Fantasy Football Week 5 Start 'Em or Sit 'Em: Will Percy Harvin Finally Produce?

Every week, there are certain fantasy studs that you simply have to start no matter what, such as Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson and Calvin Johnson.

There are also a good number of players you know you should sit each week, such as a running back like Marshawn Lynch going up against the New York Giants this weekend.

And then there are those players with whom you have no idea whether to start 'em or sit 'em.

Here are a few not so obvious guys at each major fantasy position that you might not know what to do with, but for whom the stats and other information dictate one way or the other.

Start 'Em

Quarterback

Cam Newton (vs. NO)

Newton has proven to be a gamer and is without question one of the best athletes ever to work under center in this league. I truly thought the Bears would be able to contain him with their speed and cover-2 defensive scheme, but clearly, I was wrong.

I’ve underestimated his ability up until this point but will not do so again.

New Orleans has allowed a lot of fantasy action to opposing QBs this year and in a game where Carolina will likely be playing catch-up ball, Newton has the potential to do some serious damage.

Mark Sanchez (@ NE)

Supposedly Coach Ryan wants to go back to the “ground-and-pound” approach for the rest of the season, but I’m guessing that strategy will stay shelved for at least one more week.

The Patriots can score in a super-duper hurry and if the Jets fail to keep up with them for even one series, Ryan and Sanchez will abandon the run game in a New York minute.

The Patriots haven’t allowed less than 344 yards passing to a QB yet this year, so look for Dirty Mark to have a nice comeback fantasy game this week.

Kevin Kolb (@ MIN)

I’m going to say it again: What I like most about Kolb as a fantasy player this year is not his own ability as a QB or the option to throw it to Larry Fitzgerald every play, but rather the lack of ability shown on the Cardinals' defensive side of the ball. Arizona will need to pass the ball quite a bit to get back into games, which is of course nice for Kolb and the rest of his fantasy receivers.

Even better for this game in particular is that ‘Zona will find themselves having trouble running the ball against the Vikings front seven and need to pass to move the chains.

Kolb could end up as a nice sleeper this Sunday.

If you're in a pinch...

Donovan McNabb (vs. ARI)

I said last week that if McNasty couldn’t do anything against a depleted Kansas City pass D, I would suggest leaving him on your bench for the remainder of the season.

Well, he did toss up two TDs, which was nice, but only managed to eke out 202 yards in the process. I’m going to have to call it a wash and give Donovan one last chance to prove himself against an even worse Arizona pass defense.

Don’t play him unless you absolutely have to, of course, but he might surprise a bit this weekend.

Running Back 

Fred Jackson (vs. PHI)

The Bills are going to try to run run run against the Eagles and if that doesn’t work, then they might just try to run some more. Philly’s soft spot on D is in their linebacking corps, an area the Bills and Jackson will work to attack from the get-go.

One way or another, F-Jax is going to have the ball in his hands at least 20 times this game and with the Eagles giving up the most fantasy points in the league to opposing RBs, you gotta like Fred’s chances for a good game.

Willis McGahee (vs. SD)

According to coach John Fox, the Donkeys will ride the hot hand in their backfield from here on out, which means Moreno is out and McGahee is in.

Last week against Green Bay’s No. 1 rush defense, McGahee ran for 103 yards on 15 carries (6.9 YPC) proving that although he may be turning 30 in a few weeks, he still has the ability to carry the load.

He’ll face another tough defense in San Diego this Sunday, but I expect Fox’s offensive system to be able to get him up around 100 yards once again.

Isaac Redman (vs. TEN)

It’s looking iffy for Mendenhall to go this week after missing practices on Wednesday and Thursday and if he doesn’t, Redman will get his shot.

He’s a hard runner who will have something to prove being a career-long backup in the league, but it won’t be easy against one of the top defenses in the league at stopping the run this year.

He’ll get his chances, though, as QB Ben Roethlisberger is hobbled and could end up handing the ball off more often than not this Sunday.

If you're in a pinch...

DeAngelo Williams (vs. NO)

Williams was paid too much money to be playing as poorly as he was through the first few weeks, so he finally got it going against the Bears in Week 4. Could his 10-carry, 82-yard performance be the spark that sets him back on fire?

We’ll see, as the Panthers have to realize sooner or later that they can’t depend on rookie Cam Newton to rush the ball eight times and throw it 40 times a game the rest of the season.

Since his 2008 breakout campaign, DeAngelo has had incredible success against them averaging 120 yards (on 6.2 YPC) and one TD in four games. He could be worth a shot this weekend.

LaDainian Tomlinson (@ NE)

Tomlinson isn’t quite the back he used to be, but he’ll get some good work this week against the Patriots as the Jets will be forced to throw the ball in order to stay in the game.

LT21 can still do some damage coming out of the backfield, so I’m tentatively expecting a good 15 or so touches for him this weekend which could easily set him up with some low-end RB2 or flex fantasy numbers.

Wide Receiver

Jordy Nelson (@ ATL)

The Packers offense is pretty unstoppable at this point, and Nelson seems to have carved out a nice niche as its WR2. My guess is that Rodgers tries to pick apart this Atlanta pass D like he did last season, so Nelson could be in line for a good seven to ten targets from which he’ll be able to put up some real nice fantasy numbers.

The only downside is if Rodgers happens to use his other multitude of weapons instead of Nelson, but I just don’t see that happening.

Jordy had a touchdown in each of their matchups last season and with this game looking like it could be a shootout, he should be able to grab another one.

Julio Jones (vs. GB)

Welcome to the NFL, Mr. Jones!

Julio followed up his 115-yard coming-out party in Week 3 with an even better game of 11 catches for 127 yards last week against Seattle. It seems the only thing this ultra-talented receiver needed to bust out of his shell was a little confidence, which he certainly has now after two straight 100-yard games.

With the Packers' pass D ranking near the bottom of the barrel and undoubtedly leaving him in single-coverage because of Roddy, I expect another nice showing and possibly a third straight 100-yard week.

Santonio Holmes (@ NE)

Holmes can be an extremely frustrating fantasy player to own as you never really know when he’ll bust out for a big game. His 100-yard games are few and far between, but he does seem to catch the big touchdown whenever it’s needed.

Last week he was targeted 12 times by Sanchez but was only able to come up with three catches for 33 yards. Crazy! In the two games he faced New England last year (playoffs included), he totaled 10 catches on 17 targets for 92 yards and a TD.

This year, however, New England has given up the most fantasy points in the league to opposing receivers, so I expect Holmes to have himself a nice game.

Percy Harvin (vs. ARI)

The Vikings finally got Harvin more touches this past weekend, but they need to do even better with it if they ever want to win a game. It doesn’t matter if he’s running the ball or catching it, Harvin should get at least 10 touches in this one and might even get as many as 15 or so against an Arizona giving up the world to opposing receivers.

If he does, the fantasy stats will finally be there this week and legitimize the draft pick you used on him.

Deion Branch (vs. NYJ)

Branch has just one catch over the past two weeks, but he made it count pulling it down in the end zone against Oakland last weekend.

In the two games he played against the Jets last year, Branch was targeted 17 times but only caught eight of them for 123 yards. The bonus, however, is that he caught a TD in each of those games as well.

With the way Wes Welker and the New England tight ends have been playing this year, New York might forget about Branch a bit and you can bet your bottom dollar, Tom Brady will notice and take full advantage.

Tight End

Aaron Hernandez (vs. NYJ)

Hernandez will be back this week, in case you hadn't heard.

Last year in their two games against the Jets, Hernandez was targeted 11 times and caught nine passes for 152 yards and a TD. Rob Gronkowski, on the other hand, was targeted just four times and caught only two of them for 26 yards and no TDs. The reason why is because of the type of defense the Jets run.

All year long, the Patriots would draw up a game plan against whatever defense they were facing and used those two tight ends within that plan to the best of their abilities. It just so happens that Hernandez's speed works better against the Jets than Gronkowski's size does.

The Jets also have that mentality of "kill the QB"—or specifically against New England, "Kill Tom Brady." Gronkowski's blocking ability allows Brady to work longer in the pocket, thus letting Hernandez go out and do his thing.

I’m not saying Gronkowski will be shut out by any means, but I believe Hernandez has a better chance of doing damage than Big Gronk in this one.

Brandon Pettigrew (vs. CHI)

Matthew Stafford finally understands what Pettigrew is good for…the bailout dump-off pass.

Pettigrew has seen a combined 22 targets the last couple of weeks and caught 17 of them for 176 yards. He doesn’t have a TD yet in 2011, but against a Bears defense that has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends this season, that could change real quick.

Greg Olsen (vs. NO)

Olsen is averaging almost seven targets a game, so you know Cam Newton realizes just how useful and valuable he is.

I expect Carolina to turn to the pass quite a bit again this week against the high-flying Saints and with New Orleans giving up the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends this season, Olsen could be in for his best game of the season.

Others to consider...

Jermaine Gresham (@ Jac)

Jared Cook (@ Pit)

Sit 'Em

 
Quarterback

Ryan Fitzpatrick (vs. Phi)

After last week’s lame-duck effort against the Cincinnati Jailbungles, I find myself back in the un-sold department on Fitzpatrick.

Ivy League Ryan may have been able to pick apart bottom-feeder pass Ds like the Chiefs, Raiders and Patriots, but the Eagles might have more talent in their secondary than all three of those teams combined.

Still, Philly’s “Dream Team” hasn’t quite gelled yet, and considering that they have allowed the most passing TDs in the league thus far, there might be a little fantasy hope here for Fitz and crew.

Matt Schaub (vs. OAK)

Schaub is a talented QB to be sure, but not so much that he’ll be able to overcome the loss of Andre Johnson.

With Arian Foster back, however, he may not need to.

The Raiders have given up the fourth most rushing yards per game this year and allow a mind-boggling 5.9 yards/carry. Basically, Foster will go nuts in this one, and I honestly don’t see Schaub hitting even the 200-yard mark on Sunday.

Running Back

Beanie Wells (@ MIN)

Don’t get me wrong as I actually really like what Wells has shown this year (other than the injury, of course). This Sit 'Em is more about the Vikings' front seven than anything else as it seems they have their ferocity back holding teams to just 76.3 yards rushing per game this year.

Wells is running strong and looking like the beast he truly is, but trying to crush through this Vikings defense just isn’t going to work. He might end up with decent numbers, but nothing like his performance last week against the Giants.

LeGarrette Blount (@ SF)

I’m convinced that San Francisco has the best rush defense in the game, period.

Does that mean Blount won’t be able to do anything at all against them? Maybe, but he did have 82 yards rushing against them last season (albeit on 26 rushes; 3.2 YPC), so it's possible he can do it again.

This matchup has the feel of a game that will be played in the trenches, so 25 or so carries might be had here…but he’ll absolutely need that many to make a fantasy impact.

Shonn Greene (@ NE)

Thought to be a breakout candidate this year, it’s a bummer how poorly Greene has played and you might have to sit him on your bench until he figures it out.

He’s a flex play at best right now, even against a Patriots team that has given up the seventh most fantasy points to opposing running backs this season.

Coach Ryan thinks he’s going to re-instill the “ground-and-pound” approach this week, but my guess is that the Patriots will force him to rely on Sanchez’s arm once again, thus making Greene relatively insignificant.

Wide Receiver

Marques Colston (@ CAR)

It may be tempting to put him back in there now that he seems to be fully healthy, but against a Carolina team that the Saints will likely run against all day long, I wouldn't expect great stats or even too much playing time, for that matter.

Mario Manningham (vs. SEA)

Manningham is being given the benefit of the doubt and will continue to start as the Giants WR2…for now.

Victor Cruz simply looks better at this point, but Manningham will have a chance to prove himself this weekend against a beatable Seattle secondary. It’s a bit of a risky play with Cruz heavily in the mix, but I suppose he could rise to the challenge.

Take a chance if you’re feeling lucky, I guess.

Other Guys You Should Sit...

Robert Meachem (@ CAR)

Reggie Wayne (vs. KC)

Mike Thomas (@ CIN)

Tight End

Zach Miller (@ NYG)

Poor Zach. The guy is a super-talented TE, but sometimes these guys are a bit blind when going for the money and end up in situations they didn’t realize were coming.

Maybe he develops a rapport with Tarvaris Jackson and climbs the ladder a bit in future weeks, but not this Sunday against a Giants team that plays tough against opposing tight ends.

Todd Heap (@ MIN)

It's too bad Todd pulled up lame in Wednesday's practice (hamstring) and likely won't play Sunday because the Vikings have allowed opposing tight ends to catch the second most passes in the league this year.

Check the news coming out of Arizona first, but I think it's safe to say he shouldn't be played if he's not 100 percent anyway.

Others that should be on your bench...

Brent Celek (@ BUF)

Kellen Winslow (@ SF)

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