Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Bruno Boys staff writer James Ronstadt has been tracking the progress of this season’s rookie class since the NFL Combine in February 2011. After four weeks of preseason games, here is how the top skill position rookies grade out in terms of potential fantasy production in the 2011 NFL season. There are a handful of players who could emerge as first-year stars, however the majority probably won’t make much, if any, impact this year. Look for the majority to be more valuable to fantasy owners in 2012 and later. — Allie Fontana

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- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Here’s a recap of notable performances and other news from potential fantasy football impact rookies in Week 3 of the NFL Preseason.

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- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Bruno Boys staff writer James Ronstadt has been tracking the progress of this season’s rookie class since the NFL Combine in February 2011. After three weeks of preseason games, here is how the top skill position rookies grade out in terms of potential fantasy production in the 2011 NFL season. There are a handful of players who could emerge as first-year stars, however the majority probably won’t make much, if any, impact this year. Look for the majority to be more valuable to fantasy owners in 2012 and later. — Allie Fontana

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- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Here’s a recap of notable performances from potential fantasy football impact rookies in Week 2 of the NFL Preseason.

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- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Bruno Boys staff writer James Ronstadt has been tracking the progress of this season’s rookie class since the NFL Combine in February 2011. After two weeks of preseason games, here is how the top skill position rookies grade out in terms of potential fantasy production in the 2011 NFL season. There are a handful of players who could emerge as first-year stars, however the majority probably won’t make much, if any, impact this year. Look for the majority to be more valuable to fantasy owners in 2012 and later. — Allie Fontana

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- Written by James Ronstadt
- Edited by Allie Fontana

Fantasy football owners are scratching their heads over how to deal with rookies this season after the lengthy NFL lockout cut into the class of 2011’s valuable preparation time. Ranking are fluid by nature, perhaps even more so this year, given the impact that the labor dispute had on offseason activities. Not only did it eliminate organized team activities (OTAs) and mini camps, the majority of rookies didn’t see their new team’s playbook until the first day of training camp. Free agency and trades were also put on hold, so it has been more difficult to predict how some rookies will fit into their organizations’ 2011 game plan.
 
The learning curve for many skill position rookies will be fast and furious; therefore fantasy football owners are advised not to reach for first-year players–even talented ones in good situations. You don’t have to go back any further than San Diego Chargers running back Ryan Mathews in 2010 for a valuable lesson in paying too high of a price for a “sure thing” rookie.

Bruno Boys writer James Ronstadt has been tracking the progress of this season’s rookie class since the NFL Combine in February. Here is his take on how the top rookie tight ends rank in terms of potential fantasy production in 2011. While some won’t make much of an impact this season, they could be valuable to fantasy owners in 2012 and later.  — Allie Fontana

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- Written by Brad Berreman
- Edited by Allie Fontana

When looking for impact rookie for your fantasy football team, quarterbacks and running backs often represent opposite ends of the spectrum.

With the complexities of NFL offenses these days, rookie quarterbacks are rarely productive from the outset. In most cases, this has less to do with talent and more to do with the situation the rookie quarterback finds himself in. Rookie quarterbacks typically enter the league as first or early-round draft picks made by struggling teams. More often than not, the talent around them is subpar, which makes it more difficult for first-year signal callers to become instant fantasy stars.

Running backs, on the other hand, are much more likely to step in and make a significant fantasy impact as rookies.  Some are drafted by playoff-caliber teams and are immediately part of a productive offense, while others are expected to be “lightning in a bottle” for less successful franchises.

Determining a rookie’s impact, whether quarterback or running back, frequently depends as much on his ability to adapt to the demands of the NFL as it does to situational opportunity. Moreover, players from schools that feature pro-style offenses have a better shot at achieving success and making a fantasy football impact as rookies.

With this in mind, let’s take look at the Bruno Boys’ Class of 2010 quarterbacks and running backs that have the best chance to shine this season.

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Tight end is not the most glamorous position in the NFL or fantasy football. With the exception of the elite players, they are not popular draft picks in real or fantasy football, but something changed during this year’s NFL Draft. With the 21st pick in the first round, the Cincinnati Bengals drafted Jermaine Gresham of the Oklahoma Sooners. After that pick, the tight end flood gates opened as NFL teams combined to draft a record total of 21 tight ends.

Could 2010 go down as the best class of rookie tight ends in NFL history? It’s quite possible and NFL teams must think so; especially when you consider that the Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, New England Patriots and St. Louis Rams drafted two tight ends apiece. For years, tight ends weren’t much more than additional offensive linemen, then more and more tight ends became involved in the passing game. Now, teams are using them in a variety of ways, including sending them in motion and lining them up in the backfield.

With the tight end position evolving, how will this rookie class impact fantasy football during their first NFL season? In this fourth installment of the Bruno Boys 2010 Rookie Rankings, we will take a look at fantasy potential from some of the top tight end prospects from this record breaking class.

1. Rob Gronkowski, TE, New England Patriots: Rob Gronkowski may not have been the first tight end taken in this year’s draft (he was second), but he might have the biggest opportunity to make an impact in his rookie season. The Patriots are in desperate need of a playmaking tight end, especially after losing both Benjamin Watson and Chris Baker in off-season moves. Gronkowski gives quarterback Tom Brady an excellent outlet from the tight end position that has been lacking since Watson’s best season in 2006.

Gronkowski is a big, athletic tight end who runs precise routes. He has good speed for a 6’6” 260 plus pound tight end, and he has very good hands. A back injury caused him to sit out the 2009 season at the University of Arizona, but he was still one of the most complete tight end prospects in the draft. He will likely compete with the Patriots’ other rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez for the starting spot along with veteran Alge Crumpler whom New England signed as a free agent. Whether or not Gronkowski lands the starting job, he should contribute for the Patriots from day one. He is worth using a late round draft pick as a backup fantasy tight end that could offer value as an injury or bye week replacement.

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With the 2010 NFL Draft in the books it’s time for the Bruno Boys to take a look at the skill position players who were drafted and analyze their potential fantasy football impact during their rookie season. In the third installment of this series, it’s time to take a look at the wide receiver slot. Last season, we saw plenty of rookie receivers make a big time impact (Percy Harvin, Hakeem Nicks, Jeremy Maclin, Mike Wallace, Kenny Britt, Michael Crabtree, and Austin Collie) at various points in the season. This year’s rookie wide receiver class may not pop like 2009’s did, but there is still a lot of talent stepping in to some very good situations. Let’s see in who should be on your radar now that we know what uniform they will be putting on every Sunday.

1. Dez Bryant, WR, Dallas Cowboys: While this may not look like a great situation with Miles Austin and Roy Williams being the starters, Bryant is so good that it will be tough to keep him off the field. It would not be surprising to see Dallas bench the struggling Williams in favor of the rookie Bryant. If that happens, look out because Bryant will be the best first year wide receiver and a big time fantasy option.

What’s great about Bryant is that on the field there really aren’t any weaknesses in his game. He has top end speed, quickness, agility, elusiveness, size, and can run terrific routes. The only question marks surround his character and maturity. While those things can keep him off the field, fantasy owners do not need to necessarily worry themselves over it. Instead focus on his playing time because if he gets on the field, you will want to get him on your team (and Tony Romo too, whose production would increase). Those in keeper leagues need to snatch Bryant up quickly because he is going to be something special!

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With the 2010 NFL Draft in the books it’s time for the Bruno Boys to take a look at the skill position players who were drafted and analyze their potential fantasy football impact during their rookie season. In the second installment of this series it’s time to take a look at the running back, a position that many of us consider the most important position on your fantasy team. Three running backs were drafted in the first round, but where do they fit in in the fantasy world and what potential value to the running backs drafted after the first round have?

1. Ryan Matthews, RB, San Diego Chargers: Heading into the draft everyone figured that the San Diego Chargers would look to land a featured running back to replace LaDainian Tomlinson who was released in the offseason and signed with the New York Jets. After the Buffalo Bills drafted C.J. Spiller with the No. 9 overall pick the Chargers traded up sixteen spots in the draft to select Fresno State’s Ryan Matthews with the No. 12 pick in the first round.

Matthews is a big, physical runner who has explosive speed and quickness and should become the teams every down back. He will team with Darren Sproles and become a solid one-two punch that should help revive the teams running game that has struggled over the last two seasons. At 6’0” 218 pounds Matthews is a North/South runner who shows good burst through the hole and is surprisingly elusive in the open field. Like Spiller and Best look for Matthews to be a low-end RB2 or flex option in the upcoming fantasy football season. It is very possible that he gets 20-plus touches a game in his rookie season.

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