute decision)- With another recent injury Reggie Bush was questionable for Sunday’s game against Dallas. However, he was recently listed as probably for the game. If he is somehow ruled out before the game though you are going to want to be holding onto Bell on your bench. We all remember how Bell played week three when Reggie Bush sat on the bench the whole game. 20 fantasy points through a TD and 140 receiving/rushing yards. Keep an eye out for the report on Bush! He is probable to play but you never know what could happen in one morning.
Sit:
Zac Stacy- With Sam Bradford out for the long-term and an unreal Seattle defense in the way I don’t think Stacy is the ideal start this week. Though I love this talented young player you have to stop and realize that he is playing against the fourth best run defense in the league. Not to mention that without a big threat QB the Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll will definitely be wise enough to focus more on Zac Stacy than second string QB Kellen Clemens. Although I am confident in suggesting everyone sit Stacy this week I wouldn’t be surprised if he found a way to well…surprise us!
Steven Jackson- The return of Steven Jackson isn’t looking as brilliant as some fantasy owners may have wanted in any trades or waiver wire transactions they made during his absence. His return on Sunday will be nothing. There is literally no way Jackson can score this week. Not only does he have to split carries with Jacquizz Rodgers but he also goes against an elite run defense that has allowed only two TDs to opposing backs all season. I hate having to say such a thing about a veteran back but go ahead and sit Steven Jackson this week in any league.
New Orleans Saints Wide Receiver Marques Colston
Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports
Wide Receiver:
Start:
Harry Douglas- Yes, the Cardinals are playing great defense this year. Sure, they rank 4th against opposing WRs. I still think Harry Douglas is a must start. I don’t recommend you consider him a WR1 and maybe not even a WR2 unless you are in a deep league. However, this guy should be a decent FLEX for a remainder of the season with Julio Jones out for the rest of the season and Roddy White still recovering. Matt Ryan has been playing amazing this season as expected. With his exceptional ability to find the open man and get him the ball I think the Falcons will utilize it against the Cardinals and we will find Harry Douglas in the endzone this week or with at least 100 yards. Do I even need to mention his increased and unreal value in a PPR league right now? Well, if I do…you should just know he is crazy good!
Marques Colston- After a nice rest on the bye in week 7 we should finally get to see Marques Colston be the star receiver we have known him as since 2010. Brees and Colston haven’t been able to hook up very well but with both of them rested, at home, and against a mediocre Bills secondary I expect Colston to find the endzone for only the 2nd time this season. I honestly believe that Colston will get 100+ yards and at least a single TD in this match up. Drew Brees has always been a phenomenal QB and maybe one of the best QBs when at home. The Bills have given up 12 TDs to opposing WRs and there is no way that Drew Brees and Colston don’t hook up this week in the endzone. Start him! Start him! Start him! He is definitely my favorite play this week as I am almost begging you to start him.
Sit:
Dwayne Bowe- What a shame that I have to list Kansas City Chiefs star Dwayne Bowe on my sit list…AGAIN. He didn’t practice on Friday due to a groin injury but he is expected to play on Sunday against the Browns. I don’t think most people realize how awesome Joe Haden has been this season. With Dwayne Bowe struggling to get open against any other 1st string CB this season and Alex Smith never throwing the ball more than 10 yards I wouldn’t expect his level of play change this week. Bowe caught 5 passes on 9 targets last week against Houston for only 66 yards. Joe Haden is easily one of the best corners in the league and I expect him to keep Bowe to his 5 fantasy point average. Sit Bowe this week and hopefully he will get to make some plays in Buffalo the following week.
Josh Gordon- So we all love Josh Gordon right now. He is playing exceptional. Well, except for last weeks game against Green Bay of course. Other than that he is a big payoff from the waiver wire earlier in the year after his suspension. This week the Browns take on the Chiefs and Gordon has back up QB Jason Campbell throwing to him. The Chiefs have the best pass rush in the NFL right now and the pressure will be unreal for Campbell. Don’t expect too much offense from the Browns at all on Sunday. Gordon is a definite sit this week, sadly.
Atlanta Falcons Veteran Tight End Tony Gonzalez
Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
Tight End:
Start:
Jordan Reed- Looks like Washington has found their number two favorite receiver and I think they plan on using him. Denver is averaging 38 points a game, and Washington is going to have to match that number if they want to win this game. RG3 definitely is relying on guys like Jordan Reed and Pierre Garcon right now for a safety net. Denver gives up the 9th most fantasy points to tight ends this season, making it a very favorable match-up. Denver has also given up 10 fantasy point to in all five games against pass catching tight ends. Jordan Reed has to be an obvious start here this week.
Tony Gonzalez- After a rough week against Tampa Bay for Gonzalez he now gets to play against the Arizona Cardinals who have allowed the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends in the NFL. This stat is quite shocking when you first read it but makes sense overall. Tony “Gunz” spent more than half of his snaps last week blocking and only ended the game with 2 receptions. With Matt Ryan coming off a solid performance and all other scoring options locked up against a tight defense I think Ryan will look to Gonzalez for a big performance from the veteran TE. He is a definite start in every league and will probably end up a top 3 TE this week.
Sit:
Zach Miller- Okay, there should not be any hype going on for Zach Miller right now. If you look at the two decent games he had this year they were against the 0-7 Jaguars and the Arizona Cardinals who have allowed more points to opposing TEs than any other team. Now he goes against a St. Louis squad who rank 4th against opposing TEs. Zach Miller needs to be benched this week and pretty much every week that he isn’t playing against teams like Jacksonville or Arizona. The only way you are playing this guy is if someone is paying you to lose this week!
Brandon Myers- I hate to recommend anyone to sit somebody that is playing against the Eagles this season. However, Myers is the perfect example of “zero to hero”. Wait. No, I got that backwards. Brandon Myers came out swinging this season with 140 yards and a TD in just two games and now has only seven receptions in five games for a total of 83 yards since week 2 and still not another TD. The Eagles have a surprisingly decent defense against opposing TE and actually rank 6th against the position. We shouldn’t expect anything from Myers this week even if Eli Manning comes through the way I predicted. After several weeks of disappointment to an awesome start of the season I think it’s safe to say Brandon Myers is a permanent sit as far as I am concerned. As long as he can’t get more than two receptions in any 2 week period then he can’t be started in any league.
New Orleans Saints Cornerback Jabari Greer & Squad
Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
Def./Special Teams:
Start:
New Orleans Saints- Last week the Saints had a bye week and are rested up to defend the Buffalo Bills fourth-string rookie QB Thad Lewis at home. The Bills are not the most threatening offense in the league but have a lot of potential. This can be good or bad for the New Orleans Def./SPT. After a weak performance against the Miami Dolphins last week you can expect something good from a much better Saints secondary. Even with the Saints being ranked 19th against opposing RBs I am confident in the Saints being the best waiver pick up this morning based on percentage owned in leagues.
Sit:
Miami Dolphins- With a league high 91% goal-to-go efficiency and an angry Tom Brady in Patriots territory you should stay away from starting the Dolphins this week. Tom Brady’s favorite target Rob Gronkowski was back last week with an amazing 114 yards and eight receptions. He should have had at least two TDs to add to the 11 fantasy points if Brady didn’t throw the ball slightly off target. I don’t think he is going to be making the same mistake yet another week this season. Definitely not at home. Drop the Dolphins and grab the Saints if you can.
Philadelphia Eagles Kicker Alex Henery
Credit: Jim O
Kicker:
Start:
Alex Henery- In week five when the Eagles first played the Giants he had a season high 20 fantasy points on five FGs and three XPs. The Giants are the 5th best match-up to an opposing kicker in the NFL currently. With Vick back I think Henery is a must start as he is only owned in 20% of ESPN leagues. I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy matches his week five stats.
Sit:
Greg “The Leg” Zuerlein- It’s always hard to admit that one of your favorite players is a definite sit this week. Yes, I love kickers. Sue me! With Bradford out I don’t expect the Rams to get very far down the field against a disgusting Seattle defense and morale. Nobody should, honestly. Until “The Leg” get’s to play against a defense like the Eagles or Giants you shouldn’t even have him on your roster.