Week 1 of preseason NFL action is complete, and we were finally able to see players in live action and game situations. Speculation on players’ value is no longer solely based on practice reports and words of praise from coaching staffs. There were great performances, interesting splits of workloads and of course injuries that have caused players to jump all around the mock draft boards.
Last week I highlighted player movements in Average Draft Position (ADP) like Andre Johnson, Dwayne Bowe and Mark Ingram, who all had large swings compared to the prior week. Below are more names of players whose value is increasing or decreasing with every mock draft and all ADP values are as of Tuesday, 8/14. Continue to check back up until the start of the season to find out who is moving and who you should continue to target on draft day.
Julio Jones, ATL – Jones was on this list last week as well, but after his 6 catches for 109 yards and a TD against the Ravens, Jones jumped another 10 spots this week to an ADP of 16. More importantly he is being drafted as the #2 WR off the board, only after Calvin Johnson. No one is sleeping on Julio anymore and if you want to draft him this season you will need to use a 2nd round pick.
Doug Martin & LaGarrette Blount, TB – Before preseason action, Blount was mostly an afterthought. Writers and experts alike were certain Martin would be the unquestioned starter for the Buccaneers, and he may still be; but, not so fast. Blount got the start this weekend (not unexpected) and performed well (unexpected) posting 7 carries for 30 yards and a touchdown and caught a pass as well. Drafters are hedging their bets a little and Martin fell 5 spots to an ADP of 38, while Blount leaped 16 spots up to 99th overall. If you take Martin in drafts, Blount should not be overlooked.
Willis McGahee, DEN – McGahee is the clear starter in Denver and looking good throughout camp and into the preseason. He is up 8 spots this week to an ADP of 52, with drafters seeing the value of a clear RB starter and a healthy Peyton Manning. Last season he had 1,199 yards and 4 TDs and with Tebow in New York, there should be a few more scoring opportunities at the goal line this year.
Redskins Running Backs – First off, you should have already marked every single Redskins RB off of your draft sheets because Shanahan hates fantasy football. That being said, Royster is up 25 spots this week to an ADP of 128 as the starter (for now) in Washington’s backfield. Helu dropped 9 spots to 81st overall, but will likely continue to tumble as he deals with Achilles tendonitis. Most writers are continuing to tout Helu as the RB to own in this offense based on talent, but at this point I would avoid all of them and leave the weekly headache to someone else.
Pierre Garcon, WAS – While the running back situation in Washington will eternally be a mess, quarterback Robert Griffin III looked “poised, sharp and confident,” in his preseason debut, per Dan Graziano of ESPN. RGIII’s performance helped Garcon shine, as Garcon grabbed 3 passes for 58 yards, a TD and a rising ADP, up 23 spots to 71. Garcon was a mid-round favorite of mine, but you can no longer wait until the 10th round in drafts to grab him. Currently he is still the 28th WR off the board, but could easily perform as a WR2 throughout the season if Griffin continues to perform as he did in limited work.
David Wilson, NYG – The Giants 1st round selection in 2012 had most assuming he would be the primary backup behind Bradshaw, but there is never a guarantee of this in a Tom Coughlin offense. Wilson looked good in his first preseason action rushing 7 times for 43 yards, but of course this came as the 4th RB off the bench. Up 11 spots this week to an ADP of 94, Wilson is being drafted as the #2 RB for the Giants. Currently though that job belongs to D.J. Ware who is not even being drafted and should be a name you remember to check one last time before your drafts. Bradshaw is not the picture of health, and a last round flier on Ware could provide value this season if he remains as the first guy off the bench.
Austin Collie, IND – Collie is starting for the Colts at WR and during the first preseason game he caught 3 passes for 45 yards including a nice 23 yard TD. Quarterback Andrew Luck looked good himself and is up 15 spots in ADP to 124, but Collie skyrocketed up 36 spots to 141st overall and I expect this to continue to rise. Collie was not even being drafted a few weeks ago and still finds himself as the 53rd WR off the boards behind the likes of even Terrell Owens. Collie represents another great late-round value in my opinion and could easily emerge as the best receiver on the Colts, be a great bye week receiver in lineups, and has potential to finish among the top 30 WRs this season.
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