Everyone knows to start Peyton
Manning every week, regardless of the match-up. But not all decisions
are as easy at that one. So to help you decide who you should
start and who you should bench I have identified the players at
the QB, RB and WR positions that should excel this week and should
be started, as well as the players who will struggle this week
and should be benched. Oh, by the way – Happy Halloween!
Let's start with the QB position. You shouldn't have to be told,
but just in case... always, always start the following players:
Peyton
Manning, Tom
Brady, Drew
Brees, Aaron
Rodgers, Matt
Schaub and Philip
Rivers. Now onto the question marks…
Quarterbacks
Bye Weeks: Atlanta, Baltimore,
Chicago, Cleveland, N.Y. Giants, and Philadelphia so that means
Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco (or Falco as Dan Marino likes to call him),
Jay Cutler, Colt McCoy and Seneca Wallace, Eli Manning, and Kevin
Kolb and Michael Vick are all benched.
Start 'Em:
Quarterbacks Providing Treats in Week
8
Stafford: Back in the saddle.
Matthew Stafford vs. WAS
It looks like Stafford is finally coming back to quarterback those
scrappy Detroit Lions after more than a month of injury rehab. Shaun
Hill filled in admirably until breaking his arm, and luckily for
Detroit they only had to deal with Drew Stanton for one week. The
only stats we have for Stafford this year are from week 1 when he
went 11-15 for 83 yards. His return comes against the Redskins,
which includes DeAngelo Hall and his NFL leading 5 INTs (4 last
week against Jay Cutler). Washington is 31st in pass and total defense,
giving up 292 yards and 1.5 TDs per game. They’re the only team
in the league to give up 2,000+ passing yards this year. They give
up the 2nd most big plays and teams throw against them a league
high 43 times per game. Seems to me this is a good game for Stafford
to make his return.
Jon Kitna vs. JAX
As if the Cowboys season wasn’t already doomed, now they lose Tony
Romo for the bulk of the year and turn to Jon Kitna. Kitna hasn’t
played since 2008 when he was with Detroit, but the good news is
that his first start since 2008 is against the 27th ranked pass
defense. The Jaguars allow opposing QBs to complete 67% of their
passes and earn a 113 QB rating. They give up 253 yards per game,
9 yards per pass completion and allow more big plays than anyone
in the league – by a wide margin. This could be the start of a Cowboys
winning streak thanks to some big numbers from Kitna.
Matt Cassel vs. BUF
Cassel only averages 174 yards per game passing but has a nice
TD-to-INT ratio of 3 to 1 (9 TDs against 3 INTs). He’s been
sacked a league-low 5 times and has a great running game to balance
the offense and keep his QB rating in the 90s. This week he faces
the 9th ranked Buffalo pass defense who is only giving up 204
yards per game, but it’s the other numbers that makes Cassel
a good start this week. Buffalo has the worst QB rating allowed
at 114.1, thanks to having just 1 INT all year and giving up 14
TDs. They only have 8 sacks, allow QBs to complete 65.3% of their
passes, and give up a league worst 33 points per game. All this
adds up to no pressure, no turnovers, and lots of TDs, so take
advantage of the matchup.
Tarvaris Jackson @ NE
Assuming the great Brett Favre streak ends this week, Tarvaris Jackson
will finally get a chance to play and his opponent is a nice matchup
for him and teammate Randy Moss. New England’s 30th ranked pass
defense allows 282 yards and 2 TDs per game. They only have 12 sacks,
allow a 94.1 QB rating, and a league worst 70% completion percentage.
The Patriots will likely be doing most of their game planning for
Favre so that should help Jackson too. Last year Jackson only got
mop-up work but in 2008 he started 5 games (played in 9 total) and
amassed 1,100 yards, 9 TDs, 2 INTs and a 95.4 QB rating. Of course
he had a bad case of the fumbles so that’s a concern. Still, I think
Jackson has a surprising impact this week.
Bench 'Em:
Quarterbacks Playing Tricks on You
in Week 8
Vince Young @ SD
The Chargers’ #1 ranked pass defense gives up just 159 yards and
less than a TD per game. They’re tied for the lead league in sacks
with 25 and allow the 2nd lowest QB rating in the league. San
Diego as a team is not very good (bye bye Norv Turner) but their
pass defense is solid and Vince Young is still nursing a sprained
knee and ankle which obviously limits his mobility and takes away
a huge part of his game. Even if the Titans decide to go with
Young this weekend over Kerry Collins, you shouldn’t make the
same mistake.
Ben Roethlisberger @ NO
In two games so far this year, Big Ben has thrown for 559 yards,
5 TDs, 1 INT, and has a QB rating of 122.4, and has the highest
yards per completion in the league at 10.4 – he averages
a first down on every completion. But his first game back was
at home against Cleveland and last week he had some issues, getting
sacked 3 times and fumbling the ball 3 times (lost 1). That is
a concern going into New Orleans where the Saints, who might be
disappointing as a team so far, are solid in pass defense at #3
in the league. New Orleans allows just 179 yards and 1 TD per
game. I think it’s time for Roethlisberger to struggle so
stash him on the bench this week.
David Garrard @ DAL
Garrard should be back from his concussion this week sending Todd
Bouman back to the sidelines. But that doesn’t mean you
should start him this week; not against the 7th best pass defense
in the league – and that ranking is after getting torched
by the Giants. Dallas gives up 200 yards and nearly 2 TDs per
game. Dallas’ season may be over between their record and
losing Romo but their defense is still solid and I expect them
to take out their frustrations on Jacksonville so avoid Garrard.
Sam Bradford vs. CAR
Aside from his 2 TDs, the rookie struggled to get yards and hold
onto the ball last week against a good Tampa pass defense. Bradford’s
having a good year for a rookie (he’s 14th in the league
in passing yards and 13th in TDs) but Carolina only allows 183
yards and 1 TD per game, making them the #4 pass defense in the
league. They are one of only five teams to have more INTs than
TDs allowed, are 4th best in allowing big plays, have the 6th
lowest completion percentage (55.5%), and lead the league in QB
rating with a 65.7. Carolina should prove a little too much for
the rookie this week, even with fellow rookie Danario Alexander
in the lineup.
Running Backs 
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