For those of you new to theRUNDOWN this is what I do. I pick my best team of the week, some nice plays with a few reasons to back up my picks. After that I list a couple sleepers, either decent guys that I expect to have good weeks, or relatively unused guys I like to do well. Then, at the end I list a few usually solid guys that I would leave on the bench. Last week I had one of my best rundown’s of the season – how’d this weekend go? It was a tough week to be one of my sleepers, but my starting lineup basically did work. Here’s the final tally… 152… Check it out!
QB: Jay Cutler vs. Atlanta: Well I was wrong about Jay and it definitely helped me out. A late touchdown gave me just enough fantasy points for Jay’s selection not to be a complete waste, but not enough for Jay to beat me in the leagues I played him in this week. 14 for Cutler.
RB: Matt Forte vs. Green Bay: The Packers played inspired defense against the run, and dominated the Bears on Sunday – still, Forte got 16 fantasy points, a PPR league dream, 60 yards on the ground, but 6 catches for 40 yards through the air.
RB: Frank Gore vs. St. Louis: Gore finished 6th amongst running backs, and hardly played in the second half – getting rest after gashing the Rams early. 106 rushing, 2 TDs, 2 grabs for just 8 yards, and a fumble. Frank finished with 22 fantasy points.
FLEX: DeAngelo Williams vs. Detroit: DeAngelo was outgained by his backfield buddy, Jon Stewart, but Williams got 2 touchdowns to Stewart’s 1 and Williams still rushed for 120 yards on Sunday. He was #3 amongst running backs with 24 fantasy points.
WR: Anquan Boldin vs. Seattle: Boldin did work in Seattle. He didn’t catch a touchdown, but there’s something special about 13 catches for 186 yards – 31 fantasy points made him the #2 receiver in Week 11.
WR: Roddy White vs. Denver: Roddy had 5 grabs for 102 yards, but it was his 50 yard touchdown drop on 3rd and long with the game winding down that I remember most – tough day to be a Falcon. 15 for White.
TE: Tony Gonzalez vs. New Orleans: 8 for Tony, he grabbed 5 balls on way to 39 yards – the old man is as solid as they get.
K: Jason Elam vs. Denver: 2 field goals and 2 extra points – one was 49 yards – so I got 9 from Elam, not so shabby. Maybe I’m kicking this kicker problem I’ve been having for a couple years.
D: Carolina Panthers vs. Detroit: 13 points for the Panthers – they gave up more than I hoped for, but 2 interceptions, 3 sacks, and 2 fumbles made for a solid day fantasy wise.
PAPA’S Week 11 SLEEPERS
Tyler Thigpen: Tyler Thigpen was tied for 3rd in QB rankings this week. Yes folks, he’s still good. A+
Matt Ryan: Matt had 9 fantasy points this week, not a good week for him or the Falcons. I take this one on the chin. D
Ricky Williams: Ricky had 49 yards on the ground, and two grabs for 6 yards – he shoots and he misses. D
Jerious Norwood: I started Norwood over Ryan Grant, now I’m praying for a win tonight. Great. D
Brandon Jones: He was on your free agent list, if you picked him up you got a little bit of yardage but a nice touchdown to make him worth your while. B
Mark Bradley: 3 catches for 57 yards – a huge dropped pass that sent KC home with a 10 point loss. Great. D
Deion Branch: 4 catches for 54 yards, but I’m willing to bet that his addition gets better and better, and you might have found a nice playoff player for nothing. C
Billy Miller: Not much for Shockey on Sunday, but even less for Billy, try no catches in the Saints win. F
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs had a very nice day, they held AP in check pretty much and ended giving up just 10 points in a big win for the Bucs. B
Papa’S Week 11 Splinter-Butts (bench him, son)
David Garrard: I helped you guys here for sure – DG was 28th amongst QBs – not many leagues where that is worth a start.
Willis McGahee: 9 rushes for 18 yards – and you are welcome.
Brandon Jacobs: Jacobs continues to do work. The battering ram did 73 yards of damage against the Ravens in Week 11, and that was on just 11 carries – he also took two of those totes for TDs – I hope you ignored me here, Jacobs was a Top 15 guy in PPR leagues, and ranked even higher in non-ppr formats.
TJ Houshmanzadeh: TJ went gonzo this week, so I apologize. 12 catches, 149 yards, huge game for a very good player. My bad. He also finished the #1 PPR receiver in Week 11. Ouch. Slap in the face.