NFL week three fantasy matchups to exploit or avoid
Adrian Peterson will have another big day on the ground
Minnesota will welcome Detroit to the Mall of America field this Sunday, but it’s Vikings’ running-back Adrian Peterson who is l*****g his chops as he sets to face the Lions' woeful run-defence. Peterson
is coming off a huge game in which he rushed for 145 yards and caught five passes for 41 yards in the Vikings 14-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins in week two.
Thanks to quarterback Brett Favre’s uninspired start to the 2010 regular season, in which he has tossed four interceptions and only one touchdown, Minnesota will try to get Peterson involved in the game
early on. They will feed him the ball often to control the game and get their offence in gear and hopefully pick up their first win of the year.
Peterson is third in the league in rushing this season with 232 yards and trails the leader Arian Foster by 68 yards. He will cut into that lead this Sunday and might top the list at the end of this game.
Joe Flacco will provide Ravens with some offence
This was certainly not the start Joe Flacco envisioned, especially with Baltimore’s revamp offence. No, the addition of Anquan Boldin and T.J. Houshmandzadeh has not helped the young quarterback after
two weeks, and he has thrown one touchdown and five interceptions. It’s hard to have any answers right now and we’re all trying to figure it out, but help is on the way for Flacco in the form of the Cleveland Browns. Nothing has gone right for the Browns’
franchise in recent memory and Flacco should have his breakout game on Sunday playing at home.
Baltimore should follow Kansas City’s plan and attack the middle of the field. The Chiefs had success in the passing game when they attacked that area last Sunday.
The Browns' secondary has been decent up until now, but the Ravens’ receivers will be their biggest test of this young season. Both Boldin and Houshmandzadeh are not afraid to catch passes in the middle,
so Flacco should be able to locate them and connect for big gains.
Peyton Manning is flying high
He was in complete control in the pocket for most of the Manning Bowl last Sunday. Unlike when Peyton Manning faced his little brother Eli Manning for the first time, last week’s game wasn’t even close.
The Colts’ defence gave the older brother Peyton a short field to work with, and he took full advantage putting forth another solid outing. Manning leads the NFL in passing yards with 688 and will be looking to continue his dominance against the Denver Broncos.
Manning has always fared well against the Broncos, and Sunday’s game should be no different. Manning is 7-2 against Denver, including two blow-out losses in the Broncos' post-season history. Denver has
only sacked Manning six times in those nine games, which is a clear indication that the defensive linemen and linebackers are not getting pressure on the quarterback, which is deadly. If Manning is not rushed out of the pocket and feels no pressure, he will
pick the Broncos’ secondary apart.
This is the challenge that awaits Denver’s defence on Sunday at Invesco Field at Mile High. The task might be even tougher for Denver as they may be without the services of starting cornerbacks André Goodman
and Champ Bailey. You definitely do not want to go into a match facing Manning with a banged-up secondary and missing two key defenders. Life is hard enough as it is against Indianapolis.
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