Studs and Duds, Week 2: C.J., All Day

Each week in the NFL, there are players that impress and players that distress. One week a certain quarterback might toss four touchdowns and run around with his finger in the air while the next he's laying on his back, holding his facemask as the other team returns one of his three interceptions for the game-winning score. With that in mind, here's Studs and Duds.

Studs

Chris Johnson, RB Tennessee (16 rushes, 197 yards, nine catches, 87 yards, 3 TDs) -- I have a friend in my fantasy league who was getting ready to fire up the draft machine a few weeks ago. Just as he got his computer turned on, his router crashed and he had to rush to figure out an alternative plan. He only missed the first round, picking fifth, and was auto-stuck with LaDainian Tomlinson. I'm sure you're wondering why I'm telling you this. Well, the next pick landed Johnson, who the Texans decided they weren't going to tackle at all on Sunday. The second year running back did all he could to win the game for Tennessee, rushing for 134 more yards than the entire Texans team, adding a 91-yard scamper for a touchdown after he'd already broken one for 57 yards and caught a pass from Kerry Collins for a 69-yard touchdown.

Needless to say, my buddy isn't exactly thrilled with his current Internet company.

Frank Gore, RB San Francisco (16 rushes, 207 yards, 2 TDs) -- For only the second time this decade, the 49ers are 2-0 to start the season, and a lot of that has to do with Gore's second game. In the first quarter, Gore did his best Chris Johnson impression, rushing 79 yards up the middle for a score. He decided that wasn't enough to tire him, so in the third quarter, he broke a touchdown dash from 80 yards.

In a weak NFL West, San Francisco is the only undefeated team, and if Gore can keep doing this against his divisional opponents, we might have our 2009 Arizona Cardinals coming out of the Bay Area.

Antwan Odom, DE Cincinnati (six tackles, five sacks, 31 yards lost) -- I guess Aaron Rodgers can thank Antwan Odom for one thing -- it won't be the No. 4 the Green Bay quarterback is scared of seeing from now on, it's the big defensive end from the Bengals. In a game Cincinnati was supposed to lose, Odom sacked Rogers five times, a team record, and two takedowns short of the single-game sack record set by Derrick Thomas back in 1990.

Odom now has seven for the season after two games, five more than the rest of his team combined.

Duds

Jeff Reed, K Pittsburgh (Missed both FG attempts) -- Quick, when is the last time Reed has missed two kicks in a game? Yep, nearly five years ago to the day, on Sept. 26, 2004, when he went 2-for-4 in an ugly win against Miami. How many times has Reed missed his only two attempts of the game? Before Sunday afternoon, it was only once, in just his 19th career game as a NFL kicker. His inability to split the uprights in Week 2 was as surprising to him as it was to his fans. No matter if it was a fluke or just a bad start to the season, Reed had a chance to keep the Steelers in the game but wasn't able to do it.

Speaking of people not used to finding this side of the column ...

Tom Brady, QB New England (23-47, 216 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT) -- We sometimes forget that clutch athletes are actually human. Tiger Woods lost a major championship earlier this season to a relative unknown. Roger Federer fell victim to a similar outcome at the U.S. Open. On Sunday, Brady was outplayed by a rookie.

You can blame it on the injury if you'd like, but the normally calm and collected Brady was dancing around in the backfield, letting the ball go as soon as the pocket collapsed. He overthrew teammates. He underthrew receivers. He missed his favorite target, Wes Welker, tremendously. With the Patriots defense depleted, Brady can't afford too many more games like this if he wants to regain the form that he had pre-Pollard.

Tony Romo, QB Dallas (13-29, 127 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs) -- A week ago, Romo was soaring around Big D, putting up his highest yardage total of his career in a win over Tampa Bay. On Sunday night, he nearly set a new record, carding a 29.6 passer rating that was just a few points higher than his three interception, 22.2 passer rating game against Philadelphia in 2007, the worst statistical game of his career.

Most of Romo's passes looked like they'd be better completed if shot out of one of those t-shirt guns. He found only two players all game more than once (and none were his actual wide receivers). The good news for Romo? He had a stinker of a game and they still nearly beat the hated Giants. The bad news? He will never be considered anything more than a good quarterback if he can't step it up in the bigger games.