Another week, another set of unpredictable stat lines -- and another running back lost for the season.
Miami running Ronnie Brown is out for the remainder of 2007 with an injured knee suffered in a loss to New England. He was the best back in fantasy football this season, so his loss will devastate owners. Jesse Chatman will now be a hot name on the waiver wire, as he's available in more than 90 percent of NFL.com leagues.
The top 10 performers of the week included one reserve running back (Kenny Watson), a reserve quarterback (Sage Rosenfels) and two field generals that faced unattractive matchups but still produced monster points.
No one was more productive than Tom Brady, who scored 50 points on 354 yards and a career-best six touchdown passes in Miami. He is now on pace to throw 60-plus touchdowns -- that would smash Peyton Manning's current record of 49 set in 2004. Ben Roethlisberger, who faced Denver's top-rated pass defense, totaled four touchdowns passes and 31 points. Rosenfels (yes, Sage Rosenfels) was third among quarterbacks with 29 points in the absence of Matt Schaub. Jay Cutler (27 points), who faced a stout Pittsburgh pass defense, and Chad Pennington (26 points) rounded out the top five quarterbacks of the week.
The biggest disappointment at the position had to be Jon Kitna, who totaled five points in a win over Tampa Bay. After a fast start, Kitna has thrown for 253 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in his past two games. He has also averaged 24.5 pass attempts in those starts. That's 10 fewer than the 34.5 attempts he averaged in his first four games. If that trend continues, Kitna's numbers are destined to fall.
Watson totaled an impressive 157 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns in a win over the New York Jets to lead all running backs. He'll continue to see more work while Rudi Johnson is sidelined with an injured hamstring and should be added if available. Larry Johnson had his second consecutive solid stat line, as he rushed for 112 yards and one touchdown in a win over Oakland. LenDale White, who has turned into a tremendous asset in recent weeks, rushed for 104 yards and one touchdown. His success should continue next week against the Raiders.
Several wide receivers produced well in Week 7, but none more than Wes Welker and Laveranues Coles. Welker had nine catches for 138 yards and scored twice in Miami, and now has 20 catches for 262 yards and four touchdowns in the past two weeks. Coles made mincemeat of a porous Bengals defense with eight receptions, 133 yards and two touchdowns. Randy Moss totaled 24 points and scored two more touchdowns. He's on pace to break Jerry Rice's single-season record of 22 receiving touchdowns. Roddy White (17 points), who is on pace to produce career best across the board, and André Davis (16) and Terrell Owens (16) round out the top five at the position.
