What a week. Not only has every undefeated team lost, but many of the Super Bowl contenders have come down from any highs they were experiencing. A few of the rookies had some good weeks, and others had some TERRIBLE weeks. Either way, this season is shaping up to be quite interesting, and that is where it gets fun for everyone.

Mike Williams – SCU Rookie of the Week

Of all of the rookie wide receivers this year, I think Williams has been the biggest surprise in doing as well as he has. He had another GREAT week with 7 receptions for 99 yards including the game tying touchdown with less than a minute to go in regulation. The Bucs got the ball back and kicked a field goal to win, and Williams was a main reason they had a shot to do so. Williams cards still arent selling at the level that a player of his production level usually sells at, which surprises me, but it also doesn’t help that a lot of his cards are redemptions either. Regardless, the Bucs are 3-1 after sucking it up last year, and that is due in large part to players like Mike Williams.

Sam Bradford

The Rams got SHELLACKED by the Lions, and when I say shellacked, I mean they got torn to shreds by a team known for their ineptitude. Bradford played less than okay for the first time in a few weeks, and it cost his team some points in the end. He had two picks and didn’t look comfortable at all, but remember, this is a Lions team that came awfully close to beating the Packers. The Rams arent terrible this year, and should have won this game on paper, but instead laid an egg big enough to fit Bradford’s ridiculous contract inside.

Jimmy Clausen

Man, if I were Jimmy Clausen, I would be wondering what I got myself into. Outside of having no one to throw to, he has a TERRIBLE offensive line that looked worse than some of the Lions’ offensive lines from years past. I thought the Panthers would be one of the better teams in the league, but with Steve Smith out, they would have a tough time against the 49ers right now. Clausen only managed 66 yards against a tough Bears defense, but a lot of it was just problems with the team in general. Matt Moore came in at the start of the fourth quarter, and promptly threw 2 picks, so I don’t think Clausen is in trouble quite yet. Has he turned out the way a lot of us expected him to? Not at all, but I don’t think he is playing with a full deck either.

Jahvid Best

In a game where the Lions scored 44 points you would expect him to be a big part of the victory. He wasn’t. Best had a managable game with close to 80 yards on the ground, but even up by more than 30 points, they were throwing all over the place. Best may not ever have another week like he did a few weeks ago, but he definitely needs to get on his horse in a game that his team is beating up on the opponent. I was surprised to see what his cards have been selling for, and I guess that is probably a reaction more to where he plays than anything, but still. The guy will have another great game somewhere down the line, and it may be a good idea to pick up a few of his cards.

Dez Bryant

I never would have pegged the Cowboys to be a 1-3 team, not in any form. Bryant was coming off an injury 2 weeks ago, and it showed against the Titans. He had only a few passes thrown his way and ended up with only 3 catches, something that is not going to sit well with the people who want the Cowboys to play well. Bryant has been great and not so great, there really hasn’t been an in between. I think if the Cowboys are going to bounce back, he will need to prove that he is a very capable target for Romo. On the other hand, Romo may be the question mark himself, and that may lead to other outcomes in general. Bryant’s cards carry value if not only because of the star on his helmet, so I doubt that will change unless he gets seriously injured.

Demaryius Thomas

I was shocked when Denver drafted Thomas over a guy like Dez Bryant, especially when you consider the caliber of the player they gave up. Thomas looked to get pretty seriously hurt yesterday, and probably will be out for a few weeks, minimum. Denver got murdered by the Ravens, and I would expect that once the season is over the cogs are going to start moving in mile high city. After the epic collapse last year, as well as the rough start to this year, McDaniels’ leash is getting shorter, and with his top draft pick now on the shelf, he is going to have that much of a tougher time keeping his job.

CJ Spiller

I don’t know what Buffalo is doing with him. The guy does absolutely nothing when he is on the field, and that may be an extension of how terrible Buffalo is more than how terrible Spiller is. I said that the bills should have drafted a guy like Bulaga instead of Spiller, but they needed to sell tickets, and that is why they are at 0-5 intead of maybe 2-3. Fitzpatrick didn’t look like the career backup he should have been, but the team lost to Jacksonville convincingly regardless of his play. Spiller had 5 carries for 31 yards, which is a nice 6 YPC avg, but did little else. This must not be the year of the running back, and shows that maybe this class will turn out to be weaker than everyone already expected it to be.

Ryan Mathews

So, you trade up to get the guy, and then when he is finally back from his injury, you decide to give the ball to your crappy fullback instead? Mathews had 9 carries for 59 yards, Tolbert had 11 carries for 13 yards. That 13 yards included a goal line fumble, and a 4 yard TD run, so really he 10 carries for 9 yards with a key fumble. Why they wouldn’t give the ball to Mathews more confuses me to the extreme, as he seems to be the best option they have. Instead they end up losing to the effing Raiders, and put themselves in a tough spot early on. Mathews isnt the problem, it’s the defense, among other things, but that is no excuse for lack of production. He had a carry that put them on the 1 yard line, and didn’t get the goalline carry to take it in. Stupid.

Jermaine Gresham

The Bengals lost in horrible fashion to the Bucs, and that alone was pretty tough to watch. Gresham caught one of Palmer’s 2 TD passes, and looked good doing so, but didn’t really factor in other than that. The Bengals desperately needed a big guy to be their possesion receiver last year, but havent really used Gresham in the way most expected them to. Tight Ends are NEVER worth anything in this league with few exceptions, so I really wouldn’t go out and buy any of his cards unless you are a fan of his or the Bengals. He could score 10 TDs and still wouldn’t be worth your time.

Dexter McCluster

The Chiefs were the last undefeated team to lose, and McCluster did nothing to prevent it. He had only 2 catches for 15 yards, and the Chiefs never made it into the endzone. When McCluster has broken a few, the Chiefs play that much better around him, so I would definitely say that the OC in KC should find ways to get him involved more. The Colts’ pass defense is hurting with all the injuries they have had, and for Cassel to only have 156 yards passing is absolutely ridiculous. People started buying McCluster’s cards after his return TD in week one, and that is where I said “No thank you.” For a guy like him, paying good money is not worth your time.

Max Hall

Here is a crazy one for you. Max Hall, an undrafted free agent from BYU takes the Cardinals to a convincing win against the defending super bowl champs. Meanwhile, Tebow continues to sit on the bench, Clausen struggles, and Bradford struggles. Wow. Hall didn’t have a crazy game, but he definitely didn’t blow it either. He actually had a better game than Brett Favre did against the Saints, and that in itself shows what it takes just to manage against that team. Good for him.

The Rookie Graveyard

CJ Spiller – Who are we kidding buying his cards at what they are right now. He is on one of the worst teams in the league and probably wont do much else this year, even without Lynch to compete with.

Ryan Mathews – Still hasn’t proven to be what people expected, but that may have to do more with his injury and team status.

Jimmy Clausen – Welcome to the graveyard Senor Clausen, we’ve been expecting you. Even though you werent the worst QB of week 5 or even the game itself, its not been a good year.

Matchups to Watch

Ryan Mathews vs the Rams – If he is going to have a game to shine, this is it. Lets hope he has a good enough week in practice that they finally give up on Tolbert.

Sam Bradford vs the Chargers – This could end up being an awfully close game if both teams keep playing the way they have been. Lets see how he does against what San Diego brings.

Jahvid Best vs the Giants – Best needs to bounce back, this could end up being pretty tough.

Mike Williams vs. the Saints – The Saints pass defense is known for being hard on the outside and softer on the inside. Williams could have a big game.