Keep An Eye Out For Bryant Johnson & Others…

May 14, 2008 at 1:10 pm | Article by Paul Hickey |

After a long couple months, things are finally starting to happen on the field folks. NFL teams are practicing, and coaches are starting to show their cards a little bit in terms of who may enter the season with the best shot to start at key positions. Without further ado, let’s jump right into this week’s Stock Market Report…

Rising - Michael Turner, Falcons RB -Okay, you’ve already seen his name on this list before, but this time it’s for a different reason. We’ve jocked the Burner pretty much all off-season, but this is the first time since he signed with Atlanta back in March that we’re truly feeling he can become a number one fantasy RB in 2008. Why? Well, not only is his shoulder fully healed from a minor operation he had this off-season, but the Falcons are feeling great about new offensive tackle Sam Baker. New OC Mike Mularkey has also hinted that he wants to use Turner constantly throughout ball games, to pound the rock into field goal territory and play it very conservative. We anticipate 300 touches for Turner this year, and what he lacks in the TD category, he’ll make up for with solid yardage and reception digits. It’s also worthy of noting that Turner is likely to make at least a few big plays for the Falcons in 2008, as he’s had a run of 70 or more yards in each of his last three seasons.

Rising - Bryant Johnson, 49ers WR -Last season, we predicted the rise to fantasy stardom of Denver’s Brandon Marshall (He-Man). This year, Bryant Johnson is our guy. We had our eye on him throughout the free agent signing period, due to the fact that he’s only 26 years old, and he’s played very well the last three seasons, only behind Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. Now that he is in Mike Martz’s offense, he’s not only automatically in a position to succeed from a fantasy standpoint, but given the fact that he was lining up as the team’s number one WR (flanker), with Isaac Bruce at split end and Arnaz Battle in the slot, he could be Roy Williams circa 2006. Translation - Johnson’s ceiling is larger than it ever has been in his life, and we like him to have a breakout year.

Rising - Chris Johnson, Titans RB -There’s a lot of skepticism about the Titans drafting Chris Johnson among the NFL community. There shouldn’t be skepticism among the fantasy community - especially among PPR owners. Johnson will be used as a Reggie Bush-type weapon in Tennessee this season, and should see 15 touches a game, similar to Mojo Drew in each of his first two years. That’s where Johnson’s play-making ability and 4.2 speed comes into play. In our eyes, he’s a pretty darn good bet to be a solid flex play throughout 2008.

Falling - Dexter Jackson, Buccaneers WR - Each season, it’s tough for dynasty owners to judge what rookies to count on for fantasy success in the future. One thing all dynasty owners must do first is check guys off their list. The Tampa Buccaneers have come out and said that rookie second rounder Dexter Jackson will not be counted on as an offensive threat in 2008. We assume this means he’ll be used primarily on special teams, and possibly only on special teams. This is good for Michael Clayton and Antonio Bryant’s chances of making it on to a fantasy squad or two this year, but we’d avoid Jackson - even in dynasty formats.

Rising - Odell Thurman, Bengals LB -Remember him? The second round MLB from Georgia that took the IDP world by storm as a rookie in 2005, before falling off the face of the Earth due to legal issues and league suspensions? Well, he’s now back folks. Thurman has been reinstated and has rejoined the Bengals at practice. If all goes well, we beleive he’ll start at MLB again this season and definitely jump back onto the fantasy radar.

Rising - Chris Perry, Bengals RB -Like Thurman, we haven’t heard much from Perry since 2005 as well. I guess this shows that the Bengals have faith in the players they draft and like to hang onto them for long periods of time. Perry had 51 catches in very limited snaps in 2005, and could make an impact in PPR leagues this season. He’s reportedly healthy for the first time in two years, and was described by some media outlets as “smooth” and “quick” in practice the other day. Rudi Johnson is the starter, but is slowing down, so Perry could see plenty of work in 2008.

Rising - Curtis Lofton, Falcons MLB - As we suspected, Falcons rookie Curtis Loftonhas come out and played first string MLB in practices this week, and veteran Keith Brooking has moved to the weak side. IDPers, say hello to the next DeMeco Ryans.�