Why does everyone hate Julian Edelman? To me, he looks like a pass-catching machine. But nobody else seems to like him at all.
I noticed this when I was compiling the Experts Poll for the magazine last week. We’ve got 20 different industry experts in that competition. Not a single one of them included Edelman in their preseason top 20.
I think I’ve got him at about No. 7 on my list, and he goes up to No. 2 in a PPR format.
As a reminder, Edelman started last year as a backup. Danny Amendola was supposed to be the replacement for Wes Welker. Then it was in the second half of the year when the Patriots finally just said the hell with it and put Edelman ahead of Amendola. And from that point on, he was just a monster.
In the team’s final eight games (half a season) Edelman caught 69 passes for 729 yards and 5 TDs, plus a pair of 2-point conversions. He averaged almost 9 catches per game in that run, which is about the busiest a receiver has been since Marvin Harrison had that pinball season with 143 catches back in 1996.
That’s why, in a PPR format, I think Edelman is the best receiver short of Megatron.
This caused much handwringing in the ongoing Fanex Analysis Draft. According to my numbers, Edelman should have been selected in the first round. So when I was on the clock at pick No. 21, should I take him? Or should I risk letting him slide to pick 3.03 or even to choice 4.10?
At choice 2.10, I went with Randall Cobb, another slot-type pass catcher who hauls in a bunch of balls. Cobb is lower than Edelman on my board, but I was more worried about him being gone when I got back on the clock at 3.03.
Edelman did make it to choice 3.03. So I don’t get to find out how far he would have fallen. But he caught over 100 passes last year, so I’m sure somebody would have taken him before we got too far into the fourth round.
As a refresher for those not familiar with Fanex, it’s a best-ball league with no roster moves. What you pick is what you’re stuck with for the entire year. PPR scoring. Start 3 wide receivers plus a flex (WR-RB-TE).
| FANEX ANALYSIS DRAFT | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pick | Pos | Player | Owner |
| 1.01 | RB | Matt Forte | Panizo |
| 1.02 | RB | Jamaal Charles | Holm |
| 1.03 | RB | LeSean McCoy | Allan |
| 1.04 | RB | Adrian Peterson | Adams |
| 1.05 | WR | Calvin Johnson | Cannon |
| 1.06 | RB | Marshawn Lynch | Rito |
| 1.07 | RB | Eddie Lacy | Harmon |
| 1.08 | TE | Jimmy Graham | Cahill |
| 1.09 | WR | A.J. Green | Kellogg |
| 1.10 | WR | Brandon Marshall | Nease |
| 1.11 | WR | Demaryius Thomas | Dolfi |
| 1.12 | WR | Dez Bryant | Schauf |
| 2.01 | RB | DeMarco Murray | Schauf |
| 2.02 | RB | LeVeon Bell | Dolfi |
| 2.03 | WR | Alshon Jeffery | Nease |
| 2.04 | RB | Arian Foster | Kellogg |
| 2.05 | RB | Giovani Bernard | Cahill |
| 2.06 | WR | Julio Jones | Harmon |
| 2.07 | WR | Antonio Brown | Rito |
| 2.08 | RB | Doug Martin | Cannon |
| 2.09 | QB | Peyton Manning | Adams |
| 2.10 | WR | Randall Cobb | Allan |
| 2.11 | WR | Jordy Nelson | Holm |
| 2.12 | QB | Drew Brees | Panizo |
| 3.01 | RB | Montee Ball | Panizo |
| 3.02 | RB | Zac Stacy | Holm |
| 3.03 | WR | Julian Edelman | Allan |
| 3.04 | RB | Reggie Bush | Adams |
—Ian Allan