Fantasy Football: Week Two Preview, Part One

Another week is nearly upon us! This part of the preview will sort through the 1 PM games. We'll cover the 4 PM games, Sunday night, and Monday night in tomorrow's action.  

Guys with average picks in the first three rounds are not listed here. You should always start your studs unless there is a REALLY good reason not to. Marshawn Lynch, Greg Jennings, Reggie Wayne, Roy Williams, Plaxico Burress, and Calvin Johnson are all starters.  

As always, the information is accurate as of the time the article is posted. 

Green Bay at Detroit 

Who to Start: Donald Driver, Donald Lee, Aaron Rodgers (2QB formats), Kevin Smith 

Who to Sit: Ruvell Martin, Packers Def, Rudi Johnson 

What to Expect: The Lions were run all over last week by Michael Turner and the Falcons and were beaten deep several times in the passing game by a quarterback nowhere near as good as Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers should find himself another healthy game against a much weaker secondary, throwing for around 250 yards and two touchdowns.

Expect Greg Jennings to be the primary beneficiary, but Donald Lee is a solid target in the red zone and provides a safety net for Rodgers in the face of any pass rush. Both receivers should be good for a touchdown, with Driver being solid enough to grab about 80 yards on the receiving end. 

The question comes in the health of Ryan Grant. Grant was held out of practice Wednesday and likely will be held out again on Thursday. We'll have to monitor his progress, but as of now, we expect him to play and be effective against a poor run defense. If healthy, expect over 100 yards and a touchdown. 

Tarvaris Jackson managed to look good against the Packers last week, so expect the Packers DB's to be more physical than usual. The Lions' receivers are big and pose matchup problems for the under-sized secondary. I'm not a huge Jon Kitna guy, but his two main targets, Johnson and Williams, should combine for around 200 yards.  

The Packers' run defense is good, but Kevin Smith should still come close to the 100-yard mark and be good for a score. 

Sleeper Pickup: Brandon Jackson. Jackson will be the guy to own if Grant can't go, or if he comes out mid-game. Given the Lions' weak run defense, he even has value as a second option to Grant. 70 yards isn't out of the question. Teams that need a running back should take note. 

Oakland at Kansas City 

Who to Start: Justin Fargas, Ronald Curry, KC Defense, Dwayne Bowe, Tony Gonzalez 

Who to Sit: Javon Walker, Darren McFadden

What to Expect: Last season, the Chiefs had the fifth-ranked defense in terms of passing-yards allowed per game. The Raiders don't necessarily have a deep threat to make them concerned and are still going with the rookie Russell at quarterback.

That in mind, expect Russell to throw for a touchdown, but don't expect more than 170 yards through the air. Curry will catch the touchdown pass, but not more than 75 yards. 

While McFadden did show flashes of brilliance, Justin Fargas is still the back of choice. I watched Maroney look better against the Chiefs than he did against anyone all of last season. Fargas is a good play here, as he'll see the bulk of the work. 

With Brodie Croyle out, the Chiefs are threatening to use two quarterbacks. If that's the case, none are good plays. Just the threat of it rules them all out. With Damon Huard under center, the Chiefs' passing game receives an upgrade.

I feel he'll get the bulk of the snaps, making Dwayne Bowe and Tony Gonzalez solid plays, as usual. 

I'm just not sold on Larry Johnson. He should run for 90 yards and a touchdown against the Raiders, but that's because of how bad they are against the run. The Raiders were 31st against the run last season, allowing 145 yards per game, and couldn't stop the Broncos last week.

Still think Jamaal Charles is a steal on waivers, and should be handcuffed for all Johnson owners.

Sleeper Pickup: Zach Miller. The Raiders tight end is going to be the safety valve that Russell needs, and he's still largely available in all formats. 

NY Giants at St. Louis Rams 

Who to Start: All your Giants (Amani Toomer included), Randy McMichael

Who to Sit: Kevin Boss, Marc Bulger

What to Expect: If you're a Rams fan, you should probably expect another disaster. Unfortunately, even a Giants defense that is short-handed can still put the clamps down on a poor offense. 

Marc Bulger isn't likely to crack 200 yards, and any touchdown he throws will go to Torry Holt. Mainly because there are no other real threats through the air at this point, especially with Drew Bennett out. 

Steven Jackson will carry the offense. Portis ran well against the Giants, so Jackson should, too. Look for him to crack 100 yards and a score. 

Eli Manning should enjoy success in the same way the Eagles did. Manning should throw for close to 300 yards and be good for two touchdown passes. I like one to go to Plaxico Burress, and the other to Toomer. Burress will be the big winner, looking to grab over 125 yards. Toomer should come in around the 75-yard mark. 

Brandon Jacobs should have an equally good day, rushing for north of 100 yards and two touchdowns. This is just not a good Rams team. But it is a good place for offenses to rack up some numbers. 

The curious piece will be how the carries are split between backups Ahmad Bradshaw and Derrick Ward. Bradshaw didn't record a carry in the opener, but Ward looked good against the Redskins.

Sleeper Pickup: It's going to be a third receiver on the Giants. Steve Smith is still the better play here as far as pickups go, so we'll go with him again this week. 

Indianapolis at Minnesota

Who to Start: Anthony Gonzalez, Marvin Harrison, Bernard Berrian

Who to Sit: Dallas Clark, Minnesota Def, Colts Def

What to Expect: Points, at least on the Indy side of the ball.

The Vikings were awful against the pass last year and didn't instill confidence with their performance against Green Bay. Peyton Manning and crew are a different bunch to deal with.

Manning should crack 300 yards against the poor secondary, with multiple touchdown passes. Reggie Wayne is certainly good for one of those, if not two. Wayne will draw the attention, which will allow Anthony Gonzalez to rack up points underneath. He and Harrison are both good for close to 70 yards. 

Dallas Clark had an MRI that showed no structural issues with his knee, but he is questionable, at best, to play against the Vikings. Honestly, they likely wouldn't need him anyway. 

Not sold on the running attack from Indy against a defense that was the best in football last season against the run. Ryan Grant was able to put up numbers last week, but largely on one big run. Addai is a must start, but don't reach for secondary Indy runners.

Minnesota will do their damage on the ground against the Colts. Peterson is obviously a safe bet, and it wouldn't necessarily be a reach to start Chester Taylor if you needed the yards. Taylor will spell Peterson enough, and they'll limit Jackson's throws enough, to make him a viable option in deep leagues.

Receiver-wise, you can start Bernard Berrian as a WR2 option, but don't look for much other help.

Sleeper Pickup: Not many of which to speak in this one. 

Tennessee at Cincinnati

Who to Start: Tennessee Def, Chris Johnson, LenDale White, Chris Perry

Who to Sit: Vince Young (Out), Kerry Collins,

What to Expect: This one could be an ugly defensive struggle. Probably should phrase it as an offensive struggle, thanks to the struggling offenses.

The Titans' defense was strong last week against all aspects of the Jaguars' attack. Given how bad the Bengals offense looked against a bad Ravens team, that doesn't bode well for the guys from Cincy.

Anyway, Palmer can't be worse than he was last week, and should likely find Houshmandzadeh and Johnson often, as that's the weaker part to the Titans defense. Look for 220 yards and a couple TD passes from Palmer, but if his accuracy is as bad as it was last week, he'll hurt you with a couple picks as well.

Chris Perry will likely get the call at running back, and if that's the case, look for about 75 yards and a touchdown from him.

On the Titans side, they will run and run and run some more. Kerry Collins is in there to be a game manager. He has two top-end running backs that will be strong against the suspect Cincinnati front seven.

Johnson should go for around 100 and a touchdown, while White probably grabs around 60 and a touchdown. White should be looked at as a flex option.

Sleeper Pickup: Bo Scaife. Yes, Alge Crumpler gets the headlines, but Scaife knows the offense and the quarterback. He could be a steal this weak as a favorite target for Kerry Collins.

New Orleans at Washington

Who to Start: Devery Henderson, Saints Def

Who to Sit: Jason Campbell, Robert Meachem, Any Redskins receiver not named "Moss", 'Skins Def

What to Expect: The injury to Marques Colston creates more opportunity for Reggie Bush and company to do some damage in the passing game.

The Giants could have done much more against the Redskins if Eli Manning had been more accurate. Drew Brees won't have that problem. Sure, the Redskins have basically had a bye week because of their early game time, they still suffered some early bumps and bruises that should make them more susceptible to the pass.

Your normal saints, meaning Brees, Bush, and Shockey, should all have solid outings. I like Shockey and Bush to be good for touchdowns, as well as Henderson. Henderson should record 80 yards to go with it.

I don't like anything about the way the Redskins played in Week One. That carries over to this week.

While Randle El was solid against the Giants, grabbing seven passes, I'm just not comfortable saying he's a play in anything other than deep leagues. Moss will still be the guy. If Campbell throws for more than 225 yards, I'll be surprised. That means Portis will be a huge factor in any points scored.

Sleeper Pickup: In most leagues, David Patten qualifies here. Without Colston in the lineup, the Saints will need another receiver to step up. It's Patten's chance to do that.

Chicago at Carolina

Who to Start: Matt Forte, Jake Delhomme, Muhsin Muhammad, DeAngelo Williams

Who to Sit: Marty Booker, Jonathan Stewart, Steve Smith (Out)

What to Expect: Carolina looked good against an equally strong San Diego defense last week, so similar numbers to that isn't out of the question.

Delhomme should be good for around 250 yards and two touchdown passes. Muhammad will be the primary target, and he should be good for one of those. Dante Rosario, the tight end, should record the other.

Williams proved he can handle being a full-time back, but Chicago is very tough against the run. He may put up 75 yards, but I wouldn't anticipate a score. He's listed as a start more because he's a better option than Stewart.

On the Chicago side, there are no receivers to start because no one is really a No. 1 player. Kyle Orton isn't a strong enough quarterback to make impacts there, regardless. The defense will need to carry them, and Matt Forte will need to be just as good as he was against Indy.

Sleeper Pickup: Rosario. You could put D.J. Hackett here too, but Rosario is a sleeper tight end that could see good numbers with Smith out of the lineup.

Buffalo at Jacksonville

Who to Start: Matt Jones, Maurice Jones-Drew

Who to Sit: Fred Taylor, David Garrard, Jerry Porter, Trent Edwards

What to Expect: The Jaguars offensive line is more than just bruised, they're battered. Starting guards went on IR, and they didn't run particularly well last weekend as it was with them. That in mind, downgrading Fred Taylor seems to be the logical move.

The Bills are very much facing a team like they did last week. The Jaguars are dealing with injuries to their top receivers and a revamped offensive line. That combination should give Bills fans the confidence they can start 2-0.

David Garrard will have to use Jones-Drew effectively this week to combat some of the problems of last week. The Titans didn't let him get involved. That will have to change early. Matt Jones should be just as involved, as the Jaguars receivers continue to get healthy. 

On the Bills side to the ball, Josh Reed was much more involved than James Hardy last week. Long haul, that should change, but in the short term, Reed seems to have the edge. Neither is really going to have much impact this week. Beyond Lynch and Evans, there isn't much on the Bills to get excited about from a fantasy perspective.

Sleeper Pickup: If you need a tight end, Robert Royal isn't a bad option this week. 

Back tomorrow with the late games!