NFL Fantasy Football Week 3: Sleeper, Creeper, Stud and Dud

The first couple weeks of fantasy football can be quite demoralizing.

You took Arian Foster or Jamaal Charles with an early pick in your draft, but couldn't handcuff either of them.  Now you are stuck.  With the bye weeks coming, you just don't want to put in the effort to rebuild your team.

I feel your pain.  I am a Charles owner, too.  That team is 0-2.  But you can't lay down now.  You're at the top of the waiver wire list and you need to make good use out of it.

If Devery Henderson is still available, then you better get him!  He'll make great trade bait following Week 3.  I don't recommend holding on to him once Colston and Moore are both back, but if you can't trade him for good value, then he will still be a good bye week replacement for your starters. 

Another waiver wire pick up is Cam Newton.  The Panthers are committed to throwing 40 passes a week.

I predicted he'd have a down week because I thought he could throw five picks or end up way below 50 percent completion percentage and under 200 yards against a strong Green Bay secondary, but Brees gave the Panthers the blue print to get vertical on the Pack in Week 1.

I would still be weary of match ups with strong secondaries and pass rushes, but it sure seems like Newton will be a solid contributor each week.

The last one I'm going to give you is Nate Washington.  Teams continue to stack the box against Chris Johnson, forcing the Titans into more passing situations.  With Kenny Britt demanding more attention, Washington might see a few extra targets.  He already has 18 with 13 receptions from them.  So long as Hasselbeck is healthy, the Titans will be successful throwing the ball, and Washington will benefit from that.

Outside of finding the hot waiver wire ticket to fantasy glory, it is important to analyze your players match ups and figure out who your must starts are and who might need to sit the week out.

STUD:  High draft pick with a favorable match up this week.

DUD:  High or moderate draft pick with an unfavorable match up this week.

SLEEPER:  Unknown who has a favorable match up this week.

CREEPER:  Know player who has been average recently, but has a favorable match up this week.

On to the Sleeper, Creeper, Stud and Dud!

Week 3 Sleeper: C. J. Spiller

Fred Jackson had one hell of a Week 2.

He should be successful in Week 3 against New England, but expect C. J. Spiller to see more action.

The Patriots are very weak at covering running backs out of the backfield.  Both Miami and San Diego exploited that weakness to keep their contests close.  Ryan Mathews and Mike Tolbert combined for 15 catches and 135 yards.  Reggie Bush had 9 catches for 56 yards and a TD.

If Buffalo wants to have a chance against New England, then they'll keep the ball in the air and use their backs to move the chains.

Week 3 Creeper: Marshawn Lynch

The Seahawks have had a rough start and for Lynch it has been even rougher.

He couldn't seem to get going against San Francisco in Week 1, then had no where to run against Pittsburgh in Week 2.

For Week 3, he gets a soft Arizona defense who has been just below average against the run, but dreadful against the pass.  Expect their defense to adjust to keep Seattle from being successful in the air and open the door for Lynch to run hard in the first half and down hill in the second half.

I'm not expecting career numbers, but he should get back on track with his first 100-yard game of this young season.

Week 3 Stud: Antonio Gates

After being shut out in Week 2 against the Patriots, Gates gets a favorable match up with the Kansas City Chiefs, who are without Eric Berry the rest of the season.

Instead, they will line up Jon McGraw at strong safety.  That is quite a drop off.  Gates should have a field day so long as he gets the targets.

Gates is an easy start for any owner, but if you are looking to gamble at another position and have Gates on your roster, you should feel a little bit more comfortable with that gamble this week.

Week 3 Dud: Tim Hightower

Washington has found a replacement back for Clinton Portis.

Tim Hightower seems perfect for Shanahan's offense and the run blocking has been good.  But they have had favorable match ups.  The NY Giants and Arizona Cardinals are weak on defense.  I actually expected better outings against those teams.

This week, the Redskins are at Dallas, who has stifled two strong running teams and forced them to pass.

Expect this game to follow suit. The Redskins will be in a passing mode early in the game and Hightower's workload will be reduced.