Essential News Quarterbacks: QB Jim Miller (Chi) is still bothered by a sore ankle. It is not expected to keep him off of the field on Sunday. QB Gus Frerotte (Cin) will start despite his sore thumb and the general consensus that he stunk last week. QB Tim Couch (Cle) will not play this week despite throwing hard on Thursday and Friday. Kelly Holcomb gets the start. Tim will be QB #2 and can play if needed. QB Trent Dilfer (Sea) was able to practice on Thursday and Friday and will start this week. Owners of WRs Darrell Jackson and Koren Robinson are definitely thankful. /*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/* Running Backs: RB Deshaun Foster (Car) will not play this week. Lamar Smith will start in his place. RB Brandon Bennett (Cin) is doubtful for this week's game RB James Stewart (Det) is expected to start this week with a sore knee. He also was expected to start last week, but tweaked the knee in warm-ups. RB Ahman Green (GB) despite the flu and a propensity to fumble because he sweats too much will start and play as usual. RB Ricky Williams (Mia) claims the media is overstating his sore shoulder, after he said it was extremely sore after the game. He does not appear on the injury report and will start as usual. RB Michael Bennett (Min) will play with his sore shoulder. What is more worrisome than his shoulder though is the team's willingness to play Doug Chapman and Moe Williams considerable minutes. RB Tiki Barber (NYG) says his hamstring is no longer bothering him and said his toe is nearly 100%. He practiced this week and is expected to start. He appears on the injury report as probable. RB Curtis Martin (NYJ) had all eyes on him as he practiced on Friday and he came through with flying colors. Coach Herman Edwards would not commit to starting Curtis and called it a gametime decision. But his smile told the real story. We expect Curtis Martin to start just like he has the last 59 games. RB Lamont Jordan (NYJ) does not appear on the Wednesday injury report, but broke his hand in practice. He will play with a soft cast. RB Zack Crockett (Oak) has been cleared to play this week. He appears on the injury report as questionable with a neck injury. RB Tyrone Wheatley (Oak) is nicked up with a sore hip and quad, but will play. He appears on the injury report as probable. RB Stephen Davis (Was) practiced on Thursday and will start as expected. He does not appear on the injury report, but has a sore groin. /*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/* Wide Receivers: WR Willie Jackson (Atl) has been named the starter opposite Brian Finneran. Shawn Jefferson will play in three WR sets. Travis Taylor (Bal) was able to practice Friday and is expected to play on Sunday. WR Muhsin Muhammad (Car) has a sore shoulder, but is expected to play on Sunday. The Dallas Cowboys signed WR Darnay Scott. He is expected to be their #3 or #4 WR this season. WR Donald Driver (GB) has a sore finger, but will start as expected. WR Todd Pinkston (Phi) has a bruised leg but expects to play on Monday. WR Plaxico Burress (Pit) has a sore hip, but is expected to start. His value is dropping though with the explosive play of Antwaan Randle El. WR Keenan McCardell (TB) was able to practice on Friday and will play on Sunday. /*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/* Tight Ends: TE Fred Baxter (Chi) missed practice on Friday with the flu, but is expected to play on Sunday. TE Aaron Shea (Cle) is expected to play with a sore shoulder. He appears on the injury report as probable. TE Billy Miller (Hou) is expected to play despite a sore ankle. He appears on the injury report as probable. TE Marcus Pollard (Ind) will not play this weekend. TE Desmond Clark (Mia) will not play this week. TE Byron Chamberlain (Min) is not expected to play this weekend. The team may go with more three WR sets without him. TE Ernie Conwell (StL) will play despite a sore neck. TE Walter Rasby (Was) will not play this week. Zeron Flemister practiced on Thursday and will start again this week. /*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/* Place Kickers: PK Brett Conway (Was) was put on injury reserve and is lost for the season. The team has signed James Tuthill, but the move looks to be a temporary low-cost solution until they can find a better replacement. /*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/* Others in the News: CB Ray Buchanon is suspended for four games starting immediately. This weakens the Falcons defense against the pass substantially. Value Plays Each week the Ultimate Recap will compare the Top 200 Forward against the current week's cheatsheet. This is to show you where some value may exist (favorable matchups) as well as where usual starters might not be your best option. Again, when in doubt consult the Cheatsheets at the end of the recap. Favorable Pos Top200 Week1 Diff Unfavorable Pos Top200 Week1 Diff Drew Bledsoe QB 16 6 10 Rich Gannon QB 7 15 -8 Mark Brunell QB 21 14 7 Kordell Stewart QB 12 19 -7 Brett Favre QB 8 2 6 Ricky Williams RB 5 11 -6 Jay Fiedler QB 19 13 6 Curtis Martin RB 13 19 -6 Brad Johnson QB 22 17 5 Michael Bennett RB 21 26 -5 Lamar Smith RB 32 21 11 James Thrash WR 26 40 -14 Travis Henry RB 15 9 6 Ed McCaffrey WR 19 31 -12 Hines Ward WR 43 24 19 Tim Brown WR 10 20 -10 Donald Driver WR 35 19 16 Johnnie Morton WR 18 25 -7 Marty Booker WR 22 9 13 Laveranues Coles WR 25 32 -7 Curtis Conway WR 34 26 8 Terry Glenn WR 21 27 -6 Ike Hilliard WR 44 36 8 Joey Galloway WR 28 34 -6 Chris Chambers WR 20 13 7 Torry Holt WR 6 11 -5 Amani Toomer WR 24 17 7 Plaxico Burress WR 16 21 -5 Eric Moulds WR 9 3 6 Jerry Rice WR 30 35 -5 Peerless Price WR 27 22 5 Todd Heap TE 7 18 -11 Wesley Walls TE 14 5 9 Bubba Franks TE 4 12 -8 Alge Crumpler TE 12 4 8 Freddie Jones TE 6 13 -7 Chad Lewis TE 9 2 7 Sebastian Janikowski PK 8 21 -13 Randy McMichael TE 13 6 7 Adam Vinatieri PK 4 12 -8 Jay Riemersma TE 17 10 7 Todd Peterson PK 9 17 -8 Mikhael Ricks TE 16 11 5 Joe Nedney PK 11 19 -8 Mike Hollis PK 20 5 15 Green Bay Packers Def 3 13 -10 Doug Brien PK 20 8 12 Denver Broncos Def 7 17 -10 Phil Dawson PK 15 9 6 Miami Dolphins Def 11 19 -8 Jay Feely PK 16 11 5 Chicago Bears Def 2 8 -6 Tennessee Titans Def 17 7 10 San Diego Chargers Def 9 1 8 Cleveland Browns Def 10 4 6 Baltimore Ravens Def 18 12 6 Cheatsheets These reflect the latest tweaks as of Saturday night, September 14th Rank Quarterbacks Team Opponent 1 Kurt Warner StL vs. NYG 2 Brett Favre GB at NO 3 Jeff Garcia SF vs. Den 4 Daunte Culpepper Min vs. Buf 5 Peyton Manning Ind vs. Mia 6 Drew Bledsoe Buf at Min 7 Aaron Brooks NO vs. GB 8 Donovan McNabb Phi at Was 9 Steve McNair Ten at Dal 10 Brian Griese Den at SF 11 Michael Vick Atl vs. Chi 12 Trent Green KC vs. Jac 13 Jay Fiedler Mia at Ind 14 Mark Brunell Jac at KC 15 Rich Gannon Oak at Pit 16 Trent Dilfer Sea vs. Ari 17 Brad Johnson TB at Bal 18 Kelly Holcomb Cle vs. Cin 19 Kordell Stewart Pit vs. Oak 20 Tom Brady NE at NYJ 21 Jim Miller Chi at Atl 22 Shane Matthews Was vs. Phi 23 Kerry Collins NYG at StL 24 Jake Plummer Ari at Sea 25 Drew Brees SD vs. Hou 26 Vinny Testaverde NYJ vs. NE 27 Mike McMahon Det at Car 28 Rodney Peete Car vs. Det 29 Gus Frerotte (Prob) Cin at Cle 30 Quincy Carter Dal vs. Ten 31 David Carr Hou at SD 32 Chris Redman Bal vs. TB Rank Running Backs Team Opponent 1 Marshall Faulk StL vs. NYG 2 Shaun Alexander Sea vs. Ari 3 Ladainian Tomlinson SD vs. Hou 4 Ahman Green GB at NO 5 Priest Holmes KC vs. Jac 6 Edgerrin James Ind vs. Mia 7 Stephen Davis Was vs. Phi 8 Anthony Thomas Chi at Atl 9 Travis Henry Buf at Min 10 Corey Dillon Cin at Cle 11 Ricky Williams Mia at Ind 12 Eddie George Ten at Dal 13 Deuce McAllister NO vs. GB 14 Fred Taylor Jac at KC 15 Michael Pittman TB at Bal 16 Antowain Smith NE at NYJ 17 Jamal Lewis Bal vs. TB 18 Thomas Jones Ari at Sea 19 Curtis Martin (Prob) NYJ vs. NE 20 Tiki Barber NYG at StL 21 Lamar Smith Car vs. Det 22 Charlie Garner Oak at Pit 23 Warrick Dunn Atl vs. Chi 24 Duce Staley Phi at Was 25 Jerome Bettis Pit vs. Oak 26 Michael Bennett (Prob) Min vs. Buf 27 Emmitt Smith Dal vs. Ten 28 Garrison Hearst SF vs. Den 29 Olandis Gary Den at SF 30 James Stewart Det at Car 31 William Green Cle vs. Cin 32 Kevan Barlow SF vs. Den 33 Mike Alstott TB at Bal 34 Clinton Portis Den at SF 35 Jamel White Cle vs. Cin 36 James Allen Hou at SD 37 TJ Duckett Atl vs. Chi 38 Lamont Jordan NYJ vs. NE 39 Tyrone Wheatley (Prob) Oak at Pit 40 Mike Anderson Den at SF 41 Ron Dayne NYG at StL 42 Amos Zereoue Pit vs. Oak 43 Stacey Mack Jac at KC 44 Jonathan Wells (Prob) Hou at SD 45 Dorsey Levens Phi at Was 46 Terrell Fletcher SD vs. Hou 47 Robert Edwards Mia at Ind 48 Lamont Warren Det at Car 49 Tony Richardson KC vs. Jac 50 Cory Schlesinger Det at Car Rank Wide Receivers Team Opponent 1 Randy Moss Min vs. Buf 2 Terrell Owens SF vs. Den 3 Eric Moulds Buf at Min 4 David Boston Ari at Sea 5 Jimmy Smith Jac at KC 6 Marvin Harrison Ind vs. Mia 7 Rod Smith Den at SF 8 Derrick Mason Ten at Dal 9 Marty Booker Chi at Atl 10 Joe Horn NO vs. GB 11 Torry Holt StL vs. NYG 12 Keyshawn Johnson TB at Bal 13 Chris Chambers Mia at Ind 14 Kevin Johnson Cle vs. Cin 15 Isaac Bruce StL vs. NYG 16 Rod Gardner Was vs. Phi 17 Amani Toomer NYG at StL 18 Darrell Jackson Sea vs. Ari 19 Donald Driver GB at NO 20 Tim Brown Oak at Pit 21 Plaxico Burress (Prob) Pit vs. Oak 22 Peerless Price Buf at Min 23 Troy Brown NE at NYJ 24 Hines Ward Pit vs. Oak 25 Johnnie Morton KC vs. Jac 26 Curtis Conway SD vs. Hou 27 Terry Glenn GB at NO 28 Muhsin Muhammad (Prob) Car vs. Det 29 Willie Jackson Atl vs. Chi 30 Quincy Morgan Cle vs. Cin 31 Ed McCaffrey Den at SF 32 Laveranues Coles NYJ vs. NE 33 Qadry Ismail Ind vs. Mia 34 Joey Galloway Dal vs. Ten 35 Jerry Rice Oak at Pit 36 Ike Hilliard NYG at StL 37 Az-Zahir Hakim Det at Car 38 Bill Schroeder Det at Car 39 Koren Robinson Sea vs. Ari 40 James Thrash Phi at Was 41 Keenan McCardell (Ques) TB at Bal 42 Derrius Thompson Was vs. Phi 43 Eddie Kennison KC vs. Jac 44 Peter Warrick Cin at Cle 45 Antonio Freeman Phi at Was 46 Wayne Chrebet NYJ vs. NE 47 Brian Finneran Atl vs. Chi 48 Corey Bradford Hou at SD 49 Tim Dwight SD vs. Hou 50 Joe Jurevicius TB at Bal 51 Kevin Dyson Ten at Dal 52 Dez White Chi at Atl 53 Donte Stallworth NO vs. GB 54 Oronde Gadsden Mia at Ind 55 Brandon Stokley Bal vs. TB 56 Michael Westbrook Cin at Cle 57 Antwaan Randle El Pit vs. Oak 58 Travis Taylor (Ques) Bal vs. TB 59 D'Wayne Bates Min vs. Buf 60 J.J. Stokes SF vs. Den Rank Tight Ends Team Opponent 1 Tony Gonzalez KC vs. Jac 2 Chad Lewis Phi at Was 3 Jeremy Shockey NYG at StL 4 Alge Crumpler Atl vs. Chi 5 Wesley Walls Car vs. Det 6 Randy McMichael Mia at Ind 7 Shannon Sharpe Den at SF 8 Frank Wycheck Ten at Dal 9 Eric Johnson SF vs. Den 10 Jay Riemersma Buf at Min 11 Mikhael Ricks Det at Car 12 Bubba Franks GB at NO 13 Freddie Jones Ari at Sea 14 Anthony Becht NYJ vs. NE 15 Jim Kleinsasser Min vs. Buf 16 Ernie Conwell (Prob) StL vs. NYG 17 David Sloan NO vs. GB 18 Todd Heap Bal vs. TB 19 Stephen Alexander SD vs. Hou 20 Jermaine Wiggins Ind vs. Mia 21 Christian Fauria NE at NYJ 22 Itula Mili Sea vs. Ari 23 Eddie Williams NO vs. GB 24 Kyle Brady Jac at KC 25 Zeron Flemister Was vs. Phi 26 Jerramy Stevens Sea vs. Ari 27 Tony McGee Dal vs. Ten 28 Roland Williams Oak at Pit 29 Ken Dilger TB at Bal 30 Cam Cleeland NE at NYJ Rank Kickers Team Opponent 1 Jeff Wilkins StL vs. NYG 2 Mike Vanderjagt Ind vs. Mia 3 David Akers Phi at Was 4 Ryan Longwell GB at NO 5 Mike Hollis Buf at Min 6 Olindo Mare Mia at Ind 7 Jason Elam Den at SF 8 Doug Brien Min vs. Buf 9 Phil Dawson Cle vs. Cin 10 Martin Gramatica TB at Bal 11 Jay Feely Atl vs. Chi 12 Adam Vinatieri NE at NYJ 13 Paul Edinger Chi at Atl 14 Morten Andersen KC vs. Jac 15 Jose Cortez SF vs. Den 16 John Carney NO vs. GB 17 Todd Peterson Pit vs. Oak 18 John Hall NYJ vs. NE 19 Joe Nedney Ten at Dal 20 Rian Lindell Sea vs. Ari 21 Sebastian Janikowski Oak at Pit 22 Hayden Epstein Jac at KC 23 Steve Christie SD vs. Hou 24 John Kasay Car vs. Det 25 James Tuthill Was vs. Phi 26 Billy Cundiff Dal vs. Ten 27 Jason Hanson Det at Car 28 Billy Gramatica Ari at Sea 29 Neil Rackers Cin at Cle 30 Kris Brown Hou at SD 31 Mark Bryant NYG at StL 32 Matt Stover Bal vs. TB Rank Team Defenses Team Opponent 1 San Diego Chargers SD vs. Hou 2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB at Bal 3 Pittsburgh Steelers Pit vs. Oak 4 Cleveland Browns Cle vs. Cin 5 St. Louis Rams StL vs. NYG 6 New England Patriots NE at NYJ 7 Tennessee Titans Ten at Dal 8 Chicago Bears Chi at Atl 9 New York Jets NYJ vs. NE 10 Washington Redskins Was vs. Phi 11 Philadelphia Eagles Phi at Was 12 Baltimore Ravens Bal vs. TB 13 Green Bay Packers GB at NO 14 San Francisco 49ers SF vs. Den 15 Dallas Cowboys Dal vs. Ten 16 Kansas City Chiefs KC vs. Jac 17 Denver Broncos Den at SF 18 Oakland Raiders Oak at Pit 19 Miami Dolphins Mia at Ind 20 Carolina Panthers Car vs. Det 21 New York Giants NYG at StL 22 New Orleans Saints NO vs. GB 23 Atlanta Falcons Atl vs. Chi 24 Detroit Lions Det at Car 25 Seattle Seahawks Sea vs. Ari 26 Minnesota Vikings Min vs. Buf 27 Houston Texans Hou at SD 28 Indianapolis Colts Ind vs. Mia 29 Cincinnati Bengals Cin at Cle 30 Jacksonville Jaguars Jac at KC 31 Arizona Cardinals Ari at Sea 32 Buffalo Bills Buf at Min Rank Defensive Backs Team Opponent 1 Kwamie Lassiter Ari at Sea 2 Lawyer Milloy NE at NYJ 3 Sammy Knight NO vs. GB 4 Gerald McBurroughs Atl vs. Chi 5 Darren Sharper GB at NO 6 Donovan Darius Jac at KC 7 Mike Minter Car vs. Det 8 Antuan Edwards GB at NO 9 Ken Lucas Sea vs. Ari 10 Brian Walker Det at Car 11 Aaron Glenn Hou at SD 12 Willie Offord Min vs. Buf 13 Tony Parrish SF vs. Den 14 Vernon Fox SD vs. Hou 15 Ronde Barber TB at Bal 16 Mike Brown (Prob) Chi at Atl 17 Sam Shade Was vs. Phi 18 Jay Bellamy NO vs. GB 19 Lee Flowers Pit vs. Oak 20 Reggie Howard Car vs. Det 21 Brock Marion Mia at Ind 22 Darren Woodson Dal vs. Ten 23 Shaun Williams NYG at StL 24 Greg Wesley KC vs. Jac 25 Charles Woodson Oak at Pit 26 Roy Williams Dal vs. Ten 27 Kevin Williams Hou at SD 28 Brian Dawkins Phi at Was 29 Zach Bronson SF vs. Den 30 Idrees Bashir Ind vs. Mia 31 William Bartee KC vs. Jac 32 Lance Schulters Ten at Dal 33 Marcus Robertson Sea vs. Ari 34 Coy Wire Buf at Min 35 Aeneas Williams StL vs. NYG 36 Mike McKenzie GB at NO 37 Mike Green Chi at Atl 38 Arturo Freeman Mia at Ind 39 Damien Robinson NYJ vs. NE 40 Will Allen NYG at StL Rank Defensive Lineman Team Opponent 1 Marcellus Wiley SD vs. Hou 2 La' Roi Glover Dal vs. Ten 3 Vonnie Holliday GB at NO 4 Grant Wistrom StL vs. NYG 5 Mike Rucker Car vs. Det 6 Jason Taylor Mia at Ind 7 Michael Strahan NYG at StL 8 Courtney Brown (Prob) Cle vs. Cin 9 Warren Sapp TB at Bal 10 Andre Carter (Prob) SF vs. Den 11 Robert Porcher Det at Car 12 Patrick Kerney Atl vs. Chi 13 Jason Ferguson NYJ vs. NE 14 Chad Bratzke Ind vs. Mia 15 John Parella Oak at Pit 16 Carlos Hall Ten at Dal 17 Joe Johnson GB at NO 18 Justin Smith Cin at Cle 19 Shaun Rogers Det at Car 20 Bobby Hamilton NE at NYJ 21 John Abraham NYJ vs. NE 22 Ebenezer Ekuban Dal vs. Ten 23 Kyle Vanden Bosch Ari at Sea 24 Raylee Johnson SD vs. Hou 25 Paul Spicer (Prob) Jac at KC 26 Simeon Rice TB at Bal 27 Brandon Mitchell Sea vs. Ari 28 Kevin Carter Ten at Dal 29 Richard Seymour NE at NYJ 30 Chidi Ahanotu Buf at Min 31 Duane Clemons KC vs. Jac 32 Keith Hamilton NYG at StL 33 Greg Ellis Dal vs. Ten 34 Gerard Warren Cle vs. Cin 35 Trevor Pryce Den at SF 36 Antonio Cochrane Sea vs. Ari 37 Julius Peppers Car vs. Det 38 Keith McKenzie Chi at Atl 39 Michael McCrary Bal vs. TB 40 Tony Brackens (Prob) Jac at KC Rank Line Backers Team Opponent 1 Derrick Brooks TB at Bal 2 Brian Urlacher Chi at Atl 3 Marvin Jones NYJ vs. NE 4 Dexter Coakley Dal vs. Ten 5 Mike Peterson Ind vs. Mia 6 Sam Cowart NYJ vs. NE 7 Charlie Clemons NO vs. GB 8 Zach Thomas Mia at Ind 9 Ronald McKinnon Ari at Sea 10 Takeo Spikes Cin vs. Cle 11 Mike Barrow NYG at StL 12 James Farrior Pit vs. Oak 13 Hardy Nickerson GB at NO 14 Ray Lewis Bal vs. TB 15 Shawn Barber Phi at Was 16 Nate Wayne GB at NO 17 Dan Morgan Car vs. Det 18 Earl Holmes Cle vs. Cin 19 Rob Fredrickson Ari at Sea 20 Jamie Winborn SF vs. Den 21 Napoleon Harris Oak at Pit 22 Jeremiah Trotter Was vs. Phi 23 Isaiah Kacyvenski Sea vs. Ari 24 Dwayne Rudd Cle vs. Cin 25 LaVar Arrington Was vs. Phi 26 Jason Gildon Pit vs. Oak 27 Al Wilson Den at SF 28 Ed Hartwell (Prob) Bal vs. TB 29 Rob Morris Ind vs. Mia 30 Greg Biekert Min vs. Buf 31 Eric Westmoreland (Prob) Jac at KC 32 Jamie Sharper Hou at SD 33 Brian Simmons Cin vs. Cle 34 Chris Claiborne Det at Car 35 Levon Kirkland Phi at Was 36 London Fletcher Buf at Min 37 Derek Smith SF vs. Den 38 Chad Brown Sea vs. Ari 39 Ian Gold Den at SF 40 Tedy Bruschi NE at NYJ 41 Kailee Wong Hou at SD 42 Mike Maslowski KC vs. Jac 43 John Holecek (Prob) Atl vs. Chi 44 Tommy Polley StL vs. NYG 45 Warrick Holdman Chi at Atl 46 Eric Barton Oak at Pit 47 Larry Foote Pit vs. Oak 48 Kevin Hardy Dal vs. Ten 49 Donnie Edwards SD vs. Hou 50 Jay Foreman Hou at SD