Fantasy Football

Instead of doing this randomly, we decided to list these according to the final standings in our local newspaper. The AFC East is at the top, and Miami squeaked out the division with a Big East like schedule, so we’re starting with the overly celebrated Dolphins, who now call Land Shark Lager stadium home.

For those who seek an alternative to Corona.

The 2008 Dolphins, as you are probably well aware if you’re reading this site, are responsible for the biggest single season turn around in NFL history, going from 1-15 in 2007 to 11-5 and AFC divisional champs in 2008. Say what you will about their schedule (like I just did) or their luck (Brady going out in week 1, the Jets unforeseen collapse), a ten game turnaround in a sixteen game season is remarkable. The problem is, however, that they did this without any central focus on the offensive end. With the exception of Ronnie Brown, every player was interchangeable from a statistical output.

Whether it was Greg Camarillo or Ted Ginn or Ricky Williams or anyone else, the Dolphins opted for schematics in lieu of star power (a common and intelligent trend right now in the NFL). The bad news is their fantasy options are limited, even Ronnie Brown went for a biscuit over 900 and ten touchdowns, far from a top twenty pick. The good news is they provide a lot of options for a ten person league in bye-weeks. If you can manage it, drafting all your players with differing off-weeks from the Dolphins (or at least enough so that Miami’s players can spell you) and pick up a couple of these henchmen they’ve accumulated, it’s as good as you can plan on doing.

Can’t Miss (for what one can realistically expect): Ronnie Brown. Injuries have taken him out of his prime earlier than he should have been, but between Ricky Williams and the wildcat formation, Brown has as much mid-round potential as anyone, and the likelihood he is re-injured is slim. I also like Ted Ginn, though I’d recommend taking him after you’ve already filled all your starter spots. Unless Pennington gets a Popeye arm when he eats spinach, it’s still not strong enough to keep up with Ginn. Also, the defense. Bill Parcells will always assemble a competent defense, and their projected status of 12-15 overall in the league is more than appropriate.

Tread Lightly: Like we said, expectations are fairly low for pretty much everyone on this team. But I’d recommend staying away from Pennington, Williams & Bess. Pennington, for all his second in MVP voting hype, is really nothing more than a backup QB on a fantasy team, and even then you can find better. Williams, sorry to say, is something of a has been, and his productivity is only going to fall from last year to 2009. He’ll have a couple good games that might entice you to acquire him off free agency should he be available, but don’t rush him into a starter spot, if Brown is healthy he’s bound to disappoint. If you actually know who Davone Bess is and want to know why you shouldn’t draft him, let me know and I’ll offer an explanation.

Dark Horses: Anthony Fasano and Greg Camarillo. Fasano is a perfectly suitable tight end and could have a surprising, Owen Daniels-like season if he can garner some attention from the powers that be. Camarillo was showing flashes of brilliance last night until he went out for the season in week twelve and missed five games. In 10.5 games he had 55 catches and two touchdowns, almost tailor-made for backup status.

That pretty much covers everyone except for the rookies, and the best you’re getting from this draft class is Patrick Turner, a wide receiver out of USC who I would guess won’t be any better than Camarillo or Ginn, and probably on par with Bess if he gets the playing time. The highest you can take Brown is probably the fourth round, anything after that is fine. Everyone else on this team, because the construct of the team, has warning flags pouring out of their ass.

Tomorrow: the New England Patriots