Last night’s Monday Night Football matchup between the Houston Texans and New England Patriots in Foxborough, Massachusetts was a spectacular finish to a wild weekend of football. While the two top AFC playoff seeds facing off had plenty of implications on the playoff picture; it is sure to have had a very big impact on week one of the fantasy football playoffs. The game featured a plethora of fantasy studs; some of whom went about business as usual, while others stumbled.
Let’s take a look at the numbers, from a purely fantasy perspective and break everything down by position.
Quarterback
Tom Brady (who is 19-0 at home in December since 2003) came out of the gate firing on all cylinders; leading the Patriots to three straight touchdowns on their first three possessions. The Patriots’ offensive line did an outstanding job of protecting Brady, giving him plenty of time to dismantle the Texans’ secondary: to the tune of 21(60 percent) completions, 296 yards, four touchdowns and a passer rating of 125.4. All of that adds up to 28 fantasy points, third best amongst quarterbacks in Week 14.
Matt Schaub, on the other hand, was a victim of bad protection and frequently dropped passes. Texans’ receivers had a hard time holding onto the ball, especially on third and fourth down. Schaub was still able to compile 19(59 percent) completions, for 232 yards, no touchdowns and one interception; with a 59.4 passer rating. Unfortunately, those numbers were only good for seven (28th) fantasy points.
Running back
Perennial fantasy top draft pick Arian Foster had a mediocre (by his usual standards) day, rushing for only 46 yards on 15 carries and one touchdown. He only averaged three yards per carry and accumulated 15 (13th best running back in Week 14) fantasy points. Teammate Ben Tate amassed five fantasy points on eight carries and 46 yards (5.8 yards per carry), good for only five fantasy points.
New England teammates Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen had a decent night, combining for 112 yards on 26 carries and one touchdown; totaling 17 fantasy points.
Wide Receiver
Top fantasy wide out Andre Johnson turned in a lackluster performance with eight receptions for 95 yard and was held out of the end zone. He finished the night with 10 fantasy points, ranked 28th in receivers for Week 14.
The Patriots’ Brandon Lloyd had a good night, with seven receptions for 89 yards and a touchdown, good for 15 fantasy points (ranked 10th for Week 14).
This week New England signed free agent Donte Stallworth and he didn’t disappoint. Stallworth played sparingly but made the most of his time on the field, nabbing one huge 63 yard touchdown reception; good for 12 (17th) fantasy points.
Tight End
Aaron Hernandez was clearly Brady’s favorite target, turning in a huge eight-reception, two-touchdown performance: scoring 18 fantasy points and claiming the top stop amongst tight ends for Week 14.
Texans’ tight end Owen Daniels had a very quiet night, with only two receptions for 24 yards two (25th) fantasy points.
New England handled Houston easily in this one, both on the field and in the fantasy world; and set themselves up for a shot at the number one seed in the playoffs for the AFC. Houston still controls their own destiny though, and can claim the top seed if they win their next two games. There is a very good chance these two will face each other again in the playoffs, and home field advantage could play a big part in deciding the winner.