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Five Things We Learned from Week 9

Tom Brady

Tom Brady is very much a part of the fantasy elite QBs.

Scott Ellinwood is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Scott, check out his archive and follow him @ScottEllinwood.

1. Don’t write off Tom Brady. Ever.

Remember a few weeks back, when Tom Brady and the Patriots lost to the Chiefs? The Pats had fallen to 2-2 and Brady had four touchdowns and five turnovers through four games. Pundits began to muse about the end of the New England dynasty and that Brady was no longer an elite fantasy quarterback. Looking back, those concerns were about as warranted as the hype over Y2K. In Week 9, Brady lit up the favored Broncos, completing 33 of 53 passes for 333 yards and four TDs. That’s a strong game by any standard but, over the last two weeks, Brady now has 687 yards and nine TDs. In fact, since Week 4, the word elite doesn’t even do Brady justice. From Week 5 through Week 9, Brady has thrown 18 touchdown passes and has turned the ball over only once. It doesn’t seem to matter who the Patriots plug in to play with Brady; he just continues to produce.

2. Mark Sanchez may actually be relevant again.

Eagles QB Nick Foles was injured in the first quarter of Philadelphia’s 31-21 win over Houston in Week 9. Foles was sacked by Texans LB Whitney Mercilus and was unable to put pressure on his left shoulder and had to be taken to the locker room for x-rays. It’s been confirmed that he suffered a broken collarbone. Sanchez was effective in relief of Foles, finishing 15 of 22 for 202 yards, two TDs and two INTs, including a game-clinching late fourth quarter touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin. With Foles expected to be out multiple weeks, Sanchez may be a serviceable replacement. Over the next three weeks, the Eagles have Carolina at home, Green Bay on the road and Tennessee at home. On the season, those teams are ranked 31st, 14th and 21st against the pass.

3. It will be a volatile bye week for the Redskins and RG3.

It was a rough day for the Redskins. On the way to the stadium, the team’s bus was involved in an accident that reportedly injured RB Silas Redd and shook up several players. Once they arrived at the stadium, they were greeted by more than 2,000 protesters opposed to the team’s name. Then there was the ESPN article which reported that the decision to start Robert Griffin III against Minnesota in Week 9 “came from the top”. Griffin was returning to the starting lineup following back-to-back wins engineered by Colt McCoy. Some observers felt the team should have stuck with McCoy and allowed Griffin the additional two weeks to heal before the team’s Week 11 game against the Bucs. The Redskins looked good early in the game and Griffin made a couple of nice plays while shaking off the rust from six weeks on the sidelines. Griffin then threw a pick, was sacked and began to look shaky. At the end of the day, the Redskins had found a way to lose with Griffin, a key factor in many of the most critical plays. Griffin will likely be under center in two weeks, but it is clear that he no longer has a stranglehold on the starting job. Get your popcorn ready.

4. Uh… who unplugged the Chargers?

Factoring in the time change over the weekend, the 1:00 kickoff in Miami felt like 11:00 a.m. for the Chargers, but they played as if they had overslept and rushed to the stadium groggy and disoriented. An ugly performance yielded an ugly result; the Chargers lost 37-0 and I’m not sure it was that close. Consider the following stat lines: Philip Rivers (12/23, 138 yards, 3 INT), Branden Oliver (13 carries, 19 yards), Antonio Gates (3 catches, 28 yards) and the entire Chargers team had 50 yards rushing on the day. The Chargers average 353 yards of offense. In Week 9, they had 178 – less than half of their normal production. The bye week couldn’t come at a better time and San Diego will have a chance to rebound when they face the Raiders at home in Week 11. Stay focused San Diego.

5. Maybe the Seahawks shouldn’t have traded Percy Harvin.

I don’t know the inside scoop on what went down between Percy Harvin and the Seahawks organization. Many were surprised when Harvin was dealt to the Jets for a 2015 conditional pick. I’m sure its too early for Seattle to regret trading Harvin, even if it has created some friction with star RB Marshawn Lynch. After a day of watching the Red Zone Channel, a couple of things occurred to me about the trade. First, Harvin looked good for the Jets. He caught 11 of his 13 targets for 129 yards, added another eight yards on the ground and another 88 in return yardage; a total of 225 all-purpose yards. Second, who filled Harvin’s role for the Hawks this week? Doug Baldwin? 38 yards. Paul Richardson? 12 yards. Jermaine Kearse? 4 yards. So, who was the Seahawks leading receiver? Marshawn Lynch, who caught five passes for 76 yards. That’s not a good look for the defending world champs. Now, the Seahawks have a renowned personnel department and I’m sure this week was just an aberration. Right?

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