Sit Em, Start Em – Week Eight
Start Em
Denard Robinson – Robinson aka the offensive weapon qualifies at both receiver and running back and is a must-start as a receiver in fantasy football leagues. The Jags may fall behind early in this one limiting Robinson’s upside and thus capping his ranking but the former quarterback clearly showed he belongs in this league as a running back. Start Robinson in all but the shallowest formats as a wide receiver; at running back only if you somehow managed Zac Stacy, Doug Martin, Stevan Ridley and/or Ray Rice as your top four backs on draft day.
Branden Oliver – Oliver was not as impressive in week seven as he has been in previous weeks but he still put up 78 yards on 18 touches. Oliver will have a major role even when Ryan Mathews returns and at the very least will split carries and get the majority of the workload on third downs. It should go without saying that Oliver is a borderline RB1 with Mathews on the shelf and he should get a lot of touches this week as the Chargers look to amp up the ground and pound against their division foe on Thursday Night Football in an effort to keep Peyton Manning off of the field. Start Oliver as an upside RB2 with a RB3 floor.
Tre Mason – The Rams are postulating that Tre Mason may actually lose a start to the ineffective, volume and touchdown dependent Zac Stacy and we for one are not buying it. Mason has been the most talented runner on this team since the second they selected him in this years draft and it is not really close. Mason is bursting with RB2 potential and is someone we all should have been higher on on draft day. Start Mason in all leagues as an RB2. Dynasty league owners should note that he is one of the most talented running backs in the league who now has his hands on the feature job for the foreseeable future.
Doug Baldwin – This recommendation can be placed in the no-brainer section usually reserved for less courageous writers but Baldwin is still available in 48 percent of Yahoo! leagues and is only in starting lineups in a little over half of those leagues. Baldwin is a week to week flex option with WR3 upside and should be a solid start this week against the Panthers. Baldwin will likely pace the Seahawks in targets week to week and should be a good bet for at least a 5 reception, 80 yard outing this weekend.
Dwayne Allen – By now most owners should realize that Dwayne Allen is someone you want to plug in week to week at tight end. With that said however Allen, for most of you, was not your top tight end drafted and thus you may have other options at your disposal. Allen is definitely a must-start regardless of matchup in standard and touchdown heavy formats but at just under five targets and only three receptions per game PPR owners may be considering other options. We believe Allen’s role will only continue to grow and his target average is skewed by a one target, zero reception week two. Start Allen in all standard and touchdown heavy leagues while those in PPR formats should be encouraged by his uptick in targets over recent weeks and the fact that he has found the end zone in five of his seven contests and is on pace for a double digit touchdown campaign.
Sit Em
Zac Stacy – By now you should already know not to start Zac Stacy this week after he saw zero touches in week seven. Granted you probably drafted Stacy as your RB1 but this is part of the reason you probably loaded up on running backs on draft day. Stacy can be dropped in most leagues but those in deeper leagues may want to just stash him in case Tre Mason gets injured. Sit Stacy in all leagues until further notice.
Doug Martin – Martin has not rushed for more than 45 yards in a game this season and continues to look like the sophomore disappointment as opposed to the rookie fantasy stud we saw under Greg Schiano. Martin is no more than a low floor flex play and with the return of Charles Sims looming we hope that you have other options you can roll out at running back for the rest of the season. The most disturbing part about Martin is that he had seven weeks to run away with the job but failed to do so due to injury and plain old ineffectiveness. It is amazing to think how far the muscle hamster has fallen after averaging 4.6 yards per carry and 90.9 rushing yards per game to go with 12 total touchdowns and three receptions per game in his rookie season. Sit Martin until he shows some signs of life.
Cecil Shorts – 2013 Garbage time hero Cecil Shorts has been exposed. Shorts has never been long on talent but was often able to produce appreciable garbage time stats for the Jaguars. No longer the team’s most talented healthy receiver (due to Justin Blackmon’s suspension last year) Shorts just cannot provide consistent fantasy value and probably would have trouble doing so anywhere in the league except for Cleveland or Miami.
Markus Wheaton – I was big on Martavis Bryant coming into the season but after week one when I saw what Wheaton could do with the ball in his hands I was an immediate convert and started touting Wheaton’s rising stock. Fast forward to week eight and Wheaton has yet to show any consistency and it seems that getting the ball in his hands is the problem here not what he can do after he has the ball. As exciting as he is, he has been too inefficient as he quite frankly offers many of the same traits as Antonio Brown while Martavis Bryant presents both a deep speed and size element that neither Brown nor Wheaton can offer. What I am trying to say here is that Wheaton may be demoted for good and Martavis has a chance to become a Mike Wallace/Plaxico Burress combo of a receiver.
Jace Amaro – At tight end Jace Amaro should be on fantasy benches this week as we monitor his workload over the next couple of week with Percy Harvin in town to steal touches and take over as the team’s most talented receiver. Amaro will still have some semblance of TE2 value but will have more disappointing outing like he did in week seven with Harvin now on the roster. Amaro should only be started in two tight end leagues.
