Ask the Experts
Posted Aug. 02 at 06:06 AM
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 are you most looking forward to watching this preseason?
MIKE NAZAREK
Trent Richardson, no doubt. My Bama boy is an uber-STUD in the making. He will surprise people that say he won't produce because the team is no good. Mark my words. He will tear it up this year as a Brown!
Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc. His company offers a preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, a multi-use fantasy drafting program including auction values, 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 a 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 miken@ffmastermind.com.
SAM HENDRICKS
Two names come to mind. Trent Richardson and Robert Griffin III. Both are top-15 players at their positions. But that is a high price to pay with little to no upside. Should they fail to live up to expectations that would be a wasted first or second pick for Richardson and a 7th or 8th pick lost with RG3. Both need to be watched carefully in the preseason.
Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at www.ExtraPointPress.com, at all major bookstores, and at Amazon and BN.com. He is a 20-plus year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the 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). Follow him at his website, www.ffguidebook.com.
ALAN SATTERLEE
That's a tough question to pick just one rookie, it's exciting to see them all in NFL gear. However, picking just one -- 2011 Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III. We certainly don't think we are going to see Cam Newton numbers (those were simply historic) but we're pretty high on RG3 right out of the gate as a rookie. It's going to be interesting to see how he adjusts to the speed of the NFL game but also his arm strength and his 4.36 speed, plus how he distributes to some decent fantasy receiving prospects in Washington.
Dynasty Rogues is the fantasy football information site run by fantasy football enthusiasts for fantasy football enthusiasts. The site includes a year-round approach to analyzing football information for those in dynasty and redraft leagues. Dynasty Rogues won the 2008 Fantasy Index Experts Poll.
KEVIN NELSON
I am most interested in seeing Kendall Wright of the Tennessee Titans. The rookie running backs will all be intriguing in their own ways but Wright is the guy that could see a nice jump from his current value. Finally signed and in camp, Wright has already flashed the awesome potential that led him to be taken in the first round of this year's draft. His chemistry developed this preseason with possible new starter Jake Locker will play a large part in his success but opportunities will certainly not be limited. With Kenny Britt still battling injury and now upcoming discipline from the commish, Wright should immediately jump into a starting position if he can handle it. Rookie receivers have not been shy to early success lately, Julio Jones and A.J. Green to name a couple, and with a nice preseason Kendall Wright could provide some amazing value very late in drafts.
FFBLife.com is a company started by fantasy football lovers, for fantasy football lovers. With rankings, forums, latest news and advice, mobile applications, draft tools, social networking and more; Fantasy Football Life solely exists to reach the goal of providing all fantasy football players with everything they need. Nelson is editor-in-chief of FFBLife.com and the Fantasy Football Draft Guide, providing rankings, advice and articles for the company.
LOUIS TRANQUILLI
Doug Martin, Tampa Bay. He's in a great spot for fantasy production and he's nearly two rounds cheaper than Trent Richardson in drafts. Martin is a 1st-round running back for a team that will focus on running the ball. I want to see him run behind the revamped Bucs offensive line against NFL competition.
BFDFANTASYfootball.com is now in its 9th season of providing hard core fantasy football advice. Born out of the High Stakes games BFD has featured hundreds of draft reviews for subscribers. Our focus on advice designed to help players understand more of what's going on behind the scenes has made the BFD Coaching Tree one of the must read articles of the year, every year. Subscribers get hardcore advice that is worth using in their leagues.
SCOTT SACHS
Most fans and experts will select franchise saviors A-Luck & RG3, draft No.'s 1 & 2, studies in contrasting style, yet called upon to resurrect their teams and cities' football fortunes. I am certainly intrigued by the suddenly baggage-laden Justin Blackmon and what he will produce in 2012. First-round "Mr. Irrelevants" Doug Martin & David Wilson will contribute to their teams to be sure. But my home team bias must shine through here as my choices are Cleveland's Trent Richardson & Brandon Weeden. I have been observing them daily since they've been drafted, and so far they have said and done all the right things off the field and now in training camp. Our downtrodden fanbase has been plagued by numerous double-digit loss seasons, years of poor talent evaluation, and a revolving door of front office screw-ups and ever-changing coaching staffs. The additions of T-Rich & B-Weed are the building blocks for renewed hope and optimism for the Browns' return to NFL relevance.
Sachs runs Perfect Season Fantasy Football, offering live personal advice from training camps through the Super Bowl. His 20-plus years of fantasy football experience includes his league’s only perfect season, as well as a wire-to-wire championship in Fantasy Index's 2011 Mock Auction Draft League. Visit "The Coach" at his website: perfectseasonffb.com and follow him on Twitter: at http://twitter.com/#!/ffbcoach.
DAVID DOREY
Doug Martin is the one I really want to get a good feel for since Trent Richardson is already first-round fodder and likely over-hyped. Martin is a far better value and on a better team that should take a big step forward this season. LeGarrette Blount was nothing more than a placeholder with a bad attitude and even worse work ethic.
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.
CORY BONINI
Denver running back Ronnie Hillman is the most intriguing back to me. The Broncos need a competent third-down option, and the rook is explosive in this role. The biggest concern is whether he can pick up an NFL blitz, because the Broncs won't put Peyton Manning in harm's way if Hillman struggles in this area. While Willis McGahee will be the primary toter, I see Hillman having every-down back capability. It will be interesting to see if he gets that chance at any point in the 2012 season, but it all starts with how well he handles the third-down role in preseason play.
Since 1996, KFFL.com has been combining its award-winning news service with fantasy analysis. KFFL.com offers 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, and FOXSports.com among many other organizations.
ANDY RICHARDSON
I like shiny things as much as the next guy, so I am most intrigued by the quarterbacks atop the draft, Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin. Even if the running backs are all they've been hyped to be, these are players we'll be putting out to pasture five or six years down the road. Luck figures to be the next Elway or Manning, while Griffin may burn brighter, but shorter. You can bet I'll be watching their first exhibition games to get those initial impressions of whether we'll still be talking about these guys as NFL stars a decade from now.
Richardson has been a columnist and contributor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and web site for more than ten 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.
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Posted by ARTHUR MOSER | Aug. 02 at 12:10 PM
And for a darkhorse, check out Quick. He is raw but he is huge and powerful and could surprise quickly at the WR spot.
Posted by Don Parsons | Aug. 03 at 05:57 AM
Brian Quick could surprise but I don't think its likely given the talent level around him and his rawness. I have to agree with Doug Martin as the rookie to watch as I want to see how much the team is using him and when he's getting pulled for Blount and how he looks. Definitely a lot of potential there but it also has the ability to become a commitee backfield whereas if Martin does well he can put that to rest.