Speak with a Jamaal Charles owner and one of the first things he or she will say to you will have something to do with getting more opportunities.

The electric Chiefs running back rushed for 1,467 yards in 2010, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. He caught 45 passes for 468 yards, giving him an incredible norm of 7.0 yards per touch. Even more ridiculous: Charles had a combined 1,935 rushing and receiving yards, despite getting 17.2 touches per game.

This season, Charles -- a consensus top-five overall choice in fantasy -- didn't make it past Week 2. Sunday, on his second carry of the game, he suffered what ESPN reported shortly after the game was a torn ACL in his left knee.

An MRI later Monday is expected to confirm the report, which would leave many owners scrambling to replace their top running back.

If you're looking to the waiver wire for help this week, there probably won't be much.

The best options, in fact, might be on Charles' team.

Backup Thomas Jones entered the weekend owned in 61.5 percent of the leagues on ESPN. Dexter McCluster, a second-round pick by Kansas City in 2010, was owned in only 7.0 percent of the ESPN formats.

Jones rushed for 896 yards and six touchdowns last season. It marked the first time in six seasons in which he didn't rush for at least 1,119 yards.

In 2008 and '09, Jones gained a combined 2,714 yards on the ground and scored 29 combined rushing and receiving TDs.

At 33, his best days are behind him, but he can still be a useful player in non-point-per-reception leagues.

In PPR leagues, McCluster is a better option than Jones, who had an average of 12 catches per year in 2009 and '10.

McCluster is way too small (5-foot-8, 170 pounds) to get 20-plus carries, but he is explosive (he had eight carries for 51 yards Sunday) and he can get a handful of catches per game (he has nine receptions thus far in 2011).

Neither player should be considered anything more than a fringe No. 3 running back in a 12-team league, but if you've lost Charles, you're probably desperate enough to give one a chance.

Two other long-shot options at running back are a pair of rookies -- the Colts' Delone Carter and the Redskins' Roy Helu.

Carter had 11 carries for 46 yards on Sunday against the Browns, and he has 18 rushing attempts in Indy's first two games -- compared to Joseph Addai's 22. Carter has yet to catch a pass, and Addai is obviously the better fantasy option, but the Copley High School product is the no-doubt-about-it No. 2 back in Indianapolis, ahead of 2009 first-round pick Donald Brown, who has zero carries in two games.

Helu, meanwhile, had 10 rushes for 74 yards and three receptions for 38 yards Sunday against the Cardinals. Tim Hightower is the featured back in Washington, as his 168 rushing yards in two games attest, but Helu can be productive in games in which the Redskins have the lead and long-time fantasy tormentor Mike Shanahan is able to spread the carries around.

Of the four options we've discussed here, McCluster is the best in PPR formats, followed by Jones, Helu and Carter.

In non-PPR leagues, Jones is the No. 1 option, followed by McCluster, Helu and Carter.

We already knew the studio crews laugh at everything, Phil Simms talks too much, Shannon Sharpe should provide the audio for every highlight and Tony Siragusa's shtick wore out its welcome whenever it was he worked the sidelines for the second time.

The following we might not have been aware of until the last two weeks:

1. Felix Jones will be a high draft pick next season: In 20 regular-season games with the Cowboys, the second-year running back has averaged 6.5 yards per carry and has six touchdowns on 167 carries. In two playoff games, Jones rushed 30 times for 217 yards and a TD, and he caught four passes for 52 yards.

Marion Barber, who has never rushed for 1,000 yards in a season and has had back-to-back mediocre years, will still be around in 2010 to steal carries, especially at the goal line, but the guess here is the Cowboys will make Jones -- their first-round pick in 2008 -- the featured back.

2. Same goes for Shonn Greene: The Jets' postseason run has been only slightly more improbable than a fantasy development that will get much more notice next season. Greene, a rookie from Iowa who rushed for 540 yards in the regular season, has been the Jets' featured back in the playoffs, not Thomas Jones, who rushed for 1,402 yards and 14 scores in the regular season.

Jones has been hampered by a knee injury, allowing Greene to carry 44 times for 263 yards (6.0 per carry) and two TDs in two postseason games. Jones has 29 carries for 75 yards and a score in that span.

As is the case with the Cowboys, a 2010 time share is likely, but the explosive Greene is big enough (226 pounds) to absorb a 20-carry-per-game pounding. If Greene is allowed to be the workhorse, he should be considered an upper-level No. 2 back.

3. Ravens running back Ray Rice will get strong consideration as the No. 2 overall pick in point-per-reception leagues: Chris Johnson, who became the sixth player in history to rush for 2,000 yards in a season, has cemented his place as the top pick in any format next season. In PPR leagues, however, Rice probably is a better pick than Adrian Peterson, but would we be able to pull the trigger on such a move?

Consider the following numbers: Rice had 2,041 total yards, eight TDs and 78 receptions in the regular season. After Baltimore's bye week, he had 1,392 total yards in 10 games -- which equates to 2,227 yards for a 16-game season.

Peterson, meanwhile, had 1,819 total yards, 18 TDs and 43 catches for the Vikings. In TD-heavy scoring formats, he's a safer selection than Rice. In PPR formats, Rice, who doesn't turn 23 until Friday, would seem to be the pick.

Then there's this: Peterson hasn't rushed for 100 yards since Week 10 against the Lions.

Would I love to have him on my team? Yes. At the expense of Rice? We'll have to mull over that one this summer.

Darrelle Revis is a Pro Bowl cornerback -- a player who is relevant in fantasy only when he intercepts your quarterback and returns it for a touchdown or takes a pick back for a score to benefit your defense.

Revis, however, is so effective that we all must fear starting any No. 1 wide receiver who faces the Jets in a given week.

Revis -- with apologies to the Titans' Kenny Britt, the Dolphins' Davone Bess/Greg Camarillo/Ted Ginn Jr./Brian Hartline and the Raiders' Louis Murphy -- has played against six elite wide receivers this season. One of the game's best, Randy Moss, has had the unfortunate task of being guarded by Revis twice in 11 weeks.

In a combined seven games vs. Revis, Andre Johnson, Moss, Marques Colston, Terrell Owens, Mike Sims-Walker and Steve Smith (the Carolina version) have 26 receptions for 193 yards and two touchdowns. The per-game averages: 3.7 catches for 27.6 yards.

The Jaguars' Sims-Walker -- who, judging by the video highlights on NFL.com, didn't even score his TD against Revis -- is the only one of the six who had more than 35 yards vs. the Jets. The breakdown of the six wideouts' stats vs. Revis and the Jets:

-- Week 1, Andre Johnson: 4 receptions, 35 yards, 0 TDs
-- Week 2, Randy Moss: 4-24-0
-- Week 11, Moss: 5-34-1
-- Week 4, Marques Colston: 2-33-0
-- Week 6, Terrell Owens: 3-13-0
-- Week 10, Sims-Walker: 3-49-1
-- Week 12, Steve Smith: 1-5-0

All of which leads me to make the Master of the Obvious Recommendation that you sit the Bills' Owens tonight against the Jets, despite the fact that our favorite VH1 reality star is coming off his two best games of the season.

With Ryan Fitzpatrick at quarterback, Owens has 14 receptions for 293 yards and two TDs in two games. In nine games before Buffalo entered yet another QB era, T.O. had one TD, zero 100-yard games and one game in which he had more than 60 yards receiving.

If you have a better option as your No. 3 receiver, bench Owens. And hope you don't have your top receiver facing Revis in the fantasy playoffs (we're talking to you, Roddy White owners).

Before we get to the start-and-sit lists for tonight's game, here are a few quick notes on the defenses:

-- The Bills are the league's worst against the run (165.1 yards per game, 16 rushing TDs allowed) but rank seventh defending the pass. Buffalo has the second-most interceptions in the NFL (21), has allowed the second-fewest TD passes (9), and opposing QBs have posted the second-worst rating (61.2).

-- The Jets, not surprisingly, are very good vs. the pass (No. 2, 176 yards allowed per game). New York has given up the fewest TD passes (7), and opposing passers have the third-worst rating (65.9). The Jets rank 13th vs. the run at 108.2 yards per game and have allowed eight rushing TDs.

On to the start-and-sit advice ...

START

Jets: RB Thomas Jones, TE Dustin Keller, K Jay Feely, defense and special teams

Bills: None (unless you're weak at wide receiver and can't do better than T.O. as your No. 3)

Quick slants: Jones rushed for 210 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries against Buffalo in Week 6, a game the Bills won, 16-13 in overtime. He has a rushing TD in six of his last eight games and has had 21 or more attempts in six straight. ... Keller is the only Jets pass-catcher I would play because of his production in his last four games (21 catches for 240 yards and a score). ... The Jets rank second in total defense (283.9 yards per game) and have forced the seventh-most turnovers (21).

SIT

Jets: QB Mark Sanchez, WR Braylon Edwards, WR Jerricho Cotchery

Bills: QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, RB Marshawn Lynch, RB Fred Jackson, WR Terrell Owens, WR Lee Evans, K Rian Lindell, defense and special teams

Quick slants: Sanchez has thrown for only 502 yards in his last three games, and has two TDs and seven picks in that span. ... Cotchery had one catch for 12 yards last week. ... Edwards hasn't scored in his last three games and has four catches for 50 yards in his last two. The former Browns wideout has had only one game with more than 79 yards receiving (he had three catches for 40 yards in the first meeting with Buffalo). ... Fitzpatrick has thrown for 543 yards and rushed for 55 yards in two games, with three total TDs (one on the ground). But he's also thrown three interceptions. ... Jackson (73 yards rushing, two TDs) was productive last week after getting the start over Lynch, but he had only 15 carries for 52 yards and zero TDs against the Jets in Week 6. ... Lynch, who has been bothered by a shoulder injury, has zero TDs in his last four games and has rushed for 43 yards or fewer in five straight. ... Evans, after scoring four times in a four-game span from Weeks 6-10, has three catches for 55 yards and no scores in two games with Fitzpatrick behind center.

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.

We'll make this a weekly staple during the football season -- a mid-week collection of news and notes of relevance for fantasy owners.

On Saturdays, we'll have a column each week for the print editions and the N-H's Sports site (this week's will focus on Anthony Gonzalez's knee injury and a buy-and-sell for some of Week 1's surprise performances). There will also be an audiocast published that morning on our online Sports section.

Saturday will also be when we publish the "big blog," which includes the expanded playlist, five players to start, three to sit and much more. That can be found under "latest updates" on the homepage of our Web site and at www.News-Herald.com/Sports.

Thursday, we held our first live fantasy football chat. The plan for now is to have them every Thursday at 4 p.m. during the football season. Here's a recap of today's.

On to the no-huddle ...

-- Take a seat, L.T.: LaDainian Tomlinson is saying he plans to play this week against Baltimore, despite a sprained ankle that has required him to wear a protective boot. It's fair to wonder if he thinks he can help his team or if he's worried the Chargers are slowly realizing that Darren Sproles, at this stage of their respective careers, is better. If Tomlinson plays Sunday, I would bench him against the Ravens, who held the Chiefs to 29 rushing yards last week and ranked third against the run last season. Baltimore allowed only 3.6 yards per carry and a league-low four rushing touchdowns in 2008.

If L.T. sits for just the second time in his career, I would consider playing Sproles in point-per-reception leagues. The speedy back will never be a 20-carry player, but he has averaged 4.9 yards per carry in his career and is an effective receiver.

-- Cool your Jets: Mark Sanchez could be the next Matt Ryan -- a sporadic fantasy starter as a rookie. Or he could be the next Joe Flacco -- an effective rookie QB with minimal value in the fake game. The Jets quarterback was impressive in throwing for 272 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, but let's not forget it was against the Texans, against whom opposing QBs had a 92.3 rating in 2008. Until we find out in which category Sanchez fits, I wouldn't consider him.

-- What's the catch?: Matt Forte owners should be slightly concerned, but not about the 2.2 yards per carry the Bears running back averaged in Week 1. The number I would focus on is one, as in the times Forte was targeted by Jay Cutler on Sunday night. Forte's greatest fantasy asset is his ability to rack up both rushing (1,238 yards as a rookie in 2008) and receiving numbers (63 catches for 477 yards). But in Cutler's Chicago debut, he targeted former Vanderbilt teammate Earl Bennett 14 times, yet threw only six passes to tight end Greg Olsen, four to Devin Hester and one to Forte. That has to change if Forte is to remain worthy of a first-round fantasy pick.

-- Too much sharing: As expected, the number of teams splitting carries is more frustrating than an Eric Mangini injury report. Preseason Achilles injury and all, Jonathan Stewart (11 rushing attempts Sunday) is still around to haunt owners of DeAngelo Williams (14 carries). Baltimore has two effective backs (Ray Rice and Willis McGahee) and a fullback (LeRon McClain) who swipes goal-line carries, and the Bucs' time share now includes a rejuvenated (at least until he gets hurt) Cadillac Williams (our condolences on the late draft pick, Earnest Graham owners).

Did we mention Leon Washington got just five fewer carries than Jets teammate Thomas Jones in Week 1, or that Correll Buckhalter and Knowshon Moreno each had only eight attempts for Denver at Cincinnati? Then there's the electric Ahmad Bradshaw, who seems to be ready to fill Derrick Ward's former role as the lightning to Brandon Jacobs' thunder. Jacobs had 16 carries for 46 yards last week -- to Bradshaw's 12 for 60.

Rookie Donald Brown had 11 carries for 33 yards in his Colts debut (starter Joseph Addai has 17 for 42),and Beanie Wells' first game as a Cardinal featured seven carries for 29 yards (Tim Hightower had eight carries for 15 yards and possibly the most surprising stat line of the weekend: 12 catches for 121 yards).

Aside from Hightower's receiving totals, which won't happen again, the only encouraging numbers to come from from the Backfield-By-Committee Division were these: 14, 79, 1. Those were Marion Barber's attempts, yards and touchdowns for Dallas at Tampa Bay, compared to Felix Jones' six carries for 22 yards. If Barber continues to get the majority of the touches, he should regain his 2007 status as a high-end No. 2 fantasy back.

-- Closing number: 25.0. That's Eagles backup Kevin Kolb's passer rating in 45 career attempts, which have generated zero touchdowns and four interceptions. We'll address Donovan McNabb's rib injury more in Saturday's blog, but until then, if you are a McNabb owner and are considering using Kolb if McNabb doesn't play, don't. Of McNabb's three backups, the one who might have the greatest value the rest of the season wasn't even on any team's roster in Week 1: Jeff Garcia. Sorry, Michael Vick. I'm no offensive coordinator (even though I can run the no-huddle), but I doubt the latter will have any fantasy impact this season.