On the Rise, On the Fall – Week 6

Welcome to Week 6 of “On the Rise, On the Fall.” Throughout the season, I will discuss players whose stock is rising and others who are not having the same luck. I will avoid naming the obvious studs – Brandon Marshall,

Marion Barber, etc – and will keep to players whose performance was not as foreseeable.

 

On the Rise

 

Warrick Dunn, RB, Buccaneers

: This ex-Falcon has been on the rise for a few weeks now and was the main reason for why Earnest Graham found himself “on the fall” last week. He had an astounding 22 carries (compared to five for Graham, who filled in at fullback) and 115 yards. He was also a factor in the passing game with three catches for 18 yards. Dunn has showed no signs of slowing down and has become a big part in the

Tampa offense. Even though Graham courageously filled in for the Bucs injured FB, Dunn has still been getting at least half of the carries on a weekly basis.

 

Bernard Berrian, WR, Vikings

: Berrian has put together four straight solid weeks despite being banged up and with his status for the previous few games being unclear. He remains the go-to-guy for Gus Frerotte and the Vikes’ No. 1 WR. He is getting the catches, yards, and of late, the touchdowns.

 

Andre Johnson, WR, Texans

: He struggled for a few games, but has rebounded very nicely the past two weeks. Don’t expect anything less over the next few weeks as he has some great matchups (DET, CIN, @MIN). You don’t have to worry about who is under center for Houston either as Sage Rosenfels hit him nine times in Week 5 and Matt Schaub connected with him 10 times on Sunday.

Roddy White, WR, Falcons: The receptions just keep on increasing for Roddy (2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9). Those are the catches from Week 1 through Week 6 for White, who also has three TD’s. He has hooked up extremely well with rookie QB Matt Ryan, who has not played like a first-year pro. Only the bye, which Roddy has this week, can slow him down.

 

Stud of the Week

 

Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, Jaguars

: 125 yards on the ground and two touchdowns on the road earns you the Stud of the Week. MJD led his Jaguar team to a much needed victory in

Denver to pull even at 3-3. He also rewarded those who started him with a big day, including a 46-yard TD run. He has some great matchups ahead so his owners are hoping this becomes a trend.

 

On the Fall

 

Chris Perry, RB, Bengals

: As long as Carson Palmer is out, that hurts the running game for

Cincinnati, which already had its problems with

Carson under center. Perry has to deal with new-arrival Cedric Benson and inexperienced quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. Things are not looking up for Perry. If you need a spot on your roster, cut the

Bengal.

 

Darren McFadden, RB, Raiders

: Ever since he blew up against the Chiefs in Week 2, McFadden has slowly decreased his production. Justin Fargas is now back and Michael Bush has also been stealing some carries. The three-headed monster on a below-average offense does not bold well for the rookie.

 

Jay Cutler, QB, Broncos

: After Big Ben thrashed the Jags secondary on SNF in Week 5, Cutler couldn’t break 200 yards against them on Sunday at Invesco. Cutler’s production has dropped off since his Week 1 and 2 performances. He is putting up merely average numbers now when at one point it was thought he could finish the year as the top QB. In most basic leagues, Cutler has averaged just about 20 points per game, which teams that are not solely reliant on Cutler can deal with. However, those who need the Broncos QB to put up stud-like numbers will have to temper their expectations a bit. Have no fear though as the schedule lightens up after the bye. Until then…

 

Dud of the Week

 

Terrell Owens, WR, Cowboys:

So much for the monster game that TO was going to have. Who would have thought that Tony Romo would throw for 320 yards and three scores, but Owens would have just 36 yards? In a game that was supposed to be a shootout, started slow, but when it picked up in the second half, TO disappointed.

 

One Week Wonder

 

Michael Pittman, RB, Broncos:

He made for a nice fill-in this week, but once Selvin Young comes back, the trio returns in the backfield. Pittman is the answer at the goal line, but it is hard to trust him for solely those purposes. In addition, you don’t want to trust Mike Shanahan too much with the running back cycle.

 

That’s all for this week’s edition. If you have any questions or comments, e-mail me at

pags2122@yahoo.com. Thanks for all of your e-mails so far!