In straight football terms, fans are lighting up sports radio in Chicago and Dallas to bemoan their respective teams’ collapses. Fantasy owners are doing the same on league message boards to verbally eviscerate those players who let them down in this first week of the playoffs.
I spend my Sundays with a notebook at the ready and my head on a swivel. I make notes about squandered opportunities and the statistical progression in support of the FOX Sports Radio coverage and to contribute to the cacophony of voices in the Twitter-verse. In the fantasy playoffs, the ink impressions are a little darker.
Let’s get into this week’s roll call of the players who left owners flat. I have to start the list with two of the game’s elite running backs.
Arian Foster makes a rare appearance in the upside-down “Zeroes” world. Unfortunately, he becomes the headliner when he does so. Foster’s six-game scoring streak ended in Sunday’s narrow victory over Cincinnati. He posted 74 total yards (41 rushing and 33 receiving) and lost a fumble.
Chris Johnson’s recent surge had fantasy owners enthused about the homestretch and possible upset victories in the playoffs. Unfortunately, Johnson was thwarted by the Saints in Week 14. He carried the ball 11 times for 23 yards, and those five receptions for 43 yards hardly moved the needle. Despite the frustrations of this uneven 2011 season, Johnson stands just 125 rushing yards short of 1,000 with three games remaining.
Joe Flacco delivered a win for the Ravens and a solid effort for fantasy owners. Alas, Anquan Boldin didn’t play a huge role. He caught five passes for 57 yards, his eighth game with 63 receiving yards or fewer this season. Boldin has scored once in the past seven games (three all season).
Ed Dickson was on the board because of the “P” word. Unfortunately, he failed to live up to that potential with just two receptions for 19 yards. Fellow tight end Dennis Pitta caught one of Flacco’s touchdown passes.
Owners of BenJarvus Green-Ellis continue to play him out of desperation (in many cases) and because of the frequent red zone appearances by the Brady-led offense. Alas, he did not get to frolic in the painted grass on Sunday and thus, left those trusting owners wanting. Green-Ellis carried the ball five times for 19 yards and was out-gained by Danny Woodhead.
Mark Ingram’s deactivation thrust Pierre Thomas into some owners’ lineups as a Flex or RB3 play. Alas, he produced 57 total yards on 12 touches in standard leagues, though his six receptions did help soothe some of the sting in PPR leagues.
Lance Moore caught four passes for 20 yards and couldn’t continue his red zone magic with Drew Brees. It was his second straight week with fewer than 25 receiving yards, but he found the painted grass in Week 13.
The Eagles earned a 26-10 win over the Dolphins, but there was little to celebrate in the receiving corps. Michael Vick’s return to the field did not translate into fantasy heroics.
- Jeremy Maclin caught one of four targets for 13 yards in his return to the field. He was inserted as a WR2 option in many leagues following news of his activation.
- Brent Celek yielded four receptions for 39 yards. He failed to deliver as a mid-level TE1.
- Jason Avant caught two passes for 35 yards. Riley Cooper was limited to a single reception for 29 yards.
Michael Turner rushed for 76 yards against the Panthers, his third straight Flop-worthy performance. Turner has averaged 60 rushing yards in his past three starts.
Things started nicely for Josh Freeman and the Buccaneers. Freeman rushed for an early touchdown and the Buccaneers raced out to a 14-0 lead. The Jaguars then produced 41 straight points, including the recovery of a Freeman fumble for a touchdown. Freeman passed for 181 yards with three turnovers (two interceptions) and three sacks. He added 26 rushing yards. Freeman played efficient, winning football in 2010. He’s turned the ball over 20 times in 2011.
Kellen Winslow extended his scoreless streak to five games with an anemic two-reception, 38-yard effort against the Jaguars. He’s been a solid weekly performer in PPR leagues, but added zero support in Week 14. Winslow was targeted only five times.
Mike Williams’ three-game run of fantasy-worthy performances crashed in Week 14 against the Jaguars. Williams caught three passes for 35 yards, his lowest output since Week 5 of the season.
The “A.J. Green Express” was derailed by the Houston pass defense in Week 14. Green was limited to 59 receiving yards on five receptions (seven targets). It was his eighth game with a reception of at least 36 yards.
Fantasy owners were salivating when pondering the prospects of the Detroit offense against the beleaguered Minnesota secondary. Alas, fantasy owners didn’t get to cash in chips in the Lions’ narrow win.
- Calvin Johnson was targeted only four times, producing three receptions for 29 yards. Johnson added an 11-yard run on a reverse.
- Nate Burleson caught three of his six targets for 25 yards.
The Jets piled up 37 points on the Chiefs, but the receiving corps was quiet.
- Dustin Keller caught four of his five targets for 34 yards. His two-touchdown performance in Week 12 is the outlier in a run of tepid efforts. Keller has finished four of the past five games with 40 receiving yards or fewer.
- Plaxico Burress was shut out by the Chiefs. He was targeted only twice in the Jets’ blowout victory. Burress had caught at least three passes in six consecutive games prior to this effort.
Dwayne Bowe caught six passes for 69 yards in Todd Haley’s final game as Kansas City head coach. Bowe last found the end zone in Week 5. I don’t believe that I need to elaborate. Jerhame Urban scored the Chiefs’ lone touchdown.
The Chicago run defense couldn’t contain Tim Tebow late, but the Bears did a fantastic job in shutting down Willis McGahee. McGahee posted 34 rushing yards on 17 attempts, his third effort of fewer than 40 rushing yards in the past five weeks.
Johnny Knox was invisible for fantasy owners once again. This time out, Knox produced just three receptions for 37 yards against Denver. In the past two weeks since becoming a waiver wire hero, Knox has caught eight passes for 90 yards.
For the second straight week, Eric Decker was merely a bystander as Demaryius Thomas ascended to fantasy glory. Decker caught three of his seven targets for 33 yards in the Broncos’ overtime win over the Bears.
Alex Smith was shut out by the Cardinals in the 49ers’ 21-19 loss. Smith passed for 175 yards with five sacks. Interestingly, it was only the second time that Smith had been shut out of the end zone this season.
Vernon Davis caught a single pass for 32 yards against the Cardinals. He was targeted three times. Davis has topped 47 receiving yards only twice all season.
Michael Crabtree produced a solid day for owners in PPR leagues with seven receptions, but his 63 receiving yards left owners in standard leagues wanting. Crabtree has caught four or more passes in seven of the past eight weeks. Unfortunately, he’s topped 63 receiving yards with two touchdown receptions during this period.
As expected, Beanie Wells found running room sparse against the 49ers. The shutout streak lived on against the Cardinals. Wells was limited to 27 yards on 15 carries, adding one reception for three years. He remains 57 rushing yards shy of 1,000 for the season with a glorious matchup against the Browns on tap.
Vincent Jackson’s maddening pattern of alternating strong and weak output continued in Sunday’s win over the Bills. Unfortunately, this was the “off” week, and Jackson finished the game with just 55 receiving yards on five receptions. Jackson has recorded eight games of 63 receiving yards or fewer. He’s scored all eight of his touchdowns in his other five starts.
Malcom Floyd returned to the field with a vengeance in Week 13 against the Jaguars. He was nearly invisible in Sunday’s blowout win over Buffalo, producing two receptions for 29 yards. He was targeted only twice.
Brad Smith had emerged as a solid second option for Ryan Fitzpatrick in the past several weeks. He was shut out altogether by the Chargers in Week 14. Smith was targeted five times in the blowout loss.
Fitzpatrick was grossly ineffective against the Chargers. He completed 13-of-34 attempts for 176 yards with two interceptions. Fitzpatrick rushed for 26 yards to offset the points lost on one of the interceptions. It marks the third time that Fitzpatrick has been shut out this season.
C.J. Spiller topped 100 total yards in Week 13 against the Titans. He was absolutely invisible in Sunday’s crushing loss to the Chargers. Spiller produced just 56 total yards on 15 touches (12 carries for 46 yards). He’ll face the stingy Miami run defense in Week 15.
Carson Palmer was ranked highly on the fantasy charts for Week 14 with visions of garbage points. Alas, Palmer produced a dismal, turnover-laden performance against the Packers. He passed for 245 yards with one touchdown and four interceptions.
Jermichael Finley was targeted but once in Sunday’s dominant victory over the Raiders. He failed to corral a high toss in the end zone that was ultimately intercepted. It was Finley’s fifth game this season with 30 or fewer receiving yards.
Ahmad Bradshaw was benched for the first half of the Sunday night game after reportedly violating a team rule. D.J. Ware and Brandon Jacobs ran effectively in his absence. Bradshaw was limited to 12 rushing yards on eight carries, adding one reception for seven yards.
Jason Witten posted his worst game of the season, producing a season-low 12 yards on three receptions. It was Witten’s third straight shutout and fourth game in his past five starts that he finished with 47 or fewer receiving yards.
Do I bother to run through the Indianapolis receiving corps? Pierre Garcon couldn’t replicate his Week 13 heroics. He was limited to five receptions for 46 yards. Reggie Wayne contributed four receptions and 41 receiving yards in the Colts’ loss to Baltimore.
Donald Brown was a borderline RB3 play against the Ravens because of his expected workload. He did touch the ball 10 times, but produced just 22 total yards (28 rushing yards on nine attempts and one reception for -6 yards).
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