A whole lot of teams are on byes this week (and next), and if you're like me you probably have an empty lineup spot somewhere. Probably a kicker or a defense, which shows the relative value of these things. I picked up Mason Crosby a couple of weeks ago and he's there for the duration, the one benefit of teams having early byes; you can exploit them. But the Bears are on a bye and I don't have the bench room to drop a valued player for a defense that realistically will get me only 5-6 points (sacks, turnovers, and TDs are all that are scored), so the Bears will stay in my lineup and get me a big fat zero. Rest assured that if I lose by 2 points I'll whine and moan about it on Monday.
Cowboys at Lions: It sounds like DeMarco Murray will play. Personally I'm not using him; the matchup is OK, but I'm thinking he'll get a reduced role. Wouldn't use any Cowboys runner, really. I like both passing games a lot, it should be one of those kind of affairs. That didn't really pan out with Cowboys-Eagles last week, and we talked some in the Weekly about Dallas' offense not traveling all that well.
49ers vs. Jaguars in Merry Olde England: Niners are healthy and Frank Gore should run wild. Jaguars have some banged-up receivers, but both have been productive with Chad Henne in the lineup. Eyesore of a game, so naturally the Jaguars will probably spring an amazing upset for their one win all season. But I doubt it.
Browns at Kansas City: Ugh. The Browns are the Browns, and they're starting Jason Campbell. Dwayne Bowe is iffy, for those who have to count on the likes of Dwayne Bowe. Without looking it up I'd say no team has faced a sorrier slate of opposing quarterbacks than Kansas City. I mean seriously: Jason Campbell.
Dolphins at Patriots: Dolphins are healthy and the matchup is fine. Everyone from Bill Belichick to the punter is no doubt listed as "questionable" for the Patriots. I personally am not using Amendola and not sure he'll be active anyway.
Bills at Saints: Can the Bills spring an upset? You never know. It sounds like Jimmy Graham will miss at least this game; if you have him, make sure he's active. C.J. Spiller should be out and Fred Jackson will no doubt aggravate his knee or ankle injury during the game (though I would start him), so Tashard Choice might be viable in deeper leagues, at least for a bench spot. Graham being out, if it goes down that way, should benefit Colston and -- I think -- Lance Moore. But mostly Sproles and Pierre Thomas.
Giants at Eagles: Giants saved their season by beating Minnesota, but managed to look unimpressive doing so. I don't like their chances here, and I certainly wouldn't want to start Peyton Hillis or Michael Cox. Michael Vick returns and him I would start. Eagles offense should be good. Note that Jon Beason has helped the middle of that Giants defense, though.
Jets at Bengals: Two good defensive teams, so I'm not expecting much from either offense. Geno Smith was one of the available quarterbacks I considered in a league where Rivers and Luck are on their byes. (I tried to be proactive by adding Sam Bradford a week ago, which didn't work out so well; sorry, Sam , you can blame me. I'm benching Gio Bernard here, though I like his chances more than BJGE.
Steelers at Raiders: Steelers defense still has some game to it, Raiders are a little better than expected. I'm thinking this is a 17-13 type of game, and as a result am avoiding when possible. LeVeon Bell is the guy I'm starting ahead of Giovani, although note that the Raiders D isn't a total pushover.
Falcons at Cardinals: Steven Jackson probably returns, I still wouldn't use him. Atlanta's D is bad, so Larry Fitzgerald should be OK. No Roddy White, and it sounds like Rashard Mendenhall won't play, leading to a likely expanded role for Andre Ellington. But they aren't going to feature him, they say, so it will be Alfonso Smith or Stepfan Taylor. Ellington is the one I'd consider, and maybe he will get more of a leading type role once the team sees a few carries out of Alfonso Smith or Stepfan Taylor.
Washington at Broncos: I think if either of these two teams appears in a football game, you can fairly say, "Should be some points scored in this one." So put both teams in the SAME game, and, well, light 'em up. I have no specific starts or sits here; there's nobody I'd say, eh, he won't do much, get him out of your lineup.
Packers at Vikings: Christian Ponder is the winner of the "I need a quarterback this week with Rivers and Luck on their byes" sweepstakes. It was him or one of the Smiths, Geno and Alex. I figure the Vikings lose this game by 20 points and still score more than the Jets. It was close between him and Alex Smith, but at least Ponder runs around a little too. No James Jones, so Jarrett Boykin is a good option.
Seahawks at Rams: Wow, hard to believe that Brett Favre would turn down a chance to start at quarterback for the Rams. "Is Green Bay on the schedule? No? Seahawks twice, 49ers once, and the Bears, who knocked me into retirement? Yeah, uh, no thanks." At least the story enabled me to go to my kids' Halloween dance as Retired Brett Favre. As for the game, it's Kellen Clemens against Seattle, so I really want no part of anything connected with the Rams offense. Marshawn Lynch should be really good.
As always, I will answer questions posted to the best of my ability. If I fail to answer your question, it is likely because I am deferring to the Index Weekly rankings. Enjoy the games.
