Fantasy Football Intel Report 1.2

New England Defense

Source- Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff Writer

Despite leaving the Patriots to play for their arch rival the New York Jets, Darrelle Revis still plans on holding a two-week training session in Arizona. The workouts are reportedly expected to begin July 12th. The exact duration was not reported, however the Patriots released the dates of their training camp session, which begins July 30th. Last years attendees were Revis, Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan, and Tavon Wilson. They worked in the dry, desert heat with trainer Will Sullivan.

Analysis: Two things here are worth mentioning. One, despite where a player goes, the NFL is a brotherhood. A lot of the players are friends, and don’t tend to get tied up in the same things as fans do. Two, Revis’ vacant spot will most likely go to Ryan, the 2013 third-round pick out of Rutgers. The Patriots had some key losses to the defense, such as Vince Wilfork and Darrelle Revis. This New England defense still has some weapons like McCourty and Rob Ninkovich. ESPN has New England ranked No.12 amongst defenses. I disagree. This is a top ten defense, and should play well most weeks.

Darren McFadden, RB Dallas Cowboys

Source- Kevin Patra, nfl.com contributor

Last week we heard reports that McFadden had some issues with a hamstring. How is he feeling now? According to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, he’s feeling great. “I feel like a rookie all over again” the report states. He’ll be battling Joseph Randle for first team reps during training camp. We’ve seen what McFadden can be like when healthy, but that seems to be the issue for this guy.

Analysis: If I had to pick a starter right now for this team, I would go with Randle. More reports support this pick than not. However, McFadden is the more experienced back and the positional battle will be the most interesting one this year. Also, don’t forget about Lance Dunbar and Ryan Williams. If all of these guys perform well, we could see a RBBC form in “America’s Team”. We’ll watch this situation closely, and report updates as they come in.

Mike Evans, WR Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Source- Fantasy Pros

In a report by the USA Today, Mike Evans noted that poor quarterback play limited his numbers as a rookie. I have to say that I agree. He had 38 receptions for 1,051 yards and 12 touchdowns in his rookie campaign last year. Those stats came from Josh McCown and Mike Glennon throwing to him. Now that Jameis Winston has stepped as an obvious upgrade, it could be a much different ball game this year.

Analysis: Jameis Winston once again, is an obvious upgrade. He is used to targeting big wide receivers such as Evans. In fact, Kelvin Benjamin was one of his most favorite targets in college. The fact of the matter is, Mike Evans is going to be a great receiver to have in either PPR or standard scoring formats. I have Evans ranked at No. 10 among receivers in standard scoring leagues, and is a deep sleeper as a top five receiver. This kid is going to have a great year.