The great thing about fantasy football is the constant surprises. Unless you’re on the wrong side of a breakout performance, then it’s not so fun anymore. Either way, after 12 weeks of NFL action, injuries, poor coaching decisions and bad performances have led to yet another group of players stepping up and having big days. Here’s a look at four of them.
Tiquan Underwood - Wide Receiver, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Underwood shouldn't be a huge surprise here. Tampa Bay has been airing it out ever since rookie Mike Glennon took over the starting quarterback role, so it stands to reason that Underwood would benefit after taking over the No. 2 role from the injured Mike Williams.
The biggest surprise is that Underwood outperformed his fantasy-stud teammate Vincent Jackson on Sunday, catching three passes for a whopping 108 yards and two touchdowns - finishing the day as the third-best fantasy receiver with 23.00 points.
Benny Cunningham - Running Back, St. Louis Rams
The Rams running back situation has been a mess all season and Cunningham’s teammate Zac Stacy even made an appearance in this article a few weeks ago. Stacy has emerged as the top dog recently, but head coach Jeff Fisher seems determined to run with a two-back set. Cunningham is the latest guy to be tested out as Stacy’s compliment, and he broke out in a big way on sunday, rushing for 109 yards and a touchdown on just 13 carries. He finished the day as the seventh-best fantasy ‘back with 16.90 points.
Brandon Bolden - Running Back, New England, Patriots
After Stevan Ridley and LeGarrette Blount both were benched for fumbling on Sunday night, Bloden was brought in to compliment Shane Vereen and did a great job. He was the 13th-best running back on the day with 12.90 fantasy points behind 58 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Dennis Johnson - Running Back, Houston Texans
Johnson is definitely the biggest surprise from the week. With Arian Foster out, Ben Tate was expected to become the primary ‘back, but he’s battling a number of injuries himself and struggled to gain just one yard on seven attempts Sunday. Johnson was able to step up perfectly for the Texans, racking up 74 rushing yards on just 13 carries. Had he reached the endzone, we’d be looking at a high-end RB2 finish for the week, but even without hitting paydirt, Johnson still finished as the 22nd-best back with 8.70 points.