While it's no surprise that I would reach for a reuben sandwich, the more devout members of the Gazette football pool were both surprised and entertained that I reached for Cleveland Browns tailback Reuben Droughns with my second-round pick in the draft.
I'll start by conceding that yes, it was a tremendous reach. Droughns would have been available in the fifth round and maybe the sixth round, so bearing that in mind I cannot argue it was a foolish pick to make by the traditional logic of fantasy sports. However, there were three reasons why I was compelled to nab Droughns ASAP.
Firstly, I am one of those shallow, rookie-esque, egotistical fantasy participants - in that I like to choose young up-and-comers I feel will bust out in the coming NFL season. In last year's pool, two picks I made that came to mind were Carson Palmer and Redskins TE Chris Cooley, both of which paid dividends. I feel very strongly that Reuben Droughns is a candidate to bust out in 2006.
I not only think that Droughns is going to be vastly improved over last season, I think he will have a strong season by anyone's standards, best-case scenario even warranting the second-round selection. Over the last two seasons, Droughns has ran for over four yards a clip and over 1,200 yards. True, the fact he hasn't reached the end zone often makes him pedestrian in the eyes of fantasy owners. But, Droughns has shown he can be a guy that is durable and runs with both anger and purpose (similar to a consensus top-two pick, Chiefs RB Larry Johnson). The Browns added the best center in the league, poaching LeCharles Bentley from the Saints. His mauling blocks will open holes between-the-tackles and I think his presence will jell the rest of Cleveland's line.
Droughns is a productive, underrated receiver out of the backfield. He can wear a defense down over a game, and Cleveland will have to lean on Droughns as the wrinkles are ironed out with young pivot Charlie Frye. He may face loaded fronts until the Browns prove they can pass, but Droughns produced quality yards in the same situation last year with a lesser O-line. All this considered, I don't think it's crazy that he might go for 1,400 yards and close to double-digit TDs, and you can probably toss 30 receptions in there too. Anything could happen, but I'm higher on Droughns than Keith Richards is on everything.
Finally, in a fantasy draft I'm often compelled to select players I like. Although fantasy football makes the sport more interesting week in, week out, it's tough for me to cheer on arch-rivals just because it'll boost my spot in the standings. I find that element of fantasy sports counter-intuitive, and it's why I probably will never be on the same page as fantasy visionaries such as Matthew Larkin. I don't even always stick to my rule (I took the Steelers' defense, for Christ's sake) but whenever I can I like to take someone I can roundly root for. The Browns are pretty cool, Droughns is cooler, and this was another reason why I nabbed him.
So, although I may have pulled a John Holmes-sized boner with this second-rounder, there was some limited method to my madness, even if it is still inexcusable. In the grand scheme of things, I'll be having fun watching and rooting for my team members and ultimately I think Reuben Droughns will put up some juicy stats.
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6 comments:
No Hayes, no. You have nothing with this Droughns argument. The Browns' top receiver is JOE JUREVICIUS unless you count the crippled Braylon Edwards and Kellen "motorcycle" Winslow Jr. They could easily have the worst passing attack in the NFL.
You know what happens when you have no passing game? "He may face loaded fronts until the Browns prove they can pass." Well, you couldn't have put it better, Mr. Hayes. Thanks for defeating your own argument.
20, yes 20 running backs scored more fantasy points than Droughns last year. True, he proved he was more than just a Shannahan product, but it'll be hard for him to reach the endzone when the Frye-led offence can't get past the 50 yard line.
Barry Sanders Droughns ain't. His YPC is Eddie George-like. You should be happy if he hits paydirt five times this year.
You could do worse than Droughns on five or 10 NFL teams, but not on any fantasy team in a league shallower than Danny Zuko.
At least you have LT.
Uh, Larkin...
"He may face loaded fronts until the Browns prove they can pass," ... "BUT Droughns produced quality yards in the same situation last year with a lesser O-line."
The argument form's called a counter-instance, and it's useful to defeat other arguments, in this case the contention that:
"They could easily have the worst passing attack in the NFL."
He doesn't defeat his own argument there, he defeats yours... before you even make it.
If you want to show that Cleveland's passing is relevant, you need to show not only that Droughns will face loaded fronts but that he won't run well against it... you're attacking the wrong half of the sentence you quoted (well, quoted half of).
Write a new column you fuck.
Malcolm, you have to look at it differently. I ignored the second half of the sentence because it was irrelevant. The yards he produced don't matter; despite the "quality yards" he was still the 20th ranked back! His value is limited when he can't reach the endzone. So why would his situation change when the fronts are still loaded?
And Hayes, try this on for size:
NFL suspends Browns center, adding to team's mess at that position
By TOM WITHERS, AP Sports Writer
August 16, 2006
BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- The Browns' gaping hole at center just got wider, and their training camp more bizarre.
Alonzo Ephraim, an emergency signing after LeCharles Bentley went down with a season-ending knee injury, was suspended Wednesday for the first four regular-season games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
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The league said Ephraim may continue to participate in all preseason games, practices and games. He will be eligible to rejoin the Browns' active roster on Oct. 2.
Ephraim played two seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles and started three games for the Miami Dolphins last season. For him to be suspended, this would have to be his second violation under the league's policy.
The Browns signed Ephraim as a free agent on July 29, two days after Bentley tore his patellar tendon on the second day of camp. Ephraim initially was brought in as a backup, but quickly moved into a starting job when veteran Bob Hallen abruptly retired, citing a back problem the Browns say they knew nothing about.
Ephraim started last week's preseason opener against Philadelphia, but earlier this week Browns coach Romeo Crennel said Ross Tucker, acquired last week in a trade from New England, likely will start Friday's exhibition game against the Detroit Lions.
The shuffling at center is only part of what has been a crazy camp for the Browns.
Hayes, I think you owe the Browns an apology for this one. There's no way Bentley would have gotten hurt or Ephraim would have been suspended if you'd taken Brown or Gates with that pick. That's just karma.
As an important aside, it turns out I know nothing about football, fantasy or otherwise. Completely disregard all I said in this column.
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