FANTASY FOOTBALL: An Early Look At The AFC West

With less than a few days to go until the start of the 2000 NFL season, fantasy football drafts for the most part have come and gone. Here now, is a look at the AFC West and some players that can help your fantasy football team.

Denver

Brian Griese

Griese, now in his third season in the NFL, was named the starting quarterback for the 2000 season for the Denver Broncos. Griese had a pretty good preseason and was named the starter over Gus Frerotte. With another season under his belt and the return of one of the leagues best running backs, Griese should be in for a pretty good season. Last year, Griese threw for 3,000 yards with 14 TDs and 14 interceptions.

Terrell Davis

Before last season, Terrell Davis was one of the top three running backs in the NFL. Unfortunately, in week four last year, Davis suffered a torn ACL in his knee and was lost for the rest of the season. This year Davis looks to a new season, and hopes there will be no problems with his reconstructive knee. Typically, it takes a little more than a year to fully recover from the surgery. With that, Davis’ season totals are really up in the air. Davis could have anywhere between 15 and 30 carries a game. It all depends on how Davis really feels during the game. If healthy, Davis should have a pretty decent year. Look for Davis to easily top the 1,000-yard rushing mark and score close to 10 TDs.

Ed McCaffrey

"Easy Ed" is one of the most reliable, sure-handed wide recievers in the NFL today. McCaffrey is a big target at 6-foot-5 inches. In the last couple of seasons, McCaffrey has been the big-play guy in Denver. McCaffrey had a little over 1,000 yards receiving last year, with seven scores. Look for that to continue, as McCaffrey should do just as well, if not better, than last year. Look for over 1,000 yards receiving again with eight TDs.

Rod Smith

Over the last couple of seasons, Rod Smith has not been the big-play receiver in Denver he used to be. Instead, Smith has become more of a possession-type receiver. Last year, Smith scored only four times and had over 1,000 yards receiving. The same should happen this season, but Smith should score a couple of more TDs. Look for Smith to score six times and have over 1,000 yards receiving.

Kansas City

Elvis Grbac

Last year, Grbac actually had a pretty decent season. Grbac threw 22 TDs and had almost 3,400 yards passing. The big improvement came last year because of two main reasons: he stayed healthy for an entire season and the emergence of tight end Tony Gonzalez. Gonzalez really helped out Grbacs’ season totals. Gonzalez is like having another quality wide receiver. This season look for Grbac to have a little better totals. The Chiefs still have Gonzalez and drafted a young star named Sylvester Morris. Look for Grbac to be in the 25 TD range with around 3,500 yards passing.

Tony Gonzalez

The whole Kansas City passing game revolves around one player, Tony Gonzalez. Gonzalez is 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, but runs and jumps like a wide receiver. The reason Gonzalez catches so many passes is because Kansas City has a couple of good wide receivers. These receivers don’t catch the ball as much because they really spread the ball around. The only person that thrives in this offense is Gonzalez. Look for the same to continue this year, as Gonzalez is a lock for 10 TDs.

Oakland

Rich Gannon

Gannon last year put up pretty good numbers for the Oakland Raiders. The same should continue this year for Gannon. Last season, Gannon threw 24 TDs and had over 3,800 yards passing. Gannon should do well again this year with the kind of offensive system the Raiders run. With the receivers of Tim Brown and Rickey Dudley, things should go easy again for Gannon this year. Look for Gannon to be in the 25 TD range again this year with around 4,000 yards passing.

Tyrone Wheatley

Wheatley, a former first rounder, finally had a breakout season. Wheatley last year had 11 total TDs and over 1,100 total yards. Last season, Wheatley was a top-12 fantasy back using both yards and TDs. This season look for his totals to drop a little. This year, Napoleon Kaufman and Zack Crockett should steal some TDs away from Wheatley. Look for eight TDs and around 1,000 yards rushing this year.

Tim Brown

Tim Brown, now 34 years old, could start having his stats decline. This year, Brown will be the fourth oldest starting wide receiver in the league. You couldn’t tell that last year when Brown caught 90 balls for almost 1,350 yards. Brown might of lost some of his speed, but he is still one if the top receivers in the game today. Look for Brown to have another good season catching around eight TDs and have over 1,200 yards receiving.

Rickey Dudley

Rickey Dudley is one of the best young tight ends in the NFL today. Dudley is a big target at 6-foot-6 and 255 pounds. Over the past three seasons Dudley has averaged 15.4 yards a catch. Dudley only had 39 receptions last year, but the Raiders got him the ball in the end zone. Last season, Dudley finished the season with nine TDs, the most by a Raiders tight end since Todd Christensen back in the early 1980s. Look for the same numbers this year for Dudley as he should score close to 10 TDs and have 700 yards receiving.

San Diego

Freddie Jones

Freddie Jones, this season, looks to be the only San Diego player with any fantasy value. Last season, Jones had 670 yards receiving but only two TDs. Last year, Jones had some really good games but a bunch of really bad games. Jones does catch a lot of passes and this should continue this year. Look for a better TD total from Jones this year, as he should hit the end zone around six times.

Seattle

Jon Kitna

Kitna, enters his second year as a starter, and is in a West Coast offense, which is very quarterback friendly. The Seahawks scored 25 of their 30 TDs on passes last year. With the quality receivers that the Seahawks have, that should continue this year as well. Kitna put up pretty good numbers last year, throwing for 23 TDs and over 3,300 yards passing. Look for these numbers to stay the same, as Kitna should throw 25-28 TDs and over 3,800 yards.

Ricky Watters

There could be a change in running backs this season as the Seahawks drafted rookie running back Shaun Alexander. But, according to Head Coach Mike Holmgren, he says no. Holmgren says Watters is the starter and Alexander will come in off the bench. With that being said, Watters’ touches should be getting less and less. Look for Watters to have an OK season, with around six TDs and around 1,200 yards rushing.

Derrick Mayes

Mayes had a great season last year. He was the number two wide receiver on the team and scored 10 TDs and had over 800 yards receiving. With Sean Dawkins staying with the Seahawks, they have a nice duo of receivers. Look for Mayes to do a little better than Dawkins, as Mayes should be around 10 TDs again this year with over 1,000 yards receiving.