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Sunday's Best Throw all predictions out the window in Week 6
By James Quintong, CNNSI.com If you like surprises, this week was definitely up your alley. Not only were there tons of upsets on the field, there were likely plenty of upsets in the fantasy football world. There were plenty of bland and nondescript performances from many of the bigger-name stars -- and amazingly sick efforts from some of the league's younger players. Let's take a look at this week's damage.
Top 10 studs1. Trung Canidate, RB, Rams (23 carries, 195 yards, 2 TDs; 3 catches, 37 yards): Marshall Faulk owners were scrambling like mad to pick up Canidate, and those able to secure him were more than happy to see him put up Faulk-like numbers and beyond. Just imagine if he'd played the fourth quarter. Even when Faulk comes back, Canidate may be a decent play if you're desperate for running backs, since he still might get good numbers in part-time work. 2. Jerome Bettis, RB, Steelers (17 carries, 143 yards, 1 TD; 1-1, 32 yards, 1 TD): Hooray! The Bus finally made a stop in the end zone. Somehow, he passed for a score before recording his first rushing score of the year. Given Pittsburgh's solid play all year, Bettis could become yet another big-time fantasy performer by season's end. 3. Charlie Batch, QB, Lions (25-42, 338 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT): So the Lions have yet to win a game. At least now with Batch, they're making things interesting now. It definitely shows you how unpredictable the world of fantasy football can be. 4. Daunte Culpepper, QB, Vikings (18-27, 184 yards, 1 TD, 1 2-point conversion pass; 9 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD): The passing yards weren't much to write home about, but when you add all the rushing totals, Culpepper yet again comes up huge for fantasy owners. It doesn't look like he can be slowed down. He'll find ways to roll up the stats.
6. Jeff Graham, WR, Chargers (7 catches, 107 yards, 2 TDs): While rookie LaDainian Tomlinson is starting to slow down after a hot start, Doug Flutie is doing his best to compensate with a decent passing game. The veteran Graham, along with Curtis Conway, never get a whole lot of publicity, but every couple of weeks one of them will come up big. 7. Peyton Manning, QB, Colts (22-34, 335 yards, 1 TD): Well, he did put up big numbers and he wasn't picked off this time. And he somehow managed to do it without a real No. 2 threat with both Jerome Pathon and Terrence Wilkins hurt. Tight end Marcus Pollard was adequate, but rookie Reggie Wayne didn't make much of an impact. 8. Marvin Harrison, WR, Colts (8 catches, 157 yards, 1 TD): With Pathon and Wilkins out, Harrison was going to get a lot of attention. He stepped up to the challenge with a big numbers game, although his Colts got thrashed by New England. 9. Tim Biakabutuka, RB, Panthers (20 carries, 121 yards, 1 TD; 4 catches, 29 yards): Not surprisingly against a questionable Washington defense, Biakabutuka did have that good game, although you might've expected another score or two had Chris Weinke not been so generous giving the ball away. 10. Trent Green, QB, Chiefs (21-44, 352 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs): He finally got the wide receivers involved, which helped boost his numbers. However, his last-minute comeback attempt fell short, although he piled up numbers doing so. Green is still struggling, but he's starting to gel a little better in the offense. Just missing the cut: Tony Banks, QB, Redskins (17-30, 346 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT); David Boston, WR, Cardinals (7 catches, 131 yards, 1 TD); Michael Pittman, RB, Cardinals (26 carries, 95 yards, 1 TD; 4 catches, 42 yards); Doug Flutie, QB, Chargers (21-32, 280 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 4 carries, 10 yards); Troy Brown, WR, Patriots (8 catches, 120 yards, 1 TD).
Top 5 Duds1. Travis Taylor, WR, Ravens (0 catches, 0 yards): Baltimore's offense hardly got going, with Taylor coming up completely empty. Plus, Terry Allen and Elvis Grbac went down with injuries. It's not good to be the defending champs right now. 2. James Stewart, RB, Lions (9 carries, 17 yards; 1 catch, 10 yards): After steadily improving the past few weeks, Stewart was nonexistent against the Titans. And you couldn't really blame it on a good defense. 3. Corey Dillon, RB, Bengals (16 carries, 30 yards): It wasn't good for the big-name running backs, and Dillon was no exception. He can be very frustrating for fantasy owners, since he always seems to have either really big or really small games. 4. Laveranues Coles, WR, Jets (1 catch, 13 yards): Last week's hero came up empty as the Jets struggled with their offense. In fact, Jets wideouts caught three passes combined. That's definitely not a good thing. 5. Isaac Bruce, WR, Rams (2 catches, 37 yards): For the second consecutive week, both Bruce and Torry Holt came up woefully short for fantasy owners. Then again, Canidate stole the show this week, leaving little room for the receivers. Maybe now that St. Louis is done with the New York teams, things can return to normal.
Top 5 Surprises1. David Patten, WR, Patriots (4 catches, 117 yards, 2 TDs; 1 carry, 29 yards, 1 TD; 1-1, 60 yards, 1 TD): So Terry Glenn was out. So what. Instead, Patten, a former Browns and Giants castoff, put up on of the biggest games in fantasy football history by scoring TDs three different ways, and doing some in huge ways. Will this continue? Who knows? If Glenn continues to be plagued by injuries, I think we'll see Patten swooped up by many fantasy teams this week over the waiver wire. 2. Rod Gardner, WR, Redskins (6 catches, 208 yards, 1 TD): Michael Westbrook has faded quickly out of the picture, and the rookie out of Clemson is doing just fine filling his shoes. Gardner, a big-play receiver in college, had an 85-yard TD, and he seems to be a favorite target of Tony Banks. If you're like me, he probably did no good sitting on the bench, though. 3. Anthony Thomas, RB, Bears (22 carries, 188 yards, 1 TD): Like Gardner, he probably was riding the bench in a number of leagues. Thomas looked good against the Falcons two weeks ago, then James Allen took over last week. Now, the rookie back comes up in a major way this week. Thomas seems to have the most upside, although you never know when Allen can come up with decent numbers. In the same game, Thomas' fellow rookie and Michigan alum David Terrell finally had his breakout game. Look for good things from both ex-Wolverines as the year progresses. 4. Doug Chapman, RB, Vikings (22 carries, 90 yards): Michael Bennett may find himself out of a starting job soon as the backup Chapman looked solid against one of the league's better defenses this year. If Chapman is for real, Culpepper will feel more than relieved that he won't have to carry the entire offense. 5. Derrick Alexander, WR, Chiefs (4 catches, 99 yards, 1 TD): After dealing with shoulder woes for most of the year, Alexander finally came through for the Kansas City receiving corps. While the Chiefs did come up short this week, it's a good sign that Trent Green can find his receivers.
James Quintong is Fantasy Sports producer at CNNSI.com.
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