Ask the Experts

ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them:

Which rookie wide receiver would you most want to own in a dynasty format?

SCOTT ENDSLEY

We're not thrilled with any of the top prospects this season -- not too many of them seem able to stand up to the beating of the NFL week in, week out. We'd go with Hakeem Nicks, for a few reasons. First he goes into a solid offense and will have a chance to succeed right away (not true for Heyward-Bey or Crabtree). He has an established QB to get him the ball who is likely to be around for a few years (1st part not true in Oakland, 2nd part not true in Philly or Minnesota). Last but not least he has the size an NFL receiver needs - not true for too many other receivers in the rookie class.

Endsley is co-owner and a senior fantasy football consultant for FantasyDraftEdge.com offering customizable fantasy football cheat sheets and professional VIP advice all season long. For more info, go to www.fantasydraftedge.com.

BOB HECK

Percy Harvin appears to be the one that will not only have a sustained, long-term effect in the Vikings offense, but will also have the biggest year 1 impact. We spoke with Harvin in a recent edition of Dynasty Rogues Radio and he said he is being integrated into many aspects of the offense, in the Wildcat, in the backfield with Adrian Peterson, in the backfield as a single back and at wideout. We're also very excited about how he portrayed his role in the red zone offense to be saying the team plans to use him as a guy to find a mismatch in the defense and exploit it. Harvin's speed creates mismatches with top flight DBs to begin with, not to mention what he will do to a slow LB over the middle.

Heck is a founding partner at Dynasty Rogues, a fantasy football website filled with football enthusiasts, run by football enthusiasts. The company provides year-round dynasty and redraft fantasy football coverage and analysis, including Dynasty Rogues Radio and the Rogues Forum. The site can be reached at www.dynastyrogues.com.

LOUIS TRANQUILLI

Not the fastest guy on the draft, but a very good situation in NY with Eli Manning there for years to come and a serious need for Nicks big body. He won;t be Plaxico Burress over night, but give him 2 seasons and he will be Eli's go to guy.

Tranquilli is the founder and the primary "brains" (if you stretch it) of BFDFANTASYfootball.com. BFD is about delivering the information players want, not fluff, just opinions that matter to fantasy football players. Lou has worked with NFL players and gives a unique perspective because of it. We'll be giving MORE teams away in 2009 to BFD subscribers!

MIKE NAZAREK

This year's rookie WR class was a weak one, but Michael Crabtree has the most talent, although he's raw and on a team without a solid QB in San Francisco. Still, in a dynasty format, he's the best rookie to own at that position.

Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc. His company offers an online rookie draft kit, preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, fantasy auction & regular drafting programs, weekly in-season fantasy newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its web site. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is the reigning four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a columnist for SI.com. For more info go to www.ffmastermind.com. Nazarek can be reached at 702-568-7118 or miken@ffmastermind.com.

COLIN DARLINGTON

The obvious answer is Michael Crabtree. He looks like those can’t-miss prospects; he has the size, speed, hands, strength, stats and was rated by most as the No. 1 overall prospect going into the NFL draft in 2009. His only downside is the QB situation in SF and his injury suffered late last year. Both of these questions in a dynasty format can be addressed. Second choice (and maybe a better FF player in his rookie year) goes to Brian Robiskie of the Browns.

Darlington is the owner of MyStartEmSitEm.com and has been an owner, commissioner and consultant in Fantasy Football since 1992. MyStartEmSitEm.com provides weekly advice based on your league, your scoring system, with custom emails about your team, preseason cheat sheets, draft day assistance and much more.

DAVID DOREY

The rookie wideout who is most desirable for the long term is definitely Jeremy Maclin with the Eagles. Michael Crabtree is an obvious consideration but he’s playing for the 49ers and their continuously inept offense that has not seen a quality quarterback since Jeff Garcia left. Maclin is a playmaker and a nice for the west coast offense in Philly. He’s got Donovan McNabb to ensure accurate passing and a far better organization around him. Pairing with DeSean Jackson will give the Eagles one of the youngest and yet most dangerous tandems in the league in the coming years.

Dorey is the co-founder and Senior NFL Analyst at The Huddle since 1997. He has produced award winning rankings and has projected the fantasy stats for every game over the last 13 years. David produces the bulk of The Huddle rankings and his “Predictions and Projections” breaks down every single NFL game every week through the Super Bowl. You can find more about David at TheHuddle.com.

IAN ALLAN

I don’t see much difference between the six guys who were selected in the first round. I will go with the slowest of those players – Hakeem Nicks – to wind up being the best. Certainly, I expect him to be more productive early in his career. He started for three years at North Carolina, and that was in a pro-style offense. I think that will help him adjust to the pros more quickly. He’s also going to a team that already has good parts around him (but badly needs a big-time wide receiver). I expect him to develop into Eli Manning’s No. 1 receiver, and perhaps have a career similar to Muhsin Muhammad (and I mean that in a good way). My early guess is that Nicks will be a top 15 or 20 receiver on team’s draftboards entering the 2010 season.

Ian Allan is the senior writer for Fantasy Football Index. He’s been in that role since 1987, generating most of the player rankings and analysis for that publication. His work can be seen in Fantasy Football Index magazine, and also at the company’s website, www.fantasyindex.com.

CORY BONINI

It is really hard not to like San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree (foot) as a long-term fantasy contributor, but he may never live up to the immense level of hype. I see him as a half-tier below Andre Johnson in the best-case scenario, which is awfully good, but it may take a few years. I question if Crabtree can create enough separation at the pro level. I don't, though, have any worries about his knack for creating yardage after the catch. I am almost as comfortable taking New York Giants wideout Hakeem Nicks as my top rookie receiver. I see him as the next Anquan Boldin, and he could contribute sooner than Crabtree since there is a little more talent around him.

KFFL.com offers fantasy football, fantasy baseball and fantasy NASCAR content. We have captured well more than a dozen expert league championships. Founded in 1996, KFFL offers award-winning daily news feeds, preseason draft guides, player rankings, sleepers, busts, weekly newsletters and more. KFFL is completely free! For more information, visit www.kffl.com.

JEFFREY KAMYS

There are no obvious picks at wide receiver this year, but Michael Crabtree seems like the safest pick. The 49ers are an improving team with a good running game, and they have major holes at wide receiver, so Crabtree won't have to do much to start sooner than later.

Kamys is president of Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports. His company, via the web, offers player news, injury reports, cheat sheets, projections, weekly matchups, statistics, and a customized team tracker. Dr. Stats Fantasy Sports also e-mails preseason newsletters and reports throughout the season. For more info visit www.docstats.com or send email to webmaster@docstats.com.

PRETZEL MAY

Michael Crabtree is a natural playmaker and he was drafted by a team that badly needs a premier wide receiver. His success, however, ultimately depends on the 49ers developing a real solution to their ongoing deficiency at quarterback. Jeremy Maclin has the most potential for immediate success but he will likely be the third option in Philly and Heyward-Bey plays for the Raiders, the team that turned Randy Moss into "Snoop" Minnis. Need I say more?

The May brothers have more than 16 years of combined fantasy football experience and are the co-founders of FantasyDraftMaster.com. The cornerstone of FDM is the UberRank which is a revolutionary approach to the traditional fantasy football cheat sheet. FantasyDraftMaster.com also offers insightful and humorous commentary on football happenings as well as recommendations on waiver wire pickups, line up submissions and weekly pick em' pools. For more info, visit www.fantasydraftmaster.com or email us at info@fantasydraftmaster.com.

HEATH SEVIN

I believe you have to seriously consider Hakeem Nicks from the Giants in this scenario. He has real potential to get some playing time with the release of Plaxico and could be a solid deep threat option for Eli. His competition is mediocre at best so a solid pre season could catapult him into an immediate starting role.

Sevin is CEO of Draftwizard.com, which offers current player notes, player rankings, injury reports, and start/sit projections. The site is dedicated to preparing you for your draft and assisting you with the in-season tools necessary to win your league. Draftwizard's message board has a following of dedicated and knowledgeable fantasy footballers, along with industry experts, to quickly answer your questions and offer unique insight gained from years of "playing in the trenches". For more information, visit www.draftwizard.com or send e-mails to packerdogs@draftwizard.com.

SAM HENDRICKS

Michael Crabtree. He has the most talent and is playing for a team that will throw a lot in the next five years.

Sam Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Almanac 2009, all available at his website, www.ffguidebook.com, at all major bookstores, and at www.amazon.com. He is a 19-year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the World Championship of Fantasy Football (WCOFF), National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th overall in the 2008 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC).

NATHAN ZEGURA

There are two WRs I really like for dynasty leaguers in 2009. The first is Michael Crabtree, who set the college world on fire at Texas Tech. He played just two years in college and won the Biletnikoff award both seasons and was the first freshman to do so. He caught 41 TDs in those two years, 6th most in NCAA history and 7 more than the previous two year record which was held by Larry Fitzgerald. He will become a starter very quickly in SF and has the same knack for finding the End Zone and playing faster than his 40 time that all time great Jerry Rice had before him. The second is Jeremy Maclin, who should emerge as the top target before long in Philly. Maclin is one of 3 people in NCAA history to average more than 200 all- purpose yards per game and he scored 32 times in 28 games. He has great hands and is coming off of a 102 catch, 1260 yard season with 13 scores at Missouri and seems destined for great things. He is bigger, faster and better in the open field than teammate DeSean Jackson and he has already been drawing rave reviews from teammates and coaches.

The Fantasy Consultant, the only fantasy football site on the web run by a former McKinsey and Co. consultant, provides in-depth, statistical analysis and uses a proprietary model to produce weekly and full-season player projections customized to your scoring system. TFC focuses on the most relevant fantasy-oriented stats (targets, red zone and GL performance, Opp yards/TDs allowed by position) and provides real-time injury updates to ensure that you have everything you need to set your ideal lineup every week. Heading in to the draft, you get full season projections customized to your scoring system, in-depth player profiles, plus position primers that identify bounce-back players, breakout candidates, and sleepers and busts. In a record setting 2008 season, 94% of Premium subscribers (87% of Standard) went to the playoffs and 62% (40% standard) WON their leagues. Check out thefantasyconsultant.com today.

ANDY RICHARDSON

I felt that Jeremy Maclin had the most talent coming out of the draft, and he's going to a situation in Philadelphia where there's a quality quarterback and no clear No. 1 guy at the position. I'm not sure he'll contribute right away, but two years from now he could be the No. 1. I've come around a little on Hakeem Nicks, who has very good hands, and Michael Crabtree, who is in a good situation if they ever get their passing game dialed in, but Maclin remains my favorite.

Richardson has been a columnist and contributor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and web site for the past eight years. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections, as well as various site features. He has run the magazine's annual draft and auction leagues since their inception. His A DAY OF FOOTBALL wrap-up column appears Mondays during the NFL season.