This old dog still has tricks. Steve Smith
has caught a Week 1 touchdown the last two seasons.
Grab a Helmet
Steve
Smith @ DEN: The Steve Smith, Sr. retirement tour kicks
off Sunday in Denver and I, for one, can’t wait. I haven’t always
been a fan of Smith’s chest-thumping, trash-talking style, but it’s
hard not to admire his longevity, his pugnacity, and his continued
ability to eek every ounce of production out of that 5’9”, 195-pound
body. On a pound for pound basis, in fact, I’m not sure how many
better receivers there are not named Antonio
Brown. Oddly, Smith is being mostly ignored heading into his
swan song season with an ADP rank of just 33 at his position. Unless
someone feels like opening a can of Steve Smith, Sr. whoop-ass,
they’d better not tell him he’s getting drafted behind Allen
Robinson, Martavis
Bryant, and rookie Nelson
Agholor. Baltimore’s WR corps is thin with a capital “T,” so
pretend its 10 years ago and ride the scrappy Smith.
Davante
Adams @ CHI: Adams went from potential breakout candidate
to guaranteed breakout stud after Jordy
Nelson was injured in Green Bay’s second preseason game. Normally,
I’d be leery of such unbridled enthusiasm, but the second-year man
from Fresno St. literally has it all: great ability, great quarterback,
and most importantly, a starting spot all to himself in possibly
the league’s best offense. The addition of former Packer James Jones
could conceivably bite into Adams’ production but don’t count on
it. Besides, there’s just so much Aaron Rodgers love to go around.
Care to guess how many TD passes A-Rodge tossed against his favorite
NFC North punching bag in 2014? Try 10. That’s only 10 fewer than
Russell Wilson tossed against everyone he played! Adams joins the
Green Bay gravy train just as it’s leaving the station and he should
be in for a heckuva sophomore season. Get on board.
Markus
Wheaton @ NE (Thursday) or Brandin
Cooks @ ARZ: This will be my third Martavis Bryant mention
– which is three more times than he deserves – but his four-game
suspension does have a silver lining: It elevates one of my 2015
sleepers to start-worthy status right away. Markus Wheaton, who
some thought would wake up in 2014, kept on snoozing after a promising
opener (six grabs, 97 yards), eventually becoming an afterthought
in the Steelers offense. Meanwhile, his former understudy at Oregon
State, Cooks, failed to live up to fantasy expectations as a rook
(just eight more total points than Wheaton) despite flashing breathtaking
potential on a couple occasions. He’s now Drew Brees’ best target
and should dutifully reward New Orleans for putting so much faith
in him. Provided Wheaton can capitalize on his sudden opportunity
in Pittsburgh, expect both former Beavers to meet or exceed expectations
this coming season.
Grab Some Wood
DeAndre
Hopkins v. KC: Hopkins was one of my favorite fantasy
performers in 2014, mostly because he kept me afloat when my running
back corps succumbed to injuries and my dicey quarterback situation
got progressively dicier as the season wore on. Things change
quickly in the NFL, however, and I’m about as bearish on Houston’s
star wideout this year as I was bullish on him last year. Why?
For starters, he’ll no longer be catching passes from Ryan Fitzpatrick.
If you think that’s a good thing, consider who the Texans opted
to replace Fitz with. Second, Andre
Johnson, who clearly commanded attention, is now playing in
Indy. Finally, Arian Foster, who clearly commanded the most attention,
is watching in sweats to start the year. If you can wait on the
ultra-talented Hopkins until either Foster returns or Brian Hoyer
proves he’s worthy, I think it’d be prudent to do so.
Any CLE Receiver @ NYJ: Here’s
what the Browns’ receiving depth chart reads like heading into
Week 1: Brian
Hartline, Travis
Benjamin, Dwayne
Bowe, and Terrelle
Pryor on one side; Andrew
Hawkins, Taylor
Gabriel, and Marlon
Moore on the other. I’m sorry you had to see that. If you’re
an incurable optimist and feel like someone has to emerge and
catch Josh McCown’s passes in the Cleveland offense, allow me
to douse that optimism with my special brand of Shot Caller cynicism:
No, they don’t. I mean, someone will catch passes for the Browns,
yes. It’s just that you won’t know who it’s going to be and it
won’t happen regularly enough for us to care. If someone held
a gun to my hand and forced me to employ a Cleveland pass-grabber,
I’d pick Hawkins. That’s not exactly a ringing endorsement so
steer well clear of this ragged bunch Sunday.
Kenny
Britt v. SEA: First, some good news: Britt is designated
the Rams’ No.1 receiver in 2015, at least until Brian
Quick rounds into form. Now, the bad: That means he’ll be
squarely in the crosshairs of the league’s best corner, Richard
Sherman, come Sunday. Britt could be an intriguing option somewhere
down the line if he’s able to put past injury concerns in the
rearview and eliminate off-the-field issues…or at least make sure
they don’t spill over onto the field. He’s big (6’3”, 223 pounds),
has great hands, and can really dominate when focused and paired
with a legit battery mate. Here’s another potential problem, though:
It’s unclear whether Nick Foles is a legit battery mate. We’ll
need to evaluate him outside of Philly’s video game offense to
make that determination and until then, it’s probably best not
to rely on Britt or other Rams receivers, especially against Seattle.
Good luck, folks! Colby will holler at you next week!
