Marques Colston

Week Seventeen Analysis: It's true, Marques Coltson has not scored in a month. But his ten catches for 153 yards last week against the Cowboys last week was a fantastic consolation prize. The fact remains that Colston hadn't topped 73 yards in the previous nine weeks and he's not close to that elite club of wideouts. He's definitely more Steve Johnson than Calvin Johnson. This week he faces a pesky Carolina club that completely shut out Danario Alexander two weeks ago and allowed only 78 yards to all the Raiders wideouts combined. There's always a chance with Drew Brees at the helm, just not much of one this week.

Week Sixteen Analysis: Marques Colston was targeted a season-low three times on Sunday against the Bucs. He did catch all three balls for 60 yards, which is good, but we expected a lot more against the Tampa defense, especially in a blowout win. Colston owners may be used to this kind of game from him though as he's been held scoreless but totaled between 60 and 71 yards in four of his last five games. While nothing gets easier than last week's matchup, a game against the Cowboys isn't nearly as arduous as it used to be. While the Cowboys have not allowed a wideout to top 93 yards in the last six weeks, they have allowed eight touchdowns to wide receivers during that span.

Week Fifteen Analysis: It's now been eight weeks since Marques Colston has topped 73 yards, but that should end this week as Colston squares off against the Bucs. The Buccaneers are having a historically bad season against the pass, which has correspondingly yielded some monster games for opposing wide receivers. Tampa has allowed a wideout to top 90 yards and score in each of the last five games, and Colston is the most likely Saint to cash in on that futility trend.

Week Fourteen Analysis: Last week Marques Colston was held out of the end zone for only the third time in his last nine games. It's been a great run for Colston, as during those nine games he's scored eight times and not been held without a touchdown in back-to-back contests. While he hasn't topped 73 yards in seven straight weeks, he's got a wonderful chance to get back into triple-digit yardage this week in the Meadowlands. The Giants have given up three 100-yard games to opposing wideouts in the last four games, while allowing seven touchdowns to wideouts during that time.

Week Thirteen Analysis: The Saints have been playing with a much needed sense of urgency since dropping the first four games of the season and no player has benefitted from that more than Marques Colston. In the last eight games Colston is averaging six catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. He's scored in three of the last four games, including last week against the 49ers and two weeks ago against Atlanta, who they just happen to have on the schedule again. Atlanta has been very good against opposing wideouts this season, allowing only six scores to enemy receivers this year. However, they did allow two Tampa Bay receivers to top 75 yards just last week.

Week Twelve Analysis: Marques Colston's matchup against San Francisco this weekend looks tough at first glance, but maybe it's not as imposing as it seems. No team has allowed fewer touchdowns to opposing wide receivers as the 49ers, who have yielded only five this season. However, the Niners have now allowed three of those scores in just the last two weeks as Brian Quick, Austin Pettis and Brandon Marshall have each hit paydirt recently. And, last time Colston faced off against the Niners, last year's divisional playoff, he recorded nine receptions, 136 yards and a score.

Week Eleven Analysis: Many thought the return of Jimmy Graham would put a stop to Marques Colston's touchdown proficiency, but nobody told him that. Colston has scored in five of the last six and has been targeted in the red zone more than any player in the NFL. I like those odds as he heads to Oakland this week. The Raiders have given up multiple wide receiver touchdowns in each of the last two weeks, including two to Torrey Smith last week in Baltimore. Oakland has also allowed a wideout to score a touchdown in eight of nine and has let 13 different wide receivers gain 60 or more yards.

Week Ten Analysis: Marques Colston's meager four targets last week were a bit concerning considering that Colston has had double digit passes in his direction in each of the previous four games. Fear not, Colston continues to be a major part of the passing game and may see a few additional passes due to the loss of pass-catching back Darren Sproles. This week he faces an Atlanta club that has allowed four different wide receivers to top 75 yards in the last three weeks. When Colston faced Atlanta last season he had 113 yards in the first meeting and 81 yards and a score in the second.

Week Nine Analysis: Marques Colston had his first semi-dud of a game in a long time on Sunday night against the Broncos. The Saints top wideout saw his streaks of three straight games with a touchdown and seven or more catches both come to an end. Champ Bailey can still do that. It doesn't seem like the beginning of the end to me though. Colston is tied for the league lead in red zone completions with 10. Asomugha or no, the Eagles' secondary has been exposed in the last few weeks. In their last five games Philly has allowed five different wide receivers to top 108 yards and have allowed five touchdowns to the position.

Week Eight Analysis: Despite having sat through a bye week, Marques Colston leads the NFL in both red zone targets and receptions. In fact, Colston has caught 10 balls inside the 20 and scored four times. With a hampered Jimmy Graham, Colston is far and away Drew Brees' favorite target near the stripe. Even with Graham returning, he'll probably get a few chances there this week in what should be a shootout in Denver. The Broncos have allowed multiple touchdown passes in four of six games this season and have allowed 70 or more yards or a touchdown to nearly every quality wide receiver they've faced.

Week Seven Analysis: When you've tallied 18 catches, 284 receiving yards and four touchdowns in two weeks of play, the last thing you want is a bye week. But Marques Colston did just that, then had the week off to marinate in all of his awesomeness. This week he faces an enigmatic Tampa Bay secondary that is now without cornerback Aquib Talib. Since Tampa's awful Week 2 performance against Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks, Tampa has not allowed a wide receiver to score and only one wideout has topped 62 yards against them.

Week Five Analysis: For over a month now Marques Colston has been playing through a painful plantar fasciitis injury. Colston seemed to overcome that injury with an impressive nine catches, 153 yards and a score last week in Green Bay. That was Colston's seventh game of 80 or more yards in his last 11 tilts. The Chargers are Colston's opponent this week and seem to be a bit of a paper tiger. San Diego has only allowed one wide receiver to top 100 yards this season, but has allowed five passing touchdowns in the last two weeks.

Week Three Analysis: An offseason of turmoil in the Bayou has carried over to two early season losses, but more important to Marques Colston owners, two less-than-stellar performances. Seven catches for 120 yards is great for one week, but over a two week span, that just won't get it done. We're hopeful that Colston gets a boost from facing a Chiefs secondary that allowed 87 or more yards to both Falcons receivers and allowed Steve Johnson to score on a long touchdown last week. While the KC secondary is far from a masterpiece, a somewhat-healthy Brandon Flowers and Stanford Routt should be a better than average cornerback tandem.

Week Two Analysis: As Marques Colston enters his seventh season in the NFL, we look back at a receiver who has logged five seasons with 1,000 yards and five seasons with seven or more touchdowns. He's a consistent performer and the easiest wide receiver to feel confident about on the Saints roster. This week Colston takes on his division foe, the Carolina Panthers. Last time Colston faced off against Carolina he accumulated seven catches, 145 yards and two touchdowns. Not a bad day. The Panthers allowed the highest amount of yards per reception to wide receivers in the NFL last season, so we can bank on some big gains for Colston when he catches the ball.

Week One Analysis: While everyone was focusing on Julio Jones' spectacular finish, Marques Colston put up some huge numbers down the stretch too. Colston's run in December included an average of seven receptions and 105 yards, while adding in five touchdowns over the Saints' final four games. With most of the same cast of characters still in the Crescent City, minus Sean Payton of course, Colston should maintain a decent yardage total in every game. Last season he never finished with fewer than 50 receiving yards. In Week 1 Colston face a Redskins secondary that features more castaways than Gilligan's Island. Offenses just aren't afraid of Brandon Meriweather and Madieu Williams anymore, neither should Colston owners.

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