| Player |
Proj. Pts |
Notes |
 |
Tony Gonzalez
|
14
|
His team has had nothing to play for in a while, yet he has had some big weeks. Last week, he looked nearly unstoppable. Against the Jets, look for him to have big yardage and at least one score.
|
 |
Kellen Winslow
|
12
|
Winslow sort of sprung back to life last week, and with Cleveland in a mad battle for the final playoff spot, look for him to put up some big numbers this week.
|
 |
Chris Cooley
|
11
|
Cooley's numbers are down slightly with Todd Collins at the helm, but regardless of who starts at QB, Cooley will be facing a Dallas team that probably won't go all out. A couple of quick scores to Cooley should have the Redskins feeling good about that last playoff spot.
|
 |
Heath Miller
|
7
|
Once Willie Parker went down, all of a sudden Pittsburgh remembered that Miller can catch passes. Pittsburgh will probably be tinkering with their offense throughout the game, so Miller could see many opportunities.
|
 |
Tony Scheffler
|
6
|
Yeah, Minnesota's playing for their playoff lives, but that means they won't let Brandon Marshall beat them. That should give Jay Cutler plenty of opportunities to find Scheffler..
|
 |
Antonio Gates
|
6
|
San Diego may be more apt to rest their starters early than Pittsburgh is. Gates is a little banged up, so he's a risk, but the Rivers-Gates battery that will be vital in the playoffs has been lacking of late, so they may try to re-establish their rapport before sitting them.
|
 |
Donald Lee
|
5
|
Green Bay has nothing to play for, but I don't think Lee will be one of the first players to sit. That makes him a nice safety valve for Aaron Rodgers when he comes into the game. .
|
 |
Desmond Clark
|
4
|
It's clear that Kyle Orton doesn't look for Clark deep down the middle like Rex Grossman did. Still, he has a decent matchup against New Orleans, and Orton did remember to look Clark's way in the end zone last week.
|
 |
Billy Miller
|
4
|
Miller was a big disappointment last week, given his increased playing time. Like virtually every other tight end his week, he's hard to predict, but I see Drew Brees targeting Miller more often against the Bears.
|
 |
Vernon Davis
|
4
|
Davis has been a nice sleeper pick the last two weeks. Cleveland's in a scrum for the final AFC playoff spot, but their defense isn't that intimidating even when they know something big's on the line, so Davis should have a decent day.
|
 |
Zach Miller
|
4
|
JaMarcus Russell makes his first start, which really should be a warning flag for any owner of Oakland receivers. Miller makes for a nice safety valve though, so he could see a lot of passes if Russell gets jittery.
|
 |
Bo Scaife
|
3
|
Tennessee controls its playoff fate, so they will be going all out. However, Scaife has done little in the past few weeks, so he's obviously not a big part of their plans. |
 |
Chris Baker
|
3
|
Two teams playing for pride, of sorts, which sometimes makes players like Baker interesting for the final week. Kansas City has done a good job of defending tight ends all year though, so don't expect Baker to be a guaranteed sleeper.
|
 |
Alge Crumpler
|
3
|
Crumpler found the end zone last week, but that's about the only good thing about his performance of late.
|
 |
Marcedes Lewis
|
3
|
Lewis is usually good for 40 yards, but the Jaguars also have their playoff position secure, so don't expect quite that much this week..
|
 |
Dallas Clark
|
3
|
His owners would be lucky if he plays even a full quarter, but he should still be pretty productive in his six minutes of actual playing time.
|
 |
Owen Daniels
|
3
|
Daniels is either a surprisingly good performer or a fantasy zero in a given week. Against a Jacksonville team that should be resting its starters, Daniels could surprise, but I wouldn't count on it.
|
 |
Jerramy Stevens
|
3
|
Huge performance for Stevens last week. You can't count on the same, but he's a decent sleeper pick since he's technically a backup, and Tampa Bay should be resting most of its top receivers.
|
 |
Anthony Fasano
|
3
|
Jason Witten probably won't play more than a quarter. Even though that opens the door for Fasano, remember that Tony Romo won't play much either, if at all.
|
 |
Alex Smith
|
2
|
It remains to be seen how much Smith will play. He's not a vital part of Tampa Bay's offense, but the Bucs certainly don't want to risk an unnecessary injury to a starter. |
 |
Benjamin Watson
|
2
|
The Patriots will be going for an undefeated season, but Watson's banged up. Look for him to make some cameo appearances and make a catch or two.
|
 |
Brent Celek
|
2
|
Celek showed some flashes last week. The Eagles might call some plays designed for him to see what he can bring to the table.
|
 |
Randy McMichael
|
2
|
McMichael broke out of his 20-yards-per-game slump last week, but if a player averages 20 yards per game, chances are he'll get 20 yards in the next game..
|
 |
Jeff King
|
2
|
Good: King has multiple receptions in each of his last three. Bad: He's averaging 12 yards per game in his last three. |
 |
David Martin
|
2
|
Martin seems to have moments where he floats on your radar, but then you realize that he still has less than 100 total yards in his last four games (99, to be exact).
|
 |
Bubba Franks
|
2
|
Franks is expected to play this week, and it's possible that Green Bay will target him to get him into the flow for the playoffs. You're still probably better off looking elsewhere.
|
 |
Reggie Kelly
|
2 |
Kelly caught a long pass last week, but I doubt Carson Palmer's thinking that he's the Bengals' new deep threat.
|
 |
Kris Wilson
|
2
|
This week is quite possibly Wilson's last as a Chief. Do the Jets dare get in his way?.
|
 |
Greg Olsen
|
2
|
Orton, Olsen. Olsen, Orton. They really should introduce themselves to each other before the season's out.
|
 |
Visanthe Shiancoe
|
1
|
Shiancoe caught a whopping four passes last week, but none were for more than six yards. The YPC probably stays the same, but with half the receptions.
|
 |
Kevin Boss
|
1
|
Jeremy Shockey's replacement caught no passes last week. I'm going against the grain and predicting he catches one this week.
|
 |
Robert Royal
|
1
|
The weather in Buffalo is more predictable than Royal's fantasy production. |
 |
Bryan Fletcher
|
1
|
Dallas Clark probably won't play much, and Ben Utecht's been banged up for a while, so Fletcher is somewhat of a sleeper candidate.
|
 |
Richard Angulo
|
1
|
With Jacksonville's starters likely to rest for most of the game, Angulo might have multiple receptions, like he did last week.
|
 |
Ben Patrick
|
1
|
When Arizona's offense is really clicking, like it did last week, Patrick might get you 20 yards.
|