Top 10 Starters for Week 3

1. Andrew Luck-Fantasy Start of the Week

2. Calvin Johnson

What else can I say about Megatron; he is a huge athletic freak and has hands that were made to catch footballs. Look for him to catch a ton of them against the Green Bay Packers, who have been notoriously bad at covering Johnson especially at Motor Field. In the past two seasons Johnson has gathered 244 yard and 2 touchdowns at home against the Packers.

3. DeMarco Murray

DeMarco Murray against the St. Louis Rams should speak for itself. Murray has made his name off playing against the Rams. In his rookie season he had 253 and a touchdown, and last season he put up 175 yards and a touchdown. I think it’s safe to say he likes playing against the Rams.

4. Vernon Davis

The Arizona Cardinals have statically been the worse defense against opposing tight ends. Going up against one of the premier tight ends in Davis means almost certainly a good day for fantasy owners.

5. Texans D/ST

What a difference a year can make. The Houston Texans’ Defense has improved tremendously, not good news for Eli Manning and company. The defense has amassed six turnovers already in the season, while Giants have given up six turnovers in the first two weeks, with four of them coming from Manning himself.

6. Giovani Bernard

Bernard has been the most promising fantasy prospect in the last two weeks. He has speed and can catch coming out of the backfield. In his week 3 matchup against the Titans he should be able to make plays, especially considering the game Demarco Murray had against the Titans defense. Look for big play from Bernard.

7. Matt Ryan

Matty Ice had a fantastic week-one performance, but looked human against the Bengals’ Defense last week. Look for Ryan to bounce back against a Tampa Bay defense that may have just lost their best defensive player in Gerald McCoy to a hand injury. Even during the Falcons debacle of season in 2013, Ryan had one of his better games against the Buccaneers D.

8. Cordarrelle Patterson

All eyes have been on Patterson this offseason, and for the most part he has not disappointed. His numbers against the Patriots weren’t what people expected, but look for him to bounce back against the New Orleans Saints, who have been shaky against opposing deep-threat wide receivers.

9. C.J. Spiller

C.J. Spiller is back to his old dynamic self. He can make plays with his legs anywhere on the field. He is also threat to run it back on specials teams as proof from his 102 yard return against the Miami Dolphins. He should be able to make it to the end zone against the San Diego defense that has had problems with speedy playmakers.

10. Terrance West

Everyone should be getting in on the Terrance West band wagon after 100 yards rushing in week 1, and picking up his first NFL career touchdown in week 2 against the Saints. The rookie will have a good matchup against a Ravens defense that gave up 107 totals yards to Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell.

Top 10 Players to Sit for Week 3

1. Eli Manning- Fantasy Sit of the Week

2. Eddie Lacy

Lacy is not looking like the Offensive Rookie of the Year like he did a year ago. So far this year he is looking like many of Alabama’s running backs that have regressed after their rookie year, although Mark Ingram has been turning heads lately. If you have Lacy in your line up you must have been hit with an injury this past weekend and need to keep him in there. But for me I would sit him against a Loins defense that shut him down last Thanksgiving at Motor Field with 10 carries and 16 yards.

3. Tennessee Titans’ Running Backs

4. Steven Jackson

Speaking of Steven Jackson he is looking like the thirty-year-old football bug has hit him hard. It’s not too presumptuous to say that his best playing days are behind him. He is on the wrong side of 30 and the Falcons are trying to get younger at running back.

5. Darren McFadden

McFadden had a decent game against the Houston Texans’ defense and could be the full time starter moving forward with Maurice Jones-Drew sidelined with an injury. But a trip to Gillette Stadium will be tough to put up a decent stat line against the Patriots, who shut down the Minnesota Vikings offense.

6. Matt Forte

Matt Forte will have his hands full with the New York Jets defense that have been very impressive with their run defense. They shut down an okay Oakland Raiders club and stuffed Eddie Lacy all day on Sunday with just 43 yard rushing. The Bears have a good offensive run game but I don’t think they can matchup with the tough Jets defensive line.

7. Peyton Manning

This week features the Super Bowl rematch everyone has been waiting to see. Peyton Manning has been licking his chops to avenge that ugly super bowl loss to the Seattle Seahawks. But sadly, this matchup comes after the Seahawks’ loss and ugly matchup vs. the San Diego Chargers who called out star Cornerback Richard Sherman. Look for him to be playing to silence the critics. Sherman will try to take away the Broncos top option at wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, who broke the Super Bowl record for receptions in February. Peyton will have his hands full with the entire Legion of Boom looking to avenge their name and get back to being a dominate defense. The Broncos are going to try to limit the amount of turnovers they had in the Super bowl; they gave up a total of 4, two interceptions and two fumbles lost.

8. Ben Roethlisberger

The Panthers Defense hasn’t changed a bit even after losing some key pieces on defense in free agency. They have a great pass rush, which happens to be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive weakness; they can’t seem to stop the pass rush of opposing defenses. Look for Steelers to try to keep Roethlisberger off his back and the turnovers down to a minimum.

9. Alfred Morris

We all know the Philadelphia Eagles secondary is suspect, but the run defense is actually pretty good. Last season they ranked 10th best in stopping the run and their young defensive line has been one of the biggest reasons. In the two games that Morris played against the Eagles he averaged 69 yards per game, fumbled once and was tackled for a safety.

10. Demaryius Thomas

See Peyton Manning for more details, but look for the Seahawks’ Legion of Boom to show up in the Super Bowl rematch. If there is any week to sit the big guy, this is the one.

Eldon Graham is a Fantasy Football analyst for the 2014 season. He boasts three championship titles, two of them from the 2013 season. He will help you choose the player you want in your lineup or off the waiver wire. Follow him on twitter @eldonagraham for updates or questions.

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