By JIMMY D / NFL fantasy cheat sheet | Jimmy's archive

As promised, Jimmy has cobbled together an early NFL fantasy cheat sheet for Jimmy Nation. We also include a few news tidbits to follow up on in the next few weeks.

Top 3 Fantasy QBs
Peyton Manning – by a comfortable margin. He is the only QB worthy of selection in the top two rounds. With Edge gone to Arizona, the offense could call on him to do more through the air.

Matt Hasselbeck – First three weeks look like fantasy Heaven for the Seahawk pivot.

Carson Palmer – We’ll get a better read on his repaired knee this week when he plays in preseason game, but he’s Jimmy’s No. 3, ahead of Brady.

The rest:
Tom Brady, Donovan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper, Jake Delhomme, Marc Bulger, Eli Manning (experts have him as high as No.5 and as low as No. 14), Kurt Warner.

Top 3 Fantasy RBs
Larry Johnson – The Chief tailback is 1A, after going for 1,750 yards and 20 scores last year.
Shaun Alexander – Reigning MVP averaged more than 100 yards per game past two season and is a TD hog. Call him 1B.
LaDainian Tomlinson – New QB could mean even more touches for LT, consensus 1C.

The rest:
Tiki Barber, Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis (see news item below), Rudi Johnson, Ronnie Brown, Steven Jackson, Carnell Williams. (We dropped Lamont Jordan out of Top 10, see news item below)

Top 3 Fantasy WRs
Steve Smith – keep thinking he is over-hyped but the numbers back him up.
Chad Johnson – Speaking of backing up the talk, Johnson does it the best. Palmer’s return to form could see him No 1.
Torrie Holt – Durable, consistent and the main target for the Rams again this year.

The rest:
Marvin Harrison, Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald, Terrell Owens (would be higher if not for his injury and his mouth), Chris Chambers, Darrell Jackson, Reggie Wayne. (You’ll notice Randy Moss not on the list, see news item below).

Top 3 Fantasy TEs
Antonio Gates – No contest here, the Charger big man will be gone in the first two rounds, the others will straggle in much later.
Tony Gonzalez – Chief Tony could rival Gates with a comeback season in ’06.
Todd Heap – Air McNair should direct a heap of passes toward Heap, who grabbed 75 in ’05.

The rest:
Jeremy Shockey (many like him No. 2, but we see injuries destroying his production), Chris Cooley, Alge Crumpler, Jason Witten, L.J. Smith (bigger things with T.O. gone), Randy McMichael, Heath Miller (reliable outlet for Big Ben).

Top 3 Fantasy Football Defenses
Without comment:
Bears, Panthers, Steelers, Colts, Ravens, Seahawks, Bucs, Broncos, Jags (soft schedule last year, don’t buy the hype that they are Top 5 material), Philly (will rebound with healthy lineup).

Jim-bits
Julius Jones / Marion Barber

You’ll find Jones pegged at the top of draft lists and on the list of the league’s No. 1 running backs. But there is fantasy trouble brewing again in Big D and Barber is the reason.
Barber grabbed plenty of third-down and goal-line opportunities last year as Coach Parcells to a real shine to Barber’s battering-ram attitude. It means less scoring for Jones, although being spelled occasionally could keep him fresher for more late-game gallops and padded rushing totals.

Lamont Jordan / Pathetic Raider offense

Aaron Brooks has been awful in preseason and the Raider OL has been pathetic. It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to realize what passing game + weak OL equals for Jordan’s fantasy production. Keep an eye on this through the rest of the preseason.

Clinton Portis / Ladell Betts

They keep saying Redskin stud back Portis will be fine, but a dislocated shoulder is no fun (Jimmy knows, because his left shoulder keeps flying out of joint) meaning you should give some thought to locking up backup Betts in the later rounds.

Even if you think Portis will miss the opener, he is still a first-round pick. But if the shoulder starts looking like a medium-term fix, drop him down your list a few rounds.

Once again, paying attention to the preseason is not optional if you on winning your NFL fantasy league. If one of your rivals does his exhibition due diligence and you don’t, Jimmy will be setting long odds against you winning the league.
Stay busy, stay lucky.

Jimmy D JPoole@herald.ca