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Do you know how many people woke up this morning to find themselves losing in their matchup by 60-something points?
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Luckily for me, I was fortunate enough to avoid playing against Peyton Manning and his seven-touchdown performance in any of my leagues this week, but tons of people started their weekend off on the wrong foot. For those who were on the receiving end of that spanking, they may need a high upside guy to start this week if they are even going to have a chance at making a comeback. Well, look no further, folks. Here are a few sneaky players that are worthy of starting in Week 1.
Oh, and my sincerest condolences for those who had to face Manning this week.
Ben Tate @ San Diego Chargers: A lot of people are high on Tate for this week, and I fully understand why. Starter Arian Foster dealt with a calf injury that kept him sidelined throughout the entire preseason, while Tate averaged an impressive 5.7 yards per carry. Of course, all signs are pointing towards Foster starting on Sunday, which certainly hurts Tate’s value, but I foresee a reasonable amount of touches for both Houston backs in this contest. The Texans should be ahead for the majority of this contest, which means if they are forced to run out the clock late, it will be Tate, not Foster, receiving that work. I mean, why would you overwork your banged up star running back when you don’t need to? Head coach Gary Kubiak already stated that Foster won’t be the typical workhorse he usually is, and I can definitely see Tate seeing 15 carries, and given his skill, if he sees that workload, he’ll find the end zone, making him a strong consideration for at least a flex play.
Danny Woodhead vs Houston Texans: Staying in the same game here, Woodhead should see some significant volume if the Chargers find themselves trailing on Sunday. The team brought Woodhead in to be their third-down and passing-down back, and considering Ryan Mathews played on just five third downs a season ago, I think Woodhead will be on the field quite a bit. In the deepest of leagues, Woodhead could be a sneaky option in PPR formats because the garbage time points will likely be there. Also, don;t overlook the possibility of the Chargers lining him up as a receiver, considering the current status of the position.
Brent Celek @ Washington Redskins: Celek continues to get overlooked in fantasy football, and I get it. The Eagles have been experimenting with a three-headed monster at tight end, but Celek came on and emerged towards the end of the preseason, and should be the guy used in the passing game the most. Well, Week 1 doesn’t offer a better matchup than the Redskins, who surrendered the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends a season ago. I think the Eagles will be behind in this contest, and considering new head coach Chip Kelly wants to run 70 plays per game, they will throw the ball a good amount.
Emmanuel Sanders vs Tennessee Titans: Antonio Brown may get all the attention among the Pittsburgh receivers, but Sanders can play too. He had a career year in 2012 and will get even more looks now that Mike Wallace is gone. Sanders is a good sleeper play for this week against the Titans, one of the worst pass defenses in football from a season ago. Their 31 passing touchdowns allowed was tied for second-worst in football, and they also finished inside the top-10 in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers. The Steelers, meanwhile, really have no running game, so Ben Roethlisberger may be throwing the football a lot more than usual. The combination between good volume and a good matchup makes Sanders a strong play this week.
Adam Pfeifer is a featured fantasy sports columnist for Rant Sports.
You can follow him on Twitter @aPfeiferRS.
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