I thought about listing every offensive player on the Cleveland Browns roster and saying whether they should be considered a "start" or a "sit," but then I thought the weekly feature would get repetitive. Do you honestly see any week in which I would project that one of our receivers should start on a fantasy league that doesn't feature a ridiculous number of teams?
On any given week, there is one player who is pretty much a guaranteed start: running back Peyton Hillis. Other candidates to start are kicker Phil Dawson and tight ends Ben Watson and Evan Moore, but those are kind of the throwaway positions. The defense and Colt McCoy during your primary quarterback's bye week is also up for consideration. Therefore, I'll mostly feature a subset of these players, with receivers added to the mix only when they start proving their worth.
- RB Peyton Hillis - Even if you have two stud running backs on your roster besides Hillis, I think he is worth a start this week. Head coach Pat Shurmur already stated that the bruising back will receive the bulk of the carries, so you might see him get around 100 yards rushing and some touchdowns like he did against the Colts.
The Raiders rank 22nd in the league at defending the run, which is the second time the Browns are facing a team ranked in the bottom half of the league (the other was the Colts). Center Alex Mack should play this week, and with Tony Pashos set to play for his second consecutive game, you could see a more confident offensive line with less mistakes. Less mistakes means more opportunities for Hillis to break free for a big play.
- RB Montario Hardesty - He's not worth a play at all, in my opinion.
- TE Ben Watson - The Raiders rank near the bottom of the league in pass defense, and Watson remains one of McCoy's favorite receivers. However, I'd be intrigued to start another tight end instead.
- TE Evan Moore - I still love Moore's potential, and he wasn't a bad fantasy play for the first two weeks because he notched touchdowns. His disappearance in the offensive gameplan started when the Browns were facing a team with good pass rushing defensive ends going up against the Browns' right tackle (they used Alex Smith to help in blocking). Shurmur verbally committed to getting Moore more involved this week, and I think part of that has to do with the fact that Tony Pashos will be playing in his second straight game and offers some more stability on that side of the line. Unless you have one of the league's better tight ends, Moore sounds like a good option this week.
- DEF Cleveland - I really wouldn't mess with starting the Browns' defense this week. The Raiders could be emotionally invested in the game and play with fire offensively. Jason Campbell has been clutch this year, and Darren McFadden might be the league's top running back. To cap things off, cornerback Joe Haden might miss the game due to a knee sprain, thrusting rookie Buster Skrine into a more important role. There are two many factors this week that could lead to a high-scoring game, and Cleveland hasn't shown the ability to rack up interceptions to make up for that.