The first of our NFL wraps falls after a very intriguing week 5 of American football action, with some ripper games and fascinating results. The highlights of this round were…
- Starting with the first game of the round on Thursday night, the surprising Cleveland Browns kept their impressive start rolling with their third win in a row, defeating the Buffalo Bills at home and under the national spotlight – AND after losing their rising quarterback in the first quarter. The Browns are now equal divisional leaders with Cincinnati and Baltimore.
- The imposing New Orleans Saints also continued on their winning way, with quarterback Drew BREES almost faultless in completing 29 of 35 passes as they won 26 – 18 over the Chicago Bears. Tight end Jimmy GRAHAM continues to dominate his position, having his 4th consecutive game of over 100 yards.
- Cincinnati Bengals got back on track 13 – 6 against an extremely disappointing New England Patriot team that could only manage 6 points for the game – and yes folks, golden boy Tom BRADY was playing but just couldn’t get the job done
- The once daunting New York Giants have fallen to their fifth straight loss for the year, remaining winless against the Philadelphia Eagles after failing 21 – 36. Sports-mad New York won’t put up with that type of performance for long – watch out for the changes to come thick and fast!
- The all-conquering Denver Broncos and the Dallas Cowboys staged one of the greatest offensive games in NFL history, with the Broncos eventually reigning victorious with an incredible scoreline of 51 – 48. The second highest scoring game in regulation since 1970 had everything – and ironically it was a defensive play (an interception) that kept the Broncos winning streak alive.
- In the final game of the round, the struggling New York Jets caused a boilover, defeating the much-favoured Atlanta Falcons 30 – 28 to get their season back on track.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
1. Tony ROMO – Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys
Not too much trouble picking this one. ROMO even outshone his direct opponent Peyton MANNING (who is on fire incidentally), throwing for a total of 506 yards and five touchdowns, with only 1 interception for the day. This herculean effort led to ROMO scoring an amazing 40.94 fantasy pts – far exceeding his previous best this season of 20.4 pts. Despite throwing the interception that led to Denver winning the game, ROMO was easily the player of the week.
- Starting with the first game of the round on Thursday night, the surprising Cleveland Browns kept their impressive start rolling with their third win in a row, defeating the Buffalo Bills at home and under the national spotlight – AND after losing their rising quarterback in the first quarter. The Browns are now equal divisional leaders with Cincinnati and Baltimore.
- The imposing New Orleans Saints also continued on their winning way, with quarterback Drew BREES almost faultless in completing 29 of 35 passes as they won 26 – 18 over the Chicago Bears. Tight end Jimmy GRAHAM continues to dominate his position, having his 4th consecutive game of over 100 yards.
- Cincinnati Bengals got back on track 13 – 6 against an extremely disappointing New England Patriot team that could only manage 6 points for the game – and yes folks, golden boy Tom BRADY was playing but just couldn’t get the job done
- The once daunting New York Giants have fallen to their fifth straight loss for the year, remaining winless against the Philadelphia Eagles after failing 21 – 36. Sports-mad New York won’t put up with that type of performance for long – watch out for the changes to come thick and fast!
- The all-conquering Denver Broncos and the Dallas Cowboys staged one of the greatest offensive games in NFL history, with the Broncos eventually reigning victorious with an incredible scoreline of 51 – 48. The second highest scoring game in regulation since 1970 had everything – and ironically it was a defensive play (an interception) that kept the Broncos winning streak alive.
- In the final game of the round, the struggling New York Jets caused a boilover, defeating the much-favoured Atlanta Falcons 30 – 28 to get their season back on track.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
1. Tony ROMO – Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys
Not too much trouble picking this one. ROMO even outshone his direct opponent Peyton MANNING (who is on fire incidentally), throwing for a total of 506 yards and five touchdowns, with only 1 interception for the day. This herculean effort led to ROMO scoring an amazing 40.94 fantasy pts – far exceeding his previous best this season of 20.4 pts. Despite throwing the interception that led to Denver winning the game, ROMO was easily the player of the week.
2. Alshon JEFFERY - Wide Receiver, Chicago Bears
With a team-record 218 yards receiving and one touchdown, Chicago wide receiver JEFFERY simply had to make the list of the players of the week. Scoring an impressive 27.8 fantasy pts for the match, JEFFERY was unstoppable in a team that struggled to get points on the board.
3. Rueben RANDLE - Wide Receiver, New York Giants
Another player in a team struggling to win matches, RANDLE’s 6 catch, 96 yard and 2 touchdown game saw him rake in 21.6 pts this week – which may have been the difference between a win and a loss for the 2.5% of leagues in which he has been selected. All this, despite having to share the field – and the ball - with team mate Victor CRUZ, one of the best in the business.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
1. Justin BLACKMON - Wide Receiver, Jacksonville Jaguars
In his first game this season – after sitting on a NFL suspension – BLACKMON showed exactly why his return has been so keenly anticipated, scoring a 67 yard TD on his way to 5 catches for 136 yds. BLACKMON finished with 19.6 pts for the game, and if you can pick him up on the waivers, do it now.
2. Geno SMITH - Quarterback, New York Jets
A strange one but still worth keeping an eye on – possibly as QB No.2 – is New Yorks play-caller Geno SMITH. Owned in only 3.6% of leagues, SMITH scored 22.06 pts last weekend, but his rollercoaster season is clearly in his five scores so far – 15 pts, 4 pts, 24 pts, 8 pts and 22 pts. Up, down, up, down. SMITH threw 3 TDs against the Falcons, and this week takes on the winless Steelers in a match up that looks good for him on paper at least.
3. Willis McGAHEE - Running Back, Cleveland Browns
Playing for an in-form team is always a positive, and McGAHEE looks to have claimed the Cleveland running-back spot as his own with gradually increasing scores the last three weeks. In his first game he only managed 1 pt, followed by 5 pts the week after before busting out with 13 pts last weekend. In only 29% of leagues, the experienced campaigner McGAHEE is worth the selection if you can get him.
That’s it for this week. Drop us a line and let us know how your teams going, or any selection dilemmas you are toying with for round 6 and we’ll see what we can come up with.
With a team-record 218 yards receiving and one touchdown, Chicago wide receiver JEFFERY simply had to make the list of the players of the week. Scoring an impressive 27.8 fantasy pts for the match, JEFFERY was unstoppable in a team that struggled to get points on the board.
3. Rueben RANDLE - Wide Receiver, New York Giants
Another player in a team struggling to win matches, RANDLE’s 6 catch, 96 yard and 2 touchdown game saw him rake in 21.6 pts this week – which may have been the difference between a win and a loss for the 2.5% of leagues in which he has been selected. All this, despite having to share the field – and the ball - with team mate Victor CRUZ, one of the best in the business.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
1. Justin BLACKMON - Wide Receiver, Jacksonville Jaguars
In his first game this season – after sitting on a NFL suspension – BLACKMON showed exactly why his return has been so keenly anticipated, scoring a 67 yard TD on his way to 5 catches for 136 yds. BLACKMON finished with 19.6 pts for the game, and if you can pick him up on the waivers, do it now.
2. Geno SMITH - Quarterback, New York Jets
A strange one but still worth keeping an eye on – possibly as QB No.2 – is New Yorks play-caller Geno SMITH. Owned in only 3.6% of leagues, SMITH scored 22.06 pts last weekend, but his rollercoaster season is clearly in his five scores so far – 15 pts, 4 pts, 24 pts, 8 pts and 22 pts. Up, down, up, down. SMITH threw 3 TDs against the Falcons, and this week takes on the winless Steelers in a match up that looks good for him on paper at least.
3. Willis McGAHEE - Running Back, Cleveland Browns
Playing for an in-form team is always a positive, and McGAHEE looks to have claimed the Cleveland running-back spot as his own with gradually increasing scores the last three weeks. In his first game he only managed 1 pt, followed by 5 pts the week after before busting out with 13 pts last weekend. In only 29% of leagues, the experienced campaigner McGAHEE is worth the selection if you can get him.
That’s it for this week. Drop us a line and let us know how your teams going, or any selection dilemmas you are toying with for round 6 and we’ll see what we can come up with.