The Buzz is now no longer about who will make it big or not in 2014. It’s December, so most of those ships have sailed. The question is this: How did this past weekend’s games impact what is to come? That will be the focus of this week’s recap. For most of you, it’s playoff time. If you’re still in the hunt for your league title, may the Buzz be with you!

Chicago @ Detroit
Matthew Stafford, Joique Bell, and Calvin Johnson put on a show while most were eating turkey and dressing last Thursday afternoon. The Bears seem to make every offensive skill position player look elite. Stafford (390 passing yards) does have an “elite” schedule down the stretch, so continued big numbers are highly likely. That would mean a potential December to remember for Johnson (11-146-2 on Thanksgiving Day). The problem is: How many Johnson owners remain in title contention? The other big fantasy take from this game is how little anyone is trying to run vs. the Detroit front four. Matt Forte carried the ball five times for 6 yards. Avoid starting RBs against Detroit in December.

Philadelphia @ Dallas
Did you realize that LeSean McCoy went over 1,000 yards for the season last Thursday? Probably not. McCoy may end up with something in the neighborhood of 1,500 rushing yards before the season is done. With Darren Sproles now in Philly, McCoy’s receiving numbers are almost non-existent (only 10 receptions over the last eight weeks), but he is working his way back into the conversation of which RBs can be counted on most in the coming month. As for those that figured Tony Romo would put up great numbers in a “shoot-out” game, you were no doubt thoroughly disappointed by this outcome. Less than 200 yards passing with no TDs and 2 INTs was simply dreadful. It doesn’t help much that Terrance Williams and Jason Witten aren’t getting much separation from defenders.

Seattle @ San Francisco
You can basically take what I said about starting a RB against the Lions defense and apply it to starting anyone against the Seahawks right now. Seattle smothered San Francisco in this one making Colin Kaepernick, Frank Gore, and Anquan Boldin dead weight in fantasy lineups for the week. This was never going to be much of an offensive game, but at least Russell Wilson (236 yards passing, 1 TD) and Marshawn Lynch (104 yards rushing) were semi-productive from a fantasy standpoint. Kaepernick simply cannot be trusted right now as he looks like a QB in regression. As a result, don’t expect any 49ers to be part of a winning fantasy formula in December.

Cleveland @ Buffalo
What kind of fantasy force would Johnny Manziel be? We may be about to find out after Brian Hoyer tossed two more interceptions and got pulled from this game. Much like the previous game in this collective recap, there wasn’t much offense to speak of, including another stinker from Sammy Watkins (3 catches, 11 yards) and a less-than-amazing stat line from Josh Gordon (7 catches, 75 yards). The Browns (Haden) have the ability to lock down top receivers and the Bills are tough to move the ball on in general, so keep those things in mind moving forward. The Browns would benefit at this point from getting Jordan Cameron back on the field as well. The Manziel watch has officially begun…

Washington @ Indianapolis
We said last week at the Buzz that Andrew Luck might begin to struggle a bit in terms of red zone production with Ahmad Bradshaw out for the year and Dwayne Allen ailing. Whoops. I think it’s safe to say that Luck has found some new weapons as he threw five touchdowns in this one- four of which went to Donte Moncrief (3-134-2) and Coby Fleener (4-127-2). With all the attention from defenses being placed upon T.Y. Hilton, Luck is doing what all great quarterbacks do. He is finding open guys. I doubt if anyone started Colt McCoy on Sunday, but his quarterback numbers (fantasy-wise) were impressive as well. 392 yards and 3 TDs is a major upgrade on what Robert Griffin III had been doing. And, it was nice to see Jordan Reed play a part in that finally. Reed may be a sneaky good play in December if you’re needing something from the TE position.

NY Giants @ Jacksonville
Fantasy owners typically care more about stats than anything else, so the fact that the Giants hit a new low with a loss in this game is irrelevant. What is relevant, however, is that Rashad Jennings showed once again what kind of running back he can be when healthy (26-91-2). After the game, Jennings’s health was a concern, so keep an eye on him this week. Denard Robinson has cooled for Jacksonville after bursting onto the scene, so Jacksonville appears to be a fantasy situation to avoid in December. And finally, Odell Beckham Jr. followed up his all-world performance against the Cowboys with more modest numbers in this one (7-90-0). He remains worthy of an every-week start the next three weeks nevertheless.

Drew Brees (257 yards, 5 touchdowns) only posts gigantic numbers at home? Not so fast.

New Orleans @ Pittsburgh
In the ultimate exhibition of garbage-time stat inflation, I give you the Pittsburgh Steelers offense. Ben Roethlisberger threw for 435 yards and 2 TDs. Le’Veon Bell gained a whopping 254 yards from scrimmage including a TD run. And, Antonio Brown caught 8 passes for 97 yards and 2 TDs plus a 2-point conversion. Never mind that almost all of this production happened in the fourth quarter when the outcome was no longer in doubt. In fantasy football, that doesn’t matter. In essence, if you owned a Steeler on Sunday, you were more than likely rewarded. On the Saints side of the ball, Drew Brees found a way to throw for five touchdowns without throwing a single pass to Jimmy Graham. Not just a single TD pass. A single pass, period. Kenny Stills was primary beneficiary of that head-scratcher with 162 receiving yards and a TD.

Carolina @ Minnesota
If you are a frequent reader of the Buzz, you know that we don’t discuss team defenses all that much unless you’re looking for one to exploit or avoid with respect to the skill position players on your roster. We’re going to break that rule here, as it’s worth mentioning that the Vikings have a defense/special teams are very much on the rise in terms of fantasy value. As a team, they blocked not one, but TWO punts for touchdowns on Sunday and added an interception to boot. If you’re looking for a December/fantasy playoff defense, this might be your group. As for individual offensive players in this game, production was sparse and neither team’s offensive units offer much promise going forward. Much like Colin Kaepernick, Cam Newton (194 yards passing, 1 TD, 1 INT on Sunday) has regressed this season.

Cincinnati @ Tampa Bay
In a game that should have been a feast for RB Jeremy Hill, the rookie fell fairly flat gaining only 40 yards on 13 carries. Hill’s value appears to be fading a bit with Giovani Bernard back in the fold as the two are splitting touches fairly evenly at present. It was not unexpected that Mike Evans had a down game (4 catches, 49 yards) as teams are starting to game plan for him and McCown is struggling to get his two big wideouts the ball (McCown was 15-29). In short, 14-13 games often don’t feature many breakout fantasy performances and this game fit that bill exactly. Still, the two feature WRs (A.J. Green, Mike Evans) warrant weekly starts throughout December.

Oakland @ St. Louis
What is most difficult about this game is trying to figure out what Tre Mason’s value is now that he exploded for 164 total yards and 3 TDs vs. Oakland. The versus Oakland part is what makes the accomplishment a little less impressive, certainly. Still, Mason’s day probably won a lot of games for fantasy faithful out there, so it’s worth celebrating for now. Stedman Bailey also continues to out-perform college teammate Tavon Austin as Bailey now has 191 yards receiving over the past two weeks. He’s on our December watch list in leagues that require a third starting receiver week in and week out. As for the Raiders, is there anything left to say at this point? Without Latavius Murray to get excited about, the “black hole” is just that when it comes to fantasy football relevancy.

San Diego @ Baltimore
Philip Rivers is a fascinating player to track over time. He seems to have his worst games of the year against the defenses he should shred and his finest performances against the best defenses around (see Seattle earlier this season). And so it was on Sunday as Rivers put up 383 yards passing to go along with 3 TDs. Keenan Allen has gotten red-hot all of a sudden (11 catches, 121 yards, 2 TDs) and is trying to move his way off the list of 2014 disappointments. One more big game next week and he’ll be there. One other funny thing to share about this game has to do with Ravens WRs Steve and Torrey Smith. My brother owns both guys in the league we play in together and knowing which one to start from week-to-week has been maddening. If you’ve got any advice on the situation, I’d love to hear it.

Tennessee @ Houston
The revenge/return of Ryan Fitzpatrick came to fruition Sunday as Fitz did his best Aaron Rodgers/Peyton Manning/Tom Brady/Ben Roethlisberger imitation, throwing for SIX touchdown passes. Two of those went to super Sunday-stud DeAndre Hopkins, who put up a mind-boggling 238 yards on nine receptions to go along with the touchdowns. Much like T.Y. Hilton has emerged in Indianapolis as being far superior fantasy-wise to Reggie Wayne, Hopkins has passed up Andre Johnson. I guess either Fitzpatrick has turned the ultimate career corner, or the Titans secondary is just really bad. I suspect it’s the latter. On a brighter note for Tennessee, Kendall Wright had his best game of the year with a 7-132-1 stat line. Wright is a terrific lineup insertion in December if you’re looking for a WR3 with upside.

Arizona @ Atlanta
Sunday’s performance by Julio Jones reminded fantasy owners of why you can’t ever pull him out of your lineup. It reminded us here at the Buzz, too, as we were starting to waver a bit on the issue. Jones torched Patrick Peterson to the tune of 189 yards and a TD and cemented his status as a must-start in December, especially when playing at home or in a shoot-out game like next week’s game at Green Bay figures to be. As far as the Cardinals are concerned, everything seems to be falling apart with Andre Ellington getting more and more beat up and Drew Stanton unable to utilize his weapons the way Carson Palmer did. Oh, one more thing- a shout out to one of my all-time favorite players, Steven Jackson. Running backs don’t gain over 100 yards vs. the Cardinals typically. S-Jax did just that, gaining 101.

New England @ Green Bay
Aaron Rodgers at home cannot be stopped. He cannot be contained. Even if you blanket Jordy Nelson for most of the game (the Patriots did), he’ll find a way to beat you and put up terrific numbers in the process. Rodgers completed 15 passes to players other than Nelson and Cobb on Sunday, proving that he can do what some have suggested he can’t do. That is, involve a larger swath of receiving options as needed. It’s what Tom Brady has always done and continued to do on Sunday, but with fewer passing yards on the TD. Brandon LaFell did score two more TDs in this one leading me to wonder once again if LSU has indeed been WR central over the past five years in a covert sort of way. Anyway, a tip of the cap to Rodgers in this one. He’s dynasty gold right now and will certainly lead many fantasy teams to titles this December.

Denver @ Kansas City
What is it about the name Anderson when it comes to Denver RBs? In 2000, a little known rookie named Mike Anderson took the fantasy world by storm filling in for Terrell Davis. Now, another Anderson has emerged. C.J. Anderson became the first running back in nearly a decade to run for 150+ yards in successive weeks. With Denver balancing out their offensive attack, Peyton Manning’s numbers and the numbers of his wide receivers should continue to take a bit of a dip in December. That’s just a warning for those of you banking on the Denver passing attack as your bell cow. All in all, Anderson touched the ball 34 times in this game. Take note, Andy Reid as you’ve got a star on your team (Jamaal Charles) that netted only 14 touches on Sunday.

Miami @ NY Jets
Typically, when a team runs the ball 49 times for 277 yards, they win NFL games. Not so for the Jets who lost to Miami in spite of those gaudy numbers. The lack of TDs in the Meadowlands kept the overall point totals of Chris Johnson and Chris Ivory modest, but they certainly got plenty of touches. Lamar Miller scored Miami’s only TD and remains a solid RB2 going forward against a softer schedule. Ryan Tannehill is a good, young QB but doesn’t throw enough touchdowns to warrant being a fantasy starter during the month of December. In short, this game was short on fantasy playoff prospects, but was a fascinating contrast in offensive schemes nevertheless.

We’ll be in full playoff mode next week here at the Buzz…until then, keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for those antacid tablets. Buzz out.