Elsewhere around the NFL:

Detroit: Lions coach Jim Schwartz is expecting Calvin Johnson (hand, knee) and Matthew Stafford (knee) to be available for Sunday’s game at Cincinnati. Both players participated in team practice on Tuesday. “I’m optimistic both of them would be without limitation on Sunday,” said Schwartz. “At this time of the year, (they will be) about as full-speed as you can be. Everybody’s banged up or beat up a little bit.” Johnson and Stafford will have a tough matchup on Sunday as they will face off against the Bengals Pro Bowl caliber corners.

Pittsburg: Pittsburg Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger (concussion) is expected to start against the Raiders Sunday.
Roethlisberger has apparently been cleared by the neurologists and his coach is giving him the go ahead. Getting Roethlisberger back is obviously a huge upgrade for all the Steelers’ skill players even though they’ll be facing Nnamdi Asomugha and a decent Raiders secondary on Sunday.

Atlanta: The Falcons have released K Jason Elam. Elam missed four field goals from 39 yards out or closer this season, including two in the last three weeks. He turns 40 in March and is no longer a reasonable option on kickoffs. Matt Bryant is the Atlanta Falcons new kicker.

Carolina: Jake Delhomme is “unlikely” to play against the Bucs this week, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Schefter says Delhomme will sit because of his finger injury, but there’s a good chance he would have been benched anyway. Coach John Fox already said that Matt Moore would take the first-team reps on Wednesday while the turnover plagued Delhomme rests.

Philadelphia: Eagles signed TE Brent Celek to a six-year, $33 million extension. The deal includes $11 million in guaranteed money. The Philadelphia Eagles do a great job of locking up their young talent to long-term deals as Celek was set to become a free agent in 2011. He’s now in the fold through 2016. It’s a well-deserved extension for Celek, who has proven to be one of the better all-around tight ends in the league. At age 24 and in his first season as a full-time starter, he’s fifth in the league in receptions.

Elsewhere around the NFL:

Seattle: The Seahawks have released RB Edgerrin James. This might be the end of the line for the future hall-of-famer. James, 31, was averaging a disappointing 2.7 yards on 46 carries compared to 5.7 for Justin Forsett and 3.9 for starter Julius Jones. James might draw a little bit of interest on the free-agent market.

Detroit: Lions coach Jim Schwartz still isn’t saying if Calvin Johnson (knee) will play in Week 9, but says his star wideout is “getting closer.” The Detroit Lions are officially considering Johnson “day to day” and he’ll probably be a game-time decision yet again. ESPN’s John Clayton reported last Friday that Calvin “looked likely” to face the Rams, but he was among Detroit’s inactives on Sunday.

Houston: Scout.com’s Adam Caplan expects the Texans to use an “RBBC” in the backfield “for the time being.” Moats might be worth a roster spot at this point, but until we see how the next few weeks shake out there is not telling who will get the carries for the Texans.

New Orleans: Saints RB Reggie Bush has scored a touchdown in every game he’s ever played on ESPN.
He’s got six career touchdowns in prime-time games. However, Bush should not be starting any week as he is averaging only 6.5 touches per game over his last four.

New England: Patriots WR Randy Moss was given the entire New England Patriots’ bye week off, but returned Tuesday and will start Sunday against the Dolphins. Moss will be up against the No. 21 ranked pass defense on Sunday.

Tennessee: Titans coach Jeff Fisher expressed optimism after Vince Young’s first start since Week 1 of 2008. “This is the first start he’s had where he has not had a sack or interception,” Fisher said. “He has learned to … check-down, get rid of the ball or take off when it is time to go take off.” Young starting at QB decreases the fantasy value of TE Bo Scaife.

The Good :

Jay Cutler – Cutler has been a great surprise in the first four weeks of this season throwing for more then 1200 yards and completing 65 percent of his passes. He has a Quarter Back rating of 98 and has thrown 9 touchdowns. Cutler looks like he might be one of the best steals from this years fantasy drafts. Whether he keeps up this pace is undetermined, but there is no doubt he is off to a great start.

Reggie Bush - Questionable at the beginning of the year, no one new where Reggie fit in New Orleans. Well it looks like he is going to do a little bit of everything, with 180 rushing yards and 250 receiving yards with three touchdowns. Bush even has a kick return touchdown this season, that is four touchdowns in four games. If New Orleans keeps giving him the touches, he will keep producing all year long.

Anquan Boldin - He suffered a concussion in week 4 after a brutal hit at the end of the game, but he still has had a great year so far. In 4 games he has 366 yards and has caught 5 touchdowns, to be the most productive wide out in the NFL. The injury last week will slow his season greatly, but if you drafted him you are probably off to a good start in your pool. Keep your eye on the injury report and see when he is coming back.

Michael Turner - The trade to Atlanta has looked good for Turner. The back up to L.T. has broken out for 420 yards and 5 touchdowns with Atlanta. Week 1 was his best week, but he should continue to put up good numbers for the rest of the year.

Brett Favre - Well he didn’t retire, and why should he. Brett has shown so far that he is still a great fantasy player, leading the league with 12 touchdown passes and he looks to be getting comfortable in New York.. The Jets have a rather soft schedule and Brett’s numbers will continue to be good all year.

The Bad :

Peyton Manning – If you used an early pick to get Manning you probably aren’t very happy about his early season production. The bye week should get him more healthy and he should improve his production. He has only thrown 3 touchdowns this years, against 4 picks not exactly Peyton like numbers. Relax he will get better as he gets more healthy, by the end of the year his numbers should be fine.

Brian Westbrook – Westbrook has been hurt and missed last weeks game, but he wasn’t that good in the 3 games he played. He has only rushed for 160 yards so far, but if he gets healthy, he will be back to his old self. Look for him to get more catches and more touchdowns when he is healthy.

Derek Anderson - Fantasy surprise last year, fantasy dud so far this season. A 49 percent completion rate and 540 yards is horrible for a guy who is supposed to be leading one of the best offensive groups in the NFL. Get rid of Anderson if you can, if he keeps struggling Brady Quinn will be the Quarter Back soon.

Chad Johnson - Name change hasn’t helped much, he is averaging 29 receiving yards a game with only 1 touchdown in the first four weeks. The Cincinnati team looks bad and may not get better. Johnson is a great wide receiver, but I think it is time for the Bengals to start over and find away to get better.

The Ugly :

Tom Brady – The injury to Brady in week 1 had a huge impact on all fantasy football leagues. The Patriots are no where near what they were last years and everyone on there offense will have worse fantasy years then they did last year. I feel bad for you if you drafted Brady in the first round, I hope you got a good back up.

Randy Moss – Directly tied to Brady’s injury, Moss will have a year that is very underwhelming. Last year he was a record breaker and this year he is averaging 65 yards a game with 1 touchdown in 3 games. I don’t know what to tell you, maybe the Patriots will figure out a way to get him the ball, they will if they want to win.

Braylon Edwards – WOW, what a start !! All pro last year, and this year he has 11 receptions and 95 yards in 4 games. This makes no sense to me, he was one of the best fantasy receivers last season and it looks as if he may be the worst this year. Edwards is a great player with all the talent in the world, and his numbers cannot be explained.

Fantasy sports can be highly frustrating, if you were one of the people to pick a ton of Patriots thinking they will repeat success, I feel for you. Hopefully you have found some good sleeper players this year and remember that you can turn a fantasy season around in just one week,