Year in review: Studs, duds and sleepers

Quarterbacks and receivers ruled the day, the Bears defense and pretty much all the running backs in the first round were colossal disappointments, while rookies were as good as anyone.

Man, didn't ya have to just love the 2007 fantasy football season?

I know I didn't, because it was my worst one in more than five years. I'll never forgive a few players for hosing me, and I'll never forget a few others for stepping up in their absense. All in all, it made for a frustrating year. One which I'll happily put into storage and leave there with all my Ace of Base records and Guess jackets I have no interest in ever seeing again.

Most Valuable Players

Overall MVP: Tom Brady - One of the easiest picks on the board. He makes this easy by throwing for an NFL record number of touchdowns (50).

RB: LaDainian Tomlinson - The rushing champion was never in the lead until Week 16. His 1,474 yards and 18 overall touchdowns rank him No. 1.

RB: Adrian Peterson - Rookie of the Year finished second in rushing and scored 13 touchdowns in just 14 games.

WR: Randy Moss - The easiest pick of all, Moss dominated the game with 23 receiving touchdowns and was only behind Reggie Wayne by 17 yards in that category.

WR: Terrell Owens - His 15 TDs ranked third amongst NFL receivers, and the 1,355 yards ranked fifth. And that was with only 106 yards total over the last four weeks.

RB/WR: Braylon Edwards - His 16 touchdowns were ridiculous. Having him was almost better than having Owens, due to the number of big games he had, but the overall numbers rank just beneath T.O.'s.

TE: Jason Witten - A tough category to choose a winner in, but Witten's connection with Tony Romo pushed him to the top. His 96 receptions for 1,145 yards and seven scores was one of the best-ever years for tight ends.

K: Stephen Gostkowski - When you're able to kick 74 extra points in a season, that equals consistent points, which is all you really want out of your kicker, isn't it?

D/ST: Tampa Bay - They were third in points allowed, created 35 turnovers, had 33 sacks and scored three DST touchdowns on the year and consistenly got to feed on the Panthers and Falcons offensive woes.

Reserve: Reggie Wayne, WR - Led the NFL in receiving yards and had over 100 catches. He would've been an easy first-teamer if he had scored more than 10 TDs.

Reserve: Clinton Portis, RB - You may not think he belongs here, but he was surprisingly effective this year. His 1,262 yards ranked just sixth in the league, but he had 11 TDs and caught four or more passes in a game seven times.

Reserve: Joseph Addai, RB - He had just four games with more than 85 rushing yards, but finding the end zone 15 times in 15 games will get you here pretty much every time.

Reserve: Larry Fitzgerald, WR - Was fourth in the NFL in receiving yards in a great year for wideouts, scored 10 TDs and did so with three different starting QBs.

Reserve: Brian Westbrook, RB - Always underrated, Westbrook does everything you need a fantasy RB to do. He missed just one game in '07, scored 12 touchdowns and ranked third in rushing yards.

Reserve: T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR - Scored a TD in each of the first eight games of the year and had 12 over the course of the year along with an NFL-leading 112 receptions.

Reserve: Tony Romo, QB - The QBs and WRs dominated this season, and Romo was one of the best of the bunch. He was second in TDs, third in passing yardage and proved he's a fantasy stud in this league once and for all.

Least Valuable Players

Overall: Larry Johnson - I hate to have to do this, but L.J. was picked second in most leagues across the world and played in just eight games, scoring just four touchdowns due to multiple injuries.

QB: Marc Bulger - He had his worst season as a pro, playing in just 12 games, throwing just 11 touchdowns and getting picked off an ugly 15 times. He had just two mulit-TD games all year.

RB: Larry Johnson - See above.

RB: Rudi Johnson - He's been the model of consistency for years now, but the injury bug caught up with him. He got into 11 games, but had less than 500 yards rushing and a miniscule four scores.

WR: Steve Smith - There were a couple big games in there, but once Jake Delhomme went down, he had nobody who would even try to get him the ball. He somehow managed 1,002 yards, which was a miracle, but he had an 11-game stretch where he had more than 72 yards just once. That's tough to do and STILL get 1,000. I honestly don't know how he did it.

WR: Vincent Jackson - He wasn't a major top pick, but he was certainly drafted in the middle rounds of most of them. Unfortunately, he caught just 41 balls and scored only three times as he and the Chargers struggled to throw the ball all year.

RB/WR: Reggie Bush - The expectations were high, owners were drafting him in their Top 10s everywhere you looked, and he just didn't deliver. In fact, Aaron Stecker had more success than he did after Bush's injury.

TE: Todd Heap - One of the bigger stinkers of the year played in just six games, never had more than 76 yards in any of them, scored just once and was bagelled in one of them too.

K: Joe Nedney - After San Fran's offensive burst at the end of last season, owners had to think the Niners would do some scoring this season. Well, that wasn't the case at all, and Nedney kicked just 22 extra points and 17 field goals, which averaged out to less than five fantasy points a game.

D/ST: Miami - One of the better defense last year was put in a terrible spot by their offense all season long. Thanks to being on the field way too often, they gave up a ton of points, created just 22 turnovers and scored just three defensive touchdowns.

Reserve: Matt Schaub, QB - For all the hype in the off-season about Schaub, he wasn't on the field nearly enough to make a fantasy difference. His nine touchdowns were offset by his nine interceptions in 11 games.

Reserve: Vince Young, QB - Ooof, what a disaster. Nine passing touchdowns all season long? And 17 interceptions? Really? Not to mention he had just 395 rushing yards, which was supposed to be the thing that put him over the top.

Reserve: Matt Leinart, QB - He played in just five games before he went down with an injury, but he had just two touchdowns and four picks in those five games, including performances of 53, 93, 100 and 102 yards passing in four of them. Eek.

Reserve: Steven Jackson, RB - Like Steve Smith, he somehow managed to eek out 1,000 yards, but just barely. Just five touchdowns, though. That's not gonna get it down for the player taken second in most drafts across the country.

Reserve: Shaun Alexander, RB - In just 11 games, Alexander was a colossal bust. The Seattle offensive line was a mess, allowing him to rush for just 716 yards and five scores. He doesn't catch any passes, either, which just adds to the misery of owners who took him in the top five or seven picks for sure. His 105-yard game in Week 1 was sadly his biggest game of the year!

Reserve: Marvin Harrison, WR - The game's premier receiver for almost 10 years finally ran into injury problems he's never experienced before. In just five outings, he caught a measly 20 passes for 247 yards and a single score. That killed many of us for sure.

Reserve: Chicago Defense - This wasn't even close. If it weren't for Devin Hester, they'd have been an even worse disaster.

The Sleepers

Overall: Braylon Edwards - In my big money league, he was chosen at the top of the ninth round, and he turned out to be a monster. He's a second or third round pick now, moving ahead of guys like Steve Smith, Torry Holt, Anquan Boldin, amongst others.

QB: Derek Anderson - Someone had to throw the ball to Edwards, right? And it wasn't anyone that was even drafted in most leagues. This was an easy call, as Anderson topped 3,700 yards, and his 29 touchdowns were the fifth-most in the NFL.

RB: Ryan Grant - Green Bay's fifth running back coming into the season ended up being by far the most valuable. In the last 10 games, he ran for 929 yards and eight touchdowns, including at least one in each of the season's last six games.

RB: Earnest Graham - When Cadillac Williams went down, many thought Tampa Bay's season may have been over. But Graham came up big, running for 864 yards in a 10-game span, including 10 trips to the end zone. He turned many fantasy teams around.

WR: Braylon Edwards - Injuries finally didn't derail him this year, and he made middle round draft picks of him pay off large.

WR: Wes Welker - What a find for the Pats this off-season. His 112 receptions led the NFL, his 1,175 yards were ridiculous and eght touchdowns are sweet as well. He had eight games with at least seven catches, which led the NFL.

RB/WR: Justin Fargas - After LaMont Jordan was benched by the Oakland coaches in the middle of Week 8, Fargas took over and made the position his own. The fifth-year back topped 1,000 yards despite having six games in which he had less than 20 on the ground or missed altogether. The four touchdowns weren't great, but the yardage sure was.

TE: Dallas Clark - He's not the biggest sleeper pick on the board, since he was likely picked as one of the top 10 or 12 tight ends in most drafts. But a league-leading 11 touchdowns at his position makes up for that, since he WAS often picked behind guys like Alge Crumpler, Todd Heap and Vernon Davis.

K: Mason Crosby - The NFL's leading scorer this season is a minutive rookie out of Colorado who won last year's Golden Toe Award in college. With all the points the Packers were scoring, it vaulted him up the board fast, kicking 31 field goals, which ranked second in the league.

D/ST: Indianapolis - They were the NFL's best at allowing points, giving up a league-low 26 touchdowns, while forcing 37 turnovers, sacking quarterbacks 28 times and scoring three touchdowns. For a team with an offensive reputation, that ain't all bad.

Reserve: Kenny Watson, RB - With Rudi Johnson injured so often this year, Watson made for a nice waiver wire pickup on at least two occasions. He paid off for many owners, scoring seven touchdowns in just six starts, while catching 52 balls out of the backfield as well.

Reserve: Dwayne Bowe, WR - The K.C. rookie exploded in Week 3 and didn't slow down for about 10 games. He led all rookies in every receiving category and was the Chiefs' primary deep threat.

Reserve: Kevin Curtis, WR - His 1,110 yards couldn't have been seen coming. He and Donovan McNabb had a great repore from the very beginning, hooking up for seven touchdowns in his first season in Philly.

Reserve: Brett Favre, QB - I know he's a legend, but I think you still have to put him inthis category this year. His age and his penchant for throwing interceptions has scared owners off in recent years, but he was MVP caliber in '07, throwing for 28 touchdowns and over 4,100 yards.

Reserve: Greg Jennings, WR - Speaking of the Packers, I'll see my Favre and raise myself Jennings, who found the end zone an amazing 12 times in just 13 games with 920 yards and 17.4 yards a catch.

Reserve: Brandon Marshall - Without Javon Walker around to take receptions away from him, Marshall flourished this season. He's officially passed Walker as the team's No. 1 option after putting up a terrific 102 catches, 1,325 yards and seven touchdowns. He'll be on the All Pro watch next season for sure.

Reserve: LenDale White, RB - Not many knew who would be running the ball for the Titans this year, and after Chris Brown went off in the first game, almost everyone gave up on White immediately. However, he paid off for the owners who knew better, eventually running for 1,110 yards and seven scores.

Reception League Studs

MVP: Brian Westbrook - This has almost always been the case. He had 90 receptions out of the backfield for the Eagles, ran for the third-most yards in the NFL and scored 12 touchdowns. He was the only player to go over 2,000 total yards form scrimmage this season. When he's not hurt, he's an absolute beast.

RB: LaDainian Tomlinson - He does it all. Led the NFL in rushing, scored 18 times and caught 60 balls for 475 yards too. Just an outright fantasy animal.

RB: Joseph Addai - Throw in 41 catches and three receiving touchdowns to his already impressive numbers, and Addai's as clutch as they come in any format.

WR: Randy Moss - Receptions league or not, Moss had one of the greatest years for receivers in the history of the game. No debating his inclusion here. Not that 98 receptions are anything to sneeze at, of course!

WR: T.J. Houshmandzadeh - Led the NFL in catches (112) with Wes Welker, scored 12 touchdowns and went for over 1,100 yards. No wonder he made his first Pro Bowl this season.

RB/WR: Reggie Wayne - Barely outduels both Terrell Owens and Braylon Edwards for the last spot on my team thaks to his 104 catches, 10 touchdowns and NFL-leading 1,510 yards receiving.

TE: Jason Witten - Tony Gonzalez had just three more receptions and 27 more yards, but it wasn't enough to make up for Witten's two extra touchdowns.

Reception League Sleepers

RB: Earnest Graham - Was actually sixth in the league for receptions by running backs, despite not being a start until a few games into the season. Those 49 catches were made to look all the better with his 10 rushing TDs.

RB: Kenny Watson - He helped his sleeper cause with 52 catches, which ranked fourth for running backs. He only started a handful of games too, but was seriously valuable when he did.

WR: Brandon Marshall - With 102 catches and career highs in every category, Marshall is an easy choice here. Was amongst the league leaders in every receiving category there was.

WR: Braylon Edwards - He's gonna be on top of any sleeper category you throw out there. PPR leaguers were obviously appreciative of his 80 catches and 16 scores.

RB/WR: Bobby Engram - He flew under the radar most of the year, but both Deion Branch and D.J. Hackett struggled to get in the lineup each week. Because of that, he exploded for career highs across the board (94 catches, 1,147 yards, six TDs).

TE: Owen Daniels - He only scored three touchdowns this season, but he was a favorite of Houston quarterbacks, hauling in 63 passes for 768 yards.