Fantasy Football Spin on the Best and Worst Performers of Week 15

Each week at FFSpin.com we take a look at the best and worst performers of the week and provide our fantasy football analysis on the long and short term implications.  Is their performance a trend, a blip on the map, a real problem or a real opportunity?  Read on and see....

The GOOD...

Matt Flynn: Wow.  Flynn more than held his own.  Yes, he blew it at the end of the game, but can you really blame him?  That seemed to us as much about poor coaching at that moment as it did poor execution by the rookie.  Flynn was 24-for-37 for 251 yards, three TDs and one INT.  He dueled a master in Tom Brady and he posted better numbers, but in the end still lost.  You have to give the kid credit though; he played well in a tough situation.

• Final Spin: Flynn showed some good things on Sunday night.  Should Flynn get the start in Week 16, and we doubt he will, it will only get tougher.  The Giants have a much better defense than the Patriots and are in a must-win situation.  Flynn would be no more than a low end QB2.  Dynasty owners should pay attention.  There are going to be teams looking for QBs in the offseason and Flynn may be catching some eyes. 

Josh Morgan: Alex Smith returns and Josh Morgan looks like a player all of a sudden.  Morgan followed up his Week 14 performance (3/82/1) with a bigger performance in Week 15 (7/106).  

• Final Spin: Next week Morgan and the Niners play against the very average pass defense of the Rams.  In their first meeting of 2010, Morgan had just one catch, but it went for 65 yards.  Morgan has no real long-term value to speak of.

Brandon Marshall: Look who showed up to play!  Marshall had a very big game against a very poor defense.  He hauled in 11 passes for 106 yards and one TD.  Marshall has now scored TDs in two consecutive games.  Unfortunately, it is clear that Chad Henne has caught some kind of Trent Edwards virus, which prohibits him from throwing downfield, so don’t expect any big plays from Marshall.

• Final Spin:  Marshall has a great matchup in Week 16.  He should be able to post eight or more catches and approach 100 yards against the Lions secondary.  The dynasty prognosis depends on what the Dolphins at the QB position and with the head coach.  As it stands now, his value will be lower entering 2011 than it was entering 2010 if they don’t get some answers.

Brandon Jackson: Who knew he had it in him?  Apparently all it takes for Jackson to post numbers is for the No. 2 RB and starting QB to be out of lineup.  Easy right?  Jackson ran the ball 22 times for 99 yards and added one reception for three yards. 

• Final Spin: This won’t happen again.  The stars aligned just right.  Next week Starks and Rodgers will be back, meaning they will run less and Jackson will probably split those carries.  The Giants also present a tougher front than the soft Patriots defense.  Jackson doesn’t have much long-term value.

Vincent Jackson: I would love to ask A.J. Smith what he was thinking in not trading Jackson and not giving him what he wanted.  I get the fact that he didn’t want to pay him, but get something for the guy.  He obviously has skills.  Like the Brandon Jackson situation, circumstances contributed to his breakout performance (5/112/3).  Malcom Floyd and Antonio Gates being inactive opened up the door for a fresh Jackson to break out.

• Final Spin: Vincent Jackson should have company in Week 16 as word is Floyd will probably play.  That will limit his upside a bit but against an average Bengals secondary we think he is still a low-end WR1.  His keeper/dynasty value is high, but it largely dependent on where he lands.

Rex Grossman: Those people slamming Shanahan for benching McNabb as though he is some kind of great QB—get real.  Shanahan may have misplayed this, and several other situations, for the 'Skins this year, but Washington is realizing what Philadelphia has known for years: McNabb is drastically overrated.  Grossman led his team back and made it a game—something McNabb rarely does when behind—in the second half tossing three of his four TDs on the day after halftime on the way to a big fantasy performance that included 322 yards passing.

• Final Spin:  There is no long-term on Rex, so let’s talk short-term.  Grossman is a decent QB2 heading into a Week 16 matchup against a lackluster Jaguars defense.  He could even be a pretty good emergency starter.  The Jags should score at will against a defense that has quit and has no heart.  So, it should be another shootout. 

Donald Brown: Heading into this matchup, Donald Brown’s career-high single game rushing total was 69 yards.  He easily surpassed that with 129 yards and a TD on just 14 rushes against the porous Jaguars defense.  There is speculation that Joseph Addai will return next week and that would limit the value of Brown.

• Final Spin:  The Colts need Brown to prove that he can carry the load and Sunday might have gone a long way.  Addai is in a contract year and it has been the Colts' way not to sign rushers to big contracts.  Lots will be determined after the season closes.  As for Week 16, the Raiders have the 26th ranked run defense in the league.  If Brown is the only healthy back, he is a fantasy RB2.  The return of Addai would hurt significantly.

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