Fantasy Football Start 'em or Sit 'em: Week 11

Eric StashinNov 17, 2010

Trying to decide who you should start or sit this week? Let’s take a look at a few potential decisions owners have and try to sort through them:

Quarterback
Start – Jon Kitna – Dallas Cowboys – vs. Detroit
He’s coming off a big game against the Giants and is starting to show a much better rapport with his wide receivers, most notably Dez Bryant. It was the second time he’s posted a 300 plus passing yard day since replacing the injured Tony Romo and he has thrown seven touchdowns in the four games.

While interceptions have been a concern (he has seven), part of those struggles could be due to his unfamiliarity with the receiving corps. He threw only one against the Giants this week and more then half (four to be exact) came in his first full game.

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Mark Sanchez and the New York Jets, meanwhile, recently torched the Lions, through the air. You have to like the opportunity Kitna has to excel.

Other quarterbacks to start:

David Garrard – Jacksonville Jaguars – vs. Cleveland
Carson Palmer – Cincinnati Bengals – vs. Buffalo

Sit – Jay Cutler – Chicago Bears – at Miami
Cutler is coming off a game that was considered good, having thrown for 237 yards and three touchdowns. Of course, he also threw a pair of interceptions, which is always the concern when it comes to Cutler.

He is just three weeks removed from a four interception game against the Redskins. The Dolphins may not be a big team for interceptions, but they are in the top six in the league in passing yards allowed at 203.9. There are options with higher upsides that I’d prefer to roll the dice on this week.

Other quarterbacks to sit:

Brett Favre – Minnesota Vikings – vs. Green Bay
Donovan McNabb – Washington Redskins – at Tennessee

Running Back
Start – LeGarrette Blount – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – at San Francisco
Blount did a great job of cementing himself as the lead back for the Buccaneers, rushing for 91 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. A lot of people likely gave up on him after a poor outing in Week 9 against the Falcons, but that game should not have come as a surprise given the way the Falcons defense has played.

The 49ers rushing defense is not poor by any stretch, allowing 100.7 rushing yards per game on the season. However, Blount’s hard-nosed running style still makes him a good play with the potential to find the end zone.

Start – BenJarvus Green-Ellis – New England Patriots – vs. Indianapolis
Green-Ellis posted a stunning performance against the Steelers, running for 87 yards on 18 carries (as well as four receptions for 36 yards). Now he draws one of the worst rushing defenses in the league in the Colts, who are allowing 133.2 rushing yards per game.

He has certainly had his ups and downs this season, only once posting back-to-back games of at least 75 yards. In fact, he has five games of 25 yards or less.

Fantasy owners had thought that Danny Woodhead could emerge as the main running back, but after the Week 10 performance that certainly has to be reevaluated. This could be his chance to really entrench himself.

Other running backs to start:

Fred Jackson – Buffalo Bills – at Cincinnati
Darren McFadden – Oakland Raiders – at Pittsburgh

Sit – Tim Hightower – Arizona Cardinals – at Kansas City
Will this be the week that Beanie Wells finally gets healthy and reclaims the role of lead back in Arizona? Even if he doesn’t, has Hightower really done anything to make you want to use him? He’s posted back-to-back 13 carry, 39 yard rushing days. Yes, that’s an average of 3.0 yards per carry.

You put the two things together and, outside of maybe a FLEX option, it’s difficult to trust Hightower this week.

Sit – Donald Brown – Indianapolis Colts – at New England
The Patriots defense is weak in the secondary, as Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers defense firmly put on display on Sunday Night Football. The Colts will likely show the run, but it’s hard to imagine them depending on it.

If that wasn’t enough, Brown has been losing goal line carries to Javarris Jones, who had another rushing touchdown in Week 10. Oh, and both Joseph Addai and Mike Hart could potentially return, just making the depth chart look all the more cloudy.

Other running backs to sit:

Ricky Williams – Miami Dolphins – vs. Chicago
Brandon Jacobs – New York Giants – at Philadelphia

Two Wide Receiver Formats
Start – Santonio Holmes – New York Jets – vs. Houston
The Jets are coming off back-to-back near 300 yard passing days from Mark Sanchez and draw the worst passing defense in the league. Not only are they worst in yardage (301.3), but also touchdowns allowed (22).

Holmes has grown more and more comfortable in the offense in recent weeks, with 10 receptions for 190 yards and a touchdown over the past two games (despite the biggest plays coming in overtime). It has become clear that he is the top wide receiver on the Jets and is well worth playing with this matchup.

Other wide receivers to start:

Dez Bryant – Dallas Cowboys – vs. Detroit
Wes Welker – New England Patriots – vs. Indianapolis

Sit – Randy Moss – Tennessee Titans – vs. Washington
Coming off the way the Redskins defense was torched by the pass against Michael Vick and the Eagles, maybe this needs to be rediscussed. Still, until the Titans prove that they are going to use him as anything beyond a decoy, it’s impossible to trust him in shallower formats.

Another wide receiver to sit:

Steve Smith – Carolina Panthers – vs. Baltimore

Three Wide Receiver Formats
Start – Mike Thomas – Jacksonville Jaguars – vs. Cleveland
I know his touchdown and a lot of his yards in Week 10 were based on a lot of luck, but overall you have to like his production the past few weeks. (He has 12 receptions for 190 yards and two touchdowns.)

Overall he has 536 receiving yards and, given how enigmatic Mike Sims-Walker has been, could easily be considered the top fantasy receiver for the Jaguars.

Other wide receivers to start:

Michael Crabtree – San Francisco 49ers – vs. Tampa Bay
Mike Williams – Seattle Seahawks – at New Orleans

Sit – Seyi Ajirotutu – San Diego Chargers – vs. Denver
It’s easy to get excited after his breakout performance in Week 9, but Malcolm Floyd is back at practice and Vincent Jackson is closing in on his 2010 debut. The situation is just too unpredictable to trust him at this point.

Another wide receiver to sit: