Fantasy Football Predictions: From the Window to the Wall!

Every guy in fantasy does something in terms of predicting the future. That’s what you do when you pick Chris Johnson over Adrian Peterson or Mike Williams over Mike Williams… err… that last one is tough to read. Anyway, you get me, you could just be following some dink’s rankings, or you could be using them as a guideline – regardless, at the end of the season you can always see how your predictions ended up. Last year, it was easy to see that Anthony Gonzalez and Eddie Royal didn’t blow up the world like I thought they would, and my fantasy squads suffered. The tough thing about being a sportswriter, aside from the obvious ribbing you take from your friends about how you don’t have a real job, is that your predictions are right there for everyone to see. If you’re a responsible cat like myself, you even do reviews so readers don’t have to look hard to find the true outcome. Last year, as I said above, my pre-season predictions weren’t right on the ball. But this year, oh yes – there is always a new year, I’m swinging for the fences and you can bet your biscuit that I’m making contact. Jump in, buckle up, we’re going for a ride!

Below are 21 Predictions (for my black-jack junky friends out there, this one’s for you!) for the upcoming fantasy season. Some are wild, some are sure, but they are all predictions that can be used against me in a court of fantasy law. These predictions go everywhere from the window to the wall! Lets play some football!

1. LaDainian Tomlinson rushes for more yards than he did last season as San Diego’s #1 running back. The Jets’ line is legit, and LT can still run with a egg-shaped ball.

2. Brett Favre calls an end to a few streaks: His consecutive start streak will end, his last pass won’t be an interception, and he won’t come back ever, ever again when this season is done – so enjoy one of the last real cowboys!

3. Shonn Greene will have at least 7-100 yard games, and rush for at least 10 touchdowns. Why? The guy is a beast, and his offensive line is one of if not the best in football.

4. Sam Bradford will throw more touchdowns than interceptions, which would be nuts for a rookie QB on a bad team with limited help at receiver. He’s gonna be good, folks.

5. Either Peyton Manning or Drew Brees won’t finish as a Top 5 fantasy QB. I know it’s crazy to think that, the Colts have been so good and the Saints look unstoppable – but the NFC South is crazy, and the Saints have one of the easiest schedules in football (which means less passing, you’d think) and the Texans, Titans, and even the Jaguars are much improved, making it tougher on Manning. Some king has to stumble.

6. Mike Sims-Walker will finish the season as a Top 10 fantasy receiver. People go either way on Mike, either you love him or you hate him. He wasn’t a beacon of consistency in 2009, but remember, he wasn’t even a starter out of the gates, and was showing his stuff for the first time.

7. Mike Bush will double Darren McFadden’s fantasy numbers. He’s better, and the Raiders are starting to realize it.

8. Terrell Owens > Chad Ochocinco in 2010. Draft accordingly.

9. Have you ever watched Percy Harvin play football? If not, you’re missing out. That guy gives more migraines than he gets, I’ll tell you that much. I think he plays in 16 games this season, and catches at least 76 balls for over 1100 yards and racks up at least 8 touchdowns – and blocks the snot out of 100 unsuspecting defensive backs.

10. Wes Welker ends up with more fantasy production than Brandon Marshall. In other words, don’t draft Brandon.The Patriots throw it like a hot potato, the Dolphins run like Forrest. I wouldn’t worry too much about Welker’s health, if anybody is back to 100% quick, it’s that guy.

11. Greg Jennings is worth his price in Gold. The Packers’ receivers are really good – but Greg is the best of the bunch. His stats didn’t show it last year, they will this year. Stick him in the Top 7 right now.

12. Larry Fitzgerald will finish outside of the Top 10 WRs. So don’t draft him – even if you’re in a dynasty league, I’m telling you – let somebody else draft him, then go ahead and trade for him when that owner is crying and doing anything to salvage his season. I was once high on Leinart, now I’m backing off, but either way, teams will be doubling the bejeezers out of Fitzy.

13. Rashard Mendenhall is one of the few true #1 running backs in the NFL. That’s why he sneaks into the Top 7 RBs this season.

14. What do you get when you cross a donkey with moron? You get a quarterback that will miss the first 4 games of the season and still finish in the Top 15 amongst his own position.

15. Don’t be confused, there is nobody worth starting in Cleveland. I’m not kidding, not one guy on that team will finish in the Top 20 at his respective position. That’s rare, but it’s going to be true.

16. One of the highest paid QBs in the NFL, Eli Manning, will finally finish in the Top 10 amongst QBs. I’m not a fan of Eli, mostly his stupid face, but with Smith, Nicks, Manningham, Bradshaw, and Kevin Boss – and a tough schedule that will have him throwing early and often – Eli gets in the Top 10 for the first time.

17. Hakeem Nicks, Percy Harvin, and Jeremy Maclin (all sophomores) will, as a threesome, easily outscore Roddy White, Brandon Marshall, and Chad Ochocinco (unless Chad changes his name back to Johnson, then he has a chance to turn this whole thing around). Nicks and Harvin both become #1s this season while Maclin’s elite touchdown scoring ability goes wild under Kolb’s arm.

18. Johnny Knox, currently ranked 38th on ESPN.com, finished the year above half the people rated above him. Two names put together to form an odd looking guy with no respect for turnovers – Mike Martz. It might not make the Bears win, but it will make Knox go wild.

19. I’m gonna go on ahead and say that Anquan Boldin finishes with more fantasy points than Larry Fitzgerald. I know, I know, 50 people have already wrote me telling me I’m crazy, and 20 of those have always said that Boldin is nothing but a #2 WR. You’ll be eating them, folks, not me.

20. Zach Miller, Devin Aromashodu, Nate Burleson, Vince Young, Laurent Robinson – all guys ranked out of the Top 100 and I’m betting 4 of the 5 finish in the Top 100.

21. Tom Brady returns to the #1 spot amongst QBs. Yeah, Brees won’t throw as much this year – Manning has a little bit more in the run-game, and Aaron Rodgers’ Packers need to run it more to be consistent. Brady is going to throw 40 touchdowns again – because he can.