Bye Weeks: Texans, Colts, Saints, Steelers

Start 'Em

Starks' owners get a plus matchup.

James Starks vs. TB
The Packers pass-heavy approach (and to an extent, RBBC) has not been kind to Starks’ owners and there really have not been many opportunities for him to make a big fantasy impact. He is good for 13 carries and a handful of receptions on a weekly basis, and that should be enough to consider Starks in a flex capacity this week. The Bucs have recently been abused by opposing RBs; just last week they allowed easy walk-in TDs to Arian Foster, Ben Tate and former Buccaneer Derrick Ward. Only the Rams, Colts and Browns have allowed more rushing yards per game than Tampa (138.2) and their 11 ground TDs allowed is tied for the 4th highest number in the league.

Marshawn Lynch @ STL
Finally someone has stepped up for the Seahawks and displayed some semi-consistent fantasy relevance. After an ugly effort (16 carries, 24 yards) against the Bengals in Week 8, “Beast Mode” has had two consecutive 100-yard games, with 55 carries and 2 TDs in that stretch. He also chipped in 5 receptions for 58 yards last week. Now, we never really know which way the Seahawks will go - a road game after an upset win at home can certainly be dicey – but you have to like Lynch based on opportunity; he has a league-high 68 touches over his past two games. The stars align again this week as he faces the Rams, a team that has allowed 150.6 rushing yards per game and 5.1 yards per carry this season.

Maurice Morris vs. Car
MoMo is definitely not making fantasy owners forget about RB Jahvid Best, but as Best continues to battle post-concussion syndrome, Morris has been serviceable. Unfortunately, Detroit has dropped 3 of 4 games and the running game has not got itself rolling. This should change this week as the Panthers come to Ford Field. Carolina has been very susceptible against the run; they have allowed a league-high 12 ground TDs (tied with Cardinals, Colts). Even Chris Johnson (remember him?) got it going for 130 yards and a TD last week against the Panthers. Morris is obviously not a guy that you’ll ride to the Promised Land, but he can be a useful flex this week.

Kendall Hunter vs. Ari
Last week, the rookie from Oklahoma State filled in for an injured Frank Gore and had 6 carries for 40 yards, including a 17-yard TD, against the Giants. Hunter has not had a vast amount of chances but has still managed an impressive 4.8 yards per carry on the season. Gore is expected to play this week, but Head Coach Jim Harbaugh hinted that he could be limited. As his injuries continue to mount, Hunter should get more carries and he should be much more involved this week versus the Cardinals. Arizona (along with the Panthers & Colts) has allowed a league-high 12 rushing TDs, so this is a plus-matchup for Hunter and he is definitely worth a look.

Bench 'Em

Chris Johnson @ Atl
Last week, CJ2K partied like it was 2009, easily offering his best game of the season with 130 yards and a TD on the ground and 44 receiving yards. His 4.81 yards per carry represents his high water mark in any game in 2011. Things are trending in the right direction for Johnson, but he is not a lock for a repeat performance this week. The Falcons have not allowed a 100-yard rusher yet this season and have limited opponents to 3.9 yards per carry and 90.3 rushing yards per game. Over their last six, that latter number drops to 79.5. Now that he has shown signs of life, it makes it more difficult to bench him, but those with higher upside options should strongly consider using them.

Cedric Benson @ Bal
Here is your no-brainer bench of the week. Since his return from his one-game suspension, Benson has had 35 carries for 135 yards (3.85 yards per carry), which falls right in line with his season average (3.9), which isn’t too good. As far a grinding out yards, he does play in a tough division, so I’ll cut him some slack, but I do not trust him this week in Baltimore. On the bright side, Benson gets a lot of carries and has had two 100-yard games in five starts against the Ravens, although both came in 2009. Baltimore allowed 109 yards to RB Marshawn Lynch last week, in spite of that, the Ravens continue to lead the NFL in opponent’s average yards per carry (3.3) and they have allowed 4 ground TDs, the 3rd lowest total in the league.

Beanie Wells @ SF
Despite an ineffective Wells (23 carries, 62 yards), the Cardinals managed to pull off an upset in Philadelphia last week. It’s been tale of two seasons thus far for Wells. In his first four games he had 79 carries for 381 yards (4.8 yards per carry) and 6 TDs. In his last 4 games, Beanie has had 67 carries for 207 yards (3.1 yards per carry) with just 1 TD. The combination of his knee injury and more daunting defenses on the schedule has been nothing like peanut butter and jelly for Beanie. This week represents his biggest challenge of the season. The Giants could not crack the code last week and the 49ers still have not allowed a rushing TD in 2011.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis vs. KC
I’m still trying to figure out if Green-Ellis is the ‘back to own’ in New England’s four-headed, dreaded RBBC. He had 2 TDs and 136 yards rushing in early October against the Jets, but that seems like a long time ago. In the four games since, he has had two mediocre games (14 carries, 58 yards in Week 6; 12 carries, 52 yards in Week 9) and two abysmal efforts (5 carries, 9 yards in Week 8; 8 carries for 8 yards last week) with zero touchdowns. To recap, he had 5 TDs in the Pats first five games and has 0 in their last four. Now that Stevan Ridley, Danny Woodhead and Kevin Faulk are all eating into his already limited workload, outside of the deepest of leagues, this ‘back to own’ should have to work his way off your bench.

Wide Receivers