The bye weeks are here. You have to start using your bench this week and scouring the waiver wire to replace all your Cowboys, Chiefs, Vikings and Buccaneers. You know, the NFL is going to get into a fight with the players’ union over extending the regular season. They could just add another bye week and give every team two weeks off during the season. Presto! Another week of televised football and no war with the Union. Just a thought.

Snap

Houston WR Andre Johnson did not practice Wednesday due to an ankle injury.  It’s possible that Johnson won’t practice all week but nevertheless start Sunday’s game against the Raiders.  The Raiders defense does not give up a lot of yards in the air (ranked 2^nd) but they do on the ground.  The Texans figure to rely on RB Arian Foster, the NFL’s leading rusher with 406 yards. It’s a bad match-up for Johnson who will be slowed by the ankle if he plays at all.

Ravens RB Ray Rice missed practice Wednesday with a knee contusion. Check his status after Friday’s practice before you consider benching him.  Don’t let the tough match-up against the Steelers faze you – Rice had two strong games against the Steelers last season.  He averaged 155 total yards per game.

Saints RB Pierre Thomas was held out of practice Wednesday due to an ankle injury he sustained Week 3.  If Thomas can’t go rookie Chris Ivory would start.

Chargers RB Ryan Mathews returned to practice after missing last Sunday’s action.  Mike Tolbert and Darren Sproles can be put on your bench and cut, respectively. Mathews is a very strong play this Sunday against the Arizona defense.  Arizona ranks 31^st in the NFL in run defense.

Lions RB Jahvid Best stumbled against the Vikings last week with only 39 total yards. He also suffered a toe injury that kept him out of practice on Wednesday. An achy Best is not a strong play against the Packers this Sunday.

Browns RB Jerome Harrison missed last week with a thigh injury and was limited again in Wednesday’s practice. Worse yet, it looks like he lost the starting job to Peyton Hillis.  Hillis ran for 144 yards last week against the very tough Ravens defense. You can drop Harrison if you need the roster space and plug Hillis into your starting lineup at RB2 or Flex. Cleveland faces the Bengals this Sunday.

Knowshon Moreno’s hamstring is still bothering him. So it looks like Laurence Maroney will get another start at running back for Denver. Even during a bye week, Maroney is no better than a middling Flex start against the Titans.

The Patriots might regret dealing Maroney and entrusting their rushing offense to Fred Taylor and Kevin Faulk. Faulk is done for the year and Taylor was MIA with a toe injury in week 3.  BenJarvus Green-Ellis is worth a pickup off the waiver wire, but he’s still a risky play for Monday night’s game against Miami.  With an extra day to recuperate, Taylor might be able to return and send Green-Ellis to the bench.  Best to avoid the situation altogether if you can.

Giants WR Mario Manningham suffered a concussion and will not suit up this Sunday. He will miss a favorable match-up against the Chicago defense.

The injury news is a moving target. Be sure follow the practice reports on Friday and the up-to-the-minute advice from our super computer, Mighty Max.

Crackle

Steelers QB Charlie Batch was an unlikely fantasy star last week. The 35-year old Batch had only started four games since 2002, but he shook off the rust and threw 3 TD passes.  However, if you are a Tony Romo or a Brett Favre owner looking for bye-week help, look elsewhere. Batch burned Tampa Bay’s defense. This week it’s Baltimore’s defense -- a much tougher assignment. Don’t expect much from Batch or Steelers receivers Hines Ward and Mike Wallace.

Raiders RB Darren McFadden has been great this season.  Not just good, but great. Last year he teased us with a huge game in week 2 and was a bust the rest of the way. This season McFadden has come up big in each of the first three games. We’ll forgive him for a slip-up this week against a tough Houston run defense.

Giants RB Ahmad Bradshaw has been good, but not great this season. He has yet to crack 100 rushing yards in a game. He won’t this week either. Bradshaw has a tough match-up against the Bears’ top ranked run defense.

Did you waste a draft pick on kicker?  If you selected Saints PK Garrett Hartley, you probably feel like kicking yourself. Last year’s Super Bowl hero is only 4 for 7 on field goal attempts including a costly miss in last week’s overtime loss to Atlanta.  This prompted the Saints to sign 46-year old PK John Carney to a contract so he can compete for Hartley’s job. Do yourself a favor -- Cut Hartley and find the next best kicker off the waiver wire.  Don’t even think about carrying two kickers.

Pop

This is a make or break week for Jets RB Shonn Greene. The second-year RB has struggled so far in 2010 and has been thoroughly outclassed by LaDainian Tomlinson. LT (37 rushes for 208 yards) has nearly twice as many rushing yards as Greene (30 for 106).  Greene can’t afford another poor showing or he will get buried. Fortunately for Greene he faces a Buffalo defense that’s easy to run on. Go ahead and give him another shot.  LT too.

Arizona RB Beanie Wells returned to action last Sunday and had a pretty solid game, rushing 14 times for 75 yards.  He got more touches than Tim Hightower, which is the most important statistic. Don’t hesitate to use Wells from now on, including this week against the Chargers. The Cardinals figure to run more than usual with wide receivers Steve Breaston and Early Doucet out.

Colts WR Austin Collie leads the NFL in receiving yardage.  I don’t expect him to keep that up, but as long as Pierre Garcon is hurt Collie will thrive. Collie is a must-start against Jacksonville’s pass defense.

The Bears’ pass defense is as good as the their run defense has been bad.  This is the week the Giants’ passing game gets on track. QB Eli Manning, WR Steve Smith and WR Hakeem Nicks are strong plays against Chicago.

Hey Jason Witten owners, do you need a replacement this week? Patriots rookie TE Aaron Hernandez is filling the void left by the injured Faulk.  Hernandez hauled in six receptions two weeks in a row.  The Patriots play Monday night in Miami.

TE Brent Celek has not developed a rapport with Michael Vick yet, but he will.  It should start this week against the Redskins, the league’s worst defense.  If you were quick enough to snatch Vick off waivers a couple of weeks ago, keep riding him.