One of my favorite shows on television is HBO's Entourage. Like fantasy football, Entourage has grown into a phenomena, especially among males ages 18-35. I played in four fantasy football leagues this year and I saw three Entourage-related team names: Repped By Ari Gold, Queen's Boulevard, and my personal favorite Mrs. Ari. Re-watching the first season, the first episode in fact, reminded me of an all too common theme I saw in a number of fantasy leagues this year.
Quarterbacks:
Matt Cassel, Chiefs: A reunion with Charlie Weis and the emergence of Jamaal Charles can only mean one thing for Matt Cassel and the KC offense: points. Personally, I never like to draft QBs early and I usually end up with a QB ranked in the 9-12 range as my starter. I would be happy to draft Cassel as my QB1 knowing he has top 5 potential next year.
Guys I'd draft him over: Jay Cutler, Ben Roethlisberger, Joe Flacco
Chad Henne, Dolphins: Henne averaged almost 16 points per game in weeks 13-16 before he went out with a shoulder injury in week 17. Henne looked crisp and quick in the pocket all season long, a trend that should equal big stats next year. There are questions about the role of the passing attack when Ronnie Brown and the Wildcat returns but Henne should still have value next season.
Guys I'd draft him over: David Garrard, Mark Sanchez, Matt Ryan?!
Alex Smith, 49ers: Smith and the 49ers have all the signs of emerging as one of the most relevant NFL teams in terms of fantasy (see Fantasy Relevance Rankings). Crabtree was dynamic in a half of a season, Vernon Davis was the top scoring TE, and Frank Gore finished the season as a top 6 RB despite missing 3 games. Last year I said Alex Smith would be a top 15 QB, that was a bit premature. This year I'm saying Alex Smith finishes as a top 10 QB. At worst Eli Manning, at best Matt Schaub.
Guys I'd draft him over: Eli Manning, Brett Favre, Jason Campbell
Running Backs:
Jamaal Charles, Chiefs: Alright so this one is pretty obvious but I just wanted to make it clear how good I think Charles could be. Every year I play in one league where I take risks; really make a point to zig when everyone else is zagging. In that league I would take Charles with the number 1 overall pick. Call me courageous, call me crazy but part of me would rather have Jamaal Charles than Mr. 2000, AP, and MJD. Had Charles started the whole year there is little doubt in my mind that Chris Johnson would have finished second in rushing yards this season. My only worry is that Charlie Weis will install a New England-like system built on short passes. Even knowing this, Charles is a capable pass catcher and I think no matter the system he will be a top 5 back.
Guys I'd draft him over: Probably anyone except maybe Chris Johnson.
Fred Jackson, Bills: Freak Mode finally wrestled the starting job away from Marshawn which should make fans in Buffalo ecstatic. Jackson proved to be far more versatile and effective running and receiving the ball. I expect Jackson to be a top 20 rusher next season, somewhere in league with Cedric Benson, Matt Forte, and Jerome Harrison. Maybe slightly behind the Mendenhalls and Morenos of the world.
Guys I'd draft him over: Matt Forte, Marion Barber, LaDainian Tomlinson
Justin Forsett, Seahawks: Forsett is poised to be next years Jamaal Charles. Should Forsett enter the season backing up Julius Jones I think he'll win the starting job by the halfway point or so. Forsett is a threat to catch passes out of the backfield so owners in PPR leagues would be well-advised to take a flier on Forsett in the later rounds.
Guys I'd draft him over: Tim Hightower?!, LeSean McCoy?!, Michael Bush
Clinton Portis/Quinton Ganther, Redskins: Let the record show that Pine Production reminded everyone that Mike Shanahan has never failed to have a 1000 yard rusher. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to know how the Redskin backfield situation will shake down in 2010...
Guys I'd draft the starter over: Steve Slaton, DeAngelo Williams!?, Beanie Wells?!
Wide Receivers:
Sidney Rice, Vikings: Another one from the obvious names department but Rice has to be considered a top 15 receiver going into next year. Buyer beware though: If Favre doesn't return Rice's value will decrease considerably.
Guys I'd draft him over: Chad Ochocinco, Marques Colston, Roddy White?!
Jerricho Cotchery, Jets: Sanchize has already proven he cannot lose games and as long as he doesn't get the sophomore slump (which I don't think he was good enough to get) he should start winning games for the Jets. Cotchery should benefit directly from his progression. I consider Cotchery a low-risk, high-upside kind of guy.
Guys I'd draft him over: Braylon Edwards, TJ Houshmanzadeh, Steve Smith (NYG)
Terrell Owens, Bills: This might be too ambitious... Owens finished the year just outside the top 25 for receivers after a laughably bad first half. A change of scenery could do him well because the Bills have no real option at QB. T.O. was remarkably domesticated this year and maybe that's a bad thing for fantasy owners. I still believe in the upside of T.O. but the risk involved might be too much. If you could steal him late as a WR3 that would be ideal.
Guys I'd draft him over: Donnie Avery, Devin Aromashodu, Nate Burelson
Hakeen Nicks, Giants: He's big, he's strong, and he doesn't drop/fumble balls like Mario Manningham. Look for Nicks to take over the #2 spot on the Giants depth chart next season.
Guys I'd draft him over: Devery Henderson, Macolm Floyd, Michael Jenkins
Julian Edelman, Patriots: This is entirely dependent on Wes Welker's status for next season. I heard a rumor that Welker's injury is potentially career threatening...
Guys I'd draft him over: Davone Bess but its close, Santana Moss, Roy Williams
Robert Meachem: 1/2 of one of the most intriguing WR tandems for 2010 (the other being Driver/Jennings). I think top 25 is a safe bet.
Guys I'd draft him over: Hines Ward, Percy Harvin?!, Anquan Boldin?!
Davone Bess: Bess might be my favorite sleeper for 2010. After all, someone has to catch all those Henne passes and my money is on the little man out of Hawaii. I can see him putting up traditional Hines Ward numbers in the 15-20 range.
Guys I'd draft him over: Devin Hester (pains me to say so), Chris Chambers, Lee Evans
As for TEs the only guy worth mentioning now is Jermichael Finley who I expect to be a top 8 TE next season. He has looked super-athletic down the stretch for the Pack who haven't had consistent production from their TE since Bubba Franks.
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