Bar none, this looks by far the worst game of the week to watch, both for fantasy value and for entertainment value.  Seriously, if the Buccaneers and Jaguars fall in a forest, would anyone be around to hear it?  Is anyone actually reading this?  Ok, on a more serious note, both the Buccaneers and Jaguars come into this game without much hope, but only one is really downtrodden because of the high expectations during the off-season.  Most people expected the Buccaneers to challenge once again for a playoff berth, but instead the defense has been sieve-like, and Josh Freeman had to make up for last year’s turnover-free campaign and throw enough INTs and lose enough fumbles for two whole seasons, let alone one.  The Bucs are 4-8, and things are definitely not looking up, as they’ve lost six straight and seven of their last eight, and have let the opposing team score at least three touchdowns or more in seven games this year.  Luckily for them, the Jaguars would be hard pressed to score three touchdowns over the course of two games, as the Jags sport the worst scoring offense in the league.

Speaking of the Jaguars, they actually do have some hope, which came at the expense of firing Jack Del Rio, whose uninspired vanilla coaching actually does a disservice to the flavor of vanilla.  With the coaching staff getting a little more creative, Blaine Gabbert had one of his better games last week against the Chargers, throwing for nearly 200 yards and two scores… which is sad when that’s probably the best stat line your coach’s game plan could muster.  Maurice Jones-Drew also was finally re-introduced to the passing game, as he was able to roll up over 90 yards receiving and was targeted more than any other player.  Unfortunately the fantasy value on this team begins and ends with Jones-Drew, so if you don’t own him, then you can ignore the Jags altogether… which most everyone in the country has, including the people living in Jacksonville.

The Buccaneers can muster some value in fantasy circles, with both Mike Williams and Kellen Winslow having better games as of late.  The Jaguars defense has been decimated by injuries in the secondary, so both Williams and Winslow are pretty good plays here.  The Jaguars are still tough against the run, but they too are showing some cracks as Ryan Mathews was able to hit them for over 110 yards and a score.  Legarrette Blount is a different kind of runner certainly, much slower and more ox-like, but he should still manage to get about 70 yards and a score, making him a worthwhile play as well.

Good Start:  RB Legarrette Blount, WR Mike Williams, TE Kellen Winslow, RB Maurice Jones-Drew

Middle of the Road:  QB Josh Freeman, TE Marcedes Lewis

Bad Start:  WR Arrelius Benn, WR Preston Parker, All other Jaguars.

Last week, the Vikings became just the latest team to get Teb-owned, losing (yes you guessed it) late in the 4^th quarter on yet another magical Tebow carpet ride.  Not even one of the best offensive games from the Vikings all year was enough to stop a loss from happening, but no matter, that just means the Vikings are still on track for a really good draft pick.  The Lions started out the season on fire at 5-0, but have since flamed out, losing 5 of their last 7 and in serious danger of missing the playoffs when the postseason seemed like a certainty a month ago.  We should all know better though… postseason and Lions go together like toothpaste and orange juice, so we shouldn’t have taken a playoff run for granted, even after a 5-0 start.

Since the Vikings started Christian Ponder they haven’t been a whole lot better in the win-loss department than they were with the now cut Donovan McNabb, but they are sure as hell a lot more entertaining to watch.  Ponder can’t do anything about a defense that can’t get off the field, but he has been able to score points in chunks to keep the Vikings in most games.  Unfortunately, Ponder may very well not make this game due to a hip pointer, and already without Adrian Peterson the prospects of keeping up with the Lions on the road doesn’t look too hot.  This also probably damages some of the prospects of Percy Harvin, who has been electric for a month now… you’ll still start him, but you may have to temper expectations with Joe Webb at the helm.

For Matthew Stafford owners, this matchup for the first round of the fantasy playoffs is a god send, as Stafford should easily be able to post a 300 and 3 stat line against the 26^th ranked pass defense; a defense that has allowed the most touchdown passes in the league so far this year.  This should also be a game where Calvin Johnson once again finds the endzone, and even secondary targets like Brandon Pettigrew and Nate Burleson can be considered very good plays.  The running game is a bit of a different story though, as Maurice Morris isn’t an attractive play even against the best of matchups, but the damage he can do in the passing game with Stafford checking down a lot lately, Morris could be a decent flex play in PPR leagues.

Good Start: QB Matthew Stafford, WR Calvin Johnson, WR Nate Burleson, TE Brandon Pettigrew, WR Percy Harvin

Middle of the Road:  WR Titus Young, RB Toby Gerhart, TE Visanthe Shiancoe

Bad Start:  WR Devin Aromashodu, TE Kyle Rudolph
  The Patriots continue to roll along, going up 31-3 on the Colts before Belichick’s squad mailed it in for the fourth quarter, allowing 21 unanswered points and probably causing a lot of heartache for those who were playing the spread.  The Redskins  are the anti-Patriots, losing seven of eight in a myriad of different ways, and if it weren’t for a bit of self destruction on the part of the Seahawks a couple of weeks ago, we’d probably be talking about the Redskins losing eight straight almost as much as we talk about the Eagles epic collapse. 

Since the Redskins haven’t stopped any passing attack since about Week 3 or so, there’s no reason to think Tom Brady won’t slice them apart, probably besting his normal 280+ yards and 2 scores… in fact, it’s a good bet Brady ends up with at least 3 scores in this one.  Of course, the most likely of his receivers to end up with those scores would be Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski, who have 21 of Brady’s 30 touchdown passes already.  Of course, a score could go to Aaron Hernandez or even Deion Branch, but the smart money is on Slot Machine and the Gronk.  Regardless, if you own any other Patriots receiving weapon, don’t be shy about rolling them out this week.

Luckily, due to Patriots being even more putrid against the pass than the Redskins, a lot of the Redskins offensive players are good plays this week as well.  With the 32^nd ranked pass defense, you can make a case for Rex Grossman, who should top 300 yards and is likely to get at least one score if not two.  With Fred Davis  out due to suspension, both Santana Moss and Jabar Gaffney are very good plays as well, and should be started in just about any league where they’re owned.  Moss’s targets have gone up in consecutive weeks, so it isn’t a stretch to think he can’t grab 7 or 8 passes for 80+ yards and a score.  Gaffney probably doesn’t get nearly as high, but 5 or 6 catches and 60+ yards with a score certainly aren’t out of the question.

At least the Redskins running game is also worth something, as Mike Shanahan finally realized the same thing most of us realized weeks ago… Roy Helu is his best RB, and should be started week in and week out.  If Helu had been starting for over a month now and Shanahan stuck with Grossman (who’s an order of magnitude better than John Beck… and that should tell you all you need to know about Beck) maybe the Redskins win another game or two.  While the Patriots are better at stopping the run than the pass, they’re not much better and Helu should be able to scorch them for 100+ yards rushing, another 30-40 receiving, and a score.

The Patriots running game on the other hand has become far too unpredictable, but if you have to play one of their RBs, BenJarvis Green-Ellis is the play because he would be the most likely to score from up close.  But because of his lack of yardage, he’s best avoided along with the rest of the Patriots backfield.

Good Start:  QB Tom Brady, WR Wes Welker, TE Rob Gronkowski, TE Aaron Hernandez, QB Rex Grossman, RB Roy Helu, WR Santana Moss

Middle of the Road:  WR Deion Branch, WR Jabar Gaffney

Bad Start:  Patriots RBs, WR Anthony Armstrong, TE Logan Paulsen

These are two teams going in opposite directions currently, as the Texans continue to push forward with wins even though they lost their top two quarterbacks due to injury.  TJ Yates actually looked like a serviceable veteran rather than a third string rookie, as he made a few timely throws and kept on handing off to Arian Foster, which is all you have to do with this incarnation of the Texans.  For Andy Dalton and the Bengals, they’ve lost 3 of their last 4 during what’s been the toughest stretch of their schedule, exposing the fact that while they’ve much better than last year, they still have some work to do in order to be serious contenders.

Both squads will try to rely mostly on their running games, the short passing game, and their defenses to carry the day.  The Texans and Bengals both have stout defenses (ranked 2^nd and 6^th respectively) and have excelled in the short passing game; the big difference in this game will come down to Arian Foster vs. Cedric Benson, which isn’t a fair fight.  Foster is explosive, as he makes plays in both the running and the passing game; Benson is well… boring.  Foster is so good that the Texans aren’t worried about going into the playoffs with Yates at QB, because the quarterback isn’t expected to do more than pass just enough to keep the defenses honest.  Yates showed he was good enough for that, as he didn’t play the whole game and still threw for around 190 yards and a score.  Unfortunately for Yates, Andre Johnson hurt his other hamstring and will now be out for two weeks, which doesn’t help his prospects in a tough matchup.

Andy Dalton on the other hand has all his weapons at his disposal, as both AJ Green and Jermaine Gresham are healthy and talented enough to cause some problems against the Texans secondary.  Dalton likes to take at least one or two shots down the field to Green, and he trusts his fellow rookie enough to put the ball up and let him go make a play.  When the Bengals get down in the red zone and need to throw for a score, Dalton has looked Gresham’s way more frequently, so look for Gresham to score once here to go along with his normal 4-5 catches for 30-50 yards.

Good Start:  RB Arian Foster, WR AJ Green, TE Jermaine Gresham

Middle of the Road:  TE Owen Daniels, QB Andy Dalton

Bad Start:  QB TJ Yates, RB Ben Tate, WR Jacoby Jones, RB Cedric Benson, WR Jerome Simpson
  The Chiefs come off an unlikely win on the road in Chicago; a win they probably wouldn’t have gotten if the Bears weren’t missing their entire offensive talent base due to injury.  Tyler Palko didn’t really look any better than he had the previous two weeks, but he didn’t make the same amount of critical errors that submarined his team’s chances of winning either.  The Jets ended up having to fight hard in the second half to get a win against a downtrodden Redskins team, and the Jets defense is showing more and more cracks in it as the season goes along. 

Mark Sanchez and the Jets still have a lot to play for and can’t afford any missteps, as they’re already one loss away from probably not making it to the post-season.  This should be more than enough motivation to fail-boat against the a scrappy Chiefs team that has been playing better defense as of late, and may give Sanchez all he can handle.  Don’t expect much out of the Jets passing attack, as the Chiefs have played two straight weeks with stymieing the aerial attack of their opponents, but Sanchez should still be able to get around 200 yards and a score… not great, and certainly you can do better for your fantasy playoffs.  This also means both Plaxico Burress and Santonio Holmes will probably not be worth playing as anything other than a flex, but Burress is more likely to catch a touchdown pass due to his inviting 6’5” frame in the endzone. 

Shonn Greene has started to come on lately, getting at least 19 carries in 5 of his last 7 healthy games, and producing at least 75 total yards in those games.  He’s getting more carries as the season goes along, and he probably will get at least one shot at a goal line score in this game,.  Last week, Greene had three TDs, but he hadn’t scored in his last six games before that, so he is a decent fantasy play here, but owners shouldn’t expect more than one score.  Luckily no other runner has factored in much in the last two weeks, so if there are going to be any goal line carries, then Greene will undoubtedly get them.

For the Chiefs, they go against their third straight tough defensive opponent and second straight on the road.  Just like it was in the last two games, none of the Chiefs are really worth a fantasy play due to both the defense they’re playing a game, and the fact that from Palko to Thomas Jones and Jackie Battle, they’re just plain terrible in the talent department.  Only Dwayne Bowe has been worth a play, but against Darrelle Revis and the Jets, even he’s not worth putting in lineups with the playoffs on the line.

Good Start:  RB Shonn Greene, WR Plaxico Burress

Middle of the Road:  QB Mark Sanchez, WR Santonio Holmes, TE Dustin Keller

Bad Start:  RB Ladainian Tomlinson, all Chiefs players
  The Falcons come off a road loss to the Texans, making Atlanta that much more desperate to grab a win and keep their wildcard playoff hopes alive.  The Panthers don’t have much to play for other than pride and the spoiler role, and they have just enough talent to make the Falcons sweat, especially in Charlotte.
Matt Ryan looked more like Matty Iced than Matty Ice last week, throwing a two interceptions and never looking very comfortable on the road against a Texans team that put some pressure on him most of the game.  The Panthers don’t have near as good a defense as the Texans, but they arguably have a better offense and just like the Texans, they play better at home than on the road.  The Falcons haven’t traveled well of late, but Ryan should have a nice bounce back game with around 240 yards and a couple of scores.  Michael Turner should also have a better game, as the Panthers have been in the bottom third of the league in stopping the run most of the season, so get him in those playoff lineups if at all possible.

Speaking of being in lineups, Cam Newton should be in any lineup where he’s owned (and should have been started since oh, Week 3 or so), as Newton has been almost the entire offense for the Panthers of late.  Jonathan Stewart and Deangelo Williams have taken turns having decent games in the last few outings, but almost all the rushing scores still go through Newton, who has 13 on the season, and with four games remaining may actually threaten 20 on the year, which is simply unthinkable for most RBs, let alone a QB.

Steve Smith has been his favorite target all year, but has cooled off considerably, dropping in catches and targets progressively over the last month, culminating with a bad 2-32 outing last week.  You can’t bench him based on the fact that Newton could rediscover him to the tune of 7-8 catches for 100+ yards and a score, but the recent trends says around 5-60 is probably more likely, and you’ll have to hope and pray for only his second touchdown in more than a month.  None of the secondary targets have been worth much of late, but if you have to roll with anyone, Greg Olsen is probably the only one to use out of the tight end position, and even that has been iffy during the same stretch that Steve Smith has fallen off in.

Good Start:  QB Matt Ryan, RB Michael Turner, WR Roddy White, TE Tony Gonzalez, QB Cam Newton

Middle of the Road:  WR Julio Jones, RB Jonathan Stewart, WR Steve Smith, TE Greg Olsen

Bad Start:  WR Harry Douglas, RB Deangelo Williams, WR Brandon LaFell
  After predictably getting blanked by the 49ers on the road, the Rams get another stiff challenge by going up to Seattle on Monday Night Football to hopefully avoid getting embarrassed for a second week in a row.  Ok, let’s face it… the Rams have been embarrassed for just about 14 weeks in a row, with their high point being an inexplicable win over the Saints (I’m now convinced Sean Payton must have had money on the Rams, that’s the only way it could have happened), and a bye week where they mercifully didn’t have to play a game.  The Seahawks come off a big win over the “Wizard of Oz” Eagles… you know, they play with no heart, no brains, and no courage; now the ‘Hawks get to host a Rams team that they should equally dominate.

AJ Feeley was a disaster last week against the 49ers, as he was generally ineffective when he wasn’t throwing interceptions or fumbling the ball.  He also fractured his thumb on his throwing hand, so chances are the team will be forced to start a hobbled Sam Bradford in this one.  But even suffering through a high ankle sprain Bradford at least can threaten a defense better than even a healthy Feeley, so the Rams shouldn’t get blanked for a second straight week.  To keep the pressure off Bradford, the Rams will try to run the ball as much as possible with Steven Jackson, who’s been fairly cold the past month after running for three straight 100 yard games in Weeks 8-10.  The Seahawks defense hasn’t been nearly as good against the run as they had been in the first half of the season, but they will be good enough to keep Jackson from running all over them, especially since the Rams don’t have enough of a passing game to keep them from loading the box.

The Seahawks will run early and often with Marshawn Lynch, and as well they should; not only is Lynch on a roll, scoring in his last seven games and topping 100 total yards in all but one of those contests, but the Rams rank near the bottom of the league at stopping the run and have already allowed Beanie Wells and Demarco Murray to run for over 200 yards against them.  We can’t expect Lynch to total 200 yards (can’t happen to a defense three times in a year, can it?), but he is as much a virtual lock as possible to get 150 total yards or close to it, plus add at least one score.  At least for a week, Lynch is not only a must start, but could be the top RB points getter… and just in time for the fantasy playoffs too.

The Rams secondary has been decimated by injuries and only one of their players in the secondary was actually on the team in training camp, so in the 15-18 passes Tavaris Jackson will probably throw, he could find some pretty good success getting the ball to his downfield targets.  Doug Baldwin, Mike Williams, and even Golden Tate can be elevated into marginal plays, and you could make a case for any of them at your flex position if you’re desperate for a starter that has a very good matchup.

Good Start:  RB Marshawn Lynch, WR Brandon Lloyd

Middle of the Road:  RB Steven Jackson, WR Doug Baldwin, WR Mike Williams, WR Golden Tate

Bad Start:  All other Rams, QB Tavaris Jackson, TE Zach Miller

Philadelphia laid one of its biggest eggs of the season against Seattle – and that’s saying something – while the Dolphins continue to play hard, with Oakland being their latest victim.
 
Just about any Eagle not named LeSean McCoy was pathetic against the Seahawks. Vince Young threw four interceptions to go along with his stellar numbers of 208 yards and a TD. McCoy had 84 yards and a TD rushing and added another TD on 4 receptions for 49 yards. DeSean Jackson (4 receptions, 35 yards) laid the groundwork for his exit from Philly if that’s what he wants. He was an embarrassment to not only himself and his team, but the league as well.
 
Matt Moore just keeps rolling along. The most unlikely of viable Fantasy starters, he added 162 yards, a passing TD, and a rushing TD against the Raiders to his resume. Reggie Bush has also found new life, with his latest contribution being 100 rushing yards and a TD. Brandon Marshall was a disappointment, as he only had 4 receptions for 60 yards against a pass defense that had allowed 20 passing TDs going into the game.
 
Miami allowed Carson Palmer 273 yards and 2 TDs, and yes, stats count, obviously, but the vast majority of Palmer’s output came in trash time. Philly will likely have Michael Vick back but you’ve got to think some serious rust has built up over the last three weeks while he was out. And even the two weeks before that he was lousy, averaging only 174 yards a game, throwing for no TDs and throwing three picks. And the Miami defense has stepped it up considerably in most of its recent games. Are you going to run Vick? That obviously depends on your other QB. If you’ve been OK in the last few weeks without Vick, and the QB you’ve been riding has a good matchup, I’d start him over Vick. McCoy is obviously a must-start no matter who he’s facing, but again, the Dolphins have improved against the run as well, so adjust your expectations accordingly. I don’t trust Jackson as far as I can throw him. He could very well have a great game but I’d go in another direction because he may be in a funk that he can’t escape during this disaster of a season for the Eagles. Jeremy Maclin expects to play, and I’d start him over Jackson any day of the week.
 
As far as the Dolphins are concerned, it’s hard not to recommend Moore in deeper leagues, considering the run he’s been on lately. If the Eagles continue to stay in the tank, Moore and Bush could shine. Marshall also looks like a good start; even if Nnamdi Asomugha plays, now he has a concussion to go along with the knee problem he had going into the Seattle game so he’ll be nowhere near 100 percent.
 
GOOD STARTS: QB Matt Moore, RB Reggie Bush, RB LeSean McCoy, WR Jeremy Maclin
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: QB Michael Vick, WR Devone Bess, WR Riley Cooper, TE Brent Celek, TE Anthony Fasano
 
BAD STARTS: WR DeSean Jackson. He could very well break out of his funk, but I’m not putting any faith in him.
  The Saints won at home (big surprise) against the Lions, while the Titans won a tough one on the road against the Bills.
 
Drew Brees is absolutely on fire. In a season dominated by elite quarterbacks, Brees is right with Rodgers and Brady on the bad-ass scale. Lance Moore seems to be the flavor of the week among Saint receivers, as he has scored three times in his last two games, but Robert Meachem had 119 yards and a TD against Detroit. As always, good luck trying to figure out which Saint wideout is going to shine. Jimmy Graham remains the best bet among New Orleans pass catchers.
 
Chris Johnson showed he can play really well against bad run defenses. In three of the last four weeks he’s torched the Panthers, Buccaneers and Bills for a combined 473 yards and 3 TDs. In between, against a very good Atlanta run defense, he managed only 13 yards on 12 carries. So don’t get carried away with him yet. While Carolina, Tampa Bay and Buffalo have combined to allow almost 16 TDs each on the ground this season, the Saints have allowed only 9. So you’re going to start Johnson based on his recent resurgence, but don’t expect him to absolutely go off. Matt Hasselbeck hasn’t hit the 220-yard mark in his last four games, but he should do pretty well against a New Orleans pass D that has given up 264 YPG and 19 TDs. The Titans would love to let Johnson and Javon Ringer pound the rock all day to keep Brees off the field, but it’s hard to envision them being successful in pulling that off.
 
The Titans have allowed 17 passing TDs and an average of 234 YPG. Look for both of those numbers to increase this week. The only thing that might slow Brees down would be the weather, and early indications were that it would be bright and sunny with not a lot of wind. He might not absolutely go off like he has at home the last two weeks, but he’ll do enough to help you advance in your Fantasy playoffs.
 
GOOD STARTS: QB Drew Brees, QB Matt Hasselbeck, RB Chris Johnson, TE Jimmy Graham
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: RB Darren Sproles, RB Mark Ingram, WR Damian Williams, any Saint receiver
 
BAD STARTS: RB Pierre Thomas – he has a good matchup against the Titans, but there’s just no telling how many carries he’ll get.
  The Colts were shockingly competitive against New England, while the Ravens rolled Cleveland.
 
No matter how bad the Patriots have been on pass defense has been this season, nobody saw Dan Orlovsky putting up 354 yards and 2 TDs against them. And Pierre Garcon was the biggest recipient, catching 9 passes for 150 yards and both TDs. Donald Brown even had a rushing TD to go along with his 41 yards.
 
The Ravens rode a phenomenal 205-yard, 1-TD outing from Ray Rice. Joe Flacco was more or less a bystander, throwing for 158 yards and nothing else. Hopefully for Rice owners, the formula will stay the same this week. It should, considering the fact that Indy has allowed 144 YPG and a league high 17 rushing TDs.
 
If you think you’re going to be a genius by picking Orlovsky off the waiver wire and starting him, that’s probably not a good plan. The Ravens have allowed only 199 YPG through the air and 8 TDs – the lowest total in the NFL. We couldn’t have been more wrong in saying every Colt was a bad start last week, but we’re sticking with it this week.
 
GOOD STARTS: RB Ray Rice
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: QB Joe Flacco, RB Ricky Williams, WR Anquan Boldin, WR Torrey Smith
 
BAD STARTS: Any Colt
  The Bears suffered a crushing loss to the Chiefs at home while Denver rode the Tebow Train to yet another win, this one on the road against the Vikings.
 
As is pretty obvious when a team only puts up three points, no Bear did anything of Fantasy value – unless it was bad value. Caleb Hanie was the worst offender, throwing for only 133 yards and 3 INTs. The worst news is that Matt Forte suffered a sprained MCL and will be out at least two weeks, reportedly.
 
Tebow wasn’t able to take advantage of a bad secondary as much as many expected, but he did throw for 205 yards and 2 TDs. Willis McGahee had 111 yards and a score in notching his third 100-yard game in his last five. He did, however, suffer a knee problem that cost him most of the fourth quarter, although he’s supposed to be good to go this week.
 
Hanie has another matchup against an AFC West team with a bad pass defense this week. The Broncos allowed an astounding 381 yards and 3 TDs to Christian Ponder, but can Hanie take advantage? After all, heading into last week’s game the Chiefs had allowed 19 TDs themselves. Marion Barber will carry most of the rushing load in Forte’s absence, and Denver has been pretty generous from a yardage standpoint, allowing 121 YPG. They’ve only given up 5 TDs on the ground, though.
 
A lot of people keep waiting for Tebow to have another meltdown like he did against Detroit, but he just keeps putting up solid numbers and winning. The Bears, however, are better overall than just about any defense Tebow has faced during Denver’s winning streak. I’m going to keep him in the “good start” category, but this could very well be the week the Tebow haters get some ammunition to support their arguments.
 
GOOD STARTS: QB Tim Tebow, RB Willis McGahee, RB Marion Barber
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: WR Eric Decker, WR Demaryius Thomas, WR Johnny Knox, WR Roy Williams
 
BAD STARTS: QB Caleb Hanie
  The 49ers throttled the Rams, pitching only the season’s fourth shutout, while the Cardinals continued their home whammy over the Cowboys with an overtime win.
 
Alex Smith had his second multi-TD game in the last three weeks, going for 274 yards and 2 TDs against St. Louis. Frank Gore was a bitter disappointment to his owners, however, rushing for 73 yards and no TDs. He has failed to either score or hit the 100-yard mark in his last three games. He hasn’t been close to the same since being injured against the Giants in Week 10.
 
Kevin Kolb wasn’t great in his return, but he was good enough, throwing for 247 yards and the game-winning TD against Dallas. Beanie Wells had 67 yards and a TD while Andre Roberts was the surprise leader among Cardinal receivers with 111 yards on 6 catches.
 
The Cardinal run defense has been bad on the season, allowing 119 YPG and 12 TDs, but Arizona bottled up DeMarco Murray last week and has only allowed one 100-yard rusher in the last seven games. In addition, they have given up only one rushing TD in their last five. There’s probably not a whole lot the 49ers can do to improve their playoff seeding, so if they get a substantial early lead, don’t be surprised if they give Gore the rest of the day off. He might have to put his numbers up early if he is to do it at all.
 
As far as the Cardinal offense goes, while Wells has been solid-to-strong for a good portion of the season, he’s going up against a brick wall this week. It’s hard for me to identify any running back I’d start against San Francisco, no matter how much of a stud he may be – with or without Patrick Willis manning the middle. The 49ers have been actually fairly human against the pass, though, so Larry Fitzgerald looks worth a start. He did score last time Arizona played San Francisco but had only 41 yards receiving. However, that was with John Skelton and Richard Bartel throwing the ball. You’ve got to think Fitzgerald’s numbers will go up somewhat with Kolb back at the helm.
 
GOOD STARTS: QB Alex Smith, WR Michael Crabtree, WR Larry Fitzgerald, TE Vernon Davis
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: QB Kevin Kolb
 
BAD STARTS: RB Beanie Wells
 
  The Bills lost to Tennessee to extend their slide to five games, while the Chargers smoked the Jaguars.
 
Ryan Fitzpatrick had 288 yards and a TD and C.J. Spiller had his best game of the season by far, rushing for 85 yards and a TD. Steve Johnson had a score as well for the second consecutive game.
 
Philip Rivers has been an interception machine for the better part of the season, but the Jacksonville game was his second in a row where that side of his ledger remained clean. He’s quietly put together a pretty effective stretch, with four multi-TD games out of his last five, during which he’s thrown 12 TDs and averaged 284 yards. Ryan Mathews had 112 yards and a TD on the ground against the Jaguars, and Mike Tolbert hit paydirt as well.
 
The Chargers have allowed multiple TD passes in 6 of their last 7 games, so Fitzpatrick looks like a good play if you dare trust him. More than likely you won’t have to since you’ve gotten to the playoffs without him, but if you’re in a deeper league he’s worth a look. And San Diego has been extremely vulnerable against the run, allowing 132 YPG, so Spiller could even be worth starting if you’re in desperation mode with your No. 2 running back.
 
San Diego is creating a bit of a conundrum in regard to its receivers, with the return of Malcom Floyd causing some headaches. He didn’t miss a beat in his return, catching 4 passes for 108 yards and a TD. It looks like he’ll take a lot of reps from Vincent Brown, but Brown even managed to score a TD. It’s hard to find a bad matchup among Floyd, Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates, but it’s hard to see Brown getting enough opportunities to put up big numbers.
 
GOOD STARTS: QB Philip Rivers, QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, RB Ryan Mathews, WR Vincent Jackson, WR Malcom Floyd, WR Steve Johnson, TE Antonio Gates
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: RB Mike Tolbert, RB C.J. Spiller
 
BAD STARTS: It’s hard to pick one in this game. This has the makings of a shootout.
 
  The Giants fell to the Packers while Dallas once again stumbled in the desert.
 
No need to waste much time here. In the last eight regular season games these two have played going back to 2007, they have combined for an average of 57 points – 28.5 each. So it’s a pretty safe bet to say that neither team will have much luck shutting the other one down. Miles Austin will likely be back for Dallas, which could result in a substantial drop-off in performance for Laurent Robinson. However, Robinson won’t be completely written out of the game plan because he’s been too good in Austin’s absence. So temper your expectations regarding Robinson, but unless you have a far better option you should still start him. For the Giants, the potential return of Mario Manningham may worry Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks owners, but it shouldn’t. There will be plenty of opportunities to go around for everyone.
 
GOOD STARTS: Anybody who has even the slightest pulse from a Fantasy perspective.
 
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD STARTS: None
 
BAD STARTS: None
 

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