The regular season is here. That means all of your roster decisions now come with significantly more gravitas. Every choice you make from here on out comes with a lot more consequences. That means it's important that you make the right call. In that case, it's good that you're here for Make the Right Call. What a coincidence, eh?
Who should I start: Drew Brees or Andrew Luck?
This duo of underperforming fantasy quarterbacks meets up in what could be a high-scoring affair. On paper, both have a favorable matchup, but in this case I'd go with Luck. The Colts quarterback has a higher floor than the veteran Saints signal-caller. Brees failed on more than one occasion this season to exploit a favorable matchup for big fantasy totals, while Luck's Week 6 outing against the Patriots was nearly a 30-point outing. With a deeper arsenal of weapons and a greater potential for a big number, I'd go with youth over experience.
Should I trade Brandon Marshall and Mike Wallace for Eddie Lacy and Charles Clay?
There has been plenty of weeping and gnashing of teeth around Lacy this season -- for good reason. But I'd still advocate in favor of adding him to your roster. The biggest hope is that Lacy gets healthy after the bye week and starts to rumble the way we all expected him to. Adding Lacy and a top 10 tight end like Clay (considering the lack of depth at the position) is a pretty solid haul when you figure that your only real loss in this equation is Brandon Marshall. The Jets wideout has been very good this season, but there is enough depth at WR that you can likely make up for his departure.
Should I add Christine Michael or Theo Riddick?
Both of these names are popular waiver wire picks in what is becoming an increasingly barren running back landscape. Riddick is a nice add but it would be a surprise if he became anything more than an occasional flex play. Michael on the other hand has the chance to supplant Joseph Randle as Dallas' top running back. At best he's still an RB2 in most formats -- even then you're still playing the matchups. But the potential ceiling for Michael looks greater than the ceiling for Riddick. I'll take the chance on the Dallas rusher.
Who should I drop: Leonard Hankerson or Rueben Randle?
Despite hopes to the contrary, neither of these receivers has given you any real level of production this week. In fact there is fewer than three points difference between the two players this season. They're pretty much the same receiver. It's really a matter of which offense you trust more. To this point in the season, the Falcons offense has been the more efficient passing game. But Randle seems to be closer to a WR2 spot on his roster, although Dwayne Harris is making that a tough call. When it's all said and done, I'd probably release Randle back into the wild, but there's really no wrong answer here.
Should I start Greg Olsen or Antonio Gates?
There is a case for starting Greg Olsen this week. He remains one of the most consistent fantasy options at the game's shallowest position. He's also Cam Newton's one legitimate target. But Olsen might not have a lot of room to operate against the Eagles this week. Only the Arizona Cardinals been better than Philadelphia at slowing down tight ends this season. The reasons to start Antonio Gates are two-fold. First is that while the Raiders shut down the aging Owen Daniels, they've still been brutal against the position. The second is that Philip Rivers has targeted his favorite tight end at an insane rate since his return from suspension. In two weeks, Gates has seen 27 passes come his way and has turned them into 18 catches for 187 yards and two touchdowns. That alone is enough for me to give Gates the nod.
Marcas Grant is a fantasy editor for NFL.com. Follow him on Twitter @MarcasG.
