Hiccups and Pickups: Week 3

FALLING DOWN

Ray Rice. Ray Rice hosting the Browns looked like the second-best RB start in Week 3. While Adrian Peterson delivered the monster game we expected, Rice totaled just 80 rushing yards and 16 receiving and was again held out of the endzone. Rice has scored just one touchdown in his last ten games, is averaging 70 yards rushing and 22 receiving through three this year, and suffered a knee injury late in the game. Owners that opted for a QB with their early-to-mid first rounder should buy themselves a beer, and Rice should sit out the Pittsburgh game this week.

Steven Jackson. Another elite back off to a ho-hum start that made things even worse for his owners by getting hurt Week 3. Initial word is that S-Jax didn't tear his groin, but the ailment should be enough to keep him out this week vs. the Seahawks, and should certainly deem him unworthy of starting lineups barring great news on Sunday morning. Backup RB Kenneth Darby makes only a decent play vs. the Seahawks' run defense, but with five RBs on the bye this week (Peterson, Charles/Jones, Barber/Jones) Jackson owners may drop one in the Wishing Well.

Steve Smith. Will we ever know just how good this guy is? Nothing new for the real Steve Smith, who traded Jake Delhomme's bum elbow for Matt Moore's, and now gets to risk his life going up for Jimmy Clausen ducks. If he had a consistent quarterback over the past decade, Steve would never have to hear people even think about thinking about who the better wideout is.

Jason Witten. Jason Witten edges out Brett Favre for the "Thank God my Bye is Week 4" Award. He'll get to rest that cabesa and heal up a little bit, and will have to work hard to keep Martellus Bennett from gaining the edge in looks Week 5.

Marques Colston. Tough couple weeks for Reggie Bush-- sending the Heisman back broke his heart, then the 49ers broke his leg. With Bush out, the opportunity was there for Marques Colston to reestablish himself as Brees' go-to option and a PPR player's dream. Instead, Colston was covered again, limited to just 25 yards on the day. While Marques has been a reliable target, he had just two 100-yard games last season, three the year before that, and hasn't been the truly explosive fantasy player he was in his first two seasons from 2006-07.

Clinton Portis. Deja vu? It took about seven years for Clinton to get old in Washington, and Redskins fans are hoping it's not a repeat. If your name is LaDainian Tomlinson, congratulations. You're the only back that was better than Portis in the '00s. If not, you probably have a lot less mileage on you than Portis. An average of 46 yards per game vs. DAL, HOU and STL isn't getting it done, and his owners should target Keiland Williams as insurance.

MERCURY RISING

Lance Moore. Lance Moore came back to fantasy with the biggest game of his career. 6/149/2 vs. ATL in Week 3 (and his '08 season of 79/928/10) is enough to take a chance on Lance in Drew Brees' offense. He'll compete with Devery Henderson for the deep looks, but with Marques drawing the most attention and Pierre running well, sustained production is not beyond the realm.

BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Is there anything better than Dick Enberg saying this guy's name? It's like a four-act opera in which you never knew the word Green could have that many syllables. Laurence Maroney to Denver, Kevin Faulk to IR, Fred Taylor has 2,500 lifetime carries and Sammy Morris is a spot guy. You don't have to go to Harvard to figure out that you should join the Law Firm outside Boston.

Peyton Hillis. Can this man remove Peyton from first-name status? In fantasy circles, he just might. That Hillis' career-best 144 rush yards came at Baltimore is very encouraging, and coach Mangini will have no choice but to stay with Hillis, who also grabbed 7 for 36 yards.

Dustin Keller. Two monster games in a row for Keller, who followed his 7/115/1 day vs. New England with an even bigger 6/98/2 night in Miami. Throw out his first game vs. Baltimore as an extremely tough matchup and you have a tight end that has shown the ability to take a game over. If he's your backup, you might consider trading your number one TE and giving DK the big job.

Aaron Hernandez. Listed at 6'1"/245, Hernandez is more like a huge wideout than a true tight end. Use this to your advantage and get the fastest TE-eligible player we've seen since Marques Colston rookied. Kevin Faulk's season-ending injury opens up 6-7 looks in the pass game and solidifies that the trio of Welker, Moss and Hernandez will get most of Brady's attention. Grab him as a bye-week replacement, or even just to keep him away from the rest of your league.