Last Fantasy Football draft Faceoff here in this post. Next up will be an analysis of the opener on Thursday night with comments on likely fantasy starters, stars, and duds in that game. I hope that you have enjoyed the fantasy faceoff series in making draft decisions and that you continue to return during the season for fantasy football news and analysis.

Joe Flacco just received some very interesting news. With the addition of TJ Housh coming over from Seattle, his already bolstered receiving corps (added Anguan Boldin in the offseason) just got better. With the addition of Housh, and the always solid Derrick Mason still on the team the Ravens offense has a lot of weapons. Look for Flacco to make great strides again this season and make a lot of fantasy owners very happy for putting their faith in him. With Ray Rice an additional receiving threat out of the backfield, Flacco’s cup runneth over.

Matt Ryan has a solid supporting cast in Atlanta as well. With Roddy White as his #1 WR and the old reliable Tony Gonzalez as his TE Ryan will have solid targets to throw to as well. Of concern here is the type of back that Michael Turner is. Expect Turner to be used more as a rusher than a receiver thus limiting Ryan in comparison to Flacco there. Also of concern is that the Falcons may try to focus on a more run oriented offense which has been mentioned in some analysis. Ryan should still put up solid numbers especially for his draft position, but there will be games that he will definitely need to sit on your bench.

Flacco gets the nod in the last edition of the Fantasy Football faceoff of the fantasy draft season. Look for him to have a good year throwing to a lot of good receivers on a new and improved Ravens’ offense.

Ok, how about another Packer vs Eagle showdown to follow up on Finley vs Celek? Yes, Greg Jennings versus Desean Jackson is a compelling fantasy football faceoff. Both of these players have the ability to catch the long ball and take it to the house for the TD. Speed and skill are in abundance here.

Greg Jennings has as a first solid plus the fact that Aaron Rodgers is throwing the ball to him. When the top rated QB is your QB, then some of that can be expected to rub off. Look for Jennings to have a solid year in a good Packers offense. Jennings can score from anywhere on the field and is a long ball and redzone threat for the Packers. Draft him with confidence, but expect that in some games he may lose catches to Driver who is a solid WR2.

Desean Jackson is a great young receiver with blazing speed. A couple of quick knocks on Jackson’s value in comparison to Jennings are his QB and his inconsistency. Once again, The Legend does believe that Kolb will have a good year, but wants to hedge his bets a little by making sure to factor his untested background into the analysis. Also, Jackson at times can disappear in the offense and if it wasn’t for his deep ball threat potential that gets him a lot of his yards, he would probably slide another round in many drafts. Even with that said, he can be a solid selection for a starting WR for a fantasy roster as long as that is factored into the analysis.

Unless I am in a league with a substantial bonus for long TD catches than I am going with Jennings here. While Jackson is a solid pick and I think his owners will be happy at the end of the season, Jennings owners are going to feel better on a week to week basis and will come out on top when it is all summed up.

Jermichael Finley versus Brent Celek is a common Tight End draft day dilemma facing fantasy football owners. Both of these guys play for solid offensive units and can be considered red zone targets.

Jermichal Finley has quite possibly the best quarterback in fantasy football throwing the ball to him and that QB has confidence in him. This alone is enough to get him a nice TE ranking. Green Bay can be expected to move the ball early and often with a lot of passing yards and TD’s to go around. While Finley shouldn’t be expected to be a yardage machine, the Packers’ ability to move the ball and score should be enough to get him respectable yardage and TD totals and make him a more than adequate fantasy TE.

Brent Celek has emerged as a mover into the top fantasy TE ranks. Playing for a good Eagles team that also likes to throw the ball a lot, he is also expected to be a top target for new starter Kevin Kolb. Celek’s hopes ride on Kolb being the real deal as Donovan McNabb’s replacement, so some risk should be assumed there since Kolb does still have to prove himself in a full NFL season even though he is anticipated to do well based on his relief performances in the past. If all goes well with Kolb, then expect Celek to also out up solid starting fantasy TE numbers with nice yards and TD’s from the TE spot for your fantasy team.

In this battle, the consistency at QB is what sways me. Rodgers is proven and while I like Kolb, he isn’t as tested. Also Green Bay should be expected to have a more potent offense than Philadelphia. This all means that Finley’s numbers at the end of the season should include more yards and TD’s, which is what we are looking for in a fantasy TE choice.

Jamaal Charles versus Ryan Grant is a decision owners are likely to face in their fantasy football draft. When looking for a RB2 or hopefully RB3, these two are going to be likely choices to select from.
Jamaal Charles closed out the year last season looking strong, and owners were looking forward to good things from him in 2010. Then the Chiefs did something to throw a little cold water on those hopes by bringing in Thomas Jones from the Jets. Jones is currently being listed as the starter, but most analysts believe that this is a motivational technique to get Charles fired up and fight for his spot. While Jones cannot match Charles in youth and explosiveness, he is a veteran and must be of [...]

Chad Ochocinco versus Michael Crabtree? Veteran versus almost rookie. Strong division division versus weak division. Veteran QB versus unproven QB. This matchup features the known versus the potential, but is a choice facing many taking their WR2.
Chad Ochocinco is a good wide receiver with a nose for the spotlight who loves to catch a TD pass so that he can break into a celebration display that will earn him a fine from the commissioner. Because of this excitement, he can be a very fun player to own and watch. He plays for a good team in the Bengals with a good QB in Carson Palmer. They have a balanced offense with good skill position players all around. To some degree you know what you [...]

Roddy White vs Brandon Marshall is a common Wide Receiver draft dilemma for the fantasy owner. Who to take here?
Both of these WR’s have young QB’s although Matt Ryan has more seasoning than Chad Henne does. Both of them are unquestionably the #1 WR on their respective teams. Both of them have the ability to break the long TD as well as to catch for the first down and possession. This one is a tough choice.
Roddy White plays for a good Atlanta team with a solid running game with Michael Turner and a solid TE threat in Tony Gonzalez. He has developed a good rapport with Matt Ryan who can hopefully continue to improve in his 3rd year in the league. The knock on [...]

These are two relatively new faces who both have a little history and who both are looking to prove something this year. Having to choose between Knowshon Moreno and Matt Forte will be a choice many owners have to make when looking to fill in their RB position.
The first thing to know about Knowshon Moreno is that he had an injury in training camp, so evaluate that prior to making a final decision, but at last report he is expected to be ready for the regular season. Moreno is a nice back who has big expectations and many had targeted him as a breakout candidate in 2010. Playing for a Denver team that may have to rely on the run more this year with [...]

Yes, Favre Watch is over and just in time for many fantasy football drafts to take the impact into consideration. At first it was reported a couple weeks ago that Favre was retiring, which had many early fantasy drafters avoiding Favre and many Vikings in response. Now, he is back and it is time for an updated analysis.
Even though many (myself included) hate the way this media frenzy is created and nurtured, there is no doubt that the Vikings and their skill players are better off with Favre in the backfield. That being said, let’s get into the commentary.
QB – Neither Jackson nor Rosenfals were going to be fantasy starter options at QB, but Favre immediately becomes a fantasy starter in most leagues. Rank [...]

In recent posts I have shared and reviewed the results of mock drafts with you, but now it is time for the first real draft results of the season. Just completed was a draft in a 10 team league that is for real, with prizes, and will be played out through the season. Details of the basic rules are as below.
Note: This was a 10 team league 16 round draft for 9 starting positions with 7 reserves. This league does have a flex position (RB/WR), but still has no PPR and uses basically standard scoring.
The flex position doesn’t make me alter my normal strategy too much since I already focus on drafting RB’s and WR’s and let my QB position be covered by a [...]

For someone waiting until later rounds to draft a quarterback because they are following a quarterback by committee strategy, the decision between Carson Palmer and Eli Manning will be an important one. Both going in later rounds at similar ADP’s and both seeming like starting QB caliber material for a fantasy football team. Hard choice.
Carson Palmer is in his second year back from major knee surgery and is hoping for an improved season statistically this year. The Bengals have added some additional offensive firepower this year with Antonio Bryant (who may not make an impact after all) and Terrell Owens joining the team to complement the already solid Chad Ochocinco. Palmer will have no shortage of targets, and a decent running game to keep [...]