Studs/Duds Week 1

With the first week of the season nearly in the books, let’s look back at who impressed and who failed to meet expectations thus far.

Studs

Adrian Peterson - There are no words to describe this. Just watch the video. Please. Once you’ve picked your jaw up off the floor, scold yourself if you didn’t take “All Day” with the first overall pick. Because Peterson is so good that we almost come to expect sublime performances like this from him.

Drew Brees - Granted it was against the woeful Lions, but Brees put on a passing clinic. With Marques Colston, Reggie Bush, and Jeremy Shockey finally healthy and former first-rounder Robert Meachem finally showing signs of life, the stars could be aligned for a historic season for the Saints’ signal caller. Don’t get carried away projecting season long stats from a single game, but still, the Saints have so many weapons around Brees that any defense should struggle to slow down their potent passing attack.

Reggie Wayne - Anthony Gonzalez owner’s loss is Reggie Wayne owner’s gain. Without a legit second option on the outside, Peyton Manning turned almost exclusively to Wayne against the Jaguars (a team Wayne has tormented throughout his career). With Gonzalez sidelined for 2-6 weeks, look for Wayne to continue to put up stellar numbers.

Thomas Jones - Rex Ryan is using the Joe Flacco playbook to break in rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez: use a strong ground game to complement a dominating defense, and just ask the quarterback not to lose the game. Thomas Jones was the main beneficiary in Week 1, jaunting for 107 yards and two touchdowns. Look for the former Bear to build on his strong season last year, as the Jets ask Sanchez to hand off, hand off, and throw play action.

John Carlson - The second year pro out of Notre Dame built on his sneaky good rookie year with 95 yards and two touchdowns against the abysmal Rams defense in the Seahawks’ opener. With Matt Hasselbeck healthy and T.J. Houshmandzadeh attracting attention on the outside, Carlson should get plenty of looks across the middle this year. He should be a top ten option at tight end for the rest of the year.

Duds

Matt Forte - Forte and the Bears struggled running the ball against the refurbished Packers’ 3-4 front. While his rushing yards were disappointing, perhaps even more so were his lack of catches. Cutler only targeted Forte once, on an attempted screen in the red zone that got picked off, targeting receivers downfield rather than dumping the ball off. If this is a trend that continues, Forte’s value will take a major hit.

Steve Smith - The Panthers’ dynamo of a receiver is being held hostage by the Jake Delhomme turnover show. The Panthers signed former Eagles backup and Dolphins starter A.J. Feeley to backup the struggling Delhomme (and perhaps provide a plausible alternative should Delhomme continue to have trouble throwing the ball to the guys in the right jerseys), so Smith should hopefully have a quarterback who can get him the ball. Try prying the diminutive receiver in a trade in case his owner is worried about the Panthers’ quarterback situation.

All Your Texans - Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson, Steve Slaton, and Owen Daniels never got on track against the Rex Ryan-coached Jets defense. Didn’t exactly live up to their billing as the top fantasy offense in the game. Don’t panic yet though; chalk last week’s meager showing to the fact that the Jets just might have an elite defense. If the Texans go another game without scoring an offensive touchdown, then it might be time to begin worrying...