The 2013 fantasy football season has all but come to an end. Super Bowls took place in Week 16 and just a few obscure leagues will be playing for championships during the final week of the season. There were some incredible surprises on both sides of the ledger. The likes of Trent Richardson, Doug Martin, Eli Manning and C.J. Spiller bombed out for one reason or another. Meanwhile, some fantasy football studs were born. This article will focus on the best stories from the 2013 season, looking at it through a fantasy football lens.
Philip Rivers Bounce-Back Campaign
The San Diego Chargers starting quarterback had long been mired in a major slump. Over the course of his previous two seasons before 2013, the former top-five pick threw 35 interceptions in 32 games during that span, struggling to maintain the high level of play we had seen in the past. Unfortunately for Rivers, San Diego lost a couple of his top targets from a season ago earlier in the year. Danario Alexander tore his ACL in camp, while Malcom Floyd suffered a head injury early in the campaign. This left Keenan Allen and Vincent Brown as Rivers' top-two receivers throughout the season.
The veteran has responded by throwing for over 4,200 yards with 29 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions through 16 weeks. He's the sixth-ranked fantasy quarterback in 2013 after finishing 21st in that very same category last season.
Alex Smith Acts the Part of a QB1 Option
This isn't too surprising to many, but Smith has succeeded in elevating his fantasy performance in his first season with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Through Week 16, Smith has topped all of his previous career highs, including touchdown passes and total yards. He boasts a near three-to-one TD/INT ratio, has put up the sixth-most rushing yards from the quarterback position and ranks as the No. 10 overall fantasy quarterback.
Despite a three-interception performance against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 16, Smith proved himself to be a viable fantasy option this season. Moving forward, his importance in fake football promises to become only greater as the Chiefs add more weapons on offense.
Jamaal Charles Record-Setting Stretch
Back to the Chiefs for a second here. Charles had been considered an elite fantasy running back in the lead up to the 2013 season, but what he has done thus far this year is nothing short of absurd. He's the No. 1 overall fantasy back, leading LeSean McCoy by nearly 50 points in that category. Over the course of his last five games, Charles has put up 147 total fantasy points. He has also put up nearly 800 yards and 11 touchdowns during that span. To put this into perspective, Charles' fantasy output in those five games would make him the No. 19 overall fantasy running back over the course of the ENTIRE season. Just think about that for a second.
Knowshon Moreno Proves Skeptics Wrong
This former first-round pick was all but gone from the Denver Broncos in training camp. Various reports indicate that John Elway and Co. were going to part ways with Moreno after selecting Montee Ball in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft and Ronnie Hillman in the third round of the '12 draft. One of the only reasons that Moreno stuck in Denver beyond training camp was the fact that neither Ball or Hillman proved they could pass protect in front of Peyton Manning. This game Moreno one final chance to prove that he wasn't a bust.
Boy, did he ever.
Moreno is the fourth-ranked running back on the season and has tallied over 1,500 yards with 12 touchdowns. Equally as important, the former Georgia standout has been a stud in pass protection and hasn't lost a fumble. Both of these factors have kept him on the field throughout the season.
Eddie Lacy Eats
I am starting to hate the term "eats." It seems that stooges from around the blogosphere continue to utilize this term as if it were some type of new fad such as hipsters wearing skinny jeans and getting a skinny vanilla latte at a Starbucks while boasting idiotic black-framed eye glasses. That being said, this term fits Lacy really well on the season. After all, remember all the "fat guy touchdown" jokes? I am sure Lacy himself does. As it is, the former Alabama standout has been downright ridiculous on the season. He has put up nearly 1,400 total yards with double-digit scores, numbers that rank him as the No. 8 fantasy running back through 16 weeks. Simply insane.
Frank Gore Laughs at Father Time
The productive 30-year-old running back has become something of the past. The likes of Marshall Faulk, Clinton Portis, Larry Johnson, Shaun Alexander and Fred Taylor, among others, all started to decline a great deal before hitting that dubious age marker. With that said, Gore has continued strong as he's entered the wrong side of 30. Despite some struggles this season, the ninth-year running back has tallied nearly 1,300 total yards and nine touchdowns on the season. It's the eighth straight year that No. 21 has put up over 1,000 total yards and the sixth time in his career that Gore has tallied at least eight total touchdowns. Talk about consistency. Gore is the 10th-ranked fantasy running back through Week 16.
Keenan Allen Defies Logic as a Rookie
Rookie wide receivers tend to struggle as it relates to immediate fantasy production.
The learning curve at this position is huge, mainly due to the physicality of defensive backs in the NFL and the inability to learn pro-style route trees out of the gate.
As someone who fell in the lead up to the draft, Allen had a lot to prove before he saw the field on a consistent basis as a rookie.
Heck, his mother had to talk him out of up and quiting in training camp. In just a few short months, the third-round pick has morphed into a true No. 1 wide receiver for Rivers in San Diego. After putting up just 30 receiving yards in the first three games of the season, Allen has tallied 63 receptions for 927 yards and eight touchdowns over the course of his last 12 games. The CAL product is currently the 16th-ranked fantasy receivers heading into the final week of the regular season. That's stunning.
Josh Gordon's Ridiculousness
As a second-year receiver who missed the first two games of the season, Gordon has been nothing less than dazzling for a lackluster Brown's offense. Despite missing those two games, the Baylor product is NFL's top fantasy receiver this season. He is averaging six receptions and 120 yards per game thus far this season. With over 1,600 total yards, Gordon is tied with Calvin Johnson as the No. 1 overall fantasy receiver on the season. He's done this with the likes of Brandon Weeden and Jason Campbell throwing him the ball.