Beyond all the blowout wins this week we actually have a few notable players that broke out in a big way. Players like Michael Crabtree, Shonne Greene, Miles Austin and Cedric Benson all had strong days.

In Crabtree’s case, I was amazed to see a rookie receiver come in and not just catch five passes but play almost every snap. Crabtree’s success is a testament to his conditioning and studying when he was on his own.

Below I have some observations from the seventh week of the regular season and how I see those points of interest playing out from a fantasy perspective.

2009 NFL Regular Season Week Seven

• Texans vs 49ers
• Steelers vs Vikings
• Bengals vs Bears
• Cowboys vs Falcons
• Saints vs Dolphins
• Jets vs Raiders
• Cardinals vs Giants

Regular Season First Six Weeks

• Week One
• Week Two
• Week Three
• Week Four
• Week Five
• Week Six
  

Fantasy Football Regular Season Week Seven Notes:

Shonn Greene a Hot Waiver Pickup

This weekend Jets’ rookie running back Shonn Greene saw his fantasy football value sky rocket with Leon Washington breaking his fibula. Washington went down in the game and is already declared done for the rest of the season.

Greene got the opportunity to back up Thomas Jones in this game and didn’t disappoint as he rumbled for 144 yards on 19 carries. Beyond the very impressive yardage numbers from the rookie, he also found the end zone twice.

This running back is a very hot waiver pickup as he will now be active in the Jets’ offense every week.

Austin Goes Wild

For the game Austin had six receptions for 171 yards receiving and two touchdowns. No doubt, Austin is now the true No. 1 receiver on this team and is a scary fantasy football receiver to face.

Look for the Cowboys to continue to make a drive for a wild card spot as they have a good team. This game was a big one for Dallas as they needed to show they could beat a good opponent.

Next week they play the Seahawks at home and should roll to an easy win.

Running Like a Beast

Benson had his revenge on the Bears as he carried the football and amazing 37 times for 189 yards and a touchdown. This was a complete blowout by the Bengals as they crushed the Bears 45 to 10.

Not only did Benson have a great game but quarterback Carson Palmer also had a solid performance as well. On the day Palmer had five touchdown passes as the Bengals had it going from the first quarter to the fourth quarter.

Now, the Bengals are 5-2 and are still a top the AFC Central. After their bye week in week eight they have to play the Ravens and Steelers again.

We will see if they can produce wins against these competitive teams once again this season.

NFL Fantasy Football Information writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

The New York Jets looked to snap their three game losing streak against the Raiders this week by pounding the football and playing shut down defense. In this game, the Jets did just that as they rolled to a huge shutout victory.

Shonn Greene a Hot Waiver Pickup

This weekend Jets’ rookie running back Shonn Greene saw his fantasy football value sky rocket with Leon Washington breaking his fibula. Washington went down in the game and is already declared done for the rest of the season.

Greene got the opportunity to back up Thomas Jones in this game and didn’t disappoint as he rumbled for 144 yards on 19 carries. Beyond the very impressive yardage numbers from the rookie, he also found the end zone twice.

This running back is a very hot waiver pickup as he will now be active in the Jets’ offense every week.

Raiders Suck

Well, it didn’t take long for the Raiders to start sucking again after they beat the Eagles last week.

JaMarcus Russell was benched in the second half of the game, and he is probably going to be a bust for his entire career.

Raiders are going to lose for a long time if they don’t get things turned around.

NFL Fantasy Football Player Rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This was supposed to be a cake walk for the Jets as they played against the struggling Buffalo Bills. In over time the Bills would pull out a 16-13 victory and knock the Jets down to 3-3 on the season.

Thomas Jones Sets Record

You would think that the Jets should have won this game when Thomas Jones had 208 yards rushing and Leon Washington had almost 100.

While the running backs had fabulous games, rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez had five interceptions on the game. These picks cost the team the win, and if they have any hopes for the post season, he needs to step it up.

Any time you run for over 300 yards, and you hold your opponent to 16 points, you should easily win the game.

Ryan Fitzpatrick and Lee Evans Lead Come Back

Early in the game Trent Edwards went out of the game with a concussion and backup Ryan Fitzpatrick came in.

Late in the 4th quarter Fitzpatrick hit receiver Lee Evans on a nice touchdown catch as they tied the game.

In overtime, the Bills stood their ground and eventually got a field goal to win the game. This was a nice win for a team that has had a very bad stretch, and hopefully they will have success from here.

NFL Fantasy Football Information writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This off season I thought Thomas Jones would end up being a bust pick in fantasy football for this season. My reasoning for this is that he was coming off of a 15 touchdown season and his fantasy football ranking would be higher than ever.

Another reason why is because I believed New York would use physical rookie runner Shonn Greene for goal line work.

This preseason I was interested to see that the team was using Jones as the goal line back and not Greene. Then I found out that Greene was having problems in pass protection and just wasn’t up to the level of play the team could get out of Jones and Leon Washington.

In the past couple of week Greene has gotten a few touches here and there but with Jones playing so well at the goal line, Greene is not fantasy worthy.

Jones Needs More Touches

Last week Jones had a couple of cheep touchdown runs as he gave fantasy football owners a second consecutive scoring week.

For the season, Jones now has a total of five touchdown runs, and he is well on his way to another double digit touchdown fantasy football season.

While the touchdown production is solid his rushing totals since week one are not. Jones has failed to produce one game in his last four with at least a four yard per carry average. Not only has he been slow in that category, but he has also failed to produce more than 54 yards rushing in that time.

Part of the reason for this lack of production is that fellow running back Leon Washington has been spiting carries with Jones. Neither running back has had more than 14 carries in a single game since week one.

Turning Things Around

This week is a great time for the Jets to get both of their running backs over 15 touches a piece as they play against the Bills poor run defense. Last week the Bills let a 70 year old man (Jamal Lewis) run for over 100 yards against them.

If Lewis and the anemic Browns’ offense can run the ball against the Bills than I would suspect the Jets can dominate.

While this week should be a good one for Jones and Washington, but I’m not sure what to expect week in and week out. If these backs continue to split carries like they have been than it will continue to dog Jones’s fantasy football value.

Fantasy Football Ranking for Jones and Washington

As the weather changes the Jets will probably lean on their running attack more often. Jones was not a top fantasy football play last season, until this point in the year. From around week six on he was a consistent fantasy producer just about every week.

I don’t think he will produce the same numbers this season as a year ago, but he should be a good fantasy football play.

Washington, on the other hand, is a hit and miss fantasy football player. If he hits the big touchdown, then that will be a great week to have him starting.

Last year he had eight touchdown in the running game and passing total. This year he has zero touchdowns. If you need a pinch flex play for this weekend he makes for a good start, but I would bench him against hard defenses.

NFL Fantasy Football Information writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

This weekend when the Jets traveled to the Houston Texans, I expected a close football game. Instead the New York walked in like they owned the joint and shut down the Texans high octane offense.

While the Jets defense as a whole was very impressive, young corner back Darrelle Revis caught my attention. I’ve been waiting to see if and when Revis (now in his third year out of Pittsburgh) would become a dominant, shutdown corner.

Last weekend could be the start of a long run of success for this talented corner.

Andre Johnson is considered by many to be one of the premier receivers in football and Revis held him to four catches for only 35 yards. If Revis can perform like this the Jets will no doubt improve on their 29th overall ranking against the pass in 2008.

You Can Not Handle Pressure

The Jets had a very good defense last season against the run and were good at sacking the quarterback with 41 a season ago.

In their first contest, they held the talented running back Steve Slaton to miserable 17 yards rushing.

This production should remain as long as the Jets have nose tackle Kris Jenkins on the field. Jenkins is a beast of a man standing 6′4 and 360 pounds. Not only is Jenkins big but he is very strong and is good at generation pressure up the middle.

With a stout front line, this allows head coach Rex Ryan (old defensive coordinator of the Ravens and Buddy Ryan’s son) to use is talented linebackers in different ways. They can blitz you from anywhere and also have the range to help in coverage against the pass.

Watching game film from Sunday’s contest, it was easy to see that Texans’ quarterback Matt Schaub was confused often. This confusion eventually led to forcing the ball into coverage and Schaub threw an easy interception.

If the Jets can continue to confound quarterbacks like this, they will be a solid fantasy football defense all year.

Running the Offense

The only weakness this defense has right now is not on the defensive side at all. Their problem is they have a rookie quarterback in Mark Sanchez. Rookies quarterback’s are bound to go through learning curves and Sanchez will be no different.

We saw this when the Jets traveled to the Ravens in the preseason. Sanchez was picked off early for a touchdown. Then on the next drive he almost gave up another touchdown interception to Ray Lewis.

So far, in the regular season Sanchez has made the grade in his first game. For the contest Sanchez was 18 of 31 for 272 yards and a touchdown. While these numbers are good he did throw an interception.

This interception gave the Texans their only points of the game as they scored a defensive touchdown on the turnover. I’ll advise passes are going to hurt the value of this defense.

Fantasy Football Ranking for Jets Defense

Right now I believe the Jets defense is one of the top five in all of fantasy football. Not only is the defense good but their special teams have Leon Washington returning kicks and punts.

It will be interesting to see how the Jets will matchup against Tom Brady and the Patriots this weekend. I would start the Jets’ defense this week as Brady is still recovering from his knee problem and the Jets are playing awesome defense.

Look for the Jets to be a solid producing fantasy defense for the 2009 season and beyond.

Fantasy Football Information writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

Week one of the fantasy football schedule is already behind us. Hopefully, your fantasy team got off to a good start to begin the year.

This week we have our weekly section on wounded warriors, as well as our top rankings for top position players. We have the top 16 ranked QB, TE, K and D/ST ranked. We also have the top 30 RB’s and top 40 WR’s as well.

Every week we will start off with our wounded warrior’s section. These are the key players that are on the injury report that you need to pay attention too before games begin.

Wounded Warrior’s

Donovan McNabb vs Saints – McNabb has missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday, so far this week. At this point in time, it looks like he will be a scratch. Even if he can play, the Eagles will probably run the ball and throw short passes.

Matt Cassel vs Raiders- Right now I hope you have a better option than Cassel on your team to start. However, he should make players like Dwayne Bowe more valuable, when he’s on the field.

At this point in time, it looks like Cassel may in fact play, so hopefully we can expect better production from Bowe and Larry Johnson.

Kyle Orton vs Browns- Orton is still wearing padded protection in his injured finger. Eddie Royal and Brandon Marshall may suffer a bit, while Orton is recovering. At the same time, all three players should have opportunities for success this week.

LaDainian Tomlinson vs Ravens- Tomlinson has missed practice both days this week. Right now he is wearing a protective boot on his injured ankle. Even if LT does play this week he is a poor bet for production against Baltimore.

If you have other options to start, I would bench Tomlinson this week.

Pierre Thomas vs @ Eagles- Thomas has been practicing with a heavy knee brace and his status for this week is up in the air.

Thomas did say on his twitter that he is ready to go for this week. This is a good sign, but even if he does it will probably be in a limited role.

Antonio Bryant vs @ Bills- Bryant makes for a bad play this week as he is still recovering from knee surgery. Last week he pulled himself out of the game. Look for other options this week.

Anquan Boldin vs @ Jaguars- Boldin said his hamstring is much better than last week, but it is still not 100%. Unless you have a deep receiving core, I would suggest you keep Boldin in the lineup.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh vs @ 49ers- Housh is listed as probable this week with back and rib issues. He should be fine for the game as the Seahawks and 49ers fight for first place in the division.

Brandon Marshall vs Browns- Marshall is not listed on the injury report. This is a good sign, but he will still need some time to get into playing shape. If you have good depth you might consider benching him until he proves he’s back.

Jeremy Shockey vs @ Eagles- Shockey was limited on Thursday’s practice with an ankle issue. However, he is not expected to miss the game and should be a decent start this week.

Quarterback

• 1. Aaron Rodgers- Bengals
• 2. Drew Brees- @ Eagles
• 3. Peyton Manning- @ Dolphins
• 4. Tom Brady- @ Jets
• 5. Matt Hasselbeck- @ 49ers
• 6. Kurt Warner- @ Jaguars
• 7. Tony Romo- Giants
• 8. Ben Roethlisberger- @ Bears
• 9. Philip Rivers- Ravens
• 10. Carson Palmer @ Packers
• 11. Matt Ryan- Panthers
• 12. Joe Flacco- @ Chargers
• 13. Trent Edwards- Buccaneers
• 14. Brett Favre- @ Lions
• 15. Brady Quinn- @ Broncos
• 16. Donovan McNabb- Saints (Not Likely to Play)
  

Running Backs

• 1. Adrian Peterson- @ Lions
• 2. Maurice Jones-Drew- Cardinals
• 3. Chris Johnson- Texans
• 4. Frank Gore- Seahawks
• 5. Ryan Grant- Bengals
• 6. DeAngelo Williams- @ Falcons
• 7. Michael Turner- Panthers
• 8. Clinton Portis- Rams
• 9. Brian Westbrook- Saints
• 10. Larry Johnson- Raiders
• 11. Ronnie Brown- Colts
• 12. Marion Barber- Giants
• 13. Ray Rice- @ Chargers
• 14. Brandon Jacobs- @ Cowboys
• 15. Darren McFadden- @ Chiefs
• 16. Matt Forte- Steelers
• 17. Fred Jackson- Buccaneers
• 18. Steve Slaton- @ Titans
• 19. Steven Jackson- @ Redskins
• 20. Cedric Benson- @ Packers
• 21. Kevin Smith- Vikings
• 22. Leon Washington- Patriots
• 23. Julius Jones- @ 49ers
• 24. Thomas Jones- Patriots
• 25. Mike Bell- @ Eagles
• 26. Tim Hightower- @ Jaguars
• 27. Michael Bush- @ Chiefs
• 28. LaDainian Tomlinson- Ravens (Check Injury Report)
• 29. Darren Sproles- Ravens
• 30. Carnell “Cadillac” Williams- @ Bills

Wide Receivers

• 1.Greg Jennings- Bengals
  
• 2. Randy Moss- @ Jets
  
• 3. Reggie Wayne- @ Dolphins
  
• 4. Larry Fitzgerald- @ Jaguars
  
• 5. Calvin Johnson- Vikings
  
• 6. Terrell Owens- Buccaneers
  
• 7. Marques Colston- @ Eagles
  
• 8. Dwayne Bowe- Raiders
  
• 9. Steve Smith- @ Falcons
  
• 10. Andre Johnson- @ Titans
  
• 11. Roy Williams- Giants
  
• 12. Chad Ochocinco- @ Packers
  
• 13. Anquan Boldin- @ Jaguars (Check Injury Report)
  
• 14. Braylon Edwards- @ Broncos
  
• 15. Justin Gage- Texans
  
• 16. Santonio Holmes- @ Bears
  
• 17. Eddie Royal- Browns
  
• 18. Wes Welker- @ Jets (Check Injury Report)
  
• 19. Hines Ward- @ Bears
  
• 20. Lee Evans- Buccaneers
  
• 21. DeSean Jackson- Saints (Check Injury Report)
  
• 22. T.J. Houshmandzadeh- @ 49ers
  
• 23. Vincent Jackson- Ravens
  
• 24. Derrick Mason- @ Chargers
  
• 25. Brandon Marshall- Browns
  
• 26. Donald Driver- Bengals
  
• 27. Devin Hester- Steelers
  
• 28. Bernard Berrian- @ Lions
  
• 29. Josh Morgan- Seahawks
  
• 30. Torry Holt- Cardinals
  
• 31. Nate Burlson- @ 49ers
  
• 32. Santana Moss- Rams
  
• 33. Davone Bess- Colts
  
• 34. Lance Moore- @ Eagles
  
• 35. Jericho Cotchery- Patriots
  
• 36. Earl Bennett- Steelers
  
• 37. Mark Clayton- @ Chargers
  
• 38. Patrick Crayton- Giants
  
• 39. Louis Murphey- @ Chiefs
  
• 40. Ted Ginn Jr.- Colts
  

Tight Ends

• 1. Tony Gonzalez – Panthers
  
• 2. John Carlson- @ 49ers
  
• 3. Jason Witten- Giants
  
• 4. Dallas Clark- @ Dolphins
  
• 5. Antonio Gates- Ravens
  
• 6. Jeremy Shockey- @ Eagles (Check Injury Report)
  
• 7. Chris Cooley- Rams
  
• 8. Dustin Keller- Patriots
  
• 9. Greg Olsen- Steelers
  
• 10.Vernon Davis- Seahawks
  
• 11. Ben Watson- @ Jets (Check Injury Report)
  
• 12. Visanthe Shiancoe- @ Lions
  
• 13. Brent Celek- Saints
  
• 14. Zach Miller- @ Chiefs
  
• 15. Kellen Winslow- @ Bills
  
• 16. Owen Daniels- @ Titans
  

Kickers

• 1. Rob Bironas- Texans
  
• 2. Nick Folk- Giants
  
• 3. Stephin Gostkowski- @ Jets
  
• 4. Ryan Longwell- @ Lions
  
• 5. Nate Kaeding- Ravens
  
• 6. Niel Rackers- @ Jaguars
  
• 7. Lawrence Tynes- @ Cowboys
  
• 8. Josh Scobee- Cardinals
  
• 9. Kris Brown- @ Titans
  
• 10. Robbie Gould- Steelers
  
• 11. Matt Prater- Browns
  
• 12. Joe Nedney- Seahawks
  
• 13. Steven Hauschka- @ Chargers
  
• 14. Mason Crosby- Bengals (Check Injury Report)
  
• 15. Ryan Succop- Raiders
  
• 16. David Akers- Saints
  

Defense/ Special Teams

• 1. Vikings- @ Lions
  
• 2. Steelers- @ Bears
  
• 3. Redskins- Rams
  
• 4. Falcons- Panthers
  
• 5. Giants- @ Cowboys
  
• 6. Titans- Texans
  
• 7. Cowboys- Giants
  
• 8. Packers- Bengals
  
• 9. Ravens- @ Chargers
  
• 10. Patriots- @ Jets
  
• 11. 49ers- Seahawks
  
• 12. Colts- @ Dolphins
  
• 13. Cardinals- @Jaguars
  
• 14. Bills- Buccaneers
  
• 15. Chargers- Ravens
  
• 16. Raiders- @ Chiefs
  

Fantasy Football Information writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com