Chris Liss posted some info from the NFL training camps earlier but we're going to start commenting on important happenings on a daily basis. Tuesday is typically dull; it's usually the least busy day of the week for retail but still there is always news out of NFL camps. Here we go.
-Chris touched on the Brett Favre drama. If you're going to be a media hog, at least be entertaining (a la Chad Ochocinco or Terrell Owens). The last word was that some players were definitely told of his retirement. Visanthe Shiancoe was not one of them and publicly stated that. Everyone is quick to anoint Tavaris Jackson the heir to the QB position but all the receivers' values wouldn't take as much of a hit if Sage "Helicopter" Rosenfels was under center. Remember, he was acquired before Favre was signed and Jackson was still on the roster.
-Brandon Jacobs feels stronger and faster as ever. Forget last season, the guy was hurt. He's going to fall lower than his end of the season value will be. If you take a QB or WR early in drafts, don't hesitate to grab him in standard scoring leagues. Ditto on Hakeem Nicks, this guy's going to make a lot of fantasy owners happy this year.
-Adrian Peterson has some tightness in his leg. Toby Gerhart hasn't been getting rave reviews so draft AP with confidence; he's got the best track record of any of the elite RBs on the board.
-Andy Reid said Mike Bell and DeSean Jackson are close to returning. Unless he falls far enough, I'm staying away from Jackson.
-Michael Turner has his burst back. I'm bullish on him this year in standard leagues. This is a run-first team and I wouldn't be surprised to see him end up as a top-3 RB by year's end.
-Anthony Gonzalez looks healthy and is a nice sleeper this year after a ton of hype prior to last season's drafts.
-Jahvid Best might be the "go-to guy" in Detroit. First this is a classic example of a player with lesser talent than other rookie RBs (see Spiller) but for fantasy purposes he'll be more relevant. Last year still has the bad taste of limited rookie RBs (Moreno and Beanie Wells), but they'll play a much more prominent role this year (as a whole). Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan prefers to have a "go-to guy" over a committee. This is very, very important. I hate when people brag or refer to their fantasy leagues but I was a huge Kevin Smith owner last year. He got the majority of carries and a ton of catches from Matthew Stafford (PPR leagues take note). Smith never had a run over 31 yards, yet the team stuck with him until his injury. Maurice Morris took over and had a 64-yard carry the next game as the starter. Best is an injury risk but for now he's a nice sleeper if they're going to give him the bulk of carries. For the record, my local league I had Smith in I won (22-teams, 150 units buy-in); the Vikes stopped Matthew Forte in our finals and I won. I also used the Rotowire software and drafted Steven Smith and DeSean Jackson late and aggressively bid on Pierre Garcon early. I'm not a genius but the NFL player rankings on Rotowire definitely are.
-I'll be very opinionated in my thoughts and will discuss my strategies/ targets for this season when I post on Tuesday and Friday going forward. The first one I'll leave you with is this: wait on a QB. Draft Joe Flacco, Chad Henne or Matt Cassel later and you'll be happy.
-Without looking or know the O/U's I'd go over on the Lion's wins and under on the Bills wins. Of course this is just hypothetically speaking…