1.
Normally, by this time of a NFL season, we can begin to weed out the legit teams from the underachieving ones. However, the current 2012 season has been a bit less predictable.
With seven weeks of NFL action in the books, teams in both the AFC and the NFC continue to try to establish themselves as playoff contenders. In the NFC, the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers have continued their dominance over opponents, while dark-horse teams like the Minnesota and Arizona have tush far shown that they can hang with the big boys.
While the NFC has been fairly competitive, the AFC seems to be in a bit more of a disarray. Before this week, only two teams (Baltimore and Houston) in the AFC had records above .500. With the latter reeling from key injuries to defensive players Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, among others, Houston remains as the only AFC team that can be satisfied with its production on the gridiron.
Though the overall action on Sunday was just sub-par, some familiar faces returned to the spotlight, helping their teams pick up some much-needed wins in the process. It took nearly half the season, but we had our first Chris Johnson sighting of the year, as the Tennessee Titans' star running scored a rushing touchdown for the first time since Week 12 of last season. Likewise, Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers, and Tampa Bay's Josh Freeman each threw for over 300 yards to help their respective teams come out on top.
Check out the following breakdown of which stars shined the brightest in Week 7, and the cleats that helped them along their journey.
RELATED: CLEAT REPORT: The NFL’s Standout Performances of Week 6
RELATED: CLEAT REPORT: The NFL’s Standout Performers of Week 5
2.
Player: Chris Johnson (Texans)
Cleat: Nike Super Bad Pro
Stats: 18 Rushes/ 195 Yds/ 2 TDs
3.
Player: Vincent Jackson (Buccaneers)
Cleat: adidas adiZero 5-Star
Stats: 7 Rec/ 216 Yds/ 1 TD
4.
Player: Drew Brees (Saints)
Cleat: Nike Vapor Talon Elite Low
Stats: 27-for-37/ 377 Yds/ 2 TDs
5.
Player: Jordy Nelson (Packers)
Shoe: Nike Vapor Talon Elite 3/4
Stats: 8 Rec/ 122 Yds/ 1 TD
6.
Player: Adrian Peterson (Vikings)
Cleat: Nike Air Zoom Alpha Talon
Stats: 23 Rushes/ 153 Yds/ 1 TD
7.
Player: Josh Freeman (Buccaneers)
Cleat: Jordan Super.Fly
Stats: 24-for-42/ 420 Yds/ 3 TD
8.
Player: Frank Gore (49ers)
Cleat: adidas adiZero 5-Star
Stats: 16 Rushes/ 131 Yds
9.
Player: Vontaze Burfict (Bengals)
Cleat: Under Armour Highlight
Stats: 15 Total Tackes (13 Solo)
10.
Player: Victor Cruz
Cleat: Nike Vapor Talon Elite Low
Stats: 7 Rec/ 131 Yds/ 1 TD
11.
Player: Aaron Rodgers (Packers)
Cleat: Nike Zoom Alpha Talon
Stats: 30-for-37/ 342 Yds/ 3 TDs
