"I was in a generous mood when I sat down to spotlight the heroes of Week 16. The list extended further than normal on account of the holiday season and I doled out more figurative baby giraffes than anticipated. Couldn't we all use an extra pat on the back? Don't we all want that acknowledgement?
Since I can't throw the members of our fantasy nation a holiday soiree, I'm heading back inside the white lines to review the week's worst performances. I'll speak for the 50% of the remaining participants who will taste defeat in their league's title games. Let's do the roll call of the biggest "Fantasy Zeroes" for Week 16.
I start in Dallas, where an early injury to Tony Romo made the Dallas receivers (except for Miles Austin) virtually invisible.
Jason Witten caught several passes last, but his anemic yardage total did leave to move the proverbial needle. Witten has scored once in the Cowboys' past seven games. He's topped 80 receiving yards just once since Week 4.
Dez Bryant's three-game scoring streak ended in the Dallas loss to Philadelphia. He did catch six passes, his third game with at least six receptions this season. Bryant produced 62 receiving yards, his ninth game with at least 62 receiving yards this season.
Alas, Dallas' place in the playoff chase made waiver wire hero Laurent Robinson an afterthought. He was targeted just twice against the Eagles and produced a single reception for five yards.
Fellow tight end hero Vernon Davis has also been quiet down the stretch. In the narrow victory over Seattle in Week 16, Davis caught four passes for 54 yards on eight targets. Davis has logged a single touchdown reception in the past five weeks. He's topped 60 receiving yards in three games this season.
Felix Jones' injury put Sammy Morris on the radar for fantasy owners. He delivered a measly total of 39 total yards on 17 touches (13 carries for 29 yards).
Do I include LeSean McCoy on this roll call? McCoy sustained an ankle injury during Sunday's win over the Cowboys, so I'm always reticent to pile it on in the "Flops" piece. However, he did touch the ball 14 times in the win, so he makes the list. It was McCoy's worst output of the season.
Philip Rivers passed for 299 yards in comeback mode with one touchdown and two interceptions against the Lions. Rivers has passed for over 4,300 yards this season, but his touchdown-to-turnover ratio is essentially even (25-to-24).
He played injured, but that doesn't save Vincent Jackson from the wagging fingers of fantasyland. Jackson was targeted seven times in the loss and yielded just 41 receiving yards. I trotted out this factoid a few weeks ago, and it still leaves me unnerved while looking ahead to 2012. All eight of Jackson's touchdowns and 61% of his receiving yardage came in five games."
