The top news from this past week surrounded quarterbacks, as a total of five different signal-callers threw four touchdown passes in their respective contests. The week was a true microcosm of the entire season, as quarterbacks have become the dominant position in fantasy football circles.
In fact, the culmination of solid stat lines from quarterbacks and the fall of running backs due to injuries, backfield committees and inconsistent production will turn the entire landscape of fantasy drafts in 2008. It might not seem like it now, but we are smack dab in the middle of some real changes in fantasy land.
Moving on to our positional review of the week, Tom Brady led the quarterbacks (and all positions) with 39 fantasy points. He now needs four touchdown passes to tie the single-season record of Peyton Manning, who threw 49 touchdown strikes in 2004.
Jay Cutler (35 points) had his best stat line of the season with four scores against Kansas City, but he's been so inconsistent that it's hard to consider him more than a low-end No. 1 fantasy quarterback.
Matt Hasselbeck (34 points), Peyton Manning (33 points) and Trent Edwards (30 points), all of whom threw four touchdown passes, round out the top five performances at the position. Despite his efforts, Edwards is the lone member of this trio without a ton of value.
The biggest disappointment at the quarterback position had to be Carson Palmer (3 points), who threw for 189 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in a win over St. Louis. The weather was awful for most of the contest, but Palmer's lack of production was a killer for countless owners.
The top running back of the week was LaDainian Tomlinson (28 points), who picked the perfect time to explode for 173 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns in a comeback win over Tennessee. Marion Barber (28 points) had a monster three-touchdown performance in Detroit, and Joseph Addai (28 points) recorded three scores in the first half in a Sunday night win over Baltimore. Jamal Lewis (24 points) has resurrected his value in Cleveland and should continue to shine in the fantasy football postseason with contests against Buffalo and Cincinnati over the next two weeks.
One of the best sleepers of the season has been Ryan Grant (21 points), who slashed Oakland for 156 yards and one touchdown. He is now second in fantasy points to Tomlinson on NFL.com over the past three weeks. Samkon Gado (21 points) was a pleasant surprise, as he started in place of an injured Jesse Chatman and found the end zone twice for Miami. He's now worth a roster spot in most formats. Fred Taylor (19 points) has been on fire over the past three weeks, and LenDale White (19 points) rebounded from some bad performances and shined in a loss to San Diego.
A total of 22 wide receivers scored double-digit fantasy points on NFL.com this past week, but none were more productive than Randy Moss and Anthony Gonzalez, who both scored 25 points. This was the first monster stat line from Gonzalez, who should be added in leagues with 12-plus teams while Marvin Harrison remains out of action. "Breakout" Brandon Marshall (24 points) had 115 yards and two scores in a win over Kansas City, but he did endure some bumps and bruises in the contest.