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Week 13 Fantasy Recap: Mr. Rodgers makes it Wayne

Week 13 proved to be a close one in our FanDuel fantasy football challenge.

It all came down to Monday Night Football, Jets and Patriots, to decide the winner. With no one playing, 'thdarragh' was able to hold off 'thebirdistheword', who had just Santonio Holmes remaining.

Holmes' 7.2 points left 'thebirdistheword' down only .08 points, and a late drop in the end zone by Holmes couldn't have been easy to swallow.

So congratulations to 'thdarragh' for winning $200 and becoming the first-ever winner in our FanDuel fantasy challenge.

'Thebirdistheword' took home $50 for finishing in second, and 'jas663' won $25 for a third-place finish.

If you want to play next week for another chance to win cash, click here to fill out your roster.

Our team finished in 11th place, and we will be looking to bounce back and crack the top 10 next week.

Here is a look at the top 10, including a breakdown of our roster and the winning roster, which of course belongs to 'thdarragh':

It's not a coincidence that Aaron Rodgers and Reggie Wayne are on both the above rosters. They were constants on most of the teams near the top of the leader board.

That's because they were the top scorers at their respective positions. Here is a look at the rest of the league's top performers for Week 13:

Top Performers

QB - Aaron Rodgers (GB) - 27.82 points - 298 pass yards, 3 TDs; 39 rush yards

WR - Reggie Wayne (IND) - 26 points - 200 receiving yards, TD

WR - Greg Jennings (GB) - 24.2 points - 122 receiving yards, 2 TDs

WR - Sidney Rice (MIN) - 22.5 points - 105 receiving yards, 2 TDs

RB - Adrian Peterson (MIN) - 28.8 points - 107 rush yards, 3 TDs; 1 receiving yard

RB - Marshawn Lynch (SEA) - 28 points - 83 rush yards, 3 TDs; 17 receiving yards

TE - Vernon Davis (SF) - 18.6 points - 126 receiving yards, TD

K - Josh Brown (STL) - 16 points - 3 FGs (2 K 20-29 yds; 1K 50+yds); PAT

D - New York Giants - 20 points - 7 PA; 4 sacks; 2 INT; 4 fumble recoveries

*This does not include players who played on Thursday night, since they are not available in our league.

Although not everyone can be a top performer, there are plenty of players who rose above expectations, making them bargain picks.

Perhaps it was a back-up getting the chance to shine, or a question mark coming off a big injury, but bargains made a difference again last week.

Here is a look at the Week 13 bargains:

Week 13 Bargains

QB - Drew Stanton (DET) - 18.32 points - 178 passing yards, 1 TD; 12 rushing yards, 1 TD

Little was expected of Stanton heading into Sunday's game against the Bears, and rightfully so. The Lions' third quarterback, however, performed admirably in a near-miss upset. Although he only threw for 178 yards, Stanton accounted for two touchdowns (one rushing, one passing).

RB - Marshawn Lynch (SEA) - 28 points - 83 rushing yards, 3 TDs; 17 receiving yards

Where'd this come from? Lynch had been mostly disappointing after the Seahawks traded for him, but that changed with his three-touchdown game against the Panthers Sunday. Granted, the Panthers are putrid in almost every statistical category, including run defense, but whomever took a gamble on Lynch this week was handsomely rewarded.

WR - Sidney Rice (MIN) - 22.5 points - 105 receiving yards, 2 TDs

Rice was playing in only his third game of the season after preseason hip surgery, and had yet to make an impact like he did last season. Brett Favre's injury early in the game made the chances of that happening this week appear slim, but Tarvaris Jackson surprisingly threw two touchdown passes to Rice, who also got over 100 yards on the day. If you gambled on this being Rice's breakout week, congratulations.

TE - Benjamin Watson (CLE) - 16 points - 100 receiving yards, 1 TD

Watson has been a reliable target for whomever is at the front of the Browns' rotating quarterback carousel. This week, he caught 10 passes for 100 yards and a touchdown.

K - Clint Stitser (CIN) - 11 points - 3 FGs (2 K 20-29 yds; 1 K 40-49); 1/2 PATs

The Bengals brought Stitser in as their kicker only this week, and he proved a more reliable option than Aaron Pettrey, nailing all three of his attempted field goals and adding an extra point. Those who took a flier on Stitser got nice value at the kicker position.

DEF - St. Louis Rams - 15 points - 6 PA; 4 sacks; 2 INTs

After the 49ers thrashed the Cardinals on Monday Night Football last week, the Rams were likely a semi-popular pick on defense. They did not disappoint, which would have been hard to do against the Cardinals' QB trio of Derek Anderson, Max Hall and John Skelton.

Just like bargains, busts seem to surprise, or perhaps blindside, fantasy owners.

How could Dwayne Bowe not score any points against a struggling Broncos defense? How could the Jets allow 45 points in a divisional matchup against the Patriots? Why did I bet against the Steelers' defense?

These are all questions that fantasy players could find themselves asking today, especially if they came out on the losing end.

Here is a look at some of the busts that could have ruined your fantasy week:

Week 13 Busts

QB - Kyle Orton (DEN) - 2.68 points - 117 passing yards; 1 fumble lost

Orton may not have wanted Josh McDaniels to get fired, but his performance Sunday did not help his coach. The Broncos' quarterback was simply terrible, completing less than a third of his passes for only 117 yards. Orton has been one of the best fantasy quarterbacks this season, which makes his production Sunday even more disappointing, considering the pretty penny his owners paid.

RB - Ray Rice (BAL) - 5 points - 32 rushing yards, 18 receiving yards

Rice's prospects for a monster week were dubious at best against the Steelers, and those who did end up forking over the money for the Ravens' tailback likely regret it. Rice accounted for 50 total yards and no touchdowns, production that failed to justify his price.

WR - Dwayne Bowe (KC) - 0 points

This was an easy choice. One week after putting up a 12-catch, 173-yard and three-touchdown performance, Bowe finished with exactly 12 less catches, 173 less yards and three less TDs. Yes, your math is correct - Bowe finished with zero catches against a weak Denver defense, a puzzling and downright aggravating result for the most expensive receiver this week.

TE - Todd Heap (BAL) - 0 points

Heap didn't really have the opportunity to earn his keep, as he injured his hamstring early in the game against the Steelers and didn't return. Still, that's no consolation to his owners, who forked over dollars that could have been spent elsewhere

K - Graham Gano (WAS) - 1 point - 0/1 FG; 1 PAT

Gano was caught up mostly in the Redskins' anemic offense against the Giants, but he didn't help his cause by missing a field goal in the swirling winds of New Meadowlands Stadium. Gano was not a high-priced choice at kicker but probably was a fairly popular non-expensive choice, for which he proved to be a bust.

DEF - New York Jets - -1 point - 45 PA; 3 sacks

That didn't go exactly as Rex Ryan expected. The Patriots ran over, through and around the Jets on Monday Night Football, racking up 45 points and thoroughly embarrassing the team with the best-spelling fan base in football. Making matters worse, the Jets failed to make back some of those negative points, as they forced zero turnovers.

Don't forget to sign up before next weekend for your chance to win $100. Just click HERE.

As always, we will be back later in the week for our preview of Week 14.

Matt Mullin is a sports producer at philly.com and can be reached at mmullin@philly.com. Follow him on Twitter: @matt_mullin.

Andrew O'Brien works on the sports desk at philly.com and can be reached at aobrien@philly.com.