I’m a firm believer in starting your elite players every week. A lot of people questioned Miles Austin in Week 1, but as most elite players do, Austin found a way to put up good numbers for your fantasy football team. But injuries (Steven Jackson, Danny Amendola, Hakeem Nicks, etc), and obvious poor performances (Knowshon Moreno, Chad Ochocinco) call for some creative roster adjustments.
Here are a few sleepers that will help boost your team out of any Week 1 rut that you experienced. And a list of players that you might want to consider ‘resting’ in Week 2.
Start’em
Cadillac Williams
It seems that every owner in every league made a mad dash to get Williams this week, and for good reason. Williams will be the majority running back for the St. Louis Rams as they face the New York Giants. In Week 1, the Giants let Tim Hightower rush for 72 yards and a score for the Redskins, so it will be interesting to see what Cadillac can do for them. It won’t be surprising to see Cadillac near 100 all-purpose yards in this game.
Rex Grossman
I have Rex very high this week at number 12 in my quarterback rankings, but as far as I’m concerned, that is a conservative number.
Grossman had a great game against the Giants in Week 1, putting up over 300 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. Not bad for someone who didn’t secure the starting job until late in the preseason. Better yet, he is facing a team that gave up 422 yards and two touchdowns to rookie quarterback, Cam Newton, last week.
With the Arizona Cardinal defense giving up a massive amount of yardage, and leaving receivers wide open, Grossman gets a start from me if you are struggling. Santana Moss definitely gets a nod from me and maybe even Jabar Gaffney.
Mike Tolbert
Don’t be the guy that leaved Tolbert on your bench after his Week 1 performance. Don’t expect the same dazzling numbers out of him, but he will still have a good game against the Patriots. Last week against the Pats, Reggie Bush had 9 receptions. Tolbert matched that number in his game against the Vikings. So he is an even better play in PPR leagues.
Tolbert seems to be taking over the lead running back role in San Diego. While I think that Philip Rivers will find his groove soon with Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates, Tolbert will still play a big role for this offense to have success.
Aaron Hernandez/Rob Gronkowski
I have been low on the Patriot’s tight ends in the past. Something about the idea of a team running with two receiving tight ends means to me that one of them is going to get the short end of the stick, and that both of them will be very inconsistent from week to week.
But, Week 1 had me sold. Miami was one of the best defenses against tight ends last year, and Hernandez/Gronkowski slashed them for a combined 189 yards and 2 touchdowns.
If either of these tight ends are still on waivers, it will be worth your while to snatch them up. They face another tough defense in San Diego this week, but each of them perform the role of a wide receiver and both harness big game potential.
Robert Meachem
With Marques Colston out for 4-5 weeks, one of the receivers is going to have to step up in this pass-heavy offense. We know that Drew Brees will continue to throw the ball around to all of his targets, but I think that Meachem will be the guy to take over most of the workload.
He had five receptions for 70 yards last week (less than both Colston and Henderson) but is a favorite target of Brees when it comes to stretching the field. With Colston out, I expect Meachem to get the most touchdowns of all Saints’ receivers and end up as the second starter once this run of four games is finished.
Sit’em
Knowshon Moreno
Possible injury and poor overall performance are two major reasons that this player should be riding your bench. Moreno carried eight times for a mind-boggling 22 yards. Alex Smith, quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers ran for 22 yards on seven carries. And Smith even found the end zone.
Moreno simply hasn’t done what everyone was thinking he could out of college. And even with John Fox as the Broncos’ coach, Moreno hasn’t shown any signs of starting up.
Cam Newton
I’m not saying that his performance in Week 1 was a fluke. He looked good. He looked very good. But he was going up against the Cardinals and I don’t think I’ve ever seen receivers that wide open on an NFL field before in my life. One thing that Newton will see for the first time in Week 2 against the Green Bay Packers… a solid blitz. Expect Newton to get his first “Welcome to the NFL” performance this week with a lot of sacks and a handful of interceptions.
Chris Cooley
While I don’t buy the success of fellow tight end Fred Davis just yet, it is clear to see that Cooley’s reign in Washington is coming to a close. Cooley is facing a weak secondary which will leave room for bigger downfield plays to the Redskins receivers and likely Davis over Cooley.
Dwayne Bowe
I said it at the beginning of the article. You really need to leave your elite players in the game. But the Bills held Bowe to two receptions. They were all over him. And that seems like a blueprint to me. Detroit’s secondary isn’t the same as Buffalo, but you have to expect a similar outcome this week, especially with all the pressure that the Lions will be putting on Matt Cassel.
