Sample size caveats still apply, but only half as much as for Week 1.
The Jets defense is one of the few (the Steelers being the other that readily comes to mind) where you better think long and hard about starting skill players against it if you have viable alternatives. Darrelle Revis has now shut down Andre Johnson and Randy Moss in successive weeks without help. (Look what Moss and Johnson did the weeks they weren't facing Revis). Revis is this year's Nnamdi Asomugha. (Incidentally, it would really be cool if those two guys were ever on the same team - would you prefer to have those two or a franchise quarterback like Peyton Manning or Tom Brady? One takes your YPA from league average to close to eight with minimal sacks and picks. The other take your YPA against from league average to about five with picks and coverage sacks.)
Frank Gore showed what can happen when a defense puts eight or nine in the box. Fourteen carries for 48 yards (3.4 per carry) and two for 159. Sure, most of the time there's little room to run, but once the back breaks through, there's nobody home. Matt Schaub and the Texans should be fine. Kurt Warner is still accurate. Philip Rivers is going to be a huge fantasy quarterback. I was down on Rivers because Norv Turner would prefer to have a run-first offense, and the team's defense was expected to improve. But with LaDainian Tomlinson already hurt, the team's offense unable to run block and Jamal Williams, the best player on the defense, now out for the season, expect the Rivers we saw last year - except with more attempts. 300 yards and three touchdowns could be Drew Brees' baseline this year - he's just as likely to go for 400 and four as he is 200 and two. The Browns got Braylon Edwards involved - he should be a top-10 receiver this year if they continue to do so. If teams stack up against the Giants running game, Eli Manning will beat them downfield - at least while the weather is good. Mario Manningham can beat defenses deep, and he's as elusive in the open field as anyone in the league. He easily shook the Dallas corners one on one off of screen passes, and he should continue to get looks from Manning. Steve Smith is emerging as a top-notch possession receiver, running great routes and catching everything thrown his way. When healthy, Kellen Winslow is, always has been and will continue to be a top-five tight end. Knowshon Moreno is now the Broncos feature back. Rashard Mendenhall should be the Steelers' before too long. The same can't be said for Ray Rice who is losing ground to a rejuvenated and seemingly healthy Willis McGahee. The three top-five running backs from the 2005 draft class are all thriving again. Sixteen months ago, Cedric Benson was out of league and Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams were recovering from major knee surgery. Like our financial system, Jake Delhomme seems to have stepped back from the abyss for now. Like Main Street, Steve Smith's prosperity is unfairly tied to Delhomme's. Jonathan Stewart looks like the player we thought he'd be before his preseason injuries soured us. Sometimes it's better to draft from the magazine cheat sheet compiled in the spring after all. Albert Haynesworth sure comes off the field a lot for a player guaranteed $41 million. (I know this because I had the Redskins in survivor and watched more of the Redskins-Rams game than anyone else on the planet with a choice.) The Dolphins upset of the Colts on Monday night was surprising to many, but brand names in the NFL mean little as the Steelers and Patriots both lost on the road this week, too.
