DLF’s Weekly Impact Events

Ryan McDowell

titus_young

The 2013 fantasy football off-season is in full swing and dynasty drafts are in progress. You have to pay close attention to everything in order to stay on top of your dynasty league. For most of us, we do well to steal some time away from our families and jobs to watch the games on Sunday. It becomes difficult to monitor the daily happenings around the league and even more demanding to process how that news affects your dynasty team.

That’s why we’re here!

Now that we’ve entered the off-season and have completed the NFL Draft, the next few months will be filled with rumors. Much of the “news” will be speculation about the futures of individual players. While this can be important, it can also be a challenge to determine the validity of certain reports. I will include many of these reports and share my opinion about how the player’s value might be affected, for better or worse.

Here is a quick look at the events of the past week and how they impact players on your team:

Jason Campbell, QB CLE

The Cleveland Browns were expected to bring in competition for starter Brandon Weeden this off-season and they did just that, signing veteran Jason Campbell. It was unclear of what Campbell’s expected role would be, but reports this week confirm that the Browns’ coaching staff views Campbell and Weeden on even ground and both will be given a chance to compete for the starting job. Regardless of who wins the job for the 2013 season, it is a near certainty that the Browns will add a new starting quarterback via the 2014 NFL draft, which is expected to feature many first round quarterbacks. Neither Campbell, nor Weeden have any long term dynasty value and I would not even want to rely on either as a backup this season.

Matt Scott, QB JAX

Rookie quarterback Matt Scott, who signed with Jacksonville after going undrafted, suffered a high ankle sprain and is in a walking boot. Although it was a surprise that Scott wasn’t selected and there is obviously opportunity when it comes to the Jacksonville quarterback situation, any undrafted free agent has a lot to overcome and adding an injury to make that makes it even more of a challenge. Scott has little dynasty value, but could be worth a flier in a deep two quarterback league.

Julian Edelman, WR NE

Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman has suffered a setback in his recovery from a broken right foot. Edelman is now questionable for the start of team training camp. With Wes Welker having moved on to Denver, Edelman has a chance to claim an important role with the Patriots, but is off to a bad start. In the new contract he signed this off-season, Edelman received no guaranteed money, meaning the Patriots could cut him with no salary cap ramifications.

Titus Young, WR FA

Former Lions wide receiver Titus Young was arrested twice in a fifteen-hour span last Sunday. It’s yet another low point for the talented wideout, who was released by the Lions following a tumultuous season which saw him show a complete lack of loyalty to his team. Up until this point, some dynasty owners, myself included, had been hanging on to Young waiting to see where he might land next. It’s time to give up that hope and release him to the waiver wire.

Rob Gronkowski, TE NE

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski will reportedly need a fourth surgery in an effort to repair his broken right forearm. The current issue is the infection that doctors seem to think is caused by the plate securing his broken bone. The fear is that if the removal of the plate does not lead to the healing of the infection, another surgery could be required, which would threaten Gronkowski’s training camp and early season involvement. For now, Gronkowski still sits at, or near the top of the tight end dynasty ranks, but the injury is becoming more and more of a concern.

Jalen Parmele, RB TEN

The Tennessee Titans signed former Jaguars running back Jalen Parmele to serve as a backup to Chris Johnson. The backup running back position has been a weakness of the Titans the past several seasons as both Javon Ringer and Jamie Harper have disappointed when called upon. Ringer is a free agent and was not retained, while Harper was waived earlier in the week. Parmele too had done little in his career until a late season burst earned him some notoriety among dynasty owners. The Titans also signed former Jet Shonn Greene earlier in the off-season. Parmele has no dynasty value.

Mark Harrison, WR FA

Former Rutgers wide receiver Mark Harrison was being pegged as a deep sleeper after signing with the Chicago Bears following the NFL Draft, but it was later revealed that he failed his team physical and is again a free agent. Harrison is still recovering from foot surgery, which is the likely cause of the failed physical. The Bears reportedly are still interested in Harrison once he has been medically cleared. Though many experts had high praise for Harrison, this is a clear blow to his NFL hopes and dynasty value.

Joseph Randle, RB DAL

Rookie running back Joseph Randle, who was expected to take over as the team’s primary backup following the departure of free agent Felix Jones, will miss much of the off-season workouts following thumb surgery. It is difficult to assess Randle’s dynasty value before he even steps on the field, but this news won’t help. His primary value comes from the possibility that starter DeMarco Murray could miss time and Randle would potentially start a game or two.

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