10 Fantasy Football Busts Of 2010
I’m about to experience my first losing fantasy football season since 2007 (losing = not finishing in the money), and with that comes a certain amount of unjustified vitriol. It can’t be that my judgment was off or I paid less attention to NFL news coming into the season than I had in earlier years. No, obviously it’s a vast conspiracy to crush my hopes in abridged sports gambling. Clearly if everything doesn’t go exactly as I expected it too, it isn’t a reflection of me, but rather a reflection of all that’s wrong with the world.

One of the preferred methods of fantasy football wallowing is the concept of “busts”. A drafted fantasy football player falling short of your expectations is the easiest target, particularly if you have multiple “busts”. To qualify as a “bust”, at least in my opinion, you not only have to be rater highly going into the season but also pass something of an eye test. That is, the circumstances surrounding the player had to appear on the onset to be ideal or somewhere close too it.

For instance, I can’t really put Larry Fitzgerald on here because while if you have him, you probably drafted him in the first or second round, but you did so knowing the quarterback situation was, to say the least, tenuous. Lo and behold, he’s having a sub-par season as a result of not having a pro-bowl QB (Who would have thought?!). But you knew the consequences and took the risk anyways, which I applaud. That’s your onus, however, not bad fortune.

Also, the player has to have some degree of lofty expectations. Sure, Laurence Maroney isn’t having a good season, but no one expected him too. And if the player in question sustained some sort of injury that has cost him games, he’s also barred from consideration. Not all bad luck is unique, injuries happen to 99.9% of fantasy football teams, even if it doesn’t feel that way.

Certainly there are exceptions to this. Guys that are inconceivably under-performing with no logical explanation. And if you’ve drafted anyone of the following people, you have every reason in the world to feel like you’re being figuratively raped with a pineapple. I’ll try not to list all the players on my team (though I easily could), but here are ten of the many fantasy busts thus far in the 2010 season.

1)  Beanie Wells

Given what I just said about Larry Fitzgerald and injuries (he missed the first to games) this might seem hypocritical. But Beanie Wells has hardly been offered a chance to prove he can    move the ball on the ground even when healthy, and we’re still waiting for a breakout game. I thought that maybe if Wells was getting a respectable number of carries, the offense might be able to move the ball down the field; or that Ken Wisenhunt seemed to be a vindictive prick. But no, he got 20 carries against the Saints and managed to amass a grand total of thirty-five yards. Way to prove all your detractors right, Wells. And thanks for constantly being an injury concern. Seriously, that never gets old.

2) Ray Rice

One good game with over a hundred yards, and in the same game remains the lone contest in which he actually got in the end zone. If anything, the offense around him improved and should have created more opportunities. It’s possible they’ve veered away from the running game to take advantage of all of the newly acquired receivers. For whatever reason, this guy hasn’t come within a mile of living up to his consensus top-four draft prospects. And that is inexcusable.

3)  Maurice Jones-Drew

Also in the top four coming into the 2010 season, also with one, one-hundred yard game, and also only crossed the goal line once. This is disappointing, Jones-Drew. One would think the lack of help surrounding him would be a problem, but it wasn’t this much of an aversion in 2009. So what gives, man? At least Ray Rice had the decency to score two touchdowns in his only good game of the season. Something tells me the Jags are leaning too heavily on Drew. Have you ever heard of Rashard Jennings?

4)  Jonathan Stewart

So you split carries with DeAngelo Williams, it never eviscerated your numbers like it seems to be doing this year. Bang up job rushing for six more yards and two fewer touchdowns than Aaron Rodgers. At this rate, you’ll end up like every other player to ever start and end his career with Carolina: Forgotten.

5)  Shonn Greene

An over-hyped, never was had his job taken by a has-been. In hindsight, if I had known Ladanian Tomlinson was going to experience a resurgence this season,  I would have been happy to over-draft him I the first round. I think it was my turn, after all.

6)  Marques Colston

Yeah, you’re far better off drafting Devry Henderson or Lance Moore in the last round as opposed to Colston in the third. At least that’s what the zero touchdowns through six games is telling me.

7) Greg Jennings

With four touchdowns, he seems to be getting in the end zone with some regularity. But man, twenty catches? Aren’t you the top receiver on the best passing offense in the league? Look at some of the names who’ve collected more than thirty catches on the season. Much like with Colston, you’re better off taking one of his teammates at the same position about seven to ten rounds later in the draft.

8 ) Ronnie Brown

Well, you’re coming off a knee injury, so we can allow some leeway on that. But only one touchdown? You don’t have the same excuse as Ray Rice, your passing game is forfeited in favor of the wildcat too frequently for it to be eating into your touches. How about justifying my value pick with a game over twelve points. That would be swell.

9)  Ryan Mathews

Uh, why was everyone guaranteeing you as a world-wise top ten pick? The one touchdown is great and all, but hardly setting anyone’s world on fire. To his credit, we imagine that judging by the 5.1 ypc average, he isn’t long for this list. Also, you’ve heard of the Reggie Cleveland All-Stars? Well, the opposite of that should be named after Ryan Mathews.

10)  Jerome Harrison

I was torn between Harrison and Cedric Benson for this spot, because you can’t have a list of disappointing professional athletes without having at least one member from an Ohio team. But Benson is at least still a starter, so Harrison gets the nod. Man, I can’t imagine how much shit he endures having his job stolen by Peyton Hillis so convincingly that they shipped him out of Cleveland for perennial journeyman Mike Bell. It reminds me of Shaq “razzing” Damon Jones for letting Luke Ridnour get a steal off him. I’ll let you piece together why one reminds me of the other.