As mentioned earlier, I’ve made a lot of changes to the Top 250 since Friday. Here are the most significant adjustments:
(1) QB Robert Griffin III was 197th overall and 27th among QBs. This morning I moved him out of the top 250. The franchise quarterback we saw as a rookie in 2012 is no more. Whether because of injuries or confidence or--as one NFL executive recently suggested--a lack of desire to improve, I don't see RGIII playing more than a handful of games this season. Colt McCoy or Kirk Cousins will inherit a pretty bad team with terrific offensive weapons. As I wrote the other day, it's my belief that Cousins will win that battle and become a consistent QB2 with occasional upside.
(2) RB Charcandrick West—a guy I’ve mentioned a couple times this past week—moves into the top 250 to #236 overall and #72 among RBs. West has a ways to go to earn meaningful regular season touches, but is headed in the right direction.
(3) RB David Johnson moves from 152/52 (overall/positional) to 131/44 with a strong performance Saturday. Keep in mind he plummeted in July and into August when RB Chris Johnson was signed. But now that David looks healthy, he gets the bump that’s been due to him for awhile.
(4) RB Montee Ball falls from 110/38 to 138/46. Meanwhile, teammate Ronnie Hillman jumps from 193/57 to 127/41. In recent weeks I’ve believed that Ball would start the season as C.J. Anderson’s backup. But Hillman has excelled this preseason and, according to reports, has been an asset in pass protection—critically important for all teams, but particularly so for a team protecting the largely immobile Peyton Manning. As of today, Hillman’s one of the best RB backups to own.
(5) Eric Ebron inches upward from 233/27 to 188/21. For a while this summer he wasn’t even on my top 250. In recent weeks I’ve given him the benefit of the doubt in an offense that will need him to step up as a reliable #4 or #5 target. The biggest knock on Ebron is that he’s had trouble with drops. He also allegedly played hurt last year. Any progress made in this area should propel him to an every-other-week streaming option. I’m willing to bet he’ll succeed.
(6) The biggest change on my draft board concerns the Redskins’ backfield. Rookie Matt Jones has netted 82 yards on 13 carries this preseason (6.3 YPC) behind an awful offensive line. Head coach Jay Gruden acknowledged back in May that Jones could cut into Alfred Morris’s workload. The rookie’s stock is trending in the right direction, and he’s rocketed up my draft board from 221/68 to 128/42.
An overreaction to meaningless games? Maybe. But keep this in mind: Alfred Morris, who’s dropped from 35/10 to 46/19, is coming off his worst NFL season. He’s largely irrelevant in the passing game. Washington will be playing from behind in most second halves. Morris’s upside as a near-elite RB is now in serious doubt as long as Jones is in the picture. We’ll know more in the next week or two. For now, I’m passing on Morris at his current 30/13 ADP.
(1) QB Robert Griffin III was 197th overall and 27th among QBs. This morning I moved him out of the top 250. The franchise quarterback we saw as a rookie in 2012 is no more. Whether because of injuries or confidence or--as one NFL executive recently suggested--a lack of desire to improve, I don't see RGIII playing more than a handful of games this season. Colt McCoy or Kirk Cousins will inherit a pretty bad team with terrific offensive weapons. As I wrote the other day, it's my belief that Cousins will win that battle and become a consistent QB2 with occasional upside.
(2) RB Charcandrick West—a guy I’ve mentioned a couple times this past week—moves into the top 250 to #236 overall and #72 among RBs. West has a ways to go to earn meaningful regular season touches, but is headed in the right direction.
(3) RB David Johnson moves from 152/52 (overall/positional) to 131/44 with a strong performance Saturday. Keep in mind he plummeted in July and into August when RB Chris Johnson was signed. But now that David looks healthy, he gets the bump that’s been due to him for awhile.
(4) RB Montee Ball falls from 110/38 to 138/46. Meanwhile, teammate Ronnie Hillman jumps from 193/57 to 127/41. In recent weeks I’ve believed that Ball would start the season as C.J. Anderson’s backup. But Hillman has excelled this preseason and, according to reports, has been an asset in pass protection—critically important for all teams, but particularly so for a team protecting the largely immobile Peyton Manning. As of today, Hillman’s one of the best RB backups to own.
(5) Eric Ebron inches upward from 233/27 to 188/21. For a while this summer he wasn’t even on my top 250. In recent weeks I’ve given him the benefit of the doubt in an offense that will need him to step up as a reliable #4 or #5 target. The biggest knock on Ebron is that he’s had trouble with drops. He also allegedly played hurt last year. Any progress made in this area should propel him to an every-other-week streaming option. I’m willing to bet he’ll succeed.
(6) The biggest change on my draft board concerns the Redskins’ backfield. Rookie Matt Jones has netted 82 yards on 13 carries this preseason (6.3 YPC) behind an awful offensive line. Head coach Jay Gruden acknowledged back in May that Jones could cut into Alfred Morris’s workload. The rookie’s stock is trending in the right direction, and he’s rocketed up my draft board from 221/68 to 128/42.
An overreaction to meaningless games? Maybe. But keep this in mind: Alfred Morris, who’s dropped from 35/10 to 46/19, is coming off his worst NFL season. He’s largely irrelevant in the passing game. Washington will be playing from behind in most second halves. Morris’s upside as a near-elite RB is now in serious doubt as long as Jones is in the picture. We’ll know more in the next week or two. For now, I’m passing on Morris at his current 30/13 ADP.