Well folks, July is pretty much in the books, which means that draft day is upon us. In our league, we are in the middle of declaring keepers. Draft cheat sheets are being organized, and the mock drafts are heating up. It’ll only be a matter of time before I’m on the clock waiting to make my first selection. Good luck to everyone on the impending selections! Happy Friday, and have a great and safe weekend!
Here are today’s great reads:
From relative obscurity, to Super Bowl hero, back to relative obscurity, David Tyree is finally calling it quits. [Newark Star-Ledger]
What is worse than failing a conditioning test? How about failing it twice? At this rate, Albert Haynesworth will be watching the ‘Skins on the sidelines this year. [Yahoo Sports]
With so much hype placed on rookies coming into the NFL, there is always surprises as to who rises from the ranks to become an All-Pro stud. Here is a breakdown on some rookies that have the best chance to make an impact. [Fantasy Football Fanhouse]
Finally it's that time of the year! Get ready for the ultimate NFL football betting action at America's leading sports betting website Belmont.com. Get the latest football odds and lines and bet on your favorite team! You don't wanna miss this season! Get your ass down there. Belmont.com - We've got your game.
Editor’s note: This is the final chapter of the four-part preseason sleeper series. Follow these links to view the other sleeper candidates for 2010: Quarterbacks, Running Backs and Wide Receivers.
There are those elite tight ends that you have to use a high pick on like Antonio Gates, Dallas Clark, and Tony Gonzalez in fantasy drafts. And then there is everyone else.
If you’re an owner that refuses to use a high pick on this position — not a bad philosophy — then you are probably looking for a few tight ends who could blow up like Vernon Davis did last season. A great tight end is a nice commodity, but I personally would rather draft the up-and-coming receiver or running back in the early rounds.
Dustin Keller, TE, Jets: Keller is an athletic tight end with great hands. He has good top end speed and can make big plays for the Jets. Sanchez will have his rookie season behind him and showed some improved accuracy during the 2009 playoffs. He will rely heavily on his safety net, Keller. …Click here to read more
To play or not to play? That is the question, the question fantasy owners want Bill Belichick to answer definitively regarding wide receiver Wes Welker.
Last weekend it seemed Welker was, almost miraculously, slated to start Patriots’ training camp as a full participant. Fantasy owners rejoiced as Welker’s fantasy stock price began its ascension.
But then, the Patriots put Welker on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list to start training camp. Fantasy owners, confused, had been duped by the master duper himself, Mr. Bill Belichick. Welker’s stock returned to its pre-miracle status.
And then this story came out about how Welker could play tomorrow (!) if there was a game to play. Really? I doubt we ever really will know when Welker is ready to play at this point, unless of course there is a game tomorrow. Then we know he can play!
To sum up, Welker is healthy enough to play a game but not healthy enough for training camp, therefore fantasy owners should remain dazed and confused by any and all news coming out of Patriots’ camp.
Here are today’s great reads:
We already have named Kevin Kolb, Ryan Mathews and Vincent Jackson as the most overvalued fantasy players heading into the 2010 season. Other fantasy football bloggers are tackling the overvalued/undervalued subject these days as well, with some interesting choices to boot. [Fantasy Knuckleheads]
With your first four picks in fantasy drafts this summer, you should be able to assemble a nice core for your starting lineup. And if you are really lucky, you will grab four of these 10 players to target in the first four rounds of your fantasy draft. Good luck with that! [Hatty Waiver Wire Guru]
Because fantasy owners always are on the look-out for good advice when it comes to drafting running backs: A story about the RB-RB draft strategy and the recent shift to drafting WRs early because it has become more and more difficult to figure out which runners — other than the top four or five — are going to have continued fantasy success. [The Fifth Down]
It is difficult to ignore Steven Jackson’s talent, even though he plays for an awful team. But fantasy owners should be wary of Jackson and other talented skill position players on so-called “Siberian” teams. Predicting any kind of success on bad football teams is risky business, and some of us even think that this could be a back-breaking year for fantasy owners who take Jackson in the first round. [SI.com, The Hazean]
The Cincinnati Bengals just got really, really interesting.
Free agent wide receiver Terrell Owens signed with the Bengals yesterday and is slated to start opposite Chad OchoCinco this season. This news comes on the heels that Antonio Bryant, who the Bengals acquired earlier this offseason, still may be struggling with knee issues heading into training camp. The signing of Owens just about eliminates Bryant from any fantasy football discussions.
Talk about an interesting wide receiver tandem. OchoCinco (he of the name change and Dancing with the Stars) and Owens (remember the star?) have been two of the biggest divas in the NFL during the last decade. Maybe ever. And now they play together? Oh the antics!
If these two fail to choreograph epic touchdown celebrations, what a disaster this signing will become.
From a fantasy football perspective, this certainly changes the game for OchoCinco. His average draft position prior to the TO acquisition had him ranked 18th among wide receivers, coming off the board in the mid-4th round. I think we will see his value drop at least a round in the next few weeks.
As for Owens, whose average draft position had him coming off the board in the 11th round, I think we all can expect his draft stock to rise pretty drastically. Probably up to the 8th round or so. Carson Palmer, also, sees a rise in value now with the addition of another capable, play-making, touchdown-scoring receiver.
If this team can find some chemistry, it could have a pretty potent fantasy passing attack to team with a stout running game behind Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott. Should be interesting to watch this develop during training camp and the preseason.
Now for some fun, plenty of OchoCinco and TO in here and hopefully more to come this season:
Here are today’s great reads:
So ironic that the Cincinnati Bengals check in next on the Fantasy Juggernaut Index at No. 21. This ranking came in prior to the signing of Terrell Owens. I suspect the Bengals’ fantasy outlook is a little brighter today than it was just a few days ago, or maybe I just like TO too much. [Roto Arcade]
If you are looking for a come-back player to draft this season, I would recommend Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler. He had a terrible season from an interception standpoint in 2009, but with Mike Martz guiding the offense his positive offensive outputs (yards, touchdowns) should improve. I think we still can expect double-digit turnovers. [National Football Post]
Mario Manningham has his work cut out for him in Giants’ training camp, but he is being touted as a sleeper by some. He started off the 2009 season with a bang and was one of the hottest waiver wire adds early. But drops and the emergence of Hakeem Nicks — whom Manningham will battle in camp — really did in his fantasy value down the stretch last year. [Fantasy Knuckleheads]
Fantasy owners, like NFL fans (one in the same?), find themselves enamored with rookie skill position players. But rooks do not always pan out in fantasy football, at least during their first season of big league ball. Finding the right rookies in fantasy is both a skill and a crap shoot. [FanHouse]
For those concerned, it appears Mike Vick will escape any suspension or legal action stemming from the shooting that took place at his birthday party. He can safely assume his spot on the bench behind Kevin Kolb now. [The Big Lead]
In the last few weeks, we have combed through mock draft and average draft position data via the Fantasy Football Calculator to name the most overvalued and undervalued players in fantasy drafts.
As far as the undervalued players are concerned, there was some backlash to Mark Sanchez as the most undervalued quarterback. But it is hard to get too upset about a guy being drafted in the low 20s at his position in fantasy drafts, considering all the weapons he has around him this season (and now, possibly, Terrell Owens to the Jets?!?).
Fantasy owners love a good controversy and a chance to bash other fantasy owners whenever possible (or prank them), but I am not sure either of the wide receivers chosen for these monikers will elicit much of a response. Ho-hum, such is life.
If you do have any objection to these or any of our choices so far, make sure to have your voice heard by submitting a comment below the post!
In the last few weeks, we have combed through mock draft and average draft position data via the 
