NFL Fantasy Busts Week 1: LeGarrette Blount, DeMarco Murray, Zac Stacy, Knowshon Moreno, Antonio Gates Bench Players

Sep 04, 2014 12:09 PM EDT
Running backs Le'Veon Bell #26 and LeGarrette Blount #27
Running backs Le'Veon Bell #26 and LeGarrette Blount #27 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warm up prior to the game against the Philadelphia Eagles on August 21, 2014 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. "

The Fantasy Football 2014 season is here and in Week 1, some players to bench that could be busts to start the year include LeGarrette Blount, DeMarco Murray, Zac Stacy, Knowshon Moreno, Larry Fitzgerald, Adrian Peterson and Tony Romo, as those players have some tough matchups and may not be the best starter options for the first game, but that doesn't mean they are bust players for the season.

The Steelers have a game against the Browns in Week 1 and while that looks like a great matchup for Le'Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount, Cleveland is coming back after having a very good run defense last season. For this week, Bell and Blount should sit and this comes after the two were busted in the preseason for pot and for at least one week, they should be off. Tony Romo has the 49ers coming to town and that is a tough matchup, while Zac Stacy and Adrian Peterson may get cancelled out by strong fronts for the Vikings and Rams.

The San Diego Chargers are playing against the Arizona Cardinals and they have one of the best defenses in the league and that makes Antonio Gates a bust pick for Week 1. Knowshon Moreno and the Dolphins are playing the Patriots and with Lamar Miller looking good, Moreno owners should wait and see how he does before committing to him each week. Fitzgerald is more of a gut feeling, but a MNF game after he was banged up in the preseason a bit feels risky, as those points could be left on the field and a matchup could be lost for that.

DeMarco Murray is in the same boat as Romo, as the 49ers have a very strong defense and while they are dealing with injuries and other issues, they still should be very stout. Blount and Bell are two very solid RB picks this year, but they should be used with caution to start the season after what happened earlier and picking up Dri Archer isn't the worst idea for those owners as a handcuff. Bell had a strong rookie season with 860 yards rushing and 45 receptions and he should be a great option later in the season.

Blount comes in after rushing for 772 yards last season with the Patriots and that was hit most since 2011 when he had 781 yards. Blount has a 1000 yard season to his name, but he should be used cautiously by fantasy owners until they see how much playing time he will get. Moreno comes in after a career year, but that was with Peyton Manning and now he is with Ryan Tannehill, which is quite the drop off. Last season he had 1039 yards, which were the most since his rookie year and he also set a career high with 60 catches for 548 yards receiving.

Murray had a solid year last year for his first 1000 yard season with 1124 yards, but he has a tough matchup to start the year and he should be benched for someone else in Week 1. Last season he also added 53 catches for 350 yards and he played in 14 games, which were the most in his three year career and now he is trying to stay healthy for a full season for the first time. 

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