UPGRADES

• DL Trevor Pryce, Baltimore (4 solos, 1 asst, 1.5 sacks)
  Pryce had a field day against the Browns on Sunday and wound up with some of the best numbers among all fantasy DL this week. Although he was relatively quiet in the first two weeks (1 solo, 1 asst, 1 sack, 1 PD), he showed yesterday that he can still be a productive player that could potentially be used as a fill-in when the matchup looks favorable.



• DL Simeon Rice, Tampa Bay (3 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 2 FF)
  Like the rest of the team, Rice got off to a pretty slow start this year and there was some concern about whether he would even play this week after he tweaked his knee on Thursday at practice. Rice did start and wound up having a very productive day, including a sack and forced fumble deep in Panthers territory that led to a quick Bucs touchdown in the 3rd quarter. He followed that up with another forced fumble on DeS Foster just 3 snaps later that allowed Tampa to take the lead.



• DL Darren Howard, Philadelphia (3 solos, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 PD)
  Howard started at LDE this week in place of the injured Jevon Kearse and was much more productive than he had been the past two weeks. Howard is a more prototypical LDE who is equally adept at defending the run and pass so the switch and increased playing time should help his numbers.



• DL Travis LaBoy, Tennessee (4 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack)
  LaBoy was drafted to help offset the loss of Jevon Kearse in Tennessee and he started living up to expectations last year with at least a half sack in 9 different games. He's a little undersized for a DE and not great against the run but can be an explosive pass rusher and will chase down plays from behind. He briefly left the game with an undisclosed injury but returned.



• DL Simon Fraser, Cleveland (4 solos, 1 sack)
  Fraser got his first NFL start against the Ravens on Sunday in place of Orpheus Roye and came through with a great performance. He had 4 solo stops, 1 sack, and 2 other QB hurries. The Browns may have found a 3rd DE to rotate with Roye and Alvin McKinley.



• LB Larry Foote, Pittsburgh (7 solos, 2 asst, 1 sack, 1 FF)
  In a big matchup against the Bengals on Sunday, Larry Foote wound up leading all Steelers in tackles with 9 combined while also adding a sack and forced fumble. He didn't do much against the Dolphins in the opener, but he's now put up good numbers two weeks in a row and his 2 sacks on the year are just one away from his career high.



• LB A.J. Hawk, Green Bay (5 solos, 3 asst, 1 sack)
  Hawk didn't do much in the preseason and was kind of a disappointment in the season opener, but he appears to be getting more and more comfortable in the Packers defense. After putting up 7 solo stops in week 2, he followed that up with 8 combined tackles this week and his first NFL sack (plus another QB hurry). Barnett's fantasy value also appears to be taking a hit with the emergence of Hawk.



• LB Chris Draft (8 solos, 2 asst) & Thomas Davis (6 solos, 1 asst, 2 PD), Carolina
  Draft started at MLB for the Panthers this week in place of Dan Morgan who is still out while recovering from a concussion. With the great defensive tackles the Panthers have, he shouldn't have much trouble putting up a lot of tackles each week until Morgan returns. Thomas Davis also appears to be taking on a bigger role with the loss of Morgan. Despite starting at SLB, he appeared to be playing in every situation and had a very solid game. Meanwhile, starting WLB Adam Seward did very little and was only credited with a QB hurry on the day.



• LB Brian Simmons, Cincinnati (4 solos, 5 asst, 1 FR)
  Simmons has taken over for Odell Thurman at MLB and he has put up solid fantasy numbers in all 3 games so far. With news coming out today that Odell Thurman was arrested for drunk driving and could be suspended for the year, it looks like Simmons could be staying at MLB for longer than expected.



• LB Barrett Ruud, Tampa Bay (8 solos)
  Ruud got his second start at MLB this year and had a much better game than last time. With SLB Ryan Nece out with an injury, the Bucs moved Shelton Quarles outside and freed up a spot for Ruud to start. With Ruud being the MLB of the future in Tampa, this might be a move that could become permanent sometime soon.



• DB Kerry Rhodes, NY Jets (7 solos, 3 asst, 2 sacks, 2 FF)
  With Mangini bringing over the Patriots defensive scheme to the Jets, Kerry Rhodes is quickly becoming their version of Rodney Harrison. He had a very impressive rookie campaign, but could wind up as the highest scoring fantasy DB this year. In addition to solid tackle numbers that should make him consistent from week to week, what has really helped set him apart so far is his ability as a blitzer and playmaker (3 sacks, 3 FF, and 1 INT already).



• DB Deshea Townsend, Pittsburgh (5 solos, 2 asst, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 FF, 2 PD)
  Despite the loss on Sunday to the Bengals, Townsend was extremely productive in a variety of ways. Steelers CBs (and 3-4 CBs in general) tend to put up pretty solid tackle numbers and Townsend should benefit from teams trying to avoid Ike Taylor on the other side. He's also an excellent blitzer (7 sacks over last 2 years), and he showed that again on Sunday.



• DBs Lewis Sanders, Houston (8 solos, 2 asst, 1 PD)
  Sanders has now put up 8 solo tackles in back to back games. Sanders has good size (6'1", 210 lbs) so he can match up against bigger WRs and won't shy away from contact in run support. He also plays opposite one of the best young CBs in the league in Dunta Robinson, so that should result in more plays on his side of the field.



• DB Marlin Jackson, Indianapolis (8 solos)
  Even though he's not technically a starter for the Colts, Marlin Jackson is currently tied with Cato June for 2nd on the team with 17 solo tackles after just 3 games. He's living up to his 1st round draft status of a year ago and is a very good tackler who should continue to play a bigger role for the team going forward.

DOWNGRADES

• DL Andre Carter, Washington (0 tackles)
  Carter didn't make much of an impact in the first two games, but should have had a field day against the Texans this week. Instead, he finished with 0 tackles and left the field after getting poked in the eye during the second quarter. Apparently, he returned to the game after that but you couldn't tell it from looking at the stat sheet.



• DL Kevin Williams (1 asst) and Kenechi Udeze (1 solo, 1 asst), Minnesota
  Williams teased fantasy owners with a 4-solo/1-sack game last week against the Panthers but he returned to his unproductive self against the Bears on Sunday. He did face one of the league's best Centers in Olin Kreutz and was often double-teamed, but with the Vikings DEs struggling right now it's hard to get too excited about him returning to his Pro Bowl form of a couple years ago. After 3 games playing alongside one of the best DT tandems in the league with one of the best CB tandems locking up WRs, Udeze has compiled 2 solo tackles and 2 assists. He simply lacks explosiveness and hasn't done a whole lot against the run either.



• DL Jason Taylor, Miami (2 asst, 1 PD)
  Taylor had a great season last year in Nick Saban's defense, but the addition of Dom Capers this year doesn't seem to be helping him. After 3 games, he's currently on pace for one of the worst seasons of his career, which is a major disappointment for anyone that drafted him as the #1 DL off the board this year. Still plenty of time for him to turn things around, but the Dolphins as a whole have been one of the league's biggest disappointments and Taylor certainly isn't helping. 37 year old Keith Traylor currently has 3 sacks to Taylor's 1.



• DL Shaun Ellis, NY Jets (1 solo, 1 asst)
  Ellis had a couple very productive fantasy seasons for the Jets in 2003 and 2004 when he put up 23.5 sacks, but he has just 2.5 sacks in 16 games since then. The switch to a 3-4 defense this year and the loss of John Abraham has resulted in him facing many more double teams and that has really hurt his production. He's probably not even worth a roster spot anymore.



• DL Robert Bernard, Seattle (0 tackles)
  Bernard made a big impact with the Seahawks last year, finishing with an impressive 43 solo tackles and 8.5 sacks. He's getting a lot more attention from opposing linemen this year, however, and his productivity has dropped off the map. With 2 solos, 1 asst, and 0 sacks through 3 games, last year's numbers are starting to look like they may have been a fluke. The Seahawks haven't been getting much of a pass rush from their defensive line in general this year.



• DL Tony Hargrove, St. Louis (0 tackles)
  Hargrove had a very solid sophomore season last year with 41 solo tackles and 6.5 sacks and many expected him to build off that this year. After 3 weeks, however, he's put up just 2 solos, 1 assist, and half a sack. It also appears as though he's lost his starting job to rookie Victor Adeyanju for the time being after an unexcused absence last week. Adeyanju had 6 solo tackles against the Cardinals.



• LB Joey Porter, Pittsburgh (1 asst, 1 PD)
  Porter is proving what a frustrating player he can be for fantasy owners. Despite recording just 2 solo tackles in the opener against Miami, Porter had a huge game with 2 sacks and an interception returned for a TD. In the two games since then, however, he has just 2 assists and a PD. He will blow up every once in awhile with some huge games but is not a player you can rely on for consistent production each week. All 3 of the other Steelers starting linebackers had very good statlines this week too.



• LB Al Wilson, Denver (2 asst)
  Wilson has generally been a much better football player than fantasy player and his tackle numbers are usually much lower than you'd expect for a stud MLB who plays in the nickel. Thing were even stranger this week, however, as SLB DJ Williams finished with 6 solos and 4 assists while Wilson only had 2 assists, even though Wilson was probably on the field for more snaps. It may have just been a fluke but it could be something to keep an eye on in the weeks ahead. The Broncos defense has also been playing great this year, which means fewer snaps in general for all of their IDPs.



• LB Julian Peterson, Seattle (1 solo, 1 asst)
  Peterson had two good games to start off the season but was a non-factor in the blowout against the Giants on Sunday. With the Seahawks getting out to such a big lead early on, Peterson should have had some very good playmaking opportunities while rushing the passer or dropping in coverage. Regardless, though, this has always been what hurts his value as a fantasy LB - he'll put up some good games when he makes big plays like sacks or interceptions, but his tackle numbers will be inconsistent from week to week.


• LB E.J. Henderson, Minnesota (1 asst)
  Henderson solidified his hold on the starting WLB job with a very strong preseason, but his fantasy value took a hit on Sunday. 1 assisted tackle in a game can't be considered anything other than a major disappointment for a starting linebacker. His numbers in the first two games (10 solos, 1 asst) weren't anything great either. It looks like MLB Napoleon Harris might be the Vikings LB to have this year, although his numbers this week were disappointing as well. There might be a problem with the statkeepers in Minnesota to keep an eye on. For some reason, the Vikings had 6 total assists on Sunday while the Bears had 20 even though the Bears ran 63 plays to 56 for the Vikings.



• LB Odell Thurman, Cincinnati (on suspension)
  While already serving a 4-game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy, Thurman was arrested late Sunday night for drunk driving. Head coach Marvin Lewis said he expects the league to suspend Thurman for the rest of the year.



• DB Champ Bailey, Denver (1 asst)
  The Patriots had no success running the ball on Sunday and also seemed to avoid throwing at Champ Bailey. Darrent Williams benefited the most as he finished with 9 solos and 1 assist. This may just be a one week fluke as the Patriots don't really have a go-to WR that Bailey could line up against, but it's cause for some concern since the Patriots had 76 offensive plays and 55 pass attempts.



• DB Sheldon Brown, Philadelphia (1 solo, 2 asst)
  Brown has been a productive fantasy CB since taking over a starting job in 2004, but his numbers this year are way down. Not only is he not putting up consistent tackle numbers (6 solos so far), but he's also not making any big plays despite a pretty ferocious pass rush up front.
• DB Darren Sharper, Minnesota (2 solos, 1 PD)
  Sharper had a great season for fantasy owners last year despite finishing with just 40 solo tackles, thanks to his 9 interceptions and 2 TD returns. The low tackle numbers are still there this year (8 solos after 3 games), but he's not making the big plays that he made last year. A weak pass rush up front and the injury to DE Erasmus James isn't helping him either.



• DB Erik Coleman, NY Jets (3 solos, 1 asst)
  Coleman has been a very productive fantasy DB during his first two years in the league, but early signs this year indicate that his numbers are going to take a hit in the Jets new system. Whereas SS Kerry Rhodes has reached the fantasy elite and looks like the Rodney Harrison of the Jets defense, Coleman is going in the opposite direction and could be their version of Eugene Wilson. Through 3 games, he has just 8 solo tackles and no big plays.