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Must Start:
Derrick
Mason v. NE: With Kyle Boller having to go up against the
Patriots, he is going to need the crafty veteran’s polished route
running. Mason has been getting lots of targets, but hasn’t been
able to turn many of them into long gains or scores. Baltimore
will need to score more often than they usually do to keep pace
with their undefeated opponent.
Chris Henry
@ PIT: Expect Carson Palmer to air it out and Henry to be
one of the main beneficiaries of their aggressive game plan. The
Pittsburgh defense is good, but they don’t have enough corners
to cover Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and Henry. Palmer
will key in on this mismatch to keep his team scoring alongside
Pittsburgh.
Jerricho
Cotchery @ MIA: Cotchery hasn’t done much recently, largely
due to his quarterback’s inability to get him the ball accurately.
With Laveranues Coles banged up enough to possibly miss this week’s
game, Cotchery will be Kellen Clemens’ main target against a porous
Miami secondary.
Santana
Moss v. BUF: The Redskins are putting some faith in their
young quarterback and opening up the offense a little bit more
each week. This has resulted in increased interceptions, but has
also given life to the Washington receiving corps. Moss is ready
for another good game as long as Jason Campbell can get him the
ball. With Buffalo visiting this week, it shouldn’t be much of
a problem.
Going Out On a Limb:
Anthony
Gonzalez v. JAC: The rookie receiver was able to light up
the Atlanta secondary last week, with a little help from some
guy named Peyton Manning. If Gonzalez can do it again, a lot more
people will believe he is the real deal. Marvin Harrison still
doesn’t look ready to play, so Gonzalez will continue to be the
complementary receiver to Reggie Wayne in Indianapolis’ high-powered
offense.
Grab Some Pine:
Chris Chambers @ KC: The Kansas City secondary is solid, making
this a challenging match up for many receivers. The fact that
Chambers is averaging only 45 yards per game with his new team
doesn’t help matters, nor do the measly two touchdowns he
has over those five games. Until the Chargers can consistently
score, and do so with their wide outs a little more frequently,
Chambers is bench material.
Dwayne Bowe v. SD: Bowe is looking great for a rookie receiver,
but is still having the standard inconsistency that all young
receivers seem to struggle with. He has scored only once in the
last seven weeks, hardly the reward owners are looking for if
they are to risk starting a rookie in a below-average offense.
Darrell Jackson @ CAR: The match up is tantalizing and the 49ers
showed us what they can do against the Cardinals last week, but
even with his team racking up the points, Jackson had a disappointing
43 yards and no scores. So far this season, he has 320 yards and
a single touchdown. So much for getting a fresh start with a different
team.
Lee Evans
@ WAS: As if things could get any worse for Evans, his favorite
quarterback just got benched for Trent Edwards. Again. Edwards
has only thrown one touchdown in his five games and doesn’t seem
to be all that interested in stretching the field with his fastest
receiver. The Washington secondary is burnable, but it is unlikely
Evans will be given the opportunity.
Mark Clayton v. NE: After teasing us with a 100-yard game back
in Week 10, Clayton has only four catches for 24 yards over the
last two weeks. New England won’t let Clayton get behind
them and Derek Mason is a better route runner. Baltimore will
be playing catch up all day, but until the Ravens figure out a
way to score more points, Clayton is a poor start.
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