There are a lot of big-name quarterbacks on bye this week, including Matt Ryan, Peyton Manning and Michael Vick. Philip Rivers is on a bye this week, too, but that should come as a relief to fantasy enthusiasts who have had their seasons or at least the last two weeks wrecked by Rivers.
Our Daniel Jeremiah said there are three reasons Rivers has struggled this season -- overaggressiveness, bad footwork and no chemistry with his receivers. But the numbers have started to shift on Rivers, too. He's had 29 interceptions since the start of the 2011 season. And while his passer rating hovered above 100 during his career, it's fallen drastically. So yeah, you're better off with him on a bye week.
A great replacement this week is Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Bills will take on the Tennessee Titans who have allowed the third-most points to fantasy quarterbacks this year. The Titans have allowed 13 touchdown passes this season, the third-highest total of the year and have allowed seven touchdown passes in their last three home games. And in case you're wondering, he has more points than Philip Rivers this year.
Now before we look at the rest of Rank's 11, a quick nod to our esteemed stats guru, Bill "Sudsy" Sudell.
Matt Hasselbeck, QB, Tennessee Titans: Yes, the other side of the lineup should have a pretty good day against the Bills, who have allowed many quarterbacks to have good games against them. This is one of those dream fantasy matchups of a game you wouldn't otherwise have any interest in.
Carson Palmer, QB, Oakland Raiders: Palmer hasn't been lighting it up against the competition this season, but you have to like the matchup against the Jaguars. Jacksonville isn't the punching bag many would make them out to be, but the Jags have allowed six touchdown passes in their last three games. Palmer has also been pretty good at home. So if you got shut out trying to get Fitzpatrick and Hasselbeck on waivers, you could do worse than Palmer.
Daryl Richardson, RB, St. Louis Rams: Let's just say this, there aren't a lot of options on the wire right now. But I grabbed Richardson in my 10-team league on Wednesday morning. Richardson had 76 rushing yards (on 11 attempts) against a good Dolphins rush defense in Week 6. His rushing attempts have increased in the last three weeks. The only downfall is he doesn't have any rushing touchdowns. In fact, only Sam Bradford has rushed for a touchdown for St. Louis this year. That should only make Richardson more attractive. Clearly Steven Jackson isn't getting the job done. I like the team to give the ball more to Richardson against the Green Bay Packers, who have allowed nine rushing touchdowns in their last nine road games.
LeGarrette Blount, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Blount, a member of Rank's 11 in Week 6, makes the list for the second consecutive week. Blount has a rushing touchdown in back-to-back games, and has seen his rushing attempts increase for three consecutive weeks. The Saints have allowed the most fantasy points to running backs this season, and eight rushing touchdowns in six games. Blount is a big-time play.
Mike Williams, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Williams is coming off a solid game against the Kansas City Chiefs, when he had 113 receiving yards and a touchdown. Williams will go up against the New Orleans Saints this week, who have allowed the third-most points to fantasy receivers this year. Williams had 12 receptions against the Saints last year, so he was targeted enough. But Williams has benefited from Vincent Jackson being on the other side of the field and should have a lot more opportunities this week.
Denarius Moore, WR, Oakland Raiders: Moore has 35 targets in four games this season, and he's now starting to hit his stride after he had five receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons. As noted above in the Carson Palmer description, the Jaguars have been beat in the air in recent weeks.
Devery Henderson, WR, New Orleans Saints: Our esteemed stat maven Bill "Sudsy" Sudell pulled me aside on Wednesday morning to give me his favorite nugget of the week: Henderson has scored only one touchdown in his last 36 road games. You know what that tells me? He's due. The Buccaneers have not allowed a passing touchdown (despite allowing the sixth-most points to fantasy receivers in 2012) in three consecutive games. Again, the Bucs are due. Seriously, if you thought last week was crazy, wouldn't it make sense for Henderson to come through here?
Kendall Wright, WR, Tennessee Titans: The Buffalo Bills have had some trouble stopping people this year, so Wright is a pretty good option. The Bills have allowed the fifth-most points to fantasy receivers, so it's a great matchup. He dropped a touchdown pass last week, but if you're hurting for a receiver, and many of us are in the bye weeks, Wright is a good guy to consider going forward.
T.Y. Hilton, WR, Indianapolis Colts: Hilton was a big-time play last week. My guy Eric Young from Impact Wrestling and Animal Planet was even on board last week, too. And here's the thing: Young hasn't talked to me since. But there are some encouraging signs for Hilton. The Browns have allowed the second-most fantasy points to receivers this season, and 12 receiving touchdowns. Plus Andy Luck just looks like a better quarterback at home. So if you need a sleeper, rest your head in a Hilton.
Scott Chandler, TE, Buffalo Bills: He was MIA in Arizona. I hope he wasn't out spending his time on Mill Avenue the night before the game. (Though that's a dated reference considering the Cardinals haven't played at Sun Devil Stadium in some time.) Chandler had just three targets in Week 6, but now he's going against the team that has allowed the most points to fantasy tight ends this season. You're either getting nothing from this guy, or two touchdown receptions.
