Matthew Stafford /
Calvin Johnson - Thanks to touchdown drives of 71 and 98 yards in the final eight minutes, the Lions became the first team in NFL history with four comebacks from 13 or more points down to win in a single season. Stafford joined Dan Marino (7) and
Jeff Garcia (5) as the only quarterbacks with five four-touchdown games in the first three seasons of a career. Marino is the only passer in history to reach 4,000 yards and 30 TDs in a season at a younger age than Stafford’s 23 years and 10 months.
It was Johnson, though, who stole the show against a Raiders defense allowing free access off the line two weeks after the Saints resorted to “gunner” coverage. Stafford realized he couldn’t “
dink and dunk” the ball down the field starting at his own 2-yard line with just two minutes left. After an acrobatic 21-yard sideline grab by Johnson, Stafford let loose with a 48-yard lob described as more of a punt than a throw. Johnson had the coverage beat for a score, but ended up landing at the 14-yard line after a nice adjustment. After drawing a 17-yard interference penalty on
Stanford Routt, Megatron then beat the shadow corner for the game-winning 6-yard score with 39 seconds left. Responsible for 75 of the 98 yards on the drive, Johnson emerged with a career-high 214, trailing only Cloyce Box (302, 1950) and Richard Johnson (248, 1989) in Lions history. His 81 receptions, 1,335 yards, and 14 TDs are already career-highs across the board with two games to go. The playoffs are now on the horizon, as the Lions need only to win once against the Chargers in Week 16 or a Packers team likely to be resting starters in Week 17.
LeSean McCoy /
Brent Celek /
Michael Vick - Shady scored three times to break Hall of Fame Steve Van Buren’s (1945)
longest-standing team record for touchdowns in one season. Only Tony Dorsett and
Fred Taylor have
more fourth-quarter touchdown runs of 30+ yards than McCoy’s five in just three seasons. With 239 yards over the final two games, McCoy will break Wilbert Montgomery's Eagles season record of 1,512 set in 1979.
Celek’s 156 yards are the most in a single game by a Philly tight end
since Pete Retzlaff’s 204 versus the Redskins in 1965. It’s also the second-highest total by a tight end against the Jets defense, behind Ozzie Newsome’s 191 in 1984. Vick not only scored his first rushing TD of the season, but also had one of his most effective passing games of the year, going 10-of-14 for 251 yards on passes of 10+ yards. As crazy as it sounds, the Eagles can take the NFC East if they win out, the Jets win next week, and the Giants beat the Cowboys in the finale.
Tom Brady /
Aaron Hernandez -
Controlling the middle of the field as well as any quarterback in the game, Brady was 10-for-12 for 172 yards and a touchdown when blitz-happy Broncos DC Dennis Allen
sent at least five rushers. The performance moved Brady into a tie with
Brett Favre for the most seasons (3) with 35 or more passing TDs while continuing a pace for a second 40-TD season and first career 5,000-yard campaign. Brady has
boasted a 114.2 passer rating on throws to Hernandez this year, and the two connected on 9-of-11 tosses for 129 yards and a score in Denver. Hernandez was 5-of-5 for 96 yards when the Broncos sent extra pass rushers,
making good on Evan Silva’s prediction that the Patriots’ “other tight end” would break out with the defense keying on
Rob Gronkowski and
Wes Welker.
Tony Romo /
Felix Jones - Against a defense that has been going through the motions for more than a month, Romo produced the
third-highest Total QBR (97.5) by any quarterback this season. His 20,283 passing yards through 75 games are also the third-most by any player in NFL history, behind Dan Marino (20,492) and
Kurt Warner (20,305). Jones has posted back-to-back 100-yard games for the first time in his career, recording 45.4 percent of his yards after contact. For the season, Jones is in the top-five among all backs in yards per rush after contact.
Reggie Bush - Proving to be a complete back capable of running between the tackles, Bush rolled off his third consecutive 100-yard game. The 76-yard fourth-quarter touchdown was his sixth in the last seven games, moving Bush to within 27 yards of his first 1,000-yard season. “I don't think any of the questions bother me," said Bush, of concerns that he couldn’t handle the feature back role. "It was more of the opportunities that bothered me. I know what I can do
when given the right opportunity."
Tim Tebow - Although it was another uneven performance, Tebow continues to make strides as a passer. Per ESPN analyst
Trent Dilfer, Tebow threw better in the first half than he has all season.
NFL Network’s Michael Lombardi agrees, describing the Tebow as “more comfortable with each throw and clearly improved.” Tebow has cleared 8.8 yards per attempt in three of the past four weeks, and Advanced NFL Stats ranked him 12th among QBs in
Win Probability Added for Week 15. The Broncos
fell to 18-1 all-time in games in which they had at least 250 rushing yards, though Tebow’s 93 yards and two rushing scores enabled him to rack up 26 fantasy points -- fifth among QBs.
Coach John Fox, who Tony Kornheiser has insisted all season “hates” Tebow, even threw his quarterback a back-handed compliment after the game. “He's gotten better every week,'' Fox said. "Six or seven weeks ago people said that he
couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, but I think he does that.” Fox’s team would have had a better shot at winning had he allowed Tebow to work out of the shotgun spread before the fourth quarter.
Committee ReportColts -
Donald Brown (17 touches, 163 yards, TD) /
Joseph Addai (13 touches, 27 yards)
The Colts continue to run Addai out as the starter in an apparent nod to his experience. Regardless, Brown continues to outplay him on a weekly basis. Addai has just 75 total rushing yards the past three weeks on 26 carries (2.88 yards per) whereas Brown continues to impress in a breakout season. The former first-rounder has an impressive 5.1 yards per carry average on the season to go with three TDs in the past four games.
Saints -
Darren Sproles (13 touches, 112 yards, TD) /
Pierre Thomas (10 touches, 85 yards, TD) /
Chris Ivory (18 rushes, 74 yards)
Sproles could have had a second score on a goal-line attempt, but the call was overturned on replay. Thomas, the primary goal-line back with
Mark Ingram out, punched in on the next play. Ivory took over as the lead runner in clock-killing mode down the stretch. For Week 16, Sproles remains a viable RB2 option, Thomas a flex, and Ivory a reach -- dependent on Ingram’s return.
Panthers -
DeAngelo Williams (15 rushes, 61 yards, TD) /
Jonathan Stewart (13 touches, 51 yards)
Playing with a lead throughout, Williams equaled his season-high in carries while scoring a long touchdown for the second straight game. There’s more where that came from next week against the Bucs’ sorry run defense. Both Williams and Stewart are viable RB2 options for fantasy’s Championship Week.
Patriots -
Stevan Ridley (11 rushes 65 yards) /
BenJarvus Green-Ellis (12 touches, 49 yards, TD) /
Danny Woodhead (8 touches, 52 yards, TD)
Matchups and game momentum rule the day in the Patriots backfield. Although Woodhead and Green-Ellis both took advantage of goal-line opportunities, a more effective Ridley played as the primary runner throughout the second half. Don’t go rushing to add Ridley as a potential fantasy starter for Week 16, as there is very little predictability in usage pattern.
Giants -
Ahmad Bradshaw (13 touches, 79 yards, TD) /
Brandon Jacobs (8 rushes, 33 yards)
Neither back played particularly well. According to ESPN Stats & Info, Jacobs and Bradshaw combined for just 19 yards after contact. As has been the case all year, Bradshaw is the lead back in the tandem attack when healthy and not being disciplined.
Chiefs -
Thomas Jones (16 touches, 75 yards) /
Jackie Battle (11 touches, 44 yards, TD) /
Dexter McCluster (7 touches, 25 yards)
This backfield remains hands-off for fantasy purposes. Jones’ 3.2 yards per carry average was his highest in a month, Battle hasn’t topped 50 rushing yards in five games, and alleged playmaker McCluster is averaging a pedestrian 5.6 yards on 38 receptions this season. There’s been no value here since
Jamaal Charles went down with the season-ending ACL injury.
Injury WardMark Sanchez, Jets - Neck
Willis McGahee, Broncos - Hamstring
Roy Helu, Redskins - Leg
Delone Carter, Colts - Forearm
A.J. Green, Bengals - Shoulder
Stevie Johnson, Bills - Groin
Johnny Knox, Bears - Back
DeSean Jackson, Eagles - Elbow
Mike Williams, Seahawks - Ankle
Jordan Norwood, Browns - Head
Jake Ballard, Giants - Knee
Asante Samuel, Eagles - Hamstring
Check out Matt Stroup’s “
McGahee’s Malady” for in-depth analysis of Sunday’s M*A*S*H unit fallout.
Awards SectionStat of the Week: Via @CaptainComeback,
John Skelton’s six fourth-quarter/overtime victories in 11 games played represent an NFL record. On a related note, Cardinals “starter”
Kevin Kolb is due a $7 million option bonus in 2012.
Runner-Up: Arian Foster became the
fifth player in NFL history with 1,000 rushing yards and 600 receiving yards in back-to-back seasons. The other four are Thurman Thomas (1991-92),
Marshall Faulk (1998-2001),
Priest Holmes (2001-03), and
Brian Westbrook (2006-07).
Second Runner-Up: The Seahawks have scored 30 or more points in three consecutive games
for the first time since November of 2003.
Marshawn Lynch has scored a rushing touchdown in 10 consecutive games, breaking the franchise record he shared with
Shaun Alexander.
Quote of the Week: Jesus Sudekis on Saturday Night Live, asked if He helps decide football games: “I just go where people call me the most. Nowadays that’s a lot of football games, also the country music awards -- I decide all of those. I’m right there at any black event where food is served [Laughs]. I’m sorry -- I’m forgiven. … Tebow, I love you. But just take it down a notch, will you buddy?”
Runner-Up: Crazy-as-ever Bill Romanowski
in this video: “The Oakland Raiders, Hue Jackson, he’s got a bunch of guys that like bacon. … They go to the grocery store and buy their bacon. I need some damn boar hunters.”
Second Runner-Up: Joe Flacco,
capturing the state of ESPN in the 21st century: “I mean look at
Tim Tebow. I like Tim, but you have a tendency to want to, I don’t want to see Tim do bad, but look what happens after he wins a football game. If you watched Sportscenter today it was
Tim Tebow then something else,
Tim Tebow then something else, and
Tim Tebow then something else.”
Tweet of the Week: From
@KenTremendous after the Packers’ upset loss at Kansas City: “Hey, 1972 Dolphins: as you clink champagne glasses tonight, remember that the 2011 Colts would have beaten you by 48.”
Runner-Up: From
@thejuiceisgood, late Sunday night: “With Kim Jong Il's death, Nick Saban becomes the most powerful dictator in the world under 5'5.”
Fantasy MVP of Week 15: Drew Brees, Saints /
Calvin Johnson, Lions
Fantasy Breakout Player of Week 15: C.J. Spiller, Bills /
Darrius Heyward-Bey, Raiders
Fantasy Rookie of Week 15: Greg Little, Browns
Fantasy Disappointment of Week 15: Eli Manning, Giants
Fantasy Fraud of Week 15: Vikings,
Buccaneers Offenses
Fantasy Fluke of Week 15: Toby Gerhart, Vikings
Fine Fifteen Fantasy Offenses1. Patriots
2. Cowboys
3. Falcons
4. Eagles
5. Saints
6. Chargers
7. Lions
8. Packers
9. Giants
10. Panthers
11. Steelers
12. Broncos
13. Ravens
14. Raiders
15. Vikings
Early Waiver LookQB: Jake Locker,
Kyle Orton,
Seneca Wallace,
Kellen ClemensRB: Donald Brown,
Kahlil Bell,
Lance Ball,
Stevan RidleyWR: Darrius Heyward-Bey,
Demaryius Thomas,
Jabar Gaffney,
Randall Cobb,
Greg Little,
Golden Tate,
Lance Moore,
Andre RobertsTE: Jared Cook,
Todd Heap,
Jacob TammeFollow
Chris Wesseling on Twitter.