Top Kicker: John Carney, the guy who has been around the league and back, leads all kickers in field goals with 18. Although, he hasn't gone over 50 yards yet. So Matt Prater is the guy so far. John Kasay is on his heels though. Prater's claim to fame was back-to-back weeks with a field goal of equal to or more than 55 yards.

Top Defense: How about the Eagles and Bears? The Bears lack in sacks, but have five defense and special teams touchdowns. The Eagles have three. My personal choice, though, is the Titans. They have given up only 87 points in eight weeks. They lack in sacks, but have a ton of picks.

Top Individual Defense Player: DeMarcus Ware is a sack machine and makes tackles. Joey Porter wants the sack record (he's nearly halfway there with 10.5). James Harrison, the former Kent State product, is playing well. With some time left, Patrick Willis could make the run for the title though.

Biggest bust: Easy to go with Tom Brady, but how about Joseph Addai? He hasn't done anything except find the injury list. If he can get healthy, he may help for a playoff run.

Biggest surprise: Too many. How about Aaron Rodgers and Greg Jennings forming the new dynamic duo in Green Bay? The old was Brett Favre and Antonio Freeman or Brett Favre and Robert Brooks or Brett Favre and Greg Jennings. Another one is lack of production from Braylon Edwards. He seemed on the verge of taking over, but has stepped back.

LET'S reflect with more than half the fantasy season in the books. Let's start by figuring out some of the end-of-the-season awards through Week 9.

With quarterback Tom Brady out for the season, he will not have the chance to repeat as fantasy's most valuable player. But numerous players are in the running for 2008's top fantasy football player.

Quarterback Drew Brees is the clear-cut best quarterback and front runner for fantasy's most valuable player with more than 2,500 yards and 15 touchdown passes for the high-octane Saints.

Earlier in the season, it appeared to be a race between Brees and Tony Romo. Then Romo, after a broken pinkie, shattered that notion and numerous owners looking for a replacement in Brad Johnson felt the pain too.

Other quarterbacks making a run, believe it or not, former grocer Kurt Warner (2,089 yards, 14 TDs), former afterthought Philip Rivers (2,038 yards, 19 TDs) and former Brett Favre backup Aaron Rodgers (1,668 yards, 14 passing and three rushing TDs).

With the running backs, Clinton Portis (944 rushing yards and seven TDs) and Marion Barber (877 total yards and seven total TDs) are downright fantasy stars but neither has had a bye yet. That leaves the seemingly venerable Frank Gore (940 total yards and five total TDs) as the top back with a bye week in the past two months.

At wide receiver, Andre Johnson is the most valuable player by default. He has been targeted a league-high 83 times, but has only two touchdowns to go with his league-highs of 56 catches and 772 yards. Right behind Johnson, Roddy White, Santana Moss and Larry Fitzgerald linger with impressive totals.

Before a fractured rib on Sunday, Jason Whitten (46 catches, 549 yards and two TDs) was on his way to finish as fantasy's top tight end. But usual stars Antonio Gates (369 yards and three TDs) and Tony Gonzalez (451 yards and one TD), along with Chris Cooley (451 yards and one TD), could make their way to the top of the tight end heap.

The top offensive rookie has been running back Matt Forte. The Bears' second-round pick has been the model of consistency this season.

With solid receiving numbers to boot, he has gained 515 rushing yards and totaled six touchdowns.Forte's game this week is against the Lions and that should have fantasy owners clapping already. Early in October, he scored two touchdowns against the former Matt Millen-led bunch.

Scrapping for points?

After former Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith entered the Ravens game on Sunday against Oakland, a unique play seemed inevitable. Well, quarterback Joe Flacco split out and caught himself a 43-yard pass from the former Heisman trophy winner. It wasn't the first time a quarterback caught a pass this year, Ryan Fitzpatrick has one catch for negative three yards.

Since 2000, Brees has been the top receiving quarterback. During his time with the Saints and Chargers, he has four catches for 49 yards and one touchdown.

With Brees, already the top fantasy quarterback, owners can always pray for the extremely random play.How random is it though? Since 2003, quarterbacks have 31 catches for 142 yards.

Catch them if you can ...

Donnie Avery, St. Louis wide receiver: Mr. Avery had 163 receiving yards and one touchdown last week against New England. He takes on Arizona this week and for the last two weeks appears to be Torry Holt's future replacement.

Kevin Curtis, Philadelphia wide receiver: Curtis is back. The No. 1 Eagles option had three catches for 45 yards in his 2008 debut. If he is still out there, snag him with games against Seattle and Cincinnati in the next three weeks.

The fallen ...

Matt Schaub, Houston quarterback: He's had three straight amazing performances against ... Miami, Detroit and Cincinnati. If he keeps it up against Minnesota, Baltimore and Indianapolis, pencil him for a trip to Hawaii. Otherwise, reality bites.

Steve Breaston, Cardinals wide receiver: Anquan Boldin came back, but the former Michigan star still accumulated more than 100 receiving yards. Chances are the No. 3 option in the Cardinals lineup will not do that again. Keep him on your roster, just don't start him.

Four and out

1. Carolina, New Orleans, San Diego and San Francisco have byes. 2. Lee Evans is due for one of those Lee Evans monster games. 3. Wait and see if Ted Ginn Jr. can perform like last week again. 4. Leon Washington deserves a spot on fantasy rosters.

DOWN to the wire, legit No. 1 running backs are questionable for Week 8. Will Brian Westbrook, Steven Jackson, Clinton Portis and Joseph Addai play?

Chances are Westbrook and Portis will. Jackson will probably start, too. But Addai, if you have him, don't start. Even if he does play on Monday night, he is going against the Titans defense.

Now don't start Santanio Holmes, either. He was deactivated on Saturday night because of an arrest.

Quick fix

"The I have no options and five minutes to pick a player" pull of the week:

Leon Washington, Jets running back vs. Chiefs: Kansas City's run defense, do your best Charles Barkley voice, is terrrrrrribbbbble. Thomas Jones will get the bulk of carries, but Washington could get 10 to 15 touches.

Can of corn

Keep an eye on how the Dolphins continue to use running back Patrick Cobbs. If not for fantasy's sake, then a flashback to the 90s.

For two games, at least, Cobbs is playing like former Cardinals fullback Larry Centers.

Centers once caught 101 passes out of the backfield and rushed for a mere 254 yards in the same season.

Cobbs had eight catches for more than 200 yards and two touchdowns in two games. Ohhh and he had three rushing yards, too.

Now if you truly need Cobbs, you should be preparing for your fantasy basketball draft. The season's over.

BEFORE training camp, draftniks were loud and clear. Tom Brady and the Patriots play the easiest schedule ever. How has it worked out?

After seven weeks, the verdict was still out.No Brady. So-so Randy Moss. Where did Wes Welker go? Laurence Maroney vanished to the IR.

After eight weeks, the verdict is close.

The defense is still ancient, but safety Rodney Harrison's season-ending injury is a devastating blow.

Once again, though, Monday Night Football's magic brought out a team's best.

The Pats rolled in a 41-7 win vs. the Broncos.

If you had the gusto to start running back Sammy Morris, you may be a true fantasy wizard. If not, get old Sammy while you can. Even though, he is currently listed "day to day" by his coach Bill Belichick.

In all the hoopla, there is one gem.

Morris' current backup, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, has the most intriguing fantasy name since ex-Steelers running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala.With cbssportsline.com posting random fantasy trades, Green-Ellis was actually packaged on Tuesday with T.J. Houshmandzadeh, LaDainian Tomlinson and the Titans defense for Plaxico Burress, Maurice Jones-Drew and the modestly named Josh Morgan.

The deal, which included Titans defensive end Kyle Vander Bosch by default, make break the record for wordiest names and most hyphens traded for this year.

If you still believe in cakewalks and that the Patriots have the easiest schedule ever, dust off Matt Cassel and pencil Green-Ellis into your last roster spot.

Easy on the Cassel-back though. One week ago, Belichick probably wished he had Vinny Testaverde for a hot minute. But, hey, the Patriots play the rejuvenated, but their-still-the-Rams this week.

And the award goes to...

* Colts running back Joseph Addai for "The First-Round Bust With The Most Potential." Addai hasn't done much except hurt his hammy, but Steven Jackson injured his groin last year and bounced back with an admirable stretch run. Mr. Addai can do the same when the Colts and fantasy owners need him most.

* Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer for "The I Can't Believe I Cut Him, Wasn't He Just a Pro-Bowler?" Runners-up include: Marc Bulger and Derek Anderson. Let's face it, Palmer's shoulder injury isn't getting better and either are the hapless Bungles.

* Browns quarterback Brady Quinn for "Put Me In Coach, I'm Ready to Play!" Quinn is a tremendous security blanket for the Browns and any fantasy owner in desperate need of a potential quarterback in their playoffs.

Catch them if you can...

* Antwaan Randle El, Redskins vs. Detroit: The wide receiver is the fourth option in the offense, behind Clinton Portis, Santana Moss and Chris Cooley, but everyone plays well against the Lions. Did you see Matt Schaub threw only five incompletions last week?

* Whoever the Chiefs are playing: Self-explanatory, but last week this space used Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles as a potential down-the-line starter. Coach Herm Edwards must not agree, yet. He gave running back Kolby Smith the keys to one of the worst offenses in the league with Larry Johnson out. If you didn't catch the game, the "Chefs" rolled with three different quarterbacks in an absolute dismal performance on both sides.

The fallen

* Darren McFadden, Oakland: The rookie running back had one bust-out game with more than 160 rushing yards, but his new coach Tom Cable doesn't have a Kiffin' idea how to use him. The "Wildcat" is the most overrated offensive formation since Dennis Miller's hair and beard combo.

* Reggie Bush, New Orleans: Just when it seemed the Texans made a mistake by not drafting him, he is out. The most intriguing image of Sunday wasn't Tony Romo on the sidelines, but Bush's former Southern California backup LenDale White chugging for an 80-yard touchdown run. So who takes Bush's place in The Big Easy: Deuce, Stecker or Pierre?

Four and out

1. There is no Sunday night game because of the World Series. 2. Chicago, Denver, Green Bay and Minnesota have byes. 3. Trent Edwards is a good bye-week replacement. 4. Carolina's defense figured out the Saints in Week 7, but it's unlikely they shut down the Cardinals on Sunday.

By clicking above you can read The Wall Street Journal's article about the world of NFL players playing fantasy football. It provides some insight, like....

Who would have guessed Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew picked himself first overall?

Or that kicker Jay Feely picked himself up as a free agent?

TRADE deadlines for most fantasy leagues are approaching. If you're making a trade look into Week 14 to Week 16. The three-week span when most leagues hold their playoffs is a ripe time to pick off a potential serviceable player or two.

The guys that jump to mind are Minnesota and Arizona players.The Vikings have three favorable matchups in the span.With Adrian Peterson presumably off the trade market, wide receiver Bernard Berrian and backup running back Chester Taylor are guys to consider before your league's deadline passes.

Don't sell a starter for either, but if, say, Peterson goes down you will be ready to reap the benefits.

If Peterson is out, who wouldn't want to start Taylor at home vs. Detroit in Week 14, at Arizona in Week 15 and at home vs. Atlanta in Week 16?

The Cardinals play at home vs. St. Louis in Week 14, followed by Minnesota at home and play on the road against a fading New England squad in Week 16.

Now may be the time to make a move for injured wide receiver Anquan Boldin. His stock has never been lower with the emergence of Steve Breaston.The Cardinals have a bye in Week 7, but Boldin, who had five touchdowns before getting hurt, is expected back next week.

Other guys to consider are wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and backup running back Tim Hightower. If you own Kurt Warner, think about handcuffing him with backup Matt Leinart for your own peace of mind.

Other teams have truly favorable matchups, too. San Diego has Oakland at home in Week 14 and play at Kansas City in Week 15, while Miami has two easy matchups.At this point, though, the only Dolphins worth trading for are running back Ronnie Brown and tight end Anthony Fasano.

The Dolphins travel to Kansas City in Week 16 and have San Francisco at home in Week 15.

The real trade deadline

The Chiefs' Tony Gonzalez didn't get traded at the NFL's Tuesday 4 p.m. deadline. But Lions wide receiver Roy Williams became an instant curiosity with his trade to Dallas.

With the NFL's leading touchdown tosser Tony Romo out until, probably, Week 11, 40-year-old backup and former pro-bowler Brad Johnson takes over the saddles of the Cowboys' offense.

Johnson is simply a quick fix for a few weeks, but worthy of a pickup and a start if you need a quarterback.He will have Williams, Terrell Owens, Jason Whitten and Patrick Crayton on the outside. Plus, running back Marion Barber for any dump off or screen passes. Rookie running back Felix Jones, though, is out with a hamstring injury.

However, Johnson could best utilized as a No. 3 quarterback on a roster. Why not make another owner angry by snagging him.

The unusual suspects

After Tom Brady dropped in Week 1 and Peyton Manning's slow start, quarterback play in most fantasy leagues is a case of the unusual suspects. After down years, Philip Rivers and Warner bounced back to become reliable fantasy options.

Jay Cutler proved he is the real deal, mainly, by averaging 38 passing attempts per game.

Before Romo's injury, Drew Brees and him were the only No. 1 quarterbacks maintaining their worth.

If you picked up or drafted Aaron Rodgers or started Brett Favre during his six-touchdown week, you should understand the weirdness.

Carson Palmer dropped faster than Chad Johnson's jersey sales, and Ben Roethlisberger put up one good game so far.

At this point, Gus Frerotte and David Garrard are looking like solid options.

What in the name of Bubby Brister is going on?

Catch them if you can...

Jamaal Charles, Chiefs running back: Larry Johnson is in trouble with the law, again. With a potential suspension on the horizon, a 20-carry back down the line for a playoff push may be too hard to pass up.

Dominic Rhodes, Colts running back: Chances are he is already gone, but Joseph Addai's hamstring injury may or may not prevent him from playing in Week 7. Is it just me or is Addai now officially a first-round bust?

The fallen

Matt Cassel, Patriots quarterback: Were you ever sold on him to begin with? Since Week 1, Randy Moss and Wes Welker owners don't know what to do. At best, he is a low-end No. 2 quarterback.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Bengals wide receiver: With each passing week, Ryan Fitzpatrick looks less and less like the real deal. If you drafted him, there is still hope only because he's in a walk year. Otherwise, his two-touchdown game against Dallas in Week 5 could be as good as it gets.

Four and out

1. Consider the Jets defense for the next two weeks. 2. Running back Matt Forte is a No. 1 back. 3. Wide receiver Roddy White is a must start in Week 8. 4. Keep an eye on Tampa Bay's backfield. Earnest Graham played a lot of fullback and Warrick Dunn ate up his carries as the primary guy last week.

CLEVELAND -- It appears Derek Anderson is back to his Pro Bowl ways. Boy, what a difference a season-changing win can make.

How do these numbers ring the morning after a 35-14 Browns win against the Super Bowl Giants?

Anderson finished 18 for 29 for 310 yards, two touchdowns and a two-point conversion pass. He also threw zero picks.

Let’s see how many people make the Cleveland quarterback a must-start for Week 7 against the Washington Redskins in Washington. My opinion, sell high on the guy. You might be able to fetch something, in case, Week 6 was a fluke.

After watching the game, Braylon Edwards is back to must-start status as well. If you benched him for last night’s game, ouch.

Edwards had five catches for a career-high 154 yards, one touchdown and a two-point conversion catch.

The Romo solution

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is out for, at least, three games with a broken pinkie. The team has a bye in Week 10. So, at best, Romo comes back in Week 11 for fantasy owners. In the meantime, I doubt, any owners handcuffed 40-year-old backup wonder Brad Johnson.

That makes Johnson a semi-desirable pickup for a few games.

The two-time pro-bowler takes control of one of the game’s best offenses. If you watched highlights from the Cowboys loss to the Cardinals on Sunday, running back Marion Barber took a pass for a 70-yard touchdown. With Barber's talent, Johnson will have a solid dump off target.

Rookie Felix Jones can do the same thing, too. But Felix is out for the next few weeks with a hamstring injury.

I don’t like Johnson’s long-term potential, but he will be throwing to Terrell Owens, Jason Whitten and Patrick Crayton.

Scoop Johnson up if you need a quarterback. Maybe a better strategy, though, is to pick him up and prevent another team from potentially cashing in on a quick fix. No. 3 quarterbacks on fantasy rosters sometimes are the best defense.

Tony Gonzalez gone?

The trade deadline for the NFL is today at 4 p.m. The rumors have the future hall of famer and Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez heading somewhere. Where? Philadelphia, Buffalo or the New York Giants are destinations reported by the Associated Press.

Let’s break down what it means.

If it’s Philly, L.J. Smith is out of the picture. With Donovan McNabb tossing balls his way, Gonzalez would be a top-notch option and retain his must-start No. 1 status.

Face it: Tyler Thigpen and Damon Huard are not going to help his fantasy stock in Kansas City.

With those guys, Gonzalez could earn or has earned a spot on the bench if you have, say, the Miami Dolphins Anthony Fasano as a backup.

At least, McNabb would give owners some confidence in starting the nine-time pro-bowler each week.

If it’s Buffalo or New York, Trent Edwards and Eli Manning, though not last night’s version of lil’ Peyton, would seem like logical pitch-and-catch mates for the tight end.

But, hey, it’s the NFL. Do teams other than the Browns make trades?

Catch them if you can...

Dominic Rhodes, Colts: Running back Joseph Addai, a first-round bust for many, hurt his hamstring on Sunday. Chances are Rhodes is already gone.

Jets defense: They have produced two straight stellar weeks. They had five sacks, a fumble recovery, but no picks against Cincinnati on Sunday. The week before against the Cardinals: five sacks, five fumble recoveries, three interceptions and a touchdown. The reasons they may keep paying off as a bye-week replacement or starting defense: The J-E-T-S play against Oakland this Sunday and have Kansas City the following week.

Check out Thursday’s Morning Journal for a fantasy column.

I am jumping into the fantasy column realm at an interesting time. Welcome to Week 6.

First, I'd like to wish former Morning Journal columnist and fellow Cleveland Stater Dan Gilles the best of luck in his new endeavors. He has written his last column for Week 6. So, I will lay out a few things on the week, too.

Gilles shared the saga of trying to decide on whether to start a game-time decision at quarterback this past week. It's an agonizing situation, but one that, I agree, revolves around some good old-fashioned luck.

Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers kept owners guessing and then produced high-scoring weeks. If you watched "Big Ben" wince in pain since Week 1, you probably wouldn't want to start him either.

At this point in the season, fantasy owners should have a firm grasp on where their teams stand. If you stand at 0-5, why not play the role of spoiler? If you stand at 5-0, you're already making the right choices. If you're on the cusp, you may be one pickup or injury away for making or breaking the season. So here we go.

Browns Town

The Browns are back from the bye and playing on Monday night against the New York Giants. Beware, Kellen Winslow owners. Unspecified "illness" is never a good thing, and hopefully it's just the flu bug.

The big news, though, is Donte Stallworth, a perennial fantasy tease, maybe making his much anticipated debut for the Browns. My advice don't start him. I have two reasons:

1. He is playing on Monday night. If he pulls up lame in warmups again, who are you going to start? Giants backup wideout Domenik Hixon?

2. Let's see him play first. Derek Anderson hasn't had a quality No. 2 wide receiver yet this season. It could be argued, he hasn't had a No. 1 either. Sorry, Braylon.

The Gambles (You may be crazy to start or pick up, but, hey, it may just pay off)

1. Cedric Benson, Bengals vs. Jets: Yes, he is back. With a struggling offense, Benson may just be the Rudi Johnson the Bengals need to get the offense back on track. Sorry, Chris Perry. The days of you being the No. 1 back in Cincy could be over. I see a platoon, but remember this is Benson. The same Benson that many took a gamble on in 2006 and, more so, in 2007. But, hey, the NFL is all about second chances these days. Right Chris Henry?

2. Gustave Frerotte, Vikings vs. Lions: The former Pro Bowler and one-time head rammer has settled nicely into the positon of starting quarterback for Minnesota. So, if you're desperate here is a potential one-week wonder. The Lions defense has given more than 30 points a game and 15 offensive touchdowns so far. Plus, he is always one screen pass to Adrian Peterson away from scoring points.

The Challenge (Other experts told you to sit them, I try to provide reasons why not to)

1. Derek Anderson, Browns vs. Giants: So, cbssportsline wants to remind every one the Giants knocked out Anderson in the preseason. They handed him a concussion and, in return, he has handed fantasy owners pretty much nothing since. Well, Monday night is primetime for a reason. Just ignore, Anderson's Sunday night performance against the Steelers in Week 2. Last week, Frerotte had a touchdown pass and Drew Brees threw for more than 300 yards. They didn't exactly rip it up, but how can you not believe Anderson will be jacked up for this game.

No. 1: He is reportedly on a short leash, but you never know what Romeo Crennel is thinking. Anderson should start fast and get the offense moving against the Super Bowl champs.

No. 2: The Giants may have hurt him before, but the guy who did it, Osi Umenyiora, is out for the season.

No. 3: 70,000-plus fans will be on his side early and often.

No. 4: The "don't start Stallworth" maybe back. Now, if Winslow is cleared to go, the weapons and a bye week of prep will be in his favor. Now, he just needs to avoid any cement walls in celebration.