FANTASY FOOTBALL ARTICLES

First Round - Just like in fantasy drafts, the NFL draft has seem some solid if not spectacular receivers taken in the first round. It has also seen some incredible busts come along. Since this is a position that typically takes time to develop, looking at past drafts has to consider the two to three years that are expected for a receiver to come into his own. Other than Terrell and Rogers, most of the disappointments have been the receivers taken late in the round. Last season was not considered nearly as good as 2004 for wideouts and yet the top eight receivers all had playing time. But none were particularly fantasy relevant.

Second Round – This round has produced it’s share of starters and in several cases – players that did better than many first rounders.. Chris Chambers and Chad Johnson came out of 2001 but otherwise this round has not produced many fantasy gems for the current season. Taken this deeply in the draft has usually meant the team believes in them but not enough to consider them an instant starter for the last several seasons.

Third Round – This round has produced some very nice players – Steve Smith and Darrell Jackson as leaders. But it has been an almost wasteland the last four seasons and recall that both Smith and Jackson showed up very early with their talent. Consider them much more the exception since teams are no longer searching for immediate impact this deeply.

Fourth Round – While most years offer up one player from this round to become a starter (more likely a #2 wideout), last season had almost zero production from this level with only Roydell Williams showing up thanks to constant injury problems in Tennessee. Too deep for any expectations on the current year.

Rounds Five to Seven – Oddly enough, the fifth and sixth rounds have done nothing to produce starters and yet both Donald Driver and T.J. Houshmandzadeh came from the seventh round to becoming starters. The last four years have produced little more than practice players and wasted draft picks.

2006 -   The batch of rookies this year looks as weak as any in recent memory. The top draftees were actually college juniors who opted to come out because the talent level was so low this year. Santonio Holmes landed in Pittsburgh as the first taken but that was at the end of the first round and he’ll struggle to get as high as a #3 receiver with Hines Ward, Cedrick Wilson and Heath Miller already there. Chad Jackson was an interesting prospect that fell, but his 2006 season in New England will more likely be about learning than producing fantasy numbers. At least he only has Deion Branch as his main competition but the scheme in New England is already diverse and unlikely to produce big numbers for any wideout, let alone a rookie who came out early. Moss in New York will only be a slot receiver while Greg Jennings in Green Bay has to battle a slate of hopefuls in Green Bay. If there was ever a year to avoid a rookie receiver – this is it.

Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers