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 Arian Foster will not be featured in this column. For your final lineup decisions, check our lineup rankings.
Start of the week
Steve Smith at New Orleans Saints: Smith is on a roll, posting double-digit fantasy points in four straight games. He's also found the end zone in three of those contests. No team has allowed more fantasy points to wideouts than the Saints, so Smith remains a solid option.
Start 'em
Pierre Garcon vs. Dallas Cowboys: Garcon has scored eight-plus fantasy points in four of his last five games, including a 15.30-point performance against the Cowboys in Week 12. In what should be a high-scoring affair, Garcon is a nice option as a No. 2 or 3 fantasy wideout.
Greg Jennings at Minnesota Vikings: Regardless of the status of both Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, Jennings is a nice No. 3 option this weekend. He's had a lot of success in his career against the Vikings, scoring seven touchdowns in his last six games against them.
Sleeper alert -- Jeremy Maclin at New York Giants: The G-Men have been awful against wideouts in recent weeks, allowing 24-plus fantasy points to the position in three of their last four games. That makes Maclin, who has 100-plus yards in two of three games, a nice starter.
Sit of the week
Larry Fitzgerald at San Francisco 49ers: Who knew Brian Hoyer would save Fitzgerald's value? All right, so it helped for one week -- that doesn't mean you should start him against the Niners. Their defense has allowed the third-fewest fantasy points to wide receivers at home.
Sit 'em
Stevie Johnson vs. New York Jets: Johnson, who has scored eight-plus fantasy points in just one of his last four games, has a tough assignment up next against CB Antonio Cromartie and the Jets. This unit has given up the second-fewest fantasy points to opposing wideouts.
Josh Gordon at Pittsburgh Steelers:Brandon Weeden and Colt McCoy are both banged up, so practice squadder Thaddeus Lewis will draw the start for the Browns. Regardless, you want nothing to do with Gordon in what is a pretty difficult matchup on paper at Heinz Field.
Owners beware -- Torrey Smith at Cincinnati Bengals: Smith posted a nice stat line last week against the Giants, but he'll struggle to repeat the performance in Cincinnati. The Bengals have a tough pass defense and held Smith to just 57 receiving yards in the season opener.
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**!
