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The NFL season moves toward the half way mark, and with it comes the time to start jockeying for position. The play offs are not too far off and you need to start setting the tome early. Here are a few tips to help you out.
Quarterbacks
Start
Carson Palmer - I throw his name out a lot and for good reason. Palmer is about as consistent as they come among fantasy QBs. Week in and week out he is going to get you a lot of points. This week he will be facing a depleted Ravens D that surrenders an average of 21 points per contest to opposing passers. Once again, I look for Palmer to exceed that mark. All of you weekly league players may want to look at him as well. With Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers off this week, Palmer could be money in the bank for you.
Philip Rivers - Rivers is much better at home than on the road, and this week he gets a generous Raiders defense at Qualcomm Stadium. He is a tough passer for me to trust as my go to guy on a weekly basis but in this contest he should be good for 20 or points.
Eli Manning - Manning is another guy that I do not trust to be a weekly starter but he does well against the Cowboys at home. Eli laid an egg last week, but he should be good for a much better outing in week seven. He seemingly has multi-touchdown games against Dallas every time the two meet in New York and there is little reason to think that this trend will come to an end this time around.
Sit
Sam Bradford - First of all it is Sam Bradford; you never know what you are going to get. Throw in the fact that the Eagles face a tough Carolina defense that feasts on quarterbacks, especially at home. Bradford has looked much better in recent weeks (except for some turnovers) but his two best outings were facing weak opposition. He will not have that going for him in Carolina.
Matthew Stafford - Another guy who looked better than he is last week. The Minnesota Vikings will not be the easy pickings that Stafford found in Chicago. The Vikes have owned Stafford throughout his career and this year's addition of the Minnesota defense allows an average of 15 points per contest to enemy quarterbacks.
Running Backs
Start
Todd Gurley - You wanted him in the NFL Draft, and hopefully you got him in your fantasy league. The rookie is quickly becoming a go to back. This week he faces a Cleveland Browns defense that averages giving up over 25 points per game to running backs. You heard that right. A quality back like Gurley should be good for even more. If this guy is in your stable, he is a must start.
Latavius Murray - He is back on my list this week after a pair of bad outings. The reason why is the San Diego defense has a habit of making even average backs look like Pro Bowlers. This looks like a rebound week for Murray. A 150 yard, multi-score game would not shock me out of the Raiders top runner this weekend.
Lamar Miller - The Houston Texans have been awful at stopping the run this season. Miller comes into this game with some momentum on his side, and the Texans are not the squad that will be able to hold him in check. They give up around 20 points per game to the position, and I look for a similar performance from Miller this week.
Sit
Melvin Gordon - Here is another back that a lot of us wanted in the NFL Draft. For Gordon the initial season of his professional career has not followed the same flight path that Mr. Gurley has taken. The Chargers are less than thrilled with what they have gotten from Gordon, and Danny Woodhead has taken a lot of snaps away from the young runner. The Oakland D is nowhere near being the feared unit of their glory days, but they will have little trouble with Gordon.
Ameer Abdullah - Abdullah got off to a fast start as a rookie, but that has slowed way down over the past several games. His combined output for the last three weeks barely equals his per game performances of his first few games. Mike Zimmer is building a defense in Minnesota that has some fans recalling the days of the Purple People Eaters, and this weekend they will be feasting on Ameer.
Wide Receivers
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Martavis Bryant - Bryant is making just his second appearance this season, but he looks like a man on a mission. He had a big season debut last week, and now he is facing Andy Reid's defense in Kansas City. They are leading the league in both yards and touchdowns allowed to opposing receivers. Looks like Mr. Bryant is going to turn heads for a second straight week.
John Brown - If you start Palmer at QB make sure you double dip with Brown at WR. The Ravens defense is a shell of what it used to be, and opposing offenses have been getting some payback of late. If you don't have either Palmer or Brown you can still get in on the action by starting Larry Fitzgerald.
Mike Evans - The Aggie WR was a phenom last year but he has gotten off to a slow start in 2015. Washington will offer him a rebound opportunity this weekend. The Commanders secondary is struggling to keep opposing receivers under 25 points per game and with their injury situation look for that number to go higher as the season wears on. Evens should be the next to cash in on the Skins misfortune.
Sit
Julian Edelman - Edelman you are the next contestant on Revis Island. There are not many times where I would tell you to bench Julian, but he has never fared well against the Jets defense. The odds are not in his favor this time around. Edelman will still get you some points, but there are too many favorable match-ups for other receivers this week.
Jordan Matthews - I would like this guy a lot better if he wore a different jersey, but I still would not want him starting this week against Josh Norman. Norman is not Revis or Cromartie...yet, but he is fast becoming one of the elite corners in the NFL.
Tight Ends
Start
Jason Witten - I am betting that Witten gets enough looks from his new quarterback to be one of the top tight ends this week. Not only is the future Hall of Famer one of the best to ever play the game, he is facing a New York defense that has been kind to tight ends this season. If Matt Cassell used Witten the way he should then expect a big performance from the Cowboys TE.
Delanie Walker - If you don't have enough faith in Cassell's ability to get the ball to Witten, go with Walker. The Atlanta Falcons are almost as good of a match up for tight ends as the Giants are, and last week they gave up nearly 20 points to the position.
Sit
Zach Ertz - Carolina is tough on tight ends. They are allowing only about 6 points per game to TEs this season and Ertz will be splitting snaps with Brent Celek which will further reduce his impact. The Philly TE may have a good future in store for him, but this will not be his week.
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