On Saturday, the New Orleans Saints rebounded after a lackluster end of the regular season with a convincing 45-14 knockout of the Arizona Cardinals. last season’s NFC representative in the Super Bowl. Reggie Bush scored two touchdowns as the Superdome rocked and rolled. Not much of a surprise there, as the Saints were expected to dispel of a team that may have still been showing the affects of an exhausting overtime win against Green Bay the week before.

That evening, the Baltimore Ravens were ousted by Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, 20-3. They took a two-touchdown lead at half time and coasted the rest of the way. Three turnovers did the Ravens in, setting up Indy to play host next weekend one game away from Super Bowl XLIV. Although they played extremely well in taking out the Patriots in the Wild Card round, Baltimore was clearly outclassed versus a well-rested Colts squad.

On Sunday, Brett Favre turned back the clock and led his new team to the conference championship. The 40-year-old former Packer and Jet threw for four touchdowns (three to Sidney Rice) to lead the Minnesota Vikings to the 34-3 victory over Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys. Jerry Jones’ boys may have exorcised some December (and early January) demons by winning their division and then dispatching the Eagles, but were never even competitive in the dome.

Saving the best for last, the game of the weekend came in San Diego pitting the Chargers against the upstart New York Jets. Given no chance to move on, the Jets came out and played the 11-win Bolts tooth-and nail. They trailed by a mere seven points heading into the locker room and were clearly the team ‘hanging around’ against a formidable opponent.

Jay Feeley hit a 46-yard field goal to cut into the lead during the third quarter. Then the turning point in the game occurred towards the end of the quarter. The Jets downed a punt deep in the Chargers zone and a few plays later, Philip Rivers was intercepted by Jim Leonhard. A Chargers personal foul moved the ball inside the 10 at the start of the final stanza, which set up Mark Sanchez’s two-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dustin Keller and a 10-7 advantage.

Sanchez is not the only Jet rookie to be making a name for himself in the postseason, as running back Shonn Greene had another 100-yard performance and a long run for a score. He scampered 53 yards to give the Jets a 10-point lead with 7:26 left in the game. San Diego scored with 2:14 left when Rivers dove in from a yard out, but Kerry Rhodes recovered Nate Keading’s onside kick. The game wasn’t decided until Thomas Jones moved the chains on fourth and one with 1:09 left in the contest.

Keading, the AFC’s Pro Bowl representative, had a forgettable day with three missed field goals (36, 57 and 40 yards), which opened the door that the Jets kicked in on their way to Indianapolis for their first appearance in the AFC Championship Game since 1998.

Say what you want about the Jets and their outspoken rookie head coach, but Rex Ryan will have another week in the spotlight to psyche up his charges. The strategy has clearly worked and this team is going into Indy believing in themselves.

When the two teams met up in Week 16, Colts head coach Jim Caldwell pulled Manning in the third quarter with a 15-10 lead. The Jets rallied against back-up quarterback Lance Painter and that began their ascent towards where they are today. Once again, the Jets will be heavy underdogs and that is exactly the way they like it.

Now that the Saints have gotten the perfect record thing out of the way maybe they can get back to playing football. The last month has seen this team struggle with a few teams and they have been exposed on defense as well. This past Saturday the Cowboys had aspirations of beating the Saints. Granted, it was a long shot but they still had a chance. Players like Tony Romo said that if the Boys played their game they could win. Well it appears that the rest of the world didn’t believe when Dallas did and they came out smoking. They put pressure on Drew Brees from the start of the game and ended up sacking him four times while forcing two fumbles that Brees lost. He was hit on many occasions and for three quarters could not put his team in the end zone. Dallas struck immediately in the first when Romo hit Miles Austin for a 49-yard touchdown to make it 7-0. At halftime is was 14-3 and when Marion Barber ran it in from two in the third the game looked lost to the Saints. In the fourth it became a different story as Brees began to move his team and finally hit pay dirt when Mike Bell scored from one-yard out. Now it was 24-10 with just over 12 minutes to go. When Lance Moore pulled in a Brees pass to make it 24-17 the Saints were back in it. Dallas got the ball back and looked to go three and out when Romo hooked up with Austin for a huge 32-yard gain and the first down. After moving the ball 74 yards on 10 plays the Cowboys set up for a 24-yard chip shot by Nick Folk to extend the lead to 10. Somehow it hit the upright and the Saints got the ball back with a chance to tie or win the game. So here were the Saints with the ball and a little more than two minutes to go. The ball was at their 20 and Brees proceeded to move the ball down the field. Just like that DeMarcus Ware stepped in and stripped Brees for the second time of the day and that was that. New Orleans was no longer undefeated and they could now look to the bigger challenge of finishing with the number one seed in the NFC. 19-0 is good, but more than that, they want finish strong in December and January to get to the Super Bowl.

Atlanta 10 New York Jets 7

The Falcons came into this game with nothing to play for and for about 58 minutes they played just like that. The Jets defense pushed them around and dominated for most of the game. The Falcons did get on the scoreboard first when Matt Bryant hit a 24-yard field goal to make it 3-0 in the first. That would all the offense Atlanta cold muster as they punted seven times after that and missed a field goal later. They finished with 238 yards of offense and 73 of those came on the final drive. Matt Ryan returned at quarterback and was just 16-34 for 152 yards and one touchdown. The running game was ineffective as Michael Turner hurt himself again and Jason Snelling could not get off. Atlanta had only 12 first downs and they were just 7-18 on third down efficiency. Still as the saying goes you have to play the full 60 minutes, the Jets did not, and the Falcons did. With 4:27 left in the game the Falcons got the ball with one last shot at putting a dent in the Jets playoff aspirations. On a third and five from their own 32 Ryan hit Jerius Norwood for nine yards and the first down. On another third down play Ryan got another first down when he hit Roddy White for 16 yards and a face mask penalty on the Jets moved the ball to the New York 27. One last third down from the six and this time it failed when Ryan’s pass to Tony Gonzalez fell short. The Falcons took a timeout to discuss their options while the Jets knew all they had to do was get a stop and remain one game behind the Patriots in the AFC East. They decided to go for it and lined up in the shotgun again. They threw the same pass to Gonzalez again and this time he caught it in the end zone for the lead with 1:38 left in the game. The Jets took over but Mark Sanchez was intercepted for the third time on the game and Atlanta pulled out the victory. They were able to win the game and put the Jets playoff hopes in jeopardy. This is how you play football when you are out of the playoff hunt. Stay hungry and play with pride.

Tampa Bay 24 Seattle 7

Near the end of the game the stands were about empty, but some very irritated fans stayed to watch their team tank another game. The Bucs had just put a whipping on their team to win just their second game of the year. Josh Freeman bounced back from two horrible games to throw two touchdown passes while going 16-26 for 205 yards. Derrick Ward and Cadillac Williams each ran for a touchdown and Connor Barth kicked three field goals as Tampa Bay won on the road for the first time since last year. The Tampa defense recorded a sack; four interceptions and a lost fumble to the hapless Seahawks. Williams and Ward combined for 31 carries for 133 yards and Kellen Winslow chipped in with 93 yards on six receptions. Their record is now 2-12 but the team has been playing inspired football even when they are losing. It has been a rough season but some of the players feel like the team is headed in the right direction. Head coach Raheem Morris is in his first year and we will see if he makes it to a second. One thing is for sure with Freeman, Williams and Ward the team has a future to build on. They also have player s like Winslow and a kicker that is sure fire. Now let’s see how they put those pieces together for the final two games of the year. Granted they are at New Orleans and then at home for the finale against the Falcons. Still there is room for learning and working towards next year.

Carolina 26 Minnesota 7

Once again no one knows what Panther team will show up but if this one would show up every week they would be in the playoff running now. With no reason to play except to play the game itself, the Panthers stuck to Brett Favre and the Vikings in dominating fashion. They scored 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter and sent the Vikings reeling. Matt Moore had a career day going 21-33 for 299 yards and his first three-touchdown game of his career. Jonathan Stewart ran all over the Viking defense for 109 yards on 25 carries and a rushing touchdown. He also had a touchdown catch from two-yards out to cap the scoring. The Panther defense was fantastic harassing Favre repeatedly and sacking him four times. Julius Peppers was in Favre face all night to the point where head coach Brad Childress thought of removing his star quarterback for safety purposes. Favre got angry and the two had a heated discussion. It was all for naught as the Panthers came out firing in the fourth as Steve Smith pulled in a 42-yard pass for the score to make it 12-7. Smith finished the game with nine catches for 157 yards and the Carolina defense held the Vikings to 10 first downs, 237 total yards and 1-10 on third down conversions. It was a dominating performance for sure but the Panthers need a lot of help. They have no answer to the question for the quarterback of the future. Sure Moore is 4-2 but he is still unproven. The defense will undergo an overhaul and there is still the question about the future of coach John Fox. Still for one Sunday things were right in Carolina and they will take that any day.

“The Collector”

(courtesy of the Fantasy Football Gang)

Once again “The Collector” is back this week to let all of you fantasy owners know about those not-so-highly known fantasy gems that continue to score big points. While these diamonds in the rough make noise, we also have some of your weekly Studs that looking more like Duds.

When you need a big week, sometimes you can count on your regular sources of scratch to pay-off, “The Collector” will tell you who is dropping the most coin and who you should maybe just drop.

Here were the Studs (Earners) and Duds (bums) for Week 8;

The Earners (Studs)

(Min 15 fantasy points)

Another week of what could have been and maybe what should be (for next week). Here are this past weekend’s top fantasy point getters and those players that maybe need another bye week or just a good-bye.

Is it really that much of a surprise to everyone to see the 40-year old kid still playing at the highest level. The Vikings quarterback Brett Favre was one of week eight’s biggest “earners” torching the Packer’s secondary on Sunday for the second time in the past five weeks. Favre completed 17 of 28 passes for 244 yards and threw four touchdowns on the afternoon. (33 fantasy points)

When one player is dropping all of the loot, sometimes you have to make a change which is what the Texans did on Sunday. With running back Steve Slaton (7 fumbles in 2009) fumbling away the game, the Texans turned to running back Ryan Moats. The backup runner was brilliant cashing in big with 126 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. (32 fantasy points)

The Jet’s rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez did his best impression of a green scoring machine on Sunday. Sanchez completed 20 of 35 passes for 265 yards passing and three touchdowns (including one rushing). (28 fantasy points)

If Tony Romo isn’t your weekly starting quarterback you could missing out on some serious coin. The Cowboys quarterback knows green, especially the kind you find in the end-zone. Romo passed his way to 256 yards on Sunday and threw three touchdowns. (27 fantasy points)

The Saints have their own two-headed monster in the backfield that they can now boast and on Monday night, one of them got loose. Running back Pierre Thomas was cash money rushing for 91 yards and scoring twice; one rushing and one receiving. (21 fantasy points)

The Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck did his best on Sunday to earn his keep for every fantasy lineup he was Sunday. Hasselbeck completed 22 of 39 passes for 249 yards and threw two touchdowns. (21 fantasy points)

The Panthers used their two headed rushing attack out of the backfield to ground the Cardinals. Running back number two, Jonathan Stewart was a Sunday cash cow hitting paydirt twice and rambling his way to 87 yards on 17 carries. (20 fantasy points)

The Eagles rookie running back LeSean McCoy made the most of his opportunity with a rare start. The rookie feasted on the spotlight gaining 82 yards on the ground including a dynamite 66-yard scamper to pay-dirt. (15 fantasy points)

Players not quite earning their way to this honor roll, but drawing some attention include;

TE-Spencer Havner……….(21-yards, 2-touchdowns)

WR-Percy Harvin………….(86-yards, 1-touchdown)

RB-Justin Fargas…………..(79-yards, 1-touchdown)

TE-Dustin Keller……………(76-yards, 1-touchdown)

FB-Leonard Weaver……….(75-yards, 1-touchdown)

WR-Braylon Edwards…….(74-yards, 1-touchdown)

TE-Kevin Boss……………….(70-yards, 1-touchdown)

The Bums (Duds)

(Less than 5 fantasy points)

And of course where you find the “haves” you will find the “have-nots.” Here are your week 8 fantasy studs that left their “A” game for another day and brought their “D” for “Dud” game instead.

There is word that Trent Edwards could return to the lineup; after Ryan Fitzpatrick’s 117 yard passing day with two interceptions and no touchdowns, the sooner the better. (zero fantasy points).

After scoring in three straight games, the Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown only totaled 29 yards on Sunday. That won’t pay the rent. (two fantasy points)

The Jet’s rookie running back Shonn Greene goes from the penthouse one week, to the outhouse the next. Greene rushed for only 18 yards on eight carries with a fumble. (minus one fantasy point)

The Jaguar’s top receiver Mike Sims-Walker scored twice in their first meeting, but on Sunday he was a huge disappointment against the Titans. Sims-Walker finished with just nine receiving yards. (zero fantasy points)

There was no bigger disappointment on Sunday than the one for all of the Steve Slaton fantasy owners. Slaton was expected to be a player this season, but on Sunday he hardly played after a costly fumble (his seventh this season). Slaton finished the day with 11 total yards. (minus one fantasy point)

Fantasy owners that are waiting on wide receiver Eddie Royal to get going in 2009 are only becoming more frustrated. The Broncos speedy wideout finished Sunday with just 10 receiving yards. (one fantasy point)

For all the money the team paid to wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh, they are just not seeing any returns this season; 24 receiving yards on Sunday. (two fantasy points)

The Bronco’s wide receiver Brandon Marshall may be saying all the right things now off the field, but he’s still yet to do all the big things he did a season ago; 24 receiving yards on Sunday. (two fantasy points)

The Rams second year receiver Donnie Avery is just not having that breakout season some fantasy owners had hoped he would have; 15 receiving yards on Sunday. (one fantasy points)

Injuries played a huge part in putting these two duds on our list this week; Anquan Boldin caught just three passes for 23 yards and Owen Daniels had just one catch for 22 yards.

The Chargers’ defense put the beatdown on the Chiefs during an easy 37-7 win in Kansas City. San Diego intercepted Matt Cassell three times, sacked him four times, and held him to just 3.9 ypa (97 yards on 25 attempts). Kansas City managed just 10 first downs and 203 total yards on the day, and was shut out during a first half which had the Chargers leading 20-0 by halftime.  

#4:  ROMO RIGHT ON WITH AUSTIN’S HELP

After struggling to find consistency earlier this season, Tony Romo had his best game of the season, going 21 of 29 for 311 yards, 3 TD, and 0 INT, and he seems to have found his replacement for the departed Terrell Owens, in Monmouth College product Miles Austin, who caught 6 balls for 171 yards including touchdowns of 59 and 22 yards, helping the Dallas Cowboys storm back for a 37-21 home victory after spotting the Atlanta Falcons a 7-0 lead after the first quarter.

#3:  PACK DOES IT ALL ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL

There wasn’t much that Green Bay didn’t do outstandingly in their 31-3 rout in Cleveland. Defensively, the Packers shut down the Browns, holding Cleveland to just 139 total yards, just 58 on the ground and only 81 through the air, while shutting out the Browns for the first 50 minutes. Offensively, Aaron Rodgers was extremely efficient. He threw just 20 times, but completed 15 passes for 246 yards (a 12.3 ypa), 3 TD and 0 INT, and a 155.4 passer rating. Ryan Grant’s 148 yards on 27 carries led a Pack ground attack that amassed 202 rushing yards.

#2:  JETS RUSH PAST RAIDERS

The Jets blew away the Raiders in Oakland, 38-0, rushing for 316 yards on 54 carries, led by the tandem of rookie Shonn Greene (19-144, 2 TD) and Thomas Jones (26-121, 1 TD). The output on the ground was nothing new for New York, although the outcome was drastically different than the previous week’s loss to Buffalo, as the Jets became the first team in 34 years to rush for over 300 yards in consecutive games.

#1:  PALMER’S NEAR-PERFECT PASSING DAY

Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer was nearly perfect in a 45-10 home rout over the Chicago Bears. Palmer played the first three quarters, during which the Bengals scored all seven times they had the ball, getting 6 TD’s and a FG. Palmer was 20 for 24 for 233 yards, 5 TD (four of those coming on the Bengals’ first four possessions in the first half), and 0 INT, while leading touchdown drives of 77, 80, 63, 66, and 61 yards. It all added up to a passer rating of 146.7 for Palmer and finally, a laugher for the 5-2 Bengals after they barely eked out four previous wins.