Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

No one is ever going to tell you that tight end is the most important position on a fantasy football team, but just like any other position a good one can make your team and a bad one can really hurt your team. Tight end is not a very deep position by fantasy football standards. Once you get past the obvious studs drafting a tight end can be a bit of a crap shoot. Because there is such a thin crop of good tight ends to choose from it tends to be a position that is very easy to overvalue. So in order to make sure that you don’t overvalue a tight end and end up with this years bust which will surely cause some serious heartburn, we bring to you the 2009 Bruno Boys Tight End “Bring Out the Pepto” Rankings. .

Ranking System: The higher the “Bring out the Pepto” ranking, the more likely a player is to bust.

Vernon Davis (San Francisco 49ers) — Vernon Davis may be the definition of the term “underachiever”. He was very highly touted as a rookie coming out of the University of Maryland, but has never really lived up to expectations. He seems to have all the physical tools to be the next great tight end. He has speed, size and agility that usually makes for a very productive tight end, but in three NFL seasons he has never lived up to the hype.

In 2007 he put up solid tight end numbers with 52 receptions for 509 yards with four touchdowns. This led many fantasy owners to believe that Davis was well on his way to becoming the elite fantasy football tight end many thought he would be. Instead he had a decline in every statistical category when he finished the 2008 season with 31 receptions for 358 yards and two touchdowns. If you drafted him to be your starting tight end you likely ended up with one serious case of indigestion and were scrambling to find a solid starting tight end.

Davis had issues on the field and with the coaching staff, most notably new 49ers head coach Mike Singletary. Things got so bad that Singletary actually sent Davis to the showers in the middle of the game. At this point there is no reason to believe things will be any better for Davis in 2009. Singletary is still the head coach, quarterback Shaun Hill is still unproven and the team spent their first round pick in the NFL draft on prolific wide receiver Michael Crabtree (still hasn’t signed). Davis may see an increase in production from 2008, but he is still likely not anything more then a back-up fantasy tight end. For these reasons Vernon Davis earns the award of being the Bruno Boys top tight end busts in 2009.

PEPTO BOTTLES: 4 BOTTLES

Anthony Fasano (Miami Dolphins) — Anthony Fasano started the 2008 season as a virtual unknown, but after a hot start the first few weeks of the season he has one of the top waiver wire pick-ups in fantasy football. Unfortunately for fantasy football owners he cooled off considerably after his hot start and was extremely mediocre in the months of October and November.

Fasano finished the 2008 season with 34 receptions for 454 yards with seven touchdowns, which are decent numbers for a tight end. These numbers are very misleading though and may lead to Fasano being overvalued in 2009 fantasy drafts. He scored two touchdowns in the first three weeks of the season and then had four touchdowns in the last four weeks of the season, meaning that he was held to one touchdown over a 10 week span in the heart of the fantasy football schedule. This is not the type of consistency you want from your starting tight end.

There a lot of question marks with the Miami Dolphins heading into 2009. Can Chad Pennington repeat his comeback season of 2008? Can running back Ronnie Brown stay healthy for an entire season? Can Ricky Williams stay drug free? Will the wildcat formation continue to work? These questions along with the inconsistency issues that plagued Fasano in 2008 earn him THREE BOTTLES OF PEPTO.

PEPTO BOTTLES: 3 BOTTLES

Todd Heap / L.J. Smith (Baltimore Ravens) — After missing 10 games in the 2007 season due to injuries Todd Heap was able to stay relatively healthy in 2008 as he played in all 16 games, but it did not translate into TE1 production as he finished the season with 35 receptions for 403 yards with three touchdowns. Fantasy owners will likely still overvalue Heap heading into 2009 based on his history of being a number one fantasy tight end prior to 2007, but the Bruno Boys are here to warn you that Heap’s days as a top fantasy football tight end are likely behind him.

Not only are injuries still a concern for Heap as he missed the team’s off-season mini-camp with a back injury, the Ravens also have added depth at the position by signing tight end L.J. Smith to a one-year deal. The former Philadelphia Eagle, Smith has also battled injuries and has only made 21 starts over the past two seasons. He finished 2008 with 37 receptions for 298 yards with three touchdowns in 13 games played.

The addition of Smith will bring another short yardage target for quarterback Joe Flacco. This may be good for the Baltimore Ravens, but having Heap and Smith on the same roster will diminish the fantasy value of both players and earns each of them a few pepto bottles. Neither player will likely be consistent enough to be a weekly starting tight end on fantasy rosters in 2009.

PEPTO BOTTLES: 2 BOTTLES

Tony Scheffler (Denver Broncos) — Tony Scheffler has totaled 89 receptions for 1,194 yards with eight touchdowns over the past two seasons and has showed signs of emerging as a solid fantasy tight end, he still earns a place in the Bruno Boys for 2009.

Not only does Scheffler play on a team that has two wide receivers in Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal that totaled 195 receptions between them in 2009, the Broncos also traded disgruntled Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears. Replacing Cutler at quarterback will likely be former Bears quarterback Kyle Orton who was acquired in the Cutler trade. Even though this is a downgrade at the quarterback position for the Broncos, it may not be completely terrible for Scheffler. Compared to Cutler, Orton has a lack of arm strength which could actually lead to more passes in the direction of Scheffler.As a member of the Bears’ Orton did use his tight ends quite frequently as Greg Olsen and Dwight Clark had a combined 95 receptions and six touchdowns in 2008.

Scheffler may not be a complete bust in 2009, but question marks at quarterback combined with a new coaching staff and a new offense should leave fantasy football owners a little leery of using a high draft pick on Scheffler as a top fantasy tight end.

PEPTO BOTTLES: 1 BOTTLE

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See More ‘09 BUSTS:  QB | RB | WR | TE | K | DEF

See More ‘09 SLEEPERS:  QB | RB | WR | TE | K | DEF

Cheat Sheet RANKINGS:  QB | RB | WR | TE | K | DEF

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GET YOUR COMMISH KIT DRAFT BOARD NOW

The Bruno Boys have once again teamed up with Commish Kit to sell their fantasy football draft boards. In fact, the 2009 draft boards are available for purchase and you can pick one up by clicking here… http://brunoboys.commishkitstore.com.

Remember to spread the word and get your DRAFT KIT today!

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