Portis atop list of midseason awards
With what has been an odd first half of the fantasy football season, it's time to dole out the midseason awards.
MVP
After dedicating himself to a rigorous off-season workout program and using the memory of fallen teammate Sean Taylor as inspiration, Redskins RB Clinton Portis has returned to all-pro form ... in a big, big way.
Portis has logged 20-plus carries in every game, has 7 TDs and is on pace for 1,870 rushing yards. And his last four games have been particularly amazing with rushing totals of 121, 145, 129 and 175 yards. Owners of Portis must be hoping one thing - that the Skins don't overuse their star back because he's certainly led many fantasy teams to above-.500 records.
Surprise RB
The Bears' Matt Forte. The rookie has 515 rushing yards, 6 touchdowns and 29 receptions, a big plus in points-per-reception leagues.
Runner-up: The Saints' Reggie Bush. Ranked 15th in my preseason charts, Bush (660 yards from scrimmage, 7 TDs) is third in fantasy points among RBs. Too bad he's out for about a month after arthroscopic knee surgery.
Surprise QB
The Bears' Kyle Orton. How could it be anyone else? After a pedestrian start, Orton has lit up the league, averaging 274 passing yards with 10 TD passes over the last five games. After the Bears' bye, he gets the Lions at home. Yahtzee!
Runner-up: San Diego's Philip Rivers. Ranked 15th in preseason, Rivers has 16 TD passes and 1,597 yards.
Surprise WR
The Redskins' Santana Moss. The diminutive WR has scored in four of seven games and has 518 receiving yards. He's fourth among WRs after being ranked 29th in the preseason.
Runner-up: The Vikings' Bernard Berrian. When the season began, I figured Berrian would be a nice No. 3 receiver, but by averaging 96 yards and scoring 3 TDs the last five weeks, he's now clearly a No. 1.
Duds
Aside from Portis, Marion Barber, Tony Romo and Frank Gore, most of the players taken in the first round have been duds. As for Adrian Peterson, he gets a C+, but I know most of you were expecting more than 5 TDs at this point.
As for everybody else...
• Would somebody please put the real LaDainian Tomlinson back into whoever is stumbling and bumbling his way around San Diego? Whoever that is has scored in two games and has 150 yards over the last three games.
• Since 5 TDs in the first two weeks, the Eagles' Brian Westbrook has 96 yards from scrimmage and 1 TD. Medic!
• Steven Jackson's 3-TD explosion last week was nice, but his owners must have been screaming, "It's about time!" after suffering through the first six weeks.
• The Colts' Joseph Addai has 4 touchdowns but has yet to go over 80 rushing yards in a game. Oh, yeah, he also has just 5 receptions. FIVE!
• Two words: Tom Brady.
• Brady's injury has made Randy Moss nearly invisible, save for Monday night's 2-TD game. Moss has games of 22, 25 and 26 yards.
• Terrell Owens hasn't exactly been a huge bust, but his recent trend - 6 catches, 67 yards with no scores the last two games - isn't promising.
Pickup: If you can afford a roster spot and need help at RB, consider the Broncos' Ryan Torian. The rookie should see his first carries after the bye this week, and his role may increase if he shows he's ready.
My teams: I went against LenDale White (3 TDs) in one league and Mewelde Moore (3 TDs) in the other. Somehow, I managed a split, winning 98-95 in the regular league (3-4) and falling to the week's highest-scoring team 85-64 in the unit league (3-4).
Good bets
• Bucs RB Earnest Graham at Dallas. The Cowboys are a mess, and Graham figures to score at least once.
• Niners QB J.T. O'Sullivan vs. Seattle. OK, if Jeff Garcia throws for 310 yards against the Seahawks, it stands to reason that even a butterfingers like O'Sullivan can top 275.
• Jets defense vs. Kansas City. Any D against the Chiefs is a nice play.
• Ravens RB Willis McGahee vs. Oakland. The Raiders have allowed every team but one (K.C.) to go over 100 yards rushing. Oh, and they've allowed 9 rushing TDs.
• Texans QB Matt Schaub vs. Cincinnati. In his last three games, Schaub is averaging 318 passing yards and has thrown for 6 TDs.
• Redskins WR Antwaan Randle El at Detroit. With 9 catches for 143 yards the last two weeks, he's a nice No. 3 WR against the pitiful Lions.
Bad bets
• Lions WR Calvin Johnson vs. Buffalo. Have you ever seen a WR end up with 154 yards on 2 catches? Me neither, but that's what he did last week. Still, he's a dicey play against this stingy pass defense.
• Cowboys WRs Terrell Owens and Roy Williams vs. Tampa Bay. Uhhh, Brad Johnson is bad. Real bad.
• Rams WR Torry Holt at New England. St. Louis is coming around, but this will be a tough road matchup.
• Falcons QB Matt Ryan at Philadelphia. An impresive rookie, but he has just 2 TD passes in three road games.
• Browns RB Jamal Lewis at Jacksonville. Lewis has yet to go over 90 yards rushing.
• Jaguars RB Fred Taylor vs. Cleveland. After what Maurice Jones-Drew did two weeks ago in Denver, expect Taylor's carries to diminish.
• Read more from John at ffmastermind.com and listen to him each Thursday with Mike Murphy on WSCR 670-AM in the 1 p.m. hour.