The Freaks Combined Cheat Sheets

Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers | Tight Ends | Kickers | Team Defenses

Pre-season is here, and for the next few weeks your whole mission in life is to find an edge for your fantasy football draft. We give a lot of knowledge across this site, but these cheat sheets are the distilled essence of it all.

Hey, the freaks know that you shouldn't take someone's cheat sheet as the word of god. We know it's just an opinion, and that's why we give you five opinions from experienced and diverse viewpoints.

We rank on a straight performance scoring system, so you TD-only and TD-distance leaguers might want to take this with a grain of salt. For the rest, read on. 

Last Updated: August 24, 2006

CrunchTime's Individual Cheat Sheets

Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers | Tight Ends | Kickers | Team Defenses

For all of the other guys out there that might be picked in the top-3, Harrison is the safest choice in my book. The loss of Edge is likely to actually help Harrison's numbers. They'll still run effectively, but you know Manning's comfort zone is throwing his way.

Smith won't be a one man receiving corps this year but he will have more running room in the secondary with Keyshawn demanding at least some level of respect. Look for a lot of receptions and another stellar season.

A more balanced offense should help Holt find more space in the secondary for the now-healthy Bulger to find him. He's always a shoe-in for the top-ten, but this year could be really special as he has some of the best hands and route running capabilities in the league.

Chad gets enough touches that he's going to put up some serious numbers. The only thing that may keep him from out-producing everyone else is his (comparatively) limited touchdown production. If he can get to 12 or more he'll head to the top of the list due to the yardage he always gets.

Owens is like Keyshawn, just a heck of a lot better. He won't get the boat-load of looks he did in Philly in 2004, but he will still be quite effective. If he can stay out of his own way he'll have quite a season. I wouldn't worry about the hamstring just yet.

Last year's pass all the time offense will have more balance with the introduction of Edge. The result is likely to be a few less touches and a few more touchdowns. Sharing touches with the other young phenom is balanced by the inability of opposing defenses to really concentrate on one or the other.

He's still one of the best deep threats in the league, and now he has someone throwing the ball who should relish the ability to just chuck it down field. He'll be looking to prove something this year after he was slowed by injuries last year.

(For comments on Boldin, please see Larry Fitzgerald as they are the same for either player.)

Another year of experience and chemistry with Eli will only help his production. His first year in New York was good for over 1,200 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns and a top-10 finish. He'll see slight improvements in both categories and have another solid year.

A surprise finish at number 9 in fantasy last year, his output is likely to only be better this year with Culpepper at the helm. He could have another surprising year and really do some damage.

Being Favre's number one target no longer carries quite the weight it once did, but Driver will still be a great option with the departure of Walker. The 1,200 yard mark he passed last year should find its way into his rear view mirror once again but his touchdown total should definitely increase as a result of a return to a more balanced offense.

The problem with Moss was that he only scored in 5 regular season games. The good news was that he was racking up quality yardage along the way. His 1,483 yards was a huge surprise and helped to catapult him to the number three spot among fantasy receivers.

Walker is a top tier receiver but without a top tier quarterback throwing to him. Look for him to slightly better Rod Smith's numbers from last year.

Martz has been known to coordinate some interesting passing attacks. If Roy can stay healthy he should benefit greatly from the steady hand of Kitna and the guidance of a more effective offensive coordinator. He's shown amazing potential to make plays and get injured, which is why he is a bit risky with a huge upside.

Playing just over a 3rd of the season last year Jackson was able to post decent numbers with 3 touchdowns and almost 500 receiving yards. I think he'll have more success with more games played this season, but will suffer from Alexander's ability to get into the end zone.

Ward is a consistent scorer but probably won't provide quite as much pop as he has in the last couple years. A decline in yardage and scoring drops him down into the ranks of really capable #2 receivers.

Shockingly Wayne isn't the highest ranked number 2 receiver in the league, but he is still going to be a great pick. Expect another 1000+ yard season and probably more touchdowns than last year as the Edge-less Colts will score more through the air.

Glenn is no longer going to get quite as many looks with TO in town, both from defenses and from Bledsoe. With his speed that means he should be able to do more with less. Look for him to have one of the best seasons of any of the top number 2's in the league.

Some think at 34 your career is winding down. Last year Galloway was just starting it back up. He had the most receptions and yardage of his career and was a surprising homerun threat. The return of a healthy Clayton will take some touches away but might clear up even more space for the lightning strikes. A repeat in the top-5 is a stretch but a solid showing is a safe bet.

With a quarterback throwing for 4,000 yards someone is bound to pile up some yardage. One of those someone's is Branch. Assuming his contract doesn't end up being a problem I expect him to have another solid season.