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 suggest you bench Drew Brees or Adrian Peterson because they have tough matchups – 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.

As usual, I’ll discuss these players within the context of my weekly positional rankings, so remember — everything is relative.

It’s hard not to like Eli Manning (#4) this week. Seattle is a tough place to play, but Manning has nine TDs in his last three games and is coming off a bye week, so the Giants should be fully prepared to face the Seahawks, who are ranked 29th against the pass…Matt Ryan (#6) has a nice matchup with the Bucs, who have given up an average of 2.0 pass TDs through the first seven games…Josh Freeman (#11) has quietly become the league’s most underrated fantasy quarterback. He has thrown at least one TD in six of seven games this season, and he always seems to add 20-30 rushing yards to his fantasy total. With a great matchup against a sketchy Falcons secondary on tap, he should be in line for another solid day.

LaDainian Tomlinson (#7) hasn’t been very good in the last two games in terms of yards per carry (3.4), but he should be able to have a big day against the Lions’ 27th-ranked rush defense…Matt Forte (#11) has an outstanding matchup with the Bills, who have given up an average of 189 rushing yards per game this season…LeGarrette Blount‘s (#13) big day against the Cardinals in Week 8 was no fluke — the guy can run the ball. He has a solid matchup with a Falcons’ defense that will be on its heels due to the problems it has stopping the pass. Blount should be good for 80 yards and a score…His ankle injury is reportedly completely behind him, so maybe this week we’ll see Ryan Mathews (#16) get a full workload against the Texans’ mediocre rush defense…Need a sleeper? Tashard Choice (#40) has been informed that his role is about to increase and the Cowboys may want to take it easy on Felix Jones (#25) who is coming back from an ankle injury…Need another sleeper? LaRod Stephens-Howling (#44) has seemingly passed Tim Hightower on the Cardinals’ depth chart and Beanie Wells (#19) has some swelling in his knee. This could add up for some extra work for Stephens-Howling.

I expect Mike Williams 2.0 (#8) will follow up his 4-105-1 performance last week with another big day against the Falcons’ 27th-ranked pass defense…On paper, Dwayne Bowe‘s (#10) matchup against the Raiders isn’t great, but with Nnamdi Asomugha nursing an ankle injury, Bowe has a chance to take advantage…Hakeem Nicks (#2) is a no-brainer against the Seahawks’ porous pass defense, but Steve Smith 2.0 (#15) is also a great start…With Antonio Gates possibly out, Patrick Crayton (#24) should have a big day in a great matchup with the Texans’ 32nd-ranked pass defense. If you’re looking for a deep sleeper, Seyi Ajirotutu (#43) will be pressed into action given the Chargers problems at receiver. He’s big and has soft hands…I also like Darrius Heyward-Bey (#36), at least in a someone-has-to-catch-the-ball way.

With just one TD pass in two weeks and a bad matchup with the Ravens’ 9th-ranked pass defense on tap, I’d steer clear of Chad Henne (#22) this week…He may very well finish with good numbers, but can we trust Brett Favre (#21) who will be without Randy Moss and Sidney Rice, and possibly Percy Harvin? He has just two TD passes in the past three weeks.

I’m not crazy about Jahvid Best‘s (#15) chances this week against a very good New York rush defense, though his pass-catching ability does keep him in RB2 territory…Ronnie Brown (#23) has a bad matchup and is splitting time with Ricky Williams (#31), who has been outplaying him. Not a good mix…Marshawn Lynch (#32) was absolutely brutal last week and this week he faces a Giants’ defense that is ranked third in the league against the rush. Steer clear.

Marques Colston (#20) is definitely startable, but I wouldn’t expect a huge game against a Panthers defense that has been very good against the pass this season. However, the Saints have one of the worst running games in the league, so Drew Brees will have to throw a lot. I see a 6-80 type of a day for Colston…With Randy Moss, Wes Welker (#29) averaged 6.5-54-0.8 this season. Without him, Welker is averaging 4.6-34-0.0. He has a great matchup this week with the Browns, but Cleveland looked good against the Saints a couple of weeks ago and had a week off to prepare for the Patriots…I’d steer clear of Mike Williams 1.0 (#34) this week, if possible. He’s going up against the league’s 2nd-ranked pass defense and his QB is out. That’s not a good mix.

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.

This should go without saying, but just in case: Aaron Rodgers should be in your lineup against a Bucs’ pass defense that has yielded 2.3 pass TD per game this season…Donovan McNabb has a very good matchup against a struggling Cowboys secondary…Matt Hasselbeck faces the Lions. Two words: Start him…Cincinnati’s pass defense is ranked 30th in the league, so Joe Flacco should have a nice fantasy line this week…As it stands, Matt Cassel has his last great matchup of the season this week, coming off a bye against the Jaguars’ 26th-ranked pass defense…So, last week, was the Titans’ pass defense that good or was Jacksonville’s pass defense that bad. Alex Smith faces Tennessee’s league-worst pass defense this week and is a pretty nice start…I’m a little hesitant to recommend him again after his brutal showing against the Titans, but David Garrard has another nice matchup this week against the Chiefs and isn’t a bad start…For the desperate, Jason Campbell is a sneaky good start against a Falcons defense that has struggled to stop the pass in recent weeks.

Tennessee’s rush defense is only mediocre, so look for Frank Gore to have a nice fantasy day…Ryan Grant should be able to post some nice numbers against Tampa Bay’s 30th-ranked rush defense…Chicago hasn’t been very good against the run, so Tim Hightower looks like a solid start for another week…Carolina’s rush defense has yielded 127 yards and 1.0 TD per game, so Pierre Thomas is looking like a pretty good start this week. He got some of his goal line work back in Week 8, so he seems to be the best start in the Saints backfield…The Giants rush defense has fallen off in recent weeks, so now that he’s relatively healthy, LaDainian Tomlinson is a solid start this week…In the same game, the Chargers have the 27th-ranked rush defense, so Brandon Jacobs should be able to find some running lanes.

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Greg Jennings and Donald Driver should have an easy time getting open on a Bucs defense that has given up 16 pass TD this season…Dwayne Bowe has a tasty matchup with a Jags pass defense that has given up 242 yards and 1.9 TD through the air this season…DeSean Jackson is a great start and Jeremy Maclin is a good start against the Cowboys’ 22nd-ranked pass defense…If Calvin Johnson is playing, get him in your lineup. The Lions will have to throw the ball to keep up with the Seahawks, so CJ could post some nice numbers this week…Reggie Wayne is an every-week no-brainer, but Austin Collie is looking like a nice start against the Texans, who have had trouble against opposing WRs this season…Mike Sims-Walker laid an egg last week against a terrible Titans pass defense, but he has another good matchup this week against the Chiefs. Stay with him unless you have a much better option…Michael Crabtree has 11-137 over his first two games and faces the league’s worst pass defense (TEN) this week. That looks like a nice combination…Santana Moss faces the Falcons, who are having trouble stopping the pass…It’s tough to recommend any of the Titans’ WRs, but Nate Washington looks like the best of the bunch, and the 49ers have given up a ton of passing yards this season.

Matt Ryan has struggled of late, and the Redskins are coming off of a bye and are the 2nd-ranked pass defense in the league. If you have a good alternative, use it…Ben Roethlisberger has been a fine fantasy starter of late, but the Broncos defense has allowed just 0.6 pass TD per game this season…Not that they’re startable in the first place, but avoid Jake Delhomme and Chad Henne at all costs. They face the Saints and the Pats, respectively, and neither is a good matchup.

Steer clear of Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter this week, as neither are a good bet to go off against the Steelers, who own the league’s stingiest rush defense…Both are still startable, but Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams are unlikely to have a big game against the Pats, who are coming off their bye…Rashard Mendenhall faces Denver’s 3rd-ranked rush defense, which doesn’t bode very well for the young back…The Packers have only allowed three rush TD on the season, and are pretty stingy around the goal line. I wouldn’t expect Carnell Williams to have a big day, especially since the Bucs are likely to be trailing most of the game.

Steer clear of Roy Williams. The Philly pass defense is pretty tough and he has struggled with his consistency this year…While they’re still startable, Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes face Champ Bailey (and the Broncos’ 8th-ranked pass defense) this week…I wouldn’t expect Antonio Bryant to do much against Al Harris and Charles Woodson this week. The Packers have a top 10 pass defense and are coming off a tough loss to the Vikings.