The Thursday night game between the Patriots and Jets was a quarterback-friendly, overtime shootout. The kind of game fantasy owners dream of, unless of course they were part of the faction that watched New England quarterback Matt Cassel’s 400 yards and three touchdowns waste away on their bench. Brett Favre, meanwhile, had the far better game in reality, efficiently completing 26-of-33 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-31 overtime win.

For football fans and Bill Belichick bashers, there was more joy in reality than in fantasy Thursday night. For fantasy owners with enough reason to put Cassel in their starting lineups, there was plenty of joy in a breakout performance that went into the NFL record books. In addition to monster passing numbers, Cassel rushed for 62 yards and became the first quarterback in league history to accumulate 400 passing yards and 60 rushing yards in a game. Read more »

Panic is setting isn’t quite setting into the New York Jets locker room, but it’s not far off. It was about 15 yards away - as in the winning TD toss to Laveranues Coles with a minute to play - on Sunday when New York went down to the wire against a hapless Chiefs team.

The Jets were able to overcome three Brett Favre interceptions and escape with a 28-24 home win.

With the win, New York improved to 4-3, but the moderate success has been more a product of the team’s schedule than its performance. The cushy schedule, which has included three wins over last-place teams Miami, Cincinnati and Kansas City, gives way to road contests against Buffalo, New England and Tennessee in the next four weeks. Read more »

Clinton Portis backed up his recent promotion to Imaginary Gridiron’s No. 1 player in fantasy in a big way this week, rushing for 175 yards and a score in a win over Cleveland. He symbolized a shakeup last week, as we attempted to get a better grasp on the current state of fantasy football affairs. Less has changed in this week’s edition of The Fantasy NFL 101, but the Top 10 did get a small facelift in light of Week 7 happenings.

No player had a bigger week than St. Louis’ Steven Jackson, who finally “arrived” with 160 yards and three scores in a stunning win over the Dallas Cowboys. Even with a bruised thigh, Jackson moves up to No. 6 in the rankings because he has such a bright outlook in the season’s second half. Reggie Bush quickly plummeted after suffering a meniscus injury in his left knee, one that required surgery and at least three weeks of recovery time. Read more »

As we near the half-way mark of the ‘08 season, NFL action continues to startle and excite each and every Sunday. This week, the Titans steamrolled the Chiefs with a versatile ground attack, and two quarterbacks in the Big Apple found their way onto our list for disappointing performances.

Mewelde Moore makes Steelers fans think “Willie Who?” and an MVP day for what seemed to be an ‘08 bust in Steven Jackson as his Rams put a hurtin’ on America’s Team. Willis McGahee and Ryan Grant also show up big in Week 7, as this could be deemed the week of redemption for guys struggling to get on track.

Be sure to check out this week’s Bonus Hardware after the Highlight Reel. Some performances were so bad they didn’t fit into our standard list of awards. Read more »

Fantasy owners can breathe a collective sigh of relief.

St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson was diagnosed with a slightly strained thigh, according to the St. Louis-Dispatch. He expects to play Sunday after posting big numbers in a surprising 34-14 win over Dallas in Week 7. Jackson had easily his best game of the season, rushing 25 times for 160 yards and three touchdowns.

This was a moment Jackson owners have been waiting for since drafting him with a top-five pick in fantasy drafts. He had failed to deliver big results until Week 6 at Washington, but his early struggles should be discounted because of the state of the Rams franchise and the quality of run defenses he was facing. Read more »

New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush will reportedly miss the next 2-to-4 weeks with a torn meniscus in his left knee, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Bush had missed practice time this week with swelling in the same knee, then left the Saints’ 30-7 loss to Carolina when he injured it on a punt return.

Needless to say, Bush’s absence from both the Saints’ and fantasy teams’ lineups will hurt. Entering the week, he led the NFL with eight touchdowns and was a force in PPR leagues with 42 catches. While he struggled to move the ball on the ground — he averaged just 3.4 yards per carry — Bush was the league’s only player to score at least one rushing, receiving and return touchdown. Read more »

For the most part, the next time you see your fantasy team players in action it will be in Week One, as most starters sit in the fourth and final preseason game. So, with that said, what has the preseason action on the field, and the news off it, done for the players around the league?

Here is a brief glimpse at some of the most compelling NFL issues in the fantasy world. From star players like Peyton Manning and Steven Jackson coming back to camp, to players like Chad Johnson and Derek Anderson making news for not being on the field, we have it all covered.
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