The fantasy football season has concluded in many leagues, and will reach it’s denouement in other leagues shortly. And with that in mind, and a new year upon us, now seems like a good time to review, position-by-position, what went on this season, and compare it to what we thought would happen going into the year. (Note: All statistics are through Week 16)

QUARTERBACKS

BIGGEST BUST - Matt Cassel, Kansas City: After being traded to the Chiefs and signing a big new contract, Cassel came into this season as, at worst, a QB2, with some fantasy football owners considering him as a possible low-end starter, depending on the match-up. He hasn’t lived up to the contract he signed, and he wasn’t even on most fantasy radars after the beginning of the season. He is 21st in the NFL in passing yards with 2,717, tied for 20th in touchdown throws with 16, is tied for seventh in the league with 15 interceptions, and is 28th with a completion percentage of 55.0.

- Runners-Up: Jay Cutler, David Garrard

BEST VALUE - Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos: Orton was considered far down the totem pole of fantasy quarterbacks, and though he certainly wasn’t an every week starter, he was solid enough to play if the match-up was correct. He threw for 20 touchdowns, which was tied for 16th in the NFL, and 3,371 yards, which was 15th. Orton didn’t hurt his fantasy owners with negative points much, either, throwing only eight interceptions.

- Runners Up:  Joe Flacco, Ben Roethlisberger

RUNNING BACKS

BIGGEST BUST - Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders: While nobody had McFadden as a first-round pick, it was generally thought that he would make a solid contribution as a RB2, or flex play on most weeks. To say that hasn’t happened is an understatement. McFadden was on most waiver wires at the end of the season with numbers that were paltry even when you consider the fact that he missed four games. The former Arkansas Razorbacks star has run for 348 yards, at 3.5 per carry, and just one touchdown, with 21 catches for 245 yards. If anybody told you before the season that McFadden would have three times the amount of lost fumbles as he did touchdowns going into the season’s final week, would you have believed it?

- Runners Up: Steve Slaton, Larry Johnson

BEST VALUE - Rashard Mendenhall, Pittsburgh Steelers: This was a close call, as both Ray Rice and Ricky Williams were close, but they were likely drafted higher than Mendenhall. But considering that Mendenhall didn’t play much last season due to injury, and had all of 45 yards through the season’s first three games, he gets the nod. Mendenhall is 11th in the NFL in rushing with over 1,000 yards, and has scored seven touchdowns.

- Runners Up: Rice, Williams

WIDE RECEIVERS

BIGGEST BUST - T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Seattle Seahawks: Houshmandzadeh came to Seattle over Minnesota in part because he liked the team’s quarterback situation more. That turned out to be a great thing for the Vikings, who saw players like Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin emerge, while Houshmandzadeh struggled all season, ranking 29th in the NFL with 845 receiving yards, and, most disappointingly, just three touchdown catches, which ranks him tied for 66th in the league, and behind players like Louis Murphy and James Jones.

- Runners Up: Terrell Owens, Ted Ginn

BEST VALUE - Miles Austin, Dallas Cowboys: If Austin was drafted at all in fantasy leagues, it was near the bottom of the draft. And through the season’s first four weeks, you saw why, as he caught just five passes for 81 yards in the first quarter of the season. But he caught 10 passes for 250 yard and two scores in Week 5 in Kansas City, and is now fifth in the NFL with 1,230 receiving yards and fourth with 11 touchdown catches.

- Runners Up: Sidney Rice, Mike Sims-Walker

TIGHT ENDS

BIGGEST BUST - Anthony Fasano, Miami Dolphins: After catching 34 passes for 454 yards and seven touchdowns last year, many fantasy owners believed Fasano was on his way to bigger and better things in his fourth season. Unfortunately, he’s gone backwards, and has just two touchdowns among his 29 receptions, along with 298 receiving yards, which is 29th in the NFL among tight ends.

- Runners Up: Martellus Bennett, Bo Scaife

BEST VALUE - Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers: Fantasy owners have been waiting for Davis to break out, but after he regressed statistically last season, many had given up hope. He was still a draftable player, but nobody believed he’d accomplish what he has so far this season. He’s more than doubled his numbers in every category from 2008 to this season, and has 72 receptions for 876 yards. More importantly, he’s caught 12 touchdown passes, which is tied for second in the NFL.

- Runners Up: Jermichael Finley, Brent Celek

• By rushing for 206 yards against the Giants, Jonathan Stewart has now passed 1000 rushing yards for the season joining teammate DeAngelo Williams.  The 2009 Panthers are just the sixth team in NFL history to have two players reach 1000 rushing yards in the same season.  The other teams to do it were the 2008 Giants, 2006 Falcons, 1985 Browns, 1976 Steelers, and 1972 Dolphins.

• Only two wide receivers have had at least 790 receiving yards in every season since 2003.  One is someone who you would expect: Reggie Wayne, but the other is one of the most underrated, yet consistent, players in the league.  It is Wayne’s former UM teammate, Santana Moss.

• Brandon Marshall joined Wes Welker (2007-09), Marvin Harrison (1999-02), Herman Moore (1995-97), and Jerry Rice (1994-96) as the only players in NFL history to post three consecutive seasons of both 100 receptions and 1000 receiving yards.

• Cadillac Williams ran for 129 yards in the Buccaneers upset of the Saints.  It was Williams’ first 100-yard rushing game in 1134 days, or since November 19, 2006.

• David Garrard has thrown 203 passes on the road this season-but only one of them has gone for a touchdown. 12 of his 13 TD passes have been in home games.

• Chad Henne has as many 300-yard passing games in December as Vince Young and Alex Smith have in their careers…combined.

• *Gem of the Week* Chris Johnson’s 142 rushing yards vs. the Chargers tied an NFL record for the most rushing yards in a game on a Friday.  His mark tied that of the unforgettable Carlton “Cookie” Gilchrist who also had 142 yards for the Broncos in 1962.

• Andre Johnson has reached 1500 receiving yards for the second season in a row which is something that only one other player has done before and it’s not Jerry Rice.  Marvin Harrison did it in 2001 and 2002.  Rice reached 1500 receiving yards in a season four times in his career but none were consecutively.

• Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan became only the 6th and 7th QBs in NFL history to pass for at least 6000 yards and 35 TDs thru their first two years in the league.

• Since David Garrard threw 2 picks and Aaron Rodgers did not throw any on Sunday, Rodgers leapfrogged Garrard to become the all-time leader in lowest interception percentage.  In other words, no QB in NFL history has had a fewer percentage of his passes intercepted than Rodgers has had (1.9%).

• Drew Stanton threw 3 INTs against the 49ers before being benched and he now has a passer rating of 26.1 on the season.  That rating is the lowest by a QB since Babe Laufenberg had a rating of 16.9 in 1990 (minimum of 50 pass attempts).

Warning – a good start to a fantasy season is not always what it seems. It’s great to have a quarterback on your squad who is outperforming expectations early in the season, and it’s even better if they continue to play well throughout the year. But as any veteran fantasy owner will tell you, that doesn’t always happen. One reason why? Schedule. A player who has faced a beer-belly soft schedule can take advantage of that, only to run into stiffer competition later in the season. Here are some players who fall under that category. By no means is this proof that these players will completely fall off the grid as the season progresses, just don’t be surprised to see their numbers ebb somewhat.

Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings: Favre has surprised many with the outstanding play he’s shown thus far. He’s currently third in the NFL in quarterback rating, completion percentage and touchdown passes, yet he hasn’t faced the league’s most daunting pass defenses. Through Minnesota’s first six games, he’s faced a pass defense ranked better than 20th just one time, and four teams who are 17th or worse in passing touchdowns allowed. Things will get a bit more difficult as the season progresses, as the Vikings play six teams the rest of the way who are ranked 14th or better in pass defense, including the Panthers and Giants, who are first and second in the NFL in that category.

Matt Schaub, Houston Texans: Schaub is excelling, leading the league with 14 passing scores and is second with 1,810 passing yards. His schedule has not consisted of the highest quality pass-defense, though. In fact, of the six games Schaub has played, four have come against the five worst pass defenses in the NFL, and just one has come against a team in the top half of the league in defending the pass. Over the rest of his season, Schaub will still face some easy competition in the form of division foes Tennessee and Jacksonville, but he’ll also go up against four teams who are in the top-10 in pass defense.

Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens: Flacco is currently fourth in the NFL in passing yards, third in completions, and tied for sixth in touchdown throws. Yet four of the six teams he’s gone up against have ranked 23rd or worse in pass defense. Moving forward, seven of his remaining ten games are against teams who are in the top-half of the league in pass defense, and five are against teams who rank 12th or better in that category.

Poor Joe Flacco. Baltimore’s up-and-coming quarterback was brilliant in Sunday’s game against the Vikings. He passed for 385 yards and two touchdowns on the day, and he led the Ravens’ two minute offense 41 yards with no timeouts to Minnesota’s 26-yard line with :02 showing on the clock.

But it was all in vain. A blown field goal as time expired ended hopes of handing Minnesota’s its first loss of the season, and for the second week in a row Flacco found himself powerless on the sideline as the Ravens lost another gut-wrencher.

Last week against Cincinnati he drove the Ravens 69 yards and scored a go-ahead touchdown with 6:59 to play. On the Ravens next possession he drained the clock to 2:28 and put the Ravens in a spot to pin the Bengals deep with a punt. A touchback was followed by an 80-yard touchdown drive by Cincinnati that left Flacco with too little time to make a comeback. It was Cincinnati’s second consecutive loss after their 3-0 start.

Today was no different. Flacco sat on the sideline and watched Brett Favre drive 66 yards, draining Baltimore’s timeouts to set Ryan Longwell up with a 31-yard field goal. Longwell nailed it to put the Vikings ahead 33-31 with just under two minutes to play.

On the ensuing possession Flacco did his best Favre-impression, standing toe-to-toe with a future hall of fame quarterback (assuming he does really retire at some point). Operating out of shotgun he drove the Ravens down the field, completing 4-of-6 for 38 yards before trying to catch the Vikings off-guard with a deep toss off a fake spike. On the next play he handed off to Ray Rice before spiking the ball with :02.

Flacco put his faith in second year kicker Steven Hauschka, just as Brett Favre had trusted Ryan Longwell. This time, however, Hauschka pushed the kicked wide left as Flacco’s heart sunk on the sideline.

He’s not a perfect quarterback, and that’s not the argument here. He threw three interceptions in the two games before the matchup at Minnesota and his completion percentage against New England was an abysmal 57 percent, and he threw two interceptions in the loss.

The point here is, he’s put the Ravens in a position to win every single game this season. Even against New England, he led the Ravens to the 14-yard line and threw a perfect pass to Mark Clayton on fourth down.

He dropped it.

Despite consistently putting the Ravens in a position to win Baltimore has only come out on top half the time. The past three weeks of the season they’ve been on the losing end of games. This team, if it could pull through in the final minutes of games, would be undefeated. They’re far better than the record shows; Baltimore is still my favorite to win the AFC North, despite being third in the division at this stage. Their week seven bye could not have come at a better time, and I think we’ll see a rejuvenated franchise when they return to the field next week.

And if the rest of the team is reinvigorated we’re going to see the Ravens with their full potential. Joe Flacco is at that stage; it’s time for the rest of the team to join him and win some more ball games.

Overview

After dropping their last two matchups by six and three point margins, the Baltimore Ravens travel to Minnesota where they face the 5-0, and seemingly unstoppable, Minnesota Vikings. Baltimore will have its hands full trying to contain Adrian Peterson and the Vikings passing game which has come alive in recent weeks.

When Baltimore has the ball, expect the team to first work on establishing the running game. The Vikings have one of the best defensive lines in the NFL and a top ten rushing defense, but the Ravens struggle in games in which the offense loses its 50-50 run-pass balance.

Injuries

Baltimore: T Jared Gaither (neck) is doubtful

Minnesota: WR Percy Harvin (shoulder) is questionable and will likely be a game time decision

When Baltimore has the Ball

Joe Flacco must improve his passing efficiency and limit turnovers if the Ravens hope to win. During Baltimore’s 3-0 start to the season Flacco completed 65 percent of his passes, averaging 8.1 yards per attempt, and threw six touchdowns and just two interceptions. In the Ravens last two losses he’s completed 63 percent of his passes, averaged just 5.8 yards per attempt, and thrown three touchdowns and three interceptions. The point difference in Baltimore’s losses — a combined nine point margin — can be traced back to the turnovers.

Perhaps Baltimore’s gameplan can transition this week. Willis McGahee and Ray Rice have averaged a combined 16 carries per game in losses and 23 carries per game in wins. Rice’s yards per carry average has been largely the same regardless of the outcome, so perhaps a few more carries his way could open up the passing game this week.

Speaking of the passing game, Rice also leads the team in receptions this season with 23. Todd Heap is second with 21. All-in-all, 56 percent of Flacco’s completions have been to running backs or tight ends; he especially targeted that group in last week’s loss to Cincinnati, completing 82 percent to the short-yardage guys.

The primary issue with targeting running backs and tight ends is their yards per reception average tends to be significantly lower than the wide receivers’. Both Rice and Heap have more receptions this season than Derrick Mason, Kelley Washington, and Mark Clayton, but all three of those players have more receiving yards because each averages at least 2.5 yards per catch more than Rice or Heap. Flacco must work the ball to receivers more frequently to prevent stalled drives and put points on the board. That last point is clearly important this season, as evidenced by the offense’s scores per game in wins (34 points) vs. losses (17.5 points).

When Minnesota has the Ball

Adrian Peterson is going to have some trouble running against Baltimore’s 4th ranked rushing defense. Last week they allowed a season high 120 yards to Cedric Benson on 27 carries, but prior to that they allowed just 65 rushing yards per game.

If Peterson does struggle, the Vikings are comfortable passing the football with Brett Favre at the helm. In the one game Adrian Peterson struggled this season, averaging just 2.2 yards per carry week four against Green Bay, Favre lit up the Packers by completing 77.4 percent of his passes and throwing three touchdowns. With nine touchdowns and just two interceptions this season, Favre has proven he can pass effectively without turning the ball over, something that has been crucial to Minnesota’s success.

His effectiveness this week, however, may be somewhat dictated by a factor he can’t control: the health of Percy Harvin. The rookie Harvin leads the team in receiving yards and is third in receptions with three fewer than team-leader Chester Taylor. Harvin forces defenses to respect his speed and versatilty and has been a big part of the offense. Only Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor have more touches than him this season.

The Advantage

An undefeated Vikings team at home is going to be difficult for Baltimore to beat. Minnesota has one of the league’s best offense-defense combinations, and the Vikings are currently ranked third in scoring, averaging over 31 points per game. Expect a one score margin of victory for Favre and the Vikings at home.

Booms and Busts

Boom: Considering Baltimore’s tough rush defense, Brett Favre will get plenty of opportunities to pass the ball this game. So far this season he’s been terrific, and that’s unlikely to change this week. However, a lot hinges on the health of Percy Harvin. On Baltimore’s end, Ray Rice is the guy I like. Minnesota has a solid run defense, but Rice has been excellent week in and week out. His versatility is another boon as a fantasy star; expect 16-20 touches and a bunch of yards this week. Goal line back Willis McGahee should also bounce back this week; no one has allowed more rushing touchdowns than Minnesota.

Bust: I hate to call Adrian Peterson a bust per se, but he’s up against one of the league’s best run defenses. He’ll almost certainly underperform his season averages this week and could disappoint a lot of fantasy players.

We’re four weeks into the season, and 28 of the NFL’s 32 teams have played their first four games. There was a lot to glean from these games, and an important aspect of fantasy football is recognizing trends and adjusting to them. This series of posts hopes to shed some light on all 32 teams through statistical analysis.

1) Joe Flacco’s putting up outstanding numbers. The best part: he’s doing it against both the weak and strong points on the schedule. He threw two touchdowns against both San Diego and New England (both road games), has two 300-yard games this season, and has yet to see the passing game kept out of the endzone this season. He already has 1,100 passing yards and eight touchdowns, putting him on pace for over 4,400 yards and 32 touchdowns over 16 games; even if he doesn’t hit those numbers, this season is far from a sophomore slump.

2) Willis McGahee is a touchdown machine. Last week was the first he was shut out of the endzone on the ground, but he still managed a receiving score. In his previous three games McGahee rushed for five touchdowns and caught a sixth. Despite just 42 touches in four games, McGahee already has seven scores this season.

3) Though he’s not getting a consistent number of touches, Ray Rice is developing into a solid running back. He hasn’t carried more than 11 times since week one but still has 309 yards from scrimmage in that span. When he did carry 19 times week one Rice rushed for 108 yards. He has 429 yards from scrimmage in four games; the only downside is that he has just one touchdown. McGahee is a touchdown vulture this season. Rice is the yards in this offense and McGahee is the touchdowns.

4) Flacco spreads the ball around. Five players have between 14 and 19 receptions this season; Derrick Mason leads the team with 19 for 284 yards and 2 touchdowns. Speaking of touchdowns, five receivers have an endzone reception this season, and three have two: Todd Heap, McGahee, and the aforementioned Mason.

5) Derrick Mason has tremendous numbers … and his game numbers are improving on a weekly basis. In the first two weeks of the season he caught seven passes for 78 yards; the last two weeks he’s caught 12 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns. His is quickly becoming an impressive season as he vies for more of Joe Flacco’s attention.

(Below is a graph displaying Mason’s fantasy points on a weekly basis.)

(To put it in perspective, next is a graph displaying Mason’s fantasy points the last two weeks, stacked against all other wide receivers. Mason is tied for third on the list.)

Fantasy football start/sit is a weekly look at NFL players, especially fringe players, with highly favorable (or unfavorable) matchups. It may go without saying, but if you have a player in the “sit ‘em” list, it isn’t necessary to bench them unless you do have a favorable backup. Same story holds true for the “start ‘em” players: if you have a stud quarterback you might not need to play them this week.

Quarterbacks — Start ‘Em!

Jay Cutler — Chicago Bears — After a rough outing in Green Bay week one, Jay Cutler is turning around his season (and the Bears’) with some tremendous numbers. He’s passed for 483 yards, 5 touchdowns, and 1 interception in his last two starts, and this week Chicago faces Detroit at home. The Lions rank 30th in pass defense and have allowed 10 passing touchdowns this season. Below is a snapshot of his fantasy points over three weeks:

Eli Manning — New York Giants — The Giants are 3-0 and on the road, set to take on the 0-3 Kansas City Chiefs. In their only two games against legitimate quarterbacks this season — vs. Baltimore and Philadelphia — the Chiefs surrendered at least 300 passing yards. Manning has thrown five touchdowns this season, and at least one in each game. This is a very ideal matchup.

David Garrard — Jacksonville Jaguars — At first glance this might not be an ideal matchup in a lot of minds, but facing the Titans might be ideal for David Garrard and the Jaguars’ passing game. Tennessee ranks 31st in passing yards allowed and is tied for 29th in passing touchdowns allowed. While David Garrard is off to a slow start and has thrown just 2 touchdown passes, he has passed for nearly 500 yards in his past two starts and could put up some nice numbers this week.

Kerry Collins — Tennessee Titans — The Titans have been more pass-heavy than expected this season, calling pass plays at a near 60-40 ratio. Kerry Collins has thrown at least one touchdown in every game this season, in spite of a poor performance last week. Tennessee’s opponent this week, Jacksonville, has allowed over 280 passing yards per game this year.

Quarterbacks — Sit ‘Em

Aaron Rodgers — Green Bay Packers — Aaron Rodgers passed for 320 yards and one touchdown pass in his two games against the Vikings last year. He’s off to a pretty slow start this season, and his completion percentage has hovered just above 50 percent the past two weeks. Minnesota’s defense has shut down opponents all season, allowing just 167 passing yards per game and forcing four interceptions in three games.

Joe Flacco – Baltimore Ravens — Baltimore’s Joe Flacco is off to a startlingly fast start. He’s passed for 849 yarsds and 6 touchdowns, and in two games he broke 300 passing yards. His numbers against a good defense — San Diego — Flacco passed for just 190 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. It wasn’t a terrible performance, but it is telling. This week Flacco and the Ravens face a tough Patriots defense that has held opponents to just three passing touchdowns.

The Overview

The Cleveland Browns (0-2) are traveling to Baltimore (2-0) in each team’s first division game of the season. Cleveland has been outscored by 35 points in their first two games of the season after getting blown out a week ago by the Denver Broncos, 27-6. It’s worth noting that Cleveland’s special teams has scored 20 of the team’s points this season, with 6 points resulting on a Josh Cribbs touchdown return.

Baltimore has been much more successful on offense this season, and it’s paid off: they’ve scored 69 points thus far, while allowing 50. The +19 scoring factor is certainly a great number, but it begs us to question whether this defense can come together in games in which the Ravens don’t put 30+ on the scoreboard.

When Cleveland has the ball …

One thing can be said of Cleveland’s offense this season: they pass far more often than they run. Unfortunately, Brady Quinn’s numbers suggest that it might be wiser to stick with Jamal Lewis and the running game.

Quinn has completed a tad under 60 percent of his pass attempts this season, and his interceptions outnumber his touchdowns, 2-1. His yards per attempt average (5.5) is too low, and he’s been sacked too often: 9 times.

Jamal Lewis’ numbers haven’t exactly sparkled either, but, then again, perhaps it’s because he hasn’t been given a real opportunity to shine. He has 25 carries for 95 yards, a fairly respectable total. The most interesting number is this: Lewis has run the ball three times in the red zone this season and has garnered six yards. The Browns need to establish something in the red zone, rather than being forced to settle for field goals. (12 of their 26 points this season resulted from field goals, two of which were within 30 yards.

Having said all that, this probably won’t be the week Cleveland turns on its running game. The Ravens have been outstanding against the run this season, allowing just 41 yards per game. Interestingly enough, the Ravens struggled mightily to contain the Chargers’ passing game which moved the ball 436 yards. What can get lost in that game is that Philip Rivers also threw two interceptions.

In other words, this game is a huge test for Brady Quinn. Don’t expect great results.

When Baltimore has the ball …

The Ravens offense is in overdrive right now. With over 800 yards from scrimmage, Joe Flacco and Co. are rolling to victories on offense. They’re last win was a shootout against the Chargers; Flacco passed for 190 yards and 2 touchdowns while the running game, in a balanced effort, scampered to 130 yards. Both Ray Rice and Willis McGahee averaged over 4.0 yards per carry for the second week in a row with McGahee commanding the endzone scores again; he has three this season.

Baltimore has been so effective on offense this season because of this balanced attack. The offense has run 145 plays this season, 72 of which have been passes. The 50-50 balance has kept defenses guessing, and the effectiveness of the Ray Rice and Willis McGahee has required defenses to crowd the box before Joe Flacco forces them to respect the pass. Flacco has thrown five passing touchdowns this season, 2 of which have gone to Todd Heap. He’s the red zone target this season, and if you have him, you have one of the best in fantasy football.

This week, expect the Ravens to again stick with a balanced approach favoring the run. Cleveland has allowed 411 rushing yards this season and Baltimore’s three-headed monster (Rice, McGahee, and McClain) should be able to shred them again this week.

The advantage goes to …

Baltimore, without a doubt. The combination their balanced (and high-scoring offense) brings to the table will overwhelm the Browns, while the team’s defense will shut Jamal Lewis down and take its chances with the ball in Quinn’s hands.

Booms, Busts, and Sleepers …

Boom: Willis McGahee (RB - BAL) — He’s been tearing it up all season and this is the perfect matchup. Cleveland’s weak run defense will struggle to stop McGahee when he runs the ball, and he’s just as effective out of the backfield. Expect him to score at least once in this one, but don’t be surprised if he finds the endzone two or three times.

Bust: Jamal Lewis (RB - CLE) — He only has 25 carries this season, and he’s up against the toughest run defense in the NFL. If the Browns try to open by establishing the run, expect Baltimore to bottle it quickly and keep Lewis under 40 yards for the day.

Sleeper: Robert Royal (TE - CLE) — Royal has been one of Quinn’s favorite targets in the early portion of the season. If the Browns get in scoring range, expect Quinn to look for him in the endzone. He’s a big target who already has the only reception of the season; and, as was stated earlier, this isn’t a team you’re going to run against in the red zone.

Kansas City (0-1) at Baltimore (1-0): Baltimore, 38-24

Notes on Kansas City: It’s hard to assess whether Kansas City would have had more success on offense with Brodie Croyle in the game Sunday. One thing is certain, however: the defense struggled in a big way, allowing the Ravens to score 5 touchdowns.

On offense, the team wasn’t as bad as one might expect. The Chiefs put up 24 points, a pretty good total by any measure; no turnovers were committed and Croyle passed for 177 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Where the team did struggle was when running the ball and on third downs. Larry Johnson picked up just 20 yards on 11 carries and the offense managed just 29 yards on 17 attempts. That’s not too surprising for since Kansas City was up against the Ravens, a team with a notorious rush defense. Struggling to run the ball, the Chiefs were forced into a lot of third down situations, of which they converted just 20 percent (2-of-10).

Kansas City Stud: Brodie Croyle – 16-of-24 for 177 yards and 2 touchdowns

Kansas City Dud: Larry Johnson – 11 carries for 20 yards and 1 reception for 6 yards

Notes on Baltimore: Whoa, Joe Flacco just passed the ball 43 times in the season opener; that’s eye-opening to say the least.

But before you assume the team was getting away from its bread-and-butter, keep this in mind: it also ran the ball 41 times when you count Flacco’s 5 scrambles. In other words, the Ravens were just overpowering the Chiefs in this one. Kansas City had no answers on defense, forcing one interception but allowing 3 passing scores and another 2 on the ground.

Ray Rice and the crew at running back were outstanding in this one. Rice carried 19 times, the number of times he’ll probably average this season, but managed to pick up 108 yards. He’s not a goal line back, but he is very explosive.

Willis McGahee was the most balanced of the backs. He carried 10 times for 44 yards and a score, but he added on that foundation with 4 receptions for 31 yards and another score. In all he finished with 75 yards and 2 scores.

Lastly, as the goal line and short yardage back LeRon McClain managed 6 carries for 19 yards and a score. He did add 3 receptions for 23 yards as one of Flacco’s targets.

Tight end Todd Heap was his favorite target of the day with 5 receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown; Michael Clayton (5 for 76 yards and 1 touchdown) was very similar. But note that the running backs and Heap combined for 14 of Flacco’s 26 completions – that’s a number to keep an eye on.

Baltimore Stud: Joe Flacco – 26-of-43 for 307 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 1 interception

Baltimore Dud: Derrick Mason – 4 receptions for 47 yards

Philadelphia (1-0) at Carolina (0-1): Philadelphia, 38-10

Notes on Philadelphia: The big news was Donovan McNabb’s injury. As most fantasy players know, McNabb was something of an injury risk on draft day, so this was a major scare. The good news is reports suggest he should be able to play next week. And that’s great, considering he played pretty solid in this game completing 10-of-18 for 79 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. He also added a rushing touchdown to with a 3 yard scamper in the third quarter before he left the game and was spelled by Kevin Kolb (7-of-11 for 23 yards).

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia running game did just fine. Brian Westbrook carried 13 times for 64 yards and LeSean McCoy added 46 rushing yards on 9 attempts. Note that McNabb was the only player to score on the ground in this one: no doubt he was the reason for success on offense, so his return and health is paramount to Philadelphia’s continued success.

Also note that tight end Brent Celek led the team in receptions. He had 6 on the day for 37 yards and 1 touchdown. No one else caught more than 3 passes, and that was running back Brian Westbrook (8 yards).

Philadelphia Stud: Donovan McNabb – 10-of-18 for 79 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception; 1 carry for 3 yards and 1 touchdown

Philadelphia Dud: DeSean Jackson – 2 receptions for 9 yards

Notes on Carolina: 7 turnovers is going to lose a game almost every time, especially when an opponent is able to take advantage: Philadelphia did just that in this game. Jake Delhomme looked atrocious, completing 7 of 17 for 73 yards – unless you count his interception count (3) and the yardage Philadelphia was able to pick up on returns (45 yards). He even lost a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown. So there’s that.

Carolina’s bread and butter is its running game, though. So how did it do? Well, mediocre is the first word that comes to mind: DeAngelo Williams, who scored 20 touchdowns last season, carried 14 times for 37 yards and 1 touchdown, though he did lead the team in receiving with 4 receptions for 42 yards.

The rest of the offense chipped in with 16 attempts for 49 yards.

Carolina Stud: DeAngelo Williams – 14 carries for 37 yards and 1 touchdown; 4 receptions for 42 yards

Carolina Dud: Jake Delhomme – 7 of 17 for 73 yards and 3 interceptions, 1 fumble lost

Here’s a few more thoughts on some of the saturday preseason games. 

CAROLINA PANTHERS

The Carolina offense wasn’t very smooth, there are still lots of kinks to work out in the passing game.  A couple 3 and outs don’t inspire confidence. The run game looks pretty good, with plenty of openings for the RBs.  Jake Delhomme looked ok…about the same as last year.  Didn’t throw many deep passes, lots of screens or short under passes.  DeAngelo Williams did not play. Third RB Mike Goodson looked pretty good. o-line is opening good holes for him….that’s good news for DeAngelo Williams during the season.  Steve Smith looked like he’s back to full speed again. Mushin Muhammad looked fine, but did not get many touches.  Panthers defense looks good not great. Not good against screens. 

BALTIMORE RAVENS

The Baltimore offense looked smooth, confident, and consistent. They moved the ball down the field without much problem, grinding down the clock and defense. Joe Flacco is looking solid, accurate, calm, and confident. Accurate short throws that sustain drives and a few long throws that looked good.  LeRon McClain looked ok…seems like he will get the goal line carries.  Ray Rice looks good, lots of screen receptions. Derrick Mason looks good.  Todd Heap looks good with a nice TD reception.  Baltimore Defense looks solid as usual. Lots of pressure on the QB and covers receivers well.  

NEW YORK GIANTS

The Giants offense looks cool, calm, and collected.  A good balance of run and pass keeps the defense on their toes. Eli Manning looks good with accurate throws, short and long to a wide array of receivers.  Brandon Jacobs looks good, strong, solid running…O-line is opening good holes for him… and now he’s got receiving skills and caught a TD.  He did get nicked up with a helmet to the forearm. Ahmad Bradshaw looked good, had a long run through a good hole.  There clearly isn’t a top receiver on the Giants squad and nobody seems to be a favorite of Manning. This is an obvious area of weakness. Kevin Boss looked ok.  Steve Smith has plenty of speed, but not sure if he has the necessary hands, since he dropped a sure TD pass.  Defense looks ok. 

NEW YORK JETS

The Jets offense looks hot and cold and will be leaning strongly on the running game this season, to limit exposing Sanchez.  Mark Sanchez is looking like a rookie, confused, staring down receivers, and out of sync.  The Jets are going to have to use short passes/screens to limit turnovers.  Thomas Jones looks good, with good holes from the great o-line,  but is likely to face more defenders in the box. Leon Washington looked ok.  Jones and Washington look to split will goal line carries/TDs, both may benefit from extra short yardage TD attempts.  Chancey Stuckey looked good and scored a TD on a busted coverage.  Defense looks good enough to slow down teams, but not an imposing force.  

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

The Pittsburgh offense looked pretty good, with a few issues and some inconsistencies.  Ben Roethlisberger looked good, calm, cool, collected, with good accuracy. The o-line is doing a decent job of pass protection, but has lapses where Roethlisberger gets pressure with a hurry or sack.  Rashard Mendenhall looked good, running with some power, but can’t seem to shake tackles well. Looks like he’ll get goal line carries too. o-line is opening up good holes for him.  Mewelde Moore looked good, a couple good check down receptions for first downs.  Willie Parker did not play.  Hines Ward looked good as usual with several good catches. Limas Sweed looked very good, had a couple good catches.  Roethlisberger seems to like him. Heath Miller looked ok.  Steelers defense is pretty solid. Getting a good pass rush and clamping down on the run. 

BUFFALO BILLS

The Buffalo offense is in shambles. The Pittsburgh defense caused the offense problems on every front. Buffalo just looked out matched. Trent Edwards looked flustered with off target throws and pressure from the Pittsburgh defense. Threw interception deep in Buffalo territory. o-line is having huge issues stopping the Steelers defense lineman.  Marshawn Lynch looked good and healthy, but didn’t get much work, since the offense was not on the field much.  Buffalo Defense looked ok, but allows enough yards for opponent to sustain long drives and eat up the clock.�