Players to Target in 2011

Luckily for us, not every team will have a situation as confusing.  In the upcoming weeks I will break each division down, team by team, highlighting certain players.   Below I have listed a player from each of the NFC North teams that will have an impact in fantasy leagues this season.   Now I’m not talking players like Adrian Peterson or Aaron Rodgers, you already know to draft them.  No, I’m going to be talking about players that are going later in drafts than they should.

Green Bay Packers-Jordy Nelson (WR): Donald Driver is on the decline and will see fewer reps this season than in years past. James Jones has stone hands and may be on his way out.   I see Ryan Grant bouncing back this season but with James Starks there, we may see a 60/40 split in touches.   That leaves Jordy Nelson.   Over his last 5 games including playoffs, he had 449 yds. and 3 TD’s.   That would amount to 12 pts. per game in standard scoring, making him a top 5 reciever through the course of the year.   Read that sentence again.   Larry David would think that’s pretty good. The best part about Jordy is that he will be an afterthought in the opposing defense’s minds.   Greg Jennings and Jermichael Finley will command most of the attention in the secondary, letting Jordy run free.

Minnesota Vikings- Percy Harvin (WR):  Other than Peterson, there is not a whole lot of fantasy gold in Minnesota. Visanthe Shiancoe will be better than he was last year (he almost has to), but with the Vikings selecting Kyle Rudolph in the first round, his value takes a bit of a hit.   Percy Harvin will be the least dependent on rookie quarterback Christian Ponder.   Harvin returns kickoffs and also runs the ball out of the backfield.   He shouldn’t be drafted any higer than your WR3 with Ponder at the helm.   However, if they happen to land McNabb in free agency, he should be dynamic.

Chicago Bears- Jay Cutler- (QB): I really wanted to put Earl Bennett here, but he is too inconsistent.   For the record, I do believe in this “Vanderbilt connection” these two share. It’s very easy not to like Cutler.   He looks like a trust fund baby who has been given everything he ever wanted in life.   Whenever he throws an interception he will mope and blame it on his reciever.   The thing Cutler has going for him is that he throws a lot and has shown in the playoffs that he can use his legs to score TD’s.  With a second year to get acclamated under Martz, Cutler is posed for a big year.   Throw in the fact that there is a rumor the Bears, along with Redskins and Jets, will make a bid for Santonio Holmes.   If the Bears do get a big time WR, Cutler has a chance to be a top 10 QB.

Detroit Lions- Mikel Leshoure (RB): Last year, I watched a Lions game and saw an unbelievably talented player named Jahvid Best tearing up his opponents defense during preseason.  I nabbed him in the 13th round last year, and in the first two weeks he had 5 TD’s.  I was praising myself for picking Best when I virtually knew nothing about him.   The following week he gets turf toe and is never the same. Analysts said he was injured most of his college career, and that durability is still a factor.  The Lions said they needed another RB besides Best, a bruiser.  Enter Mikel Leshoure.   A rookie who is 225 pounds and whom the Lions say will be their goal line back.   I expect Leshoure to to do a lot more than that. Don’t be surprised if Leshoure is the RB to own come mid-November.   Leshoure is an absolute must for any Best owner.