Fantasy Football 2012: 5 Huge Surprises from Week 11

This deep into the NFL season we have a good idea of how certain players perform and certain teams play. But every week when setting your fantasy football lineup do not take these givens as actual truths.

Because sometimes a top five QB throws five picks, a top five RB has another awful game, and one of the top defenses gives up nearly 500 total yards to one of the worst offenses in all of football. 

In Week 11 there were some major surprises that came to fruition, and here's the five biggest of the week. 

Julian Edelman Is Now the Patriots Other Wide Receiver

The shifty third-year wide receiver out of Kent State is the second coming of Wes Welker. His snap counts and usage have been increasing incrementally all season, and this past Sunday, against a poor Colts defense, Edelman put up 105 yards (receiving and rushing combined), a receiving touchdown, and a 68-yard punt return for a score. 

It amounted to 22.5 fantasy points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues. With the loss of Rob Gronkowski and the decrease of Brandon Lloyd's snaps (Lloyd played 34 snaps while Edelman played 52), expect the Patriots to use the Welker-like tandem from here on out. 

The Reemergence of Schaub to AJ

This past Sunday in Houston, the Jacksonville Jaguars brought out the Houston Texans of old. The Texans of old used to throw the ball a lot. And on Sunday Andre Johnson put up 273 yards on 19 targets, and caught the game-winning TD (his first TD since week 3). 

It has been said very much this year, and before the season, that Andre Johnson had hit the wide receiver cliff: multiple injuries, in his thirties and on a team that has the best running back in the NFL. No one is denying AJ's talent, but the signs were there for him to not be a WR1 this year. 

Despite his 33.3 fantasy points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues this past weekend and his Top 15 ranking, Andre has put up less than five points three times this season. Don't be surprised if the Texans aim to keep him healthy for the playoffs with lower snap counts in the coming weeks. 

Ray Rice Puts Up a Stinker

Ray Rice got completely bottled up against a staunch Steelers defense, rushing for only 40 yards on 20 carries. After getting thrashed by Jamaal Charles the week before, it seemed like the Steelers were going to give up a big game to Rice.

Rice did salvage his day for fantasy owners with five catches for 53 yards. But it's the third time this season that Rice has failed to eclipse 10 fantasy points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues. 

Matt Ryan Throws Five Interceptions and No Touchdowns

Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had a tough day on Sunday against a rejuvenated Cardinals defense. He threw five picks, yes five, when he had only seven coming into the game. He didn't throw a score, but he did eclipse 300 yards passing and got the victory. 

Ryan has been a top fantasy quarterback all season. He came out of the stinker on Sunday with only 6.74 points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues and fell out of the top five. Look for him to have a bounce back day in Week 12 against the Buccaneers. 

Justin Blackmon and the Jaguars Beat Up on the Texans Defense

After being last year's No. 5 pick in the Draft, Justin Blackmon has severely underproduced all season. Fantasy-wise, before Sunday's man-handling of the Texans' secondary, Blackmon had yet to put up more than 10 points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues in any game. 

Against the Texans, Blackmon hauled in seven catches for 236 yards and a score on 13 targets. Before that he only had 250 receiving yards all season. 

Chad Henne took over for the paltry Blaine Gabbert early on, and that was what seemed to spark the Jaguars offense. Henne put up 354 yards and four scores for 30.86 fantasy points in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues. 

And even a change in the backfield for the Jaguars helped them out. The struggling Rashad Jennings was benched for third-year back Jalen Parmele. Parmele proceeded to put up 80 yards on 24 carries.

The Jaguars offense seems to have gotten a shot in the arm, and who would've guessed that it would come against one of the leagues top defenses. They held the Texans defense to a zero point total in Yahoo! standard scoring leagues. No wonder the Jags have already named Chad Henne the starter going forward.