Sit Em, Start Em – Week One

Sit Em, Start Em – Week One

While it would be easy for me to tell you to start Matt Ryan, Stevan Ridley, Alfred Morris, Jimmy Graham, Julio Jones and Dez Bryant it is not like every team wouldn’t start these studs anyways so we will try and delve a little deeper and suggest names that you may want to play that may currently be sitting on your bench.

Start Em

Terrelle Pryor – If you are in a two Qb league Pryor looks like a sneaky week one play with loads of upside. The Raiders are expected to get crushed by the Colts in this one so Pryor should rack up a ton of garbage time, playing from behind yardage and that coupled with his potential yards on the ground make him a solid QB2 play for this week. With thirteen QB1’s he will not be a suggested QB1 anytime soon, but he can help your team with fantasy points this week.

Emmanuel Sanders – With Antonio Brown now serving as the Steelers number one receiver, the once organizationally more highly regarded Sanders will be left to feast in single coverage much the same way Brown has the last two seasons. Sanders should be able to find the end zone this week with the Steelers run game in disrepair leaving Big Ben to toss 30 plus passes for the night. Sanders is a solid WR3 play this week with WR2 upside.

Chris Givens – I may admittedly be one of the biggest Chris Givens boosters out there after learning he now has a grasp on the entire route tree. Givens has monster weekly upside and this week versus the Cardinals should be no different. He has a potential tough matchup if he draws Peterson but he only needs two to three catches to surpass 100 yards receiving.

Julius Thomas – Julius Thomas is not going to be a target monster this season by most accounts but he is a solid bet to find the end zone at least once every two contests.

KnowShown Moreno – Gone is the pre injury explosion and lateral quickness that wowed us when Moreno came into the league but he is still a viable pass protector which will get him on the field versus the Broncos this week and should keep him involved in the passing game. Moreno is a solid flex2 play this week and should be going forward until further notice.

Sit Em

Ryan Mathews – If at all possible Ryan Mathews is a recommended sit this week against the ferocious Texans defense. Touted as top five back last year Mathews’ stock has taken quite a tumble and this likely will not be the week he starts the engines on his now near empty bandwagon. Plug and play someone else if you have the option.

Eddie Lacy – Rookie running back against a top five run defense on a pass first team? Lacy is a recommended sit if possible this week as his upside this week depends on his finding the end zone. After giving up only three rushing touchdowns in 2011, the 49ers gave up seven in 2012 a number that still ranked them in the top five. If you drafted early like we always suggest you have another RB2 option you can play this week, those who drafted late however may have to take the gamble due to the lack of another solid option.

Steve Smith – Going up against Richard Sherman in week one Smith comes in as a recommended sit this week against the Seahawks. I still have Smith pegged as a top-25 option due to his weekly upside but Greg Olsen figures to be the teams number one target this week. Sit Smith if you have other sound options.

Denarius Moore – Moore is not short on talent but with Pryor slated to start in week one we suggest a wait-and-see approach with Moore until Pryor proves consistency and chemistry with Moore. Moore should not be anything more than a flex option for most teams so leaving him on the bench should be an issue for most teams.

Philip Rivers – Squaring off against the Texans this week Philip Rivers is a recommended sit in two QB leagues. Transitioning to a west coast offense predicated on short and intermediate throws Rivers loses a lot of his luster that came from him being a deep ball QB. Sit Rivers this year against stingy D’s.