Which was the worst home loss on Sunday?
• Was it the Chiefs getting buried at home by the Dolphins (more on that in a moment)?
• Did it happen in Oakland, where the Raiders succumbed to Tim Tebow?
• How about the Steelers, Patriots, Chargers or Bills?
You get the point. Rooting for the home team had its moments (San Diego fans enjoyed watching their fantasy lineups), but hundreds of thousands of fans went home dejected.
Let’s start the Week 9 roll call of dismal performances in Kansas City, where Matt Cassel failed in a tremendous spot.
Cassel found himself with a fantastic opportunity against the heretofore terrible Miami defense that played without multiple members of the secondary. Cassel completed 20-of-39 attempts for 253 yards with five sacks. He added 38 rushing yards, so you have that going for you. Cassel has thrown a single touchdown pass in three games since the Chiefs’ Week 6 Bye with five turnovers.
The Dolphins’ hot start to Sunday’s game against the Chiefs essentially shelved Jackie Battle for Week 9. Battle was limited to 40 rushing yards on 14 carries, adding a single reception for nine yards.
There were no garbage points to be found in the Kansas City receiving corps. Jonathan Baldwin failed to build on his breakthrough performance from Week 8, producing a single reception for 12 yards on five targets.
Roddy White was targeted nine times in the Falcons’ blowout win over the Colts. Unfortunately, White registered just four receptions for 76 yards. He’s scored twice in the past four weeks, but those monster games have yet to come to fruition in 2011. White has logged a single game with more than 80 receiving yards this season. He’s tied for third in targets with Brandon Marshall at 78, but has caught just 55% of those throws.
Dez Bryant’s stat line essentially matched that of White’s in Week 9. He caught four of his nine targets for 76 yards, but lost a fumble when he was crushed inside the Seahawks’ five-yard line after a 20-yard reception.
I’ll write about the Colts briefly. There’s no reason to expound on their futility at this juncture.
• Austin Collie caught four passes for 32 yards. I’ll put some positive spin for him here. Collie’s caught nine passes in the past two weeks.
• Reggie Wayne caught four passes for 30 yards. He and Curtis Painter missed a huge opportunity when Painter overshot him on a throw to the end zone in the second quarter. Wayne hasn’t scored since Week 1, when he also produced his season-high total of 106 receiving yards. He’s recorded 77 or fewer receiving yards in eight consecutive games (three games with fewer than 40 receiving yards).
• Pierre Garcon’s time as a fantasy stud evaporated as quickly as it appeared. Garcon caught three of six targets against the Falcons for 22 yards. It was his fourth consecutive game without a touchdown reception, and he’s finished three of his past four games with 52 or fewer receiving yards.
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a late touchdown pass to David Nelson, but he struggled mightily against the Jets as expected. Fitzpatrick completed 15-of-31 attempts for 191 yards with that late touchdown pass and two interceptions. He’s turned the ball over six times in the past three weeks.
Mark Sanchez posted his best yardage output since Week 3 against the Bills. He completed 20-of-28 attempts for 230 yards with one touchdown and two turnovers while absorbing one sack. It was just his second game this season without multiple touchdowns.
Matt Schaub scored an early rushing touchdown against the Browns, but that was the extent of his fantasy relevance on Sunday. Schaub completed 14-of-23 attempts for 119 yards and an interception off of a tipped ball. He rushed for zero yards on three carries.
The Texans knew that they could run against Cleveland all day long with Arian Foster and Ben Tate, As a result, there was no need to test the secondary or get cute with Schaub and the passing game. Schaub’s low totals obviously left fantasy owners wanting, creating huge holes in receiving corps.
• Kevin Walter caught one pass for five yards.
• Owen Daniels hauled in three passes for 32 yards. Daniels’ scoreless streak extended to five games.
• Jacoby Jones caught two passes for 28 yards.
The Browns were roughed up by the Texans on Sunday. Rookie Greg Little was targeted eight times in the loss, producing two receptions for 33 yards. In the past three weeks, the Cleveland offense has regressed markedly because of a terrible running game (more in a second). Little has yielded 11 receptions for 92 yards in the past three weeks, and he’s yet to score.
What else needs to be said? Chris Ogbannaya stands six feet tall. He rushed for 28 yards on 13 carries. Ogbannaya caught a single pass for 13 yards and lost a fumble. I don’t know that there’s much to add. He’s the last man standing in Cleveland, but he’s no better than a late-RB3 against the Rams.
Michael Crabtree continued his ascent for owners in PPR leagues, producing a five-reception, 51-yard performance against the Redskins. In the past three weeks, Crabtree has tallied 19 receptions for 182 receiving yards with a touchdown.
The Redskins held San Francisco tight end Vernon Davis in check once again. Davis caught four passes for 41 yards and had a ball ripped from his hands. He’s topped 47 receiving yards just once this season.
As I sang (terribly) on the Sunday morning radio show, “I (We) wouldn’t get Shanahan’d again.” Every measure was taken to put Ryan Torain on the bench. Unfortunately, some teams were absolutely desperate and were forced to choose the lesser of two evils in backfield splits. Shanahan’d. Torain touched the ball twice in Sunday’s loss to San Francisco. He carried the ball once for two yards, adding one reception for seven yards. In the past four weeks, Torain has produced 33 yards on 21 carries. His 135-yard, one-touchdown performance in Week 4 seems like it occurred a lifetime ago. It’s Roy Helu’s job, if only for a moment.
Marques Colston caught each of the five passes for which he was intended against the Buccaneers, but produced just 52 yards. It was Colston’s second straight lackluster performance in a row. He’s amassed eight receptions for 102 yards in the past two weeks following the monster performances against the Colts and Tampa Bay.
Daniel Thomas returned from a hamstring injury to participate in Sunday’s win over the Chiefs, but he took a back seat to breakout performer Reggie Bush. Thomas carried the ball seven times and fell forward for 12 yards.
The Dolphins thumped the Chiefs in Kansas City on Sunday, but wide receiver Davone Bess played no role in the blowout. Bess was targeted three times, registering a single reception for zero yards. Owners in PPR leagues had looked to him as a low-end WR4. Enjoy the single point.
The Titans were supposed to lean toward Javon Ringer this week, right? Ringer carried the ball just four times for 11 yards in Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, adding a single reception for 14 yards. Chris Johnson might not be the Chris Johnson you’d hoped to see, but it appears that Mike Munchak is reticent to pull the plug on him. Money plays.
We all love Demaryius Thomas’ potential. That potential isn’t likely to be realized in the Tim Tebow-led offense. Thomas was targeted twice in Sunday’s win over Oakland. He finished with a single reception for 29 yards. In the past two weeks, Thomas has produced 39 yards on two receptions.
Willis McGahee returned to action with a vengeance. As such, Knowshon Moreno returned to his role of bystander. Moreno touched the ball four times for eight yards (two carries for four yards).
The New York Giants did a fantastic job in containing the vaunted New England passing attack overall on Sunday. Still, Wes Welker, Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez delivered solid fantasy lines. Deion Branch was no so fortunate. He was targeted five times, but produced only two receptions for 21 yards. Branch has scored in three of the Patriots’ past five games, though he finished three of those five games with 36 receiving yards or fewer.
Week 9 Fantasy Studs and Duds | Fantasy Football News and Notes
