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There are a couple of stories coming out the Buffalo Bills camp that impact the values for your fantasy football team. The biggest news is that Marshawn Lynch has been suspended for the first 3 games of the season. Upon hearing that Lynch is out Fred Jackson decided not to hold out any longer due to his contract issues and show up to start working out with is teammates. This is big news for all Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch owners. Lynch owners are going to be without a starting RB for the first 3 games leaving in them in a position to draft Fred Jackson higher then they normally would (if he is available) or look for other options. For those in keeper leagues, it probably leaves them praying that when Marshawn comes back he is the monster stud everyone expected him to be after his strong rookie season so they can get some trade value for him as confidence in Bills camp cannot be high. With two offseasons of legal troubles for Lynch the Bills will be looking to increase Jackson’s load from the 10-15 touches a game he received last year. History has shown that when Jackson gets the ball big things can happen. He is a threat as a receiver, has good speed and has the power to run over people in the holes while carrying defenders on his back. This is the break he has been waiting for and Buffalo can’t be too sure of Lynch’s future with his attraction to court proceedings. Fred Jackson should be drafted as more then just a handcuff anyway and this just increased his value. We are probably looking at a timeshare in the backfield and look for Jackson’s role expand, especially with strong performances to start the 2009 season.
Terrell Owens also decided to stop doing sit-ups in his driveway and show up for OTAs, meet his new teammates and establish chemistry with his new QB and fellow receivers. This means only good things for the Bills offense. If T.O. is even a fraction of the receiver he has been in the past that will open up room for Lee Evans to get some single coverage which he will beat all day long. This is going to be a formidable 1-2 punch at receiver for the Bills, not too mention the shifty speedster Roscoe Parrish in the slot. Buffalo Bills fans are hoping they get the Trent Edwards from the first 5 games of last season back and not the shell they saw the rest of the season.
Well I was right about Jay Cutler no longer being a Bronco, but to the Bears???? Who knew? The Bears were not even on my radar, although in retrospect they probably should have been. The Rex Grossman experiment failed and Kyle Orton was not the answer, despite what the Bears faithful tried to spin last season. So what does this mean for fantasy football??
Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears- Unless the Bears do something smart and sign Torry Holt or the newly released Plaxico Burress, this move actually hurts Cutler’s fantasy value. Last season Cutler had one of best receivers in the game to throw to in Brandon Marshall. He also had the emergent burner Eddie Royal and the second coming of Jason Witten in Tony Scheffler. In a word “Weapons”. He arrives in Chicago with a very good tight end to throw to in Greg Olsen and a super speedy cornerback/kick return phenom turned receiver in Devin Hester……and that’s it! The Bears just signed all-pro Left Tackle Orlando Pace which means that for 6-7 games next year Cutler will have all day to throw (until Pace is out for the season with an ankle or knee injury) But who will he throw to????? ~ Doyadoya
Hurts his value? This kills it. Cutler goes from a team that throws more than most to one that doesn’t. He also goes to a team that has a good defense, solid running game and as you mentioned no weapons. Unless the Bears make some big moves in the receiver area Cutler has gone from easily a top 5 QB to barely a top 10, if that. ~ Pretzel
Devin Hester, Bears- This is the greatest news Hester has heard in his life. He will be getting balls thrown to the correct spots consistently. For a guy who is know for speed and playmaking ability and not hands, it is great to not have to constantly adjust to the ball during his routes. It might give him a chance to be where he wanted to be in his break when the ball gets there, which means there will be more than a few highlight reels of DH making defenseless DBs look ridiculous. ~ Doyadoya
Agreed. The Bears still need to get someone on the other side to open it up a little for Hester . ~ Pretzel
Greg Olsen, Bears- See Devin Hester but substitute the “making defenseless DB look stupid” with “running over defenseless DBs” ~ Doyadoya
This should make Olsen the stud tight end he was expected to be coming out of college. He just took a jump on my draft board. ~ Pretzel
Brandon Marshall, Broncos- Marshall might actually be the hardest hit by this trade. He was the go to guy (when he wasn’t in court) Now he has an inconsistent QB running an unfamiliar offense…..Not Good. ~ Doyadoya
Add to this that he just underwent hip surgery and is expected to miss all of the offseason program and you get everything you said and no time to build chemistry with you newly acquired inconsistent QB. Can things get worse for Brandon Marshall? ~ Pretzel
Eddie Royal, Broncos- Kyle Orton has a big arm no question; he is just not very good at aiming it. Eddie Royal is a burner, home run hitter. Royal’s production may actually increase, since the Broncos will be in a lot more 3rd and long situation and behind more often they will be throwing long a lot. ~ Doyadoya
With Marshall gone for the offseason look for Royal to take the role of Orton’s go to wide receiver. ~ Pretzel
Kyle Orton, Broncos- Look for Orton to return the Orton of old. Inconsistent, unsure of the offense, lost and great at making mistakes. The sad part for Orton is he will not have the Chicago defense to save his win loss record. ~ Doyadoya
With all that in mind I still look for Orton’s fantasy value to increase on a team that will definitely be throwing a lot more then his former team and weapons around him that have the talent to make his mistake still look good. Marshall, Royal, Stokley and Scheffler are all better for Orton then the super speedy cornerback/kick return phenom attempting to learn the receiver position, Devin Hester. ~ Pretzel
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