Fantasy Heroes: Players That Came To Play When It Mattered Most

LaDainian Tomlinson - A day worthy of the overall top pick four months ago

Tom Brady - He got you to this week; now, he took you beyond....

Randy Moss - See above

Matt Hasselbeck - Steady all year...spectacular today

Ryan Grant, Earnest Graham - The beat goes on (see last week’s Buzz)

Jason Witten - Career day for an elite tight end- PPR monster today

Marion Barber - A man amongst boys...tremendous overall effort

LenDale White, Plaxico Burress - What a time to bust out of a slump...

Jay Cutler & Brandon Marshall - Heroes of today...heroes of the future...

Jamal Lewis - Another week, another plate-full of crow for me

Peyton Manning, Joseph Addai, & Anthony Gonzalez - It’s good to have Colts come playoff time

Fred Taylor - Probably not in many lineups, but if he was, it’s party time...

Business As Usual: Having players on the Patriots, Colts, and Cowboys have carried you to fantasy wins all season long. Why should it be any different today? With the exception of one big goat (see Goat list), these teams fueled solid fantasy playoff performances all over the country today and did what they’ve done all year: keep teams moving towards a championship.

Unusual Business (Playoff Magic): Sometimes, you insert a player into your lineup at playoff time just hoping to get a few points out of him and he becomes gold or a fantasy folk hero, or both. Anthony Gonzalez is just such a guy on this night. It’s likely that Gonzalez is in a few lineups as a #3 WR this weekend and it’s also likely that he brought some guys some unexpected last second wins. Jabar Gaffney fits the same category. It’s doubtful that Gaffney made it into a ton of lineups on Sunday, but for those who rolled the dice with him as a WR #3…jackpot. Gold. If Jerhem Urban was in your lineup, you were both truly desperate and a complete genius. I’ll bet as many people had Keith Urban in their lineups as Jerheme—unless Jerheme’s family and close friends play fantasy football.

Fantasy Goats: Players That May Have Sunk Your Ship

Adrian Peterson - A goose egg for the ages. Shocking to say the least.

The Other Adrian Peterson - Thursday night trendy pick gone bad

Jeremy Shockey - Overhyped and overvalued for owners...season over?

Carson Palmer - Kind of a tease all year broke lots of hearts today

Willis McGahee - Double-digit scoring streak finally gets broken

Terrell Owens - Exception to the Cowboy Rule- what a time to crash.

Kolby Smith - Anybody can thrash the Raiders...hope you pulled him in time

Bengals & Steelers Wide Outs - Not a good day to count on these guys....

Mike Shanahan - Travis Henry owners want you out of their lives forever

Donald Driver - Used to be “clutch” in fantasy playoff time, but not today

Hard To Believe: I wish I could tell you what happened to Adrian Peterson and Terrell Owens today, but I can’t. Two of the hottest players on the planet virtually disappeared at a time when most fantasy owners needed them most. If for some reason, you own one of these two and you’re still playing next week, count your lucky jock straps because performances like this usually get followed up with something pretty special. TO plays against the Eagles at home while AD plays in his first Monday Night game of his career. I hope you are able to enjoy those events, some of you will watch them in disgust.

Easy To Believe: Mike Shanahan is really a villain in most fantasy football circles. Sure, maybe a few guys started Selvin Young today and got a pleasant surprise, but for those who started Travis Henry and lost a close playoff game because of it, you may never be able to hear the name Shanahan again without weeping and/or gnashing of teeth. Also, the season is likely over for the worn out Steve Smith owner—a fitting ending today to a very, very frustrating season. A guy you couldn’t easily take out of your lineup, but a guy you didn’t want in it either—quite a dilemma.

Random Buzz:

• This week was apparently the “on” week for Kevin Jones. Expect three carries for three yards to re-appear next week.

• I’m not sure the Packers needed to be throwing the ball late in the game up by a zillion points, but Donald Lee owners are sure glad they did.

• How about some love for a guy from the state I live in: DeDe Dorsey of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. The Bengals RB is averaging almost 14 yards a carry these past three weeks. But, where is Lindenwood College?

• As noted above, anybody else think Jay Cutler is going to be a fantasy star in the near future? If Javon Walker can ever get healthy, he’s got the weapons...

Well, that’s it for another week. Next week, the Buzz will take a look at the big picture from this 2007 season. The biggest surprises and disappointments from the season will be noted and discussed. Then, in two weeks, we’ll take a mock look at what the first few rounds of a redraft might look like next summer based upon what we know now.

But, not everyone’s ready to look back or too far forward just yet. For those of you still in the race for a fantasy football championship, we’ll look at lots of stuff that interests you, too. Here’s to a few more weeks of success for you and to more Heroes and less Goats.

God Bless and have a great week!