Reviewing Week 4

Star Of Stars 

QB: Tom Brady – Definitely not unforeseen, we witnessed vintage Tom Brady this past Sunday – 340 yards passing, 3 TDs and 0 INTs, along with a 4-yard rushing TD. Only surprise was the slow start by the Pats – 45 of their 52 points came in the second half. If you had the privilege of drafting Brady, make sure to appreciate his greatness.

RB: Chris Johnson – OK, so CJ2K (as he was referred to a few seasons ago) did not find the endzone, but he did rush for 141 yards on 25 carries, and against a terrific Texans defense. Johnson managed to find his way onto the waiver wire in some leagues (big mistake), so if he’s sitting there in your league, grab him ASAP. Does this week’s performance mean that Johnson will justify his first/second round selection? Not yet, but it does provide hope that he will continue to turn his season around. If Johnson was a stock, he would be upgraded to a ‘hold’ rating from a ‘sell’ rating.  

WR: Roddy White – With heavy accolades showered on teammate Julio Jones this season, Roddy White reminded the football world that he’s still a stud, with 8 catches, 169 yards and 2 TDs on Sunday. The Falcons, like the Patriots, are absolutely loaded offensively. Both White and Jones should continue to perform at or very near WR1 levels this season.

TE: Rob Gronkowski – Managers who drafted Gronk in the second round (or even moreso late first round) had to like what they saw this week. While not a massive explosion, Gronk did top 100 receiving yards and caught 1 TD. As predicted in the draft guide, Gronk was likely headed towards a 12-TD type season rather than the 17 TDs he had last season. Don’t be greedy – 12 TDs is fantastic production from the TE spot.

Unforeseen Explosions

QB: Kevin Kolb – Kolb did have 2 INTs this week, but he also passed for 324 yards and 3 TDs. Those numbers will do just fine for fantasy purposes. Kolb appears to be getting more comfortable each week, and with Larry Fitzgerald and company as receiving targets, he should be able to post QB2 numbers. He should not be starting for your team on a regular basis, but as a bye week fill-in, or in a juicy matchup, he should be fine. 

RB: Brandon Bolden – If you had the foresight to start Brandon Bolden, you are either 1) in an incredibly deep league (like 24 teams), or 2) in the wrong industry, and should instead be in the sports betting industry. Considering that Bolden had 15 yards total coming into this game, a line of 16 carries, 137 yards and 1 TD certainly qualifies as an unforeseen explosion. As for what’s to come, I would not expect this to be a trend.  Not that Bolden doesn’t have talent, but rather the Patriots offense is stacked, and too many mouths to feed. If you have Shane Vereen, you should feel comfortable dropping him. 

WR: Brian Hartline – In case any doubt existed about the identity of Ryan Tannehill’s favorite target -12 catches, 253 yards and a TD cemented Hartline’s status as the top Dolphin WR to own.  If Hartline is still available in your league, go get him now!  For the remainder of the season, you should expect solid WR3 production, and perhaps a bit more. We shall see.

TE: Scott Chandler – Kudos to those of you who started Chandler at TE – you were rewarded with 4 catches for 62 yards, and most importantly, 2 TDs. Chandler has had himself a nice season so far, as he has 4 TDs so far this season. This season’s TE pool is as deep as ever, and Chandler should be viewed as a high end TE2, and with the possibility of working his way into low end TE1 status as the season goes on. We just need to see more.

Week 5 Projections

Quarterbacks

1. Aaron Rodgers, Packers (at Colts)

2. Drew Brees, Saints (Chargers)

3. Matt Ryan, Falcons (at Redskins)

4. Robert Griffin III, Redskins (Falcons)

5. Tom Brady, Patriots (Broncos)

6. Joe Flacco, Ravens (at Chiefs)

7. Eli Manning, Giants (Browns)

8. Philip Rivers, Chargers (at Saints)

9. Cam Newton, Panthers (Seahawks)

10. Michael Vick, Eagles (at Steelers)

11. Andy Dalton, Bengals (Dolphins)

12. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers (Eagles)

13. Peyton Manning, Broncos (at Patriots)

14. Jay Cutler, Browns (at Jaguars)

15. Matt Schaub, Texans (at Jets)

16. Christian Ponder, Vikings (Titans)

17. Andrew Luck, Colts (at Packers)

18. Kevin Kolb, Cardinals (at Rams)

19. Matt Hasselbeck, Titans (at Vikings)

20. Alex Smith, 49ers (Bills) 

Running Backs

1. Arian Foster, Texans (at Jets)

2. Marshawn Lynch, Seahawks (at Chiefs)

3. Ray Rice, Ravens (at Chiefs)

4. Adrian Peterson, Vikings (Titans)

5. LeSean McCoy, Eagles (at Steelers)

6. Frank Gore, 49ers (Bills)

7. Jamaal Charles, Chiefs (Ravens)

8. Trent Richardson, Browns (at Giants)

9. Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars (Bears)

10. Ryan Mathews, Chargers (at Saints)

11. Michael Turner, Falcons (at Redskins)

12. Alfred Morris, Redskins (Falcons)

13. Reggie Bush, Dolphins (at Bengals)

14. Willis McGahee, Broncos (at Patriots)

15. Matt Forte, Bears (at Jaguars)

16. Darren Sproles, Saints (Chargers)

17. Stevan Ridley, Patriots (Broncos)

18. Ahmad Bradshaw, Giants (Browns)

19. Donald Brown, Colts (Packers)

20. Fred Jackson, Bills (at 49ers)

21. Chris Johnson, Titans (at Vikings)

22. BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Bengals (Dolphins)

23. Ryan Williams, Cardinals (at Rams)

24. Jackie Battle, Chargers (at Saints)

25. C.J. Spiller, Bills (at 49ers)

26. Brandon Bolden, Patriots (Broncos)

27. DeAngelo Williams, Panhters (Seahawks)

28. Ben Tate, Texans (at Jets)

29. Shonn Greene, Jets (Texans)

30. Pierre Thomas, Saints (Chargers) 

Wide Receiver

1. A.J. Green, Bengals (Dolphins)

2. Victor Cruz, Giants (at Redskins)

3. Andre Johnson, Texans (at Jets)

4. Roddy White, Falcons (at Redskins)

5. Julio Jones, Falcons (at Redskins)

6. Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals (at Rams)

7. Brandon Marshall, Bears (at Jaguars)

8. Percy Harvin, Vikings (Titans)

9. Torrey Smith, Ravens (at Chiefs)

10. Mike Wallace, Steelers (Eagles)

11. Marques Colston, Saints (Chargers)

12. Jordy Nelson, Pacers (at Colts)

13. Wes Welker, Patriots (Broncos)

14. Reggie Wayne, Colts (Packers)

15. Steve Smith, Panthers (Seahawks)

16. Brandon Lloyd, Patriots (Broncos)

17. Dwayne Bowe, Chiefs (Ravens)

18. DeMaryius Thomas, Broncos (at Patriots)

19. DeSean Jackson, Eagles (at Steelers)

20. Antonio Brown, Steelers (Eagles)

21. Steve Johnson, Bills (at 49ers)

22. Eric Decker, Broncos (at Patriots)

23. James Jones, Packers (at Colts)

24. Andrew Hawkins, Bengals (Dolphins)

25. Jeremy Maclin, Eagles (at Steelers)

26. Pierre Garcon, Redskins (Falcons)

27. Brian Hartline, Dolphins (at Bengals)

28. Michael Crabtree, 49ers (Bills)

29. Malcom Floyd, Chargers (at Saints)

30. Brandon LaFell, Panthers (Seahawks)

Tight End

1. Jimmy Graham, Saints (Chargers)

2. Rob Gronkowski, Patriots (Broncos)

3. Vernon Davis, 49ers (Bills)

4. Antonio Gates, Chargers (at Saints

5. Jermichael Finley, Packers (at Colts)

6. Dennis Pitta, Ravens (at Chiefs)

7. Tony Gonzalez, Falcons (at Redskins)

8. Martellus Bennett, Giants (Browns)

9. Kyle Rudolph, Vikings (Titans)

10. Greg Olsen, Panthers (Seahawks)

11. Fred Davis, Redskins (Falcons)

12. Coby Fleener, Colts (Packers)

13. Brent Celek, Eagles (at Steelers)

14. Heath Miller, Steelers (Eagles)

15. Jacob Tamme, Broncos (at Patriots)

16. Owen Daniels, Texans (at Jets)

17. Jermaine Gresham, Bengals (Dolphins)

18. Marcedes Lewis, Jaguars (Bears)

19. Jared Cook, Titans (at Vikings)

20. Scott Chandler, Bills (at 49ers)