Week 4: Peyton’s Laser Rocket Arm - 7 comments

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It’s Week 4 of the NFL Season and the Cafe’s Start & Sit is back for more! Week 3 saw Peyton Manning back at the top of the weekly stat sheets, and as a result he claims the Cafe’s top starter spot going into Week 4. The human bowling ball, Maurice Jones-Drew, led the way for the running backs with 119 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. Santana Moss finally announced his presence with 10 catches for 178 yards and a score, but it wasn’t enough for the Redskins to avoid handing the Lions their first win since 2007. Week 4 provides fans with numerous intriguing games including a matchup of AFC heavyweights in Baltimore-New England, two teams trying to stay undefeated in New Orleans-New York, and of course, Fav-ruh’s return to Green Bay.

Two quick notes for this week’s article: For the first time this year four teams are off on bye weeks (Arizona, Atlanta, Carolina, Philadelphia). Also, this week I will be adding a bonus “Start” recommendation for the QBs, RBs, and WRs. And as always, a big thank you to all our rankers and other contributors!

In 2009, we’re ranking all the players we expect could see a significant amount of game action each week. We factor in a player’s overall ability, his weekly matchup, and the current status of his health. The result is one Start/Sit number, based on a scale of 100, and we’ll use each member’s ratings to find an average for each player. The higher a guy is on our list, the better you should feel starting him.

Rank	Quarterbacks	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Peyton Manning	IND	SEA	95.00
2	Drew Brees	NO	NYJ	86.80
3	Carson Palmer	CIN	at CLE	83.40
T-3	Eli Manning	NYG	at KC	83.40
5	Aaron Rodgers	GB	at MIN	83.00
6	Matt Schaub	HOU	OAK	82.13
7	Jay Cutler	CHI	DET	81.40
8	Philip Rivers	SD	at PIT	81.20
9	Tom Brady	NE	BAL	81.00
10	Ben Roethlisberger	PIT	SD	76.40
11	Joe Flacco	BAL	at NE	75.80
12	Tony Romo	DAL	at DEN	74.84
13	Jason Campbell	WAS	TB	71.80
14	David Garrard	JAC	TEN	70.80
15	Mark Sanchez	NYJ	at NO	68.40
16	Brett Favre	MIN	GB	68.30
17	Shaun Hill	SF	STL	68.20
18	Trent Edwards	BUF	at MIA	67.60
19	Kerry Collins	TEN	at JAC	65.40
20	Kyle Orton	DEN	DAL	62.80
21	Chad Henne	MIA	BUF	59.60
22	Matthew Stafford	DET	at CHI	58.60
23	Derek Anderson	CLE	CIN	56.60
24	JaMarcus Russell	OAK	at HOU	56.40
25	Matt Cassel	KC	NYG	53.92
26	Josh Johnson	TB	at WAS	53.80
27	Seneca Wallace	SEA	at IND	52.00
28	Kyle Boller	STL	at SF	38.30
29	Brady Quinn	CLE	CIN	31.10
30	Matt Hasselbeck	SEA	at IND	25.55
31	Marc Bulger	STL	at SF	22.80
32	Brodie Croyle	KC	NYG	11.00
T-32	Josh Freeman	TB	at WAS	11.00
T-32	Byron Leftwich	TB	at WAS	11.00
35	Pat White	MIA	BUF	10.60

 

Start: Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals. Since that dismal first game against the Denver Broncos, Carson Palmer has thrown four touchdowns and just two interceptions in his last two games, including an impressive game winning touchdown drive last week against the Steelers. This week Palmer gets a Cleveland defense that is allowing over 30 points per game.

Start: Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears. Not unlike Palmer, Jay Cutler bounced back well from a terrible Week 1 performance, with five touchdowns and only 1 interceptions in Week 2 and 3. Cutler has made viable receivers of Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, and Johnny Knox. This week the Bears welcome the Lions to Soldier Field. Detroit got their first win last week, but they still gave up over 300 yards and two touchdowns to the struggling Redskins passing attack.

Sit: Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions. Stafford took a step forward last week against the Skins (although he had some accuracy issues), but he’s still a rookie, and he still will make rookie mistakes. This week Stafford leaves the friendly (if somewhat empty) confines of Ford Field to play the Bears in Chicago. Don’t rush to get him into your starting lineup just yet.

Rank	Running Backs	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Adrian Peterson	MIN	GB	92.20
2	Brandon Jacobs	NYG	at KC	86.00
3	Chris Johnson	TEN	at JAC	85.80
4	Matt Forte	CHI	DET	85.00
5	Ronnie Brown	MIA	BUF	80.80
6	Cedric Benson	CIN	at CLE	80.00
7	Maurice Jones-Drew	JAC	TEN	79.60
T-7	Darren McFadden	OAK	at HOU	79.60
9	Steve Slaton	HOU	OAK	78.80
10	Joseph Addai	IND	SEA	76.40
T-10	Steven Jackson	STL	at SF	76.40
12	Ahmad Bradshaw	NYG	at KC	72.80
13	Glen Coffee	SF	STL	72.20
14	Donald Brown	IND	SEA	72.00
15	Willis McGahee	BAL	at NE	71.00
T-15	Knowshon Moreno	DEN	DAL	71.00
17	Thomas Jones	NYJ	at NO	70.60
18	Michael Bush	OAK	at HOU	70.40
19	Fred Jackson	BUF	at MIA	69.40
20	Ray Rice	BAL	at NE	69.00
T-20	Leon Washington	NYJ	at NO	69.00
22	Pierre Thomas	NO	NYJ	68.09
23	Ryan Grant	GB	at MIN	67.00
24	Ricky Williams	MIA	BUF	66.80
25	Marshawn Lynch	BUF	at MIA	66.40
26	Correll Buckhalter	DEN	DAL	66.20
27	Darren Sproles	SD	at PIT	65.40
28	Julius Jones	SEA	at IND	64.95
29	LenDale White	TEN	at JAC	64.60
30	Tashard Choice	DAL	at DEN	64.40
31	Reggie Bush	NO	NYJ	63.60
32	Derrick Ward	TB	at WAS	63.40
33	Cadillac Williams	TB	at WAS	61.74
34	Clinton Portis	WAS	TB	59.60
35	Willie Parker	PIT	SD	58.05
36	Larry Johnson	KC	NYG	58.00
37	Fred Taylor	NE	BAL	56.60
38	LeRon McClain	BAL	at NE	55.00
39	Marion Barber	DAL	at DEN	53.66
40	James Davis	CLE	CIN	53.60
41	Justin Forsett	SEA	at IND	52.60
42	Laurence Maroney	NE	BAL	51.00
43	Rashard Mendenhall	PIT	SD	50.80
44	Chester Taylor	MIN	GB	49.40
45	Maurice Morris	DET	at CHI	42.60
46	Chris Brown	HOU	OAK	42.00
47	Kevin Smith	DET	at CHI	40.61
48	Kevin Faulk	NE	BAL	40.60
49	Ladell Betts	WAS	TB	35.80
50	Edgerrin James	SEA	at IND	34.20
51	Lyndell Hamilton	NO	NYJ	33.15
52	Mewelde Moore	PIT	SD	30.60
53	Jamaal Charles	KC	NYG	29.80
54	Earnest Graham	TB	at WAS	29.40
55	Michael Bennett	SD	at PIT	28.20
56	LaDanian Tomlinson	SD	at PIT	28.05
57	Jamal Lewis	CLE	CIN	25.79
58	Felix Jones	DAL	at DEN	23.40
59	Peyton Hillis	DEN	DAL	20.80
60	Adrian Peterson	CHI	DET	20.00
61	Jerome Harrison	CLE	CIN	19.00
62	Aaron Brown	DET	at CHI	16.80
63	Bernard Scott	CIN	at CLE	15.62
64	Samkon Gado	STL	at SF	11.00
65	Brandon Jackson	GB	at MIN	10.00
T-65	Sammy Morris	NE	BAL	10.00
67	Frank Gore	SF	STL	9.00
68	Greg Jones	JAC	TEN	7.00
T-68	Shonn Greene	NYJ	at NO	7.00
70	BenJarvus Green-Ellis	NE	BAL	6.40

 

Start: Ronnie Brown, Miami Dolphins. Chad Pennington is out for the season, meaning the already run-oriented Dolphins will be looking even more to the wildcat to carry their offense. That’s good news for Mr. Wildcat himself, Ronnie Brown. As long as the Dolphins remain in the game, the offense is going to run through Brown. The Dolphins have a solid matchup this week in the Buffalo Bills (18th in rushing yards allowed, four rushing TDs allowed).

Start: Glen Coffee, San Francisco 49ers. Coffee is suddenly popping up all over fantasy players’ radars, as he prepares to make his first start after Frank Gore’s injury. Coffee was not particularly effective last week in relief of Gore, (he averaged just over two yards per carry), but he was given the ball 25 times. The Niners are going to run the ball early and often against a weak St. Louis defense this week, so Coffee will have ample opportunities to put up fantasy points. He could be a solid fill-in starter for Frank Gore owners, or teams struggling with bye weeks.

Sit: Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins. Portis still has not gotten on track this season. He is battling lingering injuries to his calf and ankles. The Redskins’ offensive line is not opening holes, and his coach seems to be more and more inclined to throw the ball. At this point, Portis is a bench-until-further-notice fantasy player.

Rank	Wide Receivers	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Andre Johnson	HOU	OAK	90.40
2	Reggie Wayne	IND	SEA	89.80
3	Calvin Johnson	DET	at CHI	89.20
4	Chad Ochocinco	CIN	at CLE	85.40
5	Greg Jennings	GB	at MIN	84.40
6	Randy Moss	NE	BAL	84.14
7	Terrell Owens	BUF	at MIA	83.60
8	Marques Colston	NO	NYJ	80.20
9	Vincent Jackson	SD	at PIT	78.40
10	Steve Smith	NYG	at KC	77.40
11	Santana Moss	WAS	TB	76.40
12	Devin Hester	CHI	DET	75.20
13	Brandon Marshall	DEN	DAL	74.40
14	Earl Bennett	CHI	DET	73.60
15	Lee Evans	BUF	at MIA	73.00
16	Mario Manningham	NYG	at KC	72.20
17	Santonio Holmes	PIT	SD	71.80
18	Jerricho Cotchery	NYJ	at NO	71.20
19	Mike Sims-Walker	JAC	TEN	70.80
20	Justin Gage	TEN	at JAC	70.40
21	Braylon Edwards	CLE	CIN	70.20
22	Johnny Knox	CHI	DET	69.60
23	Donald Driver	GB	at MIN	68.60
T-23	Hines Ward	PIT	SD	68.60
25	Roy Williams	DAL	at DEN	68.40
26	Derrick Mason	BAL	at NE	68.00
T-26	Josh Morgan	SF	STL	68.00
28	Nate Washington	TEN	at JAC	67.62
29	Kevin Walter	HOU	OAK	67.20
30	Pierre Garcon	IND	SEA	65.80
31	Percy Harvin	MIN	GB	65.60
T-31	Nate Burleson	SEA	at IND	65.60
33	Torry Holt	JAC	TEN	65.20
34	T.J. Houshmandzadeh	SEA	at IND	64.80
T-34	Antwaan Randle El	WAS	TB	64.80
36	Isaac Bruce	SF	STL	64.40
37	Laveranues Coles	CIN	at CLE	64.20
38	Mark Clayton	BAL	at NE	63.60
39	Patrick Crayton	DAL	at DEN	61.60
T-39	Ted Ginn	MIA	BUF	61.60
41	Eddie Royal	DEN	DAL	61.20
T-41	Davone Bess	MIA	BUF	61.20
T-41	Chansi Stucky	NYJ	at NO	61.20
44	Kenny Britt	TEN	at JAC	60.40
45	Bernard Berrian	MIN	GB	59.20
46	Brandon Stokley	DEN	DAL	58.80
47	Devery Henderson	NO	NYJ	57.40
48	Donnie Avery	STL	at SF	57.00
49	Louis Murphy	OAK	at HOU	56.80
T-49	Michael Clayton	TB	at WAS	56.80
51	Wes Welker	NE	BAL	55.64
52	Austin Collie	IND	SEA	54.60
53	Darrius Heyward-Bey	OAK	at HOU	54.40
54	Sidney Rice	MIN	GB	53.80
55	Chris Henry	CIN	at CLE	53.40
56	Robert Meachem	NO	NYJ	52.60
57	Keenan Burton	STL	at SF	51.00
58	Dwayne Bowe	KC	NYG	50.94
59	Josh Cribbs	CLE	CIN	50.20
60	Antonio Bryant	TB	at WAS	49.78
61	Bryant Johnson	DET	at CHI	49.60
62	Chris Chambers	SD	at PIT	46.40
63	Johnnie Lee Higgins	OAK	at HOU	45.40
64	Lance Moore	NO	NYJ	43.35
65	Malcom Kelly	WAS	TB	42.40
66	Miles Austin	DAL	at DEN	42.00
67	Mark Bradley	KC	NYG	41.40
68	Deion Branch	SEA	at IND	40.00
69	Joey Galloway	NE	BAL	39.00
70	Greg Camarillo	MIA	BUF	38.00
71	Bobby Engram	KC	NYG	37.80
72	Andre Caldwell	CIN	at CLE	36.00
73	Jacoby Jones	HOU	OAK	33.40
74	Kelley Washington	BAL	at NE	31.00
75	Julian Edelman	NE	BAL	30.80
76	James Jones	GB	at MIN	29.20
77	Josh Reed	BUF	at MIA	29.00
T-77	Arnaz Battle	SF	STL	29.00
79	Andre Davis	HOU	OAK	28.60
80	Limas Sweed	PIT	SD	28.20
81	David Clowney	NYJ	at NO	27.80
82	Maurice Stovall	TB	at WAS	22.80
83	Domenik Hixon	NYG	at KC	20.66
84	Malcom Floyd	SD	at PIT	19.40
85	Hakeem Nicks	NYG	at KC	16.80
86	Mike Wallace	PIT	SD	14.80
87	Mike Furrey	CLE	CIN	13.20
88	Dennis Northcutt	DET	at CHI	12.60
89	Mohammed Massaquoi	CLE	CIN	12.40
90	Brian Hartline	MIA	BUF	11.00

 

Start: Steve Smith, New York Giants. The “other” Steve Smith is certainly making a name for himself, filling Plaxico Burres’ shoes and more. Smith has six, ten, and seven catches in his first three games of the season, and has scored in two straight games. Smith and the Giants should find more smooth sledding this week against a struggling Kansas City defense.

Start: Devin Hester, Chicago Bears. I admit, I was skeptical that Hester would be able to seamlessly convert to wide receiver, having limited experience at the position, even at the college level. But with at least four catches per game, and two touchdowns already, Hester has proven that his speed and playmaking ability really does transfer to a full-time receiver position. Hester has a great chance to continue his solid season against the Lions at home.

Sit: T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Seattle Seahawks. I guess he’s okay in PPR leagues, with his fourteen catches, but Whoseyourmomma has only 145 yards and zero scores through three games. His ceiling is low with Seneca Wallace at quarterback. To make matters worse, the Colts are 10th in the league in passing defense, and have allowed only one passing touchdown this year.

Rank	Tight Ends	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Dallas Clark	IND	SEA	94.60
2	Jason Witten	DAL	at DEN	89.20
3	Chris Cooley	WAS	TB	86.80
4	Antonio Gates	SD	at PIT	84.60
5	Greg Olsen	CHI	DET	82.00
6	Owen Daniels	HOU	OAK	79.80
7	John Carlson	SEA	at IND	79.40
8	Dustin Keller	NYJ	at NO	76.60
T-8	Vernon Davis	SF	STL	76.60
10	Zach Miller	OAK	at HOU	76.40
11	Kellen Winslow	TB	at WAS	74.00
12	Kevin Boss	NYG	at KC	73.20
13	Tony Scheffler	DEN	DAL	67.60
14	Todd Heap	BAL	at NE	66.80
15	Jeremy Shockey	NO	NYJ	66.65
16	Visanthe Shiancoe	MIN	GB	65.80
17	Heath Miller	PIT	SD	65.00
18	Anthony Fasano	MIA	BUF	64.00
19	Marcedes Lewis	JAC	TEN	62.00
20	Robert Royal	CLE	CIN	60.20
21	Donald Lee	GB	at MIN	57.20
22	Brandon Pettigrew	DET	at CHI	57.12
23	Daniel Coats	CIN	at CLE	56.60
24	Ben Watson	NE	BAL	55.60
25	Randy McMichael	STL	at SF	54.60
26	Derek Fine	BUF	at MIA	53.20
27	Martellus Bennett	DAL	at DEN	49.00
28	Jermichael Finley	GB	at MIN	46.00
29	Sean Ryan	KC	NYG	45.00
30	Bo Scaife	TEN	at JAC	39.60
31	Alge Crumpler	TEN	at JAC	33.80
32	Daniel Graham	DEN	DAL	22.00

 

Start: Dustin Keller, New York Jets. Keller had a slightly disappointing week in the Jets win over the Titans. He is still an explosive downfield threat however, and I could easily see the Saints-Jets game this weekend turning into a shootout. Drew Brees and the Saints will put up some points, so the Jets are going to have to go the air to keep up. Gregg Williams has done a good job with the Saints’ defense, but I think Keller makes a good start this week against New Orleans.

Sit: Visanthe Shiancoe, Minnesota Vikings. With just six catches on the year so far, Shiancoe has been one of the few disappointments this year in Minnesota. There’s always a chance Favre could find him for a short touchdown in any given week, but in general he does not seem to have as high a priority in the Vikings’ offense as he had last year.

Rank	Kickers	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Ryan Longwell	MIN	GB	87.40
2	Rob Bironas	TEN	at JAC	85.40
3	Mason Crosby	GB	at MIN	84.40
T-3	Stephen Gostkowski	NE	BAL	84.40
5	Lawrence Tynes	NYG	at KC	84.00
6	Robbie Gould	CHI	DET	83.60
7	Kris Brown	HOU	OAK	83.00
8	Nick Folk	DAL	at DEN	81.20
9	Shayne Graham	CIN	at CLE	79.80
10	John Carney	NO	NYJ	79.40
T-10	Nate Kaeding	SD	at PIT	79.40
12	Adam Vinatieri	IND	SEA	79.00
13	Joe Nedney	SF	STL	76.20
T-13	Shaun Suisham	WAS	TB	76.20
15	Jeff Reed	PIT	SD	73.60
16	Matt Prater	DEN	DAL	72.60
17	Josh Scobee	JAC	TEN	71.80
18	Rian Lindell	BUF	at MIA	71.20
19	Jay Feely	NYJ	at NO	69.80
20	Phil Dawson	CLE	CIN	69.00
21	Sebastian Janikowski	OAK	at HOU	68.60
22	Jason Hanson	DET	at CHI	67.00
23	Dan Carpenter	MIA	BUF	66.60
T-23	Josh Brown	STL	at SF	66.60
25	Steven Hauschka	BAL	at NE	66.20
26	Olindo Mare	SEA	at IND	64.00
27	Mike Nugent	TB	at WAS	63.40
28	Ryan Succop	KC	NYG	57.20

 

Start: Lawrence Tynes, New York Giants. The top of the kicker rankings are fairly similar each week, but sometimes one kicker stands out because of a particularly good matchup. Tynes against the Chiefs is one such matchup.

Sit: Jeff Reed, Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers has given Reed at least two field goal opportunities in each of his first three games, but Reed is having trouble converting. He’s already missed three kicks this season. If your league deducts points for misses, he’s probably not worth starting.

Rank	Defense	Team	Opponent	Average
1	Giants	NYG	at KC	97.60
2	Steelers	PIT	SD	87.40
3	Ravens	BAL	at NE	87.20
4	Bears	CHI	DET	85.40
5	Vikings	MIN	GB	83.00
6	Titans	TEN	at JAC	80.00
7	49ers	SF	STL	79.40
8	Jets	NYJ	at NO	79.20
9	Redskins	WAS	TB	77.20
10	Bengals	CIN	at CLE	74.40
11	Cowboys	DAL	at DEN	73.00
12	Bills	BUF	at MIA	72.60
T-12	Packers	GB	at MIN	72.60
14	Colts	IND	SEA	70.20
T-14	Dolphins	MIA	BUF	70.20
16	Texans	HOU	OAK	69.80
T-16	Chargers	SD	at PIT	69.80
18	Patriots	NE	BAL	68.60
19	Broncos	DEN	DAL	68.00
20	Raiders	OAK	at HOU	61.60
21	Buccaneers	TB	at WAS	60.60
22	Saints	NO	NYJ	58.40
23	Jaguars	JAC	TEN	57.00
24	Browns	CLE	CIN	55.60
25	Seahawks	SEA	at IND	55.40
26	Rams	STL	at SF	51.00
27	Lions	DET	at CHI	50.00
28	Chiefs	KC	NYG	48.00

 

Start: Minnesota Vikings. The Green Bay Packers have had trouble protecting the quarterback this season, giving up a league-high 12 sacks in three games. This is music to the ears of pass rushers like Jared Allen, Kevin Williams, and E.J. Henderson of the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikes make a good defensive start at home.

Sit: Denver Broncos. The Broncos are 3-0, in large part to their defense. Then again, they have not played the toughest of competition so far (Cincinnati, Cleveland, Oakland). This week, they host a Cowboys’ offense that should get Marion Barber back from injury. At home they may not be a terrible start, but if you picked them up to start against Oakland last week, you may want to take another look around, as there are several better options this week.
 

 
Nick Hopkins is one of a growing number of fantasy experts who write for the Cafe. You can catch up with Nick in the Cafe's forums where he posts under the name of terpfan.
 

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