Week 17 Heroes & Zeros

This was a great week to start…

QBs
Matt Stafford, Lions – Amassed an amazing 520 yards and 5 TDs, plus 2 INTs.
Matt Flynn, Packers – Put Aaron Rodgers to shame with his 480-yard, 6-TD effort, with 2 turnovers.
Drew Brees, Saints – Piled onto his NFL record with 389 yards and 5 TDs, with just 1 INT.
Eli Manning, Giants – Dominated the Cowboys with 346 yards and 3 TDs, plus 14 rushing yards, without a turnover.
Tom Brady, Patriots – Passed for 338 yards and 3 TDs, with 1 INT.
Michael Vick, Eagles – Tallied 335 passing yards and 3 TDs, plus 2 turnovers. Only 3 yards rushing, though.
Philip Rivers, Chargers – Threw for 310 yards and 3 TDs, plus an INT.

RBs
Ray Rice, Ravens – Ran for 191 yards and 2 TDs.
Michael Turner, Falcons – Barrelled over the Bucs for 172 yards and 2 TDs.
Ahmad Bradshaw, Giants – Rushed for 57 yards and 1 TD, and caught 3 passes for 12 yards and a second score.
BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Patriots – Had 2 short TD runs to go with 22 rushing yards, and caught a 53-yard pass.

WRs
Jordy Nelson, Packers – Reeled in 9 passes for 162 yards and 3 TDs.
Marques Colston, Saints – Caught 7 passes for 145 yards and 2 TDs.
Calvin Johnson, Lions – Torched the Packers with 11 catches for 244 yards and a TD.
Victor Cruz, Giants – Salsa’d his way to 178 yards and 1 TD on 6 catches.
Michael Crabtree, 49ers – His 9 receptions produced 92 yards and 2 TDs.
Percy Harvin, Vikings – Caught 10 passes for 115 yards and ran for 13 yards and 1 TD.
Malcom Floyd, Chargers – His 7 receptions were good for 127 yards and a score.
Julio Jones, Falcons – Scored twice on his 4 catches for 76 yards.
Laurent Robinson, Cowboys – Took 4 balls and turned them into 61 yards and 2 TDs.
Darrius Heyward-Bey, Raiders – Had 9 catches for 130 yards and a TD.
Dezmon Briscoe, Buccaneers – Came out of nowhere to score twice on 8 catches for 53 yards.

TEs
Rob Gronkowski, Patriots – His 8 catches resulted in 108 yards and 2 TDs.
Aaron Hernandez, Patriots – Pulled down 7 passes for 138 yards and a score.

This was a great week to play against…

QBs
Tim Tebow, Broncos – Passed for 60 yards and an INT, and ran for only 16 yards, with a fumble.
Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers – Played the entire game, but only had 221 passing yards and no TDs.

RBs
Brandon Jacobs, Giants – Had just 16 yards on Sunday night.
Donald Brown, Colts – Ran for 24 yards and caught 2 passes for 15 more.
LeGarrette Blount, Buccaneers – Combined for just 26 yards.
Peyton Hillis, Browns – Just 30 rushing yards, and lost 3 yards on his only reception.
Daniel Thomas, Dolphins – Got his chance to start and only totaled 40 yards.
Rashard Mendenhall, Steelers – Left injured after gaining just 45 total yards.
Shonn Greene, Jets – Just 55 yards on the ground.
Cedric Benson, Bengals – Ran for 51 yards and caught 2 passes for 10 more.

WRs
Santonio Holmes, Jets – Benched for most of the game and held catchless.
Greg Little, Browns – Also had a goose egg.
Mario Manningham, Giants – So did he.
Eric Decker, Broncos – Caught one 5-yard pass.
Early Doucet, Cardinals – Had a 7-yarder.
Steve Breaston, Chiefs – He had a 9-yarder.
Mike Wallace, Steelers – Held to an 11-yard catch.
Andre Johnson, Texans – Played sparingly and caught just 2 passes for 21 yards.
Pierre Garcon, Colts – He collected 22 yards on his 2 catches.
A.J. Green, Bengals – Held to 2 receptions for 26 yards.
Mike Williams, Buccaneers – Had a 31-yard catch to show for his day.
Demaryius Thomas, Broncos – Only 34 yards on his 3 receptions.
Santana Moss, Redskins – Limited to 3 catches for 45 yards.

TEs
Tony Gonzalez, Falcons – Barely kept his streak alive with a single 8-yard reception.

Week 17 Heroes & Zeros

This was a terrible week to vie for a championship, but if you had to…

This was a great week to start…


Ryan Mathews, RB, Chargers – Paid off his high draft status a little late, with 120 rushing yards and 3 TDs, and 3 receptions for 19 yards.
Arian Foster, RB, Texans – Seized the NFL rushing title with 180 yards and 2 TDs, plus 2 catches for 10 yards.
Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Steelers – Ran for 36 yards and 2 TDs, plus a 24-yard catch.
Brian Westbrook, RB, 49ers – Scored twice while running for 79 yards, plus a 14-yard reception.
Michael Bush, RB, Raiders – Rushed for 137 yards and a TD, and caught 4 passes for 34 yards.
Joe McKnight, RB, Jets – Rumbled for 158 rushing yards, and added 2 catches for 15 yards, while LT and Shonn Greene were inactive.

Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Cardinals – Caught 11 passes for 125 yards and a score.
Jerome Simpson, WR, Bengals – Tallied a dozen catches for 123 yards and 1 TD.

Rob Gronkowski, TE, Patriots – Caught 6 passes for 102 yards and 1 TD.

Jets defense – Returned 2 of their 4 interceptions for TDs, added 3 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries, and held the Bills to 7 points.

This was a great week to play against…

Mark Sanchez, QB, Jets – Didn’t throw a pass on his only series.
Matt Cassel, QB, Chiefs – Passed for 115 yards and 2 INTs, without a score.
Joe Flacco, QB, Ravens – Played all game and only had 125 passing yards and 1 INT to show for it.
Sam Bradford, QB, Rams – Amassed only 155 yards and no scores, plus an INT.
Jay Cutler, QB, Bears – Threw 2 INTs without a TD, and just 168 yards.
Philip Rivers, QB, Chargers – Passed for 313 yards but no TDs, with an INT.

Peyton Hillis, RB, Browns – Wrapped up the season with a whimper, totaling just 16 yards against Pittsburgh.
Thomas Jones, RB, Chiefs – Had 17 rushing yards and lost 2 yards on his only catch.
Ahmad Bradshow, RB, Giants – Totaled 30 yards on the day.
Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings – Ran for 31 yards and lost 2 yards on 2 receptions.
Jonathan Stewart, RB, Panthers – Just 31 rushing yards.
Chris Ivory, RB, Saints – He only had 33 yards.
Brandon Jackson, RB, Packers – Combined for 35 yards.
Joseph Addai, RB, Colts – Just 44 rushing yards against the Titans.


Johnny Knox, WR, Bears – Posted a goose egg in the finale.
Jeremy Maclin, WR, Eagles – Started, but held without a catch.
Mike Sims-Walker, WR, Jaguars – Same for him.
Robert Meachem, WR, Saints – Mustered just one 5-yard catch.
Anquan Boldin, WR, Ravens – Concluded a sorry second half of 2010 with 2 receptions for 9 yards.
Devin Hester, WR, Bears – Just one 16-yarder.
Jason Avant, WR, Eagles – Failed to capitalize on his starting opportunity, with a 21-yard reception.

Week 17 Heroes & Zeros

This was a great week to start…

Brett Favre, QB, Vikings -- Hurled 4 TDs while amassing 316 yards, before checking out early.
Jay Cutler, QB, Bears -- Finished a disappointing season on a high note, passing for 276 yards and 4 TDs.
Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Steelers -- Passed for 220 yards and 3 TDs, and added 17 yards on the ground.

Jamaal Charles, RB, Chiefs -- Punctuated his outstanding second half of the season with 259 rushing yards and 2 TDs.
Willis McGahee, RB, Ravens -- Stiff-armed the Raiders for 167 rushing yards and 3 TDs.
Fred Jackson, RB, Bills -- Rumbled for 212 rushing yards and caught 2 passes for 15 yards and a TD.
Frank Gore, RB, 49ers -- Scored twice while generating 132 combined yards.
Chris Johnson, RB, Titans -- The Beast ran for 134 yards and 2 TDs as he passed the 2,000-yard mark for the season. Added 3 receptions for 20 yards.
Arian Foster, RB, Texans -- Rushed for 119 yards and 2 TDs and caught 3 passes for 26 yards.
Knowshon Moreno, RB, Broncos -- Rushed for 50 yards and 2 TDs, and caught 3 passes for 48 yards.
Thomas Jones, RB, Jets -- Ran for 78 yards and punched in 2 TDs.
Fred Taylor, RB, Patriots -- The old man scored twice while rushing for 33 yards.

Sidney Rice, WR, Vikings -- Grabbed 6 passes for 112 yards and 2 TDs.
Devin Aromashodu, WR, Bears -- Continued his late-season emergence with 5 catches for 46 yards and 2 TDs.
Jabar Gaffney, WR, Broncos -- Reeled in 14 passes for 213 yards.
Malcolm Floyd, WR, Chargers -- Caught 9 passes for 140 yards.
Julian Edelman, WR, Patriots -- Did his best Wes Welker imitation, amassing 10 catches for 103 yards, making him a star in PPR leagues.

Visanthe Shiancoe, TE, Vikings -- Hauled in 7 passes for 94 yards and a score.
Greg Olsen, TE, Bears -- He amassed 94 yards and a TD on 5 receptions.
Vernon Davis, TE, 49ers -- Caught 6 passes for 89 yards and the 13th TD of his breakout season.

Chiefs defense -- Scored TDs on a pair of Derrick Johnson interception returns, plus 2 sacks and another INT.
Packers defense -- Scored on an interception return and a safety, notched 3 turnovers and held the Cards to just 7 points.
Cowboys defense -- Generated 4 sacks, forced a fumble and shut out the Eagles.

This was a great week to play against…

Carson Palmer, QB, Bengals -- Threw 11 passes but completed just one for no gain, plus another to the wrong team.
Kurt Warner, QB, Cardinals -- With nothing on the line, sat down after passing for just 31 yards.
Mark Sanchez, QB, Jets -- Somehow managed to lead his team to a 33-0 victory, playing the entire game, while throwing for just 63 yards.
Joe Flacco, QB, Ravens -- With everything on the line, only passed for 102 yards, without a score; but he still got the win.
Peyton Manning, QB, Colts -- As expected, played only briefly, passing for 95 yards and 1 INT, without a score.
Tom Brady, QB, Patriots -- Despite playing most of the game, only tallied 186 yards and no TDs, with 1 INT.
Eli Manning, QB, Giants -- Threw for 141 yards and an INT, plus a fumble, with no scores, as his team imploded again.
Vince Young, QB, Titans -- Tossed 171 yards worth of passes, no TDs and 1 INT, while losing 2 yards on the ground.
Donovan McNabb, QB, Eagles -- Passed for just 223 yards without a score.

Donald Brown, RB, Colts -- In what should have been his moment in the sun, the rookie lost 4 yards on 4 carries.
LeSean McCoy, RB, Eagles -- Ran for 4 measly yards while chipping in 2 receptions for 5 yards.
LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, Chargers -- Hit the showers after totaling just 18 combined yards.
Darren Sproles, RB, Chargers -- Also held to 18 yards, all on the ground.
Michael Bush, RB, Raiders -- While Justin Fargas sat out, he only gained 18 yards, plus 4 yards on a catch.
Beanie Wells, RB, Cardinals -- Just 19 yards on the ground.
Sammy Morris, RB, Patriots -- Though Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk were inactive, Morris only contributed 9 rushing and 13 receiving yards on 3 catches.
Tim Hightower, RB, Cardinals -- Limited to 24 rushing yards and 2 receptions for 4 yards.
Quinton Ganther, RB, Redskins -- Ran for only 27 yards, plus one 7-yard catch.
Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, Giants -- Couldn’t muster much on his bad feet and ankles, running for just 13 yards and catching 2 passes for 33 more.
Ricky Williams, RB, Dolphins -- Only rushed for 31 yards and caught 3 passes for just 14 more.
Steven Jackson, RB, Rams -- Gutted out the finale but only managed 63 yards.

Hakeem Nicks, WR, Giants -- Lost 5 yards on his only catch.
Chad Ochocinco, WR, Bengals -- Held without a catch by Darrelle Revis.
Roy Williams, WR, Cowboys -- Shut out again.
Dwayne Bowe, WR, Chiefs -- Limited to a single 6-yard reception.
Wes Welker, WR, Patriots -- Caught one 12-yard pass before leaving with a serious injury.
Braylon Edwards, WR, Jets -- Caught 2 passes for 15 yards.
Saints WRs -- Marques Colston (1 for 3 yards), Robert Meachem (2 for 12) and Devery Henderson (1 for 18) made only cameo appearances.
Derrick Mason, WR, Ravens -- Held to a single 23-yard reception.
Donnie Avery, WR, Rams -- Only 2 receptions for 23 yards.
Mike Sims-Walker, WR, Jaguars -- Fizzled down the stretch with just 2 catches for 28 yards.
Greg Jennings, WR, Packers -- Just 3 catches for 29 yards.
DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, WR, Eagles -- Both big-play receivers held to identical 3-catch, 47-yard outings.

I didn’t see that coming…

Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, Bills -- Connected on 3 TDs and 155 passing yards in awful conditions.

Zack Miller, TE, Jaguars -- The backup reeled in 8 passes for 69 yards and 2 TDs.