Back in August, I recommended a few DTBC combinations for fantasy owners to use throughout the season. My top recommendation was GB/DAL, who have combined to score 69 points through eight weeks (8.6 ppg). This combo started a bit slow, as Dallas posted a goose egg in Week 2, over the last three weeks, it has scored 44 combined points.

Still own these two defenses? You can still hold onto them, but Week 15 is looking a little rough as the Packers play in Pittsburgh and the Cowboys visit the Saints. Green Bay just isn’t putting much pressure on the QB, so Ben Roethlisberger may be able to sit back and pick apart the Packer secondary.

If don’t own a top tier defense (PHI, NO, MIN, BAL and PIT, now that they have Troy Polamalu back), you may want to consider acquiring two good but not great defenses that combine to have a favorable schedule down the stretch. Normally, it doesn’t make sense to carry two defenses, but now that most of the teams are past their byes, it’s not necessary to hold onto bye week fill-ins because you’re probably not going to need them.

There are eleven DTs that are owned in more than two-thirds of ESPN leagues making it somewhat unlikely that they’re available on your league’s waiver wire. This list includes the aforementioned six teams along with the Broncos, Packers, Giants, Jets, Bears and Colts. If you have one of these six, it might behoove you to grab a defense with a complementary schedule.

I’m targeting nine defenses — the Cardinals, Patriots, Texans, 49ers, Bengals, Cowboys, Falcons, Seahawks and the Dolphins — that either mesh well with the Broncos, Packers, Giants and Jets, or with each other. These defenses are all ranked in the top 22 and are available in at least a third of ESPN fantasy leagues. These are defenses that relatively healthy and have had success in good matchups. Here’s a look:

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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.

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Calvin Johnson is back at practice. Not only does this help his owners, but also those that have Kevin Smith and/or Matthew Stafford on their rosters. HC Jim Schwartz told the press that Kevin Smith was his “workhorse” back, so with Johnson back in the fold, Smith should have an easier time finding running lanes. He’s pretty much an every-week start in PPR leagues.

Jamal Lewis reiterates that he plans to retire after the season. The Cleveland offense is so anemic that this really isn’t news that’s going to help anyone this season, but those owners in keeper or dynasty leagues might want to pick up Jerome Harrison and or James Davis on the chance that they become the Browns’ feature back next season.

Anthony Gonzalez seeks second opinion on knee. This can’t be a good sign. Gonzalez was supposed to be back by now, and the fact that he’s not is already a red flag. We’ll see what this second opinion says, but it’s not looking good. The only reason he’d seek another

Westbrook cleared to resume practicing. He is coming back from a concussion. It’s a little worrisome for his owners, but this good news devalues LeSean McCoy a bit, so if you have Westy on your roster you could use this along with Leonard Weaver’s big day to try to acquire McCoy on the cheap.

Seahawks release Edgerrin James. This is a sign for more work for Justin Forsett, who will be Seattle’s RB2 behind Julius Jones. Forsett has been more productive at times than Jones, but the two are likely to share carries and catches in the Seahawks’ backfield. Forsett should now be owned in most leagues.

McFadden, Schilens back at practice. I’d wait a week to see how McFadden plays, but it’s still a good sign that he is back on the field. The Oakland passing game is a mess, so Schilens is barely roster-worthy at this point.

Want my take on what happened in Week 8? Fantasy Fallout
Wondering who to pick up? Waiver Wire Watch
Looking for a defense this week? DTBWW

Still have questions? Fire away. Be sure to let me know 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.

Please note that these rankings are for total value through the end of the year. Players with particularly good matchups this week are in bold.

This week, I am going to spend extra time on the TE position to try to help those Owen Daniels owners pick up the pieces.

Alex Smith (9.7)
After a better-than-expected showing against a good Colts pass defense, Smith has TEN, CHI, GB, JAX, SEA and DET over the next seven weeks. If you have two good QBs and can trade one of them away, Smith should be a solid backup.
Mark Sanchez (45.6)
He’s on bye this week, but has a tasty matchup against the Jags in Week 10.
Jason Campbell (22.0)
Despite his team’s struggles, Campbell has been pretty solid, posting 12+ fp in all but one game.
Matthew Stafford (6.0)
Vince Young (3.9)
Trent Edwards (31.1)
Chad Henne (4.9)

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Every week, I’m picking one question from our Fantasy Football Q&A and posting it on Sunday morning. This week’s question comes from RJR, who is wondering if it’s time to cut bait on Terrell Owens.

“Do you think it’s worth dropping TO for any of these WR’s: (Non-PPR) (1 pt/20 return yds) Malcom Floyd, Bobby Wade, Danny Amendola, Chris Henry, Domenik Hixon. Who has more long-term value?”

My answer: No, hold onto TO and hopes he turns it around. HOU doesn’t have a very good pass defense, so there’s a chance he could have a nice week.

It has come to this. Fantasy owners are so frustrated with Owens that they’re actually considering cutting him for the likes of Bobby Wade and Danny Amendola. If you still have Owens on your roster, you might as well hold onto him and see if the Bills can turn their passing game around. Owens is listed as the #40 WR in Footballguys.com’s list of the top WRs going forward, behind guys like Michael Crabtree, Bernard Berrian, Antonio Bryant and Eddie Royal, and ahead of Torry Holt, Lee Evans and Roy Williams. So it all depends on who is available on your waiver wire. Don’t be afraid to cut him for Hakeem Nicks or Donnie Avery, but don’t cut him for Danny Amendola.

Westbrook missing practice, listed as questionable. The general consensus is that Westy isn’t going to play, and even if he did, he wouldn’t be that strong of a play against a pretty stout Giants defense. Make other plans.

Andre Johnson ‘ready to go’ for Week 8. The Bills have a pretty tough pass defense so there’s a chance that AJ isn’t going to have a big game. But this is Andre Johnson we’re talking about, so he should be in your lineup unless you have great option to turn to.

Mario Manningham questionable with a shoulder injury. If he doesn’t play, this is a substantial upgrade for Hakeem Nicks and a minor upgrade for Steve Smith 2.0. The Eagles aren’t a great matchup for either player, but they’re startable, and that’s something.

Calvin Johnson questionable for Week 8. The general consensus is that he won’t play, but with an early kickoff on Sunday, it’s worth waiting for. Since they’re facing the Rams (and it looks like Matthew Stafford will be back) Bryant Johnson and Dennis Northcutt are sleepers if C. Johnson is out.

Jerricho Cotchery expected to return to action. I’m a little worried about how Braylon Edwards’s arrival is going to affect Cotchery’s targets, but he’s a decent WR2/WR3 start this week against the Dolphins, who aren’t great against the pass.

FX’s original broadcasting has a reputation for being pretty racy and adult-oriented — after all, this is the network that brought us “The Shield,” “Rescue Me,” “Sons of Anarchy,” “Nip/Tuck” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”

Last night, “The League” debuted. It’s a half-hour comedy that follows a group of friends that are all in a fantasy football league together. One guy is the defending league champ, and his wife doesn’t want him to play, even going so far as giving away his lucky draft shirt. Another’s wife is supportive, and actually runs his team for him. Then there are the two clueless friends that are either too high or too ill-informed to compete in the league.

But fantasy football doesn’t dominate “The League,” which is more like “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia” for the married, suburban set. It’s raunchy, but often funny.

FX is replaying the premiere tomorrow (Saturday) night and before the second episode next Thursday.

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 week, Jay Cutler faces the Browns, who are 24th against the pass and were torched last week by Aaron Rodgers and the Packers…David Garrard has a great matchup this week against the Titans, who have given up an average of 311 yards and 3.2 pass TD per game…Matt Hasselbeck faces the Cowboys, who have yielded 239 yards and 1.7 pass TD per game. Dallas will probably put up some points, so Hasselbeck may post nice numbers in garbage time…For the desperate, Marc Bulger (@ DET), Vince Young (vs. JAX) and Derek Anderson (@ CHI) actually have good matchups this week. Proceed with extreme caution.

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Want another take on what happened last week? Fantasy Fallout
Wondering who to pick up? Waiver Wire Watch

Still have questions? Fire away. I’ll assume it’s standard scoring (no PPR) unless you say otherwise.