Below is our Start and Bench Advice for Week 15 of the 2008 Fantasy Football season. Our "Who To Start & Who To Bench" advice is loaded with fantasy football player projections, fantasy analysis and straight up bold predictions.
Also, be sure to check out all of our updated Week 15 Player Projections, which are updated right up until kickoff. For previous Start Bench Advice, click here.
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This one isn’t even close in my eyes. I like Willie Parker, but he has struggled as of late, still isn’t 100-percent healthy and he faces a mean Baltimore defense that gives up just 77 yards per game on the ground. That defensive squad has surrendered just three rushing touchdowns all year long. Jonathan Stewart goes up against the Broncos in Week 15, a defense that ranks 26th against the run and gives up 139.5 yards and 1.3TDs per game contest. Start Stewart without hesitation and expect at least 80 rushing yards and a solid shot at a score. |
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Willie Parker has not played particularly well over the last month with no touchdowns and only a single 100 yard game to speak of. This week’s opponent will not help his cause, so bench him in favor of the red-hot Jonathan Stewart. That Carolina tandem went off against Tampa last week and should do so again against a porous Broncos defense at home. I’m expecting a repeat performance – both Stewart and DeAngelo Williams should be over 100 yards rushing with at least one TD each when this game is over. |
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As I just said above, Jonathan Stewart should be productive in Week 15 against the league’s 26th-ranked rushing defense, but I don’t think you can bench Clinton Portis. Portis is not happy with his coach, but he should get his usual amount of carries in Week 15 against that very mediocre Bengals rushing defense (23rd). Cincy gives up 125.8 yards per game on the ground and they have given up 15 rushing touchdowns so far on the year. Unless news breaks suggesting that Portis isn’t going to get all the touches in Week 15 (unlikely), start the Redskins runner without hesitation! He should be good for 100 yards and a score in Week 15. |
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Now that we all know that Redskins’ coach Jim Zorn is a “genius” courtesy of Clinton Portis, it’s probably safe to assume Zorn will actually use his star running back this week against Cincy. Doesn’t sound like things are rosy in Washington, but that’s to be expected when a team starts losing games – and the situation bears watching because there could be repercussions for Portis. That said, if he does practice all week and get the start, I give him the start over Stewart – a ticked off running back playing against a horrible team is a good combination for fantasy owners. I expect Portis to go well over 125 total yards and have a score if he plays. However, if you are at all nervous about Portis’ playing time, Stewart is a good start too as I expect very similar numbers. |
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I like Pierre Thomas a lot right now, and I’ve always loved his upside… that said, the Bears are 6th in the league against the run and Portis, as mentioned above, faces the Bengals (23rd). Again, unless news breaks suggesting that Portis isn’t going to get all the carries in Week 15, he is almost a must-start. On a side note, I love Thomas in Week 16 against the Lions. The Lions are the worst rushing defense in the league, as they give up 173.3 rushing yards per game and have surrendered 23 rushing touchdowns through 13 games. As a flex-option, Thomas could help fantasy owners win Week 16. Keep that in mind as we roll into Week 16. |
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Pierre Thomas has finally gotten his opportunity to shine and came through last week with 109 total yards and a touchdown. Thomas bears strong consideration as a flex play from here on out, but I hesitate to give him the nod over true starters like Portis just yet, for as good as he played he is still an unproven commodity and needs to show he can produce each and every week. I go Portis here, and again, the Portis situation with Zorn bears watching, but I think Portis is a great start this week if he goes. |
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This one isn’t even close in my book. Ben Roethlisberger is going up against the league’s second-best passing defense in Week 15. The only passing defense better than the Ravens is the defense that Roethy faces every day in practice. That Steelers-Ravens game will be low scoring, so I definitely say start Matt Cassel! Cassel goes up against the Raiders this week, a defense that ranks 9th against the pass… While that is considered a solid passing defense, there is a huge difference between the Ravens and 9th… plus, I’m not convinced that the Raiders really have the 9th best passing defense… much of that may have to do with the fact that teams run all over the Raiders each and every week. Cassel should be in for a big day — 280-300 yards and 2TDs seems about right! |
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Neither of these QB plays is a great matchup, but faced with this choice I would go with Matt Cassel. I haven’t advocated starting anyone against Oakland over the last few weeks, but Ben Roethlisberger going up against Baltimore on the road is worse – especially considering this is a division game and these two teams don’t like each other very much. Big Ben is in for a long day, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him right around 100 yards passing in this game, although I do expect a score. Cassell is the better play, albeit moderately better – right around 200 yards passing and a couple of TDs sounds about right. |
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Steve Slaton goes up against the Titans rushing defense, a defensive unit that ranks 7th against the run and gives up just 92.4 rushing yards per game. Steven Jackson faces the Seahawks in Week 15, a defensive unit that ranks 21st against the run and gives up 118.6 rushing yards per game… While both defenses have surrendered the same number of rushing touchdowns on the year (12), I still like Jackson’s match-up a lot better. This could come back to bite me, as Slaton is on fire and always seems to break off a long run, but I start Jackson this week if in this situation. It’s close, though, and both runners could produce the same kind of numbers, but I just have to roll with Jackson — Expect 100 yards and a score. |
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The last time Houston and Tennessee met in week 3, Steve Slaton was a relative unknown and had himself a pretty good day rushing for 116 yards and a touchdown. Since then, he has played very well and seems to be getting stronger as the season goes on – over his last four games he has averaged 143 total yards per game and added 3 TDs. That’s the definition of an RB1 my friends and at this point in the season I don’t bench him in favor of anyone this side of Adrian Peterson. I do expect Steven Jackson to have a pretty good game against Seattle, but why take the risk he bombs out again when you can roll with another 100+ yard day (with a score) from Slaton? |
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The Falcons are 23rd against the pass and the Ravens are 2nd against the pass — I normally don’t let match-ups push me into benching WRs, but the Ravens and Steelers are exceptions. Antonio Bryant looked amazing in Week 14 and I think he will continue to play well moving forward… so roll with Bryant in Week 15. He should be good for at least 80 yards and a score. Holmes could score, but it’s hard to expect solid yards against that Ravens defense. |
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Wow, I still can’t get over that game Monday night from Antonio Bryant – I don’t know many fantasy teams that had him and didn’t win. Thing is, Bryant has been pretty steady all season long – before that game he already had 5 other games with 6 or more catches and one of them was a 10-for-138 gem in week 3. I would easily roll with Bryant this week over Santonio Holmes – I expect a defensive battle in that Pittsburgh-Baltimore game and very little in the way of offense. |
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