Weekly Fantasy Roundup: Bench/Start Week 14

I would like to introduce you all to a special friend of mine, Mr. Jordan Berger (right). Like many others out there, he is suffering from poor playoff match ups in Week 14, and could soon find himself in the consolation round of his fantasy playoff bracket. I wanted to dedicate this article to those of you that find yourselves in similar situations, as this could very well be your last meaningful battle of the 2008 fantasy football season. May god be with you and your fantasy teams in Week 14....

BENCH

QB Donovan McNabb (Eagles) - Phili's franchise QB is in trouble this week, as the Eagles head to the Meadowlands to take on the defending Super Bowl champs. McNabb has been pretty shaky on the road this season - his QB rating is nearly 20 points higher at Lincoln Financial Field than it is away from Phili, and he owns a TD-INT ratio of 7-8 on the road, as opposed to 11-2 at home. However, the Chicago native has a pretty impressive track record against the Giants throughout his career, averaging more than 200 total yards per game with a 19-5 TD-INT ratio. Most of you will stick with #5 on Sunday, but The Bag Guy suggests re-thinking your decision.




RB Ronnie Brown (Dolphins) - Ronnie has rushed for less than 100 yards in seven of his last eight games, and seems to play less of a role in the passing game with each coming week. Ricky Williams has also been more of a factor down the stretch, accumulating more total yards than Brown during the past four weeks. The former Auburn standout has been able to find the end zone more often than not, but still hasn't been doing enough to be considered a must start every week. Brown was shut down back in Week 8 against the Bills, recording 48 total yards and no TDs, and there's no reason to expect anything different in Week 14.


RB Marion Barber (Cowboys) - Barber is banged up, and has been struggling of late against very mediocre opponents. In Weeks 12 &13 at home against SF and SEA, Barber rushed for a combined 91 yards and one TD, pretty disappointing numbers for the Dallas RB. The Cowboys head to Pittsburgh to take on the NFL's #1 ranked rush defense, and things don't look too promising for Barber considering his recent struggles. Not sure if you can actually bench #24, but don't expect too much out of your stud RB.

START

WR Lee Evans (Bills) - In nine career meetings against the Dolphins, Evans has eight TDs, and weather permitting, should be in line for a great game on Sunday. Miami's secondary allows over 230 passing yards per contest, and should have problems keeping the former UW standout in check. Evans has also been hot of late, hauling in 12 passes and 190 yards the past two games. He should definitely be considered a top 10 WR this week, as the potential is there for a monster game.



RB Larry Johnson (Chiefs) - Everybody runs on the Broncos, and it's simply LJ's turn this week. Denver has had issues stopping the run all season, allowing over 140 rushing yards and a TD per game. Since his return from suspension in Week 11, Johnson has been slowly worked back into the offense, but received a whopping 24 carries last week against Oakland, a sign that the former fantasy MVP is back to form. In his Week 4 match up with the Broncos, Johnson went nuts, rushing for 198 yards and two TDs - so make SURE you have him in your lineup on Sunday.




WR Davone Bess (Dolphins) - The un-drafted rookie out of Hawaii has made quite a name for himself since Greg Camarillo was injured back in Week 12, collecting 11 catches for 171 yards the past two games. Bess gets to face a Bills secondary decimated by injuries, and should be able to post respectable numbers once again. At 5'10, he is more of a deep threat than a possession WR, but seems to have developed great chemistry with QB Chad Pennington. If you are in need of a WR this week, you might want to think about giving Bess a shot.