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 wideout will have the best NFL career?

SAM HENDRICKS

Since you said career, I think Austin Collie has the brightest future. First his QB is Peyton Manning. Questions-none. He could be Peyton’s Wes Welker. He is not the fastest WR I have ever seen but he seems to always get open. Michael Crabtree has to show me something before I put him in this competition.

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).

JEFFREY KAMYS

Much of this type of question is a crap shot and plenty has to do with who your QB is. Crabtree still has great potential even though he hasn't hit the field, but the QB play is still a question mark. Kenny Britt has actually looked the best at times, but the Titans offense is a mess right now. We will go with Harvin, who has a very good chance to get his career started playing with Favre.

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.

DAVID DOREY

It is still really premature to evaluate the career prospects for the rookie wideouts but based on the first five weeks it would be hard not to like Percy Harvin who has been such a playmaker for the Vikings that they are using him in multiple ways just to involve him more. He could be limited by the superior ground game in Minnesota along with a lesser quarterback situation though once Brett Favre leaves. Michael Crabtree was roundly touted as the most all-around talented receiver in the draft outside of Oakland’s Warroom/asylum. Plus the reality of how long a receiver can take to come into his own has to be considered as well. There is some nice potential in Jeremy Maclin in Philly and Hakeem Nicks in New York since they both have better quarterbacks. But based solely on the first five games, I’d have to lean towards Harvin.

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.

LOUIS TRANQUILLI

Hakeem Nicks. He's been hurt already for a short period of time, but when on the field has looked the part of a Big Time Fantasy Football player just waiting to happen. Nicks already has a good rapport with Eli Manning and clearly features the size and speed combination no one else on the team has. I gave him the nod over Michael Crabtree for one very big reason. Eli Manning is going to be Nicks' QB for years to come, Crabtree could be looking at a QB change as early as 2010 and that has an impact on his value.

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!

CORY J. BONINI

Not a big surprise as he is arguably doing the best of any of the rookies, but the Philadelphia Eagles' Jeremy Maclin looks to have the best future. Not only does he have the physical ability to excel (as was demonstrated in Week 5), but he's an intelligent player who already knows a few different positions in the Eagles' complex West Coast offense. Those smarts paired with his speed and spot in an offense that likes to pass put him in a great position for the future.

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.

PRETZEL MAY

I have to go with Percy Harvin on this one. Brett Favre has a knack for developing young talented receivers and making them better. Harvin seems to have developed a chemistry with Favre right out of the gate which is going to go a long way to making him an all around receiver. He has good hands and speed, so far has been able to find the holes in the defenses to get open and that is making him a red zone target as well. If he continues to improve the way he has and can develop any kind of chemistry with his next quarterback he should have a great career.

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.

SCOTT PIANOWSKI

While I don't expect a lot from Michael Crabtree for the rest of 2009 -- he's too far behind to make an immediate impact and the Niners have a fairly conservative offense anyway -- he's still the long-term prospect I'd bet on from this deep class. As for the guys who are actually on the field right now, give me Hakeem Nicks by an eyelash over Percy Harvin and Jeremy Maclin.

Pianowski has been playing fantasy football for 15 years and writing about it for 12. He joined Yahoo! Sports in 2008 and has been blogging 24/7 on RotoArcade.com ever since.

RICK HAWES

After watching Hakeem Nicks (8-217-2) look like a man amongst boys in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, I thought he was eventually going to be a star in the NFL. He has played to mixed reviews early in his career, but I honestly think he would have already broken into the starting lineup if not for a hamstring injury during the offseason program, as well as an ankle injury that caused him to miss two regular season games. At 6-foot-1 and 212 pounds, Nicks has good size, hands and runs clean routes. He’s not a burner (4.5) but he has functional football speed in pads and a knack for making big plays, evidenced by the length of his touchdowns (54, 64 and 71 yards) in the preseason and regular season. Including the preseason, he has posted 16 receptions for 393 yards (24.5 YPC) and five touchdowns in limited action. My honorable mention goes out to Johnny Knox, who has legitimate 4.3 speed and a penchant for making big plays. He might have entered the league from a small school (Abilene Christian) program, but so far the NFL doesn’t seem too big for him. I think it’s a matter of time before he moves into the starting lineup in the Windy City.

Hawes is the Managing Editor of NFL content at Fanball.com. Fanball.com and OwnersEdge.com offer league management software, daily play fantasy games, Live Advice, up-to-date news, free and premium content, player rankings, custom projections and cheat sheets, in-depth IDP analysis, Fantasy Buffet Radio Show, NFL Draft Kit, Fanball Blog Network, daily newsletter, a vast array of fantasy football tools, including Draft Analyzer software and five magazines featuring the Pro Football Draft Preview, as well as four Fantasy Football publications. For more information send e-mail to rhawes@fanball.com.

ANDY RICHARDSON

Can I say all of them? I've been very impressed by what I've seen out of four of the six first-rounders: Percy Harvin, Jeremy Maclin, Hakeem Nicks and Kenny Britt. Britt was impressive from his first preseason game. Harvin looks certain to be a versatile weapon in Minnesota for years to come. Nicks has also showed a playmaking knack early on. But Maclin not only has the talent, he's playing in a high-powered passing offense with a quarterback (at least for the next couple of years) who likes to throw deep and is pretty good at it. In the magazine we endorsed Nicks, and he's definitely in the conversation. But if I were walking into a dynasty draft right now, Maclin is the rookie I'd most want to own.

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.

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