Fine or Pine, Week 6

By Adam Filadelfo (@FNTSYArchitect)

With the fantasy football season approaching halftime, every week holds a little more weight than the previous week. Every week that passes could mean the difference between making the playoffs or watching your friends play for a championship. Fantasy owners need to make the right moves now while there's still time. Read on for help making those decisions.

Quarterback

Fine- Ben Roethlisberger- Pittsburgh Steelers- Big Ben has proven he's still an elite fantasy quarterback as he's currently ranked 16th among fantasy quarterbacks through the first five weeks of the season. He's averaging almost 20 fantasy points per game and faces a Cleveland defense that's allowing the fourth most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. After a disappointing week five performance where Big Ben was expected to rip through a pathetic Jaguars pass defense, fantasy owners should expect a better showing this time around.

Pine- Tony Romo- Dallas Cowboys- While Romo and the Cowboys are a surprising 4-1, the week six matchup isn't going to help Romo improve on his numbers. He faces a Seattle defense that is allowing under 19 fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks while Romo himself is averaging 20.5 fantasy points per game. Romo sports a nine to five touchdown to interception ratio and the Seahawks defense is known to cause turnovers

Running Back

Fine- Branden Oliver- San Diego Chargers- After the performance the rookie put forth in week five versus a top ranked Jets run defense, fantasy owners have to love the matchup on tap for week six versus the hapless Raiders. Oliver totaled 182 yards and two scores in week five while the Raiders are allowing the sixth most fantasy points to the running back position.

Pine- Zac Stacy- St. Louis Rams- Up until this point, it's safe for fantasy owners to call Zac  Stacy a disappointment and week six won't do him any favors as he faces the third toughest run defense in fantasy football in the 49ers. Through five weeks, Zac Stacy is averaging 9.5 fantasy points per game which could lead to another disappointing week for Stacy owners.

Wide Receiver

Fine- Steve Smith Sr- Baltimore Ravens- With Steve Smith Sr averaging almost 13 fantasy points per game and the Buccaneers defense allowing over 30 fantasy points per week, Steve Smith Sr should once again return to fantasy dominance after a one week absence. Smith Sr seems to be the only receiver Flacco looks to these days and facing the second worst passing defense this week should produce big numbers for Smith Sr owners.

Pine- Cordarrelle Patterson- Minnesota Vikings- The second year wide out hasn't produced double digit fantasy points since week one and hasn't scored more than 5.6 fantasy points since. The true definition of a boom or bust receiver, it's difficult to trust Patterson each week and his week six matchup versus a tough Lions pass defense isn't going to do Patterson any favors. The Detroit pass defense is best in fantasy football through the first five weeks of the season.

Tight End

Fine- Greg Olsen- Carolina Panthers- With his week six opponent allowing the second most fantasy points to the tight end position on a weekly basis, Greg Olsen should be in line for a productive fantasy week versus the Bengals. Olsen himself is averaging over 11 fantasy points per week so his owners can start him with confidence.

Pine- Larry Donnell- New York Giants- This may seem like a reactionary move based on the goose egg Donnell provided his owners with last week but it isn't. With Odell Beckham Jr in the mix and a plethora of receivers at Eli's disposal, Donnell may not continue to see the same amount of targets his owners have gotten used to. To add to the woes of Donnell owners, the Eagles play the tight end tough allowing the second least amount of fantasy points per week. This could end up being a game for wide outs for both teams.

Defense

Fine- Denver Broncos- The Broncos face the lowly Jets offense this week and that alone is all the reason fantasy owners need to start the Denver D in week six. While the Broncos are allowing almost 20 fantasy points per game to opposing signal callers, Geno Smith comes into the contest with more interceptions than touchdowns while averaging under 16 fantasy points per game.

Pine- Houston Texans- Thursday night football has not been kind to defenses thus far this season and there's good reason to believe that trend continues into week six when the Texans get Andrew Luck  who happens to be the top ranked quarterback through five weeks. Luck is averaging over 31 fantasy points per game and no defense has been able to stop him yet.