If you have Hakeem Nicks, today was a bad day.

If you have Randy Moss, it likely has been a bad year.

Monday, it was announced Nicks will miss at least the Giants' next three games because of a nerve condition in his lower right leg. That takes the Giants receiver out of your lineup through at least Week 14, which means you won't get your No. 1 receiver back until the fantasy semifinals, if at all.

Mario Manningham likely isn't available on your league's waiver wire. If he is, however, he should be priority No. 1, since the Giants also will be without Steve Smith for at least one more week. Manningham -- who had 10 receptions for 91 yards and a TD in Week 10 (New York's first game without Smith) -- is now Eli Manning's top target.

The good news, at least if you have Manningham: Sunday, the Giants will play host to the Jags, who entered Week 11 ranked 28th in the NFL defending the pass.

A few more thoughts as we get set to play the second-to-last week of the fantasy regular season:

-- If you're desperate for a running back, Carolina's Mike Goodson has had back-to-back 100-yard games for a terrible team. Goodson has rushed for 220 yards on 45 carries the last two weeks, and Sunday he will face the Browns, who were No. 21 vs. the run before Maurice Jones-Drew ran over them in Week 11. If you do acquire Goodson, keep this in mind: He's only valuable if Jonathan Stewart is sidelined. The latter has missed Carolina's last two games because of a concussion.

START 'EM

-- Nate Burleson, WR, Lions: He has 31 receptions in his last five games. In his last three, he has a combined 18 catches for 257 yards and two touchdowns.

-- Santonio Holmes, WR, Jets: This is an obvious one, but Holmes likely wasn't in many starting lineups until his recent three-game surge. The former Buckeye had zero TDs in his first three games back from suspension, but has a score in two consecutive games and a combined 17 receptions for 316 yards and three TDs in his last three.

-- Mike Williams, WR, Seahawks: I've never been a believer, but it's hard to ignore the fact Williams has had four big games in his last six. He's had three games with 10 or more receptions in that span, and three with 109 yards or more.

-- Mike Thomas, WR, Jaguars: With Mike Sims-Walker banged up, Thomas has scored in three consecutive games and has 13 catches for 185 yards in his last two contests.

-- Steve Breaston, WR, Cardinals: This is for deeper PPR leagues only. Since returning from a knee injury, Breaston has 20 receptions for 365 yards in four games.

SIT 'EM

-- Steve Smith, WR, Panthers: The Panthers' QBs have combined to crush Smith's value. The volatile one has been held out of the end zone in five consecutive games and has 34 catches for 411 yards and two TDs in nine games on the season. Smith has had 50 receiving yards or fewer in six of his last seven.

DROP 'EM

-- Clinton Portis, RB, Redskins: If you need the roster space, it's OK to let go of Portis even after he returned from a groin injury. The ailment limited him to five carries for 32 yards last week, and Keiland Williams (68 yards rushing, six catches for 27 yards Sunday) has emerged as Washington's featured back with Ryan Torain battling a hamstring injury.

-- Randy Moss, WR, Titans: It's almost unfathomable to consider dropping a healthy receiver you selected in the top 10 overall, but Moss has all of two catches for 34 yards in his last three games. Sunday, he was shut out.

-- Brett Favre, QB, Vikings: It's Legends Week in the drop section, as Favre had another touchdown-less game Sunday. He has 10 TDs and 17 interceptions on the year, and he's thrown for 250 yards or more three times in 10 games.

Stat of the week

15: Total yards receiving by the Cowboys' Dez Bryant (three catches for 8 yards) and Miles Austin (two for 7 yards) on Sunday against the Lions. The pair combined for three TDs -- scores of 1, 3 and 4 yards.

We'll get to much more in the next couple of days, but first our weekly rapid-fire reaction from the week that was (albeit a day later than you and I would like):

Start 'em

-- Fred Jackson, RB, Bills: With C.J. Spiller out at least a week with a hamstring injury and Marshawn Lynch in Seattle, the carries are all Jackson's. The latter had 25 rushes for 133 yards and a TD, along with six receptions for 37 yards and a score, last week against Detroit. Sunday, Buffalo will face Cincinnati, which ranks 22nd vs. the run and has given up eight TDs on the ground.

-- Santonio Holmes, WR, Jets: He has 10 receptions for 190 yards and a TD in his last two games (I'm guessing you remember the touchdown all too well), after compiling 10 catches for 131 yards and zero scores in his first three contests back from a four-game suspension. This week, the Jets face the Texans, who are allowing 301 yards passing per game and have yielded a league-worst 22 TD tosses.

-- Mario Manningham, WR, Giants: He has three touchdowns in his last four games, and in his first game with Steve Smith out, Manningham had 10 receptions for 91 yards and a TD last week. He's a must-play as long as Smith is out, which could be a few more games.

-- Jermaine Greshman, TE, Bengals: This is for deep leagues only. The rookie had the best game of his career last week, catching nine passes for 85 yards and a TD at Indy. He's had four or more catches in six of nine games, and Sunday he'll face the Bills, who have allowed 18 TD passes and totaled only two interceptions.

Sit 'em

-- Randy Moss, WR, Titans: I would dismiss him completely, but Tennessee's schedule the next three weeks -- the Redskins at home, at the Texans, home against the Jaguars -- is tempting. The three teams rank 29th (Jags), 31st (Redskins) and 32nd (Texans) against the pass and have allowed a combined 59 touchdown passes, compared to 22 interceptions, this season. Regardless, I have a difficult time playing a receiver who has five receptions for 64 yards and zero touchdowns in his last three games. The zero also matches how much Moss seems to care these days.

-- Jahvid Best, RB, Lions: If you can afford to make this move, I would. The rookie scored five TDs in his first two games, but has none since. On the season, he's averaging 3.1 yards per carry and has yet to hit the 400-yard mark on the ground.

Stat of the week

1: Touchdown by Brandon Marshall this season. The Dolphins receiver scored in Week 3, and hasn't reached the end zone since. In the six-game scoreless span, Marshall has 33 catches for 362 yards.

Last season, Marshall had 101 receptions for 1,120 yards and 10 TDs for the Broncos. This year, he's on pace to come close to matching his 2009 totals in receptions and yards (98 for 1,159), while falling eight or nine TDs shy of his 10 from a year ago.

All of which begs the question: Are we witnessing possibly the worst 100-catch season in history?

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The Giants didn't have a player with 600 yards receiving last season, when Plaxico Burress' suspension derailed their hopes of repeating as Super Bowl champs.

This year, they might have two 1,000-yard receivers, and somehow, both are owned in fewer than 26 percent of the leagues on ESPN.com.

Steve Smith (owned in 25.3 percent of the ESPN leagues) has caught at least six passes in each of the first two games and has 14 receptions for 214 yards and a TD on the season. Mario Manningham (owned in only 5.4 percent, a number that likely will be multiplied by at least 10 by Sunday), like Smith, caught 10 passes on Sunday. In two games, the second-year receiver has 188 yards and two TDs.

You shouldn't need me to tell you to start both.

If you're not convinced, take a glance at the Giants' next five games: Week 3, at Tampa Bay; Week 4, at Kansas City; Week 5, Oakland; Week 6, at New Orleans; Week 7, Arizona. The quintet rank 27th, 14th, 20th, 28th and 18th, respectively, against the pass this season. The five teams have combined to allow 15 touchdown passes and 2,480 yards passing in 10 games.

It's enough to make even Eli Manning give more than an awkward smile.

On to the rest of the no-huddle ...

-- On an Eagle's wing: I was against starting Kevin Kolb last week against the Saints, and 391 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions later, I'm backpedaling faster than Robert Henson, the Redskins' rookie who quit Twitter after calling the team's fans "dim wits."

Kolb was far from great against the Saints, but he showed enough that he's an intriguing option -- should Donovan McNabb sit a second straight week, as expected, because of a fractured rib -- Sunday at home against the Chiefs. Kolb is owned in a whopping 0.3 percent of the ESPN leagues, but if you're desperate for a quarterback, he's a halfway decent one-week option against Kansas City. The Chiefs have allowed 667 total yards and 51 points in their 0-2 start.

-- Jonesing for an alternative: Thomas Jones owners likely were encouraged by his strong Week 1 showing against the Texans. A game later, they're cursing yet another backfield time share gone bad.

In two games, Jones and Leon Washington both have 35 touches. Jones has better rushing numbers (34 carries for 161 yards, a 4.7-yard average, and two TDs), but Washington is a much better receiving option (six catches for 42 yards). In PPR leagues, Jones is all-or-nothing -- either he gets 100 yards and a score on the ground, or he's a dud.

It's telling that both backs received 14 carries last week against the Patriots, and with the Jets' early success, I wouldn't expect that to change. All of which means you should bench Jones this week against the Titans, who rank second to the Ravens in run defense in the early going. Tennessee has allowed the opposition to rush for only 99 yards on 52 carries, a 1.9 average, and zero TDs.

-- No rush, L.T.: Darren Sproles owners, the solution is simple. If LaDainian Tomlinson doesn't play for a second straight week because of a sprained ankle, play the diminutive back who is a huge asset as the primary ball-carrier in point-per-reception leagues. Sproles had only 10 carries for 26 yards last week against the Ravens, but he caught seven passes for 126 yards, including an 81-yard score. In two games, Sproles has 12 catches for 167 yards, and he's scored once in each game.

He'll never be a 20-carry back, but he certainly seems to be more effective than Tomlinson at this point in their careers. That said, I wouldn't start Sproles if Tomlinson is active, since the latter will get the majority of the carries when he plays.

-- Hightower power: Beanie Wells was the Cardinals' first-round pick last spring, but it's Tim Hightower who's playing like a fantasy starter. Hightower -- until this point known as the back who scored short touchdowns but did nothing else last season -- has rushed for an unimpressive 87 yards on 23 carries (3.8). PPR owners love the next stat, though: Hightower's 15 catches (12 in Week 1) for 133 yards.

If you're in a point-per-catch league, Hightower is a quality option the next three weeks against the Colts (No. 30 vs. the run, three rushing TDs allowed in two games), Texans (No. 32, 4 TD, 6.3 yards per carry) and Seahawks (No. 26, 2 TDs, a league-worst 7.1 yards per carry by the opposition).

Hightower is an ideal flex play in PPR leagues, and is an OK option in other formats, at least until Wells gets more than seven rushing attempts per game (a figure he has yet to surpass). The former Buckeye was forced to carry a football everywhere he went this week after fumbling twice last Sunday, and he's strictly a reserve until he takes over the featured role, which should happen later this season.

-- On deck: Thursday at 4 p.m., we'll have our weekly live chat. To ask a question or just watch the drama unfold, go to the homepage of News-Herald.com and look for the link to join the chat.

Saturday, we'll break down the disappointing starts of several first-round fantasy picks. That column can be read by going here. We'll also have the "big blog," including the expanded playlist and start-and-sit advice, early Saturday. That can be read on this blog, and on the N-H's main site.

Good luck and remember to curse the owner whose team is so bad he or she were awarded Manningham on waivers ahead of you.