Fantasy Football Insider: Who could be the Top Fantasy Wide Receivers in 2011?

The NFL is starting to become much more of a passing league which means that both quarterbacks and wide receivers are starting to become somewhat of a commodity. You were sure to have had good success in your league last year if you had guys like Brandon Lloyd and Dwayne Bowe on your team. You might have also benefited from the productive seasons that Roddy White and Greg Jennings had.

You can expect those four receivers, along with a host of others, to have good seasons in the NFL this year. Sprinkle in some of the rookie wide receiver talent coming into the league this year and it could be a great year for wide receivers.

Of course there are some things to take into consideration when you are drafting a wide receiver. First, you have to know how the quarterback situation is with the team. You can bet that fantasy football owners will take receivers from the Indianapolis Colts first before they look at grabbing receivers from the Minnesota Vikings.

Another thing you have to look at is how much the team passes the ball. It’s true, the NFL is becoming much more of a passing league but there are some teams that struggle when it comes to passing the ball. The Bears are a good example of that. They have great talent at the quarterback position but they have problems going down the field and connecting with receivers thus considerable reducing their numbers.

Finally, you have to look at the injury history of the player. There are some receivers that are very tempting to take but eventually miss time at some point in the season because of an injury. Some receivers are pretty “consistent” when it comes to injuries suffered and those are guys that you will want to stay away from.

So, in eager anticipation of the 2011 season the following is a look at five wide receiver prospects that can be considered some of the top guys heading into the 2011 season. There are also three rookie profiled here and these guys might be able to make an impact on their teams next season and might draw some interest in fantasy drafts.

1. Reggie Wayne-Indianapolis Colts-Wayne has been quarterback Peyton Manning’s favorite target and despite the fact he’s getting older he’s been very effective for the Colts. Fantasy football owners will be looking for Wayne early in the draft and he should be productive next season.

2. Calvin Johnson-Detroit Lions-As long as quarterback Matthew Stafford can stay healthy long enough to help Johnson succeed he could be one of the premier recivers in the NFL. This guy is hard to cover, able to get up and catch high passes and has the potential to be very productive.

3. DeSean Jackson-Philadelphia Eagles-If this guy can stay healthy all season then he could have his best year yet and with Michael Vick now a full time starter (with the possibility of no worries about Kevin Kolb breathing down his neck) he could end up relying on Jackson’s big play ability. This could make Jackson one of the most productive wide receivers next season.

4. Andre Johnson-Houston Texans-There are some people out there that feel that Johnson could be the best player in the NFL and he has meant a lot to the Texans since he arrived in Houston a few seasons ago. If he can throw together a consistent season (and his quarterback can stay healthy and consistent) he could be a top fantasy producer in 2011.

5. Greg Jennings-Green Bay Packers-The Packers have one of the best passing offenses in the NFL and it’s likely that he will have another great fantasy football season. His quarterback, Aaron Rodger, is one of the best in the NFL and Jennings has become one of his favorite targets. He will be one of top targets in fantasy drafts this season.

Here are three rookies that might get some looks in the 2011 fantasy drafts:

1. Julio Jones-Atlanta Falcons-The Falcons gave away the house in order to get Jones, a player that they feel is the final piece in the puzzle to get them to the Super Bowl. Jones will start right away in Atlanta and should have a great season in his first year with the team.

2. Jonathan Baldwin-Kansas City Chiefs-There were few people that thought that taking Baldwin in the first round was a huge mistake but the Chiefs needed someone else to catch the ball aside from Dwayne Bowe so they did what they had to do. It’s possible that Baldwin could come into NFL with a chip on his shoulder and prove his doubters wrong in a big way. Fantasy owners will certainly hope so.

3. Titus Young-Detroit Lions-Yes, he’s on the same team as Calvin Johnson is but Young could be the beneficiary of double coverage on Johnson so therefore he might see a lot of passes thrown his way. As long as Stafford stays healthy then Titus (and Johnson) should have success in the 2011 season.

2011 NFL Draft Top Fantasy Prospects: The Tight Ends

Ask anyone who is familiar this year’s 2011 NFL Draft and they will tell you that the tight end group coming out isn’t as strong as it’s been in recent seasons. There is clearly little depth all the way through the group so it’s going to be slim pickings for NFL teams in the draft this year.

Right now, it doesn’t look like this draft is going to have many, if any, tight ends that you may want to pay attention to when your fantasy football draft comes up in a few months. The tight end position may not be one of the most productive fantasy positions in fantasy football but a good tight can help you win games and can sometimes help lead you to a big victory.

Rookie tight ends are overlooked considerably in a fantasy draft because they end up being the biggest “unknowns” when it comes to a fantasy draft. It’s hard to know what the team that drafts them is going to do with them when they come into the NFL. Are they going to use them as a pass catcher or a blocker? Will they start right away? Will they even make the team?

All of this makes it difficult for any fantasy owner to validate a pick for a rookie tight end. And in this year’s draft, with no clear cut and “solid” talent at the tight end position at the top fantasy owners might decide to forgo drafting one and wait to see what they do.

As mentioned, there are some factors that go into trying to figure out if there is a rookie tight end worth taking. The whole blocker versus pass catcher debate is one thing that you would have to consider when looking at a rookie tight end as you would the situation that they are going into. A team that utilizes its tight ends a lot in the passing game, such as the New England Patriots is the ideal spot for a rookie to land whereas looking at a tight end that may end up with the Chicago Bears could be a waste of valuable research time.

You must also look at the team that the player is going to and what their quarterback situation is and how often they pass the ball. As we discussed with the wide receivers, it’s important to now just what the tight end is walking into in terms of who the starting quarterback is, how well that quarterback has played and just how often he throws the ball to his tight ends. Obviously if it’s a tight friendly offense then it wouldn’t be a bad idea to look at situation and consider a late round flier on the prospect.

As mentioned, this draft isn’t going to feature a lot of depth and talent at the tight end position. The following is a list of the top six tight ends in the 2011 NFL Draft with the first one thought to go somewhere in the middle to late second round:

1. Kyle Rudolph-Notre Dame
2. Luke Stocker-Tennessee
3. Lance Kendricks-Wisconsin
4. Jordan Cameron-USC
5. D.J. Williams-Arkansas

Rudolph will easily be the first tight end selected and could be someone that you would want to keep an eye on in your fantasy draft depending on where he lands. But remember, he spent all of last season injured so he might be a risky prospect in your fantasy draft.

What is the best advice for drafting a rookie tight end this fantasy football season? Wait. With no clear cut standout appears to be coming out at the position in this draft so keep an eye on these guys as the season goes on and see if there is someone that you might want to pick up on waivers. It’s a great idea to let these guys play a couple games before putting one of them on your roster.

2011 NFL Draft Top Fantasy Prospects: Wide Receivers

With rookie running backs being the easiest position to draft a rookie in for your fantasy draft wide receivers, aside from quarterbacks, may be the most difficult. There have been some rookie wide receivers that had great years right out of the gate (remember Anquan Boldin’s first season in the NFL) while others, such as Oakland’s Darius Heyward Bey struggled in their first NFL season and anyone who took them in their fantasy draft are probably still upset at the decision.

If you are thinking about taking a rookie wide receiver in your fantasy draft this summer you may want to consider several of the factors presented in this article before making any decision on who you would want to draft.

Some of the things that you would want to look at before drafting a rookie wide receiver include the most obvious and that’s what team he is going to. A team that passes the ball a lot would be idea situation for any wide receiver so if a wide receiver that you are interested is playing for a team like the Indianapolis Colts or the New Orleans Saints then you may want to consider drafting a wide receiver in your fantasy draft.

If the receiver goes to a team that struggles throwing the ball (But wants to throw it more because they are drafting a top of the line wide receiver) then you may want to think about drafting the player for a while before actually doing so.

For example, the Washington Redskins are showing some interest in both Georgia’s A.J. Green and Alabama’s Julio Jones. Think about their quarterback situation. No one knows if Donavan McNabb is going to be there next year and if they don’t bring in another quarterback that leaves Rex Grossman to throw the ball to any new wide receiver that they bring in.

That is not a good scenario for any rookie wide receiver.

With that, you need to check the quarterback situation for the team that your target rookie is going to. This naturally is a strong consideration when making a decision. You can have a team that has a quarterback that likes to throw the ball but doesn’t complete many of those passes. You can also have a quarterback that’s a great passer but doesn’t stay healthy enough to make a difference during the season.

Knowing the situation that your target receiver is going into will only help to make sure that you don’t make a mistake by wasting a valuable fantasy draft pick.

One final thing to look at is what role the receiver will play in the new offense. Most receivers taken in the first to third rounds are intended to be starters or at least solid contributors during their first season with their team. If your guy is poised to be a starter then it would be much easier to draft him as opposed to someone who isn’t going to be a clear cut starter.

The 2011 NFL Draft is not that deep in wide receiver talent so you may want to keep your concerns of drafting a rookie wide receiver to one of the six following players who are rated as the top six wide receivers in the upcoming draft:

1. A.J. Green-Georgia
2. Julio Jones-Alabama
3. Jonathan Baldwin-Pittsburgh
4. Torrey Smith-Maryland
5. Leonard Hankerson-Miami (Fl)
6. Randall Cobb-Kentucky

Green and Jones are assured of going in the first round while it’s possible that Baldwin and Smith could get drafted in the bottom half of the first round. Green and Jones could be solid fantasy draft picks while you may want to wait on some of the other guys and see how they start before picking them up off of waivers as the season goes on.

So keep an eye on these younger wide receivers to see how they do and then take into consideration some of the factors laid out here so that can you see if you want to draft a rookie wide receiver or wait for them to do something before picking them up on waivers.

Remember that you have to do your research on these rookies if you want to have success on your fantasy team.

Fantasy Football Outlook: How the 2011 NFL Draft Affects Next Year

If you are as avid a football fan as I am then you have probably been paying very close attention to what’s happening during these final few weeks leading up to the 2011 NFL Draft. The NFL’s Scouting Combine just wrapped up and we now have a little bit better idea of which players might go where and at what position.

If you tuned into the combine, you may have also seen the future of your fantasy football team. You may have seen some of the skill position players out there trying to make a name for themselves in front of NFL scouts, coaches and general managers and it’s a good bet that most of the guys that you saw will somehow affect the way that you draft your fantasy team from next year forward.

You can bet that some of those players at the quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end positions will be of some value this coming season but just where does a person select a rookie (in their fantasy draft). There are many of us who sit and wonder if we should even take a rookie in our fantasy drafts.

There have been some rookies in recent history that have impressed right out of the gate. Some more recent productive fantasy players include the St. Louis Rams Sam Bradford, Dallas’ Dez Bryant and just a few years ago Baltimore (then Arizona) wide receiver Anquan Boldin.

Selecting a rookie early in your draft is almost always a huge gamble unless that rookie is guaranteed to start on a team that has a great offense and can help that rookie start out with success right away. Running backs and wide receivers that walk into good situations can excel and could be worthy of a high draft pick. Quarterbacks, even if they are stars coming out of college and are heading into good situations in the NFL (as starters) shouldn’t be considered until later on in your fantasy drafts.

So if you are already planning for your fantasy draft next season (despite the fact that the NFL and the Players Association still haven’t come to an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement) you might want to consider keeping an eye on some of the talent that will be coming out in the draft this year and think about it more as your fantasy draft gets closer.

In the coming days and weeks we will take a deeper look at some of the prospects that will be coming into the NFL through the NFL Draft and which players you should be interested in and which ones you should stay away from.