Fantasy Footnotes: Stafford, Megatron dine on Eagles; Romo downed again
Every gameday during the regular season, theScore's fantasy editors recap the most important news and notes from around the league.
Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson skipped the Thanksgiving turkey and dined on Eagles.
The former tied a career high with five touchdown passes Thursday, three of them to his studly wideout.
Stafford threw the ball as crisply as he ever has, and could have topped 400 yards passing and perhaps added another touchdown if his receivers hadn't dropped a few beautifully thrown balls.
Johnson, who's shown his age at times this season, turned back the clock with a vintage performance. He toyed with Eagles defenders and proved he remains among the NFL's upper echelon of receivers.
Both Stafford and Johnson have a chance to go on a real tear through the fantasy playoffs. Matchups against the woeful Saints and 49ers defenses are on tap in Weeks 15 and 16.
Romo re-injures collarbone
In an all-too-familiar sight for Cowboys fans and Tony Romo's fantasy owners, the veteran passer was left grasping at his shoulder after being driven into the turf by a Panthers defender in the second half of Thursday's loss.
A re-fracture for Romo would almost certainly force him to miss the remainder of the season, and could essentially end the title hopes of any fantasy owners relying on the Cowboys' skill position players.
The Cowboys went 0-7 with Romo recovering from a Week 2 collarbone fracture, and there wasn't much fantasy value to be found on the team during that stretch - though, in fairness, Dez Bryant also missed many of those games.
Can Bryant, Darren McFadden, and Jason Witten retain enough value to remain viable fantasy starters with Matt Cassel at quarterback?
Not even Jerry Jones is optimistic enough to buy in to that proposition.
Notable Fantasy Lines
Matthew Stafford, QB, Lions
337 yards passing, 5 TDs
That's back-to-back games with five passing touchdowns surrendered by the Eagles. Next up for Chip Kelly's beleaguered defense? A date with Tom Brady.
Cam Newton, QB, Panthers
183 yards passing, 45 yards rushing TD
No passing touchdowns for Newton this week, but he salvaged the day for his fantasy owners with a rushing score.
Eddie Lacy, RB, Packers
105 yards rushing, 34 yards receiving, TD
Lacy has found his game again, posting his second straight 100-yard effort. James Starks remained productive as well with 80 total yards on 11 touches.
DeMarco Murray, RB, Eagles
30 yards rushing
Murray averaged a pathetic 2.1 yards per carry. It's clear the Eagles have no idea how to play to his strengths.
Darren McFadden, RB, Cowboys
11 yards rushing, 45 yards receiving, 2-PT
McFadden was almost completely ineffective even before Romo's injury, averaging a hair over 1 yard per carry.
Calvin Johnson, WR, Lions
93 yards receiving, 3 TDs
Megatron feasted on woefully overmatched cornerbacks Byron Maxwell and Eric Rowe.
Alshon Jeffery, WR, Bears
90 yards receiving
Jeffery may not be 100 percent healthy, but the targets will be there as long as he's on the field.
Jordan Matthews, WR, Eagles
60 yards receiving, TD
Look up "garbage-time touchdown" in the dictionary and you'll find a photo of Matthews' fourth-quarter score.
Dez Bryant, WR, Cowboys
26 yards receiving
With and without Romo, Bryant was nearly invisible. Josh Norman may be largely to blame for that, but it's hard to be optimistic about Bryant's fantasy value moving forward.
Davante Adams, WR, Packers
14 yards receiving
It isn't the yards that you should focus on, but rather the two catches on 11 targets. Adams has shown he doesn't deserve that many looks from Aaron Rodgers.
Injury Ward
Tony Romo, QB, Cowboys
Did Romo come back from his previous collarbone injury too soon? Is he simply the unfortunate victim of some very bad luck? We'll have all offseason to debate.
Waiver Wire Targets
Ameer Abdullah, RB, Lions
Abdullah handled 16 carries (more than twice as many as any other Lions runner) Thursday, turning them into 63 yards. He could have some fantasy value down the stretch if the Lions continue to feature him.
Marquess Wilson, WR, Bears
Even with Jeffery back in the lineup, Wilson managed 44 yards and nearly added a touchdown. His usage may change once Martellus Bennett and Eddie Royal return to the lineup, but for now he's a WR4 with WR3 upside. He's also a handcuff for Jeffery owners who have a roster spot available.