Week 8 Fantasy Football Awards

Week eight did not hold many impressive performances from the kicker position. Most of the top ranked players at the position only posted six or seven fantasy points. Dan Bailey, who is most likely on the waiver wire, showed he can kick with the best of them. He hit all three of his point after attempts and made all three field goals he attempted. These stat look pretty average, but when you take in account two of his attempts were from beyond 50 yards, the picture becomes very pretty. Fantasy owners love a guy who can hit it from a mile away. The big foot is going to make Bailey a tempting option down the stretch. Next week he plays the Vikings. More than likely the Vikings defense will not be able to stop Romo. Bailey might not get many chances to kick field goals, but he will be able to get some point after attempts. He is worth a start in deeper leagues if your kicker has a bye week.

Team Defense of the Week- Cincinnati Bengals

Andy Dalton and Marvin Jones were not the only Bengals to have an impressive fantasy outing. The whole defense completely took charge of the game. They recorded four sacks and only allowed nine points against the Jets. They also scored two touchdowns off inceptions from rookie quarterback Geno Smith. One defensive touchdown is always a treat, but two is a thing of beauty. Next week the Bengals are travelling to Miami to play a Dolphins team that just has not been making it happen recently. Once again, the Bengals defense will be a very good starting option.

Rookie of the Week- Andre Ellington (Arizona Cardinals)

There was only one way Ellington was going to get this award over Kenny Stills and it was if Marshawn Lynch did not show up on Monday night. Well, that is what happened. Ellington was the top running back of week eight. The half back position is very thin this year, so having a young guy step up and play big as a number two back or flex player is huge for fantasy owners. Ellington should become the starter after the Cards come back from their bye week and he should definitely be in starting line-ups in all fantasy leagues.

Sleeper of the Week- Marvin Jones (Cincinnati Bengals)

Marvin Jones came into week eight having scored a touchdown in each of his past two games. He was a good option to have a roster position and possibly start for owners who had a wide receiver on a bye week or are very thin at the position. If you started him, the Bengals wide receiver rewarded you with eight catches on eight passes for 122 yards and four touchdowns. Jones would have been the absolute best wide receiver of the week had Calvin Johnson not put up the crazy numbers he did. So is Jones worth starting from now on? Andy Dalton has come back to life in the second half of the season and A.J. Green is the defense’s first priority when it comes to Bengals’ receivers. So,the answer is simple. Yes, Jones is definitely worth starting in fantasy leagues. The Bengals are firing on all cylinders and Jones will be a huge factor in what they do on offense. He should be able to have another good game next week against the Dolphins, but do not go hoping for another four touchdowns.

Bust of the Week- Marshawn Lynch (Seattle Seahawks)

Once again, there were not many bust performances this week. Steven Jackson had 11 total yards, but he was injured for a while and probably should not have been in fantasy owners’ starting line-ups. RGIII had a terrible outing against the Broncos, but hopefully by now owners had sent him to the bench. The only true bust from a player who is always in every fantasy line-up was Lynch. Hopefully, you did not have to rely on him to give you a comeback win on Monday night. Beast Mode carried the ball only eight times for 23 rushing yards and fumbled. His total fantasy points were zero. Once again Lynch is showing his major weakness: consistency. After three good games, he does nothing. The worst part is he should have put up the most fantasy points by any running back this week. The Rams have surrendered huge games to Frank Gore and DeMarco Murray who are both good backs, but nowhere near the caliber of Lynch. Next week Seattle plays the Buccaneers. It is hard to say what Lynch will do, but if history shows us anything, he will probably follow up this pitiful game with a huge day.

Comeback Player of the Week- Stevie Johnson (Buffalo Bills)

Over the past five weeks, Stevie Johnson has averaged 33 receiving yards and no touchdowns. This weekend, he finally made a comeback posting seven receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown. Johnson was hampered by a hamstring injury for the past five weeks, but it looks like it is behind him. He has a little more time to rest with the Bills’ bye week coming up in week nine. It would not be surprising to see him explode soon. The key to starting Johnson in week ten is to monitor his health. If the Bills believe he is completely recovered he should be considered a mid range to low end second wide receiver or a strong third wide receiver or flex option.

Fanspeak.com Most Valuable Player of Week Eight- Calvin Johnson (Detroit Lions)

As we said in the beginning, it was the week of the wide receiver. At the top of the wide receiver mountain was Calvin Johnson, who torched the Cowboys’ defense and claimed a spot in the record books. There should be no doubt going forward who the best wide receiver in the league is, which is good because the top five rankings were changing all the time. It will now be easier because at least one spot is going to be claimed for the rest of the season.