Examining Joseph Addai’s Value

May 8, 2008 at 7:17 am | Article by Paul Hickey |

So, the Colts brought back trusty ol’ Dominic Rhodes again, signing him to a one year deal. The question is - should Joseph Addai’s fantasy owners be worried about a potential time share? After all, Rhodes is a former 1,000 yard rusher for the Colts, and he did rush for more than 1oo yards in Super Bowl XLI.

He may be only 5′9″, with only 29 starts in eight NFL seasons, but he just won’t go away. Since Edgerrin James left for Arizona in 2006, Rhodes has been on the fantasy radar, and after being the fifth string RB on the Oakland Raiders for a few days, he’s now back with the team with which he spent his first six NFL seasons - Indianapolis. Only, this tour of duty will be much different than his last. When he left Indy as an unrestricted free agent in 2007, he was coming off a season in which he started all 16 games in one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. Granted, he had less carries than his back-up at the time (Addai), but he was still roster-worthy, and scored a respectable five TDs that year.

Now, he has to compete with sixth round rookie Mike Hart, and last year’s productive second stringer Kenton Keith, just to have an active roster spot on game days. Whoa, okay, I take that back. Rhodes can return kicks, and will definitely be active, but my point is that his fantasy value has a ceiling. At age 29, he’s not explosive at all, so he definitely won’t threaten Addai’s featured role. In other words, he’s nothing more than a veteran back-up. There’s no RBBC here folks.

Addai is one of the league’s most explosive players. He’s also extremely smart and knows the Colts’ offense like the back of his hand. He excels in all the things Tony Dungy, Tom Moore and Peyton Manning need him to - pass protection, receiving the ball out of the backfield, getting into the end zone, and making big plays when the team needs him. Addai is the present and the future of the Colts’ franchise, and they know that. He should score close to 20 TDs in 2008. At the same time, Bill Polian is a smart man. He knows that Rhodes is a great fit for his team. He can come in, return kicks, and produce if Addai gets injured. Polian also knows that Kenton Keith could be facing league punishment for some run-ins with the law this off-season, and that there’s no guarantee Mike Hart can play at the pro level. Rhodes rushed for more than 115 yards on more than 25 carries in each of his last two games with Oakland in 2007, and is capable of the same production in Indy’s offense if need be.

However, that opportunity will only come if Addai gets injured for a substantial period of time. There is no time share here. This isn’t 2006. Addai is a top five fantasy pick in all formats, and the borderline number two overall player in PPR leagues. When drafting, don’t over-analyze Rhodes’ presence. He’s a back-up only, as proven in the one-year deal he signed.