By Jeff Andriesse
Rotowhine.com Editor
August 21, 2008
As the football season hurtles towards us, its becoming harder and harder to sift through the mountains of information out there. Thankfully you have me, a guy who has spent a few seconds studying the depth charts of each NFL team and can thus give you pretty much everything you need to know about the upcoming year. Fearless Prediction #1: There will be a lot of crazy stuff that happens, making it virtually impossible to predict anything this season. Fearless Prediction #2: I’m going to predict things nonetheless.
You come to Rotowhine for clarity, and we abide like the driven snow in a wolf’s marionette.
ROTOWHINE.COM TEAM-BY-TEAM ANALYSIS
Arizona Cardinals
Fantasy starters: RB1 Edgerrin James, WR1 Larry Fitzgerald, WR2 Anquan Boldin, K Neil Rackers
Worth drafting: QB1 Matt Leinart, RB2 Tim Hightower, WR3 Steve Breaston
Insurance: QB2 Kurt Warner, Hightower, Breaston
Don’t bother: TE1 Leonard Pope
Notes: Boldin isn’t happy but should still play… Leinart and Warner are probably in for another timeshare… Hightower could be the man here by midseason.
Atlanta Falcons
Fantasy starters: RB1 Michael Turner, WR1 Roddy White
Worth drafting: RB2 Jerious Norwood, WR2 Michael Jenkins, K Jason Elam
Insurance: Norwood, WR3 Laurent Robinson
Don’t bother: QB1 Matt Ryan, TE1 Ben Hartsock
Notes: An intriguing offense, but Ryan will likely struggle… The offensive line is a few players short anyways… Turner might get taken too high this year… White is in for a nice season.
Baltimore Ravens
Fantasy starters: RB1 Ray Rice, WR1 Derrick Mason, TE Todd Heap, K Matt Stover
Worth drafting: RB2 Willis McGahee, WR2 Mark Clayton
Insurance: McGahee, RB3 Allen Patrick
Don’t bother: QB1 Troy Smith, WR3 Demetrius Williams
Notes: McGahee is out with a knee injury, and Rice could supplant him completely… If only this team had a QB.
Buffalo Bills
Fantasy starters: RB1 Marshawn Lynch, WR1 Lee Evans, K Rian Lindell
Worth drafting: WR2 James Hardy
Insurance: RB2 Fred Jackson
Don’t bother: QB Trent Edwards, WR3 Roscoe Parrish, TE1 Robert Royal
Notes: Lynch has no competition and should be taken high… This offense looks poor regardless.
Carolina Panthers
Fantasy starters: QB1 Jake Delhomme, RB1 DeAngelo Williams, RB2 Jonathan Stewart, WR1 Steve Smith, K John Kasay
Worth drafting: WR2 Muhsin Muhammad, WR3 D.J. Hackett
Insurance: Stewart, Hackett
Don’t bother: TE1 Jeff King
Notes: Steve Smith will be suspended for the first two weeks of the season… What the hell, let’s have another Muhammad resurgance… Williams is not going quietly into that good night - he’s outplaying Stewart badly.
Chicago Bears
Fantasy starters: RB1 Matt Forte
Worth drafting: WR1 Devin Hester, TE2 Greg Olsen, K Robbie Gould
Insurance: RB2 Adrian Peterson, RB3 Kevin Jones
Don’t bother: QB2 Rex Grossman, WR2 Brandon Lloyd, WR3 Marty Booker, TE1 Desmond Clark
Notes: Orton beat out Grossman, the NFL’s version of Rafael Betancourt taking the closer job from Joe Borowski… Hester is the No. 1 wideout here, which tells you how bad this offense truly is.
Cincinnati Bengals
Fantasy starters: QB1 Carson Palmer, RB1 Rudi Johnson, WR1 Chad Johnson, WR2 T.J. Houshmandzadeh, K Shayne Graham
Worth drafting: TE2 Ben Utecht
Insurance: RB2 Chris Perry, RB3 Kenny Watson, WR3 Antonio Chatman
Don’t bother: TE1 Reggie Kelly
Notes: Both starting receivers are banged up, but should be ready for Week 1… Rudi Johnson is falling out of favor fast… Perry could be the man instead of Watson, despite Watson filling in admirably last year.
Cleveland Browns
Fantasy starters: QB1 Derek Anderson, RB1 Jamal Lewis, WR1 Braylon Edwards, TE Kellen Winslow, K Phil Dawson
Worth drafting: WR2 Donte Stallworth
Insurance: RB2 Jason Wright, QB2 Brady Quinn
Don’t bother: WR3 Joe Jurevicius
Notes: Not much to say except: Enjoy the Browns this year… I’m high on Lewis, which usually turns out to be a mistake.
Dallas Cowboys
Fantasy starters: QB1 Tony Romo, RB1 Marion Barber, WR1 Terrell Owens, TE1 Jason Witten, K Nick Folk
Worth drafting: RB2 Felix Jones, WR2 Patrick Crayton
Insurance: Jones, WR3 Sam Hurd
Don’t bother: None
Notes: Jones is going to get a lot of touches, but Barber is still the main man here… Crayton better have a big year, there’s a bunch of garbage behind him.
Denver Broncos
Fantasy starters: QB1 Jay Cutler, RB1 Selvin Young, WR1 Brandon Marshall
Worth drafting: RB2 Andre Hall, WR2 Darrell Jackson, WR3 Brandon Stokley, TE2 Tony Sheffler
Insurance: Hall, RB4 Ryan Torain
Don’t bother: WR4 Eddie Royal, TE1 Daniel Graham, K Matt Prater
Notes: I’m not sure why Selvin Young isn’t getting more love this preseason… Torain will be out for at least two months… Marshall is suspended for the first two games of the season, meaning Jackson and Stokley are decent plays.
Detroit Lions
Fantasy starters: QB1 Jon Kitna, RB1 Kevin Smith, WR1 Roy Williams, WR2 Calvin Johnson
Worth drafting: RB2 Tatum Bell, K Jason Hanson
Insurance: Bell
Don’t bother: TE1 Dan Campbell, WR3 Shaun McDonald, WR4 Mike Furrey
Notes: Kitna could have a huge year and no one is mentioning him… Johnson looks unstoppable… Bell has averaged 1.4 yards per carry in the preseason, so draft Kevin Smith with confidence.
Green Bay Packers
Fantasy starters: RB1 Ryan Grant, WR1 Greg Jennings, WR2 Donald Driver, K Mason Crosby
Worth drafting: QB1 Aaron Rodgers, TE Donald Lee
Insurance: RB2 Brandon Jackson
Don’t bother: WR3 James Jones
Notes: I like Rodgers, he has the players around him to succeed… Grant’s hamstring injury is no biggie.
Houston Texans
Fantasy starters: QB1 Matt Schaub, WR1 Andre Johnson, TE1 Owen Daniels
Worth drafting: RB1 Ahman Green, RB2 Chris Brown, WR2 Kevin Walter, K Kris Brown
Insurance: C. Brown, RB3 Steve Slaton
Don’t bother: WR3 Andre Davis
Notes: A proverbial Cluster at running back… We keep hearing Slaton isn’t ready to be a full-time back, but he’s outplaying everyone this preseason… Walter is a sleeper.
Indianapolis Colts
Fantasy starters: QB1 Peyton Manning, RB1 Joseph Addai, WR1 Reggie Wayne, WR2 Marvin Harrison, TE Dallas Clark, K Adam Vinatieri
Worth drafting: WR3 Anthony Gonzalez
Insurance: QB2 Jim Sorgi, RB2 Dominic Rhodes, Gonzalez
Don’t bother: None
Notes: Harrison is close to recovered from injury and should be drafted in the middle rounds in hopes of great value… I guess Rhodes is the backup running back, how boring… Manning had knee surgery but expects to play in Week 1.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Fantasy starters: QB1 David Garrard, RB1 Fred Taylor, RB2 Maurice Jones-Drew, K Josh Scobee
Worth drafting: WR1 Jerry Porter, WR3 Matt Jones
Insurance: Jones-Drew
Don’t bother: WR2 Reggie Williams, TE Marcedes Lewis
Notes: Lots of people like Garrard, but I worry he doesn’t have any reliable receivers to throw it to… Jones could emerge, so keep a watchful eye.
Kansas City Chiefs
Fantasy starters: RB1 Larry Johnson, WR1 Dwayne Bowe, TE Tony Gonzalez
Worth drafting: QB1 Brodie Croyle
Insurance: RB3 Kolby Smith, RB3 Jackie Battle
Don’t bother: WR2 Devard Darling, K Nick Novak
Notes: I could see Croyle being a good second-half fill-in… Gonzalez is essentially the No. 2 receiver and could have a monster year… Nobody likes Larry Johnson, but his backups suck so they’ll run him into the ground.
Miami Dolphins
Fantasy starters: RB1 Ricky Williams
Worth drafting: RB2 Ronnie Brown, WR1 Ted Ginn, Jr.
Insurance: Brown, RB3 Jalen Parmele
Don’t bother: QB1 Chad Pennington, WR2 Derek Hagan, WR3 Ernest Wilford, TE Anthony Fasano, K Dan Carpenter
Notes: Ricky Williams - yes, Ricky Williams - has overtaken the starting RB job from Ronnie Brown… Brown is still not 100% after his ‘07 ACL tear, and this could end up being a split down the road… Rest of team: Yuck.
Minnesota Vikings
Fantasy starters: RB1 Adrian Peterson, K Ryan Longwell
Worth drafting: QB1 Tarvaris Jackson, RB2 Chester Taylor, WR1 Bernard Berrian, WR2 Sidney Rice
Insurance: Taylor
Don’t bother: WR3 Bobby Wade, TE1 Visanthe Shiancoe
Notes: Jackson’s receiving corps is still iffy even with Berrian, so expect more catches for Peterson and Taylor.
New England Patriots
Fantasy starters: QB1 Tom Brady, RB1 Laurence Maroney, WR1 Randy Moss, WR2 Wes Welker, TE Ben Watson, K Stephen Gostkowski
Worth drafting: WR3 Jabar Gaffney, RB2 Sammy Morris
Insurance: Morris
Don’t bother: RB3 Kevin Faulk, RB4 Lamont Jordan
Notes: Don’t sleep on Gaffney, who could be a good plug-in starter… Jordan isn’t expected to have an impact… The backup QB situation is a disaster.
New Orleans Saints
Fantasy starters: QB1 Drew Brees, RB1 Reggie Bush, WR1 Marques Colston, TE1 Jeremy Shockey
Worth drafting: RB2 Deuce McAllister, RB3 Pierre Thomas, WR2 Robert Meachem
Insurance: Thomas
Don’t bother: WR3 David Patten, WR4 Devery Henderson, K Taylor Mehlhaff
Notes: Best not to count on McAllister… Meachem is a nice sleeper pick.
New York Giants
Fantasy starters: QB1 Eli Manning, RB1 Brandon Jacobs, WR1 Plaxico Burress
Worth drafting: RB2 Ahmad Bradshaw, WR2 Amani Toomer, WR3 Steve Smith, TE1 Kevin Boss, K Lawrence Tynes
Insurance: Bradshaw, RB3 Derrick Ward
Don’t bother: TE Chris Baker, WR3 Chansi Stuckey
Notes: I like Smith over Toomer… Boss might be decent, I could see him catching a lot of TDs… The RB situation is a headache. Drop Jacobs to the fifth round, and take Bradshaw not long after.
New York Jets
Fantasy starters: QB Brett Favre, RB1 Thomas Jones, WR1 Laveranues Coles, WR2 Jerricho Cotchery
Worth drafting: K Mike Nugent
Insurance: RB2 Jesse Chatman, QB2 Kellen Clemens
Don’t bother: TE Chris Baker, WR3 Chansi Stuckey
Notes: Jets should be improved along the O-Line… In case you hadn’t heard, they traded for Brett Favre… I’ll look up some info on him and write up a bio in a few days.
Oakland Raiders
Fantasy starters: RB2 Darren McFadden
Worth drafting: QB1 JaMarcus Russell, RB1 Justin Fargas, WR1 Ronald Curry, WR2 Javon Walker
Insurance: RB3 Michael Bush
Don’t bother: WR3 Drew Carter, TE Zach Miller, K Sebastian Janikowski
Notes: No one knows what to make of Walker’s value… It has a cap on it as it is with Russell being so raw.
Philadelphia Eagles
Fantasy starters: QB1 Donovan McNabb, RB1 Brian Westbrook, WR1 Kevin Curtis, WR2 Reggie Brown, K David Akers
Worth drafting: RB2 Correll Buckhalter, WR3 DeSean Jackson, TE L.J. Smith
Insurance: QB2 Kevin Kolb, Buckhalter
Don’t bother: None
Notes: Curtis had hernia surgery and may miss several weeks… Brown has a lingering hamstring problem… McNabb has looked strong this preseason.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Fantasy starters: QB1 Ben Roethlisberger, RB1 Willie Parker, WR1 Santonio Holmes, WR2 Hines Ward, K Jeff Reed
Worth drafting: TE1 Heath Miller, RB2 Rashard Mendenhall
Insurance: Mendenhall, WR3 Nate Washington
Don’t bother: QB2 Byron Leftwich
Notes: Tons of weapons… Don’t be too scared of Parker.
St. Louis Rams
Fantasy starters: QB1 Marc Bulger, RB1 Steven Jackson, WR1 Torry Holt, K Josh Brown
Worth drafting: WR2 Drew Bennett, TE1 Randy McMichael
Insurance: RB2 Antonio Pittman
Don’t bother: WR3 Dante Hall
Notes: Someone has to catch the ball after Holt here, perhaps Bennett is a nice sleeper… Jackson is unsigned but the sides are close.
San Diego Chargers
Fantasy starters: QB1 Philip Rivers, RB1 LaDainian Tomlinson, WR1 Chris Chambers, TE1 Antonio Gates, K Nate Kaeding
Worth drafting: WR2 Vincent Jackson
Insurance: QB2 Billy Volek, RB2 Jacob Hester, RB3 Darren Sproles
Don’t bother: WR3 Craig Davis
Notes: Rivers is making his way back from an ACL and will require some patience… Other than that, this offense is loaded as usual… Gates is nursing a repaired foot, so could slip in drafts.
San Francisco 49ers
Fantasy starters: RB1 Frank Gore, WR1 Isaac Bruce, TE1 Vernon Davis
Worth drafting: RB2 DeShaun Foster, WR2 Bryant Johnson
Insurance: Foster, WR3 Josh Morgan
Don’t bother: QB1 J.T. O’Sullivan, QB2 Alex Smith, K Joe Nedney
Notes: The QB situation hasn’t been decided yet as of August 20… Morgan is making a move at WR, but who will throw it to him?… Gore may be the only sure thing here.
Seattle Seahawks
Fantasy starters: QB1 Matt Hasselbeck, RB1 Julius Jones, WR1 Nate Burleson
Worth drafting: RB2 Maurice Morris, WR2 Ben Obamanu, WR3 Courtney Taylor, WR4 Bobby Engram, WR5 Deion Branch
Insurance: Morris, Obamanu, Taylor
Don’t bother: RB3 T.J. Duckett, TE1 John Carlson
Notes: A mess at wide receiver… Engram and Branch will miss at least a month of the regular season… No clear starter has emerged yet next to Nate Burleson… Jones and Morris could be married in Splittsville this fall.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Fantasy starters: RB1 Earnest Graham, WR1 Joey Galloway
Worth drafting: QB1 Jeff Garcia, K Matt Bryant
Insurance: RB2 Warrick Dunn
Don’t bother: WR2 Ike Hilliard, WR3 Michael Clayton, TE1 Alex Smith
Notes: Such an ‘old’ offense with Garcia, Galloway and Hilliard… Graham could struggle with the rest of this offense.
Tennessee Titans
Fantasy starters: RB1 LenDale White, TE1 Alge Crumpler, K Rob Bironas
Worth drafting: QB1 Vince Young, RB2 Chris Johnson, WR1 Justin Gage, WR3 Brandon Jones
Insurance: Johnson, RB3 Chris Henry, QB2 Kerry Collins
Don’t bother: WR2 Justin McCareins
Notes: Watch Young go nuts this year, just watch… It’s getting harder every day to feel secure about LenDale White, although he still should be the primary red-zone back… Crumpler could have a nice season, although I’m angry at him for denying cult hero Bo Scaife a starting spot.
Washington Redskins
Fantasy starters: RB1 Clinton Portis, WR1 Santana Moss, TE1 Chris Cooley
Worth drafting: QB1 Jason Campbell, RB2 Ladell Betts, WR2 Antwaan Randle-El
Insurance: Betts, WR3 Malcolm Kelly
Don’t bother: K Shaun Suisham
Notes: The Redskins drafted two highly-regarded receivers in Kelly and Devin Thomas, but both won’t be ready… Even Moss is a questionable weekly play.
