Matchup Analysis - Week 6
Oct 09 2008, 01:02 PM
Cowboys RB Felix Jones has been spectacular when he touches the ball, but it isn't often enough.
Contributed By: Andrew Goldhawk
We are in the middle of those pesky bye weeks and more key players keep getting hurt. This is why you need to have a deep roster and not just the best starting lineup. It’s just too bad that not every running back can find the same success running the “Wildcat” formation as Ronnie Brown does.
Grades
Beneficial Matchups:
QBs
Chad Pennington vs. Chargers: 22/29, 228 yards, 1 TD. Grade: B
Solid game for Pennington, which is becoming nearly a weekly occurrence. He is not getting the credit for the Dolphins success but he should be.
Jon Kitna vs. Bears: 8/16, 74 yards. Grade: F
Wow, did Kitna ever disappoint? After getting pulled midway through the game, it now looks like he may not even get his starting job back.
RBs
Steve Slaton vs. Colts: 16 carries, 93 yards, 2 TDs, 1 rec., 3 yards. Grade: A
Slaton had a tremendous game and despite Ahman Green looking solid in his return this job is Slaton’s to keep.
Matt Forte vs. Lions: 15 carries, 36 yards, 1 TD, 4 rec., 25 yards, 1 TD. Grade: A
The two touchdowns saved Forte’s day but surprisingly he couldn’t find much room to run. He remains a top option at RB and is approaching “must-start” status in PPR formats.
WRs
Anthony Fasano vs. Chargers: 3 rec., 47 yards. Grade: C
Fasano seems to be hit or miss this season, but at least he didn’t put up a goose egg for those who played him.
Bobby Wade vs. Saints: 8 rec., 64 yards. Grade: B
Wade is probably flying way under the radar of your league mates but until Sidney Rice is back, he is the possession receiver for the Vikings and will continue to have value in PPR formats.
Grades
Unfavorable Match ups:
QBs
Jason Campbell vs. Eagles: 16/29, 176 yards. Grade: A
Campbell was held without a TD and had his worst game since the first week beating the Redskins took against the Giants.
J.T. O’Sullivan vs. Patriots: 14/29, 130 yards, 3 TDs, 3 INTs. Grade: C
The Patriots did confuse O’Sullivan but he still managed to have a fantasy relevant day with three scores.
RBs
Clinton Portis vs. Eagles: 29 carries, 145 yards, 1 TD. Grade: F
The Eagles had been the toughest against the run by far shutting down other stud RBs but right now the Redskins and Portis are on a roll and don’t look to be slowing down.
Rudi Johnson vs. Bears: 5 carries, 23 yards, 3 rec., 9 yards. Grade: A
Despite reports Rudi would start, he still didn’t and still offered little fantasy help. The whole situation is a mess in Detroit and it’s best to stay away.
WRs
Marvin Harrison vs. Texans: 4 rec., 32 yards. Grade: B
Harrison clearly isn’t the same player he once was and right now, he isn’t anything more than a WR3.
Matt Jones vs. Steelers: 2 rec., 25 yards. Grade: A
Jones’ legal problems are coming back to the surface and despite starting the season strong, young WR Mike Walker had a breakout game and is starting to become a favorite target of David Garrard.
Match-ups will always determine fantasy games so be wise and do not ignore them. Just remember that sitting your studs for a lesser player is never advised no matter what the match-up is. Let’s take a look at Week 5’s match ups:
Strength of Schedule Rankings- Week 6
|
TEAM
|
OPP RUSH DEF
|
TEAM
|
OPP PASS DEF
|
|
RAVENS
|
32
|
PATS
|
32
|
|
VIKINGS
|
30
|
BENGALS
|
31
|
|
JETS
|
29
|
JAGS
|
30
|
|
REDSKINS
|
28
|
VIKINGS
|
29
|
|
SEAHAWKS
|
27
|
REDSKINS
|
28
|
|
DOLPHINS
|
26
|
RAIDERS
|
27
|
|
JAGS
|
25
|
BRONCOS
|
26
|
|
PACKERS
|
24
|
PACKERS
|
25
|
|
EAGLES
|
23
|
LIONS
|
24
|
|
GIANTS
|
22
|
FALCONS
|
23
|
|
BEARS
|
21
|
BEARS
|
22
|
|
CHARGERS
|
20
|
PANTHERS
|
21
|
|
PATS
|
18
|
RAMS
|
20
|
|
SAINTS
|
17
|
EAGLES
|
19
|
|
RAIDERS
|
16
|
SAINTS
|
18
|
|
BRONCOS
|
14
|
CARDS
|
17
|
|
PANTHERS
|
14
|
TEXANS
|
15
|
|
BUCS
|
13
|
COWBOYS
|
14
|
|
COWBOYS
|
12
|
SEAHAWKS
|
13
|
|
CARDS
|
10
|
DOLPHINS
|
12
|
|
RAMS
|
9
|
49ERS
|
11
|
|
49ERS
|
8
|
GIANTS
|
10
|
|
TEXANS
|
7
|
CHARGERS
|
8
|
|
BROWNS
|
6
|
JETS
|
6
|
|
BENGALS
|
5
|
RAVENS
|
4
|
|
FALCONS
|
4
|
BUCS
|
3
|
|
LIONS
|
3
|
BROWNS
|
2
|
|
COLTS
|
1
|
COLTS
|
1
|
Players with a Beneficial Match up in Week 6:
QBs
Matt Cassel vs. Chargers: Despite being a talented group, the Chargers secondary has struggled and Cassel looked adequate against the 49ers last week.
Gus Frerotte vs. Lions: Anyone playing the Lions has upside and Frerotte is coming off of a solid Monday night performance. Look for him to continue to make the Lions look bad.
RBs
Le’Ron McClain vs. Colts: Any running back against the Colts has a chance to have a career day. McClain has looked good for the Ravens so far and will receive the goal line carries in addition to stealing some regular touches from McGahee.
Julius Jones vs. Packers: The Packers are getting gashed on the ground and are missing key defensive players. Look for the Seahawks to rely on the run game to take some pressure off of their injured passing game.
WRs
Brandon Stokley vs. Jaguars: Eddie Royal is expected to miss this game and while Stokley won’t start he will get the short passes that Royal normally gets.
Bobby Wade vs. Lions: I’ll run with Wade for another week against the pitiful Lions. Like I said earlier, in PPR formats, Wade is a safe WR3 as he’ll usually get at least six catches a game until Rice comes back.
Players with Unfavorable Match-ups in Week 6:
QBs
Derek Anderson vs. Giants: Anderson got the win in his last start to slow down the cheers for Brady Quinn, but didn’t look impressive doing it. He’ll see a heavy pass rush this week and will continue to struggle.
Peyton Manning vs. Ravens: The Ravens defense is playing like it did eight years ago. Manning and the Colts don’t look like what we are accustomed to seeing so temper your expectations for Peyton this week.
RBs
Joseph Addai vs. Ravens: Addai hasn’t looked particularly good this year and the Ravens run defense is playing as good as it ever has.
Michael Turner vs. Bears: Turner still isn’t a bad option since he can take any carry and find paydirt and while he has dominated at home, he faces a stingy run defense in the Bears.
WRs
Braylon Edwards vs. Giants: Edwards has been terrible this year and the Giants won’t give Anderson much time to deliver the ball. Expect another sub-par performance from Edwards.
Marvin Harrison vs. Ravens: Like I mentioned earlier, Harrison isn’t the same player he used to be and for the same reason Manning will struggle, so will Harrison. The Ravens defense is not something you want to see on your schedule this year.
Strength of Schedule Rankings- Weeks 6-8
Fantasy owners always need to be looking ahead a couple weeks and see what type of matchups are on horizon for their own players as well as possible acquisitions.
Rushing Defense
|
TEAM
|
RUSH DEF WK 6
|
RUSH DEF WK 7
|
RUSH DEF WK 8
|
|
49ERS
|
8
|
6
|
24
|
|
BEARS
|
21
|
3
|
BYE
|
|
BENGALS
|
5
|
2
|
26
|
|
BILLS
|
BYE
|
18
|
7
|
|
BRONCOS
|
14
|
20
|
BYE
|
|
BROWNS
|
6
|
9
|
14
|
|
BUCS
|
13
|
24
|
10
|
|
CARDS
|
10
|
BYE
|
13
|
|
CHARGERS
|
20
|
19
|
16
|
|
CHIEFS
|
BYE
|
11
|
5
|
|
COLTS
|
1
|
27
|
11
|
|
COWBOYS
|
12
|
28
|
14
|
|
DOLPHINS
|
26
|
1
|
19
|
|
EAGLES
|
23
|
BYE
|
21
|
|
FALCONS
|
4
|
BYE
|
8
|
|
GIANTS
|
22
|
23
|
2
|
|
JAGS
|
25
|
BYE
|
22
|
|
JETS
|
29
|
17
|
31
|
|
LIONS
|
3
|
26
|
9
|
|
PACKERS
|
24
|
32
|
BYE
|
|
PANTHERS
|
14
|
16
|
12
|
|
PATS
|
18
|
25
|
28
|
|
RAIDERS
|
16
|
5
|
1
|