His TD/INT ratio of 2-to-1 is better than Croyle’s 0-to-0 and much better than Huard’s 1-to-2.
Don’t be surprised if Thigpen holds down his starting gig going into 2009.
Miami Dolphins: Ricky Williams, RB
Stats: 89 carries, 388 yards, 3 TDs. 15 receptions, 128 yards
Ricky Williams is back. After he realized being a hippie just wasn’t his thing, Williams returned to the league, and this year he is playing extraordinarily well.
Williams is averaging 4.4 yards-per-carry and showed he still has speed to burn in his 105-yard performance against Seattle this week.
If he keeps this up, he and Ronnie Brown are going to be a very tough tandem to stop for years to come.
Minnesota Vikings: Visanthe Shiancoe, TE
Stats: 21 receptions, 252 yards, 4 TDs
Who? Vi-what? Visanthe Shiancoe had never scored more than two TDs in a season up to this point. This year, he’s already notched four.
That’s good enough to be tied for most on the Vikings this year. Shiancoe isn’t a superstar by any stretch of the imagination, but he is playing at a pretty high level right now.
New England Patriots: Matt Cassel, QB
Stats: 179/267 (67.0%), 1800 yards, 7 TDs, 7 INTs. 43 carries, 123 yards, TD
Could have been BenJarvus Green-Ellis, but he hasn’t had enough good games to convince me yet.
Come on, even the most devout Patriots fans feared for their season once Tom Brady went down. Matt Cassel? The guy who hasn’t started a game since high school?
Well, Cassel isn’t playing at a Pro-Bowl level by any means, but he is playing at exactly the level he needs to be playing at. He is managing games, and that’s all that is being asked of him to this point.
He’s got the Patriots atop the AFC East, and is living the dream right now.
New Orleans Saints: Lance Moore, WR
Stats: 44 receptions, 507 yards, 4 TDs
Going into the 2008 season, it looked like Lance Moore wouldn’t see the field this year, let alone start.
With Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, David Patten, former first-rounder Robert Meachem and rookie Adrian Arrington on the roster, where did Moore, a former undrafted free agent, fit in?
Well, it’s looking like Moore has found his spot… as a starter.
Moore has started five games this season, and in those starts, he has racked up 329 yards and 3 TDs on 28 catches.
Moore probably won’t start again this season, barring injury, but he has played too well to not be considered the team’s best No. 3 option after Colston and Henderson.
Moore is a restricted free agent after this season, and has probably played himself into a nice new contract that should pay him a little more than the $520k he is making this year.
New York Giants: Kevin Boss, TE
Stats: 19 receptions, 217 yards, 4 TDs
Kevin Boss played well in Jeremy Shockey’s absence last year, but if anyone had said before the season he would be leading the Giants in TD catches after week ten, that person would’ve been called insane.
Well, low and behold, Boss is tied with Plaxico Burress for the most TD receptions on the Giants this year.
Boss has been playing exceptionally well over his past three games, catching a touchdown in each of those contests.
New York Jets: Thomas Jones, RB
Stats: 160 carries, 750 yards, 8 TDs, 20 receptions, 104 yards, TD
Last year, Thomas Jones had just one rushing touchdown, and rushed for 1,119 yards on a 3.6 yards-per-carry average. His touchdown total and average were both career-lows.
This year, Jones is on pace to rush for 1,333 yards and only needs two more touchdowns to set a new career-high.
Jones has been revitalized this year, and is a key component to the Jets’ offense.
Oakland Raiders: Kalimba Edwards, DE
Stats: 33 tackles, 5.0 sacks, FF
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