Week 3 Preview

Cleveland Browns (1-1) at Cincinnati Bengals (0-2)
Paul Brown Stadium, Sunday CBS 1:00 PM

The Cleveland Browns will head into the Jungle this weekend to take on division rival Cincinnati Bengals. The Browns fresh off of their first win of the season appear set to see WR Wes Welker return to the lineup as the new drug policy goes into effect, essentially overturning his 4 game suspension. Rookie WR and 2nd Overall pick in the IFFDA Draft Sammy Watkins had his breakout game last week and will look to repeat the 100+ yard performance. Arian Foster also looked to be back to form from his days where he was atop fantasy rankings. On the other side of the ball, the Bengals will be without their star player RB Jamaal Charles. Backup RB Knile Davis had 2 touchdowns and 20+ points after taking over for Charles in Week 2. A bright spot for the Bengals this year has been the resurgence of WR Mike Wallace. Wallace has had a TD and 10+ points in both games this season.

Difference Makers:Cleveland Browns: WR AJ Green
Cincinnati Bengals: RB Knile Davis 

Buffalo Bills (1-1) at Miami Dolphins (1-1)
Sun Life Stadium, Sunday CBS 1:00 PM

Miami Dolphins will play host Sunday to Calvin Johnson and the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are coming off of a down week and their first loss of the season in which they tallied only 58 points. It appears as though the Bills will bench veteran RB Steven Jackson in favor of Stevan Ridley and Bernard Pierce. WR Larry Fitzgerald saw more targets in Week 2 than in Week 1 and will need to see a high volume of targets in future weeks for the Bills to have success. As for the Dolphins, it couldn't have been any worse than the result of Week 2. Miami lost by 105 points, totaling just 42 points as a team. RB Ryan Mathews will miss several weeks due to a sprained MCL leaving a huge hole in the Dolphins lineup at running back. It appears as though Roy Helu would be in line to start for Miami, but we'll see what Owner Jeramiah Taylor decides to do come game time.

Difference Makers:
Buffalo Bills: QB Tony Romo
Miami Dolphins: RB2 Position

 Denver Broncos (1-1) at New England Patriots (2-0)
Gillette Stadium, Sunday CBS 1:00 PM

The Denver Broncos have fallen on some bad luck over the past two weeks. In Week 1 RB Doug Martin exited the game early with a knee injury and never returned. In Week 2 Martin was ruled out just hours before game time and QB Robert Griffin III dislocated his ankle. The Broncos, who had a lot of depth at TE, traded Martellus Bennett for Rookie QB Derek Carr who will serve as Denver's starter while RG3 remains out of the lineup. The Patriots first two weeks? Just the opposite. They're off to a 2-0 start and RB DeMarco Murray leads all backs in scoring at just over 20 ppg. WR Michael Crabtree also returned to full health and scored double digits for the Pats who look to stay undefeated heading into Week 4.

Difference Makers:
Denver Broncos: QB Derek Carr
New England Patriots: WR Vincent Jackson

Seattle Seahawks (1-1) at Atlanta Falcons (1-1)
Georgia Dome, Sunday FOX 4:15 PM

If the Atlanta Falcons could put it all together for one week they'd be pretty hard to beat, but they haven't. After a stellar Week 1, WR Marques Colston didn't have a single reception in Week 2. WR Brian Quick may be playing himself into a starting role with the team as he has put up respectable numbers through two weeks. QB Aaron Rodgers was back to his old ways and, as always, will play a key role for the Dirty Birds. The Seahawks have posted 100 points two weeks in a row and are a tie breaker away from being 2-0. WR Eric Decker has a hamstring injury coming out of Week 2, and RB Knowshon Moreno has a dislocated elbow and will miss time after playing his way into a starting role with the offense. Shonn Greene is in line to start at running back for the Seahawks, while Jimmy Graham looks to continue to dominate the tight end position.

Difference Makers:
Seattle Seahawks: RB Matt Forte
Atlanta Falcons: RB Montee Ball

Indianapolis Colts (1-1) at Oakland Raiders (1-1)
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Sunday FOX 4:15 PM

The Colts travel to the west coast to take on the Raiders as both teams look to build on wins last week and move above .500 on the season. Indianapolis exploded for more than 120 points in Week 2 behind 20+ points each from Darren Sproles, Dez Bryant, Antonio Gates, and Patriots D/ST. Although the Colts made RB Andre Ellington a top 10 paid player at his position, his starting job may be in jeopardy. The Oakland Raiders most likely will also make a lineup change and bench RB Toby Gerhart in favor of either Donald Brown or Jeremy Hill. WR Jordy Nelson won the IFFDA Player of the Week award in Week 2 and they'll need a similar performance to beat Indy in this divisional matchup.

Difference Makers:
Indianapolis Colts: QB Tom Brady
Oakland Raiders: WR Justin Hunter

Washington Redskins (1-1) at Carolina Panthers (0-2)
Bank of America Stadium, Sunday FOX 4:30 PM

Panthers GM Doug Auman really likes what the team has in place in terms of building for the future, but the present hasn't been so pretty as the team is still searching for it's first victory. Rookie RB Terrance West has been a bright spot for Carolina and has taken over the starting running back gig while scoring 13 ppg through the first two weeks. Young TE Zach Ertz has also been an early standout for the Panthers but they'll need more from the WR3 position to reel in a win. The Washington Redskins went from being ranked #1 in the IFFDA Power Rankings after Week 1 to 10th. An injury to WR DeSean Jackson knocked him out early of the Week 2 contest, and a below average performance from star TE Rob Gronkowski made the Redskins look pedestrian. They'll need more from both players if they're going to avoid giving the Panthers their first win.

Difference Makers:
Washington Redskins: TE Rob Gronkowski
Carolina Panthers: QB Colin Kaepernick

Chicago Bears (1-1) at Arizona Cardinals (1-1)
University of Phoenix Stadium, Sunday NBC 8:30 PM

In our Sunday Night Football matchup we will see division rivals the Chicago Bears and the Arizona Cardinals square off. The Cardinals will have RB Adrian Peterson return to the lineup after missing last week surrounding the controversy regarding his alleged abuse of his four year old son. The wide receiver position outside of Demaryius Thomas is a big question mark for Arizona especially due to the slow start of Riley Cooper. RB Danny Woodhead will look to possibly see more touches with the injury to Ryan Mathews and help solidify the gap in the backfield next to AP. The Bears are no slouch, however, and look to take down the Cardinals in prime time. WR Randall Cobb has scored a TD in each of the Bears first two game this season and is a big part of what they do on offense. TE Greg Olsen has also been playing a huge role in the Bears offense and will likely keep that trend going through Week 3.

Difference Makers:
Chicago Bears: RB Lamar Miller
Arizona Cardinals: RB Danny Woodhead

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-1) at Detroit Lions (2-0)
Ford Field, Monday ESPN 8:20 PM

Number 1 and number 3 in the IFFDA Power Rankings square off on Monday Night Football. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers head up north to Ford Field to take on the Detroit Lions. There were some grumblings among other GM's that the Bucs overpaid for RB Gio Bernard at the initial auction in August. Now there's grumblings that they didn't shell out the money to get him. Bernard has been the primary focus of the offense so far and is averaging 18 fantasy points per game. Running mate LeSean McCoy has been pretty solid himself averaging 14 fantasy points per game and with QB Cam Newton getting healthier every week, they look to challenge the first place Lions for the division crown. Last week Detroit defeated the Miami Dolphins by 105 points (that's not a misprint). The Lions would have beaten any team in the IFFDA last week by at least 22 points. In a brutal opening schedule (#2 Seahawks in Week 1), Detroit is looking to make another statement on the league and shoot down another contenders hopes that anyone will be able to slay the Lions in '14.


Difference Makers:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: WR Keenan Allen
Detroit Lions: RB Ahmad Bradshaw