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 player who changed teams this offseason will benefit most from a new address?

RICK HAWES

Anquan Boldin. For starters, he gets an upgrade under center from Matt Leinart to Joe Flacco, who is a candidate for for becoming a franchise-type quarterback. Also, he removes the "1B" status from the "1A/1B" relationship he had with Larry Fitzgerald in Arizona. Yes, Derrick Mason has been a very solid player for the Ravens over the last few seasons, but Boldin is clearly better-suited to be a prototype No. 1 NFL receiver. My only concerns with "Q" is the fact that he always seems to miss a couple (or more) games each season due to injury and needs to establish a quick relationship with Flacco, which makes him more of a No. 2 fantasy receiver than a No. 1.

Hawes is the Managing Editor of NFL content at Fanball.com and OwnersEdge.com. These sites offer league management software, daily play fantasy games, up-to-date news, free and premium content, Live Advice, custom projections and cheat sheets, staff rankings, IDP analysis, and a vast array of fantasy tools to help you bring home the championship hardware. If that’s not enough to whet your appetite, you can join our NFFC High-Stakes football contest, listen to us on the Fanball Fantasy Drive show at Sirius (211) and XM (147), or pick up one of our six magazines, including the Pro Football Draft Preview, as well as five Fantasy Football publications. For more information send e-mail to rhawes@fanball.com.

LOUIS TRANQUILLI

Jason Campbell. Because Nnamdi is on his team, and he's the best defensive back in the division Jason catches a break...a big break. The AFC West has only champ Bailey to concern themselves with in the defensive backfield, Kansas City and San Diego are weak to say the least. Jason's second break of the year is the AFC West plays against the NFC West; where there are no defensive backfields to worry about. He should benefit the most from his move.

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.

MIKE NAZAREK

I like Anquan Boldin's move to Baltimore. He'll be the clear No. 1 WR there with a young rising star QB in Joe Flacco targeting him. Obviously, this move will help Boldin's Super Bowl chances a lot, but it will also give him a chance to reclaim elite STUD WR status provided he stays healthy in 2010.

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 one and only four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. For more info go to www.ffmastermind.com. Nazarek can be reached at 702-568-7118 or miken@ffmastermind.com.

IAN ALLAN

I like the pairing of Donovan McNabb with Mike Shanahan. At 33, McNabb is on the downside of his career, and Washington had all kinds of offensive line problems last year. But I've always been of the school of thought that sacks -- pass protection in general, really -- is largely dependent not on the blockers but on the quarterback himself and the offensive scheme. The blockers are just part of it. Note, for example, that the Colts dropped from 62 to 22 sacks the year they drafted Peyton Manning. And the Saints improved from 41 to 23 sacks in their first season with Drew Brees. Shanahan, I think, is one of the best coaches at keeping his quarterback out of harm's way; I think he does this by developing a good running game and using lots of rollouts and bootlegs. In his last 10 years with the Broncos, Shanahan's offenses allowed fewer sacks than everyone except two teams quarterbacked by future Hall of Famers -- Peyton Manning and Brett Favre. So I don't think McNabb will take a beating behind that offensive line (which also has added some new players; most notably tackles Jammal Brown and Trent Williams). Note also that McNabb has long been one of the best at avoiding interceptions. I think that he, along with Shanahan, will make Washington a much harder opponent for the rest of the NFC East.

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.

BRYCE McRAE

The move wideout Antonio Bryant made from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Cincinnati Bengals should pay off the most of any veteran player. Cincy needed a deep threat in this offense; too many possession guys spoil the broth, or however that saying goes. Chad Ochocinco is still a threat and should draw some defenses; Bryant, who has averaged 15.3 yards per reception for his career, should be able to do more with that and make use of Cincinnati's superior QB play. Bryant caught 83 passes for 1,248 yards and seven TDs in 2008. Knee injuries slowed him for part of '09. If he returns to health, he could be a steal for fantasy owners.

Since 1996, KFFL.com has been combining its award-winning news service with top-notch fantasy analysis. KFFL.com offers industry-leading services, including daily news, draft guides and in-season advice. Now 100 percent free, KFFL.com is your destination for fantasy baseball, football and NASCAR cheat sheets, tips, sleepers and much more. KFFL.com has won more than a dozen expert championships and was listed as "One of the 10 essential sports-related online destinations for fans, athletes and fantasy owners" by Time.com. KFFL.com has provided content to USA Today, Yahoo! Sports, FOXSports.com and many other quality organizations.

DAVID MAY

Although the obvious answer here seems like it would be Donovan McNabb or Jake Delhomme, I think the real winner in the preseason's veteran shuffle will be Anquan Boldin. Boldin is escaping a situation that has been strained for several seasons to say the least. He is heading to an organization that is badly in need of a go to WR1. So much in fact that the guy who lead there team last year was actually retired for a moment before coming back and leading the team in receiving yards yet again. The Ravens have a great running game and solid defense, Anquan should feast on defensive backs this season and gobble up end zone looks from Joe Flacco who looks more and more poised every season.

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.

JEFFREY KAMYS

A player like Leon Washington really interests us, yes he is coming off the leg injury, but early reports have him making very good progress and put him on track to fight for the starting RB job with the Seahawks. That starting role was elusive to him in past years with the Jets and with Seattle lacking a clear cut starter, Washington has a ton of upside.

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

The best veteran going to a new team has to be Anquan Boldin who lands in Baltimore where they have tried to make do with Derrick Mason and little else. The same Mason who contemplated retirement two seasons ago. The Ravens are looking for a more balanced offense and Boldin allows the third-year quarterback Joe Flacco to continue to develop. Flacco already had 21 touchdowns last year and now has his best receiver yet. Boldin had a nice career in Arizona sharing the light with Larry Fitzgerald and now gets the spotlight by himself.

Dorey is the co-founder and lead NFL analyst for The Huddle and author of Fantasy Football: The Next Level. He has projected and predicted every NFL game and player performance since 1997 and has appeared in numerous magazines, newspapers, radio and television.

SAM HENDRICKS

Brandon Marshall (MIA) and Anquan Boldin (BAL) will do well but not as well as their past seasons simply because they go to run-first teams. Donovan McNabb should be about the same with the retooling Redskins. That leaves the RBs. I like Chester Taylor to get more carries and catches than Matt Forte in a Mike Martz offense with the Bears. Leon Washington is my sleeper to be the starter with SEA. He is more of a high risk/reward player. Either should benefit more from their move than Larry Johnson, LT or Thomas Jones.

Sam Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at his website, www.ffguidebook.com, at all major bookstores, and at www.amazon.com. He is a 20-year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the World Championship of Fantasy Football (WCOFF), National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall (out of 228 competitors) in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC).

JARED SMOLA

Brandon Marshall and Anquan Boldin seem like the easy answers, but how about Tony Scheffler in Detroit? This guy was completely ignored by HC Josh McDaniels last year in Denver, finishing with just 31 catches, 416 yards, and 2 TDs – all career-lows since his 2006 rookie campaign. But he should be a lot busier in Motown. He’ll have to share the field with TE Brandon Pettigrew, but Scheff is the more talented pass-catcher of the two. And with WR Calvin Johnson blowing the tops off opposing defenses, Scheffler will have all sorts of room to roam across the middle of the field. After finishing 22nd at his position in 2009, he could jump up into the top-15 this season. He’s a perfect high-upside TE2 for your fantasy squad.

Smola is the Senior Editor of DraftSharks.com. DraftSharks has been providing thought-provoking, outside-the-box fantasy football analysis since 1999. The site provides its members with tons of feature articles, daily email updates, in-depth player profiles and projections, its exclusive MVP Draft Board, and much more!

GREGG ROSENTHAL

Changing teams rarely helps, so Anquan Boldin wins this competition by default. He’s a younger version of Derrick Mason with far more after catch ability and Mason topped 1,000 yards the last two seasons. I actually think Boldin’s ceiling is slightly higher in Baltimore than it was in Arizona, especially with Kurt Warner now gone.

Rosenthal writes for Rotoworld, NBC Sports, and ProFootballtalk. Rotoworld is the number one most trafficked fantasy news site and can be found at Rotoworld.com.

JON MILLMAN

I narrowed it down to Donovan McNabb, Anquan Boldin and Brandon Marshall. I also considered Thomas Jones, but think the others will have a more prominent role so have a better chance to excel. If we’re talking pure stats, and which will improve or benefit the most on what they personally have done before, I would have to say Boldin. Let me explain each: McNabb – He’s been solid for over a decade, but the fact is his WRs are just not as explosive as they have been for him, so I see him being a huge help to his new team, but likely to have lower production for himself than in the past. Marshall – Similar to McNabb, he is a huge upgrade for the Dolphins and will be their top target and have terrific stats for them, but he likely will have somewhat of a decline in personal production from the past few years. Thomas Jones – I still expect a solid year and think he can turn into the workhorse there and be great value late in your draft, but he won’t be the main guy all year so his stats will take a hit. Boldin – He gets to step out of Larry Fitzgerald’s shadow and will be the top receiving option on an up and coming Offense. So as far as who’s stats will improve based on the new team, the logical choice is Boldin.

Fantasy Football Champs, FFChamps.com, founders the Millmans are the No. 1 ranked experts In the history of the Fantasy Football Index Experts Poll. FFChamps.com gets there every year by following our Football Bible, The FFCPI, our weekly rankings telling you who to play. FFChamps.com has the most state of the industry Mock Draft tool, proprietary algorithms and systems for player rankings/who to draft/who to play/who to trade in the industry, and one-to-one Expert Advice. In the last 7 years FF Champs has competed against the top Fantasy Football Experts in all of the major magazines' Experts Polls and has finished lower than 3rd only twice.

ANDY RICHARDSON

I'm intrigued by Donovan McNabb, who goes to a quarterback-friendly offense (lots of play-action and short TD flips around the goal line) and will have something to prove this year. I also like a couple of No. 2 wideouts: Antonio Bryant in Cincinnati and Nate Burleson in Detroit. Not as fantasy stars, but as good mid- to late-round values who won't be highly sought on draft day.

Richardson has been a columnist and contributor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and web site for the past nine years. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual draft and auction leagues since their inception. He previews all the NFL games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays during the NFL season.

• Comments [0]

Readers' Comments

Add a Comment

Already a registered user? Please sign in to add comments.

To add comments, you must become a registered user of our site. To register, please click here.