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 Most of the fantasy world has Minnesota RB Adrian Peterson atop their rankings. To be honest as recently as the end of July, I had him at #1, too. I. But after deeper analysis and consideration, I’ve changed courses. In the last decade, there has never been a consensus #1 fantasy pick who has done as little as Peterson. The potential is there for greatness, but fantasy leagues don’t give points for potential.
The point of this article is not to brand you a fool if you take Adrian Peterson with the #1 overall pick. The point of this article is to brand you a fool if you don’t at least consider the alternatives. Here are five reasons why Peterson shouldn’t be handed the #1 spot on a silver platter.
He has a tendency to get shut down
There’s an old saying that NFL analysts love to pull out of the mothballs when discussing great running backs: “You can’t stop him. You can only hope to contain him.” The funny thing about Peterson is you can stop him. As explosive as he is, Peterson has shown a tendency to get taken out of a game. Good defenses know how to game plan against him. Peterson finished with 80 or fewer rushing yards in five games last season and eight games in 2007. If you’re doing the math, that’s 13 times in 30 games. And this is our consensus #1 pick? I’m not suggesting Peterson isn’t good. I’m just saying he’s not in the same class as past fantasy stalwarts like Marshall Faulk, LaDainian Tomlinson or Priest Holmes. Call me spoiled but I expect more from the top overall fantasy pick.
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