PCP Sports

by Michael DeLuca

With less than two months until the start of the 2009 NFL season, it’s about that time to start looking forward to your fantasy football drafts. The magazine stands are packed with fantasy football mags and I’ve assembled a composite first round for a 12 team league from some of the more reputable sources. These results in no way reflect may personal opinions of where to draft players, I’ll provide my thoughts for each selection.

1. Adrian Peterson – RB, Minnesota Vikings – Peterson is pretty much the consensus #1 and rightfully so. Capable of putting up a 2000 yard season and 20 td’s. If your drafting #1, don’t overthink it, AP’s your man.

2. Maurice Jones Drew – RB, Jacksonville Jaguars – Fantasy owners are salivating over the chance to own Jones Drew now that Fred Taylor is no longer in town. After the team handed Jones Drew a 5 year $31 million deal, coach Jack Del Rio said, “We want Maurice on the field more often. We believe he’s a feature guy and it’s his time. We’re excited about that. I’m very confident this is the type of young man that will go out and continue to display the things that have made him so popular to begin with. He’s gonna get plenty of work. We’re excited about getting him the ball more often.” It sure sounds like a recipe for success.

3. Michael Turner – RB, Atlanta Falcons – Michael “The Burner” Turner was quite simply a beast last year. 1699 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns are the type of stats that fantasy championships are made of. There’s talk in Atlanta that they’d like to lighten his load and get Jerious Norwood more involved in the offense but we’ve been hearing that for years. Don’t believe the hype, Turner will get his share of carries and td’s and will warrant a high selection on draft day. The offseason acquisition of TE Tony Gonzalez will only increase Turner’s value as teams will be less inclined to stack the box.

4. Matt Forte – RB, Chicago Bears – I’ll be the first to admit I whiffed on Forte last year. Though he averaged under 4 yards per carry, he’s still a much better back than I gave him credit for. Forte’s greatest value comes in PPR (point per reception leagues), where last year’s 46 catches were a big boost for his fantasy owners. Chicago re-signed Kevin Jones and would like to lighten the load on Forte. I believe they will, but the addition of Jay Cutler should help even things out. His stat line should be similar to last year.

5. Steven Jackson – RB, St. Louis Rams – Reports are that Jackson looks healthy and ready for a big rebound. Problem is, there’s no offense left in St. Louis. Expect eight man fronts and huge deficits to limit Jackson’s production this year. St. Louis could very well be this year’s Lions. Not only do I think that #5 is too high, I don’t think he should be a first rounder at all!

6. Chris Johnson – RB, Tennessee Titans – At this time last year, I touted Chris Johnson as the “next big thing” in fantasy football. He certainly didn’t fail to deliver and should be drafted accordingly this season. He’s set his sites on league MVP this year after totaling 1,228 rushing yards last year on just 251 carries (4.9 avg) as well as nine touchdowns. Just as impressive, he added 43 catches making him a PPR beast. Don’t let the newly svelte Lendale White scare you off from nabbing Johnson, the Titans will find ways to get this explosive superstar as many touches as possible.

7. LaDainian Tomlinson – RB, San Diego Chargers – After holding the top spot in fantasy football for nearly half a decade, it’s time for LT to step aside. A career low total in rushing yards (1110) and a gimpy toe have many fantasy owners running for the hills. It seems like Tomlinson has been around forever, but he just turned 30 on June 23rd and should have plenty left in the tank. The problem, however, is not Tomlinson’s age but the workload he’s endured over 8+ seasons. In just the last two years, Tomlinson has suffered a sprained MCL, a torn groin, and the injured toe. We’ve seen in the past that these types of injuries tend to persist with running backs and can spell the end of a fantasy legend.

8. Larry Fitzgerald – WR, Arizona Cardinals – He’s the best player at his position but that doesn’t mean he’ll end up with the best fantasy stats. Arizona’s postseason run to the Super Bowl and Fitzgerald’s contributions in the process have Fitz being drafted a bit higher than his regular season numbers will warrant.

9. DeAngelo Williams – RB, Carolina Panthers – Williams may have posted the best rushing numbers in fantasy history that absolutely nobody wants to buy into. 1,515 yards on just 273 carries. That’s a 5.5 yard avg. He also added 20 total touchdowns and accomplished all this without a single fumble. Williams is the real deal and splitting time with Jonathan Stewart shouldn’t worry you too much to draft him with a late first round pick.

10. Andre Johnson – WR, Houston Texans – I like Johnson as much as the next guy and definitely agree that he and Fitzgerald should be the top two receivers off the board…but there’s still too many good running backs to take either man this early.

11. Frank Gore – RB, San Francisco 49ers – Singletary will make this a run first team and Gore should be the beneficiary. Watch closely throughout the preseason because rookie RB Glenn Coffee may poach short yardage and goal-line carries. If so, Gore falls out of round one.

12. Steve Slaton – RB, Houston Texans – The WVU alum burst on the fantasy scene last year and made an immediate impact. 1,282 yards rushing and 4.8 avg were accompanied with ten touchdowns and 50 catches. If you can nab him with the double pick, you’ve got as good a shot as anybody at your league championship this season. Realistically, he should be gone by pick #9 at the latest.