Baltimore Ravens

Baltimore is in a difficult spot as a franchise and this year’s draft was pivotal.  The Ravens’ have elite talent on offense for the first time in a while, but they lacked one weapon last year, a deep threat.  Anquan Boldin was a great acquisition for the Ravens offense, but without a speedy vertical threat on the outside to stretch the field and a draw safety help over the top, he was just being double covered and prevented from impacting the game the way they had hoped.  Torrey Smith was drafted in the 2^nd round to be that weapon and at 6’1’’ 204 lbs he is explosive enough to get the job done as well as contribute in the return game.  In round 1, Jimmy Smith was drafted to join the Ravens’ experienced and veteran-led defense.  He will have ample time to perfect his craft with players like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed to show him the ropes as well as being talented enough to start contributing immediately.  Baltimore made significant improvements, but the entire success of this draft is up to whether or not Torrey Smith or Tandon Doss (another speedy WR taken in round 4) is able to stretch the field and give the offense the vertical threat it needs to be both well-balanced and explosive.

My Grade: B+

Cincinnati Bengals

Of all the teams that drafted a QB in this year’s draft, Cincinnati got the best deal of them all.  Andy Dalton is from a spread style offense, but seems to have all the off-the-field intangibles that you want from a future franchise QB.  In the first round the Bengals also grabbed the top WR in this year’s draft. AJ Green is a very polished receiver that seems a sure thing to be success at the NFL level, but I do not think the Bengals made the right decision here.  The season before last, the Bengals were a run-first offense that gave roughly 30 carries per game to Cedric Benson.  In that season, they won the division and swept all three divisional opponents.  This is no small feat considering that Pittsburgh and Baltimore are in the division.  After that, they picked up Terrell Owens off free agency, prioritized the passing game and finished 4-12… behind the Cleveland Browns who went through three different starting QBs over the course of the season.  To me, it’s a no-brainer… run the ball.  I would have liked to see the Bengals trade the pick away (something tells me Atlanta was willing to pay a ton to trade up and take a WR) and draft an in interior offensive lineman to improve their running game.

My Grade: B-

Cleveland Browns

The Browns were one of the bigger winners in this year’s draft.  Their biggest need was a receiver for Colt McCoy to develop along side, but that was far from their only area of concern.  Cleveland had a chance for one of the premier receivers in this year’s draft but made the smart choice to trade the pick away to Atlanta. In the trade they acquired first, second and fourth round picks in this draft as well as a first and fourth round pick in next year’s draft.  So, despite missing out on an elite talent at their biggest position of need, the Browns enabled themselves to rebuild as a franchise quicker and more effectively. With their first round selection, the Browns took Phil Taylor to anchor the center of their defensive line while they transition to a 4-3 scheme.  Taylor is 6’3’’ and 334 lbs. and should make a good replacement for Shaun Rogers.  I would have thought Taylor would have been used more as a traditional NT, but he will certainly still be an effective run-stopper in his new 4-3 scheme. The Browns also had two picks in the 2^nd round and with the first they added an outside pass rusher to their d-line with Jabaal Sheard.  I expect him to start as the right defensive end immediately and be an impact player for quite some time.  The second pick of round two was the playmaking WR that they needed most of all.  They took 6’3’’ 220 lb. Greg Little.  Little showed flashes of big-time playmaking ability in his time at UNC, but was suspended for his final season.  This makes him a bit of a risk, but with risk comes the potential for great reward.  Little has the skill set to potentially be the best receiver taken in this year’s draft, even if the smart money is on AJ Green.

My Grade: A

Pittsburgh Steelers

I am hesitant to criticize a team that historically drafts phenomenally, but I am going to do it anyway.  I thought the Steelers should have drafted a defensive back early and with Aaron Williams still on the board, I really thought they would jump at the chance to take him.  Instead they took themselves a new defensive end to join the rotation of pass rushers that terrorizes opposing quarterbacks.  Cam Heyward is a 6’5’’ 294 lb monster to play in the five-technique and should flourish in this system, but they just needed someone to play cornerback much more and Williams slid much farther than I thought he would, because Prince Amukamara fell past both Houston and Detroit.  Again, in round two, the cornerback position remains unaddressed as they take Marcus Gilbert (6’6’’ 330 lbs.) who I actually like quite a bit as a developmental player.   Gilbert may end up being thrown into a starting right tackle role next season because of his size and mobility, but it will take a couple seasons before he can play on the left side, against all the best pass rushers the league has to offer. In rounds three and four the Steelers take a pair of defensive backs that will compete for time in nickel and dime formations, with Curtis Brown (6’0’’ 185lbs.) and Cortez Allen (6’1’’ 248 lbs.).  Brown is the more athletic of the two and the better for Pittsburgh’s zone scheme, he has the most potential to be a playmaker in the secondary and we should see him on the field much more than Allen.  Time will certainly show that the Steelers got quality players in this draft, but I just can’t help but feel like they need more talented players in the defensive backfield with Troy Polamalu.

My Grade: B-

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The Ravens added the most needed element to their offense when they acquired Anquan Boldin, a vertical threat.  This will help to keep the focus off of Ray Rice and give the offense a balance that everyone will benefit from.  The Ravens also used the draft to re-bolster their traditionally stout defense by selecting Terrance Cody and Sergio Kindle.  These two picks will give the defense its physicality back. Given that the offense is more than capable of keeping the defense well rested, the Ravens could be in for quite a run this season.

Top Fantasy Players

Joe Flacco – I am pretty high on Flacco this season, he has a dynamic running game and a better receiving corp. than the Ravens have seen in quite some time.  The table is set this season for this for a breakout year from this promising young QB and I think he will exceed expectations.

Ray Rice – Most people are ranking Rice as the fourth RB, but I have him at fifth.  We do all agree that he is a must draft no later than that and is set to have a huge year.

Anquan Boldin – Boldin is a big physical receiver that is not afraid to run over the middle of the field and is a nightmare to cover in the red zone.  He is finally out of the shadow of Larry Fitzgerald and is now in a more stable offense and all around team.

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The AFC North is, in my opinion, not really up for grabs this year.  The smart money to win it this year is the Ravens… Hands down!  The Browns are almost sure to be basement dwellers again this time around and with Big Ben out for at least 4 games the Steelers ought to be too far back from the outset but they will have a chance to compete for a wild card run.

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Pittsburgh Steelers

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With the first weekend of free agency drawing to a close its time to look at how the moves that have been made so far impact next years Fantasy Football season.  Many big-names have changed teams during this week, and  will shake up next seasons pre-draft rankings quite a bit.  Here are the roster moves made so far during this free agency period that have an impact on fantasy football:

Anquan Boldin traded to Ravens – The biggest move of the free agency period was not a signing, but a trade.  With the addition of Anquan Boldin to the Ravens offense three different players all receive a bump in my rankings; Joe Flacco, Anquan Boldin (shocker!), and Ray Rice.  The biggest weakness of the Ravens last year was balance in the passing game.  They have been lacking a serious play-maker at the wide receiver position, and Flacco’s production was hurt the worst by it.  Mason is getting old and may not be back in a Ravens uniform next year, but with the addition of Stallworth and now Boldin the Ravens will finally have two polished receivers that can stretch the field AND get open over the middle.  The impact on Ray Rice will also be significant, with Boldin on the roster the Ravens will have a balanced offensive attack instead of the Ray Rice show that was last season.  Next year he wont be a surprise, people know what he can do now and without a balanced attack he would be vulnerable to being schemed against.  With game-breaking talent at wide-out defenses will need to respect the deep ball and Rice will remain a top tier back.

Antonio Cromartie traded to the Jets – Another trade tops my list of moves made during free agency week, and yes I know it was the day before but its so significant I’m sneaking it in!  This move will solidify the Jets as my #1 Defense for next season barring some unforeseen incident.  While Cromartie  is certainly no Revis, he is a very gifted player filling the area of biggest need for the Jets already number one ranked defense.  Oh, and the Jets were already first in the league in passing defense last year… 30 yards fewer per game than the number two Bills.

Bears sign Chester Taylor – I am really excited to see what Taylor can do outside the shadow of Adrian Peterson… but I do not think we will know his full potential until at least next year.  The Bears have no picks in the first two rounds, and have an offensive line that could use quite a bit of work.  Good news for the Bears however, this is a VERY deep draft class at offensive line and there is a real chance they could find a diamond in the rough.  Taylor is a very complete back and he will likely take over the primary role leaving Forte to handle third downs.

Lions sign Nate Burleson – Calvin Johnson finally has someone that could pull some double teams away from him… ok not quite. However,  Burleson has 7 years of experience and a fair few left in him.  His veteran leadership and experience at being on mediocre teams could go a long way to helping the Lions on the road to average.  And lets face it, with a tough and talented kid like Stafford at the helm they could get there pretty quick.  Burleson will likely see similar production as he had in his disappointing last season, but he could really help Megatron get open a couple more times per game… and that is certainly a good thing.

Bears sign Julius Peppers – The Bears make my list twice since they needed to use the limited free agent pool as their draft, and lets face it… you cant draft the best pass rushing defensive end and that is what the Bears got in Peppers.  The biggest weakness for the Bears defense last year was… well… their offense.  With Cutler throwing such a large number of interceptions as well as the Bears’ inability to extend drives and provide some rest for their defenders, just about every game the defense was worn out by the fourth quarter and unable to stop much of anything.  Hopefully Taylor and Manumaleuna help to extend drives and give those poor guys a break.  If the Bears find a good lineman or two, their defense could be a top5 fantasy defense again soon.

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I don’t think this matters much as you likely didn’t have a kicker that was about to lose his job. And If you did, you will have no issues replacing him.

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