By Jason Powell
December 17, 2007 4:26pm CST

Anthony Gonzalez is a bright guy. He was a Rhodes Scholar candidate and was smart enough to leave The Ohio State University and enter the NFL draft even though some experts believed he would have benefited from another year in school. Prior to declaring himself eligible for the draft, Gonzalez used several complex mathematical formulas and determined that he would be selected by the Colts with the No. 32 overall pick in the draft. Similar formulas also told him that Marvin Harrison was bound to suffer a knee injury and give up his starting job at least temporarily. OK, so Anthony was more lucky than smart when it came to landing with the Colts and earning at least a temporary spot in the starting lineup, but that doesn't change the fact that he's making the most of the opportunity.

The Stat: In eight games prior to suffering a bruised left thumb, Gonzalez had 15 catches for 207 yards and no scores. In four games since returning, he has 21 grabs for 347 yards and three end zone visits.

The Quote: "He's feeling confident, and I think missing some time with his injury was kind of like Joseph (Addai) last year," Tony Dungy told the Indianapolis Star on Sunday. "He hasn't really hit the (rookie) wall."

Fantasy Analysis: There was a lot of buzz prior to the season about Gonzalez's fantasy upside in his rookie season. Most first-year receivers are disappointments, but fantasy owners looked past that in his case because he was expected to take over the No. 3 wide receiver role in Peyton Manning's high-scoring offense. Things didn't exactly pan out the way optimists envisioned early on. Gonzo was limited to just one or no receptions in five of his first eight games, and a wrist injury suffered in Week 9 caused him to sit out the following week. At that point, it appeared as though he was well on his way to becoming a first-year flop.

Far be it from us to suggest that a Rhodes Scholar candidate is a slow learner, but we're not sure how else to explain Gonzo's recent outbreak. He's scored three touchdowns in his last two games and has taken over as the starter opposite Reggie Wayne while Harrison continues to miss games. There's still a chance that Marv will return this season, but even that Gonzalez could still be productive in the No. 3 role that he was initially pegged for. After all, Brandon Stokley scored 10 touchdowns while playing that role for the Colts back in 2004. However, it's more likely that Harrison will continue to convalesce now that the Colts have locked up a first-round bye in the playoffs, meaning Gonzalez should continue to start in his place for the remainder of the fantasy season. Furthermore, there are rumblings that the knee pain that is bothering Harrison now will be continue to be a problem throughout the remainder of his career. Either way, at age 35, Marv doesn't have much gas left in the tank, meaning it's only a matter of time before he retires and Gonzalez earns a permanent spot in the starting lineup. As such, Anthony is a hot commodity in keeper and dynasty leagues.

STOCK: Rising