Week 6 is pretty much in the books and several wideouts put up huge numbers on Sunday. T.O. scored a hat trick, but his performance was trumped by a class act in St. Louis. LT2 ran roughshod over the 49ers, while Rudi and the Houston QB blew great matchups. But enough with the tease, let’s get to the Week 6 Headliners and Flatliners.
HEADLINERS
Marc Bulger (360 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT)
The Seattle/St.Louis game was a shootout, so it’s no surprise that the two QBs in that game top the Headliners list. Bulger threw like he was still playing in a Mike Martz offense, but benefited from a great game (and a spectacular catch) from the WR Headliner.
Honorable Mention: Matt Hasselbeck (268 yards, 3 TD), Philip Rivers (334 yards, 2 TD), Jake Delhomme (365 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT), Drew Brees (275 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT), Kyle Boller (226 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT)
LaDainian Tomlinson (28 touches, 135 yards, 4 TD)
Tomlinson went apeshit on the 49ers, scoring three times before halftime. Luckily for his owners, the Chargers still played him quite a bit in the second half, and he was able to snag a few passes and score a fourth time. This was the first time in his career that he scored four TDs in a game.
Honorable Mention: Travis Henry (34 touches, 181 yards, 1 TD), Tiki Barber (29 touches, 227 yards), Willie Parker (22 touches, 98 yards, 2 TD), Kevin Jones (29 touches, 163 yards, 1 TD), Warrick Dunn (14 touches, 146 yards, 1 TD), Clinton Portis (19 touches, 75 yards, 2 TD), Ronnie Brown (22 touches, 127 yards, 1 TD)
Torry Holt (8 rec, 154 yards, 3 TD)
There were a lot of strong games turned in by wide receivers today, but none better than Torry Holt. He made a beautiful adjustment on a tipped ball to score his third TD of the day. Right now, he is the hottest fantasy WR in the game. On a side note, do you think Terrell Owens was disappointed to see that five other receivers scored multiple touchdown? He’s just happy to get the win, right?
Honorable Mention: Steve Smith (8 rec, 189 yards, 1 TD), Reggie Brown (6 rec, 121 yards, 1 rec TD, 1 rush, 15 yards, 1 rush TD), Joe Horn (6 rec, 110 yards, 2 TD), Laveranues Coles (5 rec, 106 yards, 2 TD), Mark Clayton (5 rec, 101 yards, 2 TD), Terrell Owens (5 rec, 45 yards, 3 TD), Roy Williams (10 rec, 161 yards, 1 TD), Deion Branch (6 rec, 76 yards, 2 TD), T.J. Houshmandzadeh (10 rec, 102 yards, 1 TD)
Jeremy Shockey (6 rec, 55 yards, 2 TD)
Shockey had his best game of the year against a pretty good Atlanta pass defense. Even more impressive, he finished the game without aggravating his ankle injury. I grow weary of watching him limp around on the field. I get it, you’re a tough guy for playing through the pain. Let’s move on.
Honorable Mention: Antonio Gates (5 rec, 78 yards, 1 TD), Todd Heap (5 rec, 55 yards, 1 TD), L.J. Smith (4 rec, 48 yards, 1 TD), Chris Cooley (2 rec, 27 yards, 1 TD)
FLATLINERS
David Carr (128 pass yards, 2 INT)
Carr squandered a great matchup against a Cowboys secondary that has been playing some suspect football of late. What’s worse, his team was behind the whole game, but he could still only muster 128 pass yards. He looked like the David Carr of old.
Dishonorable Mention: Damon Huard (162 yards, 1 INT)
Rudi Johnson (17 touches, 52 yards)
After a red-hot start, Rudi has cooled off considerably in the last three weeks, rushing for a total of 164 yards and one score in the last three games. Cincinnati is supposed to have the best offensive line in the league, so their inability to run on the Bucs Sunday is a complete mystery. Coming into the game, Tampa Bay had allowed an average of 163 yards on the ground, so RJ’s performance is a big disappointment.
Dishonorable Mention: Jamal Lewis (12 touches, 50 yards), Ron Dayne (11 touches, 18 yards), Reggie Bush (15 touches, 60 yards), DeShaun Foster (28 touches, 70 yards), Willis McGahee (19 touches, 80 yards)
Derrick Mason (0 rec, 0 yards)
Oddly enough, I benched the next guy on this list for Mason in one league and neither guy did diddly-squat. Mason was targeted on that crazy Kyle Boller pass that was deflected into the air before falling into Mark Clayton’s hands. Mason is definitely a better play with Steve McNair under center.
Dishonorable Mention: Jerricho Cotchery (1 rec, 6 yards), Plaxico Burress (4 rec, 44 yards), Keyshawn Johnson (5 rec, 46 yards)
Tony Gonzalez (3 rec, 15 yards)
After a great game in Week 1, Gonzo has been pretty quiet, catching only 11 passes for 106 yards over the next four games. Something stinks in KC, and Gonzo’s production is probably a symptom, not the cause. Regardless, he’s on pace to have his worst year since his rookie season.
Dishonorable Mention: Jason Witten (3 rec, 17 yards)