A heads-up that starting September 1 I’ll be contributing fantasy football content to the Raleigh area’s WRAL website. These posts will be unique to WRAL readers, meaning if you want an extra dose of FF4W perspectives on all things fantasy football, you can find the content every Tuesday and Thursday at www.wralsportsfan.com. I’ll be writing from the perspective of my alter-ego---the narrator of the book “Fantasy Football for Winners.” So unlike me (grateful husband, father, and job holder), my book persona believes anyone who takes fantasy shortcuts is a moron, and anyone who spends less than 50 hours a week researching fantasy is lazy.
Of course, I'll continue to write daily content on this Facebook site. Speaking of which, back to bold predictions:
(29) Christine Michael (RB-63 ADP) will be a top 40 RB. Two seasons ago I made my worst draft pick of the year, and I realized it only a few seconds after making the decision. I had been targeting rookie Jeremy Hill, but by round 11 or 12, I’d forgotten about Hill and had five seconds on the clock to make my next pick. I lunged for Michael as a potential—yes, a *potential*--RB handcuff. Two picks later, an opponent snagged Hill. I dropped Michael a few weeks later. Lost in the story of the former second rounder’s underwhelming career is his seeming growing level of maturity this past year. He’s looked good in camp and is earning Head Coach Pete Carroll’s trust. The highly athletic running back has played well in spite of underperforming, posting a career 4.7 YPC. People have asked me why I don’t rank Thomas Rawls (FF4W RB-17). The answer is not only Rawls’ recovery from injury, but also Michael’s resurgence as a legitimate football talent. Whether or not Rawls starts all 16 games, Michael has spot-starter appeal on a team that should score plenty.
(30) Allen Hurns (WR-29 ADP) will not be a top 40 WR. This the second straight season Hurns has made my bold predictions list, although last year he was on the underrated side of the ledger. On the eve of the 2015 season, his WR ADP stood at 80. Think about that. This site said he’d be a top 45 WR. If you were one of the only people in the fantasy universe to join me in drafting Hurns as your WR4, you landed a low-end WR1 for the price of a kicker. But the wideout is due for a regression this season. A healthy Julius Thomas will eat into his passing-down targets, while a much-improved backfield will foster a more balanced attack. Hurns is not a volume receiver, so he’s overly dependent on big plays to produce big fantasy numbers. No other top 20 fantasy WR in 2015 caught fewer balls (4.27) per game. So relish what Hurns did last year and move on; he won’t come close to repeating it.
Of course, I'll continue to write daily content on this Facebook site. Speaking of which, back to bold predictions:
(29) Christine Michael (RB-63 ADP) will be a top 40 RB. Two seasons ago I made my worst draft pick of the year, and I realized it only a few seconds after making the decision. I had been targeting rookie Jeremy Hill, but by round 11 or 12, I’d forgotten about Hill and had five seconds on the clock to make my next pick. I lunged for Michael as a potential—yes, a *potential*--RB handcuff. Two picks later, an opponent snagged Hill. I dropped Michael a few weeks later. Lost in the story of the former second rounder’s underwhelming career is his seeming growing level of maturity this past year. He’s looked good in camp and is earning Head Coach Pete Carroll’s trust. The highly athletic running back has played well in spite of underperforming, posting a career 4.7 YPC. People have asked me why I don’t rank Thomas Rawls (FF4W RB-17). The answer is not only Rawls’ recovery from injury, but also Michael’s resurgence as a legitimate football talent. Whether or not Rawls starts all 16 games, Michael has spot-starter appeal on a team that should score plenty.
(30) Allen Hurns (WR-29 ADP) will not be a top 40 WR. This the second straight season Hurns has made my bold predictions list, although last year he was on the underrated side of the ledger. On the eve of the 2015 season, his WR ADP stood at 80. Think about that. This site said he’d be a top 45 WR. If you were one of the only people in the fantasy universe to join me in drafting Hurns as your WR4, you landed a low-end WR1 for the price of a kicker. But the wideout is due for a regression this season. A healthy Julius Thomas will eat into his passing-down targets, while a much-improved backfield will foster a more balanced attack. Hurns is not a volume receiver, so he’s overly dependent on big plays to produce big fantasy numbers. No other top 20 fantasy WR in 2015 caught fewer balls (4.27) per game. So relish what Hurns did last year and move on; he won’t come close to repeating it.