NFL Week 1: Sit/Start, Sleeper Pick, and Game Of The Week Pick

After a few sweltering months of summer, migraines, contract disputes, flirtatious retirements, car accidents, weight gain, failed physicals, unpredicted releases, and the like, it has finally come down to this: Week 1. It is here. Sigh.

For us (fantasy) football die-hards, our lungs stop wheezing, there is no hesitation in each breath we take, no coughing. Football is back and it is poised to demand the attention of millions of fans every Sunday, Monday, and occasional Thursday, starting tonight with a rematch of last season's NFC Championship game. Saints vs. Vikings. The prolific offense vs. the prolific running back. Last season's best QB vs. a retired, unretired, retired, unretired QB. Oh, Favre. I do admire your passion for the game you love so much and how hard it is to give up, but enough with the dramatics in the offseason. We all know you despise training camps.

Week 1 promises a bevy of fantastic matchups, starting this evening and culminating on Monday night with the Jets taking on the Ravens, two of the best defenses from a season ago. Lions/Bears, Colts/Texans, 'Skins/Cowboys...need I say more? Those are going to be some great conference games. The Lions are looking to improve upon last season and Matthew Stafford showed signs of brilliance last season. He has Calvin Johnson and Tony Scheffler (a proven TE in Denver but No. 2 behind Pettigrew) who will get the start while Brandon Pettigrew fully recovers from an minor injury. Pettigrew may get in for some plays as he is day-to-day.

The Texans are hoping to start the season off right with a win against the perennial division-winning Colts. Andre Johnson and Co. are hoping the defense can stop Manning and the Colts. This game has shootout written all over it. Who's defense will step up and make the big stop?

Week 1 is hard to predict Sit/Starts, being it the first week of the season where every player wants to get on the battlefield and show what they're made of. However, not everyone can or will shine.

Sit: Mark Sanchez, NYJ- His matchup against a Baltimore defense doesn't bode well for a "serviceable" QB such as Sanchez is. If he is your best option to start, then by all means, go for it, but don't expect him to put up huge numbers. You would be better off starting Kyle Orton who seems to have a favorable matchup against Jacksonville.

Sit: Jamaal Charles, KC- The Chargers' defense is too fast and will stack the line against the Chiefs, forcing Matt Cassel to throw, throw, throw. Charles is better suited to start against a defense who isn't good at stuffing the run.

Start: Santana Moss, WAS- A new QB in McNabb and being the No. 1 wideout will certainly bode well for Moss. He has fluttered in mediocrity under the old regime but is now due for a strong bounce-back season in a better offense.

Start: Michael Crabtree, SF- His rapport with QB Alex Smith is good, he is a big, physical receiver who should play a full season and will help the 49ers turn a lot of heads this season. Look for Crabtree to be a breakout this season, starting in Week 1 against a porous Seattle defense.

This week I have two Sleeper picks, which is an uncommon thing in my articles but I thought I would offer my readers this treat:

Sleeper #1: Dexter McCluster, KC- McCluster was Mr. Everything at Ole Miss and it looks as if nothing has changed since being drafted by the Chiefs. Look for Dexter to play RB, WR and KR this season. Who knows, you may even see him throw a pass or two in the Charlie Weis-run offense.

Sleeper #2: Jahvid Best, DET- I wanted to put C.J. Spiller up here but he was named the starting tailback for Buffalo this week which doesn't make him much of a sleeper. Best, drafted out of Cal, will get a share of the carries for the Lions because the rookie has blazing speed and showed flashes of it in the preseason. However, Kevin Smith will take the bulk of carries because Best is slightly undersized but not by much.

Game of the Week: This is going to be a tough call to make, with so many great match-ups to start the season. I have spoken about a few of these games and I will say that these three games will cause me to change the Game of the Week to Games of the Week. Saints vs. Vikings sure will set the tone for the other two. As much as the Vikings would like to exact revenge on the Saints for knocking them out of the playoff last year, I think the Saints are too good right now.

Another game of interest is going to be the Shootout in the South, a.k.a Colts at Texans. As much as I would love for the underdog Texans to come out on top of this one, the Manning-led Colts are just too good with him under center. The Colts will prevail in this one but not before the Texans put a scare into them. We are only a short time away from a balance of power shift in the AFC South.

Lastly, the battle between two outstanding defenses on Monday night. Jets. Ravens. The newly revitalized Jets have moved out of the basement to become a force in the AFC. Led by a defense that just shuts people out, and up, the Jets hope to keep up that trend when the Ravens come to pay them a visit. The Ravens new-look offense, complete with a No. 1 WR in Anquan Boldin, look to get back to the playoffs and the top of the brutal AFC North (minus Cleveland). The Ravens will pull this one out by a nose and possibly in OT.

In closing, I would like to add my disclaimer:

The writings/predictions/prognostications in this, and future articles, are purely my thoughts and forecasts for the upcoming NFL season and for Fantasy purposes only. I have done enough research to make NASA engineers look like fourth graders preparing for the Spelling Bee yet that does not give me the right to be 100 percent correct on every piece of advice contained within said article. Use at your own discretion but don't blame me if you don't take my advice and are wrong week after week. I will not say I told you so. I will just quietly go on posting my advice to any and all.

Let the games begin!