Week 3: Heroes, Bums, and Sleepers

Heroes:

1. Dwayne Bowe (WR - KC)
I wouldn't be surprised if both defensive coordinators were fired after this one. On one end you have Drew Brees gunning down a soft Chiefs secondary, and on the other you have Matt Cassel working his magic in garbage time. And when Cassel's on trash duty, who's he going to throw to? Dwayne Bowe, good guess. Both teams are giving up 35 PPG (that's 5 TDs), and I expect Bowe to catch two scores and rack up triple-digit yardage. And while you're at it, start as many Chiefs and Saints as you can--Matt Cassel should finish in the top ten this week, and even guys like Peyton Hillis and Pierre Thomas are worth a start.

2. Martellus Bennett (TE - NYG)
Let's say you're the Panthers' defensive coordinator. You know Hakeem Nicks is out, as are Ahmad Bradshaw and Dominick Hixon. That leaves Victor Cruz as the only real threat on offense for the Giants. Now, if you're heading Carolina's defense tonight, wouldn't you tell your guys to zone in on that Cruz fella? Wouldn't you post pictures of Cruz all over the locker room with the caption "No Salsa Dances"? Exactly, and while Cruz is double-covered and the rest of the Giants receiving corps is at the hospital, you can expect 90 yards and a TD from a sneaky Martellus Bennett.

3. Donald Brown (RB - IND)
The Jags are basically inviting running backs into the endzone. They've allowed five rushing TDs in two games, which is an embarrassment considering how staunch they were against the run last season. Injuries to Daryl Smith and Clint Session wrecked what was a solid defense. And with Blaine Gabbert regressing to 2011 form, you can expect the Colts to be up comfortably and pounding the rock with Don Brown in the second half.

Bums:

1. Andre Johnson (WR - HOU)
Last week Matt Schaub dinked and dunked and checked down every time he dropped back to throw. Andre ended up with a three catches for a staggering 21 yards. This was against the Jaguars, whose defense was in shambles with Daryl Smith injured. This week AJ has to line up opposite Champ Bailey for four quarters, and there's no one else in the passing game to draw attention away from Andre. Oh, and the Texans like to utilize these two guys named Ben and Arian as much as possible.

2. Reggie Bush (RB - MIA)
I'm not buying. Bush blew up a Raiders defense that (a) wore black jerseys in Florida heat, (b) traveled across the country on six-day's rest, and (c) sleepwalked through a 1 pm game in an earlier time zone. The Raiders are garbage to begin with, and last week they had every reason to be tired. Now Reggie goes up against a superior Rex Ryan defense that will undoubtedly key in on him.

3. Peyton Manning (QB - DEN)
I'm hitting the panic button on Manning this week. Not only did he look terrible on Monday night, it appeared he won't be able to throw downfield for a while. Even the deep Manning passes that weren't intercepted looked ugly, and I'm sure Wade Phillips is drawing up a defensive gameplan that'll shut down the underneath routes. He'd be stupid not to. And even if Manning showed no sign of weakness, I'd still recommend treading carefully against the Texans D on six-day's rest.


Sleepers:

1. Peyton Hillis (RB - KC)
It'll be raining fantasy points in New Orleans, and I don't expect Hillis stay dry. He fumbled at the goalline last week, but I say he punches it this time against a team that has given up 4 TDs to running backs so far. Expect a solid game from Hillis to the tune of 70 total yards and a TD.

2. Sam Bradford (QB - STL)
Popular opinion suggest that the Bears are going to crush the Rams, but I think this will be a close one. Bradford threw for 3 TDs last week, and the Bears are soft in the secondary (allowing 254 yards per game). I could easily see Bradford chucking a couple touchdowns, especially if the Rams have to play from behind.