Throughout the 2011 season, Tyler Loechner and Alex Miglio will select Twitter questions and answer them right here at PFF Fantasy. Although you’re bound to have your questions answered almost immediately from the staff on Twitter, we will choose a handful of good questions each week and give them more in-depth answers. Here are this week’s questions and answers:
Non ppr/ 6 points for both TD pass and rush. Need advice on my flex start please. D. Murray or P. Garcon? – Eric
Miglio – Good question. This is a pretty close call — Murray has performed well in Felix Jones’ absence over the past couple of weeks, and he reprises the lead back role at least one more time, but he is going up against a stout Seattle rush defense that has been underrated all season. Garcon, meanwhile, gets an average-at-best Falcons pass defense. The trouble is that receivers have significantly less value in non-PPR leagues, and Murray will be the man, good rush defense or not. I would stick with the running back here and hope that Murray can get a goal line TD.
Who should I start at QB this week. Freeman, Fitzpatrick, or Palmer? This is a must win week for me. – @TJoanides
Loechner – This question comes down to Josh Freeman versus Ryan Fitzpatrick. I really don’t think Carson Palmer should be considered over either of those two. On a regular basis, I would choose Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick has a tough matchup against the Jets this week, though, so give me Freeman.
Freeman has not had a great season so far, with just seven touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions. However, four of those interceptions came in week 7 against the Bears. After throwing just three touchdowns in the first five games of the season, Freeman has thrown four touchdowns in the last two games. He’s heating up.
The New Orleans Saints have the worst overall pass rush in the NFL, with a PFF rating of -15.7. They also have a pass coverage rating of -2.6. The Buccaneers have typically been a power football team, but have actually passed the ball over 63 percent of the time this season. With LeGarrette Blount returning from an injury (and a depleted RB group on the whole), I don’t expect the Bucs to rely too heavily on the running game. Start Freeman with confidence this week.
Going crazy picking 2 to sit (at least 1 WR): Murray, Blount, White, Colston, Green, Bryant – @JJStartlyer
Miglio – This is an excellent problem to have, you have a lot of good players here, particularly the running backs. If this is a standard league, I am an advocate of playing good running backs over good wide receivers — despite playing against a good Seahawks defense, I still have Blount and Murray as good fantasy options. If this is a PPR league, however, this becomes an intriguing proposition. Neither running back is a big pass-catcher, but it seems that you have to pick one, so I would go with Blount against an average New Orleans defense. After that, I think one of the wide receivers is in order. Right now I have Colston ranked slightly ahead of White and Bryant, with Green a distant WR2.
chris johnson or antonio brown in flex? sad sad sad question…. – @lakedrew
Loechner – Maybe I’m crazy, but I’d still play Chris Johnson. I don’t own Johnson in any leagues, but if I did I would be worried about over thinking the situation, benching him, and watching him go off. It can’t be argued that Johnson hasn’t played well, though. Of running backs with over 100 carries, Johnson’s YPC average is by far the lowest. He has a 2.9 YPC average on 107 carries. The next worst is Shonn Greene with 3.8 YPC on 113 carries.
The Titans have a -36.2 run block rating and they run the ball less than 40 percent of the time. The Cincinnati Bengals have only allowed one 100-yard rusher this season, but have allowed a running back to score a touchdown in six straight games. Even if Johnson doesn’t rack up the yards this week, I still think he finds the end zone.
This isn’t to say Antonio Brown isn’t a viable option if you really have given up on CJ2K. Although he has played less snaps than Mike Wallace, Hines Ward, and Emmanuel Sanders, Brown has seen more targets (61) than all of them. His playing time is bound to increase, but in the meantime I would wait out on Johnson just a little bit longer.
proposed trade to me – I trade flacco and bowe away for Roddy white… Thoughts? – @kpalderman
Miglio – I am going to just disregard Flacco in this deal because he is basically worthless to you if you have a quarterback, and I am assuming you do. In that case the trade value is simplified — Bowe (+5.4 overall PFF rating) for White (-1.1).
If we were talking about this before the season, it is a no-brainer — White over Bowe. Now? Not so much. The Falcons have taken a surprising step back on offense while Bowe has defied us all in that Chiefs offense. He also has a pretty nice schedule during the second half, facing the Patriots, Broncos, Packers, and Raiders. The fact of the matter is Bowe is outproducing White, and even if that turns around I am not so sure this deal benefits you.
Hi there! Big Ben or Mike Vick this week? – @Philly__Jim
Miglio – Is this a serious question? I know the Bears have historically had Vick’s number, but the Ravens put a beating on the Steelers earlier this year, and I do not expect Big Ben to come back with 5 TDs this week. Vick is easily the quarterback to play in this scenario.
Think Nicks will play? – @buchnut
Loechner – I’m no doctor, but his doubtful tag for Sunday’s game makes me think he’s going to sit this one out. It’s a shame, because the Giants are playing the New England Patriots this week, and the Patriots are weak against the pass.
Assuming Nicks sits, both Mario Manningham and Victor Cruz get massive boosts to their value. Manningham saw a lot of firsts in week 8. He had his most playing time of the season (94.6 percent of the snaps), and had season highs in both catches (6) and yards (63). He also caught his first touchdown of the year and registered his first positive PFF grade as well. Combine Nicks’ likely absence with the 32nd-ranked pass defense of the Patriots and Manningham is poised for an even better game this week.
Cruz has played over 65 percent of his snaps from the slot position, so it will be interesting to see how he is used if Nicks misses the game. When lined up in the slot, Cruz is targeted almost 25 percent of the time, highest in the league among all slot receivers. With four touchdowns in the last five games, Cruz is an excellent play at wide receiver this week.
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