Who To Start, Who To Sit: Week 11

Since I am writing this on Veterans’ Day let me take a quick second to say one thing to anyone who has served this country. THANK YOU. To anyone who has been at war or is in the Armed Forces you have my utmost respect.

The commitment it takes to leave your family and life behind to fight for this country is unbelievable. You are all better men and women than I am. I know right away that I would be unable to do such things.

There is no greater sacrifice than those who have given their life in service of America, and to those who are currently serving or may be again in the future you have my respect and my prayers that you come home safely.

Quarterbacks

Start:  Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons vs. Denver Broncos. This is not your usual rookie quarterback folks. This team won four games all last season, and they have already won more games than in 2007 and are in serious contention for a division title. 

Given the turmoil and distractions this team faced last year, owner Arthur Blank better be kneeling down and thanking God for this kid every night before he goes to sleep.  The Broncos have proven week after week that their defense is what is stopping them from being serious contenders. 

They couldn’t stop Quinn and the Browns last week, and they won’t be able to stop Ryan, Roddy White and the Falcons in Week 11.

Start: Tyler Thigpen, Kansas City Chiefs vs. New Orleans Saints. OK, if your choice is Drew Brees or Tyler Thigpen, I’m still saying Drew Brees. But if you choice is let’s say someone like Eli Manning or Jake Delhomme, you might want to give this kid a look.

I’ve been able to watch the Chiefs some the past couple of weeks (Thank God for DirecTV), and he actually has shown a good deal of ability, poise, and swagger. I’m not saying he’s Johnny Unitas or anything, but against a bad defense he certainly has the ability to put up some numbers.

And he faces a bad Saints defense this week. Matt Ryan spent last week torching the Saints like he was at a pyromaniacs convention, and I expect Thigpen to throw two scores this week, one to Tony G, and the other to Mark Bradley or Dwayne Bowe.

Sit: David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Tennessee Titans. Anyone who has been with me all season long knows I am not at all a fan of David Garrard.  I think he is a decent (at best) real quarterback, and a below average fantasy QB. 

The guy has taken every snap for his team this year and has thrown eight touchdown passes, four of which came in two games. That means he has two in the other nine games his team has played. Yuck!  He did get two last week which might make people think he is decent again, but please stay away from this guy. 

He will have you rooting for him to just throw one touchdown pass, and if he was to get two you should be dancing in the street. The Titans are bad news for Garrard and your fantasy team.

Sit:  Brady Quinn, Cleveland Browns vs. Buffalo Bills. All the talk radio and the media had a field day second guessing putting Quinn in as the starter despite the short week of practice to face the Broncos.  I hope they are all eating their words now, because even though the Cleveland defense got undressed by Jay Cutler, Quinn still had a very impressive debut. 

However, this week he won’t be facing a Broncos defense who had most of their defensive playmakers in street clothes watching the game.  Granted, the Bills have underperformed this year, but they still have a good defense, and playing a game up in Buffalo on the road is usually no joke. 

I expect the Bills to come prepared for a Monday night game, and for Quinn to throw for a max of 225 yards and one score.

Running Backs

Start:  DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers vs. Detroit Lions. Everyone, including me, expected to see this guy riding the pine by this point of the season, but due to his own great play and ineffectiveness and injury to Johnathan Stewart, Williams has all of a sudden become a valuable fantasy back.

For those of you who showed patience, or just happened to be lucky that someone cut ties with him early, be ready to get him into your lineups as the Panthers face the Lions.  Do I need to say any more?  Williams is 10th in the league in rushing, and should pad those stats against perhaps the worst defense ever put on the field.

Look for another 100 yard game and a score.

Start:  Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans. I know a lot of you are concerned about Addai’s health after he missed almost three full games and then has thrown up two total stinkers since he came back. But let’s take a closer look at things. 

He did face the Patriots and the Steelers, two teams in the top 10 in defense against the run.  So even if he was healthy he could have had these two poor games.

This week he gets the Texans who are NO where near the top 10 in any defensive category. If Addai struggles again, then I will sound the alarm, but right now I feel pretty confident starting him in Week 11. He had 71 yards rushing and a touchdown in the first meeting against the Texans.

Sit:  Ryan Grant, Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears. Grant has finally started to look like the guy that we all thought he would be coming into the season.  His last four games have all been over 75 yards and he has scored twice. He rushed good against the tough Vikings run defense, but I don’t see it happening again against the Bears defense.

Chicago allows only 75 yards a game, and look for Grant to run for less than that and not reach the end zone.

Sit:  BenJarvus Green-Ellis, New England Patriots vs. New York Jets. Ok, so part of me just wanted to type out BenJarvus Green-Ellis. It is one of my favorite names of all time. When I think of great football names, BenJarvus comes right to the top of my head. But seriously, Green-Ellis has become a legitimate fantasy option due to the string of injuries to the Pats rushing attack. 

Well, this week they have a grudge match against the rival Jets. Unfortunately for BJGE, the Jets are fifth best in the NFL against the rush, so unless you are at the point where you don’t have any other options, sit Green-Ellis this week.

Wide Receivers

Start:  Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. San Diego Chargers. Ward has been one of the more reliable and consistent receivers in the NFL over the past decade, and although he has struggled some in the last year and a half this week he looks like he should be a good play.

Even though Big Ben has had a really rough time with injuries this season, he still has always had a good relationship with Ward. The Chargers are the worst pass defense in the NFL and have allowed an amazing 17 passing touchdowns in just nine games. You can expect Roethlisberger to have two scores this week, one of which should go to Ward.

Start:  Steve Breaston, Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals passing offense has been one of the best in football, and Breaston has been no small reason. The guy who started the season as a kick returner has now turned himself into a viable third receiver. Breaston has gone over 100 yards in three of the past four weeks, although he has just one receiving touchdown.

But the Seahawks are the SECOND worst defense against the pass, and to say that Kurt Warner might throw for 400 yards isn’t out of the question. I expect Breaston to get between 75-125 yards and finally score another touchdown.

Sit:  T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Cincinnati Bengals vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Despite the fact that Carson Palmer has missed the majority of the season, Houshmandzadeh hasn’t missed a beat. The Housh is third in the NFL in receptions with 61 even though he only has three receptions.

He should struggle this week due to the fact that I see QB Ryan Fitzpatrick having a real hard time dealing with the pressure that the Eagles defense is sure to put on him. Look for Housh to top out at 5 catches for 65 yards, and I would be very surprised to see him find pay dirt.

Sit:  Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens vs. New York Giants. Although he suffered an injury in the first half of last week, he was able to return to the game and should play this week.  However, the Giants defense has been stifling and dominating for the majority of the season. 

I think that defensive coordinator Steve Spagnola will throw a whole hell of a lot of pressure at rookie Joe Flacco, and he should have one of his worst games as a pro.  If the QB throws for 150 yards, that doesn’t bode well for Mason. Look for a max of fifty yards and no scores.

Tight End

Start:  Tony Scheffler, Denver Broncos vs. Atlanta Falcons. Scheffler finally returned to action last week, and right from the very beginning of the game it looked like he never left. Cutler and Scheffler have a great relationship and he is a great safety valve for his quarterback. Scheffler is great at catching the ball over the middle and is one of the top five to seven tight ends.

The Falcons are 22nd in the NFL against the pass, which is a great sign for Jay Cutler, which in turn is great for Scheffler.

Sit: Owen Daniels, Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts. Daniels is having a great season at tight end for the Texans, however this week against the Colts it doesn’t look like he will have a good game. The Colts allow under 200 yards a game, and have amazingly only allowed two passing touchdowns all season long. With Sage Rosenfels and his high flying twirling act behind center, don’t expect Daniels to have a great game, and don’t expect him to find the end zone.

Finally, this week I am looking for a little bit of feedback from those of you who read my work. For the first 10 weeks of the season, I have been putting out the same articles every week. The Start/Sit article, On The Radar for waiver wire help, Fantasy Football Game of the Week, Team Defense Rankings, and the Kid, Cane, and Old Timer pick ‘em series.

I am more than happy to continue to put out these articles on a weekly basis.  However, I was recently thinking, would my readers be better served if I put out a daily news article instead of what I have been doing.

Would you guys (and girls) rather have a daily update of who’s hurt, who’s playing, any changes in depth charts, etc. So, I leave it up to you folks. Would you rather me continue the content I have been doing or change it up and try to be more newsy? Please leave a comment or email me at [e-mail].

As always your comments or questions (adds/drops, trade advice, lineup questions, etc) are welcome at [e-mail].  I guarantee a response within 18 hours.