There is no single player in the entire fantasy
football community that is being so avidly discussed right now than RB Clinton
Portis. Portis had everything going his way entering the 2006 season:
Solid offensive line, youth, third year with a Hall of Fame Head Coach,
and a superb new offensive coordinator that transformed Priest Holmes from
a washout back-up behind Jamal Lewis in Baltimore to a fantasy super stud in
Kansas City. Then disaster struck. Portis injuries his shoulder
trying to make a tackle in a meaningless preseason game against the Cincinnati
Bengals. Now our sports car has a big scratch in it, our fine china
has a crack, and our raw gold has less purity than we originally thought.
The Docs thoroughly discuss the impact of the injury to Clinton Portis and
how to move forward with Clinton Portis in your fantasy
football draft plans.
The shoulder injury to Portis now makes him a classic high risk / high reward
pick. If he were healthy, he is a no-brainer as a top pick outside
of the big 3 RB (Larry Johnson, Shaun Alexander, and LaDainian Tomlinson
(in most systems -- refer to the Draft Advisor for those of you in more unconventional
systems). However, the injury to Portis now makes him a riskier pick
than the other options available currently listed below him in our rankings.
His X-rays and MRI results produced no immediate show-stoppers (no broken
bones, no completely torn ligaments, no major structural damage, etc),
which leaves the fantasy community in complete limbo as we wait... and wait...
and wait to see how Portis’ rehab goes. As of the writing of this article,
Portis is out for the preseason and may be ready for week 1, depending on
his rehab.
Bigger picture is whether or not Portis will be ready in week 14, which is
when most fantasy playoffs start and when you need him most. His shoulder
will bother him all year. How much depends on how tough Portis is mentally
and how gifted he is physically. He could play all year. He could
be sidelined. He could be in a running-back-by-committee (RBBC) with
Ladell Betts. No one really knows, and anyone who claims they do at
this point should not be given even an ounce of credibility.
After much discussion, we would recommend dropping Portis’ numbers a tad...
but still keep him at #5 overall. He will now move out of a value tier shared
with Tiki Barber and into the next tier with a few other players
listed in our fantasy football player rankings and projections. As previously mentioned, we love new Redskins’
Offensive Coordinator Al Saunders, and Portis has the most upside out of
the crew he now currently shares in our next value tier; however, Portis also brings
the most risk to the table. At this point, there just isn't much more
we can rationally do regarding where to move Portis relative to the information that is available.
Having said that, if you decide to draft Portis, know he is a high risk/high
reward fantasy prospect. Know that if Portis comes through, he could be
huge; however, if he does not, he could also leave egg on your face.
Know that you must handcuff Ladell Betts and spend a later round pick on him
when you could have used the pick to grab another WR, RB, or QB with sleeper
potential and/or good upside. To help folks know when to expect Betts
being taken in their fantasy football draft, we have made a page that provides
immediate links to sites that provide public Average Draft Position information:
Not unlike the advice you would receive from a financial advisor, it really comes down to the risk you
are willing to take and how comfortable you are with that risk. Consider
Portis Tech Stock. We could find ourselves in the late 90's, but we
could also find ourselves in the early 2000's. We will all have to
wait and see unless breaking news develops regarding Portis’ progress, which
we doubt we will hear. Everyone (including Portis and the Redskins)
is just going to have to wait and see.
As always, thanks to each and every one of you for visiting FootballDocs.com,
and above all else, have fun at your draft.
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