SB Nation Dallas - Fantasy Football, Week 4: Lions, Cowboys Projected To Rack Up Pointshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48887/dallas-fave.png2011-10-02T00:49:46-05:00http://dallas.sbnation.com/rss/stream/21787182011-10-02T00:49:46-05:002011-10-02T00:49:46-05:00Fantasy Football Week 4 Cowboys/Lions Projections
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<p>Dallas' Week 4 matchup against the <a href="https://www.prideofdetroit.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Detroit Lions</a> should prove to be entertaining as <span>Matthew Stafford</span> and <span>Calvin Johnson</span> look to improve to 4-0 with the Lions against <span>Tony Romo</span> and the Cowboys. It's also an excellent fantasy matchup, pitting some of the premiere fantasy players against each other in the same game. </p>
<p>As always,<a target="_blank" href="http://www.numberfire.com/players/projections/qb"> numberFire</a> brings the latest and greatest fantasy projections each and every week -- and if the projections prove to be accurate, it could be a long day for <a href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Dallas Cowboys</a> fans on Sunday. </p>
<p><b><i>Note: All projected fantasy point totals are based on Yahoo! default scoring.</i></b></p>
<p>Matthew Stafford is projected to score the fourth most points out of all quarterbacks, as he's projected for a cool 18.17 fantasy points. numberFire projects Stafford to pass for nearly 270 yards and, basically, two touchdowns. </p>
<p>Tony Romo, on the other hand, is projected as the No. 11 quarterback in Week 4. Romo is projected to throw for 234 yards and somewhere between one and two touchdowns.</p>
<p>Romo and Stafford are both certainly must-starts in all fantasy leagues. Both quarterbacks seem like they should be able to outperform their projections this week.</p>
<p>Both running backs in the game should be started as well. <span>Jahvid Best</span> is projected as the No. 14 running back this week, making him a very good RB2. <span>Felix Jones</span>, likewise, is a solid RB2, being projected to be the No. 20 running back this week. </p>
<p>Not surprisingly, Calvin Johnson is projected to be the top wide out this week. numberFire is projecting 10 targets, seven receptions 93 yards and a touchdown for Megatron. If you've ever even considered benching Johnson, then you probably should quit playing fantasy football.</p>
<p><span>Dez Bryant</span>, who is a game-time decision, is projected to be the No. 14 wide receiver this week. Since the Cowboys have an early game on Sunday, there should be plenty of time to remove Bryant from starting lineups if he's ruled out. He's certainly worth the hassle of adjusting the lineup at the last second, and should be started unless he's out. </p>
<p><span>Nate Burleson</span> is the only other wide out worth consideration between Dallas and Detroit. Burleson is projected to be the No. 38 wide out this week, making him a marginal flex play, or WR3 if your league uses three wideouts. </p>
<p>Both tight ends between Dallas and Detroit need to be started as well. <span>Jason Witten</span> is projected to be the third best tight end this week, and <span>Brandon Pettigrew</span> is projected to be the tenth best. Only <span>Rob Gronkowski</span> and <span>Jermichael Finley</span> are projected to outscore Witten at the tight end position this week.</p>
<p>Kicking wise, <span>Jason Hanson</span> is projected as the No. 5 kicker and <span>Dan Bailey</span> as the No. 12 kicker. Bailey's six field goal performance last week probably won a few fantasy games for some, so he's a pretty solid play. </p>
<p>Detroit's defense is projected as the eleventh-best fantasy unit this week, making them start worthy. Dallas' defense, on the other hand, should not be started, as numberFire sees them as the 18th best this week.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/10/2/2463326/fantasy-football-week-4-cowboys-lions-projectionsJP Starkey2011-09-25T01:09:44-05:002011-09-25T01:09:44-05:00Fantasy Football Week 3 Projections
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<p>It's no secret that the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/">Dallas Cowboys</a> are banged up headed into Week 3's Monday night showdown against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/washington-redskins">Washington Redskins</a>. Owners of Dallas' skill players in fantasy leagues must be feeling a bit skittish this week, but rest assured, SB Nation Dallas and numberFire's projections have you covered for start 'em, sit 'em advice.</p>
<p>As always, <a href="http://www.numberfire.com/players/projections/qb" target="_blank">numberFire </a>has projections set up each week. This week, numberFire does not like <span>Tony Romo</span> in fantasy whatsoever. Romo is ranked 27th among fantasy quarterbacks by numberFire this week, partially due to his injury, and partially due to Dallas' offense being shorthanded, as <span>Miles Austin</span> isn't going to be playing. Regardless of the rationale, numberFire only projects Romo to score 11.25 fantasy points -- behind the likes of <span>Blaine Gabbert</span> and <span>Matt Cassel</span>.</p>
<p><span>Felix Jones</span> heads into this week as a solid RB 2, as numberFire rates him as the 20th best option at running back this week. Jones is projected to score an even 10 points against Washington this week. </p>
<p>At wide receiver, obviously, bench Miles Austin. Dez Bryant, on the other hand, should be started in all formats as numberFire projects Bryant to be the 17th best wide receiver this week. No other Dallas wide out is worth starting in Week 3.</p>
<p><span>Jason Witten</span>, not surprisingly, is a top five tight end play this week, and is projected by numberFire as the No. 4 tight end this week behind <span>Antonio Gates</span>, <span>Vernon Davis</span> and <span>Rob Gronkowski</span>. </p>
<p><span>Dan Bailey</span> is ranked as the No. 5 kicker this week as well, so if he's available in your league, he's certainly worth a start. </p>
<p>Dallas' defense, meanwhile, is projected to be the 18th best this week, and is certainly not worth starting -- or even owning at this point.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/25/2447768/fantasy-football-week-3-projectionsJP Starkey2011-09-21T14:21:18-05:002011-09-21T14:21:18-05:002011 Fantasy Football Week 3 Start/Sit
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<p>It's certainly not looking like a great Week 3 in fantasy for owners of the <a href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Dallas Cowboys</a>' skill players.</p>
<p>Dallas might have come away with a Week 2 win over the <a href="https://www.ninersnation.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">49ers</a>, but their skill players took a beating. Headed into Week 3, <span>Tony Romo</span> has a punctured lung and a couple cracked ribs, <span>Miles Austin</span> has a pulled hamstring and <span>Dez Bryant</span> is still dealing with a quadriceps injury. Further, the offensive line is banged up (notably <span>Phil Costa</span>), which makes running the back difficult for <span>Felix Jones</span>. </p>
<p>The Cowboys won't begin practicing until Thursday, thanks to playing a Monday night game this week, but it's safe to say that Austin won't be playing in Monday night's game against the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/washington-redskins" class="sbn-auto-link">Redskins</a>. Obviously, he should be benched in every format. </p>
<p>Jason Garrett said that he is "<a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/#!/Russellmania980/statuses/116568233686999041">hopeful</a>" that Bryant will play on Monday night. If he actually does play, then he's absolutely a must-start, as he'll be in line to see plenty of targets from Romo with Miles being absent. </p>
<p><span>Jason Witten</span>, needless to say, is a must-start every week as long as he's healthy, and he's one of the few Cowboys that is for the most part healthy. </p>
<p>Felix Jones should be seen as an RB2 this week, and as such, is a must-start as well, despite the shoddy play of the offensive line. </p>
<p>The toughest call of this week has to be on Romo. Not only is Romo dealing with a painful injury, but he might be without his top two wide receivers if Bryant can't go. If that's the case, he's going to have <span>Kevin Ogletree</span> and <span>Jesse Holley</span> as his top two targets. If there were ever a week to sit Romo, it's likely this week, and it's certainly tough to advocate starting him with the injuries to his chest and Dallas' banged up wide receiver corps. </p>
<p>Be sure to check back later this week for projections on Dallas' players.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/21/2440691/fantasy-football-2011-week-3-adviceJP Starkey2011-09-18T19:03:31-05:002011-09-18T19:03:31-05:00Cowboys Week Two Win Expectancy Chart
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<p><a href="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/719457/wpacowboys.png" target="_blank"><img alt="Wpacowboys_medium" class="photo" src="http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/719457/wpacowboys_medium.png" height="281" width="300"></a></p>↵<p>It's so beautiful!</p>↵<p>This is a screen shot of the excellent work done by Brian Burke at his website <a target="_blank" href="http://www.advancednflstats.com/">Advanced NFL Stats</a>. You should click the link and go there right now because it is awesome. You can click the image to see it full sized.</p>↵
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/18/2434167/cowboys-week-two-win-expectancy-chartRobbie Griffin2011-09-17T12:58:57-05:002011-09-17T12:58:57-05:00Fantasy Football Week 2 Projections
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<p>Week 2 provides a much more favorable matchup for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/">Dallas Cowboys</a> offense, as well as fantasy owners who own Dallas' skill players. Instead of facing one of the top defenses in the league, <span>Tony Romo</span> and the Cowboys offense will face off against an average defense against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.ninersnation.com/">San Francisco 49ers</a>. </p>
<p><b><i>Note: All projections are based off of standard Yahoo! league scoring.</i></b></p>
<p>As always,<a href="http://www.numberfire.com/players/projections" target="_blank"> numberFire </a>has weekly projections up. While the matchup is certainly better for Romo, the projections for him aren't too kind. Romo is only projected to be the 18th best fantasy quarterback this week, meaning he should be benched. Romo is projected to account for a meager 13.99 fantasy points this week, with QBs such as <span>Chad Henne</span>, Cam Newton, <span>Eli Manning</span> and <span>Joe Flacco</span> projected to have better days.</p>
<p>Still, it's tough for me to advocate benching Romo. He still has excellent upside, and certainly is more likely to explode for a monster game than the aforementioned quarterbacks. </p>
<p>Alex Smith, Romo's counterpart in Sunday's game, is certainly not worth starting or even owning. Smith is ranked as the No. 28 quarterback this week. </p>
<p>At running back, <span>Felix Jones</span> and <span>Frank Gore</span> are projected to have nearly identical games. Jones is ranked as the the No. 19 running back this week while Gore is the No. 20 back, with Jones projected to score 9.62 points and Gore projected to score 9.60. Both running backs are must-starts. </p>
<p>Not surprisingly, <span>Miles Austin</span> is a must start as well. Austin is projected to score 9.95 points this week, which is the tenth-best projection among wide receivers. If Dez Bryant is healthy and playing, he too is a must start. Bryant is projected as the No. 26 wide receiver this week, making him a pretty good play.</p>
<p>Against Dallas' secondary, <span>Braylon Edwards</span> is projected to have a pretty solid game. Edwards is projected by numberFire to be the 23rd best wideout this week, good for 7.67 points. </p>
<p>At tight end, both <span>Jason Witten</span> and <span>Vernon Davis</span> must be started. Witten is projected to score 8.75 points this week, second best among tight ends. Davis is ranked as the fourth best tight end this week by numberFire, and is projected to score 7.49 points.</p>
<p>Dallas' kicker, <span>Dan Bailey</span>, is also somebody to start this week as numberFire has him being the seventh best kicking option. Still, Bailey is relatively unproven and is a risky play despite the projections. </p>
<p>The Cowboys' defense isn't projected for a great fantasy game, despite facing a relatively anemic offense. Rob Ryan's unit is only projected to score 7.13 fantasy points, good for 19th among defenses. San Francisco, though, is the 12th best projected defense. </p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/17/2431388/fantasy-football-week-2-projectionsJP Starkey2011-09-14T12:10:19-05:002011-09-14T12:10:19-05:002011 Fantasy Football Week 2 Start/Sit
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<p>The <a href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Dallas Cowboys</a> faced one of the toughest defenses in the league in Week 1 and still managed to have their skill players to put up respectable if not great fantasy stats - despite the fourth quarter loss. In Week 2, the Cowboys will head to San Francisco to take on the <a href="https://www.ninersnation.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">49ers</a>, a matchup that is much more appealing to fantasy owners than the Week 1 matchup against the <a href="https://www.ganggreennation.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Jets</a>.</p>
<p>Last week's fantasy football projections fueled by <a target="_blank" href="http://www.numberfire.com">numberFire</a> projected Dallas quarterback <span>Tony Romo</span> to be the 24th among fantasy quarterbacks. Romo, though, proved otherwise, throwing for 342 yards and two touchdowns against a very tough New York secondary. </p>
<p>Romo faces a much better matchup this weekend against the 49ers. Needless to say, <span>Dez Bryant</span> and <span>Miles Austin</span> also have much better matchups, as they'll be facing off against <span>Carlos Rogers</span> and <span>Tarell Brown</span> rather than <span>Darrelle Revis</span> and <span>Antonio Cromartie</span>. </p>
<p>While it's certainly too early in the week to say definitively who should start and who should sit, this weekend's matchup against the 49ers looks like it could be a good one from a fantasy perspective for Romo, Bryant, Austin, <span>Felix Jones</span> and <span>Jason Witten</span>. Even Dallas' defense might be worth a look against an offense led by Alex Smith. </p>
<p>Looking ahead, it certainly appears that Romo, Austin, Jones, Bryant and Witten should be in all fantasy lineups. </p>
<p>Plenty, though, depends on practice and the injury reports, so be sure to check back later this week for our fantasy projections.</p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/14/2425259/fantasy-football-2011-week-2-adviceJP Starkey2011-09-11T11:19:11-05:002011-09-11T11:19:11-05:00Fantasy Football Week 1: Cowboys Vs. Jets Projections
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<p>The prime time game on Sunday night should have plenty of fantasy implications. The projections for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/">Dallas Cowboys</a> in Week 1 <a href="http://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/10/2417314/fantasy-football-week-1-cowboys-projections/in/2178718" target="_blank">aren't terrible favorable</a>, but they're not awful save for <span>Tony Romo</span> and <span>Dez Bryant</span>. The projections for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.ganggreennation.com/">Jets</a>, however, are looking pretty good from a fantasy perspective.</p>
<p>Quarterback <span>Mark Sanchez</span>, who isn't exactly synonymous with fantasy glory, is <a href="http://www.numberfire.com/players/projections/qb" target="_blank">projected to be the 10th best quarterback in Week 1</a>. Dallas' secondary isn't that great to begin with, and Terrence Newman being out for the Cowboys on Sunday only makes the matchup better for the Sanchize.</p>
<p><span>Shonn Greene</span> isn't projected to have as good of a day as Sanchez. Greene is projected to be the 22nd best running back in Week 1, which is certainly acceptable, but not outstanding. Greene's counterpart in LaDanian Tomlinson is projected to be the 38th best running back in Week 1, which is only worth starting in a flex position.</p>
<p><span>Santonio Holmes</span> is projected to be one of the elite fantasy wide outs this week, projecting as the 11th best, ahead of even <span>Larry Fitzgerald</span> (barely). <span>Plaxico Burress</span> must still be incarcerated to numberFire since they don't have him listed, but I'd put him as a WR3 or fringe flex play this weekend. He's an unknown at this point, but does carry some potential as well. </p>
<p><span>Dustin Keller</span> is a must-start at tight end as well, as he's projected to be the sixth best fantasy tight end this week. </p>
<p>Defensively, the Jets are the sixth ranked fantasy defense, making them a pretty good play against the Cowboys.</p>
<p>To conclude:</p>
<p><b>START: </b>Santonio Holmes, Shonn Greene, Dustin Keller, Jets D, Mark Sanchez<br><b>SIT/FLEX: </b>LaDanian Tomlinson, Plaxico Burress<br><b>SIT: </b><span>Nick Folk</span></p>
<p>I barely recommend starting Sanchez, but his projection and matchup is just too favorable this week. </p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/11/2418309/fantasy-football-week-1-cowboys-vs-jets-projectionsJP Starkey2011-09-10T19:27:44-05:002011-09-10T19:27:44-05:00Fantasy Football: Week 1 Cowboys Projections
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<p>Week 1 of the NFL season gets into full swing on Sunday, and with it, the ever tumultuous fantasy season gets into full swing as well. Unfortunately for owners of Dallas' skill players, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/">Cowboys</a> open the season against one of the better defenses in the league as they take on the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.ganggreennation.com/">Jets</a> - in New Jersey.</p>
<p>The projections for Dallas' players aren't too kind in Week 1.</p>
<p>Quarterback <span>Tony Romo</span> is ranked as the 24th best quarterback option in Week 1 by <a href="http://www.numberfire.com/players/projections/qb" target="_blank">numberFire</a>, which is the same say saying bench him if you've any other good option. Using Yahoo!'s standard scoring, numberFire has Romo scoring just 10.56 fantasy points this week, with quarterbacks such as <span>Luke McCown</span>, Cam Newton and <span>Chad Henne</span> outscoring him.</p>
<p>Certainly, if you've a solid quarterback backing up Romo, it's not a bad idea to bench him with Dallas' offensive line a bit banged up (see: <span>Tyron Smith</span>). Romo obviously provides much more upside than many of the quarterbacks listed ahead of him, but still, the projections just don't favor him in Week 1. </p>
<p>While numberFire essentially advocates sitting Romo, the projections most certainly advocate starting running back <span>Felix Jones</span>, who is ranked as the No. 11 running back this week. Jones is projected to score 12.45 points. </p>
<p>If you've <span>Miles Austin</span> on your team, you should be starting him as well, despite facing a tough secondary. Austin is ranked as the sixth best wide receiver in Week 1, making him a strong WR1 play. He's projected to produce 10.68 fantasy points.</p>
<p><span>Dez Bryant</span>, however, is a bit more dicey. The projections have him ranked as the No. 48 receiver, so you likely have better options than him this week as he's projected to score a meager 5.42 points. </p>
<p>At tight end, <span>Jason Witten</span> is a must start as well. Witten is projected to be the third most productive tight end this weekend, behind <span>Antonio Gates</span> and <span>Jermichael Finley</span>. Witten is likely an every-week starter regardless of his matchup, and that's certainly the case this week. </p>
<p><b>START: </b>Miles Austin, Jason Witten, Felix Jones.<br><b>SIT: </b>Dez Bryant<br><b>At your own peril: </b>Tony Romo.</p>
<p>I certainly understand starting Romo this week, even if the projections say otherwise. It is, though, a tough matchup, but Romo's upside is certainly superior to that of Newton, Fitzpatrick, McCown, Henne or even <span>Mark Sanchez</span>. </p>
https://dallas.sbnation.com/dallas-cowboys/2011/9/10/2417314/fantasy-football-week-1-cowboys-projectionsJP Starkey