By Robby Wellington – Staff Writer
With four weeks in the books, preseason ranks can be thrown out, as we have to constantly readjust our perceptions of players’ values. Here are my top 60 players from here on out, listed in a draft format. Standard scoring (1 point per 10 yards rushing/receiving, 1 per 20 passing, 6 per rushing/receiving TDs, 4 per passing TDs and .5 points per reception) with 2 starting WRs and RBs and a flex player.
Round One
1 – LaDanian Tomlinson
2 – Larry Johnson
3 – Brian Westbrook
4 – Clinton Portis
5 – Shaun Alexander
6 – Tatum Bell
7 – Tiki Barber
8 – Ronnie Brown
9 – Steven Jackson
10 – Rudi Johnson
11 – Chester Taylor
12 – Willis McGahee
The top three is down to the top two, and Shaun Alexander’s foot remains a concern, divine intervention be damned. Speaking of injury concerns, Portis has come back with a vengeance and looks awesome. It would not be a surprise to see Tatum Bell post the best numbers of any running back from here on out, nor would it be surprising to see him have a bad game and go back into a timeshare with Mike Bell. Willis McGahee has a great playoff schedule and with the Bills and JP Losman looking decent, moves into the top round.
Round Two
13 – Willie Parker
14 – Julius Jones
15 – Peyton Manning
16 – Kevin Jones
17 – Steve Smith
18 – Torry Holt
19 – Laurence Maroney
20 – Roy Williams
21 – Andre Johnson
22 – Frank Gore
23 – Edgerrin James
24 – Marvin Harrison
Peyton Manning and the Colts’ offense is going to have a huge season, thanks to their weakened defense. Holt and Smith are the clear-cut top two receivers in my opinion, and there is a big drop off after 18, although Maroney’s upside is undeniable. Roy Williams and Andre Johnson look to have reached the elite tier of wideouts. Edgerrin James may still be overvalued as a late second round pick, especially with Leinart taking the reigns.
Round Three
25 – Reggie Wayne
26 – Donald Driver
27 – Lamont Jordan
28 – Joseph Addai
29 – Cadillac Williams
30 – Chad Johnson
31 – Thomas Jones
32 – Terrell Owens
33 – Larry Fitzgerald
34 – Anquan Boldin
35 – Warrick Dunn
36 – Chris Chambers
Lamont Jordan and Cadillac Williams look to be the two biggest first round busts. Don’t expect Chad Johnson to reach his usually lofty totals with Housh and Chris Henry around. I think that the Matt Leinart effect is going to cut into Boldin and Fitz’s production tremendously. MOVE THEM NOW!
Round Four
37 – Carson Palmer
38 – Reggie Bush
39 – Antonio Gates
40 – Plaxico Burress
41 – Santana Moss
42 – Fred Taylor
43 – DeShaun Foster
44 – Donovan McNabb
45 – TJ Houshmandzadeh
46 – Marques Colston (TE)
47 – Jamal Lewis
48 – Hines Ward
Carson Palmer has cemented himself as the second best (fantasy) quarterback in football, with Donovan McNabb close behind. Antonio Gates’ value has taken a huge hit thanks to Philip Rivers and the Chargers’ conservative offense. Marques Colston is available as a TE in Yahoo! leagues, which is, how do I put this, kind of a big deal. He may very well still be undervalued in your league.
Round Five
49 – Randy Moss
50 – Darrell Jackson
51 – Reuben Droughns
52 – Donte Stallworth
53 – Antonio Bryant
54 – Muhsin Muhammad
55 – Jeremy Shockey
56 – Deuce McAllister
57 – Terry Glenn
58 – Ahman Green
59 – Todd Heap
60 – Joey Galloway
What happened to Randy Moss? He really misses playing with an elite quarterback like, umm, Daunte Culpepper. Deuce McAllister has solidly outperformed Reggie Bush and would be a top 15 guy if Bush were to go down. Gradkowski to Galloway? I don’t think so.
Honorable Mention
Eli Manning
Joe Horn
Lee Evans
Dominic Rhodes
Corey Dillon
Deion Branch
LJ Smith
Marc Bulger
Tom Brady
Dalton Says: While I feel Robby did a fine job with these rankings, I’m here to offer some counterpoints…I wouldn’t go jumping off a bridge if I were a Fitzgerald/Boldin owner. The way I see it, the QB switch may be a good thing, as Kurt Warner was playing so poorly. While having a rookie QB throwing to your highly drafted receiver isn’t ideal (say goodbye to any fantasy value, Drew Bennett), Leinart is considered the most ready for an NFL offense. With their running game as bad as ever, he’ll be forced to throw 45-55 times a game, resulting in fine numbers from the best WR duo in the league…Laveranues Coles should at least be on the honorable mention list; in fact, I’d rather own him than Jamal Lewis, Reuben Droughns, Joey Galloway, and maybe even Randy Moss.
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