Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 2: Final Review Before Thursday Night Football

On Tuesday, we went through some of the fringe starters you may have had in your lineup and played the fantasy favorite "Start 'Em, Sit 'Em" game. This week, we're going to focus on some of the bigger names out there. 

From a quarterback primed for a bounce-back week to a running back I wouldn't touch if I was wearing a hazmat suit, we'll examine six players (no tight ends on this list, folks—start your studs!) and determine whether they will help or hinder your team this week.

All point totals for standard-scoring leagues. Points and points-against stats via ESPN.

Quarterback

Start 'Em: Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots

I love Tom Brady this week. Love, love, love him. I don't care that he was a fantasy disappointment last year. I don't care that he was a fantasy disappointment in Week 1. Frankly, given the matchup, his mediocre showing wasn't that shocking—Miami has a very good pass defense.

Plus, there was the following to consider, via Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com:

That's not conducive to quality quarterback play, but I think he's due for a bounce-back performance. In fact, I think he's going to blow up this week. In fact, he's the No. 5 quarterback in my rankings. But why?

Well, there's the little fact that the Minnesota Vikings gave up 21.3 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks a year ago, worst in the NFL. The Vikings are actually first in points allowed to opposing quarterbacks this year, giving up just 6.0 in week one, but don't be fooled—that was against Shaun Hill and the hapless St. Louis Rams passing game. 

Brady and company are far from hapless. Rob Gronkowski is rounding into form and gives Brady his preferred red-zone target. Shane Vereen is healthy and a dangerous playmaker out of the backfield. Julian Edelman is steady as they come. Brady's had another season to work with his young receivers. Timothy Wright will continue to learn the offense and provide another option. 

Brady's not the guy who was setting passing records in his prime, no. But he's still an excellent quarterback in an offense that stumbled in Week 1 but more often than not chews up yardage like a pack of Big League Chew at a little league game. This is a great week to get on the Brady bandwagon.

Sit 'Em: Colin Kaepernick, QB, San Francisco 49ers

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

I was disappointed in Colin Kaepernick in Week 1. With a tasty matchup against the Dallas Cowboys and their dreadful pass defense, he offered a 17-point performance that was good enough to make him a low-end QB1 for the week but wasn't the breakthrough many owners were probably hoping for.

Granted, 201 passing yards and two touchdowns is nothing to sneeze at. But the matchup suggested he could do even bigger things.

This week, I think he'll regress, mostly because I'm not sure the Niners will have to pass the ball all that often against a Chicago Bears team that leaks rushing yards. The Bears gave up an NFL-worst 161.4 rushing yards per game last year and already gave up 193 rushing yards to the Buffalo Bills in Week 1. Only two teams gave up more.

In other words, I think you are going to see a very healthy dose of Frank Gore in the game plan for Week 1, with a side of Carlos Hyde. There is some upside for Kaepernick as a runner and he might sling a few touchdown passes, but the game plan—and the fact that the Bears are much better against the pass than they are the run—suggests that Kaep won't have a big week for fantasy owners.

Running Back

Start 'Em: Frank Gore, RB, San Francisco 49ers

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

See Kaepernick, Colin. The Niners are going to cycle in Hyde pretty regularly one would imagine throughout the season in an effort to keep Gore fresh, but I wouldn't be shocked at all if had had 25 carries, 125 yards and two scores this week. 

If you have Gore, sit back and enjoy all of the fantasy points.

Sit 'Em: Zac Stacy, RB, St. Louis Rams

L.G. Patterson/Associated Press

Zac Stacy helped guide me to a championship after I picked him up in one of my leagues on waivers last year. He was remarkably consistent and seemed a pretty safe bet to be a weekly RB2 at worst this year. I regularly touted him in my preseason fantasy coverage.

Suffice to say, I feel a certain level of loyalty towards him. So it's really, really difficult to recommend players to shelve him for the time being. 

I don't like that the Rams have to rely on Hill at quarterback and opposing teams don't need to respect the passing game. I don't like that he only got 11 carries in Week 1 and managed to rush for just 43 yards, or that Benny Cunningham worked with the first team regularly in the preseason and had five carries in Week 1. And I don't like the matchup against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that allowed just 13.5 fantasy points per week to opposing backs a year ago and gave up a total of 11 to Carolina's backs on Sunday. 

I'm terrified of Stacy this week. Until he proves he's a reliable starter, you should be terrified of him, too.

Wide Receivers

Start 'Em: Reggie Wayne, WR, Indianapolis Colts

I think we can all put any worries about Reggie Wayne's knee or his age behind us. The future Hall of Famer finished Week 1 with nine receptions for 98 yards and a whopping 13 targets, proving once again that he's the man Andrew Luck trusts more than anyone else.

Now he gets a Philadelphia Eagles secondary that allowed 27.9 total fantasy points to opposing wide receivers per week a year ago, worst in the NFL, and just made undrafted rookie Allen Hurns (four receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns) look like Jerry Rice. 

So yeah, I think Wayne could have a huge week. Get him in those lineups!

Sit 'Em: Keenan Allen, WR, San Diego Chargers

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

There's two ways to approach the argument against Keenan Allen this week. The first is to look at the numbers.

The Seattle Seahawks gave up just 12.8 fantasy points per week to opposing receivers last year, tops in the league. They also just held Green Bay, one of the top passing attacks in the NFL, to a paltry 191 yards in Week 1. And matched up against solid corners in Week 1, Patrick Peterson and Antonio Cromartie, Allen only managed five receptions for 37 yards on nine targets. It's hard to see him improving those totals against an even better secondary.

The second approach is to write a bunch of random words that looks something like this:

Legion of Boom, Richard Sherman, arguably the best secondary in league history, Legion of Boom, Earl Thomas, historically good pass defense a year ago, Kam Chancellor, Legion of Boom, seriously they were so awesome last year and just frustrated the hell out of Aaron Rodgers, Byron Maxwell, Legion of Boom.

Get the point? 

Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer your fantasy questions (though your lineup questions can be answered here) and I'll make some corny jokes too. It's more fun than karate class with Antonio Brown.