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Sunday's Best New players step in for bye week casualties
By James Quintong, CNNSI.com This was the week many fantasy owners dreaded. Through an interesting scheduling decision, both the Rams and Vikings had this week off, thus forcing many fantasy owners to use their backups for Kurt Warner, Daunte Culpepper, Randy Moss, etc. A lot of owners already had practice filling in for Marshall Faulk, but this time they couldn't play Trung Canidate. Fantasy scoring wasn't necessarily off because of this, but it just meant you had to look harder for the top players. You couldn't just scoot over to the Rams' box score or Daunte Culpepper's stat line. In fact, some of the top players this week seemed to mimic the best efforts of those lost players. Glance at the top four players this week and tell me those lines don't look a whole lot like numbers that Warner, Culpepper or Faulk would produce. And don't worry, your Rams and Vikings (and Corey Dillon) will be back this weekend. St. Louis has a very favorable matchup with the Panthers. You'll be sure to see some of those names back on the list next week.
Top 10 studs1. Steve McNair, QB, Titans (27-34, 241 yards, 2 TDs; 10 carries, 74 yards, 2 TDs): He's been dealing with all sorts of injuries all year, but he came through in a huge way to help Tennessee save some face. He did just about everything, even though Eddie George did play and was very productive.
2. Ahman Green, RB, Packers (24 carries, 169 yards, 1 TD; 6 catches, 49 yards): Green Bay went to him early and often, and Green got the Pack into the game with his 63-yard dash in the third quarter. Putting up those numbers against the highly regarded Tampa Bay defense is a very big accomplishment. 3. Shane Matthews, QB, Bears (30-50, 357 yards, 2 TDs, 3 INTs): He would've gone on the duds list if not for that amazing fourth quarter that rallied Chicago into overtime before Mike Brown won it again with an interception return for a score. Matthews was getting beat up and done in by tipped passes, but he kept going down the stretch, which led to another Bears win and some decent fantasy stats. 4. Tom Brady, QB, Patriots (21-31, 250 yards, 3 TDs): Who needs Drew Bledsoe? After faltering in a big way last week, Brady took advantage of the Falcons, who have the worst pass defense in the NFL, for another big game. I guess we all got it wrong as to which Michigan quarterback was going to excel this year. 5. Priest Holmes, RB, Chiefs (30 carries, 181 yards, 1 TD; 1 catch, 9 yards): Yet again he surprises most of the experts with a great game against a pretty decent San Diego defense. He ate up the Chargers, although fantasy owners are probably a bit miffed that Tony Richardson ended up with two scores at the goal line. 6. Jeff Garcia, QB, 49ers (26-35, 296 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INTs; 5 carries, 7 yards): He was hobbled a bit by a knee injury this week, and after a pick was returned for a score, Garcia got back into a groove and picked apart a very bad Lions defense. 7. Kerry Collins, QB, Giants (24-34, 280 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INTs; 2 carries, 11 yards): His team got into a deep hole early against the Cowboys, thanks to a couple of mistakes on his end, but he found ways to generate lots of offense while rallying his team. 8. Terrell Owens, WR, 49ers (9 catches, 125 yards, 2 TDs): You pretty much had to expect this from Owens against the Lions, so he lived up to expectations. Anything less than 100 yards or a score would've been a disappointment. 9. Stephen Davis, RB, Redskins (32 carries, 142 yards, 1 TD; 2 catches, 22 yards): It was a matter of time before Davis had his big game, and this was his time. Washington has been vastly improved on offense, and the workhorse Davis will help carry the Skins to some sort of respectability. 10. Anthony Thomas, RB, Bears (31 carries, 96 yards, 1 TD; 6 catches, 71 yards): No 100-yard game this time, but he was pretty much the offense for a good part of the game while Matthews was throwing interceptions. He's proven to be a great passing threat out of the backfield, something he didn't do a lot of at Michigan. Just missing the cut: Peyton Manning, QB, Colts (17-27, 199 yards, 1 TD; 3 carries, 44 yards, 1 TD); Dominic Rhodes, RB, Colts (34 carries, 100 yards, 1 TD; 4 catches, 45 yards); Donovan McNabb, QB, Eagles (19-33, 238 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 4 carries, 26 yards); James Thrash, WR, Eagles (4 catches, 80 yards, 2 TDs); Kordell Stewart, QB, Steelers (22-37, 236 yards, 1 TD; 8 carries, 31 yards).
Top five duds1. Charlie Batch, QB, Lions (8-20, 74 yards): After piling up big stats the past couple of weeks, this time he showed why Detroit fans were clamoring for Ty Detmer, Mike McMahon, Gary Danielson, etc. Maybe he'll have some decent stats when James Stewart can open up the passing offense. 2. Lamar Smith, RB, Dolphins (18 carries, 37 yards): Against one of the league's worst defenses in Carolina, Smith should've put up much bigger numbers, or at least score a touchdown to make up for such mediocre stats. 3. Kris Brown, K, Steelers (1-5 on field goals): Kickers don't usually find their way on any of these lists, because it's often a crapshoot as to how many points they'll score. But missing four field goals, including a couple late in the game, will do it. Brown not only cost Pittsburgh the game, but also took away some valuable points from fantasy owners. 4. Marvin Harrison, WR, Colts (5 catches, 32 yards): He torched the Bills for 146 receiving yards and three scores earlier this year. This time he was held in check as Rhodes seemed to steal the show. 5. Doug Flutie, QB, Chargers (6-16, 76 yards, 1 INT): He was struggling even before he was knocked out of the game with a concussion. The San Diego offense struggled at times, which led to its surprising home loss to the Chiefs.
Top five surprises1. Drew Brees, QB, Chargers (15-27, 221 yards, 1 TD; 2 carries, 18 yards): The highly regarded rookie from Purdue was reasonably sharp taking over for the veteran Flutie. Even though San Diego fell Sunday, the team should be in good hands if Brees is needed for lengthy periods of time. 2. Hines Ward, WR, Steelers (9 catches, 97 yards): The Pittsburgh passing game has improved sharply the past two weeks, thanks in part to better play from Ward and Plaxico Burress. So in a bit of a switch from last week, Ward gets the yards while Burress gets the score. The kicking game failed the Steelers, not their offense, which is doing just enough to get victories. 3. James Allen, RB, Bears (1 rush, 3 yards; 5 catches, 65 yards, 1 TD): He may have been squeezed out of the starting job, but he made one of the best catches of the season with that Hail Mary haul to end regulation. Allen is being used more as a pass-catching back, which seems to suit him much better than the wear and tear of being the starting halfback. 4. Joey Galloway, WR, Cowboys (4 catches, 73 yards, 1 TD): He used to be a very high fantasy draft pick, but now he's barely a spare part on fantasy teams because on the Cowboys that have now trotted out four quarterbacks this year. But he and Raghib Ismail had good games against the Giants, proving they can still produce no matter who's under center, even Ryan Leaf. Just don't expect consistency. 5. Lamont Jordan, RB, Jets (7 carries, 75 yards): He won't get a lot of playing time, but the Jets' second-round pick is proving to be a nice change-of-pace back. He pulled off a couple of long runs at key times during the game, and he actually outgained Curtis Martin. Much like Trung Canidate in St. Louis, Jordan is a name back who will get plenty of attention should anything happen to the starter. James Quintong is Fantasy Sports producer at CNNSI.com.
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