- The Carolina defense did a number on Josh Freeman (321 yards, 5 INTs) and are likely to carry a few fantasy teams to victory this week.

- Matt Moore (161 yards, INT) was not impressive in his first start, but he only turned the ball over once, and that’s all the Panthers needed on Sunday.

- Jay Cutler (143 yards, TD) has a disappointing day given his nice matchup. Bears fans are just happy he got the win.

- The Denver defense seems to have its swagger back. Matt Cassel (84 yards, 2 INT) struggled, as did the entire KC offense.

- Tom Brady (352 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT) didn’t seem too bothered by an injured finger, but he did throw the game-ending interception.

- Bruce Gradkowski (308 yards, 3 TD) had a HUGE day against the Steelers.

- Ben Roethlisberger (278 yards, 2 TD, INT) bounced back from a Week 12 absence with a big day against a pretty good Raider secondary.

- It wasn’t exactly pretty, but Drew Brees (419 yards, 2 TD, INT) posted another nice fantasy day.

- Jason Campbell (367 yards, 3 TD, INT) had a big day against New Orleans, but threw a costly interception in overtime that led to the Saints’ game-winning field goal.

- Alex Smith (310 yards, 2 TD) continues to play well down the stretch. With Arizona in Week 14 and Detroit in Week 16, he is definitely startable in the fantasy playoffs.

- Tony Romo (392 yards, 3 TD) had a big day in the Cowboys’ loss against the Giants.

- Jerious Norwood (13 touches, 42 yards) and Jason Snelling (12 touches, 52 yards) basically split the work with Michael Turner out.

- LeSean McCoy (9 touches, 26 yards) was a big disappointment given his good matchup with the Falcons defense.

- Jonathan Stewart (26 carries, 120 yards, TD) was strong filling in for the injured DeAngelo Williams.

- Kevin Smith (18 touches, 104 yards, TD) ended up having a nice day against a good Bengals defense.

- Cedric Benson (36 carries, 110) yards is the clear RB1 in Cincy. Larry Johnson (2 carries, 4 yards) was not involved in the offense.

- Earth to Maurice Jones-Drew (24 carries, 76 yards): Where are you?

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- Roddy White (9-104-1) caught his TD on a deflected pass intended for Tony Gonzalez.

- Steve Smith 1.0 (3-78) was really quiet until he caught a 66-yard bomb in the fourth quarter. Generally speaking, he’s not a great play right now.

- Antonio Bryant (5-116) looks like he’s back. He made a couple of very nice catches this week.

- Earl Bennett (2-74-1) had a nice game and could be a nice pickup if Devin Hester’s (1-48) injury keeps him out.

- Donnie Avery (3-30, 1 rush for 15 yards) should have done more with a nice matchup. He’s back to being a shaky start after a nice run of games.

- Chad Ochocinco (9-137-1) got back on track. The Lions will do that for a guy.

- It was Pierre Garcon (6-136), not Reggie Wayne (4-48), who led the Colts in receiving.

- Mike Sims-Walker (1-12) had a miserable day against the Texans. He only has 5-58 over the last two weeks.

- Chris Chambers (2-11) came into Week 13 very hot (17-319-3 over his last four games), but Champ Bailey and Co. shut him down.

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- One word for Greg Olsen (2-1): Ugh.

- Neither Detroit TE (Will Heller, Casey Fitzsimmons) did much in place of Brandon Pettigrew.

- Dallas Clark (3-25) had a bad, bad day by his standards.

- Bo Scaife (5-56-1) has caught 14 passes over the last three weeks and is starter-quality in PPR leagues.

- Anthony Fasano (5-67) has 10-141 over the last two weeks and should be a much bigger part of the offense down the stretch. He’s worth a look in PPR leagues and is always dangerous around the goal line.

- Zach Miller (4-43) should be back on rosters now that he actually has a QB who can deliver the ball somewhat accurately. He has 14 catches over the last three weeks.

- Fred Davis (5-53-1) has 15 receptions in the last four weeks and seems to be a favorite target of Jason Cambpell.

- Antonio Gates (8-167) has been very hot of late. He now has 30 catches in the last five games.

- Jason Witten (14-156) finally had a huge day. He has been steady this season, but this is the first time that he has caught more than nine passes and only the second time that he broke 100 yards receiving.

Be sure to check back in a bit for the WR, RB and QB positions.

Every week, I will highlight a few players to start and a few players to sit at each position. I’m a firm believer in starting your studs, so I won’t tell you about how Drew Brees or Adrian Peterson has a tough matchup – just go ahead and keep them in your lineup. Instead, I’ll focus on the borderline guys – players you’ll only start under the right circumstances. It’s important to note that depending on your roster and situation, you may not be able to follow these recommendations. For example, if I suggest you bench a solid starter like Tony Romo, only do so if you have a clearly better option on your bench.

The “love ‘em” players are listed in the order that I’d start them this week.

Donovan McNabb is pretty much a must-start against a Falcons secondary that has given up an average of 253 yards and 1.6 TD per game this season…This probably goes without saying, but Brett Favre (ARI),Tom Brady (MIA), Peyton Manning (TEN), Philip Rivers (CLE) and Matt Schaub (JAX) all have great matchups this week…Carson Palmer is a very good start this week against a Lions defense that is ranked 32nd in the league against the pass…Tony Romo‘s back is feeling better and he has a nice matchup with a Giants defense that has given up the 8th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks over the last six weeks…The Seahawks have been pretty bad against the pass lately, so Alex Smith should be able to post a nice fantasy line…Desperate? Kyle Orton is primed for a good game against a sketchy Chiefs secondary.

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The strategy behind DTBWW is that each week, you pick up a defensethat is playing against a bad offense (preferably at home). And each week, you get pretty good numbers out of your DT position. To see how this approach performed last season, click here.

Last week, I recommended three DTBWW picks. Let’s see how they fared…

#1 Cowboys: 7 PA (6) + 3 SK + 1 FR = 10 fantasy points
#2 Seahawks: 17 PA (2) + 4 SK + 2 INT + 1 INT TD = 14 fp
#3 Dolphins: 31 PA (0) + 6 SK + 1 INT = 7 fp

It was a good week for DTBWW, with an average score of 10.3 points. The Dolphins had the Bills under control for much of the game, but gave up 17 points late. The Cowboys and Seahawks both played well.

On the season, my #1 pick is averaging 9.5 points, my #2 pick is averaging 10.9 points and my #3 pick is averaging 6.3 points. My #2 is particularly hot, averaging 11.7 points over the last nine weeks. On the whole, DTBWW is averaging 8.9 fantasy points per game, which is about the same as the #2 DT (Minnesota).

Let’s take a look at this week’s picks. Keep in mind that to be eligible for DTBWW, a defense must be available in at least 40% of ESPN fantasy leagues.

Pick #1: San Diego Chargers (@ CLE)
The Chargers have been hot of late and they have a matchup with one of the league’s worst offenses. Even though this one is on the road, it could get pretty ugly pretty quickly.

Pick #2: New York Jets (@ BUF)
The Jets are playing better defense the last couple of weeks and even though the Buffalo offense is a little better with Ryan Fitzpatrick under center, the Bills still can’t run the ball very well, and the Jets have the #2 pass defense in the league.

Pick #3: Chicago Bears (vs. STL)
The Bears defense isn’t good, but with the Rams coming to town, Chicago has a great matchup this week.

Bonus pick: Tampa Bay (@ CAR)

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Be sure to check out Week 12’s Fantasy Fallout and our Waiver Wire Watch for Week 13. Still have questions? Fire away, but be sure to tell me about your league’s roster requirements and whether or not you’re in a PPR league.

Every week, I highlight a few players that you should target in waivers. I use the ESPN league data when filtering players, so the only players eligible for discussion here are those that are available on the waiver wire in at least 50% of ESPN’s leagues. I’ll list each player’s percentage-owned after their name so you have an idea of how available they are in leagues around the country. I’ll always try to mention a few players that are available in 90% of leagues for those of you in 12-team leagues or leagues with big rosters. I’ll rank them in the order I’d pick them up in a league with a high-performance, PPR scoring system.

Alex Smith (18.7)
Smith is startable the rest of the way, but he has especially nice matchups in Week 14 (ARI) and Week 16 (DET).
Vince Young (14.9)
Young has the Rams and Dolphins in Week 14 and 15, respectively.
Mark Sanchez (40.4)
Sanchez has nice matchups in Week 14 (TB) and Week 15 (ATL).
Ryan Fitzpatrick (0.8)
The Bills have the Chiefs and Falcons in Weeks 14 and 16.
Matthew Stafford (7.2)
Josh Freeman (2.6)
Jason Campbell (19.5)
Matt Leinart (2.0)
Chad Henne (4.6)

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