Gridiron Experts

The Miami Dolphins have a great one, two punch in the backfield with running backs Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown.  The question however is not which running back will be the starter, but which running back should be drafted first in fantasy football.  Both backs have proven to be reliable fantasy options when healthy and given a fair share of opportunities.  I have participated in some mock drafts and have seen Brown going anywhere from the 4^th round down to the 6^th round.   This is followed by Williams generally being selected about two rounds later than his backfield counterpart.  Both players bring great attributes to the table, but both have negatives associated with their games.  Brown is generally regarded by many fantasy owners to be an injury risk and Williams desire to play could be a question mark. 

After all Brown missed seven games last season due to injury and Williams had been stated as saying that this could be his final season.  However, whenever either player has been given the majority of the carries that player has performed well above the running back norm.  To get a better understanding about each player’s abilities I have provided a chart of their statistics below.  The category of total touches is a combination of the player’s total rushing carries along with their total receptions.  Also, the player’s total yards from receptions and carries are combined, along with all touchdowns scored.

As you can see each player has put up great numbers when staying healthy throughout the season.  However, if either back were to get injured the value of the other player would skyrocket as is evidenced by Ricky Williams’s breakout last season after Ronnie Brown went down.  A big question mark that most owners may have with Williams is his age.  He is well past the 30 year mark where most running backs will be labeled as being bust worthy.

However, don’t forget that Ricky did take some “time off” a few years back so the extra wear and tear on his over 30 year old body is not where it likely should be.  My suggestion to any owner would be to take a shot on either one of these players if the opportunity presents itself, especially in the later rounds.  I personally would not want to spend any more than a 6^th rounder on Brown and possibly a 10^th rounder on Williams.  Just don’t forget to take a closer look at the numbers before draft day.  It is clear that the Dolphins like to run and if you were to combine both players total touches and total yards for either 2008 or 2009 it is clear that close to 2000 total yards and close to 20 touchdowns will clearly be produced by this backfield.  It is just a matter of which back will last the season and get the most opportunities.

Gridiron Experts Power Rankings AUG. 2nd

32. Buffalo Bills
CJ Spiller has all the tools to be a playmaker in this league, well except for an offensive line in front of him, a quarterback to take the pressure off, and well you see where I’m going with this. The Bills are going to need a franchise quarterback before they move on this list.
31.St. Louis Rams
The Rams, in theory, should be a better team this year, but it’s still up in the air and truly depends on how NFL ready Sam Bradford is by the start of the season. Steven Jackson has always been the Rams workhorse, and that won’t change this year, expect another grand out of him in 2010.
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers are still rebuilding. This process can sometimes be long a frustrating, yet in the forseeable future they’ll find themselves on day on the outside looking in on any power rankings list. Every team must rebuild sooner or later but for this season ahead, the Buc’s will be leaning on too many young players and the inexperience will show.
29. Cleveland Browns
The Browns biggest flaw is their division, it’s just too hard to be competitive against perennial powerhouses like the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. They did have a great draft and made some key off-season additions, with a revamped secondary expect them to move up this list in a year.
28. Detroit Lions
The Lions were the movers and shakers of the off-season, making some key additions. If only for the next few years, adding Jahvid Best to a backfield commandeered by Matt Stafford could be just what the Lions needed. Best will make plays and take some of the focus off of Calvin Johnson.
27. Oakland Raiders
For the first time in years, the Raiders impressed us all during the draft, adding a top-tier middle linebacker and shipping Kirk Morrison to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Not to mention ditching JaMarcus Russell in favor of Jason Campbell, an automatic upgrade. Although for now, they’re still on the outside looking in.
26.Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs have revamped their coaching staff and drafted (and paid) a play making safety in Eric Berry. Dexter McCluster will give add that x-factor to the offense and give Jamaal Charles some relief at the running back spot. Matt Cassell will get one more chance to show that he’s worth the money they’re paying him.
25. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars are a team that can never seem to get it together when it truly counts, their first rounder is considered a huge reach by the entire NFL community and if he doesn’t pan out, Jags fans can happily say goodbye to Jack Del Rio. Maurice Jones-Drew will set the pace for the offense once more. …Continue reading NFL Power Rankings

Tebow signs contract with Denver

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting via twitter that the deal is worth $33 million with $8.7 million guaranteed.

The signing of Tebow leaves only one Broncos rookie unsigned, wide receiver Demaryius Thomas. Given the Broncos current track record expect Thomas to be signed by either late tonight or sometime tomorrow during the day on Friday. Fox31’s Josina Anderson tweeted that …Broncotalk.net

Eagles Sign First Round Pick Brandon Graham

The Philadelphia Eagles have agreed to terms on a five year contract with first round pick Brandon Graham, a defensive end from Michigan.  ESPN’s Adam Schefter announced the news on Twitter, and the Eagles have posted it on their official website. Philadelphia selected Graham 13th overall in the 2010 draft after dealing its 24th overall pick….Insidetheiggles.com

Miami Dolphins sign 1st round pick Jared Odrick and 2nd rounder Koa Misi

According to Adam Schefter on Twitter, the Dolphins agreed to terms with first-round DL Jared Odrick on a five-year contract with a maximum value of just over $13 million, including $7.133 million guaranteed.

And Jeff Darlington reports on Twitter that the Dolphins have also agreed to terms with No. 40 overall pick OLB Koa Misi on a multi-year contract. This now makes three years with just one training camp holdout – and that lasted for about…Thephinsider.com

Important Fantasy Signing: Texans agree to deal with Ben Tate

A power back from Auburn, Tate posted highly impressive numbers at February’s Combine.   In addition to bench pressing 225 pounds 26 times, Tate posted the third-fastest forty time among tailbacks at 4.43. ….. ProFootballTalk.com

Quarterbacks generally come into the league with either too much or too little hype, and that dividing line seems to be with the first pick in the second round of the NFL Draft. As it goes, fantasy rankings early in a quarterback’s starting career tend to coincide with where he was drafted. Sure, there are a few exceptions like JaMarcus Russell (1st overall) or Matt Schaub (90th overall); but more often than not if a player was drafted in the first, whether it’s warranted or otherwise, he usually gets some good fantasy mileage out of that inflated rookie contract. If a team spends their first round pick on a quarterback, expectations for him are through the roof.

Take Jason Campbell for example. Despite a late first round pick at 25th overall, Campbell came into Washington with almost unreasonable expectations. Anyone even slightly removed from the situation knew he had a limited ceiling, yet Daniel Snyder traded up to draft him and immediately he was expected to carry them into the post-season.

If Snyder had held off to either draft Campbell in the second round or let another organization have him, there wouldn’t have been such pressure on Campbell to succeed. In almost the blink of an eye it reached the point that Washington was firing the offensive coordinator every season and replacing the head coach every couple. The inverse of this, is if you’re taken in the second round or lower, especially at quarterback, expectations diminish. Sure, you’re still a quarterback and you’re always going to receive too much blame when you lose and too much credit when you win. But when taken in the second round as opposed to the first, you’re given the opportunity to ease into the position of starting quarterback. Just ask Chad Henne.

For the uninitiated, Henne went to the University of Michigan and spent the majority of his disappointing and injury prone senior season after losing their season and home opener to Appalachian State, a 1-AA school with a small fraction of the resources they have in Ann Arbor. Even a convincing win over an up-and-coming Florida team in Tim Tebow’s Heisman season couldn’t salvage the damage Henne did to his draft stock that senior year. As a result, he plunged from a projected top twenty pick all the way down to Miami at 58th overall. …Continue reading Fantasy Potential All-Pro: Chad Henne

Every year we head into training camp with our eye on key positions and rookies who could add that extra push. Nobody cares who steps up, as long as the job gets done and the weak links are filled. Focusing on fantasy football, we are going to overlook some of the less important roster spots, and instead fire off questions and predictions for each team in the eyes of the fantasy football fan.

Arizona Cardinals
Spotlight Is On: Matt Leinart- A former first round pick who lost his job and found a comfortable spot on the bench is all of a sudden getting his second chance. The NFL usually chews you up and spits you out, so for Leinart a do-over is a real gift. Frankly, we see more attention spent on the running game this season to relieve some of the pressure. Regardless, this second chance could be the last chance for number 7. Can the shoes be filled? Or is Matt about to trip?
Camp Sleeper: Steve Breaston
Star-Brewing: Chris Wells

Atlanta Falcons
What’s the Deal with Michael Turner? A power running back who was a yard shy of 1700 yards two seasons ago just fell off the map in 2009. A high ankle sprain left fantasy owners angry and kicking furniture over, with his vanilla type numbers. Is he back? Can we move him up the fantasy boards? What’s the deal?
Camp Sleeper: Harry Douglas

Baltimore Ravens
Is there Bonding Going on Here? The Anquan Boldin and Joe Flacco combo is one we’re all not sure of. Flacco has needed a player who can stretch the field for some time, as Mason is more of tough possession wide receiver. The running game is counting on some sort of passing attack, and so are keeper league owners of the recently traded Cardinal.
Camp Sleeper:  TE Ed Dickson
Take a Seat: Todd Heap

Buffalo Bills
So You Have 3 Running Backs…Really? Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson, and C.J. Spiller are apparently going to be used in a very creative offense that we can already predict to be a failure. There are a million questions with this team, but for now let’s just try to figure out who’s going to be the guy at RB. All the other fantasy options shouldn’t be a concern to you right now, or at all this season.
Camp Sleeper: Brain Brohm- our vote to win the $10 beauty contest.

Carolina Panthers
Moore or Clausen to lead? After booting Delhomme to the curb, Matt Moore stepped in and looked very much the part…or at least that’s what he thought. The Panthers found a fallen gem in the draft and couldn’t help themselves with one of this years highest ranked QB rookies. Jimmy Clausen should do his best to overthrow Moore’s spot.
Gimme the Ball- DeAngelo Williams is in a contract year and will be pressing.
WR Numero dos- Our early guess is Brandon LaFell from LSU.

Chicago Bears
Who’s Cutler Going to Ask to the Big Dance? With a slew of average at best wide receivers, and a master-mind commander calling the plays from the sidelines, Jay Cutler is going to pick and choose his targets carefully. Who will best suit this new offense in Chicago? We will have eyes in training camp all summer.
So Who Does What? -After a breakout rookie season, Matt Forte now has an on the field roommate to share his carries. Chester Taylor wasn’t brought in to get coffee, so the percentage of carries will be watched carefully as well.
Sleeper Brewing In Martz’s System- Johnny Knox …Continue reading NFL Training Camp Fantasy Questions (All 32 Teams)

Fantasy defenses are generally an afterthought when you get into your draft. There’s generally some likely prized culprits that could be over-drafted but for the most part, depending on how the league is scored, your defense will typically be drafted amidst your backups at other positions. This logic is heeded by your typical fantasy football participant, and considering how undervalued defenses tend to be in fantasy, it’s a wise decision.

Depending on how deep your league is though, I think you can make an argument to hold off even longer on pulling the trigger with your defense. For the most part, a defense tends to be as productive as their opponents. Sure, it would be great to have the Jets lining up for you every Sunday, but they’re going to be playing at least four games against the Dolphins and Patriots, two of the more creative offenses in the league, not to mention the ongoing contract “negotiations” between  prized shutdown corner Darrell Revis (often regarded as the best defensive player in the league last season) and Jets management. In other words, with the perspective you’ll hold heading into your draft, would you rather have the Vikings defense facing the Packers or the Falcons defense against the Bucs?

There are questions surrounding everyone, especially when each “one” involves eleven individuals. While the Jets are likely to have a top three defense, their isn’t any guarantee of it. Why not put more faith in the weakness of a team’s schedule and compound it with the strength of the defense in question (which combined has a lot less variance), than …Continue reading Fantasy Football Strategy: Defenses In A Different Light

3rd Year Wide Receiver Break Out

A wide receiver that is coming into his third season has in the past been considered a breakout candidate for fantasy teams.   This year there are a number of wide receivers entering this three year mark.  I have created a list of third year receivers to keep your eye on entering your fantasy league draft.  Some of these players have yet to live up to expectations, others stepped up their games last season, while others unfortunately had let downs last season.  Overall, all of these players are expected to make solid contributions to their teams in 2010.

Early Doucet – Arizona – Doucet moves up the depth chart in 2010 after the departure of Anquan Boldin.  Doucet was the team’s fourth receiver last season, but will move into the third receiver role at the start of training camp and will have the opportunity to compete for the #2 receiver spot.

James Hardy – Buffalo – Hardy has yet to live up to the expectations Buffalo had for him when they drafted him in the 2nd round.  However, this could be the make or break year for Hardy.  With the departure of Terrell Owens, Hardy will be given the chance to earn a starting spot opposite Lee Evans.

Earl Bennett – Chicago – Bennett is in a crowded group of receivers.  The Bears have many young receivers and …Continue reading 3rd Year Wide Receiver Break Out

NFL Network insider Michael Lombardi confirmed Monday that the Miami Dolphins shipped veteran guard Justin Smiley to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Miami will receive a conditional seventh-round pick, pending a physical.

Smiley played most of his NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers. He played in all 16 games during his first three seasons, but as of late has struggled to find his game. Smiley hasn’t played a full season in the last three years.

Some moves, like this one are very minor in the NFL. But those Jaguar fans might have gotten themselves a veteran guard who can start along side a very young offensive line. These minor trades of offensive lineman sometimes are major hints in the world of fantasy football. Despite missing time in the last 3 years, Smiley is slowing recovering from left shoulder surgery, which has been repaired twice.

Low risk addition that could be a huge boost to M.Jones-Drew owners if a return is possible.