Week 4 ~ "Start'em"

We enter our first week with the need to cover some positions due to the bye week. Reviewing this week's matchups, there are some obvious choices, of which I don't need to get into.... If you don't know whether or not to play them, you shouldn't own a team, but this article is for the bye week replacements and decisions between your second-tier players or free agent "steals".

QUARTERBACKS:

Matt Schaub: Although he is not typically your first string quarterback, unless you have McNabb (against a porious NYG secondary), Romo (does it matter who they are up against anymore?), Brady (again, does it matter? 38 points, thank you... NEXT!!!), then you may want to consider using Schaub as a spot starter. If you are torn between playing Palmer or not, I recommend you don't. The Patriots are number 2 in pass-defense, allowing teams approx. 157 yds a game.

Kyle Boller: Baltimore faces a Division I-AA defense at CLE this week. They are in the bottom five of both pass and run defense (Romeo, or Romeo, where ar thou defense, Romeo?). He is a game manager by nature and has a great chance to push 200+ yds, 2 tds or more!

Brian Griese: No, I didn't pick him because he is fresh meat. Actually, he is facing a defensive secondary that had 4 TDs and almost 400 yds last week. Although that was extreme, they haven't faired much better in there previous attempts at stopping the pass. With Berrian, Muhammad, Olsen, and Clark, I see a great game for Brian to come out and win some fan support.

Chad Pennington: He really hasn't been the epitome of health, nor a yardage machine, but he has put up approximately 175 yds and 2TDs in each of his two starts against solid secondaries (@ NE: 167 YDs & 2 TDs, 124 YDs & 2 TDs). The Buffalo Bills pale in comparison to these two teams so he should see 200+ and potentially 3 TDs.

Jeff Garcia: The reason I added him to the list this week is because of Carolina's inability to properly defend the pass, to date. I realize that beyond Galloway and Williams out of the backfield, he is limited on options, but that shouldn't stop him from putting up better than average numbers, say 225Yds & 2 TDs (maybe even run one in for good measure). This is a hit or miss pick as he could very well disappoint as well. I lean more towards profitable, again relying on the Panthers history so far this season, giving up over 246 YDs a game so far. (Subsequently, this isn't looking good for "Cadillac" because they are 7th in rush defense.

RUNNING BACKS

Brian Leonard: With the rib injury to Bulger, knee injury for Holt, and the most recent groin injury to Steven Jackson, it is Leonards time to shine (See Leonard Gets First Gig! ). This kid is a north running bruiser who will plough through, stomp down, leap over, or stiff-arm you in the grill if he needs to. He is going to hurt somebody and it should equal some healthy fantasy points for whomever elects to start him.

Ronnie Brown: No, I wouldn't start him every week, but against the Oakland Raiders there shouldn't be a doubt. This defense has yet to get it's knees under itself. Don't expect what he did last week, but expect a fairly productive week of 85+ YDs and at least 1 TD.

Correll Buckhalter: If Brian Westbrook misses the game, I assure you Correll won't miss him. Buckhalter can run the ball, he can catch, and he can make some fantasy GM who wisely picked him up off free agency to start, if for nothing else, this week. Brian Westbrook he is not, but he has the potential to be among the top 10 runningbacks, statistically, this week as the NYG haven't proven they can truly stop the run.

Thomas Jones: For all those who drafted him, here is your big payday. Thomas faces a defense that can't get out of it's own way, nevermind get in the way of the offense. Thomas Jones will have a career day as Pennington and the boys should feast on the Buffalo defense. With Washington handling punts and kick returns, it appears that Jones is ready to be the work horse. 20+ touches for Jones typically equals 100 YDs and points on the board.

WIDE RECEIVERS:

Bernard Berrian: This game is a great opportunity to get some worth out of picking him in the draft. With the emergence of Griese as the starter and the weak secondary of the Lions, expect both Berrian and Muhammad to put up relatively prosperous numbers. I see Berrian finishing with a TD, however, he may not see more than 60 YDs.

Derrick Mason: An oldie, but a goodie. Derrick is not going to revive his career by any means, but should capitalize on the weak defense of the Cleveland Browns. Last week showed that Boller will rely on his veteran leadership and excellent route-running, defense-acknowledging experience to put points on the board.

Andre Davis: With Andre Johnson injured, expect another Andre to sport a great portion of the workload. Andre Davis has never lived up to his potential. He had NFL star written all over his resume, unfortunetly, he has been religated to a third receiver in most offenses, including Houston. Expect him to be a go-to target for Schaub as they go to ATL and try and prey on the young, aggressive, and some-times dumb-witted (D. Hall???) actions that give teams great opportunity to light up the scoreboard and give some credence to his roster spot.

Joey Galloway: I realize that he is viewed by some as an elite player. Yes, he still has speed and can get behind a defender, but the offense is lead by Garcia and his short-passing vision of an offense. TB walks into a secondary that is good, not great, but good. The problem with Galloway is not Galloway at all, it is the falling star of Mike Clayton. Maurice Stovall will give some secondaries trouble though. Let's hope for Joey's sake that he does and that Garcia can make a target of Galloway all game long.

Kevin Curtis: PhI walks into NYG Stadium still out to prove something. Some consider this a no-brainer, but also considers Randel-El's monster walk more than an epiphany. With Curtis, it is different. Donavan showed two weeks ago that he wanted Kevin as his top receiver, last week just confirmed it. This is a solid start as the NYG secondary will surely have their hand's full with Curtis, Avant, Brown, and Smith, led by none other than McNabb...

TIGHT ENDS:

Ben Watson: Tom Brady loves him some Ben!!! Ben has been the target of his third checkdown for quite awhile now...finding the endzone the last two weeks. With Cincinnati sitting in a den, awaiting the lion to take it away from them, they will find that the take-aways won't be near as frequent as they have seen in recent weeks. I expect Ben to walk away with at least 50 yds and a TD, maybe more if they focus on Moss & Welker.

Chris Baker: I can't help myself by adding him in here again. He is finding a knack to be open from 10 Yds in. He isn't Gates, Heap, Shockey, or Gonzalez, but he is giving his best effort to get there someday. Pennington struggles with staying on his feet and will find Baker more useful as the season progresses. At least a TD. If you get more than 40 YDs out of him, that is a bonus.

Jason Witten: His stats will be on again, off again, but this week should be profitable for young Witten. There is no clear cut number two wider receiver with Terry Glenn out (and won't do much when he comes back), unless you count Patrick Crayton or Sam Hurd. Witten will get his fair share against a poor STL defense. He may eclipse 100 YDs and get a look or two at the endzone (if Barber isn't soaking it up).

Hope this helps to either start'em and sit your starter or pick'em up and start'em if you have available roster space (weak players deep in your teams depth charts). Tomorrow we will focus on Sit'em and who can you bring up from your depth chart to start and make an impact.

Statistocrat