At this point in the season a lot of us make a decision to go with the hot hand. While this could put us in a precarious position, it makes a whole lot of sense considering we are in the midst of playoff races while certain stars are on bye weeks. If you have a questionable backup option at a specific position it became readily apparent that you have to look at the scrap heap for a certain under-the-radar performer.
More importantly, this is when roster depth and not front loading at a specific position comes in handy. Today's article if going to focus on a couple players at each position that have surprised the fantasy football world over the course of the last few weeks.
Quarterbacks
Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This talented but enigmatic quarterback has all of a sudden returned to 2010 form right in front of our eyes. Freeman has accumulated over 1,250 yards with 11 touchdowns compared to one interception over the course of the last four games. In the process, he has averaged over 21 fantasy points per outing during that span.
The good news for Freeman fantasy owners if the fact that two of those performances came against teams, the Kansas City Chiefs and Minnesota Vikings, who currently rank in the top 11 against the pass on defense. Tampa Bay only faces one more team that is currently in the top 10 against the pass (Denver Broncos, Week 13). You can expect him to keep these numbers up.
Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Don't look now, but Wilson leads all rookie quarterbacks with 13 touchdown passes. Yes, that includes both Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III. Still, Wilson is the 21st ranked fantasy quarterback through the first nine weeks of the season. This indicates that he is nowhere near a regular starter and probably a bottom feeder bye week replacement.
Of course, it is important to look at recent weeks when drawing a conclusion about a possible replacement. Wilson is the 10th ranked fantasy quarterback over the course of the last four weeks. This is incredibly surprising considering that he has gone up against three top 10 pass defenses in those four weeks. Wilson did, however, struggle a great deal against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 7.
Following the game against the New York Jets and Seattle's Week 11 bye, he has some relatively easy matchups moving forward. Three of Seattle's final six opponents rank in the bottom 10 of the NFL against the pass.
Carson Palmer, Oakland Raiders
Palmer has racked up 76 fantasy points in the last four weeks, good enough for fifth in the NFL among quarterbacks during that span. While the veteran quarterback will throw interceptions (six in those four games), he puts up the yards and touchdowns that counteract that. In fact, Palmer is currently on pace for 4,200 yards this seasons. As with some other struggling quarterbacks, Palmer needs to start throwing more touchdowns. He is currently reaching the end zone once per 182 passing yards this season. That isn't a good ratio. Oakland goes up against a struggling Baltimore pass defense on Sunday.
Running Backs
Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Raise your hands if, at the start of the season, you had Martin as the No. 1 overall fantasy running back in the NFL heading into Week 10. Yeah, I don't think so. The Boise State product has literally made opposing defenses look like a drunk Alf chasing cats. This is how ridiculously good he has been to date. Take away the nearly 500 yards, six touchdowns and 85 fantasy points that Martin has muscled out over the last two weeks. Even prior to those two record setting performances, Martin was a quality RB2 option in standard leagues. Add those two weeks in and he is right up there with Adrian Peterson and Arian Foster as three of the top fantasy backs.
Martin has now put up either 100 total yards or a touchdown in six of the Buccaneers' eight games thus far this season. He catches the ball out of the backfield and has started taking on a vast majority of third down opportunities. There is no other way to go about it, Martin is one the top running backs in the NFL today. In terms of keeper leagues, he might actually start to be considered the best overall running back option. Time will tell.
Shonn Greene, New York Jets
The former third-round pick from Iowa has always left a lot to be desired in terms of fantasy value. He never really took that next step to RB1 status and seemed to be regressing over the course of the last two seasons. This is what makes Greene's performance for New York over the last few weeks so impressive.
If anyone had Greene ahead of Matt Forte, Darren McFaden and even Darren Sproles in their big board prior to the start of the season, I honestly believe the had just got done partying with a circa 1990s Michael Irvin in a hotel room. With that said, Greene is right up there among the most productive fantasy 'backs over the last couple weeks. He has tallied 362 total yards, four touchdowns and 60 fantasy points in the Jets' last three games. That is mighty impressive. Don't be fooled, however, Greene has not automatically become a strong RB1 option. Instead, he is someone you can rely on to be a decent RB2 option or a really good FLEX pick. That is about it. Still, pretty darn impressive.
Mikel Leshoure, Detroit Lions
As the second-year running back from Illinois starts to make his impact known on the football field he will most definitely become the Lions' primary running back. We saw this last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars when Leshoure romped for three first half touchdowns.
While Leshoure ranks only 22nd among fantasy running backs in 2012, he has stepped it up a great deal recently. After missing the first two weeks of the season, Leshoure has put up over 50 yards in each of Detroit's last six games. More importantly, the young running back has touched the ball a minimum of 10 times in every game he has played this season. Once Detroit starts to trust him more in the backfield, you can easily expect Leshoure to be a solid RB2 option as the season progresses. Right now, he is probably a really good FLEX option.
Tight Ends
Brandon Myers, Oakland Raiders
Myers was a solid fantasy add prior to his two touchdown performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week. The primary thing that was holding him back was actually getting into the end zone through the first eight weeks of the season. Now that this issue might have been settled, he could actually help as an under-the-radar TE1 option.
Not only is Myers the ninth ranked fantasy running back in the NFL, he is currently fifth in receptions. Look for the tight end to continue this production in the coming weeks as Carson Palmer starts to utilize him more.
Logan Paulsen, Washington Redskins
The season-ending injury to Fred Davis might have hurt Washington a great deal, but it gave this young tight end an opportunity that he has seized. Paulsen has racked up 172 yards in the three games since Davis went down to injury. As we all know, tight end's are the best friend of rookie quarterbacks. This means that Robert Griffin III should continue to look in his direction as the season progresses. Not a bad fantasy pick if your TE1 isn't producing.
Wide Receivers
Denarius Moore, Oakland Raiders
Many people gave me the stink-eye when I projected that Moore would accumulate 1,000 receiving yards this season. That obviously didn't look to be a solid prediction during the first couple weeks of 2012. Now, following Week 9, I am starting to look like a bit of a genius. Moore is on pace for over 900 yards and has picked it up a great deal recently. The second-year receiver from Tennessee has 18 receptions for 302 yards and three touchdowns in the Raiders last four games. More importantly for fantasy owners, he has 48.2 points during that span. He is now a legit WR2 option.
Mike Williams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Williams had a major sophomore slump in 2011 after breaking through big time as a rookie the previous season. Many "experts" had written him off as a solid fantasy producer due to that. Well, the talented young receiver appears to be back in the fantasy mold right now. He is averaging nearly 12 fantasy points in the last five weeks, two of those performances coming against pretty damn good pass defenses. Of course a primary reason for his fantasy production is the dramatic improvement in the play of Josh Freeman at quarterback.
Josh Gordon, Cleveland Browns
Gordon, a supplemental pick in August, is the best rookie wide receiver of the 2012 class. Just imagine that. I highly doubt that anyone had him being nearly this productive when Cleveland shocked the world and went out there to give the troubled but talented player another opportunity.
The Baylor product is now on pace for over 800 yards and eight touchdowns this season. Despite struggling the last two weeks, Gordon is averaging over 10 fantasy points in the Browns last give games.