Friday, August 28, 2009

Good news on Roy Williams, inevitable news on Marshall


The Cowboys got about the best news they could hope for when the MRI on Roy Williams' shoulder uncovered a "contusion," according to dallascowboys.com. In other words, it's not broken, just badly bruised. He is listed as day-to-day, but you can bet we've seen the last of him this preseason. The team hopes he will be back on the field for opening weekend, though only time will tell.

This obviously is a relief to those who've already drafted Williams, or Tony Romo for that matter. But if you haven't yet drafted, it's best to steer clear of the WR, who already had plenty of question marks heading into the season. Romo likewise will probably slip a bit in drafts, while the rest of the WR corps might deserve slight up-ticks. Right now, the Dallas WR I'm most intrigued by is Sam Hurd, who can be selected with a final-round pick and could eventually vie for a starting job. Patrick Crayton has had two years as a starter or quasi-starter to show what he's got, and it ain't much. Miles Austin, who I thought was the team's biggest playmaker-in-waiting, has had a rough offseason and probably shouldn't be drafted.

Meanwhile, in Denver...Did we see this coming, or what? Brandon Marshall has been officially suspended for the rest of the preseason for conduct detrimental to the team. Basically, the head coach was finally embarrassed enough by Marshall's insubordination that he had no choice but to discipline the prima donna. Fantasy Fools know that we've been down on Marshall for months, and think Eddie Royal is the only receiver worth owning in the Mile High City. Continue to avoid Marshall in your upcoming drafts, especially since the team's next step could be shipping him off to another WR-hungry club -- such as the Ravens or Jets -- where his value would still be depressed.

Sleeper alert! Anyone slogging through the Bucs-Dolphins game last night had to be impressed by how Cadillac Williams looked and performed. In my opinion, a healthy Caddy is a better RB than both Derrick Ward and Earnest Graham combined. I was already fairly negative on both Bucs RBs, but I would absolutely jump all over Cadillac in the 15-17th rounds if he's available. Talk about upside! The ever-present injury factor and the likelihood of a 3-headed RBBC are enough to keep me from pulling the trigger any earlier, so if someone wants to invest a higher pick on him, they can have him. But there are few players that I'd rather take a flier on late than Cadillac.

Now that Chris Henry has tucked away his third TD in three preseason games, he's not doing a very good job of flying under the radar anymore. We Fantasy Fools were all over him two months ago, and he still offers solid upside at his current WR42 (roughly Rd 11 in 10-team leagues). Laveranues Coles is still being drafted ahead of him, though Henry holds the higher billing in my WR rankings. Just don't get too cute and allow him to slide too far. Our secret is out...

Knowshon Moreno's sprained knee isn't healing as fast as hoped, and he could be in jeopardy of missing Week 1 action. That could position Peyton Hillis and Correll Buckhalter to start the season as the Broncos' featured RBBC. A healthy Moreno will break into that rotation immediately, but the team could choose to work him back into game shape slowly if the others are performing well. It takes a 6-7th round selection to nab Moreno these days, so keep that early-season concern in mind when you consider calling his name.

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