Surprise, Surprise: Bills QB a leading performer

Here's a pop fantasy football quiz:

How would you rank the following four quarterbacks for most fantasy points per start?

Aaron Rodgers, Matt Ryan, Peyton Manning, Ryan Fitzpatrick.

The surprise leading fantasy performer among that group on a per-game basis - and for all quarterbacks who have started at least four games - is Buffalo's Fitzpatrick.

Of course, fantasy leagues feature various scoring criteria, but in the ESPN-scored league in which I participate as well as other broadly used scoring systems, Fitzpatrick - with 977 yards, 11 touchdown passes, and just 4 interceptions (plus 116 rushing yards) - is the leader of the pack per game.

Fitzpatrick's sample is smaller than most other first-string quarterbacks'. He has started just four games, compared with six and seven for most other signal-callers. Plus, his average is buoyed by his most recent game - 382 yards, four TD passes, and two interceptions against Baltimore.

However, in a week in which some fantasy owners are scrambling to replace injured quarterbacks Tony Romo and Alex Smith, and wondering about Brett Favre's status, Fitzpatrick is an attractive alternative.

The Bills have been moving the ball through the air effectively since Fitzpatrick replaced Trent Edwards, and the Harvard grad even comes with the added pop of providing a few rushing points with an average of nearly 30 yards a game on the ground. And despite his strong four games, Fitzpatrick is still widely available on many fantasy waiver wires.

This week, the Bills play Kansas City with the 25th-ranked pass defense.

Another Fitz fizzling. Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, who was one of the most coveted pass catchers in fantasy drafts, has been a bust so far this season, although it's not entirely his fault. The Cardinals haven't found an even semi-adequate quarterback replacement for the retired Kurt Warner, and the departure of fellow wideout Anquan Boldin in an off-season trade to Baltimore has defenses focused on Fitzgerald.

As a result, Fitzgerald has just 331 yards and only two touchdowns. That puts him behind about three-dozen other receivers. The good news for Fitzgerald owners is that he's still getting his share of targets, nearly 11 a game.