Week 3 in the 2010 fantasy football world may as well have been named the week of the wideout, as three of the top five scorers this past weekend were wide receivers. Better yet, they weren’t the fantastic fantasy receivers drafted within the first few rounds this year. Instead of names such as Moss, Johnson, or Fitzgerald atop the scoreboard this week, it was names like Collie, Boldin and Moore. Most of these receivers were not drafted in the first round, and if they were, it was a late, bold pick by the owner. This is why seeing new wide receivers atop the scoreboard is something all fantasy owners should pay attention to.

Austin Collie had a monster game as his Colts traveled to Denver and beat the Broncos by two scores. In the Colts system, Collie is often the third target for quarterback Peyton Manning, behind fellow wideout Reggie Wayne and tight end Dallas Clark. As the Broncos attempted to limit Clark and Wayne (nine combined receptions), Manning looked to Collie all game, throwing to him 16 times with Collie tallying 12 receptions. Two of those catches went for touchdowns, as Collie racked up 171 receiving yards. Collie’s excellent Week 3 vaulted him into the league lead in receiving yards, eliminating him from nearly all free agency pools.

The next receiver with a huge game came from Baltimore, where it is clear that Ravens receiver Anquan Boldin has established some chemistry with quarterback Joe Flacco. Though Boldin only caught eight balls, three of those went for scores, and he totaled 142 yards on the day. Boldin was traded to the Ravens this summer, and is starting to pay major dividends for both the Ravens and his fantasy owners.

Another receiver that lit up fantasy leagues this week was Lance Moore of the New Orleans Saints. Moore’s performance surprised many because throughout the first two weeks of the season, he had registered only three catches, 23 receiving yards and two fantasy points. With his fantasy stock down, Moore broke out for six catches, 149 yards and two touchdowns. Chances are Moore isn’t owned in many leagues, but the Saints offense, which usually targets seven to eight receivers a game, does not allow for great consistency out of any of their wideouts.

Now with the surprise of some great receiver play, there has been limited greatness for some running backs this season, namely any running back wearing a Carolina Panthers jersey. Since the 2008 season, when DeAngelo Williams and Johnathan Stewart became the two feature backs in Carolina, they have combined to average over 23 fantasy points per game, including weeks in which they were injured. This trend has come to a screeching halt early in the 2010 season, as they have recorded a combined 30 fantasy points. This averages out to 10 points a game, less than half their normal output from past seasons.

Even though they shared the same backfield in the past, they also managed to coexist as productive fantasy runners in previous years. If debating whether to drop either of these two top 50 draft picks, letting go of Stewart is the best bet. Even though Stewart is the only Panthers rusher to find the end zone thus far, Williams is the clear starter in Carolina. In 2010, Williams has averaged one more yard per carry when compared to Stewart, and the Panthers face a Saints team that Williams has had success against in the past.

Must-starts this week include Jets running back Ladainian Tomlinson, as well as Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss. Tomlinson used to be a must-start every week years ago as a Charger, and he has done fantasy damage early in 2010 with minimal carries. Tomlinson’s stock is certainly rising as a fantasy running back following his first start of the year last week and a matchup against the lowly Bills this week.

Moss is reaping the benefits from the Redskins-Eagles trade that brought in quarterback Donovan McNabb. Through the first three fantasy weeks of 2010, Moss has been averaging 10 receptions per game and just less than 100 yards through the air. Up next for the McNabb-Moss connection is McNabb’s former team, the Eagles, and their newly modified, high-powered offense. McNabb may have to look to Moss more than 10 times this week in order to keep the Skins in the game.

These quarterback/receiver connections are just a few of the reasons for fantasy owners to propose trades in their leagues. With three weeks in the books, Manning to Collie never looked this good, so it might be time to start looking into possible trades. Success in most fantasy leagues will depend on research as well as shuffling players around, so start making some moves. In the words of Rev Run, “Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”