Matt Stafford and 5 NFL Players Who Didn't Live Up to the Fantasy Hype

It happens every week in both the NFL and in fantasy football. A player has what looks like a prime matchup, one that should produce a huge statistical outing, but for whatever reason, by day's end, they end up much more dud than stud.

With that in mind, here are a handful of players that fell flat on their faces today, leaving their fantasy owners to clean the egg off of theirs.

1. Matthew Stafford: QB, Detroit Lions

Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford had been lights out to this point in the season and had what looked to be a tasty matchup against a beat up Dallas Cowboys secondary.

But the only ones who ended up getting beat up were Stafford's fantasy owners, as the third-year pro had his worst game of the young season, not breaking the 100-yards passing mark until late in the third quarter.

2. Tim Hightower: RB, Washington Redskins

Shenanigans!

After alluding to the fact that he nearly benched Tim Hightower in favor of running back Ryan Torain in last week's loss to Dallas, Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan did just that against the St. Louis Rams, leaving Hightower with only 28 total yards, while Torain rumbled for well over 100 rushing yards, casting a cloud of doubt over Hightower's fantasy value moving forward.

3. Tony Romo: QB, Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo didn't have a bad day statistically, especially considering he was without wide receiver Miles Austin for today's game with the Detroit Lions. However, Romo continues to be his own worst enemy, as he threw three interceptions, including two that were returned for scores, keeping the Lions in the game.

4. Rashard Mendenhall: RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

There really isn't any hype for Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall to fail to live up to, as Mendenhall continues to struggle to find any running room behind the Steelers patchwork offensive line, gaining only 25 yards on nine carries in Pittsburgh's loss to the Houston Texans.

Peyton Hillis: RB, Cleveland Browns

Maybe it was the aftereffects of the strep throat that sidelined him last week, maybe it was the shellacking that the Tennessee Titans laid on the Cleveland Browns, or maybe it's the Madden Curse, but running back Peyton Hillis had another disappointing outing on Sunday and is now averaging a paltry 3.4 yards per carry for the season.