SUNDAY RECAP: AFC VARIETY

Chad Pennington- With the critics calling for a change at QB, Pennington needed a big game, and he delivered just that on Sunday. Pennington completed 24 of 31 passes for 286 yards and a TD in the Jets win over the Texans. Questions were raised about how healthy his arm was, but it appeared like it was back in its form similar to the beginning of the season. While it’s hard to start Chad anymore in fantasy, he has a very good matchup in Green Bay next week.

Leon Washington/Kevan Barlow/Cedric Houston- In what should have been a very strong performance for the Jets running game instead turned into a total flop as they totaled only 27 yards on the ground all game long. After looking like the most promising RB on the team in previous weeks, Washington received the least carries against the Texans on Sunday. There is no longer a clear cut number one back on the team which spells disaster for Leon Washington fantasy owners.

Corey Dillon/Laurence Maroney- As expected, neither Patriot RB was too productive against the stout Bears defense. Maroney had 13 carries for 33 yards while Dillon had 11 carries for 40 yards with a costly late fumble. Considering that Maroney is actually getting more carries than Dillon, he’s a great play against Detroit next week.

Willis McGahee- After returning from injury McGahee had a very productive game in limited work. It was a 12 carry 63 yard 2 TD performance that led Buffalo to victory. It was about half of McGahee’s normal workload, but if you played him in fantasy you were surely grateful for his two scores. Next week should be a tougher matchup against the swarming Chargers defense.

Carson Palmer- The Bengals QB had a very rough middle of the season, but he seems to have rebounded nicely for a strong second half of the year. For the third straight week Palmer had a three touchdown day. Despite a season that has been filled with several off the field problems in the organization, Palmer has put up a solid 21 TD 8 INT year. There’s a pretty good chance that Palmer could match last year’s numbers if he continues to play this way.

Ben Roethlisberger- Although Roethlisberger has thrown more than ever this season, that is not necessarily a good thing. The Steelers seem to have forgot that they won a Super Bowl by running the football. Big Ben has become extremely prone to the interception with 5 of his 19 coming in the last two games. If you’re looking for yards, Big Ben is your guy, but he throws way too many interceptions to be any sort of a fantasy QB.

Charlie Frye- Despite flashes of brilliance the last two season, Sunday’s 4 INT performance against the Bengals confirms that Charlie Frye is just not going to be the guy in Cleveland for the future. Frye is a very capable backup in this league, but he is too turnover prone to start. His sideline argument with Braylon Edwards doesn’t help his case either. Expect a veteran QB to be brought in next season.

Fred Taylor/Maurice Jones-Drew- Despite huge performances on the ground from their RB tandem, the Jags were unable to get the win in Buffalo. Jacksonville has been an up and down team all season, but their running game has been consistent every game. Taylor had 101 yards on the ground, while Jones-Drew had 145 total yards and a TD. Jacksonville is one of the few teams in football with two productive RBs each week which makes both guys decent options in fantasy.

Joseph Addai- The rookie RB for Indy was quietly putting together nice efforts week in and week out. Sunday night was the coming out party for Addai as he exploded for 171 yards rushing and 4 TDs. Addai appears like he will get the majority of carries for the rest of the year which makes him a very good fantasy option. The Indy system is great for RBs because they put up numbers there that they wouldn’t anywhere else. Just ask Edgerrin James.

Vince Young- In one of the most thrilling comebacks of the season, Vince Young had his best game as a pro. Young was able to lead his team back from a 21-0 deficit against a banged up Giants defense. Young was helped greatly by several dumb mistakes for the Giants, and he finished with a career high 249 yards passing and 3 total TDs. The rookie QB has shown a lot more consistency than other young running QBs, and he seems to get better from week to week.

Wali Lundy/Samkon Gado- As bad as the Jets running game was on Sunday, the Texans was worse. Lundy and Gado combined for 15 yards on the ground in a very pathetic effort from the entire Houston offense. Lundy did have 68 yards receiving which makes his day a bit more bearable, but if the Texans can’t run against the Jets who can they run on.

LaDainian Tomlinson- Well it was the first time since week 7 that Tomlinson did not run for more than one TD. So what does he do? He throws for his second TD of the season to go with his one rushing. Tomlinson single handedly beat the Raiders while Philip Rivers struggled. It was another example of how Tomlinson is both the MVP and the best fantasy player in the league.

-David Cassilo
Fantasy Contributor