Running Wild Michael Bush should again give fantasy owners a boost for the second straight week as Darren McFadden will not play on Sunday against the Vikings. This has to hurt owners expecting Run DMC to only miss one week, especially if they didn't handcuff him with Bush. Nonetheless, those who own Bush should enjoy another fine day. He has been averaging well over 100 yards rushing in the two plus games that he has replaced McFadden. Minnesota doesn't have the strong run defense they've had in previous years so Bush should put up solid numbers and is a must start for at least Week 11. Seeing that he has received no less than 17 carries in any of the last three weeks and 30 last week, I can see Oakland giving Bush at least 20 hand offs in this matchup and a few passes as well. He should be fantasy gold for the fourth straight week so enjoy. Felix Jones will play this week after missing the last four games with a high ankle sprain. There is no doubt that he will return as the backup to DeMarco Murray, but he does have some value for fantasy. It's unclear just how many carries he will receive on Sunday so be careful, but you have to like the matchup with Washington. Jones is still a solid running back; he just has a problem staying healthy. Obviously Murray is the back to own and start for Dallas and I don't see Jones getting more than 10 carries this weekend and that's being generous. Remember though, Jones is one of the better pass catching running backs in the league though and it only takes one screen pass for him to have a solid fantasy day. I don't recommend starting him in Week 11 until you see how healthy he is and how the Cowboys plan on using him in a backup role. Daniel Thomas has been nursing a hamstring injury for much of the season, but did come back last week. He is still the backup to Reggie Bush, who has made quite a fantasy impact over the last month, but Thomas still gets a decent amount of work. Last week he did get 17 carries, which is very encouraging considering he was coming back from injury and Bush's hot streak. Thomas only managed to gain 42 yards, but the good news is that Miami still has trust in him and actually gave him more work than Bush, who did score two touchdowns, but only had 14 carries. Keep a close eye on Thomas in Week 11 against Buffalo. This is a very enticing matchup and I don't see anything wrong with using him as a flex spot option. The Bills have given up the 7th most fantasy points to running backs on the ...

Another six teams will be sitting out this week (Arizona, Denver, Kansas City, San Diego, Seattle and Tennessee), but the offense will not be in short supply. The New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints will post big numbers passing and receiving, while Buffalo, Oakland and Cincinnati will dominate the ground game. I utilize statistical analysis combined with more than 15 years of fantasy football experience to give you an inside look of how players will perform on a week-to-week basis. The Studs list will be updated on a regular basis as players emerge and injuries occur, but be patient with those players listed early in the season. They were ranked and selected high in your draft for a reason. When using this list, try and remember a couple basic rules: 1) Studs - Always play your studs. Each position will include a list of players that are considered studs and should not be benched. If you have the luxury of needing to decide between studs, check out the matchups or feel free to let the shark tank assist you in your decisions. 2) Depth - Every fantasy team is different and some have more depth than others. Only follow the recommended moves if your team depth allows you to make such a move. Quarterbacks Bye Weeks: Kevin Kolb, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Matt Cassel, Philip Rivers, Tarvaris Jackson, Charlie Whitehurst, Matt Hasselbeck Studs Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay vs. St. Louis Tom Brady, New England vs. Dallas Drew Brees, New Orleans at Tampa Bay Cam Newton, Carolina at. Atlanta Michael Vick, Philadelphia at Washington Matthew Stafford, Detroit vs. San Francisco Start Tony Romo, Dallas at New England: Romo returns from his bye week ready to face the Patriots, who have allowed the most passing yards in the NFL this season. While New England played well against the New York Jets last week, Dallas has many more weapons and a much better quarterback (sorry Mark Sanchez fans). Don't expect much in the running game from Dallas, but start as many Cowboys' receivers as you can find this week as Romo has a big day. Eli Manning, N.Y. Giants vs. Buffalo: Over the past three weeks Manning has averaged 332 yards passing while throwing nine touchdowns to just three interceptions. This week he faces a Buffalo defense ranked 26th in passing yards allowed. Look for Manning's hot streak to continue as the Giants' passing attack plays well at home before their bye week. Bench Rex Grossman, Washington vs. Philadelphia: After a solid first two weeks of the ...

THE STORY: Both the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns find themselves in similar territory, winning their last two games after dropping a close opener. These teams will try to keep that momentum when they collide at Cleveland Browns Stadium on Sunday. The quarterbacks are the big story. Cleveland's Colt McCoy is a young gun trying to prove he can cut it in the NFL. Tennessee's Matt Hasselbeck is a veteran passer out to show he still has something left in the tank. Both quarterbacks came through for their teams with decisive fourth-quarter scores in Week 3.

The waiver wire still has plenty of potential. Monitor what is out there versus what you have in your final few roster spots. Even if there's a player out there that you can't use, if it is an upgrade to your roster and you can keep a player off your opponent's team, then make the move. We've got a couple of running backs listed that are in line to see be starters for their team this week. A couple of tight ends for those that are hurting at that position. Wide outs continue to get a lot of play here, one in particular will have an immediate short term and long term impact. We've even got a kicker listed in this week's "Hot List". On to this week's wonders... Smokin' Hot WR Nate Washington, Tennessee With Kenny Britt done for the season, Washington moves into the starting lineup, a place he will occupy for the rest of the season. He responded this week with eight catches for almost a hundred yards and a touchdown (this coming off a performance of seven catches for 99 yards in week 2). Matt Hasselbeck clearly had no trouble throwing in Washington's direction, targeting him early and often. Look for this to continue as Washington is a player that will have an immediate and long term fantasy impact. PK Jason Hanson, Detroit That's right, we're listing a kicker in this week's hot list. I debated on dropping Hanson into last week's story, this week he makes a splash in the top section as he's still available in many leagues. Fantasy points are so precious, when you have the opportunity to grab one of the hottest kickers in the game, then you have to make the move. The Lions' offense has been potent all season, and Hanson added four kicks this past week to push his season total to eight (three of them have been 40 yards or more). TE Randy McMichael, San Diego With Antonio Gates lining up foot specialists all over the country "just to be sure", that's a pretty big red flag that something isn't right. McMichael made an immediate impact when pressed into service this past week, catching four balls for 51 yards. The Chargers starting tight end is always an active participant in the offense, McMichael is an excellent short term solution for those in need at the position, and could have long term potential if Gates is out for an extended period of time. RB Bernard Scott, Cincinnati Owned in a shade over 50% of leagues, that number is sure to skyrocket with the news that Cedric Benson has been suspended for a handful of games. Scott will be the starter for the ...

Nate Washington is now the go-to guy in Tennessee. Kenny Britt's torn ACL is bad on so many levels. Britt had begun to fulfill that promise that so many knew he had, putting up elite numbers through the first two weeks of the young season. Matt Hasselbeck is famous for spreading the ball around, and after Britt went down, we saw that on display. But of his 27 completions, he hit Washington eight times (92 yards, 1 TD). Chris Johnson was second on the team with four receptions. Look for Washington to get more attention from defenses, but Hasselbeck will be looking for him as well. Daniel Thomas is officially "the guy" in Miami. After his coming-out party last week, Thomas received another heavy workload, toting the rock 23 times for 95 yards. He also caught three balls for 27 yards and a score. It seems as though the Dolphins' coaching staff has finally realized what just about every football fan could have told them: Reggie Bush is not an every down back. With Chad Henne looking better than we thought he would, Thomas might have the kind of running lanes that prove useful to fantasy owners. Brandon Pettigrew is becoming a viable fantasy tight end. While the position has been deep this year, Pettigrew has the potential to blowup. He plays for a dynamic offense that will put up a ton of points. He has a strong-armed quarterback. And he has Calvin Johnson attracting the attention of safeties on the outside. He needs to be consistent in his route running, but he is on the verge of being a stud. Now that Lance Moore is healthy, he's Drew Brees's favorite weapon. This is actually something we've known for a while. The problem is that Moore is never healthy. But now that he is, Brees is targeting him quite a bit. He'll continue to see 8-10 targets a game while Marques Colston is out. I don't expect the Saints to put up 40 points every week, but 30 is definitely within reason, and Moore will be a big part of that passing game. DeAngelo Williams doesn't look like he's 100% healthy. At least I hope he's not healthy. If he's at 100% right now, and only has 27 carries for 61 yards in three games, he should call it quits. At the start of the season, we expected some struggles in the running game. Teams would load up on Williams to make Cam Newton beat them. Well Newton has been impressive, but Williams still can't get on track. I'd recommend trading him, but no one in their right mind would give up anything of value for him. The Jets have become a passing team. ...

Three weeks is an eternity in fantasy football. For most leagues three weeks represents nearly a quarter of the regular season. Waiver wire adds are sparse, so often the best way to improve your team is by working a trade with another owner in your league. We all know the best trades allow both teams to better themselves, but sometimes a player's value can be skewed by their early season performance. So who are the early season "Buy low-Sell high" candidates? Buy Low Chris Johnson-The unusually slow start is all because of Johnson's contract holdout...right? Johnson's shear talent alone suggests that he will break out of his funk soon. The Titans appeared to be committed to getting Johnson involved by calling his number 24 times against a tough Ravens' D in week two. Week three only saw Johnson tally 13 carries against a Broncos' defense that was allowing 135 YPG. Johnson hasn't even totaled 100 yards total this season. Gloomy enough for you? The Chris Johnson owner in your league may be feeling the same way. Despite Matt Hasselbeck's recent passing success the Titans know that they will have to get Johnson and the running game going as the season wears on. Make a move for Johnson, be patient and stash him away until he returns to the form that earned him first round status on draft day. Mark Ingram I expect Ingram to have plenty of opportunities to score in a potent Saints' offense. Ingram has yet to explode for the huge rushing numbers that fantasy owners would like to see, but he did manage to get in to the endzone in week three. Darren Sproles was able to sneak in to the endzone in week two on a play that would have been reversed had the officials decided to review it giving Ingram a goal line opportunity that he was drafted to capitalize on. Ingram is an upside play who should develop in to a solid option for you as he gets more acclimated with the Saints' offense. Josh Freeman The Bucs have had an odd start to the season. They have had some strange games where they have abandoned their game plan or strength in order to stay in the game and Freeman's fantasy production has suffered. Don't let the disappointment fool you, Freeman hasn't put up a bad game either; he just hasn't registered the stat lines we all envisioned. You could do far worse as injury insurance, a bye week fill in, or a situational starter regardless of your current QB situation. Sell High Lance Moore I know I referenced the Saints' high powered offense as a ...

As I've been writing a few articles for y'all this year, I've been recognizing my strengths and weaknesses as a fantasy football writer. To have a successful article I need to make sure I use my strengths and stay away from my weaknesses to produce an enjoyable article for you to read. I've been trying out a few different formats, and as well as how much twang to try to get across. From the feedback I've been getting, the content is good, and I need to get rid of the schtick. So I'll leave the twang at home, drop a couple y'alls, and stick to the content. Format-wise, I'm thinking you'll like what I'll be doing from here on out. Here we'll go over the four key fantasy positions and I'll tell you about four players that you might be trying to decide on whether you want them in your starting lineup or not. Four positions, four players, 16 total. It seems easy enough. I'll also tell you what my calls were last week and whether I got them right or not. I'll try to stay away from stud players unless I really think they're going to be duds. If you've got questions during the week on who to start, hit me up in the forums (TheLoneFantasyRanger) and I'll try to include the ones I get the most questions about. Just like at the beginning of the Dark Knight DVD, here ... we ... go: QB I'm up on the Cam Newton bandwagon. Until he starts slowing down, I'm going to say he's a good call. We all know what he's done the past two weeks; it's been big talk all over the football world. I don't see him hitting the brakes this week against Jacksonville in Carolina. The Jaguars have given up two passing touchdowns a game to Matt Hasselbeck and Mark Sanchez, and I'd argue that Newton has much more talent than those two right now. Start Newton and know that even if he doesn't throw for 400-plus yards again, he's going to be a solid start and you won't regret it. The New England Patriots have been on fire with their passing game so far this year. Because they've been rolling right along and scoring so many points, their opposing teams have had to pass 40-plus times just to keep up. All that passing has let Chad Henne and Philip Rivers pass for 416 and 378 yards, respectively. Ryan Fitzpatrick comes in with seven touchdowns on the season himself. I'd say Fitzpatrick is definitely a good call this week. I view this game as being a passing display put on by both quarterbacks. I see Fitzpatrick going for 350-plus yards and three touchdowns. Eli Manning has had his wide receivers ...

Let's begin by reviewing how accurate Vinnie has been against the spread, through one week: picks were 2-1 picks were 2-1 On to Week 2, for which Vinnie likes three home teams and three road teams. Time to make some more reliable picks against the odds. Dallas Cowboys @ San Francisco 49ers (+3): Dallas' defense limited the Jets to 45 rushing yards Sunday night and will hold up well versus Frank Gore. Good passing teams will hold an advantage over the Cowboys, but San Francisco certainly won't be mistaken for one of those anytime soon. The 49ers have a solid defense in their own right. Following his 4th quarter antics against the Jets, though, Tony Romo will acquit himself just fine at Bill Walsh Field on Sunday. Gimme the Cowboys minus the points. Baltimore Ravens @ Tennessee Titans (+5.5): Conversation around Tennessee's offensive strengths begin and end with Chris Johnson, he of nine carries for 24 rushing yards in Week 1. Whether the Ravens have been taking some notes on how Jacksonville shut Johnson down, or just happen to possess one of the better run stopping units league wide - why not both? - it will be a nigh fruitless day for the Titans speedster. On top of this, Terrell Suggs and his fellow Ravens defenders will apply a wealth of pressure on Matt Hasselbeck. As for when Baltimore has the ball, pencil Ray Rice and Joe Flacco each in for a big game. Gimme the Ravens minus the points. Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Minnesota Vikings (-3): The Bucs defense was pretty well dismantled by visiting Detroit a week ago, but will take it to Minnesota in Week 2. Adrian Peterson will get his, no doubt. The real question, for Minnesota, is whether Donovan McNabb can offer a whole lot of something more, after the way he played against San Diego. Though the suspension of defensive tackle Kevin Williams lasts one more game, the Vikings defense is no pushover. Regardless, LeGarrette Blount and Josh Freeman will come through for Tampa Bay. Gimme the Buccaneers plus the points. Arizona Cardinals @ Washington Redskins (-4): Cam Newton deserves a lot of credit for connecting with Steve Smith for those touchdowns and setting the NFL record for passing yards in a rookie debut, but just as notable was the poor play of Arizona's pass defense. Rex Grossman, throwing to some combination of Santana Moss, Jabar Gaffney, and Fred Davis, is in line for perhaps some really nice numbers. Arizona could potentially keep up in the early going, Larry Fitzgerald the beneficiary of ...

Thank goodness for church on Saturday! I will begin attending Saturday service this weekend with Week 1 beginning this Sunday, except for Thursday's opener. Alas, the NFL is back, which means that "The Dive" will begin a triumphant sophomore season. After a busy off-season that included writing for baseballsharks.com, tying the knot, and honeymooning with my beautiful wife in French Polynesia, I am ready to kick off the NFL season. In case you missed "The Dive" last season, let me welcome you to my column. I will research a player at each position (quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and tight end) and a defense to provide a forecast for the upcoming week. Matchup data, common trends, performance history, weather issues, health status, share of workload, and other variables will be analyzed so that you can decide who to start, sit, or snatch from the waiver wire. Matt Hasselbeck- With Peyton Manning out, Matt Cassell hurt, and David Garrard released, some owners have officially hit the panic button in Week 1 as they desperately search for a low cost alternative to fill their quarterback slot. If you did not draft a second quarterback and are beginning to worry, then check your waiver wire for seasoned veteran Matt Hasselbeck. The new Titans' quarterback has looked relatively solid despite the learning curve of leading a brand new offense. Although Hasselbeck has not battled the Jags since 2009, he was able to toss an impressive 249 yards and four touchdowns. Jacksonville ranked 28th in pass defense last season and appears to have digressed even further this preseason by ranking last in pass yards allowed including giving up a league worse six pass plays over 40 yards. Projection- 250 yards and two passing touchdowns Beanie Wells- It is time for Beanie to prove his worth. Arizona's Coach Whisenhunt publicly admitted being impressed with his preseason performance and insured Wells' position as the primary back. With Kevin Kolb still adjusting to Arizona's offense, look for Wells to receive a large share of carries and several drop-off passes from the new QB. In addition, Carolina struggled against the run last season and is ranked as the worst rush defender of the preseason. Projection- 150 total yards and a touchdown. Lance Kendricks- Some managers decided to hold back on drafting an elite tight end like Antonio Gates, Dallas Clark, or Jermichael Finley. It may have been a blessing in disguise for Clark owners that will be Manning-less in ...

Will Chris Johnson be ready for the season opener, and should you draft him? Is there a new Super Mario about to jump over opposing defenses? And how did I fare in a recent expert auction draft? Find out the answers to these questions and more. The Fantasy Intelligence Report is back again, and it's running as strong as a Mack truck. Lets get to it. Note: All ADPs in this report are courtesy of MyFantasyLeague.com (re-draft formats) T.P.C. -- Tennessee's Problem Child The longer Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson continues to play the role of "titanic problem child" and make the Tennessee tilt-a-whirl spin out of control, the larger the migraines will get for fantasy owners. The latest according to the Nashville Tennessean is that Johnson and the Titans are "not seeing eye-to-eye," and are far from reaching a new deal for the playmaking running back. Johnson and his agent Joel Segal met with Titans General Manager Mike Reinfeldt and Titans Vice President of Football Operations Vin Marino. "I feel like I came in yesterday and they gave me their points and we gave them all of our points," Johnson said on Thursday, "and we are not seeing eye-to-eye right now." The good news though, is that Johnson is in tip-top shape and has been working out on his own while he waits for his big payday. "Basically my plan is to continue to handle my part and let Joel handle his part," Johnson said. "All I can do is continue to work out and stay in shape. From them seeing me yesterday, (Reinfeldt) knows I am in great shape, and he said ‘you're looking good' and things like that. All I can do right now is keep working out and keep waiting." Head coach Mike Munchak hasn't lost hope in his star runner, and wants Johnson to be ready for the Titans season opener against Jacksonville. "I know he wants to get this thing resolved. I know he wants to play this year. I don't think he wants to take the chance of missing games early,'' Munchak said. "So his thinking is the same as ours: We want him here and to be with us for the Jacksonville game." While some around the fantasy industry have no interest in dealing with Johnson, after seeing what happened with Vincent Jackson last season, I find him to be a worthy gamble, if you can afford it. But no matter what happens with this Tennessee soap opera fantasy owners should definitely keep Javon Ringer in mind, and at the top of their sleeper lists as their drafts progress, especially if they're brave enough to go all in on ...