Well, the NFL lockout is over, two weeks of preseason games have been played, and it’s time to start thinking about one thing: Fantasy Football. Whether you plan on participating in a standard snake draft, or an auction draft, you need to know who to pick. I am going give you a look at one player per position that I think is underrated and can help you win a fantasy championship.  Let’s start with the most important position in professional sports, the quarterback.
Quarterback:
Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams
While everyone will be trying to draft Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers to lead their fantasy team, I wouldn’t sweat it if you cannot get one of the best QB’s in the league. As a rookie, Bradford threw for 3,512 yards and 18 touchdowns. I fully expect both of those numbers to go up because of him having a year of experience in the NFL along with the addition of a true number one wide receiver in former Jaguar Mike Sims-Walker. If you don’t get one of those elite QB’s, take a look at Bradford.
Running Back:
Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs
If you are asking yourself, how can a player that ESPN Fantasy Insider Matthew Berry ranks in the top 5 running backs be a sleeper, here is your answer. He doesn’t have the name recognition like Adrian Peterson or Ray Rice, and he didn’t have an all-world breakout season last year like Arian Foster either, but Charles may just be the best running back out of all of them. He rushed for 1,467 yards and 5 touchdowns as well as receiving another 45 balls for 468 yards and 3 touchdowns. His primary backup, Thomas Jones is a year older, and rookie playmaking wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin was injured in training camp, which means a larger workload and hopefully even better numbers for Charles.
Wide Receiver:
Brandon Marshall, Miami DolphinsÂ
In his first season with the Dolphins last year, Marshall posted good numbers with 86 receptions for 1,014 yards, but only 3 of those 86 catches came while he was in the end zone. That is a far cry from the 10 touchdowns he caught the year prior while playing for the Denver Broncos. I fully expect Marshall’s touchdown numbers to rise, due to a few factors. The first is the Dolphins addition of playmaking running back Reggie Bush. Bush is the dynamic type of player that defenses have to account for. With more attention being paid to Reggie, Marshall should have more opportunities to get open. Also, this will be his second year working with quarterback Chad Henne. Henne looks to have improved in his first two preseason games, and already found Marshall five times against the Panthers in Marshall’s preseason debut. Look for Marshall to pay dividends for your fantasy team.
Tight End:
Jimmy Graham, New Orleans Saints
A relative unknown, Graham caught 31 balls for 356 yards and 5 touchdowns. That doesn’t seem that great until you realize that those numbers were put up with Jeremy Shockey manning the first team tight end position for the Saints. Shockey is playing for the Carolina Panthers this year, and Graham will be featured as the top tight end for the Saints. With Drew Brees throwing to him, I definitely would look into drafting Jimmy Graham.
I hope these player suggestions have helped you. Good luck this season!
