Fantasy Football Local Insider Info Thread

[albionmoonlight]

Many of us are in fantasy leagues. I thought that this thread might be one small way that we could get an edge on folks in our league. No matter how comprehensive national media coverage is, unless your local team is the Cowboys or Patriots, they will not bother on reporting on every aspect of your team.

It occurs to me, though, that we all follow our teams and might have some insight to share in this thread that could help us all. I am not thinking in terms of the major stuff that everyone generally knows--but the things that you hear coming out of camp that might be flying under the national radar.

Here's an example with the Saints:

The team seems committed to running the ball more than in the past. I think that Brees will be an elite fantasy QB again, but I think that he's probably going to be more, like, top-5 elite, instead of setting records.

If you are into handcuffing your running backs, Travaris Cadet is Sproles's handcuff.

I was going to recommend Chris Ivory (now of the Jets), but he's got a sore hamstring, so I have no idea. When healthy, though, he's the real deal.

Jimmy Graham looks elite again.

Looks like a timeshare between Ingram, Sproles, and Thomas.

Nick Toon is the sleeper receiver I'd pick up for $1 in an auction or late in a draft.

Joe Morgan also has potential, but I hear him getting some buzz already, so he will probably be fairly valued in your auction/draft.

If you are drafting IDP, Junior Gallette is the most likely player on the team to put up some significant sack numbers. But this was the worst defense in history last season, so I can't recommend anyone on it too highly.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Reports that Vernon Davis is lining up as a WR are way overblown (according to local beat writers he's done that exactly twice so far). While he may see more action with Crabtree out, he's not going to be lining up as a WR very often, if at all.

[Danny]

Here's your insider raiders draft guide. Janikowski is the only one I would draft.

[SegRat]

Jermichael Finley is looking really good. He is also in a contract year, so he should be playing extra hard.

Dont listen to people saying Johnathan Franklin will "BE" the Packers running back. He was a fourth round pick for a reason. He is no better than the third best running back on the roster. Eddie Lacy will be the back and he will be very productive. Alex Green who was a third round pick a couple of years ago is finally over his ACL tear and should be our third down back.

[CU Tiger]

Here's your insider raiders draft guide. Janikowski is the only one I would draft.

ford is a good late round depth steal if your league pays return yards.

[BishopMVP]

Danny Amendola will have a monster year... if healthy. Dobson seems to be the main guy getting reps on the outside, but he'll struggle early on and go through growing pains, so there probably isn't another WR worth grabbing. A lot of people have Jake Ballard as a big sleeper, but Zach Sudfeld's really the TE who's stood out.

[spleen1015]

Andrew Luck is good. You should draft him.

[Qwikshot]

Mike Vick seems to be outplaying Foles/Barkley

No idea who receiver #2 is going to be for the Iggles.

[Qwikshot]

I do like hearing that Vereen might be a dual threat for the Pats...I'm just not sure how effective he'll be in either position. But he may be the superflex everyone looks for.

[HomerSimpson98]

Dez Bryant is tearing shit up (in a good way) out in Oxnard.

[PackerFanatic]

Jermichael Finley is looking really good. He is also in a contract year, so he should be playing extra hard.

Dont listen to people saying Johnathan Franklin will "BE" the Packers running back. He was a fourth round pick for a reason. He is no better than the third best running back on the roster. Eddie Lacy will be the back and he will be very productive. Alex Green who was a third round pick a couple of years ago is finally over his ACL tear and should be our third down back.

What he said.

[Honolulu_Blue]

There really isn't much in the way of surprises so far in Lions camp.

Fantasy-wise there are three players of note: Calvin Johnson, Reggie Bush and Stafford.

David Akers will likely win the kicking job over Kickalicious, which is too bad, because I like the idea of having a Norwegian YouTube sensation as a kicker.

The only potentially under-the-radar type player of note could be Ryan Broyles. If he can stay healthy, he could put up some decent numbers.

[Qwikshot]

Mike Vick seems to be outplaying Foles/Barkley

No idea who receiver #2 is going to be for the Iggles.

CSN Philly considers the Eagles' No. 2 receiver position "Russell Shepard's to lose."
With Jeremy Maclin out for the year and Riley Cooper on leave, Shepard is practicing as the starter opposite DeSean Jackson. And he's playing outside, not in the slot, where veteran Jason Avant is the incumbent. Shepard was a huge high school quarterback recruit when he arrived at LSU, but never found a steady position in college. He's someone to begin considering in Dynasty leagues

I know nothing of the man.

[BishopMVP]

I do like hearing that Vereen might be a dual threat for the Pats...I'm just not sure how effective he'll be in either position. But he may be the superflex everyone looks for.I do think Vereen is a lock to take Woodhead's role as pass-catching back, but so much of who the Pats give snaps to depends on opponent tendency that I wouldn't trust any of their RB's week to week. Plus, Vereen might be as low as 5th on the depth chart of goal-line RB's (Ridley, Blount, Bolden, Tom Brady sneaks).

[Coffee Warlord]

Heh. Keep it coming. Doing a fantasy football league at the office...first time I've done fantasy in years and years.

[Julio Riddols]

Cinci is likely to feature Tyler Eifert a lot more than just a typical rookie TE. Contrary to the Vernon Davis report, Eifert will likely line up everywhere and your mother this season. Gio Bernard probably takes a solid chunk of carries from BenJarvus Green Ellis, but I doubt he takes away many TD's. He'll be a nice handcuff to have though, incredible upside there. I don't think there will be a clear cut number 2 in Cincinnati this year though, although I believe Eifert will be the 2nd most targeted. The ball should be spread out pretty nice. Andy Dalton is a nice later round QB not many people are going to be jumping all over themselves to draft, but I consider him a lock for 4000 yds and 30 TD's if the offense stays healthy.

Defensively, Vontaze Burfict and Leon Hall are probably your best bets. Hall came on very strong at the end of last season while returning from an Achilles tear, and Burfict should rack up an absurd number of tackles. Geno Atkins is also a stud in case you haven't heard about him.

As a team defense I'd expect a top 5 finish this year. The depth all across the board is really good (except maybe SS- the jury is out there, but it seems George Iloka is getting a long look along with Shawn Williams) Dre Kirkpatrick has apparently played well in camp too.

I think your best bet for learning a lot about the Bengals will be from watching Hard Knocks though.

[HomerSimpson98]

Who do y'all think the 1st QB off the board should be?

Brady? He has all new receivers and Gronk returns who knows when.
Rodgers? Line looks like shit again and Jordy has injury problems - again.
Brees? Seems to be the safest choice but the OP has me concerned a bit.
Peyton? Are concerns with velocity still there? What about the winter months?
Stafford? Hahaha. Fuck you, you killed my team last year asshole. Never again.
Cam? Suck balls half the year and then pad stats when the season is basically over?

I'm having a hard time here.

[Qwikshot]

Who do y'all think the 1st QB off the board should be?

Brady? He has all new receivers and Gronk returns who knows when.
Rodgers? Line looks like shit again and Jordy has injury problems - again.
Brees? Seems to be the safest choice but the OP has me concerned a bit.
Peyton? Are concerns with velocity still there? What about the winter months?
Stafford? Hahaha. Fuck you, you killed my team last year asshole. Never again.
Cam? Suck balls half the year and then pad stats when the season is basically over?

I'm having a hard time here.

Brees, Rodgers, Peyton, Brady, Cam, Stafford

...though I would be inclined to think due to his age, Peyton will be drafted later than Brady, Cam and Stafford.

[QuikSand]

Who do y'all think the 1st QB off the board should be?

Rodgers

[PurdueBrad]

Who do y'all think the 1st QB off the board should be?

Definitely Rodgers, Brees, Manning, Brady, Newton, Stafford.

[PackerFanatic]

Rodgers had a shit line last year and still put up monster numbers. Even with Bulaga out, I would have to think they can't be that bad again (that's the eternal optimist in me). Team is pretty high on rookie Bakhtiari who looks like the front-runner to start at LT. I wouldn't write that line off yet :)

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

Brees, Rodgers, Peyton, Brady, Cam, Stafford

...though I would be inclined to think due to his age, Peyton will be drafted later than Brady, Cam and Stafford.

ADP on Yahoo:

Rodgers 12.8
Brees 18.3
Peyton 25.2
Cam 28.5
Brady 39.6
Stafford 63.2

[Danny]

ADP on Yahoo:

Rodgers 12.8
Brees 18.3
Peyton 25.2
Cam 28.5
Brady 39.6
Stafford 63.2

All way to high, but the order seems ok.

[Bobble]

There really isn't much in the way of surprises so far in Lions camp.

Fantasy-wise there are three players of note: Calvin Johnson, Reggie Bush and Stafford.

David Akers will likely win the kicking job over Kickalicious, which is too bad, because I like the idea of having a Norwegian YouTube sensation as a kicker.

The only potentially under-the-radar type player of note could be Ryan Broyles. If he can stay healthy, he could put up some decent numbers.

I can't get through a Lions or QB discussion without chuckling about his fantasy football nickname, Stat Padford.

[PackerFanatic]

I can't get through a Lions or QB discussion without chuckling about his fantasy football nickname, Stat Padford.

That is hilarious, and incredibly accurate.

[PackerFanatic]

All way to high, but the order seems ok.

Depends on the scoring system. Sure those are low to some.

[HomerSimpson98]

Thanks for the input fellas. Brees and Rodgers are my 1 and 1a picks, so I may lean a little more towards Discounting the Double-Check as the draft approaches.

And my league is very QB-heavy in scoring and the elite ones perform significantly better than the good ones, so I dont want to be left behind.

[bhlloy]

Saints receiving core is weaker than previous years with no Henderson and Morgan gone for the season. I think Brees is a clear #2 behind Rodgers, even with Payton back

[Julio Riddols]

If Dane Sanzenbacher plays consistently as well he did last night, he's going to be good.

[tarcone]

The Rams defense is poised to be a very good unit this year. Top 10 possibly top 5. This could be a sleeper pick for the leagues on the coast. It has all the components. And Fisher is a defense guy.

[Danny]

Depends on the scoring system. Sure those are low to some.

Using a normal scoring system that is way too high. Qb depth this year is fantastic

[Honolulu_Blue]

It's odd to think that one of the things that I'm most interested in watching during the Lions pre-season games is Kickalicious.

[Honolulu_Blue]

A quick update on the Lions following the first pre-season game (take it for what it's worth)

- In two series the Lions first string offense looked a lot like the Lions offense of a year ago. Calvin Johnson. Calvin Johnson. Calvin Johnson. And.... nothing else. At all. Reggie Bush had one nice run where he hurdled some dude, but that was it.

- The secondary looked horrible, a lot like the Lions secondary of a year ago. Gave up some big third downs and Jets receivers were largely wide open on many plays.

- Ziggy Ansah looked great. He had a pick six on the Jets first drive and had a few other good plays.

- Kickalicious was 2-for-2 on field goals, including a 50 yarder. David Akers also looked solid. I imagine if Akers continues to look good, the Lions will go with the sure thing over the Norwegian sensation.

- In other kicking news, the Lions 5th round pick, punter David Martin, was great punts and kick-offs. Given how horrible the Lions special teams were last year (outside of Hanson on field goals) these are good things.

- The only guy on offense who stood out other than Calvin Johnson was wide out Matt Willis. He's a veteran guy who has bounced around the league a bit. He made two great catches. It was against back-ups, but good on him.

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

Late round WR for the Pats to keep an eye on - Kenbrell Thompkins. Looked to be running the Hernandez routes and caught everything thrown at him. Will likely not be spectacular but 70 balls is a possibility as a release valve.

[albionmoonlight]

With Joe Morgan lost for the year, the Saints need a speed guy to step up and fill his role. Based on the first preseason game, Kenny Stills might be that guy. Much like Nick Toon, he's a potential high-upside guy who you should be able to pick up for $1 or at the end of your draft.

[BishopMVP]

Late round WR for the Pats to keep an eye on - Kenbrell Thompkins. Looked to be running the Hernandez routes and caught everything thrown at him. Will likely not be spectacular but 70 balls is a possibility as a release valve.Thompkins has been a great surprise, and I think he'll definitely make the team and get some PT, but I don't think he's worth drafting (mayyyybe in a PPR league). Amendola will duplicate Welker's numbers, Dobson will get most of the snaps on the outside and probably approach Lloyd's numbers (~800 yards, a few TD's), but be very inconsistent game to game, and Sudfeld (not Ballard) is a good pick up when Gronk is out of action (I won't rule Gronk out from playing Week 1, but he should start on the PUP list and miss the first 6 games). The other 3 WR's (Thompkins, Boyce, Edelman) though are still a little undefined, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Boyce getting more snaps than Thompkins in 3 WR sets due to his big-play ability. I suspect you'll see a lot of lines from Thompkins like Friday night - a couple important 1st downs, but only 4 catches, 26 yards, or 6 catches 45 yards, with no TD's.

(Fwiw, I'm surprised (and glad) no columnist has jumped on Thompkins history and claimed the Pats haven't learned anything from Hernandez's arrest.)

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

4*16 = 64
6*16 = 96

[Vince, Pt. II]

Reports from 49er land indicate that the #2 WR job is sill wide open. Last year's first round pick AJ Jenkins (who has 1 drop and 0 catches in his NFL career on a team that had very little WR talent last year) has been impressive in camp, but promptly fumbled his first preseason catch. Kyle Williams (most notable for his punt return flub in the 2011 NFC Championship against the Giants) missed all of last season with an injury, and is expected by many to win the job, but that's far from a sure thing. New TE Vance McDonald was very impressive in his debut, but he's still behind Vernon Davis.

The short version: there probably aren't very many 49er WRs worth drafting.

[Chief Rum]

Reports from 49er land indicate that the #2 WR job is sill wide open. Last year's first round pick AJ Jenkins (who has 1 drop and 0 catches in his NFL career on a team that had very little WR talent last year) has been impressive in camp, but promptly fumbled his first preseason catch. Kyle Williams (most notable for his punt return flub in the 2011 NFC Championship against the Giants) missed all of last season with an injury, and is expected by many to win the job, but that's far from a sure thing. New TE Vance McDonald was very impressive in his debut, but he's still behind Vernon Davis.

The short version: there probably aren't very many 49er WRs worth drafting.

Remind me, is Crabtree out for the year? If so, I presume Boldin is the #1?

[Vince, Pt. II]

Crabtree out until at least November. Boldin is the #1.

[Vince, Pt. II]

A little more in-depth about the 49ers wideout situation:

#1 WR:<del>Michael Crabtree</del> Anquan Boldin - This is really the only sure thing, and likely to be your only WR that is fantasy viable, at least via the draft.

The contenders:

A.J. Jenkins - Former first round pick, had a pretty terrible rookie year with 1 drop and 0 catches. He looked great in early camp, but has looked pretty terrible lately. Although he was getting more reps than anyone early in the pre-season, his snaps are being taken up by Collie and others as he isn't taking advantage of his opportunity. He's currently listed behind Boldin on the depth chart. It's worth noting that in college at Illinois, he was completely terrible for his first two seasons before a solid Junior season and a fantastic Senior season. He's shown flashes, so people around these parts are hoping it's just a matter of getting his head around things. The weak points that have been talked about are his inability to get off the line of scrimmage and his inability to win contested balls.

Kyle Williams - Coming off a torn ACL, he's been working his butt off in practice. Before his injury, he was coming on strong as a viable receiving option, and it appeared he was going to be a decent wideout. Right now, he's listed as the starter at WR #2 alongside Boldin.

Quinton Patton - 4th round pick out of LaTech, he's getting rave reviews from everyone. Mostly because he was so excited to get out here that he flew to SF on his own dime, rented a car and headed to the practice facility. The team literally had to turn him away because he wasn't allowed to be there for another week before the rookie camps started. He's working his tail off and has promise, but he broke his finger at the beginning of camp and hasn't been able to even attempt to catch balls. Currently they have him doing route running drills and then literally ducking as the ball sails over his head. He's getting a lot of pub as a player with upside, especially with the lack of receiving talent on the team currently. He's a pretty awesome interview, for what it's worth. I'll be keeping an eye on him.

Mario Manningham - Coming off a torn ACL, he hasn't even managed to find his way to the depth chart yet. Looking more and more like he's going to start the season on the PUP list.

Austin Collie - Well, he was signed. That's about all I can tell you. Simply based on his pedigree, he's probably got a better shot to contribute than the rest of the rabble on the roster at the moment.

Ricardo Lockette, Lavelle Hawkins, Chad Hall, Marlon Moore, Kassim Osgood, Chuck Jacobs - I can't imagine any of these guys making any noise. I've heard that Lockette and Osgood have looked pretty good, but only in passing.

[PackerFanatic]

Using a normal scoring system that is way too high. Qb depth this year is fantastic

That is very true - very good QB class this year, not as big of a need to jump for the "top tier", since they aren't as far away from the other tiers anymore.

[BishopMVP]

4*16 = 64
6*16 = 96Yeah, I get that, but when you say a WR will have 70 receptions I think the natural assumption is he'll put up close to 1000 yards and 8 TD's (Of 21 receivers with 70+ receptions last year, only 3 didn't have 1000 yds - Randall Cobb (954) Brandon Lloyd (911) and oddly the least by far Larry Fitzgerald (798).) Now, I never play PPR, so maybe I'm underestimating the fantasy value of someone who's upside is Jason Avant/Donnie Avery.

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

If it's late in the draft, that's great value. Yahoo just did an experts 14 team .75 PPR and Thompkins went Round 9 ahead of Alshon Jeffery, Aaron Dobson, Kendall Wright, Cordarrelle Patterson. So the cat might already be out of the bag on Thompkins.

[Passacaglia]

I had the NFL Network on randomly throughout the weekend, and I heard his name mentioned a few times.

[Danny]

Jered Veldheer down for the season. Raiders deservedly don't get much attention, but he was developing into a beast of a left tackle and with him now done for the season, downgrade all raider players even more.

[spleen1015]

Jered Veldheer down for the season. Raiders deservedly don't get much attention, but he was developing into a beast of a left tackle and with him now done for the season, downgrade all raider players even more.

Can I downgrade further than "DO NOT DRAFT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"?

[Danny]

Can I downgrade further than "DO NOT DRAFT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"?

lol, well Mcfadden has an ADP of 3rd round I think. I would downgrade him (although he was lower on my list already).

[Bobble]

Can I downgrade further than "DO NOT DRAFT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"?

Downgrade him to DO NOT DRAFT with 20 exclamation points, not 17.

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

Not that I want any Raiders anyway, but I thought I read that the injury wasn't as bad as first reported.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/14/report-doctors-believe-jared-veldheer-will-be-available-for-much-of-season/

[Vince, Pt. II]

They mentioned today (local talk radio) he's going to miss at least 7 regular season games.

[Neuqua]

So is Fred Jackson even worth taking a late round flyer on? Everything I'm reading is that he's looked awful.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Probably only as a handcuff to Spiller, but I have no insider info or anything.

49ers WR situation is starting to clear up a little, here's what we've got now:

Coach Harbaugh all but confirmed that Mario Manningham will start the year on the PUP list, and it's sounding like Crabtree will as well. There's a persistent rumor that Crabtree is likely to be given the IR with plans to return designation, so if you have a deep bench he's definitely worth stashing as he could be huge in December.

Although nothing is guaranteed, the 49ers are likely to enter the season with 6 WR's on the roster, and four of those slots are (for the most part) locked up:

Anquan Boldin
Kyle Williams
Jon Baldwin (based on salary and the fact that they gave up Jenkins for him)
Quinton Patton

Which leaves two slots for the following guys:
Ricardo Lockette
Marlon Moore
Austin Collie
Lavelle Hawkins
Kasim Osgood
Chad Hall
Chuck Jacobs

Lockette and Moore have been getting the most reps, but Osgood has been seeing a lot of special teams work, so he may be on the inside track. Several of the 49ers high profile defensive backfield players do not play special teams, so the team is looking to get special teams contributors wherever they can.

Whoever ends up winning the #2 job opposite Boldin will be worth a look as a WR4 on your fantasy team. In really deep keeper/dynasty leagues, Patton might be worth a flier. Otherwise I'd just avoid SF receivers.

[Butter]

Bengals' WR Mohamed Sanu had a great game vs. the Titans this weekend. For a deep draft, he might be worth a WR bench pick.... but seeing as Green, Gresham, and Eifert will probably all get a lot of targets this year, he might just be worth keeping an eye on for a few weeks and pick up later as an injury replacement.

[StLee]

2nd QB = Flacco, Weeden, or Alex Smith?

Other possible QBs at that spot = Bradford, Philip Rivers (OL is atrocious, so doubt he will be standing all season), Tannehill, and EJ Manuel

[Vince, Pt. II]

Of those three? I'd take Weeden on upside. Flacco is probably the best pick, but Weeden has looked amazing this pre-season, the team's got a great O-Line and Richardson is a beast.

To update the 49er WR battle (because I know everyone's been eagerly awaiting this information)...

Locks to make the roster:
Anquan Boldin
Kyle Williams
Quinton Patton

Strong contenders:
Marlon Moore
Jon Baldwin
Austin Collie

In the mix:
Kassim Osgood
Chad Hall

Longshots:
Lavelle Hawkins

Hawkins had a kickoff return TD tonight...but he also had THREE unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. Patton looked very good, and Marlon Moore has had nearly every single snap with the first team offense this pre-season. Strange as it is, it looks like Moore is going to be the starting #2 WR beside Boldin. That being said, Ricardo Lockette looked like he was getting a lot of reps in practice, then he was cut so they could sign Seneca Wallace. If I had to guess right now, I'm thinking the final depth chart looks like so:

Boldin
Moore
Williams
Patton
Baldwin
Collie

Moore is only worth a look in real deep leagues (12+ teams with 3 WR slots), but Patton might be worth a flier in a dynasty league. He's young and has shown a ton of grit, desire, and ability in the preseason.

[QuikSand]

Not a ton of penetrating insight here, but the Ravens made a small-scale trade to get RB Delone Carrter from the Colts. No, Carter is not a guy who is worthy of any serious attention, I don't think, but...

It appears they are worried about the short yardage and goal line setup. If you're targeting Ray Rice in a fantasy league, then there are two major questions -- how much of a time split will there be between him and Bernard Pierce? And who is going to get the main short TD opportunities?

The time split issue is very real, and I think the smart money is that Rice is going to get used in the "Sproles" role more than most people think -- swing passes from the backfield, lining up in the slot sometimes, lots of motion, etc. To be candid, running between the tackles last year, many feel Pierce is actually more effective (I'm close to this view), given the type of team Baltimore wants to be.

Bringing in Carter to audition for, essentially, a RB3 slot suggests they might not like either one of these guys for short yardage duty. He's up against Anthony Allen, a guy who works hard and always looks great against the third team defenses in preseason -- but who is essentially the same style back they already have. If Carter makes the team, which I think is better than 50/50, then it would be wise to assume that he'll siphon off something like 4 TD runs away from the top two guys over the course of the season.

Rice is the guy everyone's interested in, so here's my full-season speculation for him:

~900 yards rushing, 5 TD (in about 180-200 carries)
~800 yards receiving, 4 TD (on about 80 receptions)

1700 total yards is a pretty valuable guy, but he might end up being short on scores. In a PPR league, he could be a bit more valuable than last year, even if he's short on TDs.

Pierce is a very rosterable backup RB, but the flirtation with Carter drops much of the allure he might have if he were penciled in as the goal line guy. Instead, consider him a 1/3-duty guy who would probably get a ton of work if the top guy got hurt -- personally, I think these guys are underrated in FF overall. But is everyone stays healthy and they stay on script, I think you see Pierce with around 200-900 and 5 TD, with modest receiving stats.

[Chief Rum]

Of those three? I'd take Weeden on upside. Flacco is probably the best pick, but Weeden has looked amazing this pre-season, the team's got a great O-Line and Richardson is a beast.

To update the 49er WR battle (because I know everyone's been eagerly awaiting this information)...

Locks to make the roster:
Anquan Boldin
Kyle Williams
Quinton Patton

Strong contenders:
Marlon Moore
Jon Baldwin
Austin Collie

In the mix:
Kassim Osgood
Chad Hall

Longshots:
Lavelle Hawkins

Hawkins had a kickoff return TD tonight...but he also had THREE unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. Patton looked very good, and Marlon Moore has had nearly every single snap with the first team offense this pre-season. Strange as it is, it looks like Moore is going to be the starting #2 WR beside Boldin. That being said, Ricardo Lockette looked like he was getting a lot of reps in practice, then he was cut so they could sign Seneca Wallace. If I had to guess right now, I'm thinking the final depth chart looks like so:

Boldin
Moore
Williams
Patton
Baldwin
Collie

Moore is only worth a look in real deep leagues (12+ teams with 3 WR slots), but Patton might be worth a flier in a dynasty league. He's young and has shown a ton of grit, desire, and ability in the preseason.

I don't see how the Niners would cut Baldwin after trading a guy they drafted in the first round for him (even if Jenkins hasn't done squat to prove he was worth that pick). I would think he would be in the "definitely making the roster" list.

Doesn't mean he plays much, of course.

[kcchief19]

No surprise that a 2-14 team doesn't have a lot of fantasy worthy talent, and that's pretty much the case in KC.

Alex Smith will be a game manager and the receiving corps is weak. Dwayne Bowe has been a decent fantasy receiver in the past, but Reid wants Smith to look at TEs first, so most of the time Bowe will not be the first option. One would think they need to target Bowe given his big contract. But maturity has always been a Bowe issue, and it's easy to conclude that now that he has his money he may not be as aggressive as in the past. And with no other receivers on the team, he's going to draw the toughest matchups and double teams. I have a hard time seeing Bowe top his output from the past, although a 1,000 yards and 6 TDs sounds right to me.

Never allow Dexter McCluster to dazzle you with his speed. Everybody who coaches McCluster thinks he will be a matchup nightmare for the defense, until they realize he can't get open, can't catch the ball and gets tackled be a light breeze.

Chiefs TEs will over perform but not significantly so. First off there are too many of them, second is they are all pretty average. They will get plenty of balls, so I can see Fasano and Moeaki getting close to their career highs. Travis Kelce could unseat Moeaki as the No. 2 guy, but I have a hard time seeing him make a big impact.

The two Chiefs to target fantasy wise are Jamal Charles and the D/ST. If Charles stays healthy, he could easily end up being the No. 1 fantasy back this year. The Chiefs are going to use him in both the running and passing games. In a PPR league, his value could be astronomical. A 1,600 yard rushing, 500 yards receiving, 10 TDs wouldn't surprise me at all, and those might be on the low side. The 2011 ACL season aside, he doesn't have much mileage. He put up huge numbers while sharing carries with Larry Johnson in 2009 and Thomas Jones in 2010. Last year on a two-win team was the first time he's been the lead back, and he put up 1,500 on 285 carries. He's the 2007 Brian Westbrook.

Chiefs D/ST could be a real value. Probably won't go high, but they should score. Dave Toub from the Bears is the new special teams coach, and after three games I'm convinced Devin Hester was a system kick returner. Chiefs have returned two kicks for TDs in the preseason, had a couple of others that were close and blocked a couple of kicks. Word out of training camp was that special teams looked terrific in practice as well. The defensive numbers might be average -- below average sacks, maybe above average takeaways. But this is a team where D/ST will score TDs.

K Ryan Succop may also be worth a flyer as a cheap kicker. The Chiefs offense seems like the type that will settle for field goals. He's been almost automatic for 100 points a season, but I wouldn't be surprised if he went for 120+ this year. He won't be a top 5 kicker this year but I'd project top 10.

[Logan]

I actually like Donnie Avery a lot as a sleeper in PPR leagues since you can get him as your last WR. He's always been considered very talented but had issues staying healthy. He performed well last year with Luck in Indy (60 for 780, TDs were light) and I think he could work better with Smith. He finished as WR42 in my PPR league last year. Not bad at all for where you get him.

[albionmoonlight]

Ingram and Thomas both have gotten more looks in the passing game than they have in the past. I might downgrade Sproles a bit based on that. Some of his targets from last season will go to Ingram and Thomas, I suspect.

I don't, however, know if that really increases either Ingram or Thomas a lot in value. Seems to be a real RBBC in New Orleans this season.

[Vince, Pt. II]

So the Niners did almost what I predicted - they kept 5 receivers instead of 6, and Austin Collie got the axe. Which leaves:

Anquan Boldin
Kyle Williams
Marlon Moore
Quinton Patton
Jon Baldwin

Harbaugh hasn't named starters yet, but it's clear that Boldin is #1 while Crabtree is out. The team is likely to use multiple TE sets often, as they really like rookie Vance McDonald, but if any of Moore, Williams or Patton is getting regular playing time as the #2 WR they're worth a look in bigger, deeper leagues.

[BishopMVP]

Sudfeld (not Ballard) is a good pick up when Gronk is out of action (I won't rule Gronk out from playing Week 1, but he should start on the PUP list and miss the first 6 games).Gronk doesn't start on the PUP list, but got the rest right as Ballard was released. If you don't have Jimmy Graham at TE and by some miracle Sudfeld is still available on the waiver wire, he'll be a great play the first few weeks.

[Vince, Pt. II]

49ers WR Depth Chart, Week 1:

WR1: Anquan Boldin, Marlon Moore, Jon Baldwin
WR2: Kyle Williams, Quinton Patton, Chris Harper (rookie signed off Seattle's practice squad)

Williams might be worth a look in super deep leagues, and Patton might be worth a nod in deep dynasty/keeper leagues, but Boldin's really your only main fantasy contributor.