Every Saturday morning, I'll take a quick look at all the week's games, offering my own brief take on what I think will happen, as well as touching on significant injury news since our Weekly came out. I'll check in every so often over the course of the day to answer questions, too.
What follows is a brief look at all the games with how I'd react in my own lineups to injury developments or other news. The official rankings are the ones in the Weekly. Those are the ones that subscribers are paying for. Sometimes players are very close in the rankings, and if I get questions like that, I'll offer opinions. Sometimes I like certain players more or less than Ian, and sometimes I have different risk tolerance with injuries/weather issues, etc.
Bucs at Falcons: There are few guarantees in life, but a month of the season tells us that neither of these teams can stop anyone. I actually picked up Peyton Barber in an FFPC league last night and plan to start him; surely he'll fall into the end zone at some point during this game. No Devonta Freeman, so Tevin Coleman looks good and Ito Smith has some deep-league potential. Both passing games should rock and roll. O.J. Howard will apparently play, which is a negative for those hoping to use Cameron Brate.
Steelers at Bengals: Passing games look good for this one, as well. There is a lot more offense than defense in the NFL right now, it's almost as if the rules have gradually and consistently been altered accordingly to the benefit of quarterbacks and receivers. No Giovani Bernard or Tyler Kroft, so the other guys (Mixon, Uzomah) look great. No John Ross, helping the appeal of Tyler Boyd -- larger share of what should be a productive passing game.
Chargers at Browns: Neither defense has been particularly stingy regarding yards and points and such. So thumbs up on the Chargers offense. For the Browns, Landry and Hyde and Njoku look solid. I'm not entirely sold on using Mayfield in a passing offense yet, or the other receivers, but the matchup is fine. This would be a very Chargers game to lose.
Bills at Texans: Houston has some pass defense problems, but Buffalo has some pass offense problems. Bills defense a little better than expected, but fairly clear cut I think on the Houston players you want to use (those closely connected with Deshaun Watson) and not (the ground game). I guess if you have LeSean McCoy you can consider him, but his big games are either in the past or the future (if he should happen to get traded to Philadelphia, which probably won't happen).
Bears at Dolphins: The Dolphins might not have Ryan Tannehill (shoulder). We can't rank the Bears Defense any higher or the Dolphins offense much lower, so a possible switch to Brock Osweiler doesn't change much. I'm benching Kenyan Drake, as I did a week ago, costing me a win, but not sure how anyone can count on him these days. Decent enough matchup for Chicago, although they're not exactly setting the world on fire (one game against the Bucs doesn't necessarily change that).
Cardinals at Vikings: I feel like we just saw this matchup, it was called Bills at Vikings, and I made a bunch of jokes about how Minnesota would crush that sad opponent and got burned. Arizona has shown some ability to play defense and Minnesota has shown some ability to play to the level of the competition, for good and bad, so I'm not getting too crazy pro-Vikings or negative-Cardinals. Dalvin Cook might play but not really trust-worthy, and I guess I feel similarly about Larry Fitzgerald.
Colts at Jets: Could be a higher-scoring type of game. Big question is Isaiah Crowell, who missed Wednesday and Thursday with an ankle injury; Todd Bowles calls him a gametime decision. With that in mind, I'm using Bilal Powell, who was probably in line for half the work anyway and now should get more (and easy start if Crowell winds up inactive). No T.Y. Hilton or Jack Doyle, increasing the easy appeal of Eric Ebron and Chester Rogers. I'm mildly wondering whether I should just cut Doyle, in dynasty to boot, because there's been no indication of him returning anytime soon. Marlon Mack should play, but Nyheim Hines feels safer.
Seahawks versus Raiders across the pond: I like the angle of Marshawn Lynch against his former team, and am intrigued by the Raiders against a not quite so tough defense. But Seattle played a good game against the Rams last week, and I've benched Amari Cooper out of disgust, so it's really just Lynch and Jared Cook. For Seattle, they've got two viable running backs and aren't passing as much, making it less appealing to use Russell Wilson and his main receivers. Kind of avoiding them until we get a game out of Doug Baldwin that suggests he might be healthy (until then, I just assume he's playing hurt).
Panthers at Washington: A note on Greg Olsen, I am too risk-averse to start an NFL tight end coming back from a broken foot until I see him get through a game healthy. So the only Panthers I'd start are McCaffrey and Newton. Carolina defense has been sketchy (it made the Giants offense look good) so some bounce-back potential for all the Washington players who burned everyone against the Saints on Monday. Sadly everyone is hurt; wide receivers, such as they are, might not even play. Jordan Reed and the running backs -- assuming they're active -- are the viable candidates. Steer clear of the wideouts.
Rams at Broncos: So apparently it's going to be cold and potentially snowy in Denver on Sunday, which is a little crazy. Going to have to check in on the morning shows to see exactly what's what. Rams have their receivers cleared from concussions and you don't want to sit down that passing game, but I'll reserve final decisions until I see if Old Man Winter is raging through town. Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman merit consideration in leagues where it can be increasingly difficult to find usable running backs, but we all know the risk in utilizing a committee back, especially on a team that has the potential of getting clobbered. Rams shouldn't have much trouble hanging some points on the Denver defense.
Jaguars at Cowboys: Thumbs up on T.J. Yeldon and Ezekiel Elliott. I need to use Niles Paul and some will need to use Geoff Swaim. Not sure but I believe that covers the usable players in this game, aside from kickers and defenses.
Ravens at Titans: Seems likely to be a lower-scoring affair. Avoiding Titans, and I might be sitting John Brown for the first time all season (and using Javorius Allen for the first time all season). Dion Lewis is a better bet than Derrick Henry, as usual.
Kansas City at Patriots: Seems likely to be a higher-scoring affair. None of the players anyone should actually be using seem to have any legitimate healthy concerns. If you're using a Patriots wideout besides Julian Edelman you're rolling the dice on a guy who might catch a touchdown or just 1 20-yard pass. The three involved running backs in this game look good. Should be a fun one to watch.
49ers at Packers: So my Peyton Barber choice is between him or Alfred Morris, who should be a lead back with Matt Breida (ankle) doubtful. Both guys are candidates to go for 60-70 yards and a touchdown...or finish with 40-50 yards and not score or catch any passes. I made Green Bay my Survivor Pool pick (yes, still alive). Some injury questions with Green Bay receivers which we won't have until after the practice report comes out this afternoon, but healthy Packers should be good. San Francisco also has some receiver injuries, and C.J. Beathard seems most interested in throwing to George Kittle, so that's the appealing option there. Will pass on Green Bay running backs.
Enjoy the games.