As per uttered by Mr. Anthony Joseph Van Heusenburger Reali on more than several occasions, sports news is slow this time of the month thanks to the NFL lockout. But just because we might not even watch a football game this year, it shouldn’t stop us from preparing for fantasy right? 16 games, 18 games, preseason games, no preseason games, the facts are that it’s not the fans that lose the most with no football, it’s the owners and players. I’m not going to bother with a full-board ranking, since player transactions are still pending the results of the lockout. This will be just a general guideline. If you rather see a ranking, please visit www.google.com/search/fantasyfootballrankings.
Ok draft day. The fresh smell, big hopes, and pounding heart can only indicate one thing – steal, steal, steal! Who will be the steal of this draft? Who will be the Arian Foster of 2011-2012? Let’s break down some candidates.
QB: The most obvious choice for breakout QBs would be, of course, rookies! What does Cam Newton got on his arm? Why is Jake Locker drafted in the first round? Is Blaine Gabbert going to win the job from David Garrard? Will Christian Ponder just hand the ball to AP like a good boy? Will Andy Dalton have ANY prima donnas to throw to? The answer to all of the above is maybe. Haha, sorry if I screwed with you on this one, but let’s look at some of them.
Cam Newton – the hot name out of Auburn has more people drawing Michael Vick comparisons than wasted hillbillies on the fourth of July. Does he have Vick’s athleticism? Yes. Does he have Vick’s accuracy? No. (Yes I said Vick and accuracy in the same sentence) Does he have Vick’s targets to throw to? Another no. Is Jimmy Clausen going to kneel before Cam and kiss his feet? I don’t want to speak for Jimmy but probably not. Overall analysis: Cam Newton is a stash-able commodity that can pay off hugely as the season progresses. However, using anything higher than a 5th round pick on him should come with a warning from the Surgeon General.
Christian Ponder – if I had to PONDER which rookie would have the best season, it would be Christian. First, he will have AP (still number 1 pick in anyone’s, including my book). That means the defense will show more respect to the perennial pro-bowler rather than the rookie, and rightfully so. He also has the perfect combination of injury-prone receivers in the go-balls-deep Sydney Rice and the sure-handed slot man Percy Harvin. Couple that with a solid o-line and I foresee great things for the youngster.
Overall analysis: I still would not use a top 5 pick for Mr. Ponder. But come round 6, if you find yourself deciding between Santonio Holmes and Kenny Britt, you might want to ponder about Christian.
Matt Ryan – As great as a season as Matt had last year, 2011 can only get better. First, he retained most of his weapons, and by that I mean Roddy White (Michael Turner when he feels like it). Having the number 6 overall pick Julio Jones can’t hurt either. Jones is a tall order, standing at 6’4, and offers the lob target that wasn’t necessarily White’s specialty last year. I believe Jones is the most NFL ready receiver in the draft (sorry Green fans). With so many weapons, a sub-35 TD Matt Ryan will be a tremendous disappointment.
Overall Analysis: Elite tier quarterback, thy name shall include Matt Ryan.
RB: Not crazy with the rookie class of running backs this year. Not even with Mark Ingram. Oh well, let’s see what we got.
Mark Ingram – Just…ugh. I mean does NO not have enough RB? I understand that they don’t have a RB that runs downhill as well as Ingram does, but being stuck behind Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush just kills this guy’s value. I wouldn’t touch him until well into filler time.
Jamaal Charles – Raise your hand if you are drafting Charles in the first round. Ok 142,975,022,232 players put your hands down. Now, raise your hand if you are drafting him FIRST OVERALL. Ah now I got your attention. Is there a legitimate claim? Well, what did Charles owners curse in their sleeps last year? That’s right, Thomas Jones. How old will Jones be come opening day? The answer is 33. 33-year-old RBs don’t tend to do very well last I checked. As far as pure physical ability, he and Adrian Peterson are on par.
C.J. Spiller – Now this is a guy that you can actually steal. After doing pretty much nothing last year, C.J. is ready for the big stage. Helps that he has to win the job over Fred Jackson. Your biggest concerns? Buffalo offense, Buffalo offensive line, Buffalo Bills, Buffalo City, Buffalo wings.
Overall Analysis – You can do much worse for your RB2 than taking a chance on Spiller.
WR: Now there is a rookie class to be excited. A.J. Green and Julio Jones are the best WR talents I’ve seen since Dez Bryant (wait that was last year!) With that said, let’s check them out.
A.J. Green – What’s not to love about A.J. Green? The dude is 6’3, can jump through the roof, has hands that can rip the heart out of a passing fly. If there is one thing that can be said, is that he’s going to play in Cincinnati, most likely with a rookie QB in Andy Dalton (not the most exciting name in the book). Cedric Benson is a bit of a really bad football player, and chances are neither Starsky and Hutch (oops I meant T.O and Ocho) will be there to serve as distractions (which is pretty much all they are good for at this point). So, until these changes, A.J. Green will not be anything more than a WR3 with a ton of potential.
Julio Jones – I already stated that I like Jones more than Green this year. Matt Ryan is a tad better than Dalton, and the same can be said about the Falcons and Bengals’ offensive lines that will buy their respective QBs time to chuck it. Playing alongside Roddy White, the BEST route runner in the game, can only help the youngster. For me, Julio Jones is a low-end WR1, high-end WR2 that I have no problem taking in the 4th round.
I tend to skip TE discussions because it is rather boring. It’s Antonio Gates, Dallas Clark, and….the rest. The Jermichael Finleys and Vernon Davises of the world are nice, but they just don’t separate themselves far enough from the crowd.
The last section will take a look at some of the tiers of each position. It’s not a ranking, just a tier. Enjoy. THEY ARE NOT IN ORDER!!!
Elite Tier – Guys like these make me glad that I have the 14th pick so I can get 2 of them.
QB: Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Phillip Rivers, Michael Vick, Matt Ryan.
RB: AP, Charles, Foster, CJ1.2K, MJD, Frank Gore.
WR: Andre and Calvin Johnson, Roddy White.
Tier 1 – Missed out on the elite tier? No problem. These guys will still get the job done in style.
QB: Drew Brees, Matt Schaub, Tony Romo.
RB: Ray Rice, LeSean McCoy, Michael Turner, Steven Jackson, Peyton Hillis, Ahmad Bradshaw, Darren McFadden, Ryan Grant.
WR: Reggie Wayne, DeSean Jackson, Vincent Jackson, Dwayne Bowe, Larry Fitzgerald, Dez Bryant, Hakeem Nicks, Greg Jennings, Marques Colston, Brandon Marshall, Anquan Boldin, Mike Wallace, Mike Williams (TB), Wes Welker.
Tier 2 – You won’t be embarrassed to show these guys off to your friends, unlike the dumb blonde I dated for 3 weeks a while back.
QB: Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Matthew Stafford, Joe Flacco.
RB: Matt Forte, Ryan Mathews, Knowshon Moreno, Shonn Greene, DeAngelo Williams, Jahvid Best, C.J. Spiller.
WR: Jeremy Maclin, Brandon Lloyd, Miles Austin, Sidney Rice, Percy Harven, Malcom Floyd, Julio Jones, A.J. Green, Steve Johnson, Santonio Holmes, Kenny Britt, Pierre Garcon, Austin Collie, Michael Crabtree, B.M.W.
Tier 3 – You won’t find these guys in the FA pool, but they don’t light enough fire under you to toast a bagel.
QB: Jay Cutler, Fosh Freeman, Sam Bradford.
RB: Cedric Benson, Lawfirm, Felix Jones, Ryan Torain, Pierre Thomas, Reggie Bush, Joseph Addai.
WR: Both Steve Smiths, Johnny Knox, MSW, Hines Ward, Santana Moss, Braylon Edwards.
Tier 4 – OMG, I get to go against the Buffalo Bills defense…pick me pick me pick me!
QB: Matt Cassel, Mark Sanchez, Ryan Fitzpatrick, David Garrard, Christian Ponder, Cam Newton.
RB: Michael Bush, Beanie Wells, Mark Ingram, Marshawn Lynch, Mike Tolbert.
WR: Everyone else.
Omitted:
QB: Donovan McNabb, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Kevin Kolb
RB: LaDanian Tomlinson, Jonathan Stewart.
WR: Donald Driver, Randy Moss, Chad Ochocinco, Plaxico!
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