Finally! This week marks the opening week of the NFL Fantasy Football! Today we are debuting a weekly feature aimed at suggesting how to handle any Buffalo Bills you may have on your fantasy squads. I know it's almost suicidal trying to rely on players from our beloved Bills in fantasy football, but fear not: some of them actually have potential this season! We will be taking a look at the individual players involved in each particular week's Bills game, including players on the opposition, and making educated suggestions as to whether you should be starting them or sitting them. So without further ado, welcome to Fantasy Football Friday here at Buffalo Rumblings and SB Nation. Let's dive right in after the jump.
Quarterbacks
Trent Edwards - I really don't need to tell any of you how bad Edwards was this pre-season... no touchdowns, three interceptions, 5.0 yards per attempt, 46.9 QB rating, yada yada yada. If you were planning on starting Edwards this week, bless your heart. Unless you are in a deep, multi-quarterback league, steer clear of Trent. In fact, he might not even be rosterable in most leagues. Verdict: Sit' Em in all standard leagues
Tom Brady - Grrrrr. He's back. After missing just about the entire 2008 season, Brady returns as potentially the top QB in fantasy football. With a fired up Foxboro crowd and the desire to prove he's 100% right away, Brady and the Pats offense might come out throwing over and over and over. He's routinely destroyed the Bills, averaging 230 yards per game, 2+ touchdowns and a owning a sparkling 103.3 QB rating. If the Bills' pass rush can't get to him, he should easily match those numbers. Verdict: Duh, Start 'Em in all leagues
Running Backs
Fred Jackson - With Marshawn Lynch out until October and Dominic Rhodes out of a job, Jackson will be the main ball carrier and in all likelihood will get nearly all of the touches out of the backfield. He proved last year that he was more than capable of hurting the Patriots defense when he ran for 136 yards on 27 carries. It'll be tough to repeat that performance with a brand new and quite youthful offensive line in front of him, but he is, at worst, a good flex pick. He should get at least 15-20 carries, and with the way Edwards has been playing another 4-6 receptions, so the touches will be there. In a PPR league, Jackson is much more desirable. Outside of shallow leagues, where there are likely better options available, Jackson is a nice RB2 this week. Verdict: Start 'Em
Fred Taylor, Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk, Laurence Maroney, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Corey Dillon, Antowain Smith, Leonard Russell, etc - Do Patriots fans even know what the plan is for utilizing all these guys? Like a typical Belichick team, they will be rotating backs in and out and it's highly unlikely any will see the majority of touches. It's too early in the season to have to use any of these guys outside of the deepest of leagues. I guess Faulk has some value in PPR leagues. I see Sammy Morris is listed as the starter, so he may get most of the first half carries and could see early goal line carries. He's a sleeper flex option. Verdict: Sit 'Em all
Wide Receivers
Terrell Owens - T.O. makes his regular season debut as a Buffalo Bill and he should pump some excitement, and hopefully production, into the Bills offense. He's going to be fired up with a lot to prove. I'd imagine Owens will be looking to show everyone he's healthy, still productive at 35, still the highlight reel performer we've been accustom to and ready to roll in prime time. Just a hunch, he'll want to show Dallas what they are missing out on. I expect Owens to have a big game....if Edwards can get it to him. He's still a must start WR each week. Verdict: Start 'Em
Lee Evans - Evans on the other hand is hardly a must start each week. Most fantasy players will consider him one of the most frustrating WR's in the league, and it's hard to argue that with his inconsistent production each year. With Owens opposite him, Evans should see a lot less double and rolled coverage, so the opportunities should be there. The team will be looking to get it downfield more and there's no better option in the league for that. He's always struggled against the Patriots, having never scored a touchdown against them and averaging just 37 yards per game. The concern is there, but the Patriots questionable secondary is ripe for the picking. Evans is a good WR3 pick this week, with upside to put up pretty big numbers, especially if the Bills' offense is able to get the no-huddle in gear. Verdict: Start 'Em in deeper leagues or as a flex option
Josh Reed, Steve Johnson, Roscoe Parrish - Don't even consider starting of these guys unless you have a team of only Bills players. Verdict: What do you think?
Randy Moss - I think Moss will be the top WR in fantasy again this year. With Brady back, his numbers will go up from last year, when they weren't that bad anyhow. I doubt he'll return to his 2007 statistical form, but 1,300+ yards and 15+ touchdowns are extremely realistic. You obviously roll with Moss every week. Verdict: Start' Em
Wes Welker - Will he play? Is his injury signficant? Is he injured at all? There are a lot of question marks and a lack of knowledge about Welker right now. He was limited in practice Thursday, so that might not be encouraging for Patriots and fantasy fans. Keep an eye on the Patriots injury report, although it's unlikely Belichick will let anything slip out. It's going to be risky going with Welker this week because you won't be able to swap him out for another player unless that player happens to play Monday night. In PPR leagues, Welker is gold and just might be worth the risk in all leagues. I'd have to believe he gives it a go. Verdict: Start 'Em
Joey Galloway - If Welker is ruled out early enough for you to make the move, Galloway would be a sneaky option. It looks like he'd get the start as the 2nd WR and could be in a line for a pretty good day. Verdict: Sit 'Em unless Welker is ruled out.
Tight Ends
Derek Schouman, Derek Fine, Shawn Nelson - Do not start any of these guys. Do not even consider it. Until Trent proves he throws to any of them consistently, there is no point in even owning them. There are a number of other options available at TE on a weekly basis; go with one of them. Verdict: Sit 'Em
Benjamin Watson, Chris Baker - Both are better options than the Bills' TE's, but neither are starting fantasy options. Steer clear. Verdict: Sit 'Em
Kickers
Rian Lindell - Lindell is a solid fantasy option because of the Bills' inability to reach the endzone, and might be worth consideration this week. I'd rather go with a kicker from a better offense though. Verdict: Sit 'Em
Stephen Gostkowski - He led the NFL in scoring last year. Gostkowski is a no-brainer start at the kicker position weekly. Verdict: Start 'Em
Defenses
Bills defense/special teams - This is a terrible matchup for this unit. They might be a spot start later in the season, but this is not one of those games. Verdict: Sit 'Em
Patriots defense/special teams - Despite their questionable status, the Patriots defense is probably one of the better options this week. With a mistake prone Edwards looking to rebound from a terrible season and a Bills' OL still trying to find its footing, the Patriots defense could be in line for a good number of stat accumulators. Verdict: Start 'Em
Sleeper Options
Bills - Do they really have any sleeper options? I guess I'll go with Fred Jackson simply because he's only a borderline starter in most leagues. I expect him to have a very efficient and productive game.
Patriots - Joey Galloway and Laurence Maroney - If Welker is out, Galloway becomes a pretty good spot start for all leagues. And in case the Patriots do get up big (please no!), I have a hunch we might see a lot of Maroney in the second half. That's just a gut feeling. With Morris likely to play with a hand injury and Fred Taylor being so old, Maroney would be my guess for the guy who gets the garbage time carries.
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There you have, your Week 1 Start 'Em/Sit 'Em for the Bills vs. Patriots. You can use this as your end of the week fantasy open thread. Enjoy all the games this weekend!