Here are the stars who will shine this weekend, and the players who need to sit on the bench.

Advantage

» Roy Williams, Detroit wide receiver: Williams had a good game last weekend against a tough Vikings defense. He had seven catches, 111 yards and one touchdown. The Eagles defense has looked humble so far this season, and Jon Kitna should find Williams open on many occasions on Sunday. Eagles safety Brian Dawkins has a neck injury. If he doesn’t play on Sunday, Williams will have no problem getting open deep in the Eagles secondary.

» LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego running back: Tomlinson was held to 43 yards on 18 carries last Sunday against the Patriots. He will be running with a purpose this Sunday because he knows no team should be able to shut him down. Tomlinson doesn’t need any motivation to have a big game, but running angry against a modest Packers defense should lead to a big day for the Chargers running back.

» Matt Hasselbeck, Seattle quarterback: Derek Anderson threw for 328 yards and five touchdowns against the Bengals secondary. It’s safe to say that Hasselback is a better quarterback than Anderson, so he should have a good game against the Bengals on Sunday. Last week Hasselbeck threw for 281 yards and one touchdown against an improved Cardinals secondary. Just think about what he’ll do to the Bengals.

» Minnesota defense: Sorry, Chiefs fans, but it could be a long season. Minnesota has a very good defense. The Chiefs offense has looked — insert your own degrading word here — so far this year. Yes, it will be the Chiefs’ first game at home, but the Vikings kept a better Falcons offense to three points and gave up 20 points to the Lions. The Chiefs’ woes will continue on Sunday.

Disadvantages

» J.P. Losman, Buffalo quarterback: Losman only threw for 154 yards against the Pittsburgh defense. This week he takes on the Patriot defense, which has looked like the best in the league. The Patriots pressure the quarterback, get interceptions and stop the run just as well. All of these factors add up to a long day for Losman on Sunday.

» Terrell Owens, Dallas wide receiver: Owens faces one of the toughest defenses in the league on Sunday. The Bears’ stingy defense will keep the Cowboys wide receiver in check. The Bears have not let a quarterback throw for more than 200 yards yet this season and they will cause problems for Tony Romo. This could lead to fewer balls thrown in Owens’ direction.

» Larry Johnson, Chiefs running back: The Vikings run defense has looked stellar so far this year. Detroit’s leading rusher, Brian Calhoun, had 22 yards rushing last Sunday against the Vikings and Warrick Dunn only had 55 rushing yards against the Vikings on the opening weekend. All of this spells trouble for Larry Johnson, who has already struggled so far this season.

» Tampa Bay defense: St. Louis is 0-2 right now, but its offense has looked sharp in both games so far. Marc Bulger threw for 368 yards against an improved San Francisco defense last week. Tampa Bay already gave up 20 points to a weaker Seattle offense in their opening game of the season. The Rams offense will roll on Sunday. It’s just a matter of whether their defense will come to play.

­— Edited by Rachael Gray