Start 'Em & Sit 'Em is the ultimate look at the weekly NFL matchups and how they'll affect your fantasy football team. Sleeper alert features an under-the-radar player who could produce good numbers. Owners beware features a regular fantasy starter who could fail to meet expectations based on the strength of his opponent. Obvious fantasy starters like Aaron Rodgers and LeSean McCoy will not be featured. For your final lineup decisions, check our lineup rankings.
Note: All starts and sits in this column are based on NFL.com's standard scoring system (non-PPR).
Start of the week
Andrew Luck at Jacksonville Jaguars: Luck is on the move up the quarterback ranks in fantasy land, and his rise to stardom will continue this week in Jacksonville. In four career games against the Jaguars, the Stanford product has scored multiple touchdowns three times. Luck has also thrown for 250-plus yards three times in those contests. Look for him to shine in this AFC South tilt.
Start 'em
Colin Kaepernick at Arizona Cardinals: Kaepernick (12.52 points) is coming off a disappointing performance against the Chicago Bears, and this weekend's matchup against the Cardinals seems to be bad on paper ... or is it? In three career games against Arizona, the last of which was on the road, Kaepernick has thrown for an average of 279 yards with a pair of touchdowns in each contest.
Russell Wilson vs. Denver Broncos: The last time Wilson faced the Broncos, he threw for 206 yards with two touchdowns in a 43-8 blowout win in Super Bowl XLVIII. Now he faces them in Seattle, where Wilson has been dominant against the AFC in his short NFL career. In fact, he's thrown for a combined nine touchdowns with just one interception in four home games versus the conference.
Jay Cutler at New York Jets: I had the Cutler call wrong last week, so let's hope for a little retribution! This week he faces the Jets, who have given up an average of over 21 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks in 2014. Here's another reason to like Cutler ... he has thrown for at least two touchdown passes (nine total) in three of his last four road contests against AFC competition.
Sleeper alert - Ryan Tannehill vs. Kansas City Chiefs: If you're desperate for a quarterback or need to start two each week, Tannehill is worth a look this week based on his matchup against the Chiefs. After two weeks, Kansas City has allowed an average of over 20 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. Also, Tannehill has thrown six touchdowns in his last three home games vs. the AFC.
Sit of the week
Ben Roethlisberger at Carolina Panthers: The Panthers have one of the nastiest defenses in the NFL, and it's even tougher to penetrate in Carolina. In fact, this unit hasn't allowed a quarterback to throw for multiple touchdowns in a single game against them since December ... of 2012! That doesn't bode too well for Roethlisberger, who will be hard pressed to make a solid statistical impact.
Sit 'em
Philip Rivers at Buffalo Bills: Rivers posted over 25 points in a win over the Seattle Seahawks last week. So why would he be a sit 'em? Well, listen to this trend. In eight career road games against the AFC East, Rivers has averaged an unimpressive 215 yards with 12 touchdown passes and eight interceptions. The Bills have also allowed just three touchdown passes in their last five home games.
Andy Dalton vs. Tennessee Titans: Dalton has been productive at home for the most part, but I'm not so sure I trust him this week against the Titans. First, their defense has allowed an average of just 10.36 fantasy points to quarterbacks after two weeks. Second, Dalton loses a lot of his luster if A.J. Green is inactive due to an injured toe. If that's the case, I'd keep the Red Rifle out.
Alex Smith at Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins defense is more than formidable against quarterbacks, allowing an average of just 11.47 fantasy points to the position in 2014. That includes holding future Hall of Famer Tom Brady to a pedestrian 10.26 points in Week 1. What's more, Miami has allowed multiple touchdown passes just once in their last nine home games. This all makes Smith a prime sit.
Owners beware - Peyton Manning at Seattle Seahawks: Let's be clear ... you should start Manning this week, as he's too valuable to bench. This is more of a warning to owners. In their last nine games at CenturyLink Field, the Seahawks have surrendered one or fewer touchdown passes seven times. That includes one contest against Drew Brees and another against Aaron Rodgers.
Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on NFL.com and NFL Network and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. Have a burning question on anything fantasy related? Tweet it to _**@MichaelFabiano**_ or send a question via **Facebook**!
