Greg, a very informative article by Barnwell. However, he didn't mention one thing i feel is VERY valuable - where is the game? In his comparison of Palmer and Smith he uses a two game average. However the reality is Palmer had a fine game vs the Ravens in Cinci last year, Something like 21-32 for close to 250 and a score, so while he struggled in Baltimore he did not struggle in Cinci, that is vital. In no way shape or form would i ever start Smith over Palmer in week one. Heck Frank Gore may run for 200 in the desert and Smith may not throw much at all (although i am playing against Gore week one so i hope not!) - anyways i guess the point i am trying to make here is do not OVER analyze. I have Ron Curry and Cal Johnson as my 3/4 WR's, we start 3, now in week 1, Johnson plays a very good Oakland pass D while Curry goes against arguably the worst secondary in the league - Curry is a no brainer in my league (PPR) - BUT Talk of Smith over Palmer - that is over doing it. I like to use this test on myself - if someone put a million dollars on the table and said - its yours if you pick the right player - then what would you do? Thats my 2 cents!
Thanks!

At some point you have to trust your 'big players' to make 'big plays' against 'big opponents'.

You don't want to look/feel stupid Monday/Tuesday morning b/c you benched a stud that 'went off' in favor of a 2nd/3rd tier player who had a favorable matchup and was some other website's 'start of the week'.

That is true. Can't rely on statistics and analysis 100% of the time and expect to win.

Gut feeling means a lot.

Last Year, Rotoworld was already driving a fork into Chester Taylor before the season even started, calling him this season's biggest diappointment. Then in the first few games Chester Taylor performs like a top 10 RB.

Interesting article. However, sitting Palmer in place of Smith would make me vomit.

i don't buy this crap at all.

i have lived by a simple guideline for the last 4 years in FF, and have finished no lower than 4th in any of my leagues.

NEVER SIT YOUR STUDS.

don't give a hoot about bogus statistics, no matter how many letters are in the abbreviation. i can invent some stats to support just about any point.

sorry, Barnwell, i just don't buy it.

I won a league last year by benching Fast Willie parker, in favor of the fantasy Running back 'everyone loves to hate' Ron Dayne in week 16.

WP gets shut down by Baltimore habitually and Dayne was running against a porus run defense in Indy. Indy also had nothing to play for as well in week 16.

It was an easy decision for me and I ended up winning the finale by one point.

The best bench/start decision made in fantasy football history.

You always have to look at matchups, so don't take the author's example of Smith v. Palmer to heart. He probably used that to turn some heads.

Barnwell's head is in the right place however. It's each fantasy managers' job to look at all data (and recomendations from the experts) then reach their own conclusion about who to draft and start/bench. That way all decisions are actually made by the manager and not just a product of some nerdy writer or stathead. By making your own decisions the owner actually takes ownership of their team's results.

--I live for this

And let's not forget about Palmer's 2005 stats against Baltimore. 302 yds and 3 TDs (1 Int) at home and 248 yds and 2 TDs at Baltimore. Baltimore's D was great that year as well, and using this logic to sit him, one would miss out on one great and one decent performance by Palmer.