Overall Fantasy Inpact: Average

Offensive Outlook: Perhaps no team is more in flux heading into the season than the Bengals, and it reflects in their fantasy prospects. The Chad Johnson fiasco is looming, just as Coach Marvin Lewis is finally getting tough. Does that mean a trade? Or a holdout? Or just some lingering bad mojo?

But that’s just the beginning. There are all kinds of injury issues at running back, and the release of Chris Henry leaves untested rookies at the backup receiver spots. All this means that the Bengals might not turn out to be the sure-thing scoring machine they have been the last few years.

QUARTERBACK: The only thing that could derail Carson Palmer from being one of the best fantasy QB’s would be if Chad Johnson weren’t on the field. Otherwise, you’ve got a guy who has averaged about 4,000 yards and almost 30TDs over the past three years. You should be looking at him in the third round if you haven’t filled the position.

It’s a good thing Palmer is durable (no games missed the last three years), because the back-up situation is a mess. No one here (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jeff Rowe, Jordan Palmer) should be considered as a pick-up if Carson Palmer gets hurt, at least until they prove otherwise. Continue Reading »

A resounding YES would rhyme with the title, and flow quite well, but it would be wrong.

The question is when, not if, to draft Wes Welker. There is every reason to believe that he can continue to rack up huge numbers in the New England offensive juggernaut.

If they played with a chip on their shoulder last year because of the “cheater” label, how will they play this year after breaking all those records only to come up short in the big game?

If your league counts receptions for scoring purposes, Welker is a no-brainer. He led the league along with TJ Houshmandzadeh with 112 receptions, amassing well over 1,000 yards.

Continue Reading »

Every year, owners enter fantasy drafts with a pocketful of “sleepers” - players with relatively minimal value, but who they feel will emerge as points leaders in the upcoming season.

For the last 8 years, one of those names has been WR Jerry Porter. For the last 3, WR Troy Williamson’s name made the list as well. And for all those seasons combined, neither player has produced much more than disappointment.

Porter’s best year was 2004 - 2 yards shy of 1,000 yards, 64 receptions, and 9 TD’s. It was one year removed from playing on the same field with Tim Brown and Jerry Rice. Brown was gone and Rice was even further away from the WR he once was - and the team was looking to Porter to be the superstar they believed he could be. And perhaps more importantly - Rich Gannon was the quarterback.

2005 was a decent year for Porter - though his numbers slipped a bit. It was the year Randy Moss arrived - and Kerry Collins was given the offense. It was also the beginning of the Raiders slide into NFL oblivion.

Continue Reading »

OVERALL FANTASY IMPACT: Below Average

OFFENSIVE OUTLOOK: The Jets have the makings of a dominant offensive line, with veteran standouts Alan Faneca and Damien Woody joining up-and-comers D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold.

The problem is that there aren’t any electrifying playmakers to really take advatage of it. Expect a grind-it-out approach from Coach Mangini unless Kellen Clemens really develops as a starter.

QUARTERBACK: Clemens was less than impressive in his tryout last year. He completed barely over 50 % of his passes and managed just 5 TD’s in 250 attempts against 10 interceptions.

The funny thing is that Chad Pennington wasn’t doing all that badly, at least in fantasy terms, before Clemens took over, racking up 9 TDs in his first 6 games. It’s clear that no one has a lot of confidence in either Pennington’s arm strength or his ability to stay upright for 16 games, so look for Clemens to take his lumps as the starter and be nothing more than a fantasy third-stringer. Continue Reading »

OVERALL IMPACT: Above Average

OFFENSIVE OUTLOOK: Surprise, surprise: The Patriots didn’t feel the need to tinker much with their record-setting offense in the offseason. Unless you’re worried that the Super Bowl loss and the whole Spygate mess puts some bad psychological mojo on them this year, Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Co. should once again have little difficulty against the weak defenses of the AFC East.

QUARTERBACK: Is it realistic to expect 50 TD’s for a second straight year from Tom Brady? Probably not. There is usually a small letdown from such a monstrous offensive year (see Peyton Manning from a few years back.) It’s also likely that a healthy Laurence Maroney will give just a tad more balance to the proceedings. That said, if you draft Brady in the first round, you can forget about your quarterback position for the rest of the year, which is a nice luxury to have. And the Super Bowl just gives him something to prove, so maybe 50 TDs is a modest expectation after all. Continue Reading »

For years, Kevin Jones has been the Lions running back that one owner in your league would take a chance on, and for years, that owner has lived autumns of bitterness and regret.

That thousand-yard rookie season came with only 6 TDs - “but the touchdowns would come,” we thought. They didn’t, and the yardage dropped off, too.

Now, the injury-prone Jones is gone, released by the team that drafted him in the first round just four years ago. Enter Tatum Bell and his tantalizing speed.

He has always felt himself capable of being a number one guy, but he was barely used by offensive coordinator Mike Martz and his pass-happy schemes, even with Jones not healthy. Now that Martz has been replaced by new coaching blood that is dedicated to a successful running attack and a balanced offense, has the time finally come for Tatum? Continue Reading »

Alexander is gone and Julius Jones has escaped the shadow of Marion Barber. Is this the season that Jones becomes a stud running back and lives up to the expectations?

Not a chance.

Seattle is going to adopt the dreaded running back by committee approach that kills fantasy players. The reason for this is simple. Seattle will be starting the season with three running backs who are not capable of leading a team and being an every down back.

Supposedly, the Seahawks want to emphasize the run more in 2008. The tight ends they picked up in the offseason are not there to catch the ball only. They are also going to be blocking for the three-headed monster that is Jones, Morris, and Duckett. Continue Reading »

You can’t post the kind of numbers that Tony Romo did in 2007 and expect to fly under the fantasy football radar the following season.

Romo topped 4,200 yards passing, dunked 36 touchdowns, all with a 64% completion percentage and a 97 QB rating on the season. That was good enough for 3rd best overall fantasy scoring output. In other words, you can call him Mister Romo - and he has officially arrived.

Not bad for a guy picked near the end of the seventh round in most drafts. But if anyone expects to get him there again - they need serious help putting a draft strategy together. Continue Reading »

As my two year old son cries over a broken toy truck, it occasions me to think about last year’s fantasy football season.

I remember how excited I was to announce, “with the fourth pick in the first round, I select Larry Johnson, running back, Kansas City Chiefs.” My excitement lasted until the first game was played.

Then I started breaking my son’s toys.

Johnson was a consensus top three pick on every draft board going into last season. In fact, some sites ranked Johnson ahead of Ladanian Tomlinson and Steven Jackson. As training camps opened, he went through a very public contract dispute that included him holding out of most of camp.

There were doubts about the Chiefs quarterback and offensive line situations Still he was available on week 1, so owners (including me) played him. And he sucked. Action figures were decapitated. Continue Reading »

Overall Fantasy Impact: Below Average

Offensive Outlook: The good news for the Dolphins offense is that the offensive line suddenly looks like a force. Number 1 draft pick Jake Long will settle in at left tackle, allowing Vernon Carey to fill in his natural spot on the right, while top free agent Justin Smiley takes over left guard.

That’s all good for the running game, but there is still no obvious answer at quarterback.

QUARTERBACK: It figures to be a three-way battle for signal-calling duties. Josh McCown is the veteran, but there is a reason he’s on his fourth team in four seasons. John Beck was last year’s high draft pick, but just one TD pass in 5 games and overall feeble stats don’t exactly engender much confidence. The guess here is that new team-runner Bill Parcells will go with the guy whom he chose in this year’s second round, Chad Henne, who started four year’s worth of big games at The Big House. Don’t expect anything, fantasy-wise, from whoever of this trio takes the snaps. Continue Reading »