Fantasy Football Players to Start or Sit: Week 14

It is championship time fantasy players! If you are ever having some issues with your line-ups, like who to start between a guy you drafted high with a bad match-up and an ok player with a great match-up, I always go with the better player. Teams are playing for the playoffs in the NFL right now and the great ones tend to step up. So if you are stuck between two guys, remember the guy you drafted high and is a stud. Remember, if you have concerns about specific players, feel free to leave a comment with your player concern or tweet (@Spatters91) me and I will try to help you out.

Guys to Start:

Calvin Johnson (MUST START): The Eagles have given up the most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. And the best wide receiver in the world is coming to town. Congrats for drafting megatron, enjoy your win.

Nick Foles: Detroit has given up the 17^th most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season. So Mr. Foles puts up 20+ fantasy points against on of the better defenses in football? Well, what do I know? Foles does not turn the ball over and he has a good match-up. I hate saying nice things about Eagles quarterbacks, but I really like what Foles is doing right now.

Shane Vereen: The Browns have given up the 13^th fewest fantasy points to running backs this season. It is usually tough to find running backs late in the season, but if you picked up Vareen you are in luck. Vareen splits carries with other Patriots running backs and gets targets in the passing game. Vareen has a tougher match-up this week, but he led all Patriots running backs in snaps last week. The Patriots still have a tough offense with Gronk and Vareen as their better weapons. Vareen should have another good game this week.

DeMarco Murray: The Bears have given up the 6^th most fantasy points to running backs this season. And with everyone worried that Tony Romo is going to start throwing interceptions, Murray will likely get a high amount of carries this week. Murray should do well this week, as long as the Cowboys offensive line can contain a weak Bears defense.

Torrey Smith: The Vikings have given up the 5^th most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Smith is also on a bit of a touchdown hot streak as well, collecting 3 scores in his last 4 games. Smith should rack up points against the Vikings, especially with the Ravens inconsistent run game. Joe Flacco will throw the ball and Smith is the no. 1 guy.

Antonio Gates: The Giants have given up the 9^th most fantasy points to tight ends this season. Gates has been good in favorable match-ups this season. Gates fumbled against a tough bengals defense last week, but he should rebound against the Giants. The Giants linebackers are not as tough as the Bengals linebackers.

Guys to Sit:

Tony Romo: The Bears have given up the 8^th fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks this season. Romo has not done so well in his last three games, and a bad match-up is not a good time to count on him in the playoffs. Tony also has some interception issues late in the season and DeMarco Murray may be handed the ball more than usual against a Bears defense that has trouble stopping the run.

Frank Gore: The Seahawks have given up the 4^th fewest fantasy points to running backs this season. Gore did not do well against the Seahawks the first time, and I do not think he will do so well the second time around. The 49ers may not do as poorly as they did in Seattle, but gore can lose touches to other running backs in an attempt to shake things up. Fantasy football is all about carries and targets.

Marques Colston: The Panthers have given up the 4^th fewest fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Drew Brees is going to throw the ball, but he might not throw it to Colston if he is being taken away by the Panthers defense. Colston has had some big games this season, but he can disapear from the offense. I would avoid him in tough match-ups, which is unhelpful for 2 out of 3 playoff weeks.

Mike Wallace: The Steelers have given up the 13^th fewest fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Wallace has been playing more consistently over the past two weeks, but I don’t trust him at all to put up points when you need him too. Going back to Pittsburgh could give him some incentive to play well, but I would not count on him in a non-favorable match-up.

Jordan Reed: The Chiefs have given up the fewest fantasy points to wide receivers this season. Even if Reed is healthy, I would avoid him. Jordan has been great for the Redskins this season, but he is a young player with some injury history. The team may be cautious with him against a stout and hard hitting defesnse. Even if Jordan is healthy, I am unsure about how much he will play. Do not try to start one of the other Redskins tight ends either. Logan Paulsen is not a guy who usually catches a lot in a game. Fred Davis showed us Sunday night why he got on Mike Shanahan’s bad side, drops and false start penalties.

Possible Pick-up and Play:

Kendall Wright: The Broncos have given up the 8^th most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. If you need a wide receiver and are desperately looking for someone, Wright could be awesome for you. The former Balyor receiver is better in PPR formats as a slot receiver, but he has been pretty effective in terms of yardage since week 7. He could be a sneaky good play.

Teams Schedules Over the Next 3 Weeks (14, 15, 16):

Favorable:

Eagles: DET, @MIN, CHI- It’s the NFC North, with unimpressive defenses. Detroit is a good team, but it should work out for your fantasy players

Cowboys: @CHI, GB, @WAS- all of these defenses give up rushing yards and points to wide receivers

Seahawls: @SF, @NYG, ARI- Arizona and San Fran are tough, but the Seahawks can crush anyone

Packers: ATL, @DAL, PIT- This is good for fantasy if Rodgers is back

Dolphins: @PIT, NE, @BUF- Pretty favorable schedule to RBs and WRs, not sure if any of them can be trusted

Bills: @TB, @JAX, MIA- That is pretty easy on whichever running back is the guy these days

Bengals: IND, @PIT, MIN- Pretty easy schedule, divisional games are messy though

Cleveland: @NE, CHI, @NYJ- This is a pretty sweet schedule for your wide receivers, but that is about it.

Chiefs: @WAS, @OAK, IND- Indy is the only tough one, but Jamal Charles will chew all of them up anyways.

Chargers: NYG, @Den, OAK- Those are all pretty weak defenses

Okay:

Redskins: KC, @ATL, DAL- KC is the scary one in this bunch

Buccaneers: BUF, SF, @STL- SF is the tough one

Falcons: @GB, WAS, @SF- San Fran is not going to be pleasant for your fantasy teams

49ers: SEA, @TB, ATL- Hopefully you have a bye for Seattle. Yikes

Rams: @ARI, NO, TB- Arizona and New Orleans have been tough on the pass

Bears: DAL, @CLE, @PHI- Cleaveland is tough on offenses

Lions: @PHI, BAL, NYG- Baltimore and New York are tough on wr’s.

Texans: @JAX, @IND, DEN: Jaguars and Denver are pretty bad, but Indy is a tough one

Titans: @DEN, ARI, @JAX- Arizona is a nasty one for CJ2k and the wideouts

Steelers: MIA, CIN, @GB- Bengals are the tough one, other two aren’t so bad

Ravens: MIN, @DET, NE- This should be good for Torrey Smith at least

Broncos: TEN, SD, @HOU- The Titans have a nasty defense, but Denver is impervious to match-ups.

Raiders: @NYJ, KC, SD- The Chiefs are the tough one, but none of the Raiders are that fantasy reliable.

Not Favorable:

Giants: @SD, SEA, @DET- Seattle and Detroit are tough for a bad offense

Panthers: @NO, NYJ, NO: New Orleans twice, yowza. Who knows how that will go for your guys, the Saints defense has been pretty good this season.

Saints: CAR, @STL, @CAR- Panthers are tough, but the Rams should be okay.

Cardinals: STL, @TEN, @SEA- Those are all really tough defenses.

Vikings: @BAL, PHI, @CIN- Philly is the only one that is not tough in there.

Patriots: CLE, @MIA, @BAL- This is tough overall, pretty solid defenses. Dolphins could be good for your fantasy guys

Jets: OAK, @CAR, CLE- The Jets are a mess for the most part, Oakland is the only team I would trust them against

Colts: @CIN, HOU, @KC- Yowza, Houston is the least scary of these defenses. That’s not good.

Jaguars: HOU, BUF, TEN- These are all home games, but the Bills are the only nice defense.