Instant Accountability

Dallas 20, Carolina 13

Start: Steve Smith, CAR - I made sure to send Gusto an email last night to remind him of his poor ranking for Smith this week, as although Matt Moore had just 182 yards passing and 1 TD, Smith had 137 of the yards, as well as the TD. Great game for Smith, who performed even better than I had expected...
Prediction: 6 catches, 92 yards, at least a 30 yard catch or a TD.
Actual: 9 catches, 137 yards, 1 TD (including a 57 yard catch).

Bench: Julius Jones, DAL - Jones was a non-factor in the win by the Cowboys, with just 25 yards on 9 carries, with no carry more than 5 yards. He also added a paltry 2 yards receiving, while MBIII had 126 total yards and a TD. Clearly Wade Phillips has finally figured out that Barber is a superior RB, as the touches per game have continued to shift more and more his way...
Prediction: 55 total yards, 0 TD's.
Actual: 10 touches, 27 yards, 0 TD's.

Philadelphia 38, New Orleans 23

Start: Kevin Curtis, PHI - Yes, I made sure to email Mr. Goss about this one... Curtis started off the day with a flukey fumble recovery for a TD, but also added another one from McNabb in the 4th quarter. I thought the yardage #'s would have been a bit higher, but the TD's made up for it...
Prediction: 4 catches, 90 yards, probably 1 TD...
Actual: 6 catches, 78 yards, 2 TD's (1 receiving, 1 fumble recovery)

Bench: Aaron Stecker, NO - I nailed the yardage #'s, but didn't take into account that he was going to punch two into the end zone. Stecker missed part of the game due to injury, but wasn't really that effective anyways, with 26 of his 49 yards coming on one play. Still, the TD's make this one a miss...
Prediction: 17 carries, 65 yards rushing, 4 catches, 22 yards receiving, 0 TD's.
Actual: 13 carries, 49 yards, 4 catches, 35 yards, 2 TD's.

Detroit 25, Kansas City 20

Start: Kolby Smith, KC - Although like Stecker, I nailed it in terms of total yards, but because he didn't find his way into the end zone (the one carry Jackie Battle had was a 3 yard TD run, which probably burned many Smith owners) this one goes down as a miss as well...
Prediction: 24 carries, 105 yards, 1 catch, 8 yards, 1 TD.
Actual: 17 carries, 60 yards, 7 catches, 55 yards, 0 TD's.

Bench: Jon Kitna, DET - You think Millen'll try to trade up to get BC Quarterback Matt Ryan in the 2008 NFL Draft? Kitna only had to throw the ball 16 times in the win over KC, but was mediocre, with 0 TD's, and less than 125 yards passing. There's a great chance that he'll be holding a clipboard on the sidelines next season...
Prediction: 225 yards passing, 1 TD, at least 1 INT.
Actual: 115 yards passing, 0 TD's, 1 INT.

Cincinnati 19, Cleveland 14

Start: Kenny Watson, CIN - Watson didn't disappoint, as the weather conditions forced CIN to focus on the ground attack. 150 total yards and a TD qualifies as a fantastic day, even with the lost fumble. Nice win for the Bengals, who'll look to avoid double digit losses in Week 17 against the Dolphins down in Miami... Speaking of Miami, I just started watching the Showtime series "Dexter". Good stuff if you haven't seen it yet...
Prediction: 19 carries, 93 yards rushing, 1 catch, 7 yards receiving, 1 TD.
Actual: 30 carries, 130 yards rushing, 3 catches, 20 yards receiving, 1 TD, 1 fumble lost.

Bench: Phil Dawson, CLE - Dawson didn't even attempt an FG, as Derek Anderson reverted back to v.2006 today, as it took him almost 50 attempts to get to 250 yards...
Prediction: 2 FG's, 4 XP's (2 if weather is a factor).
Actual: 0 FG's, 2 XP's.

Chicago 35, Green Bay 7

Start: Donald Lee, GB - Ugh. Ugly game for the Pack today, as Brett Favre continues to have problems in Chi-Town. Jennings led the Pack with just 42 yards receiving, and Lee was worse, with just 1 catch for 2 yards on the day...
Prediction: 4 catches, 39 yards, 1 TD.
Actual: 1 catch, 2 yards, 0 TD's.

Bench: Mushin Muhammad/Bernard Berrian, CHI - MM/BB didn't disappoint, with just 1 catch for 14 yards COMBINED. Adrian Peterson shouldered the load, with almost as many total yards as the rest of the team (118 vs 122)...
Prediction: No more than 45 yards receiving for either player, 0 TD's.
Actual: 1 catch, 14 yards, 0 TD's for BB, 0 catches for MM.

NY Giants 38, Buffalo 21

Start: Brandon Jacobs, NYG - Even though Jacobs missed part of the game due to injury, he still had his best game as a pro, with almost 150 yards on the ground, and two TD's. And considering that Bradshaw had 17 carries himself, Jacobs might have neared 200 yards had he been healthy the entire game...
Prediction: 25 carries, 109 yards, 2 catches, 13 yards, 0 TD's.
Actual: 24 carries, 145 yards rushing, 1 catch, 6 yards receiving, 2 TD's.

Bench: Robert Royal, BUF - Hopefully you didn't have to start this guy, as he put up a big fat zero on the day. Another tough weather game for the Bills, who couldn't beat the G-Men despite 5 fumbles and 2 INT's by Eli...
Prediction: 2 catches, 22 yards, 0 TD's.
Actual: 0 catches.

Indianapolis 38, Houston 15

Start: Dallas Clark, IND - Big game for Clark, who caught 2 TD's through the air, and even ripped off a 15 yard run! A special eff you goes to Joseph Addai, who, along with Colston, cost me 3rd place in my league. Thanks guys! Yes, I'm extremely bitter this evening...
Prediction: 4 catches, 50 yards, 1 TD.
Actual: 6 catches, 60 yards receiving, 1 carry, 15 yards rushing, 2 TD's.

Bench: Kevin Walter, HOU - I'm done picking on Walter, who has clearly become an end zone target for Rosenfels. I had the total # of catches right, but that was about it...
Prediction: 4 catches, 48 yards, 0 TD's.
Actual: 4 catches, 69 yards, 1 TD.

Greg's Totals: Starts: 5-3-0, Benches: 5-3-0. Total: 10-6-0.

Jacksonville 49, Oakland 11

Start: Maurice Jones-Drew, JAC - Drew didn't do much on the ground, with just 44 yards rushing, but had a huge day catching the ball out of the backfield, with just under 100 yards receiving, including a 43 yard play. Overall, a very nice day for MJD...
Prediction: 15 carries for 65 yards with 1-2 TD’s.
Actual: 10 carries, 44 yards rushing, 6 catches, 96 yards receiving, 1 TD.

Bench: Dominic Rhodes/LaMont Jordan, OAK - I don't know if I should give this one to Gusto or not. Jordan didn't have a touch, while Rhodes actually had a very strong game, with 124 yards of total offense. Screw it, I'm in a giving mood today, so we'll call this one a hit...
Prediction: Combined 125 yards from scrimmage.
Actual: 124 yards for Rhodes, 0 touches for Jordan.

Arizona 30, Atlanta 27

Start: Edgerrin James, ARI - I was really hoping Gusto's prediction would be right here, as I needed a game like this to give me a chance to win. Unfortunately, he didn't score, nor did he have 100 yards rushing. He wasn't awful, with just under 100 total yards in the OT win over ATL, but it wasn't enough for me or this pick...
Prediction: 24 carries for 100 yards with 1 TD.
Actual: 25 carries, 76 yards rushing, 5 catches, 21 yards receiving, 0 TD's.

Bench: Jerious Norwood, ATL - ATL couldn't get the rushing attack going today, as Travis Williams (?) led the team with 37 yards on the ground, on his lone carry. Norwood actually had negative yards receiving, and only 8 touches on the day in what continues to be a frustrating year for him, as well as all of his fantasy owners...
Prediction: 11 touches for 70 yards.
Actual: 8 touches for 29 yards, 0 TD's.

San Francisco 21, Tampa Bay 19

Start: Jeff Garcia, TB - Even though he didn't hit Gusto's projections, I'm going to call this one a push, as the Bucs let Garcia sit out the 2nd half to keep him fresh for the playoffs. He still managed to throw for almost 200 yards and a TD, although he did have a fumble as well...
Prediction: 220 yards with 2 TD’s.
Actual: 196 yards passing, 1 TD, 0 INT's, 1 fumble (recovered by himself).

Bench: Shaun Hill, SF - 123 yards passing isn't exactly what you'd call a good day, but 3 TD's and only 1 turnover (INT) made this one a miss. Hill only completed 11 passes on the day, but 3 of them went for TD's in the upset win over the Bucs...
Prediction: 200 yards with 2 turnovers.
Actual: 123 yards passing, 3 TD's, 1 INT.

Seattle 27, Baltimore 6

Start: Bobby Engram, SEA - Engram wasn't that bad today, with 69 yards through the air. But because he didn't score, I'm going to have to classify this one as a miss. Hass actually had a tough time with BAL, with just 199 yards passing, along with 2 TD's and 2 INT's. The big surprise was that Shaun Alexander actually played well, with almost 90 total yards and a TD...
Prediction: 6 receptions for 80 yards with a touchdown.
Actual: 5 catches, 69 yards, 0 TD's.

Bench: Derrick Mason - Although Troy Smith was pretty ineffective today, throwing for just 199 yards and 1 TD (and 2 lost fumbles), Mason was on the receiving end for about half of the yards, as well as the TD in a strong performance. Actually, he ended up being the only BAL player worth starting, as no other player had more than 55 total yards...
Prediction: 5 receptions for 50 yards.
Actual: 5 catches, 98 yards, 1 TD.

Tennessee 10, New York Jets 6

Start: LenDale White, TEN - Nice call by Gusto here, but like Kolby Smith, this one goes down as a miss because White didn't find the end zone (Chris Brown scored instead). I'm so upset this game wasn't broadcast here though, as it looked like a real barnburner...
Prediction: 23 carries for 90 yards with a touchdown.
Actual: 23 carries, 103 yards, 0 TD's.

Bench: Thomas Jones, NYJ - Jones continued his mediocre season today, with 58 yards rushing on 21 carries, or less than 3 YPC. Hopefully you had better options, as TENN's defense smothered the ground "attack" of the J-E-T-S all day...
Prediction: 17 carries for 60 yards.
Actual: 21 carries, 58 yards rushing, 3 catches, 5 yards receiving, 0 TD's, 1 fumble lost.

New England 28, Miami 7

Start: Jabar Gaffney, NE - Although he didn't have any catches in the 2nd half (which sucked, as my league has a bonus for 100 yards receiving), Gaffney's 82 yards and a TD in the first half made this a solid call by Gusto. He actually led the Pats in receiving on the day, as Brady didn't play very well in the 2nd half...
Prediction: 5 receptions for 65 yards with a touchdown.
Actual: 5 catches, 82 yards, 1 TD.

Bench: Cleo Lemon, MIA - Lemon wasn't great, but he didn't turn the ball over at all, passing for 171 yards and a TD. His completion percentage was a paltry 44% on the day, with just 18 completions in 41 attempts (4.17 YPA, which is miserable). I hate to give a miss to Gusto here, but unfortunately, it is...
Prediction: 185 yards with 1 TD and 2-3 turnovers.
Actual: 171 yards passing, 1 TD, 0 turnovers.

Washington 32, Minnesota 21

Start: Ryan Longwell, MIN - You know you're having a bad week when even your kicker prediction turns out to be wrong. Longwell only attempted 1 FG in Sunday night's game, missing a 53 yarder...
Prediction: 2-3 field goals with at least one from 40+ yards.
Actual: 0 FG's, 3 XP's.

Bench: Clinton Portis, WAS - Gusto's hatred for Portis continues.... And he continues to get burnt. Even against the strong MINN rush defense, Portis had 124 total yards and a TD, as well as throwing for a TD! Very strong game for the Skins, who now control their own destiny for the 6th and final playoff spot in the NFC. For all the crap Gibbs has received lately, he has the team playing extremely well right now, even after the tragic loss of Sean Taylor, as well as Jason Campbell...
Prediction: 15 carries for 55 yards.
Actual: 20 carries, 76 yards rushing, 5 catches, 48 yards receiving, 15 yards passing, 2 TD's.

San Diego 23, Denver 3

Start: Antonio Gates, SD - Gates had another quiet game, with just 1 catch for 24 yards. Chambers was the only receiver/TE to make any sort of fantasy impact, with 70+ yards and a TD in the convincing win over the Broncos...
Prediction: 5 receptions for 60 yards with 1 TD.
Actual: 1 catch, 24 yards, 0 TD's.

Bench: Jay Cutler, DEN - As predicted by Gusto, Cutler had a miserable game, with just 155 yards passing, 0 TD's, 2 INT's, and 2 fumbles, one of which was recovered by SD. The only bright spot was the 42 yards he had on the ground...
Prediction: 220 yards with 1 TD and 2 INT’s.
Actual: 155 yards passing, 42 yards rushing, 0 TD's, 2 INT's, 2 fumbles.

Gusto's Totals: Starts: 2-5-1, Benches: 4-4-0. Total: 6-9-1.