FanHouse Maurice Jones Drew

Marion Barber came into the season regarded as a definite starter in all fantasy leagues. Though owners likely nabbed him in the second round, he has still be a pretty sizable bust in all formats. Coming off a 99-yard performance against Washington is good, though the lost fumble and lack of a touchdown might still make owners reluctant to trust him on Thanksgiving.

Worry not, my friends. Barber gets to face a porous Raiders run defense that ranks 30th in the NFL in rushing in terms of yardage. They have also given up an NFL-high 16 rushing touchdowns. Expect Barber to get nasty on Thanksgiving afternoon, even if you're napping from the tryptophan.

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Sunday Evening Wrap checks out players who increased or decreased their value during the Sunday afternoon games.

Riser of the Week: Terrell Owens came into Sunday with just 26 catches for 366 yards and a single touchdown -- in nine games. Considering the Bills were switching back to Ryan Fitzpatrick, who did no favors for T.O. when at the helm earlier this season, there was very little reason to start Owens in many fantasy leagues. Instead, T.O. reminded us how cruel a mistress fantasy football can be. He's still alive and kicking, as he ushered forth a vintage stat line. Nine catches for 197 yards and a touchdown. Is this 2007? I'm not buying any sort of extended rejuvenation moving forward, but it probably felt good for T.O. -- if only for one Sunday in 2009.

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With attention spans dwindling, we forgo full game-by-game previews to give you the essentials you need to know about every contest this glorious NFL weekend. We call it The Once-Over.

The Early Games

New Orleans (9-0) at Tampa Bay (1-8): New Orleans was tested last week -- in fact, they've been tested in each of their last four games. Drew Brees has thrown seven interceptions and only six touchdown passes in those four games. You can expect the Saints to come out on Sunday and look to clean up their act a bit on offense as they play a divisional foe who doesn't have the arsenal to put up much of a fight.

Josh Freeman's play since taking over at quarterback is giving hope for the future in Tampa. He's thrown four touchdown passes and only two interceptions and seems to enjoy throwing to Kellen Winslow who has 11 receptions in his last two games. The Saints defense is a little beaten up, but should be able to hold off the Buccaneers on Sunday.

Pick: New Orleans

The Jaguars have always had trouble convincing people to attend games in person. Blackouts are a Sunday staple in Jacksonville, and owner Wayne Weaver has taken to throwing tarps over sections of the upper deck, MLS style, to make the stadium look less empty.

A group of local business folks calling themselves Touchdown Jacksonville are working to reinvigorate an apathetic fan base. The short-term plan is to pack the house for the Dec. 17 game against the Colts (they're calling it ... "Ultimate TEALgate"!), and running back Maurice Jones-Drew is helping with the recruitment effort. "As a team, we're enjoying the moment, and we want the city to enjoy it with us," Jones-Drew said. "If you guys are having a great time, I promise I'll have a great time. I'm going to dance and sing."

With nine games in the books, Ricky Williams -- despite being behind Ronnie Brown on the Dolphins' depth chart -- sits at 13th in fantasy points among running backs. Brown is ninth, so the Dolphins have themselves a pretty dynamic duo. For Week 11, they get to feast on the Carolina Panthers' 25th-ranked run defense Thursday night.

And Ricky's left alone in the backfield. With Brown nursing a foot injury, Williams will shoulder the bulk of the Miami offense. He's quite capable, as we've seen in spurts this season. He had 20 carries for over 100 yards last week. This week, he's gonna get the ball more often and run wild. Only the new "big three" are better options.

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In this past week's fantasy football tailgate (every Sunday from 10:30 AM ET to kickoff, come check it out!), someone asked us what we thought the first round would be for next season's drafts. Since we never want to disappoint, let's check it out. Here is one man's opinion on how the first round will shake out next year in standard scoring formats. This is using what we've seen thus far in 2009, plus what I expect to see the rest of the way. The first pick isn't really a secret, if you've been reading me the past two weeks.

1. Chris Johnson, RB, Titans - As I said, I haven't been secretive about this. He's gonna end up with 2,500 yards from scrimmage and close to 20 touchdowns this year. And he's only getting better.

Each week in the NFL, there are players that impress and players that distress. One week a certain quarterback might toss four touchdowns and run around pointing skyward, while the next he's laying on his back, holding his facemask as the other team returns one of his three interceptions for the game-winning score. With that in mind, here's Studs and Duds.

Studs

Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, Jacksonville (24 carries, 123 yards, 1 TD): Coaches always talk about wanting players who have "football smarts." MJD certainly fits the bill, and he proved it Sunday against the Jets. With less than two minutes left in the game and the Jags down one, Jones-Drew broke clear for what looked like an easy score -- but, instead, he took a knee at the Jets 1-yard line, allowing his team to run out the clock and kick a game-winning field goal on the final play.

Cut-N-Go is Fantasy Football FanHouse's weekday roundup of the NFL news with fantasy football impact.

Maurice Jones-Drew owes me six points. In fact, he owes a whole lot of fantasy football owners a touchdown after kneeling on the one-yard line instead of scoring a go-ahead touchdown against the New York Jets.

With under two minutes left in the game, the Jets had no timeouts, a one-point lead and the Jacksonville Jaguars driving in the red zone. The Jets decided to let Jones-Drew score so they would have plenty of time for a game-winning drive of their own. Toni Monkovic of The New York Times gives Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio a ton of credit for foiling that plan.

Back in Week 6, when the Jaguars were bumbling through the early part of their schedule, Maurice Jones-Drew announced that no matter the opponent -- and he specifically cited the AFC Pro Bowlers or the '85 Bears as examples -- Jacksonville has to take the field with the mindset that they can win. In related news, the Jags needed overtime to beat the winless Rams a few days later.

Sometimes winning turns on one play, and against the Jets Sunday, MJD's decision to not score had everything to do with the Jags winning. That's right: trailing the Jets 22-21 with 1:48 in the fourth quarter, Jones-Drew fell down just short of the goal line ... and 108 seconds later the Jaguars were 5-4 on the season.

Video after the jump, but just know that during the postgame presser, MJD, cognizant that the NFL has become as much about make-believe as reality, took the opportunity to apologize to all the nerds who started him in their fantasy leagues. And that included MJD, apparently.

After starting the season 3-0, including impressive victories at Houston and against New England, the Jets have fallen flat on their collective faces. With a home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday -- a team that was previously 1-3 on the road -- the Jets have now lost four of their last five games. They've also lost their last three games at home, against the Bills, Dolphins and Jags.

Sunday, the Jets' problems emanated from losing the turnover battle (3-to-1), and their inability to stop Maurice Jones-Drew. MJD gained 123 yards on 24 carries and also threw in 22 receiving yards for good measure.

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