Every week I'll dive into some sleepers beyond what we write in Start 'Em and Sit 'Em to help some of you in deeper leagues. Some weeks will have more guys than others, but this should be helpful for those owners in 14- and 16-team leagues.
Andy Dalton (at SEA): We keep waiting for the Seahawks
secondary to fall apart, and they have really struggled in just one game
against the Giants in Week 5 when Eli Manning
had 420 passing yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. But
aside from that performance, no quarterback has had multiple touchdown
passes or 300 passing yards against Seattle. The reason we like Dalton,
however, is the Seahawks continue to lose defensive backs with Marcus Trufant (back) and Walter Thurmond III (broken leg) out for the
season. And Dalton has at least 16 Fantasy points in his past three
outings with five total touchdowns and three interceptions over that
span. He has talented weapons in A.J. Green, Jermaine Gresham and Jerome Simpson,
and with Cedric Benson (suspension) out,
we can see Dalton doing more heavy lifting. He is a quality bye-week
replacement even with a potentially difficult matchup. (Started in 16
percent of leagues in Week 6)
Matt Hasselbeck (vs. IND): The Colts have completely fallen
apart the past three weeks in their pass defense, and even Hasselbeck
should be able to find success in this matchup. Indianapolis has allowed
10 passing touchdowns the past three weeks with Matt Cassel (four touchdowns) and Drew Brees
(five) doing the bulk of the damage. Hasselbeck has struggled since
losing Kenny Britt (knee), and he has
just two touchdowns and three interceptions in his past two games with a
combined 366 passing yards over that span against Pittsburgh and
Houston. But those defenses are much tougher than the Colts, and
Hasselbeck should be able to succeed by finding Nate Washington and Jared Cook for
plays down the field. We expect plenty of Chris Johnson in this matchup, but as we've seen all year, that's no
guarantee with the way Johnson has played. Hasselbeck could be useful if
you need a spot starter this week. (Started in 34 percent of leagues
in Week 7)
Christian Ponder
(at CAR): Ponder played well in his NFL debut last week against
Green Bay with 219 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions
and four carries for 31 yards. He will make plays like a less-talented
version of the quarterback across the field since he's not as athletic
as Cam Newton. But Ponder has those
same intangibles based on his rushing ability, and he could help you in
a dire situation. The Panthers have allowed five quarterbacks to score
multiple touchdowns this season, including John Beck last week when he had 279 passing yards, one touchdown and
one interception and three carries for 10 yards and a touchdown. Ponder
is capable of a similar performance, and he has plenty of upside in this
matchup. (Started in 6 percent of leagues in Week 7)
Bernard Scott (at SEA): Scott will start this week for the suspended Cedric Benson, and he is worth using as a flex option or No. 2 running back depending on the size of your league. He will likely get 15-20 touches against the Seahawks, which should lead to decent production. Seattle has done a nice job in run defense this year with only Mendenhall, Isaac Redman, Michael Turner and Montario Hardesty reaching double digits in Fantasy points, but with all the running backs hurt or on bye this week, we can see Scott being a quality option based on his increased playing time. (Started in 4 percent of leagues in Week 6)
Knowshon Moreno (vs. DET): Moreno gets the opportunity to start with Willis McGahee (hand) out, which should allow Moreno to return to some sort of Fantasy prominence. He will share carries with Lance Ball, who also has some sleeper potential with McGahee out, but Moreno should be used as a low-end No. 2 running back or flex option this week. The Lions have allowed four running backs to reach double digits in Fantasy points, and they have struggled with backs out of the backfield. Six running backs have had at least four catches against the Lions this season, and with Tim Tebow as the quarterback, we could see plenty of dump-off passes to Moreno. His value is higher in point per reception leagues, but Moreno can be used in all formats. (Started in 22 percent of leagues in Week 7)
LaRod Stephens-Howling (at BAL): This suggestion is for the desperate owner in PPR leagues because I would never recommend using any Arizona running back, including Beanie Wells, in a standard format at the Ravens. But with Wells (knee) likely out for this matchup, the Cardinals will use Alfonso Smith and Stephens-Howling to handle running back duties. Smith will likely get swallowed up trying to run the ball, but Stephens-Howling could make plays as a receiver. Call this our running back Hail Mary of the week, and look for Stephens-Howling to see several targets out of the backfield from Kevin Kolb. (Not started yet this season)
Leon Washington (vs. CIN): Marshawn Lynch said he expects to play in Week 8 despite not playing in Week 7 with a back injury, but I'd be cautious in starting him since back injuries could flare up at any time. That could open the door for Washington to see increased playing time, and he had seven carries for 39 yards and four catches for 10 yards against the Browns with Lynch out. This is a difficult matchup for him against the Bengals since Cincinnati has allowed just one 100-yard outing, which was Week 2 against McGahee. Washington is more of a Hail Mary call, but his value would be higher if Lynch is out. (Not started yet this season)
Jason Hill (at HOU): Hill heads into his Week 8 matchup at
Houston looking like a nice sleeper for Fantasy owners. Hill has at
least six Fantasy points in his past three games with two touchdowns
over that span. He also has 28 targets in his past four games, and he
has emerged as the No. 1 receiver for the Jaguars ahead of Mike Thomas and newly acquired Mike Sims-Walker. This also is a good matchup for him against the
Texans. This season, Houston has allowed six touchdowns to opposing
receivers and six to reach double digits in Fantasy points. (Started
in 1 percent of leagues in Week 7)
Jabar Gaffney (at BUF): Gaffney will assume the No. 1 role for
the Redskins with Santana Moss (hand)
out, and he should see an increase in targets, which will help his
value. Gaffney was having a nice season so far with four games with at
least six Fantasy points. He would have made it five games if he didn't
fumble against the Panthers, and he has 18 targets in his past two
outings. The Bills have allowed five touchdowns to opposing receivers
and six have reached double digits in Fantasy points. (Started in 14
percent of leagues in Week 7)
Jerome Simpson (at SEA): As we said with Dalton, the Seahawks are
without two cornerbacks in Trufant and Thurmond, which should help Green
and Gresham, but look for Simpson to play well also. He had a productive
game in Week 6 against the Colts with six catches for 101 yards, and he
had nine targets in that matchup. Simpson has three games with at least
nine targets, and in two of those times he's finished with double digits
in Fantasy points. Seattle has allowed five receivers to reach double
digits in Fantasy points this year. (Started in 5 percent of leagues
in Week 6)
Mario Manningham
(vs. MIA): Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz enter this game with more Fantasy value than Manningham,
but this could be Manningham's time to get going. He has yet to find the
end zone this year, but the Giants continue to look in his direction.
Manningham had 17 targets in his previous two games, and the Dolphins
have struggled with opposing receivers this year. They have allowed five
receivers to reach double digits in Fantasy points, and Vontae Davis (hamstring) could be missing from Miami's secondary this
week. (Started in 45 percent of leagues in Week 6)
Torrey Smith (vs. ARI): The Ravens were terrible on offense in
Week 7 at Jacksonville, but they should rebound in this matchup with the
Cardinals. Look for Smith to be involved since Arizona has allowed 30
pass plays of at least 20 yards. Smith has done little since his big
performance against the Rams in Week 3 when he had 34 Fantasy points,
but Joe Flacco continues to look in his
direction with five targets in each of the past two games. We can see
Smith scoring in this matchup, and he's worth using as a No. 3 Fantasy
receiver this week. (Started in 42 percent of leagues in Week 7)
Visanthe Shiancoe (at CAR): The Panthers have struggled
with tight ends all season as Jeff King, Jimmy Graham and Fred Davis have all
reached double digits in Fantasy points, and Jermichael Finley also had five catches for 68 yards against Carolina in
Week 2. Shiancoe is coming off his best game of the season in Week 7
against Green Bay with four catches for 45 yards and a touchdown, and it
coincides with his first start with Ponder. He had eight targets against
the Packers, and he could be more involved if Percy Harvin (ribs) remains limited. Shiancoe is worth using as a
bye-week replacement this week. (Started in 13 percent of leagues in
Week 7)
Jake Ballard (vs.
MIA): Ballard has been fantastic for Fantasy owners the past three
games -- or at least for those owners who have decided to use him. At
some point he could become a must-start Fantasy option if he continues
to play at this level, and he has at least eight Fantasy points in his
past three outings with two touchdowns over that span against Arizona,
Seattle and Buffalo. This is another favorable matchup for Ballard since
the Dolphins have allowed four touchdowns to opposing tight ends,
including last week when Daniel Fells
scored for the Broncos. Ballard might be on the verge of becoming a
solid Fantasy tight end for the rest of the season. (Started in 8
percent of leagues in Week 6)
Jared Cook
(vs. IND): Cook is having a good October, and he's doing his best to
help the Titans replace Britt. In three games this month, Cook has eight
catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns with two games with at least
eight Fantasy points. He would likely post better stats if he had more
targets, but he only has two games this year with more than five. Still,
he has been able to find production, and he has a good matchup this week
against the Colts. Indianapolis has allowed three tight ends to reach at
least seven Fantasy points, including Graham last week when he had six
catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns. We don't expect Cook to come
close to that kind of production, but he can be used as a bye-week
replacement. (Started in 16 percent of leagues in Week 7)
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