It is becoming more obvious each week as to who the great teams are and for that matter, who the terrible teams really are. The Patriots, Bengals, Broncos and Panthers all remained undefeated moving to 7-0 while the 49ers, Titans and Lions proved to be completely inept on offense.
Denver’s defensive dismantling of Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay’s offense was impressive with the combination of a heavy pass rush and great coverage all game. Rodgers had just 77 yards passing with no touchdowns and was lucky to only get sacked three times as he did a good job moving in the pocket. The Broncos deserve a ton of credit for their relentlessness on the defensive side of the ball, which could ultimately take them very far this year.
The Packers’ receivers just couldn’t get open downfield as Randall Cobb lead the team with six catches for 27 yards. Denver’s Peyton Manning on the other hand, had over 300 yards passing with no touchdowns with three team rushing touchdowns being the difference. Rodgers didn’t pay off for fantasy owners this week and begrudgingly earned the Fantasy Woes ‘Discount Bounced-Check’ belt this week.
Winning games in real life doesn’t always translate to being a fantasy stud as Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton proved on Sunday in a narrow win over the Steelers, 16-10. His owners weren’t impressed with the two picks and 231 yards through the air, but he did throw the go-ahead touchdown pass to A.J. Green with under three minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Dalton favored Green more than usual with 17 targets, ending with 11 catches and 118 yards. Tyler Eifert only caught four balls on eight targets for 39 yards. The Red Rocket is having a great season statistically otherwise and look for him to rebound this Thursday in Cleveland.
Pittsburgh welcomed back Ben Roethlisberger from injury and he threw three interceptions, including a pair in the fourth quarter to seal the loss. The even bigger blow may have came in the second quarter when they said goodbye to Le’Veon Bell, who is lost for the season with a badly-torn MCL. DeAngelo Williams is a serviceable replacement whose fantasy value just made him relevant again like the first two weeks of the season when Bell was suspended.
Unfortunately, we may have seen the last of Steve Smith on Sunday as the veteran wideout suffered a season-ending, torn Achilles in the Ravens win over the Chargers. Hopefully it isn’t the last snap for such an exciting player, but it was an outstanding career if it is.
It isn’t due to an injury, but we may have seen Colin Kaepernick’s last snap under center for the 49ers as he will reportedly be benched in favor of Blaine Gabbert next week. Trade rumors are swirling like the wind used to at Candlestick Park and the team already sent Vernon Davis to Denver for late-round picks. Reggie Bush slipped on cement and is out for the rest of the season with a torn MCL. With Carlos Hyde being in jeopardy of missing time, the 9ers recently signed running back Pierre Thomas because of much needed RB depth. San Francisco is in big trouble and could be years away from competing again in the NFC West.
The Cardinals remain atop that NFC West after improving to 6-2 with a 34-20 win over the Browns. Carson Palmer tossed four touchdown passes and Chris Johnson rushed for over 100 yards on 30 carries, but he did lose two fumbles along the way. The fumbles were not enough to create more work for Andre Ellington who finished with zero yards on three carries. Ellington returned from injury in Week 5 and is yet to earn the kind of reps that would make him fantasy relevant with Johnson being the workhorse right now.
It seems like everyone got injured, fired or benched this past week. Keenan Allen is out for the season, Joseph Randle got released by the Cowboys, and Titans head coach Ken Whisenhunt got fired. Make sure you signup for Brain’s VIP Waiver Wire List to get his list of the top waivers delivered straight to your inbox. For more advice watch our weekly videos to stay competitive and increase your chances of winning the Fantasy Football Superbowl.
