Week 16 Top Plays

Quarterbacks

Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys: Romo has been lights out lately and the Saints defense is terrible and while they had a great week against Tampa Bay that hasn’t been the norm this season. Dallas was able to shred the best defense in the league last week and so imagine what he is going to do against one of the worst. Romo is third in the league in passing with 4,269 yards passing and has been playing his best football as of late; expect more of it against the second worst pass defense in the league.

Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers: Newton and the Panthers have been playing a lot better and while the Raiders shut-out Kansas City last week that isn’t saying much as the Chiefs are ranked 25^th in total offense. Newton has 3,451 yards with 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions but he also has 647 yards rushing with seven rushing touchdowns. I suspect Newton will have a big week against the Oakland especially after destroying the Chargers Sunday.

Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: The Colts are playing for a playoff spot this week, so expect everything the Colts have and then some. Luck has 3,978 yards passing and while his touchdowns and interception ratio isn’t the best expect him to be able to shred the Chiefs this weekend. The Colts would like to wrap up a playoff spot this weekend and Luck should have a monster game against a team that is headed for the first overall pick.

Running Backs

DeMarco Murray, Dallas Cowboys: Murray has scored a touchdown in three straight games and was able to get 81 yards rushing against the Steelers last week so expect him to gash the second worst rushing defense in the league. I can’t see the Saints being able to stop Murray this weekend, while they were able to stuff Doug Martin, I chalk that up to divisional opponents playing each other tough. The Saints have been able to stop only a few teams this season and the way the Cowboys are playing I can’t see it happening.

Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings: Peterson is on pace to pass Eric Dickerson’s all-time rushing record for a single season, let’s remember Peterson torn his ACL and MCL in week 16 of last season. Peterson is the only running back averaging over 100 yards a game with an of  129.4 yards a game on the ground and he seems like he is getting stronger each week. I wouldn’t be surprised if Peterson gets close to another 200 yards rushing and one to two touchdowns on the ground.

Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens: The Ravens need to get back to basics and give the ball to Ray Rice and when the Ravens give it to him more than 25 times a game they are nearly unbeatable. Rice has 1,031 yards rushing and is strong safety net for Joe Flacco; if the Ravens want to end their three-game losing streak, expect a heavy dose of Rice.

Wide Receivers

Brandon Marshall, Chicago Bears: The Bears are reeling and their one constant this season has been Marshall, who has just been lights out. Marshall has league high 107 receptions for 1,398 yards with 10 receiving touchdowns. Arizona finally got a win last week against the Lions, so don’t be surprised if they don’t play too well.

Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys: Bryant has been on a roll lately and has scored a touchdown in six straight games and I suspect that the trend will continue against the league’s worst defense the Saints. Bryant is tied for third in the league with 10 receiving touchdowns not to mention he’s tied for the seventh most receptions with 79 and has 1,087 receiving yards, so expect a big day from him.

Pierre Garcon, Washington Redskins: When Pierre Garcon is healthy is one of the best wide receivers in the game and he has proven to be a deadly connection with RG3 or Cousins, it doesn’t matter to him. The Redskins are right in the playoff mix and the Eagles have totally fallen apart, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Garcon have 100 receiving with one or two receiving touchdowns.

Sleeper of the Week: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks: The Seahawks have been on a tear the last two games and have a chance to pull within a half a game of the NFC West lead. Last week showed that San Francisco could be scored on if you open up the field on them and expect Wilson to try and do that this Sunday night. Wilson has been deadly in the air with 21 touchdowns and only nine interceptions and last weekend he showed some of his running skills, as he was able to score three on the ground last weekend against the Bills.

By Michael Ferraro

Week 14's Best Plays

Quarterback

Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Eagles have been awful against the pass the past few weeks and the whole team is a disaster. Freeman has just over 3,000 yards passing and has 23 touchdowns and only eight interceptions; he should tear into the Eagles, which has shown no ability to stop anyone. While the Eagles are ranked in the middle of the pack in pass defense it seems like they have been phoning it in the past few weeks.

Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: Luck is fourth in the league in passing with 3,596 yards passing and while his touchdown to interception ratio hasn’t been good but he is going up against a bad Titans defense. The one problem with Luck is the turnovers but that should be expected, as he is a rookie but a great rookie. The Colts don’t have the best running game, so expect them to focus more on the passing game where Luck has been able to excel.

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers: Rodgers is having another great season with 29 interceptions and only nine interceptions, he also has 3,124 yards passing and has been able to have another great season. The Lions are giving up an average of 26.2 points a game and give up an average of 353.4 yards of total offense a game and are in the bottom half of the league in total defense in every category. I expect Rodgers to have a big game and the Packers will continue the Lions downward spiral this season.

Running Backs

Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins: The Ravens have been terrible so far this season against the run and The Redskins are the league’s best rushing team. Morris has over 1,100 yards rushing and with Robert Griffin III, the Ravens should easily give up more than their average of 125.8 yards a game on the ground. Morris is currently third in the league in rushing and is averaging 4.8 yards a carry and has six rushing touchdowns on the season.

Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings: Peterson torn his ACL late last season and he is even better than before, he is averaging 120.5 yards a game and already has 1,446 yards rushing and it’s only week 14. No defense has been able to stop Peterson and even though he facing Chicago this week shouldn’t give Peterson trouble. It’s a race between Peterson and Manning for comeback player of the year, they should both get it as nobody expected either to be this good this season.

Steven Jackson, St. Louis Rams: Jackson is having probably his worst season so far but the Buffalo Bills are ranked 30^th against the run this season. While they have gotten better, I wouldn’t be surprised if Jackson ran for over 150 yards and has at least one rushing touchdown this week.

Wide Receivers

Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos: Oakland has been terrible this season and has given a ton of points recently. Thomas and Manning should have a field day against the horrible Oakland defense. Thomas has 1,114 yards receiving and eight receiving touchdowns on the season and it’s only week 14. I expect Thomas to get at least 100 yards receiving and should get at least one receiving touchdown. Oakland defense is the easiest to score on in the league giving up 31.3 points a game.

Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts: Reggie Wayne’s career is resurgent with Andrew Luck at quarterback and it helps facing the 31^st ranked scoring defense. The Titans are giving up 29.9 points a game and Wayne should catch and run all over them this week. Wayne has 88 receptions for 1,156 yards and has three receiving touchdowns; I wouldn’t be surprised to see that total rise this week.

Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions: What is there to say about Calvin Johnson, he is a just a beast and has 86 receptions for 1,428 yards receiving and has five receiving touchdowns. The Lions pass more than any other team and I can’t see that changing this week, especially if they get down big early. Johnson is averaging 119.0 yards a game by far the most in the league and suspect that number will rise or stay very close to that number and I wouldn’t be surprised if Megatron made it into the end-zone this week.

Sleeper of the week

Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers: Jennings has been a big fantasy let down this season because he has been hurt for so much of it but he has a chance this week to show he’s healthy now. Jordy Nelson has all but been ruled out against the Lions this week and I expect Aaron Rodgers to go to Jennings more this week. The Lions defense has been awful this season and if there is a game that Jennings to show he still has it, this would be the ideal week for fantasy owners that have held onto all season.