Week 4 of the NFL season was fraught with close games. And while some players stepped up to the challenge, others failed to impress. By this point of the season we see trends and you should know what your team's strength and weakness are, but sometimes the owner can be his own team's weakness or strength by making the right sits or starts. Were you one of the smart ones who started Terrell Owens, or where you one of the managers who regretfully sat Carson Palmer in his best game of the season? Either way, let's review this week's highs and lows from fantasy football.
Winners
Carson Palmer:Palmer hooked up with Owens early and often and had the best game thus far this season as he threw for 371 yards and two scores. Palmer has the weapons to do this every single week, but his owners have to be wondering if his arm can hold up in the process.
Shaun Hill:Just 10 percent of fantasy players own Hill, and of those 10 percent, I am betting less than 1 percent actually started him. Hill managed to pass for 331 yards and two touchdowns, and he ran for another 53 yards. Hill isn't someone you should own in a league smaller than 16 teams, but someone is bound to pick him up after this weekend.
LaDainian Tomlinson: LT showed this weekend that his tank isn't completely empty as he rushed for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Tomlinson is a prime sell-high candidate for me because I think he will fade as we move into the second half of the season. But for now his owners are reaping the rewards of sticking with the HOF back.
Maurice Jones-Drew: MJD came through with his first 100-yard game since Week 15 of last season, and he did it just in time for his owners. Jones-Drew ran 26 times for 105 yards and a TD, and scored another touchdown on an 8-yards pass. I am hoping this is just the beginning of MJD's fantasy dominance.
Terrell Owens: Owens racked up 10 catches for 222 yards and a TD this weekend, good enough to put him in second place all-time with 15,325 receiving yards. Owens may not have another game like this in his career, but the only one we care about is this one!
Reggie Wayne: Wayne is almost a sure bet with Peyton Manning as his QB, but nobody expects him to go out and catch 15 passes for 196 yards in a game. He did fail to score, but the receptions were great for those in a PPR league and the yards were excellent for those in standard formats.
Zach Miller (Oak): Miller was my TE sleeper this offseason and he showed why this weekend as he racked up 11 receptions for 122 yards and a TD. The Raiders are struggling to put together a passing game, but Miller is about as close to a sure thing as the team has right now.
San Diego Chargers defense: The Chargers defense held the Cardinals to just 10 points while collecting nine sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a defensive TD. They aren't a defense that I am going to start unless I have to, but some of you probably got lucky and started them this weekend.
Losers
Michael Vick:Vick came crashing back to Earth this weekend as he cracked some rib cartilage and finished the game with a meager 49 yards passing, 17 yards rushing and no touchdowns. Kevin Kolb will start in Week 5 (Vick ruled out late Monday night), so this could be the beginning of the end for Vick's run as a starter if Kolb can pull it together.
Jay Cutler:I've got a friend, Chris, who is a diehard Bears fan and believes with all his heart that Cutler and the Bears will go to the Super Bowl this season. The problem with that theory is that OC Mike Martz has a history of getting QBs hurt and Week 4 was Cutler's week. He finished with one INT and a whopping nine (9) sacks!
Chris Johnson: Johnson is getting a reputation for being a boom-or-bust player this season. The Broncos aren't known for their stout run defense, yet they held Johnson to 53 yards on the ground and 11 yards in the air. The 1st overall pick in almost all fantasy drafts has to do better than this to keep his owners happy.
Ray Rice:I warned e-mailers about playing Rice and he showed why as he finished with eight rushes for 20 yards and one catch for nine yards. Those stats hardly registered a blip on the fantasy radar, but he will be back and starting in Week 5 according to my sources.
Randy Moss:Moss entered the season as one of the top fantasy WRs, but he failed to register a catch in Week 4 and his owners are left scratching their heads in disbelief. The problem with the Patriots passing attack is you can never guess to whom they will throw next. Both Aaron Hernandez and Moss were major disappointments to fantasy players this weekend.
DeSean Jackson: Whenever you see a team's starting QB on the losers list, you can just scroll down and most likely see their star WR on it, too. Jackson is no exception this week as he finished with three catches for 19 yards and no endzone trips. The change at QB could be a problem if Kolb struggles again, so check back on Friday to see if you should play Jackson this week.
Greg Olson: Why in the world did Yahoo, ESPN and nfl.com project Olson so high in Week 4? He has just 21 targets on the season, which ranks him 18th in the NFL for TEs. That being said, Olson finished this week with five catches for 39 yards and no TDs. Why do you still own him?
Indianapolis Colts defense:The Colts defense got showed up by the Jaguars this weekend as they allowed them to score 31 points and failed to register a sack or INT. Only about 55 percent of people own the Colts defense, so hopefully you weren't one of them.
