2011 NFL Fantasy Recap – the WIDE RECEIVERS: MVP, Steals, & Busts

Now that another NFL Fantasy season is in the books, it is time to look back and evaluate players in terms of best value (steals), worst value (busts), and position MVPs. The selections are based on the collective preseason Yahoo! Fantasy expert rankings relative to end of season rankings, and the average draft positions in Yahoo! public leagues . Players were excluded if they missed more than a few games due to injury, and an added emphasis was placed on performances in fantasy playoff weeks 14 through 16. Standard PPR scoring format is used.

WR – In conjunction with the impressive QB play around the league, many WRs enjoyed banner seasons in 2011. 17 of them topped 1000 yards, and 17 more caught at least 8 TDs. There was WR value up and down the draft, with at least 15 legit draft day steals. There were only a handful of busts. It should be noted that Laurent Robinson was not in consideration as a steal, as he was not on an NFL roster when the season began.

MVP: Calvin Johnson – Megatron continued his rise to the top of the fantasy WR class with a monster season – 96 rec, 1681 yds, and 16 TDs. No WR in NFL history has had a season that exceeded those numbers across-the-board. He’s your #1 WR in 2012, and you can make a case for pulling the trigger on him in the top five overall if you can be sure to get Matthew Stafford a few rounds later.

Honorable mention: Wes Welker – in his second season recovering from a serious knee injury, Welker nearly doubled his yardage total from 2010. Owners in the title game got 12 and 138 from him, and his value through 16 weeks was right there with Megatron. Victor Cruz – buried on the depth chart to start the season, Cruz came out of nowhere and caught 82 balls for 1536 yds and 9 TDs. He topped 119 yds receiving in 5 of his last 7 games. Jordy Nelson – another breakout star, Nelson scored 15 TDs on a mere 68 catches. He also piled up 1263 yds, and hooked up his owners in wk 16 with 6 for 115 and 2 TDs.

Steal: Cruz – in a draft full of WR bargains, Cruz gets the nod simply because he was ignored in so many drafts. Reminiscent of Miles Austin in 2009, Cruz seized his opportunity starting with 2 TDs in wk 3, and was off to the races. If you took a flier on him, you were rewarded handsomely – a simple waiver claim reaped the benefits of the eventual #3 overall WR.

Honorable mention: Nelson – sharing snaps with Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and James Jones led to a preseason WR rank of # 41, and an average draft spot of # 117. If you drafted Nelson, you got really good value as he finished as the #4 WR. Steve Smith (Car) – uncertainty over Cam Newton and 2010 mediocrity pushed Smith down draft boards to #37 and around #90 overall. Instead, he turned back the clocks and ripped off a 79 – 1394 – 7 line good for the #8 WR ranking. Nate Washington – with Kenny Britt the #1 WR in a run heavy offense, little was expected of Washington heading into the season (preseason #84 WR and #115 overall). Britt got hurt early, and Washington was a pleasant surprise with 74 catches, over 1000 yds, and 8 total TDs that earned him the #15 WR spot. Welker – #19 preseason and #47 overall, Welker was significantly overlooked by experts and owners. He should have been the first or second WR drafted. Antonio Brown – with stable mates Mike Wallace, Hines Ward, and Emmanuel Sanders sharing the limelight, Brown posted a modest preseason WR rank of # 62, and was drafted around pick # 120. Brown instead had a breakout year, catching 69 balls for over 1000 yds. He added 3 TDs, and finished as the #22 WR and was a solid WR2 play. Percy Harvin – migraine issues frustrated Harvin owners in 2010, and he was consequently the preseason #20 WR and drafted around pick #64. Instead, he played in every game and had a great second half while posting career highs in both receptions (87) and total yds (1312). That was good for the #6 WR ranking. A.J. Green / Julio Jones – both rookie 1st round NFL draft picks ended up rewarding owners with good value: Green was preseason #39 & #106, and went for 65 – 1057 – 7 ( #17 WR); Jones was preseason #30 & #85, and put up 54 – 959 – 8 ( #21 WR ).

Bust: Mike Williams (TB) – after an outstanding 2010 rookie season that made him one of the great WR values of that draft, Williams came crashing back to earth this year. A preseason #11 WR ranking and #37 average draft spot was largely based on his 11 TD catches the year before. Williams caught the same number of balls (65), but had nearly 200 yds less receiving and reached the end zone only three times. He finished as the # 37 WR.

Honorable mention: DeSean Jackson – Jackson was looking for a strong season in his contract year, and his owners were too: preseason # 12 WR and # 32 overall. However, numerous drops, a one game suspension, and erratic QB play led to a subpar year by Jackson’s standards. 58 catches for 964 yds and 4 TDs earned him the #29 WR ranking. Chad Ochocinco – the controversial wideout entered the season the #26 WR and was drafted around pick #64. He put up a putrid line of 15 – 276 – 1, the worst year of his career. Ochocinco finished a staggering #117 in WR fantasy points, behind some WR you’ve probably never heard of.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/stats/byposition?pos=WR
http://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy/nfl/news?slug=ys-expertpoll-pre11-wr
http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/f1/draftanalysis?tab=SD&pos=QB&sort=DA_AP


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