Sleeper Watch

While he was in Chicago, I could not stand Cedric Benson. The way he ran was just atrocious and he was the definition of a straight line runner. No hole in the line? No problem, he’d would run right into his offensive line and fall down like he was hit by Ray Lewis. He ran like Brandon Jacobs, lacking the extra 42 pounds and general awareness of his surroundings.

Last week, Benson absolutely destroyed Cleveland in the snow. Some may say that the snow and lack of defense helped the Bengals rushing attack, but we all know the main factor was that the Bengals couldn’t figure out how to throw the ball. With Ryan Fitzpatrick at the helm, I expect the passing attack to continue to suffer, thus greatly benefiting Benson.

This week, the Kansas City defense will be as helpless as the Cleveland Brown defense was last Sunday. Sure, they did fine against the slightly ferocious duo of Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, but those guys have been awful the past few weeks. One could make the argument that the Kansas City defense hasn’t been as awful lately as it was in the middle of the season, but they sure aren’t a Pittsburgh or Baltimore type of defense. It’s the end of the season and the Chiefs have nothing to play for, except pride.

Technically, Cedric Benson is still a sleeper based on his previous track record, with the exception of last week’s game. He won’t get as many carries as last week, but his yards per carry should increase. Look for him to have a minimum of 80 yards rushing, 40 yards receiving, and one touchdown. Benson is a solid start this week in 12-team leagues for those of you lucky enough to be fighting for a championship.

Jeff Smar spends too much time on fantasy football. You can catch up with Jeff in the Cafe's forums where he answers Start/Sit questions under the name of americanese.

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