We are heading into the home stretch for the start of the season. As we head into the final days of fantasy drafts, let’s take a look at our final preseason rankings:
- Antonio Gates – San Diego Chargers
- Jason Witten – Dallas Cowboys
- Jermichael Finley – Green Bay Packers
- Vernon Davis – San Francisco 49ers
- Dallas Clark – Indianapolis Colts
- Owen Daniels – Houston Texans
- Kellen Winslow – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Jimmy Graham – New Orleans Saints
- Tony Gonzalez – Atlanta Falcons
- Zach Miller – Seattle Seahawks
- Greg Olsen – Carolina Panthers
- Brandon Pettigrew – Detroit Lions
- Rob Gronkowski – New England Patriots
- Jermaine Gresham – Cincinnati Bengals
- Dustin Keller – New York Jets
- Marcedes Lewis – Jacksonville Jaguars
- Jared Cook – Tennessee Titans
- Chris Cooley – Washington Redskins
- Kevin Boss – Oakland Raiders
- Todd Heap – Arizona Cardinals
Thoughts:
- With the fears of Peyton Manning being forced to miss at least one game growing, you have to wonder how that will affect the production of Dallas Clark. He still has to be considered among the elite at the position, but going with one of the “safer” elite options makes a little more sense.
- So far this preseason Aaron Hernandez leads all tight ends with 14 receptions for 156 yards (he’s also added a touchdown). Does that change anything when we look at him vs. Rob Gronkowski? It shouldn’t. Reports from the Boston Herald (click here for the article) say, “Thus far in camp, Rob Gronkowski has been a man among boys. No one has come close to being able to guard him, or contain him. He’s been an absolute beast. The second year tight end has looked virtually unstoppable, making catches all over the field.” Gronkowski should still be considered the better fantasy option, though it is likely the two will take receptions away from each other all season long.
- With Cam Newton looking like he is going to open the Carolina Panthers QB to start the season, the potential value of Greg Olsen continues to grow. While the Chicago Bears never seemed to give him a true chance to shine, the Panthers style of play figures to give him plenty of opportunities. Would it be a surprise to see him lead the team in receptions? Not in the least. Consider him a low-end TE1.
- The injury issues for Chris Cooley continue and it is looking more and more likely that he could be forced to miss time at some point. According to Rich Campbell of The Washington Times (click here for the article), “Cooley expects to have to manage the pain all season, but he plans on participating in practices during the week. He takes pride in his durability, having rarely missed a practice in more than five seasons before he broke his leg during a game in 2009.” Drafting him as a starting option has become an even bigger risk.
Make sure to check out all of the rankings from Rotoprofessor:
Do you think Aaron Hernandez is the better TE for PPR scoring? He should get more open-field (aka, non-Red Zone) looks than Gronk, especially with the West Coast dink-n-dunk type of passing that Brady loves
If the preseason is any indication that would definitely appear to the be the case. The problem is, with the Patriots can you ever really be certain?