Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

Written by: James Burulcich
Edited by: Allie Fontana

Once again, the NFL never ceases to amaze. Who would’ve thought that both an undefeated and winless team would turn the tables on the same weekend? Who would have imagined that we’d see a 400-yard passer, a 200-yard rusher and a 200-yard receiver on the same weekend? Who would’ve believed that both New York franchises would deal devastating blows to their playoff hopes? Okay, okay…maybe two out of the three would be hard to believe. Here’s what I learned on Sunday:

 

1.  New York State of Shock.

Could it get any worse for New York Giants and New York Jets on Sunday? Both teams started the week in full control of their playoff destinies. Not only did each team lose control of their destiny, they did it in horrific fashion. Both squads came out flat and appeared to throw in the towel early on in two crushing losses. Interestingly enough, the Giants and Jets face off on Christmas Eve in what is a must-win game for each team. Judging by what we saw on Sunday, it doesn’t look like either team even wants to make the playoffs. Watch it end in a tie.

2.  Sunday’s Forecast: Brees-y

Could you have hoped for your QB1 to deliver a better performance during the fantasy playoffs than New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees did on Sunday? Brees appears hell bent on crushing Dan Marino’s single-season passing yardage record. He absolutely torched the Minnesota Vikings to the tune of 412 passing yards and five touchdowns. He also posted a new record for the most games with 300 or more passing yards in a single season (12), breaking Peyton Manning’s previous record in the process.  Brees has amassed 4,780 passing yards through 14 games. He needs just 305 yards in two games to break Marino’s all-time record. Is there any way that Brees doesn’t do it this year?

3.  No Undefeated NFL Teams in 2011!

No matter how good a team is, it’s very hard to have an undefeated season. The Green Bay Packers have looked virtually unstoppable this year. Yet they, like all other undefeated hopefuls before them, sustained a seemingly unbelievable loss on Sunday to the Kansas City Chiefs. Was it a case of the Packers underestimating the Chiefs, or was Kansas City simply better prepared? Quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw just one touchdown in a game for the first time all season.  At times, the Chiefs defensive scheme seemed to confuse him. What’s more, now that the Packers dream of the “perfect” season have gone up in smoke, fantasy owners will have to worry about Rodgers being benched at some point in the team’s two remaining regular season games.

4.  No Winless NFL Teams in 2011!

The NFL always delivers great storylines, doesn’t it? Not only did the league’s sole undefeated team lose on Sunday, the only winless team scored its first victory of the 2011 season. That’s right. The Peyton Manning-less Indianapolis Colts accomplished what appeared to be next to impossible by defeating the Tennessee Titans in front of a home crowd at Lucas Oil Field. The defense finally played defense and their offense put up some offense! Incredible! Also, running back Donald Brown’s 80 yard scamper to blow the game open was a thing of beauty (http://www.nflrush.com/video/3329).

5.  Bush’s Monster Rushing Day.

What about Miami Dolphins running back Reggie Bush’s impressive performance against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday? He rushed for 200-plus yards for the first time in his career and it couldn’t have come at a better time for his fantasy owners. Hopefully Bush has silenced his many critics who said that he was incapable of being an every down back. He’s scored a touchdown in six of his last seven games and has three straight 100-plus yard performances. Next up for Bush—a New England Patriots defense that surrendered 252 rushing yards to the Denver Broncos.

6.  Megatron’s Monster Receiving Day.

While Reggie Bush did it on the ground, Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson took it to the air on Sunday. Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford connected with the one they call Megatron for nine catches, 216 yards and two touchdowns in a come-from-behind 28-27 victory over the Oakland Raiders. After three straight Clark Ken-type outings for Johnson, he finally reverted to Superman for his fantasy owners when they needed him most. Johnson’s incredible performance enabled him to achieve career-highs in receptions (81) yards (1335) and touchdowns (14). This duo will be good for a long time to come.

7.  A Three-Headed Wide Receiver Monster.

Heading into Week 15, many of us were concerned about situation with the Dallas Cowboys wide receivers. Who do I start? Which talented wideout will be Tony Romo’s go-to guy? Miles Austin? Dez Bryant? Laurent Robinson? Romo probably made all of you happy last Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, when he connected with each receiver for a touchdown. While none of them had a monster day, you have to be happy when you can get a decent output of 11, 10 or 8 fantasy points on a team that has many deserving mouths to feed. Perhaps the only fantasy owners not happy are Jason Witten’s.  The All Pro tight end hasn’t seen the end zone in four consecutive games. He looks to be the odd man out.

8.  Falcon Frenzy.

I couldn’t forget about the beat down the Atlanta Falcons delivered to the Jacksonville Jaguars last Thursday night. Wide receivers Roddy White and Julio Jones combined for 220 yards and three touchdowns with the former finding the end zone twice. Surprisingly, the best fantasy start of the game was the Falcons defense, however after the Jaguars scored 41 points in Week14, many owners either dropped them or benched them. The Falcons offense should have another big day in a shootout with the New Orleans Saints in Week 16. 

9.  No Comeback This Time.

The Tim Tebow magic couldn’t last for seven straight games as the New England Patriots and Tom Brady crushed the Denver Broncos 41-23 on Sunday afternoon. Denver got off to a great start and scored on its first three possessions to go up 16-7. The tide turned in the second quarter when they handed the Patriots an easy 13 points thanks to two fumbles and a muffed punt. Once Brady and Co. got the lead, they proved too powerful for Denver to overcome. The Broncos hadn’t faced a high flying offense like the Patriots since they were decimated by the Detroit Lions 45-10 in Week 8. Tebow posted a respectable 287 total yards and two scores on the day, and delivered 26 fantasy points (ESPN Standard Scoring) for his owners. As for the Broncos as a whole, this team can win close games with Tebow-mania running the show, however they lack the weapons needed to keep the pace with the league’s more explosive offenses.

10.  Week 15 Fantasy Duds.

We all know which players showed up in a big way for fantasy owners in Week 15. Now it’s time for me to give the proverbial finger to all those guys responsible for ending our playoff runs with terrible performances this week. In my opinion, a fantasy performance of seven or fewer points (ESPN Standard Scoring) from the following players is completely unacceptable: Eli Manning, Shonn Greene, Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz, Jason Witten, Larry Fitzgerald, Adrian Peterson, Roy Helu, Anquan Boldin, Rob Gronkowski, Jeremy Maclin, Wes Welker, Dwayne Bowe, Kevin Smith, Antonio Gates, Marion Barber, Owen Daniels, Jordy Nelson, Tony Gonzalez, Mike Williams, Percy Harvin and LeGarrette Blount. Fantasy owners expected, needed and deserved more. Thanks for nothing, guys!

My next post will be after the Christmas weekend so I just wanted to wish the Bruno Boys Fan Nation a very Happy Holiday!