By Michael Fabiano
The top news from this past weekend surrounded two quarterbacks that weren't even on the radar in fantasy football drafts.
Those two quarterbacks also happened to be brothers.
Luke (25 points) and Josh (23 points) McCown both saw prominent roles in the absence of injured starters and thrived for their respective teams. The unfortunate part of it was the fact that neither Luke nor Josh was active in NFL.com leagues, so no one reaped the rewards of their performances. What's more, neither is guaranteed to start the rest of the season (or even next week).
Another quarterback that produced a monster stat line but was not even active in most NFL.com leagues was Gus Frerotte, who totaled 311 yards, three touchdowns and 26 fantasy points on NFL.com. With Marc Bulger's status for Week 14 in doubt, Frerotte now has fantasy football relevance.
Quarterbacks
Let's move on to our positional review, where Tony Romo (34 points) continued his statistical success in last Thursday night's win over Green Bay to lead all quarterbacks. Peyton Manning (33 points) had his second consecutive solid start with 288 yards and four touchdowns in a win over Jacksonville. Vince Young (23 points), who has had an up-and-down sophomore season, threw for 248 yards, rushed for 44 yards and scored two touchdowns in a win over Houston.
Ben Roethlisberger (22 points) bounced back from two mediocre starts and shined on Sunday night, and Tarvaris Jackson (20 points) had his best fantasy performance of the season in a win over the defenseless Detroit Lions. Both Drew Brees (19 points) and Derek Anderson (19 points) were also solid options for fantasy football owners, as was Matt Hasselbeck (17 points).
Running backs
The top running back of the week was LaDainian Tomlinson (31 points), who picked the perfect time to explode for 197 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns in a win over Kansas City. Adrian Peterson (24 points) returned from an injured knee and didn't look like he missed a beat with a 116-yard, two-touchdown stat line against Detroit. Steven Jackson (22 points), who has re-emerged as one of the elite runners in fantasy football, posted some late numbers to finish with 167 all-purpose yards and one score in a win over Atlanta. Leon Washington, Ryan Grant, Derrick Ward and Justin Fargas all scored 21 points and rounded out the top five performers at the position.
Ward was a real find with 183 all-purpose yards and one touchdown in a win over Chicago, but he sustained a fractured fibula in the contest and could be done for the season. Brandon Jacobs is expected to return in Week 14, but Reuben Droughns could still be a popular name on the waiver wire, especially in touchdown-based formats.
Wide receivers
Hines Ward, Reggie Wayne and Terrell Owens all tied for the best numbers from the wide receiver position, as all totaled an impressive 21 points. Ward has seen more looks in the past two weeks with Santonio Holmes out of action. Wayne and T.O., meanwhile, continued their statistical dominance. Braylon Edwards (20 points) and Torry Holt (20 points) also found immense statistical success and completed the top five performances among wideouts.
One receiver that has been underrated in recent weeks is Roddy White (18 points), who posted 10 catches for 146 yards and one touchdown against St. Louis. White has now recorded an impressive 34 fantasy points on NFL.com in his past two starts.