Targets and Touches: James Starks in Spotlight, Reggie Wayne Hits 20-Spot

Fantasy football is all about opportunities. When your players are getting looks, they're usually producing. Targets and Touches is a weekly column that analyzes backfield touches data as well as trends for runners, receivers and tight ends being targeted by their quarterbacks. Let's break it down...

Running Backs

• James Starks is getting a lot of press after his 18-carry, 73-yard NFL debut. He hasn't officially passed Brandon Jackson (four carries, 13 yards; 4-63-0 receiving) or John Kuhn (six carries, 13 yards, TD) on the depth chart, but there's an awful lot of speculation that he's the best runner of the three.

• Neither LaDainian Tomlinson (12 total touches, 61 total yards) nor Shonn Greene (14 touches, 67 total yards) got much done against the Patriots, but they're likely to see plenty of action against the Dolphins. I wouldn't be surprised if both backs had close to 20 carries, with Tomlinson getting the edge in value because of his goal line work and prevalence in the passing game.

• LeGarrette Blount should have another field day this week facing the Redskins. In Sunday's tilt with Atlanta, he had 20 carries for 101 yards and a TD, while Cadillac Williams had just four touches. It's clear that Blount doesn't have much competition at this point.

• Felix Jones (22 carries, 83 yards; 3-8-0 receiving) may have had more carries Tashard Choice (19 carries, 100 yards, TD), but the smart money's on Choice getting the bulk of this week facing the Eagles. Jones is more useful in the passing game, but Choice will likely be used more in the red zone.

• It appears that Anthony Dixon has surpassed Brian Westbrook's fleeting value in San Fran. While both backs had just nine carries in the loss to Green Bay, Dixon's downhill style is the better approach versus the Seahawks, who gave up big numbers to Jonathan Stewart last week. Westbrook's more suited for a third-down and change-of-pace role in Week 14.

• The early word is that Donald Brown (despite just five touches last week) will get the start on Thursday night, but Javarris James (six carries, 18 yards, two TDs; 2-17-0 receiving) has been very effective in the red zone and could see a lot more work. Both Mike Hart and Joseph Addai will likely miss the game, and the Colts signed veteran backup Dominic Rhodes to bolster their roster.

Wide Receivers

• Reggie Wayne caught 14 of the 20 balls thrown his way in Week 13 for 200 yards and a TD, while Pierre Garcon was a perfect eight-for-eight on targets (for 56 yards and a TD). They remain solid at WR1 and WR2, respectively, heading into Week 14.

• No Broncos receiver could break through the Chiefs' stifling pass defense on Sunday, but and Brandon Lloyd (ineffective even with 11 targets against Kansas City), Jabar Gaffney, and Eddie Royal all deserve a significant downgrade based on the coaching change. Lloyd is still a decent WR2, but he's no longer a top option.

• Donald Driver (eight targets, 4-73-1) appears ready to resume WR3 status after returning to the end zone, while Greg Jennings is atop most of the weekly WR rankings this week. Jennings was targeted just seven times last week, but he finished with six catches for 122 yards and two TDs. James Jones remains a fringe producer along with slot maven Jordy Nelson.

• The Giants' passing game wasn't needed on Sunday, so you can throw out the target totals s largely insignificant. Hakeem Nicks is still probably a week or two away, but it looks like Steve Smith is going to give it a go. Mario Manningham has seen the most targets since both receivers went down, and while Derek Hagan had the most looks on Sunday, with eight (7-65-0), he's not a great option once Smith is back. Hagan can safely be dropped once Nicks returns, as he'll likely be relegated to fewer than three targets a game at that point.

• Santana Moss is tied for 11th in the league in targets with 101 (tied with Hakeem Nicks), but he's only scored three TDs. Teammate Anthony Armstrong had a huge week (10 targets, 6-97-1), but the game was already out of hand. Both he and Moss could benefit from a debilitated Tampa Bay secondary in Week 14.

• If Brandon Marshall (hamstring) is healthy enough to play this week against the Jets, he'll probably see a lot of targets, especially since the Dolphins lost Brian Hartline to a broken finger that could keep him out for the rest of the season. Davone Bess led the Dolphins with nine targets in Week 13 (6-67-0) and remains a viable WR3.

• With Dez Bryant out for the remainder of the year, expect more targets for Roy Williams against the Eagles and in subsequent games. Miles Austin led all Cowboys receivers with eight targets last week, but Asante Samuel is expected to return this week and will likely cover Austin.

Tight Ends

• Chris Cooley led all TEs in Week 13 with 12 targets, hauling in six catches for 61 yards. He's a Top Five fantasy TE this week facing the Bucs.

• Antonio Gates saw just six targets, but caught all of them for 73 yards and a TD. Unfortunately, another late game start on Sunday means many owners will likely have to decide to start him before they know if he's active or not.

• Like Gates, Vernon Davis was thrown to just six times, but the explosive San Fran TE converted those modest opportunities into four catches for 126 yards and a TD.

• Benjamin Watson caught 10 of the 11 balls thrown his way for 100 yards and a TD, his best game of the season. Expect another solid outing this week from Watson.