(EDITOR'S NOTE: You can view the up-to-date standings and other happenings in ASM's Fantasy Football league, CLICK HERE.)

So far we have seen Tom Brady make other quarterbacks look like a bunch of Ryan Leafs, and we have seen rookie sensation Adrian Peterson look at opposing defenses in his rearview mirror. Randy Moss is playing like Randy Moss from five years ago, and so far Terrell Owens hasn’t gotten into a shouting match with his quarterback, Tony Romo (yes, I know it’s hard to believe). With that in mind, I will go over some midseason fantasy awards and also point out some key happenings of the first half. Let’s take a look, shall we??

MVP: Tom Brady - QB– New England Patriots.

If you have him on your team, you are probably towards the top of your league. Brady has thrown for 27 touchdowns and 2,125 yards so far this season. When you break that down, he is averaging almost four touchdown passes and 303 yards per game. The most important thing about his performance, however, is that he is consistent, throwing at least three TDs in every game so far. Derek Anderson from the Browns has 14 TD passes, good for third in the NFL, but as you recall, five of those came against the Bengals in Week 2 (I think I could probably throw for three or four touchdown passes against the ‘Bungles’ defense). The key to any good fantasy team is consistency, and Tom Brady has delivered that, and then some, which is why he is the first half MVP.

HONORABLE MENTION

Ronnie Brown – RB – Miami Dolphins: Ronnie Brown rambled off four straight 100-yard games before getting hurt in Week 7. On the year, Brown has rushed for 602 yards, and scored four rushing TDs. Where Brown had a big edge over most backs is that he led all running backs in receptions with 39 (hmmm I wonder if it has anything to do with Miami having no receivers…or quarterbacks), and receiving yards with 389. Unfortunately for Brown and his fantasy owners, his knee injury will cost him the rest of the season.

Randy Moss – WR – New England Patriots: Moss is having a huge year, thanks to Mr. Brady. Moss leads all wideouts with 732 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. Not bad for a guy most people wrote off even before the year started.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Adrian Peterson –RB – Minnesota: Adrian Peterson, who was drafted seventh overall by the Vikings in the 2007 draft currently leads the NFL in rushing with 670 yards. He has scored five times on the ground and has added one more through the air. The more amazing thing is that he is leading the league in rushing while sharing a decent amount of the work with Chester Taylor.
BUST OF THE YEAR

Shaun Alexander – RB – Seattle Seahawks: Shaun Alexander has been playing more like Shaun of the Dead rather than Alexander the Great this season. He does have 460 yards, but he has also played in all seven games, and has only had two 100-yard efforts (one of which came against, yup, you guessed it, the Bengals). His last three games have totaled a not so whopping 107 yards and zero touchdowns. One could make the argument that once he signed that fat contract two years ago, he took the money and ran, except for the fact that he looks like he’s standing still for 60 minutes every Sunday. Add a weak offensive line and the sudden retirement of Pro-Bowl fullback Mac Strong, and things look bleak for Alexander owners.

HONORABLE MENTION

Drew Brees – QB – New Orleans Saints: After a huge 2006 campaign, most people were drafting Brees ahead of QBs like Brady, Carson Palmer, and basically anyone not named Peyton Manning. How has Brees treated his fantasy owners? By throwing only five TD passes in six games while tossing an NFL worst 10 interceptions. Not so good.

Lee Evans – WR – Buffalo Bills / Santana Moss – Washington Redskins: I’m going to talk about both of these useless receivers because maybe if I combine their stats, they might seem significant. Combined, they have 31 catches for 418 yards and, ummm, well zero touchdowns. Both guys have had horrible years so far, and hopefully they can turn things around for their fantasy owners.

With the amount of big name injuries, here is a list of players who probably were drafted in the top three or four rounds in your fantasy drafts that have gotten bit by the injury bug:

INJURY BUG VICTIMS

Rudi Johnson, Marc Bulger, Laurence Maroney, Steven Jackson, Cadillac Williams, Deuce McAllister, Ronnie Brown, Andre Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Marvin Harrison, Hines Ward, Jake Delhomme, and Javon Walker.

If you had more than one of those guys on your team after your draft, you probably were thinking playoffs… but, this is why we play the game. However, with every change, there is an opportunity. And with that being said, here are some of the top waiver wire pick ups this season:

WAIVER-WIRE SAVIORS

Brian Griese – QB – Chicago Bears: Griese is significant in both fantasy and in real football. Since he has come in for the Bears, their offense has started to find the end zone on a more frequent basis than with Rex Grossman. In four games so far, Griese has thrown for 1,203 yards, and eight touchdowns. He has thrown six picks, but for being rusty and thrown right into the mix, that’s not too shabby compared to his other numbers – or the ones Rex was putting up the first few weeks of the season.

Derrick Ward – RB – New York Giants: Once Brandon Jacobs went down early on in the season, Ward stepped it up to the tune of 448 rushing yards, and also 24 catches for an additional 150 yards.

Kevin Walter – WR – Houston Texans: With the injury to Andre Johnson, Walter has stepped it up big, especially the last two weeks. In his last two games, Walter has caught 18 balls for 257 yards and a score. What makes those numbers more impressive is that he did it against the Jaguars and Titans defenses.

Ok, this category has no relevance whatsoever, but with Mack Strong being forced to retire with a career ending neck injury, he will retire with one of the best names in all of football. However, with the changing of the guard now upon us, I bring you:

BEST NAME IN FOOTBALL

Madison Hedgecock – RB – New York Giants: This one is pretty self explanatory.

So, as we look forward to the second half of our fantasy seasons, I wish all fantasy owners the best of luck in their ventures, and make sure you check out my Fantasy Forecast Blog with some help in setting your lineups each week. Good luck all!!