BringBackBernie

For what it's worth, I live in Central Ohio, and from what I can gather, Simpson has incredible athletic ability, but he is incredibly competitve and gets down on himself a bit. I've read that he is struggling with finishing routes, and that he needs to put on weight to help break the press off the line. I believe the Bengals knew most of this when they drafted him, but due to his incredible athletic ability, they were willing to take a chance on Simpson and work with him. Simply put, he's a project, so I wouldn't expect immediate dividends in the next year or two. It appears that Caldwell is ahead of Simpson right now, and it's certain that Simpson is NOT ready to be the #3 WR at this point. That said, I'm not reading that Caldwell will be the #3 WR either. I don't hear anything about Simpson having bad hands or being a problem. For me, I'd rather take a chance on a competitive football player with upside in a dynasty format, even if I have to wait a few seasons on him to start producing. I think the learning curve for small school players should be considered when reading all the "bad" press clippings.

I love this idea. I think an O-line article(s) discussing the good, the bad, and the ugly would be very helpful. Doing research on a team's offensive line has helped me out in my drafts way more than studying up on skill players, yet almost every website spends all their time discussing the skill players, and hardly any, if any, discussing the big boys up front who make all the difference.

Don't do it. People like that will never learn to manage their money if everyone keeps bailing them out. You will lose 10 grand, and your buddy will just continue his ways with or without you.

E-mailed Mike earlier today and the newsletter was waiting on me when I got home. Good stuff.

Are these being sent by e-mail? I can't find what e-mail address I have listed for this site. I'm sure it's ancient and I no longer use it.

Hubbard could be a sleeper. Joe J is banged up right now, so Hubbard will see a lot more reps with the 1st team than he would normally. And, it looks like this is Joe's last year anyway. Rumors are also floating that Travis Wilson is a possible throw in on any prospective trade involving a Cornerback, so Hubbard could move up to #3 as early as next season. One thing I noticed about Anderson is that he throws a high ball, which is perfect for the Browns big WR's. Joe J 6'5" - Braylon 6'3" - Winslow 6'5". Hubbard, who I believe is 6'3", should fit in well if Anderson continues to be the QB. I think if Anderson plays well again this year, the Browns will look to shop Quinn over the off-season.

BTW Matt, you do a great job writing your articles and Scouting Portfolio. Keep up the good work.

I like our chances this year. The schedule is brutal, but I honestly think we have one of the best teams in the AFC. I look for us to trade for a CB, but I'm sure Savage will wait until the cuts are overwith first. I've heard rumors that the Browns might trade a pick to Buffalo for Yobouty. Spencer was Yobouty's coach at OSU, and Ashton is young, so it makes a lot of sense. The two CB's we have, McDonald and Wright are very good CB's. They just had to cover guys for 3 hours last year because our D-line was non-existent. BTW, Bentley was cleared to practice and was AT practice today. It's a long road, but I hope he can come back.

Thanks. It's a 12 team PPR league, so Reggie is fine for fantasy purposes in this league. He was a top 5 back in that format last year before he got hurt. Thanks for the comments as well. I'm a Browns fan, and I don't see Harrison making a play on the 2 back. The coaches don't trust Harrison, and they've as much as said that Wright is the 2nd back again this season. If Lewis were to get hurt, it would be around a 60/40 split, with Wright getting most of the 3rd downs. I have to agree with the coaches on this one. Harrison has more talent, but that kid whiffs on pass protection a lot, and just makes boneheaded plays a lot. Harrison has the talent, but the coaches don't trust him.

Kinda took your advice. Just traded Thomas Jones for Limas Sweed and what will probably be a mid 1st round pick in 09. Whacky deals. Traded my 08 2nd round, 09 1st & 2nd round picks to move up and get Devin Thomas. Then traded my 3.8 & 3.10 for a 2nd and 4th in 09. Then traded my 09 3rd round for Derrick Mason. Then made the Jones Trade. I lost Thomas Jones and my 2.10, 3.8 & 3.10 picks this year, but managed to get Devin Thomas, Limas Sweed, and Derrick Mason, and ended with an earlier 09 1st and 2nd round pick, plus an extra 09 4th round pick. Start 1 QB - 2 RB - 3 WR - TE - K - DEF McNabb, Donovan PHI QB Pennington, Chad NYJ QB Bradshaw, Ahmad NYG RB Bush, Reggie NOS RB Lewis, Jamal CLE RB Taylor, Fred JAC RB Thomas, Pierre NOS RB Wright, Jason CLE RB Coles, Laveranues NYJ WR Driver, Donald GBP WR Hill, Jason SFO WR Houshmandzadeh, T.J. CIN WR Mason, Derrick BAL WR Sweed, Limas PIT WR ® Thomas, Devin WAS WR ® Welker, Wes NEP WR - 4 Davis, Fred WAS TE ® Scheffler, Tony DEN TE Winslow, Kellen CLE TE Dawson, Phil CLE PK Packers, Green Bay GBP Def Steelers, Pittsburgh PIT Def

Ok, thanks.

Matt, any thoughts on Laurent Robinson this year? Sorry, I know he's not a rookie, but he's still available in a free agent/rookie draft in one league. He was productive as a rookie. lol... Jason Hill is also available. From where I'm drafting, and the # of picks I have, I can get at least 2 of the following 4 WR's, Devin Thomas, James Hardy, Laurent Robinson, and possibly Jason Hill, although I might pass on Hill until later in the draft, as no one is really going after him in early.

semantics

I was very drunk last night.

It amazes me how Westy is downgraded every year. I don't understand it.

Do not do that deal. Bradshaw is not a handcuff. He's a change of pace back that will give you fantasy points. Big difference. Bradshaw is a very good RB that can play all 3 downs. Maroney is a 20 to 20 back and a 2 down back. You will get either Forte or Smith with the # 5 pick, who have a decent chance at being a starter sooner than later.

Agreed. Wayne is the 3rd WR going off the board in most of the mock drafts I've been in, and I would take him first. Manning puts the ball on the money and it's Wayne's time now.

Top 4 is gold. 5 through 7 is good. After that, it gets questionable. I'd hate to have 9 or after. I want a stud RB, and right now, I only consider the following 7 backs to be "stud" worthy. LT AP Westy SJax Addai Portis Barber

I bet they do..... I bet they do.

Nice write-up. I printed it out and highlighted a few things.

Phil Savage has put together one of the best offensive lines in football, and Joe Thomas more than lived up to his billing last year. Savage also addressed the depth of the offensive line over the off-season. Winslow, Edwards, Lewis, Stallworth, Joe J, etc. This offensive will be explosive.

Yeah, but Anderson have an offensive line in front of him.

Thanks for the tip. I looked into it and liked the situation Hill is in. San Fran doesn't really have any stud WR's and you know Martz will be using 3 and 4 WR sets about 80% of the time. I like the fact that Bruce is there as well. He'll be an extra coach to the WR's at San Fran.

I ended up with the following after all the trades: 1.10 - Devin Thomas 5.4 - Fred Davis 5.10 - Jason Wright (I have Jamal and figured he was worth handcuffing in that offense) 6.2 - Jason Hill 6.10 - Best starting QB available My roster is pretty set and I'm not depending on any of these guys to start, so I feel pretty good about the draft, especially since I was able to get back into the 2nd round for 09, and also pick up an extra 4th round pick for 09.

I thought you were talking about a general list of all players. lol...