NFL - 2009 Fantasy Football Week 15 Recap
Posted by: ThePME
on Dec 21, 2009
Below, we explore what happened in this past week's NFL games.
Ask a question about your lineup in our FORUM. Leave a comment about this article down below.
THURSDAY NIGHT
IND 35, JAC 31 [IND 27, JAC 14 (Pick: Indianapolis -3, over 41.5) fantasy]
Another fourth-quarter comeback for the Colts, and only the Jets and Bills stand in the way of an undefeated regular season. Peyton Manning was excellent again and now seems to be cruising to the MVP. With his 308 yards and 4 TDs, Manning now has five seasons of 30+ TDs and ten of 4000+ yards -- both NFL highs. The Jags lost their footing in the AFC wild card hunt, but they remain a game behind Baltimore and Denver for the 5th and 6th seeds.
SATURDAY NIGHT
DAL 24, NO 17 [NO 31, DAL 25 (Pick: Dallas +7, over 53.5) fantasy]
The perfect season has come to an end in New Orleans, and the Cowboys expelled the demons of December in a big way. In the overall scheme of the season, the loss means very little for the Saints. New Orleans has the NFC wrapped up, and the road to the Super Bowl will go through the Superdome. Dallas, on the other hand, basically puts themselves into the playoffs with this win. They need either a Giants loss Monday night or a win against the 'Skins or Eagles the next to weeks to clinch.
SUNDAY EARLY
ARI 31, DET 24 [ARI 38, DET 7 (Pick: Arizona -11.5, over 46.5) fantasy]
Good Golly Miss Molly! Up 17-0 and coasting to an easy win, Kurt Warner gave the Lions a quick pick six that went for 100 yards. After that, Maurice Morris exploded for a 64 yard touchdown, and a Drew Stanton sneak tied the game at 24. I really couldn't believe my eyes -- all these Lions points and nothing from Calvin Johnson. As expected, Warner tossed a late TD to Boldin for the win. Arizona (9-5) will likely end up with the NFC's 4th seeds and a home playoff date against Green Bay.
ATL 10, NYJ 7 [NYJ 19, ATL 14 (Atlanta -6, under 40) fantasy]
Jay Feely pulled a Bills and shanked one right. He had another one blocked and one that the holder couldn't handle. Put those points into play, and the Jets are likely in the playoffs. But there's a reason they are the Jets -- they just find way to devastate their fans every season. The return of Matt Ryan did nothing for the Falcons until the last drive, and that's all that would be required from him. Ryan found Tony Gonzalez in the last seconds on 4th and goal for the win.
BAL 31, CHI 7 [BAL 24, CHI 13 (Pick: Baltimore-10, under 40.5) fantasy]
Cutler reached a very nice milestone this week -- 20 road interceptions for the season. 20. No wonder this was a blow out. Flacco finally had a great game, tossing four TDs, two of which went to the "stormin Mormom" Todd Heap, not helping fantasy players anywhere.
CLE 41, KC 34 [KC 28, CLE 25 (Pick: Kansas City -2, over 36.5) fantasy]
You can see the unusually high scoring as predicted, and actually, this turned out to be the game of the day. Jerome Harrison posted the highest scoring fantasy day of the year and walks into a great situation next week against Oakland. Both teams are done this season, but it was nice to see that neither has thrown in the towel.
HOU 16, STL 13 [HOU 35, STL 7 (Pick: Houston -10.5, over 43) fantasy]
There was no reason for this game to be so close. And for anyone that sat studs to play Arian "Race" Foster, how'd that turn out for you? Andre Johnson continues his torrid pace as fantasy's #1 wideout. That's back to back 190+ yard games!
TEN 27, MIA 24 (OT) [TEN 24, MIA 20 (Pick: Tennessee -3, over 42) fantasy]
The projected game of the week eventually lived up the hype. Vince Young got the Titans out to a big lead, and then it was time for the Dolphins to stage a comeback. A late Anthony Fasano TD, coupled with a Ricky Williams two-pointer, tied the game at 24. Things were looking up for Miami after they won the toss in OT, but Chad Henne reverted back to being Chad Henne and threw the ball directly into the hands of Titan Michael Griffin. With that pass, Henne didn't just throw an interception, but he threw the hopes of a playoff spot for Miami away, too.
NE 17, BUF 10 [NE 18, BUF 16 (Pick: Buffalo +7.5, under 40.5) fantasy]
A late Lee Evans TD helped the Bills cover by a half point. Gotta love my Bills. Oh, and I'ver figured out how Buffalo has such sterling pass defense numbers... Any time it looks like someone will make a catch, they just tackle him three steps before the ball gets there. Pass interference doesn't count.
SUNDAY LATE
SD 27, CIN 24 [SD 25, CIN 13 (Pick: San Diego -6.5, under 44) fantasy]
It was closer than expected, but I will definitely take San Diego in the rematch. The Chargers looked like better team all game long and deserved the late win. If Peyton Manning didn't already have the MVP in the bag, it would be Philip Rivers' to lose.
PIT 37, GB 36 [PIT 20, GB 18 (Pick: Pittsburgh -0.5, under 40) fantasy]
It was a fun game all around, and the shifting of the spread all week long helped me get the spread win. Mike "60 Minutes" Wallace, who's day actually knocked me out of the playoffs in one league, made a beautiful catch. Who's playing Mike Wallace anyways? Hope you went against my advice and played Big Ben. My sit-of-the-week posted the 5th highest yardage total in history. Go figure.
OAK 20, DEN 19 [DEN 35, OAK 10 (Pick: Denver -13.5, over 37) fantasy]
This was a huge upset that puts 8 teams in play for the last two playoff spots. Denver has KC and Philly remaining. Don't count on them winning both.
PHI 27, SF 13 [PHI 30, SF 14 (Pick: Philadelphia -8.5, over 44.5) fantasy]
Too much snow pushed this game back to the afternoon, but I'm thankful for that in every way possible. Sitting in an airport listening to ESPN radio, I got to hear Sal Paolantonio's frustrated confusion on how the 49ers use Frank Gore... "I mean he's not Frank Gorshin, and he's not Al Gore. He's Frank Gore!" While the statement doesn't make a whole lot of sense, I happen to be a supporter of any reference of the menacing Frank Gorshin. What sort of evil do you suppose his brewing up in those test tubes? Oh, and the Eagles won. Most saw that coming.
TB 24, SEA 7 [SEA 28, TB 3 (Pick: Seattle -7, under 40) fantasy]
Stupid Seahawks, making me look bad! I can't figure out how the Bucs won this game for the life me. I guess that why they actually play the games.
SUNDAY NIGHT
CAR 26, MIN 7 [MIN 35, CAR 6 (MIN -7, under 42.5) fantasy]
Here's another upset that left me baffled. Jonathan Stewart lit up the Vikes defense for 123 total yards and two touchdowns. I guess I should have ranked him higher.
MONDAY NIGHT
New York Giants at Washington (+3) [42.5]
(Recap for this game to come Tuesday)
WAS 23, NYG 20 (Pick: Washington +3, over 42.5)
Again, ask a question about your lineup in our FORUM. Leave a comment about this article down below.

