Some Sunday Stylings

Week four is in the books and there were some huge point totals to be had if you could sniff them out.

Big Days:

Mike Sims-Walker: Sims-Walker broke out in a big way against the Titans. He hauled in 7 catches for 92 yards and 2 TDs. Walker is up to being owned in 39% of leagues so he’s still out there. He has established himself as the Jags number one option and should not only be owned, but started from this point forward.

Steve Smith: The former USC standout and current Giant has been torching the competition for the first four weeks. Smith grabbed 11-134-2 and now has four touchdowns through four weeks.

Antonio Gates: Gates killed me in multiple leagues. Stupid Gates. Gates finally got on the board this season and in a big way. He had himself quite the Sunday night with 9-124-2 against the Steelers.

Rashard Mendenhall: Filling in for Willie Parker may have vaulted Mendenhall into starter status. Mendenhall just crushed the Chargers defense piling up 191 total yards and two touchdowns. He’s owned in 37% of league and if you have the roster spot use it on him. It’s still unclear what his role will be when Parker is healthy but it looks like he’s running with his chance and looked better than Parker has at any point this year.

Ronnie Brown: After a poor week one at Atlanta, Ronnie Brown has used the Wildcat to get the touches to make him into a fantasy superstar. This week playing the Bills, Brown scored twice and amassed 115 yards. He now has double digit points in the last three weeks but the schedule gets tougher the next four weeks with a game against Pats and two against the Jets, so watch out.

Hope you didn’t give up on:

Steve Slaton: Slaton finally got off the schneid against the Raiders, who knew the Raiders could be good for that? Slaton picked up 89 total yards along with two scores. The chance to buy low may have just went out the door.

Matt Forte: The same could be said for Forte. Forte looked great on every carry today, 10 yards per carries, and he got his second half touchdown to make his day even better. Forte should be good from here on out with few hiccups in between. He has Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Arizona coming out of the bye.

Injured- A bear of a problem

Both Johnny Knox and Devin Hester left Sunday’s game with a leg and shoulder injuries respectively. Knox didn’t disappoint before leaving, he finished with 5 catches for 31 yards and added 147 yards in the return game including a TD. Knox is developing into an every week starter so lets hope the injury isn’t too serious. Hester on the other hand left after totaling a quality one catch for two yards. This is a highly disappointing result for the match up he had. Not much is known about the severity of either injury at this point so stay tuned for breaking developments.

Matthew Stafford left the same game with what is being called a possible dislocated kneecap. It won’t be clear until a test on Monday to determine the extent of the problem. Daute Culpepper came in relief of Stafford, you don’t want to want to be in business with Culpepper.

More from the triage depart part of the Lions/Bears game; Calvin Johnson left in the 4th quarter with tightness in his legs. Megatron was having a monster day with 8 catches for 133 yards before leaving. He should be fine and retains the same value with Stafford or Culpepper at the helm.

Eli Manning left against the Chiefs in the 4th quarter with a heel problem. It seems he was taken out for precautionary purposes with the game well in hand. Manning has been a stud the last three weeks averaging 261 yards and 2.3 TDs with only one pick in that span.

Week 4 Pick Ups:

Mohamed Massaquoi showed up in a big way against the Bengals totaling 8 catches for 148 yards. He was Derek Anderson’s favorite target all day and could build on this game as it looks like Anderson will keep the job for another week. The rookie Georgia standout is owned in less than 1% of leagues and could be quite productive going forward, if you have some dead weight, give him a shot.

Tashard Choice received 19 touches against the still underrated Bronco’s defense and seems like he’ll be a force as long as Felix Jones is on the mend. He’s available in 59% of leagues and makes a nice depth move if you own Barber or Jones, both of who are quite injury prone.

Jerome Harrison may have fumbled but he still had an excellent day. He totaled 152 total yards against the Bengals and could see more playing time even when Jamal Lewis returns. Here’s to hoping Lewis never returns.

If you need some help at QB, for the byes or with injury, you could do a lot worse than David Garrard. He’s posted 17, 16 and 27 points over the last three weeks and gets the Rams, Seahawks, and the Titans again over the next three weeks. You may want to pick him up, he’s still available in 31% of leagues.

Picks of the week:

Running Backs:

Three Up:

Cedric Benson was looking bad for a while in this one but picked it up in overtime against the Browns finishing the day with 86 total yards, not the end of the world. Verdict: WIN, but barely.

Darren McFadden was brutal in what is sure to have been his best match up of the season, he was in the minus for most of the day. Very, very disappointing. Verdict: LOSS

Glen Coffee didn’t have much time to get the ball with the 49ers defense doing the majority of the scoring. He was still able to amount 106 yards on 28 touches. He should be a quality start as long as Frank gore remains out. Verdict: WIN

Three Down:

Larry Johnson was actually looking good for a while, I’m glad that was halted quickly. Johnson actually had a few nice runs against a tough Giants’ defense but finished with a lackluster 2.5 yards per touch. Verdict: WIN

Fred Jackson finished with 68 total yards and the Marshawn Lynch factor reared its ugly head. Lynch pilfered away more than half the touches that would have normally gone to Jackson. Unless Lynch gets hurt or suspended again, we have seen the end of Jackson as a weekly starter. Verdict: WIN

Fred Taylor did what was expected as he finished with 40 total yard against a tough Ravens’ run defense. The Patriots used a plethora of running backs this week with Taylor, Morris, Faulk and Maroney each getting 5+ carries. That backfield is a mixed bag, I still think that Taylor has the most value there long-term but be tentative. Verdict: WIN

Record: 4-2

Receivers:

Three Up:

Vincent Jackson decided to be a spectator in the Antonio Gates show in Pittsburgh. He ended up with 4-56, not bad but not the quality we’ve been getting used to. Verdict: LOSS

Chad Ochocinco made a highlight reel TD catch in the 1st quarter and followed that up with what should have been the game winning TD grab in the 4th. He put up low yards and receptions but the touchdowns more than make up for it. Verdict: WIN

Justin Gage, much like Run DMC, made me look silly. The circumstances actually played into the favor of Gage with the Titans being down so much, so early but he just couldn’t get it going. Gage hauled in a paltry 1-15 line on 5 targets. Back To the bench you go Mr. Gage. Verdict: LOSS

Three Down:

Ted Ginn couldn’t get into the Dolphins’ scoring parade as Miami wisely kept the ball on the ground for the majority of the game. Ginn finished with 1 catch for 4 yards and a 22 yard run. Hope you didn’t play him.

Verdict: WIN

It’s going to be regicide for Eddie Royal soon, he caught only two balls for 16 yards Sunday, bringing he season totals to a pitiful 8-58 line. He had more than double that week one of last season. Verdict: WIN

Terrell Owens had only 3 catches for 60 yards, which is significantly better than last week’s zeros. I believe he will eventually make an impact but this was clearly not the week. Verdict: WIN

Record: 4-2

Quarterbacks:

2 up:

Jay Cutler didn’t compile the big yards but a 3TD day will be taken by almost everyone. Good on him. Verdict: WIN

Carson Palmer had me worried for a while but finished the day with 230 yards and 2 touchdowns to a pick. He even added 20 yards on the grounds. He’s the new Michael Vick! Maybe not, but it’s still a good day. Verdict: WIN

2 Down:

Trent Edwards didn’t disappoint in letting people down, that’s for sure. He killed all fantasy owners on top of real life Bills’ fans. Yes, all six of us. Despite being in garbage time from about mid 1st quarter on, he was only able to produce 192 yards. The touchdown in the second half to Josh Reed helped him come out of the minus for the day, that’s what happens when you throw three picks. Verdict: WIN

Shaun Hill, like the entire 49er offense, stepped back to watch the defense go crazy. In spite of that, Hill was able to produce a better than expected line: 2TDs and 152 yards passing. Not a huge day but he would have been a good start. Verdict: LOSS

Record: 3-1

Tight Ends

One up:

Dallas Clark produced as usual and can probably be considered the safest tight end from week to week now. Clark finished with his worst game of the season 8-80, not too shabby. Verdict: WIN

One Down:

Poor Zach Miller. The Zach Attack is actually one of the NFL’s best young tight ends, but you’d never know it. JaMarcus Russell is just killing his value. He actually had his best game since week one: 3-33. You don’t want him anywhere near your lineup anytime soon. Verdict: WIN

Record: 2-0

Defenses:

San Francisco was the highest scoring player of the week in any format on the strength of 3TDs and a shutout. Verdict: WIN

Cincinnati's defense proved their worth with a TD, pick, fumble recovery and two sacks. Verdict: WIN

Record: 2-0

Kickers:

Nedney and Prater both at 5 points while Hauschka had 3. Stupid kickers. Verdict: LOSS

Record: 0-3

Sleepers

Washington D/ST had a nice game with a pick, fumble recovery, and three sacks while only giving up 13 points. Not a bad day at all. Verdict: WIN

Michael Bush didn’t break the big one like I had hoped. That could have been the 3 carries doing the talking though. Verdict: LOSS

Mike Sims-Walker, as discussed above, lit it up with 7-91-2. Verdict: WIN

Daniel Fells let me down big time. One catch for 17 yards won’t cut it. Verdict: LOSS

Brett Farve plays tomorrow and I’m hoping for big things. We’ll have to wait and see.

Record: 2-2

Some final thoughts:

- I may have given too little credit to Peyton Manning, he may actually be the best fantasy QB, ahead of Drew Brees, for the rest of the year. While it may seem that way now, I believe that the Colts do their usual foot-off-the-gas routine in the second half, as they should have the division clinched in no time.

- The Browns may have life after all. They scored two offensive touchdowns in a game for the first time in almost a year, it may not seem like much but it’s something. Derek Anderson is clearly better for the Browns at quarterback, he gives value to Harrison and Massaquoi, which is a nice bribe from Anderson to stay in the line up.

- Ray Rice looked really good against the Patriots totaling 152 total yards and the usual no score. He out touched Willis McGahee 16-6 and is one McGahee hamstring problem away from being a stud.

- The Patriots made a nice adjustment to Derek Mason at half time, limiting the old man to only one catch in the second half. If you had Mason in your line up you had nothing to really complain about with a 7-88-1 line. That’s two good weeks in a row for Mason.

- Brandon Marshall’s TD catch to beat Dallas was incredible. We all know the talent is there and that’s two weeks in a row with a TD. He may finally be developing the consistency he needs to be an elite player.

- The Rams are by far the worst team in football.

- The Colts may be the best.

- The Saints defense may be one to add, isn't that crazy to say? They had two TDs this week and will have every opportunity to make plays with New Orleans consistently blowing out opponents. Darren Sharper is a big time play maker.

- The DRE or The Darrelle Revis Effect was in full force again today. He limited Marques Colston to 33 yards. Colston becomes Revis’ 4th receiver shutdown in a row, killing the value of Andre Johnson, Randy Moss, Justin Gage and now Colston four weeks in a row. Don’t start Ginn next week, which actually should just be a mantra to Ginn owners.