By The Numbers - Week 1

Time for a look at the fantasy numbers for week 1 – prepare to be dismayed, amazed and reminded …

Oh, How The Mighty Have Fallen

What do Daunte Culpepper, Brett Favre and Chad Pennington have in common? They all sucked on the same weekend, and all three led their respective teams to less than stellar fantasy and real-life performances. Here’s a look at the game and fantasy numbers (using standard Yahoo scoring):

Daunte Culpepper (consensus #2 QB in fantasy circles) – 0 TDs, 233 yards passing, 3 picks, 2 fumbles = -5 fantasy points

2004 Game #1 performance (vs. Dal): 5 TDs, 242 yards passing, 25 yards rushing = 35 fantasy points

Brett Favre (top #5 QB in most preseason rankings) – 0 TDs, 201 yards passing, 2 picks, 1 fumble = -2 fantasy points

2004 Game #1 performance (vs. Car): 1 TD, 143 yards passing = 8 fantasy points

Chad Pennington (serviceable QB with a new scheme in 2005) – 0 TDs, 264 yards passing, 1 pick, 2 fumbles = -2 fantasy points

2004 Game #1 performance (vs. Cin): 2 TDs, 224 yards passing = 16 fantasy points

Out of Their Heads

What do Alex E. Smith, Courtney Anderson and Frisman Jackson have in common? They all performed far beyond real-life and fantasy expectations, and the two tight ends (that’s right, the toughest fantasy position to predict) scored two TDs each!

Here’s a look at the game and fantasy numbers (using standard Yahoo scoring):

Alex E. Smith (rookie out of Stanford): 2 TDs, 4 catches for 34 yards

Courtney Anderson (13 receptions, 1 TD all of last year): 2 TDs, 3 catches for 18 yards

Frisman Jackson (3rd year, undrafted out of Western Illinois): 1 TD, 8 catches for 128 yards

This Week in Fantasy History

For each coming week, I’ll take a look at great performances in fantasy football history. Let’s start with the least-respected position in football, the placekicker.

In week 2 of 2003, Billy Cundiff of the Dallas Cowboys booted 7 field goals in a game against the NY Giants, including the game winner in OT. Total fantasy points: 25.