When you enter your fantasy football draft, don’t think too highly of these guys: the most overrated fantasy football players of 2011. Every year fantasy football fanatics talk about which players are going to have a breakout year and who their favorite sleepers are, but that is such an easy topic to talk about. Let’s take on a more difficult task by creating a list of potential busts and overrated players. Some of the names on my list of the most overrated fantasy football players will have a great 2011 season, but here are some reasons why you should not reach earlier in the draft to pick these guys. In fact, for some of these players, it’s best to just look the other way and not draft them at all.
DeAngelo Williams & Jonathan Stewart, RB, Carolina Panthers – If you drafted one of these Panthers in the last year or two, you already know how much this messy rushing tandem can hurt your team. The chance that DeAngelo Williams has a great year is so slim that it’s not worth drafting him at all. Drafting Jonathan Stewart somewhere in the final three rounds is a valuable pick. You can keep Stewart on your bench every week and hope the primary running back, Williams, gets injured. Stewart has hardly any fantasy value as long as Williams is the starting back.
Matt Forte, RB, Chicago Bears – Even though Fantasy Couch ranks Forte number 17 amongst RBs, some owners reach and grab him in the second and early third round – that is unacceptable. He was decent last year with 1,069 rushing yards, and 547 receiving yards. But eight out of nine of his touchdowns were against poor defenses like Detroit, Seattle and Carolina. This means that Matt Forte is a flex option at best – you can’t rely on him to produce every week. The addition of Marion Barber is all the more reason not to draft Forte in the early rounds. Even though Forte only puts up big numbers against subpar defenses, he does have some value in PPR (points per reception) leagues. For the three years Forte has been in the league, He has managed to rack up 171 career receptions.
Jermichael Finley, TE, Green Bay Packers – Why put such a talented tight end on this list? Because some people draft him way too early. Finley should not be drafted in the third and fourth rounds. Even though one of the best quarterbacks is throwing him the ball, resist the temptation. In several drafts, Finley is the first TE to leave the board. This injury-prone tight end is ranked number five on the Fantasy Couch TE Player Rankings and should be selected after Antonio Gates and Dallas Clark.
Andre Johnson, WR, Houston Texans – Andre is hands down my favorite receiver, but unfortunately he is overrated. After looking at 10 snake draft results, in five of those drafts, Andre Johnson was drafted a top 10 draft pick. The Texans Pro Bowl wide out is a steal in the second round, if you can draft him as the 13th overall pick or later, but he is too risky of a pick as a first-rounder. Labeling Andre Johnson as “injury-prone” is going too far, but his recent injuries are enough to make owners a little nervous on draft day. Also, the fact that Andre Johnson has never had double-digit receiving touchdowns in a single season makes him more second round material. If possible, wait until your next pick and draft Calvin Johnson or Larry Fitzgerald – this way you won’t feel like you’re a round behind and have to play catchup.
