DLF’s Weekly Impact Events

If today’s Weekly Impact Events had a theme song, it would be Money by Pink Floyd. “Money, so they say, is the root of all evil today. But if you ask for a rise, it’s no surprise, that they’re giving none away.”

Money could be the root of all evil for your dynasty team as well. Of course you want your players to be paid well. High salaries and long term contracts represent the dedication your players’ real life football team has to them. After all, I honestly believe Brandon Marshall’s value went up slightly when the Chicago Bears gave him a contract extension. The organization now has every reason to make sure Marshall stays on the field, and producing, for as long as possible. We all know that you’re not going to select your dynasty players based on contract size and length, nor should you. We do, and should, get the warm fuzzy feeling inside when our fantasy players get paid. We just don’t want them holding out of regular season games to do so.

Johnathan Franklin, RB GB

News: The Green Bay Packers organization, and Franklin himself, have confirmed he will be retiring from the NFL after only one season. Franklin injured his neck last year and has not fully recovered.

Analysis: It is amazing how fast things change in the NFL. Here I was finishing up the last bit of this article when the news broke. I believe this is obviously the headline news, so I bumped it up. Many dynasty league owners used a late first round rookie pick on Franklin last year. Some used a second rounder and felt they got “value” – this is a reminder of how fluid situations are in the NFL and dynasty leagues. A career ending injury is right around the corner for any of these players. Franklin is droppable in any dynasty format.

Vernon Davis, WR SF

News: Davis did not attend the 49ers’ mandatory mini camp this week. He was also not present during OTA’s in an attempt to force his team to upgrade his salary. He is currently scheduled to make $4.7 million next year

Analysis: It is easy to criticize players for holding out. They’re getting paid millions of dollars to play a game most of us would play for free. The truth is, most of us would hold out if given the chance, too. Davis plays much better than his salary would dictate, therefore he deserves more money. As of now, this has no bearing on his value in dynasty leagues. If this situation lingers, it absolutely could negatively affect Davis. If the 49ers give him a long term extension, he could see a slight bump in value due to the teams commitment in him.

Jimmy Graham, TE(?) NO

News: The NFL and the Players association have met for multiple days this week in an attempt to settle a grievance over whether Graham should be franchised tagged under the ‘tight end’ designation, or whether he can be considered a ‘wide receiver.’ Graham, who is scheduled to make just over $7 million as a tight end, could make upwards of $12.3 million if considered a tight end.

Analysis: The only real aspect with Graham affecting dynasty owners is whether he will be designated a tight end for fantasy purposes. In all likelihood, he will be considered a tight end by most fantasy host sites regardless of the outcome of the hearing. Even if Graham were to be considered a wide receiver, his value would not disappear. He would be considered by most to be in the top wide receiver tier, he would just lose his positional advantage. If you can buy Graham on the cheap from a frightened owner, I’d advise doing that immediately.

Marshawn Lynch, RB SEA

[inlinead]News: Lynch is sitting out of the Seahawks’ mandatory mini camp due to a minor ankle injury. The real news being Lynch hinted at retiring last week if not given a raise in salary. It seems as if Lynch may be using the ankle injury as a minor protest.

Analysis: Will Lynch retire? Probably not. He is a free spirited man, and has been reported to done quite well saving his money. The possibility of Lynch retiring is not inconceivable, though. The tread on his tires has to be wearing down. He’s handled the load in Seattle and has carried the ball 901 times over the last three years. Even if “Beast Mode” stays in town, he’s a likely salary cap casualty next year. I will not advise you sell Lynch cheap, but if you can get solid value for him, I’d jump on the opportunity in a heartbeat.

Jason Pierre-Paul, DE NYG

News: Pierre-Paul says he is not completely healthy and he “still feels something.” He did go on to say it wouldn’t affect his ability to play football.

Analysis: The IDP world had their eyes opened to Pierre-Paul’s ability during his 2011 campaign in which he recorded 86 tackles and 16.5 sacks. The last two seasons have been disappointing for Giants fans and IDP owners alike as Pierre-Paul has not managed to replicate those statistics. Next season, Pierre-Paul could recover, as he seems to be as healthy as possible. I’m cautiously optimistic about Pierre-Paul’s dynasty prospects. He should still be considered a top five defensive end in almost every format.

Andre Johnson, WR HOU

News: Johnson has been extremely vocal about wanting out of Houston. He backed up his words this week by not showing up for mandatory mini camps.

Analysis: There may be some real fire to this smoke. Johnson wants out of Houston, there’s no doubt about that. With his salary and age, he’s unlikely to find many suitors willing to trade for him, given the likely asking price. The most likely scenario seems to be Johnson eventually reporting, but it is certainly a situation to monitor.

It’s seemed lately that each Weekly Impact Events has a theme and I’ve honestly not done that on purpose. A month or two ago, we had draft talk. Two weeks ago I analyzed “coach speak.” Another week it seemed each player I mentioned was dealing with an injury. Today’s theme was obviously mini camp holdouts. Once again, we can criticize these players all we want, but the capitalistic society we live in dictates the way these players negotiate. We all know the teams wouldn’t have any loyalty to the players if the contracts weren’t legally binding.

Keeping up with the theme of the week, I’ll leave you with some more classic song lyrics. “The best things in life are free, but you can keep them for the birds and bees. Now give me money. That’s what I want.” Many of you know those lyrics come from one of the greatest bands of all time – The Beatles.

Follow me on Twitter: @KarlSafchick

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