Rumor Has It...

Rudi Johnson Bigger and Stronger!

We all remember Rudi’s old north-south running style and all of us miss it greatly. Johnson was the epitome of consistency from 2004-06, but had a disastrous, injury plagued year in 07’. After 3 consecutive seasons with over 340 carries and 12 touchdowns, Johnson followed with 3 measly touchdowns on 170 carries. We expect a change for the better this year. According to our sources, Johnson reported to camp at 230 pounds, up from his 212 pounds last season. Usually, a running back’s weight significantly increasing is bad news, but not this time. Johnson’s body fat percentage has gone down and Rudi feels great. "More power in the legs. I feel stronger getting in and out of my cuts. I can feel it every time I cut. It's just there," Johnson said.

With his current ADP just over 55, Johnson is a must have. In most cases he is the 25-27th back taken off the board. We’ve had him locked around 20 from day one and we expect a solid season from Johnson. There are two ways to attack this situation and it heavily depends on your league format. If your league rewards points for receptions, you can now target wide receivers earlier in the draft knowing Rudi Johnson will be available towards the end of the 4th round. We never recommend pre-selecting what positions you will select with each of your picks before the draft begins, since all drafts flow differently. But using your 2nd and 3rd pick on wide outs now becomes an option with Johnson being available in the 4th round. Keep in mind, others will be keen to this info as well, so everything may not go as planned, but having a slight edge on your competition is always nice. As for standard formats, Johnson can even be picked up as a 3rd back. I’ve seen a lot of experts, including myself, take 3 backs with their first 5 picks. The talent at the running back position takes a sudden drop after the first 4 or 5 rounds, whereas there are always a lot of sleepers at the receiver position. Simply said, keep an eye open for Rudi Johnson.

Chris Johnson Will See Significant Time!

I’m sure you’ve all heard about this guy by now. I mean he did run a 4.24 forty at the combine. Yeah, he’s fast. But we all know it takes much more than speed to make it in the big leagues. Well, we’re hearing great things out of Tennessee about rookie Chris Johnson. Titan’s offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger expects to use Johnson as both a receiver and a running back. He even went on to say that he will see 1st and 2nd down carries throughout the year making him more than just a 3rd down back.. Vince Young has already complemented his ability to pick-up the blitz and considering he probably will start the year as the Titans premier return man, we now have a sleeper in the making. Johnson provides the Titans with much more fire-power than currant starter LenDale White and trust me they will use it. We are hearing rumors of at least 15 touches through the air or on the ground. I’m going to make a big claim, but try to keep this in perspective. If we remember correctly, this situation is strangely similar to that of Brian Westbrook just a few years ago. Early in his career, he only saw the field on 3rd down and in special team situations. Coming out of college he was praised for his accomplishments in the passing game as well his electrifying game changing ability, yet he fell in the draft because of his small stature. Now Johnson has a long way to go before he is even mentioned with Westbrook, but he has a very similar style of play. I’ve taken Johnson in a few of my league and I recommend you do the same.

So far I’ve been able to scoop Johnson up as my 4th back, which is a very safe pick because I am not forced to rely heavily on his production. He is even more worthwhile in PPR formats, since he will be targeted through the air at least 4 – 5 times a game. If you like players with tremendous upside, Johnson is your man. The Titans are not enamored with LenDale White and they will give Johnson a lot of chances to succeed. His role will always be limited on the goal-line, because I’m pretty sure that’s one thing he will not be able to take away from the very robust White. Still, he will contribute in many other areas and will be a solid role player on your fantasy squad.


Anthony Fasano Will Take The Starting Gig

Newly acquired tight-end Anthony Fasano is currently involved in one of the many position battles in Miami. Last year’s starter David Martin is a mediocre player at best and our sources are telling us Fasano will start opening day. The former second round pick was originally drafted by Bill Parcells and the Dallas Cowboys. He is already well known by his coaching staff and is quickly pushing Martin out of his former starting role. Unfortunately, in his first two seasons, Fasano was greatly overshadowed by All Pro Jason Witten and we never really had a chance to see what he brought to the table. Still, he’s only 24 years old and has a lot of potential. Keep in mind, Parcells was the individual responsible for uncovering Jason Witten in the 3rd round. While we don’t expect Fasano to ever match Witten’s abilities, as you can see, there are a lot factors pointing to Fasano’s success in Miami.

As of right now you can pick up Fasano very late as your back-up tight end. If you end up drafting someone like Witten or Gates, then Fasano does not have much value to you. The only thing you’ll need is bye week fillers, since I would never take those guys out of my line-up. But if you’re like me and you tend to always wait until the last minute to grab a tight-end, I recommend picking up Fasano towards the end of your draft. Realistically, he’s not going to light the stat books on fire, since Miami’s depth chart has big fat TBD in the quarterback slot, which is a never a good sign. Still, someone has to start the year and tight ends have always been a favorite of quarterbacks who are forced to watch their back the entire season. “Please just a complete a pass, please just complete a pass. Oh there’s my check-down!” As funny as that sounds, that’s the psychology of an inexperienced quarterback. Coaches hammer them with hundreds of scenarios, but when all else fails, what are they supposed to do? Check down or get rid of it, it’s that simple. So what can we conclude? Tight ends will have success in this situation. Hence the reason we like Fasano. Team him up with someone like Tony Scheffler, Vernon Davis or Owen Daniels. These guys will have solid years but will also face some tough match-ups and you will need someone to fill in.