Football is all about matchups. The same goes for fantasy football, too. Here's a look at some of the best and worst matchups over the next three weeks.
Good Matchups
Kerry Collins: Collins replaces Vince Young and faces three teams who have struggled against the pass in the Bengals, Texans and Vikings. Collins passed for 280 yards and no touchdowns in his lone start last season, but he's a more accomplished passer than Young. Expect the Titans passing game to be much improved over the next several weeks with Collins, including a bump in value for his receivers.
Justin Fargas: Fargas had a solid Week 1 with 97 rushing yards. Look for him to get more work against the Chiefs and Browns with Darren McFadden a little dinged up, making him a solid flex starter. With the hype of McFadden, some apparently have forgotten that Fargas rushed for more than 1,000 yards last season.
Willis McGahee: McGahee didn't play last week, and his team still rushed for 229 yards in a win against the Bengals. McGahee should be on the field against the Texans, but may be in a time-share situation until Week 3 vs. the Browns. Still, with rookie quarterback Joe Flacco at the helm, expect McGahee to get a heavy workload if not this week, then in Week 3.
Anthony Fasano: Fasano led the Dolphins in catches and yards in Week 1, and this may be a theme for the rest of the season. Expect Fasano to be a safety valve for quarterback Chad Pennington. Fasano knows the offense, as he came from Dallas with coach Tony Sparano and it showed against the Jets. He should be a good value this week against the Cardinals, and the main check down target against the Patriots in Week 3.
Earnest Graham: Graham had just 10 carries but was very productive in his Week 1 loss to the Saints. Look for the Buccaneers to lean on Graham with quarterback Brian Griese starting this week. Graham, who faces the Falcons, torched Atlanta with a combined 100 yards and one touchdown in each of Tampa Bay's two meetings in 2007.
Seattle defense: The Seahawks gave up 34 points in a Week 1 loss to the Bills, but 14 came on special teams and another touchdown was set up by a fumble. The Seahawks will play host to a pair of struggling offenses in the next two weeks, the 49ers and Rams. Look for major improvement as the 49ers posted just 13 points and had 6 turnovers in Week 1, while the Rams scored just 3 points in their Week 1 loss to the Eagles.
Bad Matchups
Steve Slaton: Slaton got the bulk of the carries in Week 1 and managed just 43 yards. Don't expect big numbers against the Ravens and Titans. The Ravens gave up just 65 yards in a Week 1 victory over the Bengals, while the Titans held the Jaguars to just 33 yards rushing. While Slaton may be a nice pickup later in the season, expect tough going the next two weeks.
Laurence Maroney: Maroney had some good matchups to open the season. But he had just 10 carries against the Chiefs and appears to be in the dreaded time share with Sammy Morris. The Jets looked as though they will be better against the run, and with Tom Brady out, look for teams to force Matt Cassel to beat them. Assuming that this time share continues, what looked like a big opportunity for Maroney to help fantasy owners may instead go by the wayside.
Maurice Jones-Drew: Jones-Drew had only 5 carries against the Titans in Week 1. Worse, Jacksonville is down two starters on the offensive line and faces the improving Bills run defense this week and the Colts in Week 3. Look for both Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor to struggle.
Matt Hasselbeck: Hasselbeck has a bad back and has lost his top four wide receivers due to injury. The 49ers and Rams have struggled against the pass, but the injuries are too much to ignore. Look for Julius Jones to get a boost until Hasselbeck can get some of his more experienced receivers back. Hasselbeck always seems to do more with less, but this will be his greatest challenge.
Denver defense: Denver faces two of the better offenses in the Chargers, who owned the Broncos last season, and the Saints, who had strong offensive numbers in Week 1 against a good Buccaneers defense. Look for the Broncos to give up a lot of yards and points in both of these matchups as both teams have weapons galore on offense.
Kyle Fisher is a fantasy writer for Rotowire.com. For more information, please visit Rotowire.com.
