Risers
1. Tony Romo
The emergence of WR Miles Austin last year put Tony Romo back on the fantasy football map and among the elite (he finished 6th in scoring). He finished with over 1,000 yards more than in ’08. This improvement was due to the emergence of Miles Austin as a bona fide No.1 receiver which opened up the entire passing game.
He has a new weapon in his arsenal this year in 1st round draft choice WR Dez Bryant. The rookie possesses big-time talent and down field ability. Expect Romo to finish with over 4,500 yards and 35 TDs, and for as good as he was last year, he’ll improve in 2010.
2. Carson Palmer
Christmas came early for Carson Palmer. At the end of last season, it was WR Chad Ochocinco and nobody else. Now he has WR Terrell Owens, WR Antonio Bryant, TE Jermaine Gresham and WR Jordan Shipley to go along with No. 85. LT Andre Smith will be improved in year two as will the entire O-line. Palmer is a legitimate threat for over 3,500 yards and 30 TDs this season.
3. Matt Ryan
Matt Ryan’s numbers declined in 2009 because Michael Turner’s injury made the running game non-existent and defenses were able to key on the passing game. That shouldn’t happen this year. Not only is everyone healthy, but the Falcons face an easier schedule. Expect Ryan to thrive in 2010 and for the 3rd year QB to finish with over 3,500 yards and between 25- 30 TDs.
Fallers
1. Matt Schaub
A career year saw Schaub remain healthy for the first time in his career and pass for 4,770 yards and 29 TDs. Health is always a concern for the injury prone Schaub and will be again in 2010. The Texans also drafted a running back in the 2nd round because they plan to focus more on running the ball.
Shootouts don’t often lead to wins and Kubiak is aiming for Ws, not fantasy stats. We expect a steep decline in passing yards and TDs and feel his early rankings (as high as No. 4 at QB) on mock draft boards are too high.
2. Phillip Rivers
Rivers eclipsed 4,000 yards and 28 TDs in 2009 in a pass happy Chargers offense. The outlook in 2010 is not as bright. WR Vincent Jackson will likely holdout over the 1st 10 games of the season and LT Marcus McNeill has threatened to do the same. Pro Bowl TE Antonio Gates is still there but the other receivers are unproven. Most of their success came as a result of the attention being paid by secondaries to VJ and Antonio Gates. As a result, expect Rivers numbers to take a hit.
3. Brett Favre
He’s here for no other reason than it will be impossible to duplicate last season’s success. 4,200 yards, 33 TDs and just 7 INTs was a season for the ages. He’s now another year older (41), the defenses within the division are better, and we expect Minnesota to rely more heavily on the running game in 2010. The Vikings went almost exclusively to the air over the last month of the 2009 season due to Adrian Peterson’s fumbling problems. If those are corrected, then he’ll see increased carries which will hurt Favre’s stats.
Pro Football 101» Fantasy Football Draft Rankings – Top 25 QBs
August 18th, 2010 at 11:22
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[...] 5. Tony Romo - Romo is poised to have a HUGE season. [...]
Pro Football 101» Early Line Betting Odds to Win the NFC – Top 8 Contenders
August 25th, 2010 at 10:10
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[...] The Vikings took a huge hit on Tuesday with the loss of star WR Sidney Rice for a minimum of eight weeks due to hip surgery. His absence impacts everything the Vikings intend to do offensively, and certainly makes Brett Favre’s life more difficult (it also drops Favre way down in fantasy football). [...]
Pro Football 101» 2010 Fantasy Football Rankings: Week 1 QBs
September 6th, 2010 at 12:08
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[...] Romo – The Cowboys are stacked at the skill positions and Romo always does well against the [...]