The above digital image was created by the incredibly talented Rafal Hrynkiewicz.
The continued NFL theme of Bizzaro world is enough to put any Fantasy manager in a mental ward. Last week, The lowly Titans eliminated the entire Jacksonville passing game, the Eagles defeated the Giants by an eye-opening 23 points; something that hasn’t happened since 1989, and the Lions—despite bettering their 2008 campaign by one victory—couldn’t seem to defeat the winless Rams.
In addition, Brandon Marshall was limited to 24 yards, Sims-Walker chimed in with four pennies and a nickel, and Roy Williams TD was overshadowed by another measly output of 19 yards on two looks.
Tylenol anyone?
This week’s matchup however, affords us a nice mixture of advantageous starts, and easy to recognize sits, along with the no brainers.
Shall we?
Week 9 Top Five No Brainer Reciever Starts.
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1. Reggie Wayne
There is very little doubt that the matchup against Houston won’t be a shootout with Wayne being the focal point for Indy. |
2.Donald Driver
Tampa’s inability to cover will be a feasting ground for the pride wounded Pack and you can be sure they’ll take out their frustrations on Tampa. |
3.Marques Colston
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4.Nate Burleson
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5. Andre Johnson
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Top Ten Starts:
| #1 Vince Jackson: Jackson has been lighting things up very quietly with four games over 100 yards; two of them for over 140! He is a must start this week against a suddenly bad Giants secondary. |
| #2 Dwayne Bowe: The Chiefs have had a week to figure out their problems offensively and get a fresh—Johnson-less—start. Bowe has a delicious matchup vs. the Jags this week. |
| #3 Sims-Walker: On the other side of the field will be Sims-Walker, who will undoubtedly bounce back against the poor coverage of the Chiefs. |
| #4 Ocho Cinco: Baltimore’s switch to a more traditional style defense last week won’t affect the samba dancing wide out who is on pace for a career year. |
| #5 Wes Welker: Welker’s role in the Pats’ offense is a gold mine for Fantasy owners and that is likely to continue this week vs. Miami. |
| #6 Greg Jennings: The Packers always use their receivers in tandem and against the shotty coverage of the Bucs this week it will be the Driver-Jennings show. He is good for a score and 70+ yards. |
| #7 Hines Ward: Before the break the smiling veteran had one of his worst games in his career; something he will recover from nicely against the Broncos' nickel packages. |
| #8 Randy Moss: The Dolphins are the worst in the NFL at giving up passes of 20 yards or more, and Moss is 11th overall in Fantasy. Still, don’t expect a monster game out of him even though his numbers should still be pretty decent. |
| #9 Michael Crabtree: The rookie has clearly showed he not only understands the 49ers offense, but also can consistently produce week in and week out. Look for him to run amuck on the Titans and don’t be fooled by their performance against the Jags last week either. |
| #10 Brandon Marshall: The fines have been lifted from the organization which basically says “ We love you now Brandon” so it’s time for him to really let loose, and the Steelers can be exploited downfield; precisely where Marshall likes to go. |
Must Sit of the Week:
This week I am listing Derrick Mason as the Must Sit of the Week. The Bengals have a nasty pass rush and equally disruptive coverage schemes that should force Flacco to check down more and go deep, less. And when Flacco checks down more, it’s the running backs who are the ones catching the balls.
The first time around—and it was anything but a may pole— the Bengals literally shutout the old graybeard, and after a week’s worth of rest and some recent surging success, the Bengals are not only primed to take Baltimore, but keep Mason in check one more time.
Two Through Ten:
| #2 Roy Williams: He’s just not producing in any given week and shouldn’t be considered, especially against Philadelphia. |
| #3 Anquan Boldin: Boldin has bravely touted his willingness to play through his perpetually injured ankle which is noble yes, but useless in Fantasy terms. Keep him benched until you know for sure he is 100%. |
| #4 Antonio Brant: The Packers are average against really good teams and excellent against poor teams. They have improved on overall coverage and tackling which will not boad well for Bryant and company. |
| #5 Megatron aka. Calvin Johnson: Not yet Megatron owners, not yet. |
| #6 Mario Manningham: The separated shoulder continues to be a problem for the Giants and Manningham and will likely continue to be so for week 9. He isn’t worth the start this week. |
| #7 Devin Hester: I don’t like Hester’s chances this week vs. the secondary of Arizona particularly with Rodgers-Cromartie playing as well as is has been. If you have another option that is better, use it. |
| #8 Steve Smith (Car): The Saints are just too good, and they will get to Delhomme often making Smith’s targets go way down. |
| #9 Lance Moore: Moore’s value continues to suffer thanks mainly to the wide variety of offensive options the Saints use before looking his way. Both he and Robert Meachem are a double sit this week. |
| #10 Josh Morgan: With Crabtree showing weekly success, Morgan is doing his best impression of the invisible man. His targets will continue to drop and shouldn’t be considered valuable at this point. |
Fantasy Player Highlight: Malcom Floyd- San Diego Chargers
With the recent ax of Chris Chambers in San Diego, Malcom Floyd will finally get his time to shine for the Chargers. The 6’5” 220+ receiver has always been a reliable target both deep, and in close play in the red zone, but never really had a chance to get going. Usually a situational WR, Floyd will now start opposite of Vince Jackson making the Chargers that much more deadly.
Floyd hasn’t gone above 65 yards yet this season but also hasn’t had very many options to do so; all of that could change very quickly starting with New York.
Floyd has incredible size and is gifted with the speed to go along with his stature which makes him a potent target for the pass happy Rivers; with Gates and V-Jax garnering the majority of the attention in coverage, and L.T. and Sproles keeping the linebackers busy, Floyd could be this year’s next breakout wide receiver; will you be notified?
He should still be available in deeper leagues, and if he is, you would be very wise to grab him now while you can.
Good Luck this week everyone.
