Recent changes to players at the skill position will affect their draft status and the draft status of others. To see my previous update of the offseason moves that will affect the fantasy community, click here.
Mike Vick: Since joining the New York Jets it has not been confirmed that Vick will be the starter next season but after seeing the display of talent by Geno last year, a healthy Vick is more than likely the starter of the Jets on opening day. His value as a QB on fantasy draft day is very low. He’s still an injury prone QB on a bad team. I wouldn’t draft him at all. The only time I see him being used is as a bye-week substitute and only if he has a good match up.
DeSean Jackson: He is a wild card right now drawing interest from multiple teams. Many reports have him going to the Raiders, Panthers, Jets, Redskins, or the Bills. Although the Jets and Panthers are possible homes for Jackson, neither general manager has actually contacted his agent. If Jackson ends up in Oakland I expect his value to be rated as a low end WR2 or high end WR3, even though that situation is bad, he’s still really talented and will find ways to make an impact. The places where I could see him emerging as a low end WR1 or very high end WR2 are in Carolina or Washington where he would be paired with an insanely talented QB and a solid situation. It’s possible if Jackson ends up on the Jets or Bills he finishes as a WR2 but that would depend on who’s throwing him the ball. A reunion with Vick would be nice, but only if Vick can stay healthy. In Buffalo, Jackson could help E.J. Manuel but would Manuel help Jackson?
Knowshon Moreno: After signing with the Dolphins the biggest fantasy ranks increase didn’t actually involve him, it involved the RB who is staying in Denver, Montee Ball. Ball is not a top 15 RB. Any RB who plays with Peyton will see very minimal stacking of the box if any and will get lots of goal-line opportunities. I expect Ball to put up a solid numbers, he still needs to improve his pass blocking, but there are no fantasy points for pass blocking so it shouldn’t be a worry for fantasy owners. Moreno meanwhile will head to Miami where they had one of the worst rushing offenses last year. He joins Lamar Miller in the backfield that underperformed a lot last year so this signing basically gives Moreno the starting job. Though only as long as he can stay healthy because, before last year, Moreno struggled with various injuries each season. Moreno is a top 30 RB but could drop lower because not playing with Manning means he won’t get the space he’s used to, especially catching balls in the open field.
Maurice Jones-Drew: MOJO signed with the Raiders, unfortunately. I was certain he would join the Jets and get a chance at redemption to once again rise as a number one RB. Now he joins the raiders where he will likely share time with McFadden until of course McFadden gets injured. In which case he will then share time with Latavius Murray who I had as a sleeper but now probably won’t even see the field. Oakland’s backfield is a mess; let someone else draft this headache.