Trick or Treat ? Oct 30, 2008 | More

It's Halloween, a worthless day that was invented for candy manufacturers and dentists. It's a time when baseball ends, hockey begins and hopefully your fantasy team has you in a good enough spot to make the playoffs. If not, then cleaning the eggs off your windows is going to hurt this year. We go around the league and look at some positive things that owners like myself liked.

Clinton Portis is so underappreciated that I threw his name in so I could stop listening to people say how undervalued he is ....

He had a solid game as well, running for 126 yards on 24 carries.

Anquan Boldin returns to show everyone that Larry Fitzgerald is a secondary target in the Cards red zone offense. "Q" had six catches for 63 yards and two scores. He also took a handoff and raced 30 yards. I don't think owners are worried about production any longer after the devastating hit three weeks ago.

Boldin is a must start every single week, and I have him finishing the year inside the Top 5 despite his absence.

Leonard Weaver did his best Brian Westbrook impression Sunday catching two balls out of the backfield for scores. He value is as a situational start as he is not likely to repeat the performance.

LenDale White currently has the most value in the Titan backfield.

Chris Johnson owners were hoping that we would see less of White. Johnson happened to get the garbage time TD after White crossed the stripe twice. The Colts defense was stout most of the game, holding the tandem in check. However, Johnson still gained 77 yards on the ground on 19 carries, and added 19 yards on four receptions. Kerry Collins played extremely well spreading the ball between TEs and the lackluster Titan receivers.

Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers was held in check most of the game then exploded in true elite receiver fashion. He ended the day with five catches for 117 yards and two scores. He continues to play with a chip on his shoulder and is a must start every week.

DeAngelo Williams had a very solid week with 108 yards on 17 carries and a TD. Jonathan Stewart is still shaking the rust off from the injury. He had a dismal day gaining 10 yards on eight carries. Williams looks like he has really stepped up his game and Panthers coach John Fox will have a hard time not incorporating him in the offensive gameplan.

Stewart remains a situational start in a very potent Panther offense.

Kurt Warner remains the starter and gives the Cards the best chance to win. Warner was 35/49 for 381, two TDs, and one INT. Forget Matt Leinart this year unless Warner sustains an injury.

Steve Breaston remains a great low #2 fantasy receiver again this week. His nine-catch, 91-yard performance tells you that the rapport he built with Warner in Boldin's absence is still there. Don't expect Warner to throw 49 times every week, but in the shootout matchups Breaston remains a decent fill-in play.
Brian Westbrook was the Eagles offense this week with 209 total yards and two TDs. Expect Donovan McNabb's TD-less performance to not be repeated again.

Roddy White gets his every week and is Matt Ryan's first option in the passing game. White is a must start despite the defenses Atlanta faces. White had eight catches for 113 and 2 TDs.

The Lions ground game has gone south. Look for other options as the Lions rushed for a whopping 57 yards on 15 carries. Rudi Johnson crossed the stripe for a TD but I wouldn't trust him and neither should you.

When the game was on the line, Brad Johnson threw a fade to Roy E. Williams who leaped over a defender to snag the pass and score his first TD as a Cowboy.

Terrell Owens was lobbying for the ball all day. Expect Roy to be the red zone threat and Owens to be the deep ball threat. It didn't hurt that Jason Witten was getting X-rays on his ribs either. I like Roy's value much better with Tony Romo at the helm, but it's nice to see a veteran like Johnson throwing the perfect fade.

Rookie receivers like the Rams’ Donnie Avery make it look easy. The critics claimed Avery was a reach for the Rams. With Talent like Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly and Limas Sweed on the board, the Rams couldn't get away from Avery's pro day speed. The University of Houston product has looked like the real deal in the last two weeks. If you haven't noticed, Avery has 10 receptions for 218 and 2 TDs in two weeks. 

Torry Holt has almost disappeared since his TD in week 2.

Figures don't lie but liars figure:

There are three rookie running backs who are on pace for 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Matt Forte (515 yards), Steve Slaton (476 yards) and Chris Johnson (626 yards) are all on pace to smash the 1,000-yard barrier. Here are the previous triple rookie running backs who cracked the 1,000 yard mark:

1993: Jerome Bettis (LA Rams; 1,429); Reggie Brooks (Was.; 1,063); Ron Moore (Phx.; 1,018)

1995: Curtis Martin (NE; 1,487); Terrell Davis (Den.; 1,117); Rashaan Salaam (Chi.; 1,074)

2001: Ladainian Tomlinson (SD; 1,236); Anthony Thomas (Chi.; 1,183); Dominic Rhodes (Ind.; 1,104)

Four backs have never cracked the 1,000-yard mark in NFL history, which leads us to Darren McFadden (341 yards), who has a shot at 1,000 as well. The four getting past the mark is unlikely yet very possible.