Joe Flacco and 6 NFL Players Being Carried by Their Teams

The 2011 NFL season has seen a number of new stars emerge, but for as many stars as have emerged, we have seen some established players disappoint, leaving their teams to pick up the slack.

Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is one of those guys. The Ravens are an admirable 6-2, but Flacco's play this season is not the reason. So far, the team's leader has been subpar and very inconsistent.

Throwing for a career-low 53.8 completion percentage, it is unclear whether the Ravens can rely on Flacco.

One week Flacco will throw for 398 yards and three touchdowns, but then he'll follow it up with 163 yards and an interception on a measly 10 completions.

Flacco shows glimpses of elite quarterback ability but then goes multiple quarters without completing a pass.

In order for the Ravens to make a deep run in the playoffs, Flacco is going to have to pick it up and help out his team.

Chris Johnson

Easily the biggest disappointment of this NFL season, Titans running back Chris Johnson has been pretty much awful.

After rushing for 2,006 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2009 and 1,364 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2010, Johnson decided to take the already shortened preseason and hold out for a better contract.

Johnson got the contract he wanted, signing a $53 million extension, and has yet to live up to a dollar of it. Maybe being absent during preseason and training camp is to blame, or maybe the running back is just playing poorly, but whatever it is, he needs to figure it out in a hurry.

Johnson has rushed for 53 yards or less in six of his seven games, with his only notable game coming against Cleveland when he ran for 101 yards.

With just 302 rushing yards and one touchdown on the season, Johnson is the 34th-ranked rusher in the league right now.

Peyton Hillis

After a huge breakout season last year, the Cleveland Browns running back has been just one disappointment after another this season, playing in only four games so far for the team.

Hillis' only highlight of the season so far was his two-touchdown, 94-yard game against the Indianapolis Colts during Week 2. Other than that, the story has been illness, injury and unimpressive performances.

A contract debate in Cleveland may be the root of Hillis' problems. He missed one game with an apparent case of strep throat and the last two weeks with a tweaked hamstring.

Whatever the problem may be, Hillis needs to get back on the field and make an impact for his team if he wants to see any type of new contract deal.

DeAngelo Williams

Another player who signed a huge deal coming into the season was Carolina Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams, who has also been a huge letdown to his team thus far.

Receiving a five-year, $43 million free-agent contract before the season began, many argued that the Panthers re-signed their 28-year-old running back for way too much, and so far Williams is proving them correct.

Williams has rushed for just 363 yards and one touchdown this season, ranking him 25th in the league.

Sam Bradford

Coming into the season with high expectations, the Rams were ready for sophomore quarterback Sam Bradford to have a breakout year and lead the team to success.

Instead, Bradford went 0-5 as the starter before missing the last two games with an ankle injury.

Furthermore, Bradford is ranked 32nd in the league in completion percentage, just above Jaguars rookie Blaine Gabbert, and 30th in passer rating at 72.2.

Chad Ochocinco

The New England Patriots signed wide receiver Chad Ochocinco in hopes of getting a reliable supplemental wide receiver to Wes Welker. Unfortunately, all they have gotten so far is one big disappointment.

Ochocinco has just nine receptions for 136 yards and has even dropped a few perfectly thrown passes from quarterback Tom Brady.

Ochocinco's day with the Patriots may be done, as it seems sophomore wide receiver Taylor Price is beginning to get his reps. Price has played in just three games in his career.

Reggie Bush

When the Miami Dolphins signed free-agent running back Reggie Bush in the offseason, he was finally going to get the opportunity to be a feature back.

Unfortunately for Bush, he took that opportunity and threw it away, rushing for just 119 yards and no touchdowns in his first four games before being pushed down the depth chart by rookie Daniel Thomas.

Miami may still be able to hold out hope on Bush, though, since he managed to pull off 103 yards during the Dolphins' Week 8 game against the New York Giants.