(Coffee wasn’t loaded with fantasy caffeine, but he did the job.)
After two straight weeks of tripping over my own suggestions, we finally saw some Start and Sit success in week four. If you check out the week four preview column, hopefully you took heed of some of the suggestions.
After going 4-1 in the “start” department, the picks rounded out a bit from there, but we’ve come a long way since getting utterly screwed over by the likes of Clinton Portis and Willie Parker. If you were fortunate enough to see Parker turn in his first decent game of the year in week three (when I said sit him), or played Portis this week and got 98 yards rushing, then kudos to you.
Here’s a review of each players, listed under “Duds” or “Winners”, as we gear-up for week five’s Start and Sit preview.
Winners
Glen Coffee, RB, San Francisco 49ers (Start)
Last Game: 24 rush, 74 yds, 0 TD, 4 rec, 32 yds, 0 TD
Coffee wasn’t exciting or flash as we all had hoped, but you can’t knock 107 total yards for a back-up running back trying to rescue you from some killer bye week losses.
You could keep Coffee around for a soft mach-up with the Falcons run defense next week, but with Frank Gore returning after the ‘Niners week six bye, his value is running out.
Santana Moss, WR, Washington Redskins (Start)
Last Game: 2 rec, 74 yds, 1 TD
If you stuck with Moss as suggested for the past two weeks after a dismal start, my hat goes off to you. Moss is Jason Campbell’s only elite wide receiver, and it’s been showing in every game.
You can’t expect this type of production all the time in an inconsistent Washington offense, but at least you know Moss’s potential fo the rest of the year.
Cedric Benson, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (Start)
Last Game: 18 rush, 74 yds, 0 TD, 1 rec, 12 yds, 0 TD
It took him all day to get you a totl of 86 yards, but Benson still racked up stats deserving of a start. It may not have saved your day, but he sure fared better than a handful of backs, including Julius Jones, Tashard Choice, and Darren McFadden.
Jay Cutler, QB, Chicago Bears (Start)
Last Game: 18-28, 141 yds, 2 TD, 0 INT, 3 rush, 8 yds, 1 TD
Three solid fantasy outings in a row marks a trend, my friends. Yes, Cutler began the season in horrible fashion against Green Bay, but has strongly bounced-back, and with better chemsitry with his offense, is now a strong QB1 in all formats.
Roy Williams, WR, Dallas Cowboys (Sit)
Last Game: 3 rec, 35 yds, 0 TD
Williams has struggled since week one, and as predicted against Denver, he didn’t offer much in the fantasy realm, either.
Much of the problem lies on Tony Romo, but going up against the Giants and Broncos in two of the past three weeks doesn’t make it easy on any quarterback, especially since both teams have stout defenses and are a combined 8-0.
Williams is dealing with a rib injury now, so even with a nice match-up with Kansas City next week, he is once again a strong sit candidate.
Pierre Garcon, WR, Indianapolis Colts (Sleeper)
Last Game: 3 rec, 71 yds, 0 TD
The emergence of rookie receiver Austin Collie doesn’t hurt Garcon’s value as much as one would think. In fact, with his big-play speed and good chemistry with Peyton Manning, it almost improves it.
Collie solidifies himself as Manning’s fourth dangerous weapon, making it a near-certainty that Garcon will be able to free himself up for big plays in the future.
Considering he should only be used as a WR3 right now, you should take those 71 yards with a smile.
Johnny Knox, WR, Chicago Bears (Sleeper)
Last Game: 5 rec, 31 yds, 0 TD, 3 kr, 147 yds, 1 TD
Knox is a bit of a toss-up in the mold of Percy Harvin last week. He only got you 31 yards on five catches, but if your league rewards return yards or scores, he was a dynamite WR3.
His five catches offer room for improvement, going forward, however, and injury issues with Devin Hester could improve his stock for the next few weeks.
Darren Sproles, RB, San Diego Chargers (Sit)
Last Game: 0 rush, 0 yds, 0 TD, 1 rec, 16 yds, 0 TD
No one could have seen zero rushing attempts coming, but the writing was on the wall that this wouldn’t be Sproles’ day. Whether you listened to me or not, it’s clear that Darren Sproles’ role in the offense isn’t as cut-and-dry as we thought.
Duds
Julius Jones, RB, Seattle Seahawks (Start)
Last Game: 11 rush, 25 yds, 0 TD, 3 rec, 10 yds 0 TD
Jones has been inconsistent, delivering two elite fantasy performances in four games, while making you wish he was nowhere near your roster in the other two contests.
It’s come to the point where you can’t even pin-point a good match-up for him, leaving him only a solid start when you’re hurting at running back due to injury. However, on a lighter note, the possible return of Matt Hasselbeck in week five should help his value some.
Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots (Sit)
Last Game: 21-32, 258 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT, 5 rush, 11 yds, 1 TD
I suppose Brady was due a break-out game since not scoring since week one, but against the Baltimore Ravens? I guess I should have known.
With Wes Welker back in the line-up, and the entire offense growing together again, it appears Brady may have gotten his mojo back-for real this time.
Lendale White, RB, Tennessee Titans (Sleeper)
Last Game: 2 rush, 2 yds, 0 TD, 1 rec, 7 yds, 0 TD
The Titans are 0-4, and the switch from Kerry Collins to Vince Young could be coming any deal now. In the mean-time, judge White for his three woeful fantasy performances this year, rather than his one decent one.
He’s barely a Flex play right now.
Lee Evans, WR, Buffalo Bills (Sleeper)
Last Game: 2 rec, 60 yds, 0 TD
While it was his best game of the season, Evan’s week line of two catches for 60 yards doesn’t exactly get tossed into the “win” column.
No one knows what to expect out of Trent Edwards (or Evans) and the Bills passing game going forward, as they passed-up a real fantasy gem with a nice match-up with Miami’s secondary.
Kevin Walter, WR, Houston Texans (Sleeper)
Last Game 1 rec, 41 yds, 0 TD
Don’t give-up on Walter just yet. The Raiders have a stingy secondary, and Matt Schaub and the passing game as a whole didn’t offer much in fantasy value on Sunday.
You’ll get days like this from Walter, but 41 yards on one catch isn’t anything to cry about. Keep him around for random weeks as a decent WR3, as he’s capable of getting you 70+ yards and a touchdown in any given game.
Kevin Smith, RB, Detroit Lions (Sit)
Last Game: 19 rush, 30 yds, 2 TD, 4 rec, 21 yds, 0 TD
I had Smith as a “sit” because of his tough match-up with the Bears, as well as a his multiple injuries. I was half-right. Smith found zero running room all day, and was lucky to plunge in for two scores. Hate me all you want, but without those touchdowns, Smith only tallied a measly 51 yards on 22 touches.
Ryan Grant, RB, Green Bay Packers (Sit)
Last Game: 11 rush, 51 yds, 0 TD, 4 rec, 50 yds, 0 TD
Grant was terrible at the goal-line, and failed to score any touchdowns, but for the second straight week, he found his way to 100+ yards.
You have to hand it to him, as he and the Packers offense did a solid job of finding spaces around the “Williams Wall”. Still despite averaging 4.6 yards per carry, Grant only ran the ball 11 times while the Packers were down by 14 immediately after half-time.
