This article takes a look at players from each of the positions in your starting lineup who have interesting matchups. Not all players covered are your classic sleepers who might outperform expectations. Some are nominal starters with tricky matchups or players who might be starters in larger leagues, but deep sleepers in smaller leagues. Realizing that leagues and roster sizes vary wildly; your mileage could vary, too.
Quarterbacks
Ryan Fitzpatrick, HOU vs BUF - QBs have averaged 282 passing yards and 1.7 TDs per contest against the Bills . Fitzpatrick could be without Arian Foster for a second week and will be facing a Bills defense that has yet to yield a rushing TD this season. This all adds up to the Texans passing a little more than normal at home.
Philip Rivers, SD vs JAC - The red hot Rivers (778 passing yards and 6 TDs) should find the sledding extremely easy after facing Arizona and Seattle in the first two weeks. The Jaguars have given up a ridiculous 333 passing yards and 2.7 TDs through the air so far this year. The Chargers will be down to their 3rd back (Donald Brown) so expect them to run a balanced attack against the Jaguars. Rivers is likely owned in all formats. but if he has been your QB2, he needs to be your lineup this week.
Kirk Cousins, WAS vs NYG - He torched the weak Philadelphia corners for 427 yards and 3 scores last week despite a gimpy DeSean Jackson. Ryan Fitzpatrick managed to hang 289 passing yards, 34 rushing yards, and a pair of TDs against the Giants last week. Matthew Stafford lit the Giants up for 346 passing yards in week 1. Only over-matched Drew Stanton (in week 2) did not found success against this unit.
Blake Bortles, JAC at SD - Vegas favors the Chargers by 13. Look for the Jaguars to be playing from behind in this one and that should lead to some decent garbage time stats for the highly touted rookie. Add in 5 TDs that the Chargers defense has already given to opposing QBs this season and you have a guy who could easily outstrip expectations.
Eli Manning, NYG at WAS - Chip Kelly's attack exposed Washington pass defense multiple times last week. In the copycat NFL, look for Eli to attack this defense through the air. Eli has quietly posted 2 throwing TDs each of the last two weeks against a lot tougher defenses (Arizona and Houston).
Teddy Bridgewater, MIN vs ATL - Atlanta's defense looked unbeatable against the hapless Bucs on Thursday, but Drew Brees managed to hang 333 passing yards and a score in week 1. Andy Dalton also managed 252 yards and a score (on just 23 passing attempts) in week 2.
Running Backs
Donald Brown and Branden Oliver, SD vs JAC - All positions have been putting up points against the hapless Jaguars. Five backs in total have produced double-digit fantasy points against Jacksonville and the season is just 3 weeks old. San Diego is down to it's last options with Ryan Mathews hurt and Danny Woodhead shelved for the year. San Diego will likely go with a balanced attack, but Donald Brown (and to a lesser extent Branden Oliver in garbage time) should be in for a very busy day. Jacksonville is allowing 160 rush yards and 1.3 rushing TDs per game so far.
Alfred Blue, HOU vs BUF - Arian Foster still is not practicing and this could mean another start for rookie Alfred Blue. He managed 78 yards on just 13 carries last week and could see an uptick in workload this week. The Bills have yet to allow a rushing TD this year, but Blue should be able to catch a few passes in the Texan's scheme.
Darren McFadden, OAK vs MIA (in London) - Opposing running backs have been successful this year catching passes out of the backfield against this Miami defensive unit. Joe McKnight managed 6 grabs for 64 yards and a pair of TDs last week.
Trent Richardson, IND vs TEN - It feels dirty writing the Richardson name, but the Titans have been vulnerable lately to the run. Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill combined for 3 rushing TDs in week 3 against the Titans. Demarco Murray managed 167 rushing yards and a score in week 2. The Colts are a 7 1/2 point favorite at home. If Vegas is right, the Colts should be using Richardson a lot in garbage time with a lead.
Khiry Robinson and Pierre Thomas, NO at DAL - Dallas Defense showed signs last week that they are as bad a unit as most expected this preseason. Zac Stacy managed 121 combined yards on just 17 touches. If Dallas sells out to try and limit Jimmy Graham, they should be extremely vulnerable to the pair of New Orleams rushers.
DeAngelo Williams, CAR at BAL - Who's still left standing? By default, DeAngelo will get a huge workload after losing both Mike Tolbert and Jonathan Stewart this past week. The Ravens are fairly tough against the run, but Isaiah Crowell and Terrence West both found pay dirt against this unit last week.
Wide Receivers
Malcom Floyd and Eddie Royal, SD vs JAC - Everyone seems to have bigger games against Jacksonville so add these guys to to the list of possibles too.
Allen Robinson, JAC at SD - Bortles throws a good deep ball and Allen Robinson looks to be the healthiest of all the Jaguars WRs this week. As a big underdog, Jacksonville players should be able to pad their statistics in garbage time if this one goes as expected.
Preston Parker, NYG at WAS - Philadephia's rookie Jordan Matthews managed 8 catches and 2 TDs playing out of the slot. Preston Parker is flying way below the radar, but could be in for a big game as the Giant's slot threat.
Golden Tate, DET at NYJ - The Jets are stellar against the run, but have yielded 7 passing TDs already. All eyes will be on Calvin Johnson, but look for the Jets to double team on virtually every play. This should allow Golden Tate to square up against some horrible cornerback play. He could be the play of the week in almost every format.
Markhus Wheaton, PIT vs TB - The Buccaneers defense looked badly overmatched on Thursday Night football last week. It could have been that they were just tired (as the offense could not manage to stay on the field). The same situation could happen this week. All eyes will be on Antonio Brown (who could also be in for a big game), but Wheaton should draw the lesser coverage. Wheaton has been targeted an impressive 20 times already through 3 games.
DeAndra Hopkins, HOU vs BUF - He continues to get a lot of targets (has 19 for the year) and has already scored two TDs. Buffalo has yet to yield a rushing TD but is giving up 282 yards and 1.7 TDs a week through the air.
Tight Ends
Ladarius Green, SD vs JAC - A tight end has scored every week against the Jaguars defense. Ladarius saw a giant uptick in targets (6) and production (4 catches for 64 yards) last week.
Jace Amaro, NYJ vs DET - Jace played his biggest role to date hauling in 3 passes for 54 yards. The Detroit defense has been pretty stingy this year, but both Larry Donnell (week 1) and Andrew Quarless (week 3) managed scores against this unit.
Defenses
For sleeper defenses, check out Sigmund Bloom's Rent-A-Defense column.