Fantasy Football

The Washington Redskins will play the Jacksonville Jaguars tonight on NBC. You could watch this game and scout backups for the inevitable injuries both teams are set to incur. Or! You could watch the first three games of college football and look for promising prospects for the 2009 season. I’d probably go with the latter, because I sure as shit do not want any Redskins on my team, and Jacksonville is a quarterback, a slew of receivers that will all get playing time and a couple running backs that everyone is fully aware of. I’m going with the college games, but the choice is yours, my friends.

But, since this is an NFL fantasy site, here are some players to look out for this season on these respective teams. There is no guarantee that any of these players will take the field, but should they receiver ample and meaningless PT, they are worth considering this fantasy season.

Jacksonville

Troy Williamson/Jerry Porter: The new tandem of mediocre to potentially good receivers in Jacksonville’s arsenal. We tend to think Williamson has the better chance to finally succeed, if for nothing else than we have no reason to believe he doesn’t want to. But, given Minnesota’s dismal quarterbacks since Williamson was drafter seventh overall in 2004, Porter has actually demonstrated more productivity in his career.

If he was mass produced and sold as an action figure, he just has to be good.

Chauncey Washington: With Maurice Jones-Drew already having “P”’s and “Q”’s next to his name on ESPN, it is safe to assume that he, and the often maligned for his health problems, aging Fred Taylor might need someone to at least spell them, if not take over the bulk of the running game. Chauncey Washington could end up being that person. We don’t necessarily recommend drafting him, but the rookie out of USC is someone to keep an eye on as the typical rotation of running backs is churned out this season from the waiver wire.

Washington Redskins

Devin Thomas: This kid can play and should grow to be at least a reliable second option on a contender at some point in his career. I watched him rather closely at Michigan State and he exceeded expectations there. Washington has apparently opted to play their starters tonight (something I was not aware of earlier), making his value all the better should Santana Moss or Antwaan “I’ll never realize my full potential” Randle-El sustain some sort of injury, which is bound to happen. Even if it doesn’t, they are both past their prime and kind of inconsistent. Look for Thomas to get more and more looks as the season carries on, and a viable pick should you procrastinate drafting wide outs this season.

Malcolm Kelly: Pretty much the same expectations I have for this rookie receiver out of Oklahoma, only to a slightly lesser extent. Again, his predecessors are only so reliable, and he produced some decent numbers and showed a lot of potential with the Sooners. And I say this as a person with an adamant distaste for all things Oklahoma football.

That is pretty much the extent of it. We’re not exactly going to see a fantasy monsoon between these two squads (particularly out of the Redskins). But if you need something to keep your attention during this game — and I know you will — this is your saving grace.