Stubborn OXen Blog: Welcome to the Stubborn OXen Blog!

Stubborn OXen Blog: Welcome to the Stubborn OXen Blog!: Here is a new blog I am starting with my good friend JT Stallsmith. We have been good friends for years now, despite my love of the Jets and his deep roots as a Boston/Patriots fan, ugh! I will continue to add postings of my own on What I Know About Football, but I will also be doing weekly posts with Stally on our SOB blog. We will be battling back and forth on which teams will be victorious in their weekly matchups, as well as who will win their divisions and take home the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the year. Enjoy!

PLAYERS TO AVOID

Everyone that has played fantasy football has gotten burned by drafting a one year wonder, a veteran player past his prime, or just a player who has gotten way too much hype for not proving they can consistently be relied upon in fantasyland. Here are some guys that you might want to avoid in your draft so that you are not scratching your head in a month wondering why you drafted one of these players so high.

Quarterbacks:

Eli Manning: The Giants offense clearly needed work after last season when Eli Manning threw a league high, and a career high, 25 interceptions. What did the Giants do? They let Steve Smith and Kevin Boss walk in free agency, as well as cut three long time starters on the offensive line. In a division with some scary pass rushers, Eli could be running for his life and throwing picks left and right again. I would not count on him as anything besides a solid backup fantasy quarterback.

Kevin Kolb: There was a lot of talk last season about Kolb being a number 1 fantasy quarterback, but that was with the plethora of weapons in Philly. Larry Fitzgerald is an unbelievable receiver, but he alone cannot make an offense effective, as we saw last year. With the loss starter Steve Breaston, they have even fewer weapons in the passing game than last season. Todd Heap is way past his prime and has a ton of injury concerns. If one of the Cardinals young receivers does not step up and become a legitimate starting receiver, Kolb could be in for a very long season.

Donovan McNabb: I do not think there was a single person more upset that the Vikings let Sidney Rice go in free agency than Donovan McNabb. I still think McNabb has a good amount left in the tank, but without Rice, the Vikings are very thin at receiver. McNabb has wanted a big, fast receiver like Rice his entire career, but he will now have to go another season without one. Percy Harvin is a good receiver, but he works best out of the slot. The Viking have two good tight ends, which will help in the red zone, but McNabb thrives on throwing passes deep downfield and I don’t think they have a player who can stretch the field.

Running Backs:

UNDERVALUED FANTASY PLAYERS

People love putting together their list of sleepers, super sleepers, and breakout players. Let’s make this much simpler. Here are my top players who I believe are undervalued in most drafts. These are guys that you can target later than you may expect, but could end up being big steals that help you win a championship.

Quarterbacks:

Matt Schaub: The Texans’ offense should be one of the top scoring offenses in the league this year. Schaub has an unbelievable amount of weapons at his disposal and still has not reached his full potential. He has just turned 30, which for quarterbacks is the prime of their career, and should improve on his touchdown totals from last season with a healthy Owen Daniels back in the lineup.

Josh Freeman: One of the most underrated fantasy quarterbacks last season, Freeman scored just 11 points less than Drew Brees last season. He was unbelievably consistent and there is no reason he cannot put up similar, or even better, numbers than he did last year with the progression of this very young offense.

Matt Cassel: People have been very low on Cassel, who is coming off of a Pro Bowl year in which he threw a career high 27 touchdowns to only 7 interceptions. He put up those elite numbers with one of the worst receiving corps in all of the NFL and with a rookie tight end. With the additions of Steve Breaston and rookie Jonathan Baldwin, as well as the progression of tight end Tony Moeaki, Cassel should have this offense rolling at full speed. I see the Chiefs throwing the ball more this year and having a more balanced attack after leading the league in rushing last season.

Ryan Fitzpatrick: Despite only starting 13 games last season, Fitzpatrick put up career numbers and seems to have stabilized the quarterback position for the Bills, which has plagued them for over a decade. Fitzpatrick will benefit from being named the starter before the season for the first time in his career. With one of the easier schedules in the NFL, he has the skills to be a borderline number 1 fantasy quarterback or at least a solid backup, despite the loss of Lee Evans.

Running Backs:

BRONCOS SHOULD TRADE TEBOW

After the Broncos failed to trade Kyle Orton to the Dolphins, they have no choice but to start him over Tim Tebow because he is clearly the better quarterback for 2011. I am not saying that Tebow has no chance of becoming a good starting quarterback, although I am very skeptical of that happening, but Orton is the better quarterback right now. Since neither seems to be the future of the franchise, one of them needs to be off the team. A team cannot carry two decent quarterbacks on their roster and not put their full support behind either one of them. This causes way too many controversies in the locker room and makes your starting quarterback jittery, since he will have to look over his should all season long.

I have constantly made a case that Orton is an underrated starting quarterback and should be the Broncos starter in 2011. Orton was on pace to break Dan Marino’s single season passing record before he was injured and then kept on the bench for Tebow to start. He is a smart and accurate quarterback who has never gotten the credit he deserves. He will never be a top 5 quarterback, but he is more than serviceable, which is more than you can say about most starting NFL quarterbacks. Orton’s best attributes are his decision-making and his accuracy, which allows him to get the most out of a young and talented group of receivers. This allows Orton to be at his best and helps the Broncos’ offense run at full speed.

Tebow on the other hand is incredibly inaccurate and inconsistent, which is to be expected from such a young quarterback with almost no experience in a pro style offense. The only qualities that he possesses that Orton lacks are dynamic running abilities and unmatched leadership. However, those don’t make him a great quarterback. His throwing mechanics and accuracy have to improve for him to even be considered a starting quarterback in the league. 

10 Below the Radar Free Agent Signings

Most football fans will hear about the big name free agent signings, but here are some of the free agents who could make a bigger difference on their new teams than their contracts suggest.

Kevin Burnett ILB, Dolphins

Burnett’s development last season into a top end starter at middle linebacker helped the Chargers’ defense become one of the best in the league. He had 95 tackles, 6 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 2 interceptions. Those numbers would usually mean a trip to the Pro Bowl, but he unfortunately got snubbed for Ray Lewis and Jerod Mayo. Pairing Karlos Dansby with Burnett will create the best pair of interior linebackers in the NFL and should make the Dolphins defense even more dangerous. He is a big upgrade over Channing Crowder. 

Harvey Dahl G, Rams

This is a huge pick up for the Rams, who continue to do everything they can to help the development of Rookie of the Year Sam Bradford. The Rams already had a great line with two great young bookend tackles. Now they have a top 5 guard as well to add to the mix. Dahl will help out in the run game as well as protect Bradford. The Falcons might miss Dahl more than they think, considering they are in one of the most competitive divisions in the NFL.

Ray Edwards DE, Falcons

I almost didn’t put Edwards on here because he was the most coveted pass rusher in this free agent class, but he still does not get as much name recognition as you might expect. He might not be a top end pass rusher but he is the perfect fit in Atlanta. Much like how Edwards was paired with a great pass rusher in Minesota (Jared Allen), Edwards will now be paired with John Abraham, who is getting older yet is still a very dangerous pass rusher.

Jermon Bushrod T, Saints

Bushrod was pursued by a few other teams than the Saints (at least the Bears went hard after him), but he ended up staying with the Saints. As anyone who watches football knows, the Saints pass the ball a ton and they cannot afford to lose such a young and talented player who holds pass rushers at bay.

Steve Breaston WR, Chiefs

Breaston is reunited with his old offense coordinator Todd Haley, now head coach of the Chiefs. The Chiefs are desperate for weapons in the passing game and Breaston will be the most reliable receiver for Matt Cassel, since Dwayne Bowe and first round pick Jonathan Baldwin have a lot of character and work ethic concerns.

STARTING QUARTERBACKS WHO MIGHT SURPRISE YOU

As expected, there have been numerous quarterbacks on the move since free agency started yesterday. Many of the top tier quarterbacks ended up where most people thought they would: Matt Hasselbeck to the Titans, Donovan McNabb to the Vikings, and Kevin Kolb to the Cardinals (the latter two are unofficial but are as good as done deals). However, there are some lower level quarterbacks on the move that could end up starting for their respective teams. Here are some of the more interesting quarterback situations:

Seattle Seahawks

QBs on their roster: Charlie Whitehurst

Who everyone expected them to go after: Kevin Kolb, Matt Leinart

Who will most likely be their starter: Tarvaris Jackson

Everyone thought that the Seahawks would take a run at Kevin Kolb since they were expected to let Matt Hasselbeck leave. However, it is reported that they really didn’t show much interest in him once free agency opened up. They were also tied to Matt Leinart, considering his connection to coach Pete Carroll. They decided to go in a completely different direction and signed Tarvaris Jackson to compete with Charlie Whitehurst, whom they gave up a second round pick to get just a season ago. It does not look like they will go after another quarterback in free agency, except for someone to be their third string quarterback. Maybe they end up going after a guy like Marc Bulger, but it is unlikely at this point.

FANTASY FOOTBALL COMING SOON

Sorry I have been MIA on the blog for such a long time, but I have been extremely busy and I was tired of reading about legal proceedings and trying to find something to say about reports that were entire speculative anyway.

Either way, the lock looks as if it is coming to an end and we can FINALLY get this season rolling. Fantasy Football preparation is going to be even more difficult this year considering there are approximately 500 free agents without a team right now. After the big name free agents sign, I will be bringing you my fantasy advice for the upcoming season, so look forward to it!