Every year, fantasy football players enter training camp with questions about depth charts that will be answered in August that will have an impact on a number of players and their respective fantasy values and ADP's.
In this two part article, I will discuss some of the most intriguing camp battles for fantasy football in 2016. You can read part two here.
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Preseason Players To Keep An Eye On
Cleveland QB1: Robert Griffin III vs. Josh McCown
This might seem like a no-brainer, but RG3 will have to earn the starting job in his first season in Cleveland. Expectations might be raised now that Cleveland finally has an NBA championship under its belt. All eyes will be on the Browns to do their part and reach the promised land sooner rather than later. If Griffin doesn't prove that he can be a long-term solution, his time in a Browns uniform might not be long. Josh McCown finished with a 93.3 passer rating and 2,109 yards in eight starts in 2o15. The problem is that Cleveland finished 1-7 in those games. Griffin definitely can't be trusted by fantasy owners until he proves himself on the field, but his ceiling is much higher, due to his proficiency with the deep ball and his legs. McCown will never be more than a low-end QB2 or bye-week fill-in, but if he can keep the chains moving better than RG3, he may be the Browns' starting signal-caller by the end of the season.
Baltimore RB1: Justin Forsett vs. Javorius Allen vs. Kenneth Dixon vs. Terrance West
The Baltimore backfield is one of the messiest in the NFL this offseason. It's anyone's guess right now who will carry the load for Baltimore, although this could devolve into an ugly timeshare throughout the season that would be less than fruitful for fantasy. After serving as a backup for four different teams, Justin Forsett emerged out of nowhere to run for 1,266 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2014. Last year, Forsett had a dismal first three games before putting up consecutive 100 yard efforts. Then, he averaged under four yards per carry over the next five games before missing the rest of the season with a broken elbow. Which Forsett will we see this year? We may not see him much at all if one of the younger backs establish themselves. Second-year back Javorius "Buck" Allen showed some promise in limited time last season, but only finished with a 3.8 yards per carry, with most of his points coming from the passing game, so a third-down role is possible in 2016. Kenneth Dixon presents the most upside, but is also the biggest unknown as a rookie. He is a bit undersized at 5'10" and coming out of Louisiana Tech, he isn't proven against top-notch competition. Terrance West couldn't hold onto the starting job in Cleveland despite little opposition, but he will compete as well and is running ahead of incumbent Lorenzo Taliaferro who may not make the roster. Oh, and please don't mention Trent Richardson's presence in training camp.
Tennessee RB1: DeMarco Murray vs. Derrick Henry
Leaving Philly and Chip Kelly's suffocating control for the greener pastures of running back-starved Tennessee did wonders for Murray's fantasy value. Then they drafted Heisman winner Derrick Henry in the 2nd round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Murray obviously has the experience and should have the first shot at the starting job. However, with 1,127 carries on his odometer, including a whopping 392 in 2014, Murray will wisely not be asked to carry the load alone. Despite a dominant college career, Henry has drawn mixed opinions regarding his NFL future, which explains his fall to the middle of the 2nd round. Henry is a tough, bruising back who seems to be a great short-yardage option, but comparisons to other big backs like Ron Dayne can be less than inspiring. Henry has a better burst than most big backs and ran a solid 4.54 40-yard dash. At 250 lb, he's the type of back that could make an immediate impact. A more favorable comparison that Henry is drawing is former Titans great Eddie George, but of course he hasn't even taken a snap in an NFL pre-season game yet. Murray is only 28 and should still have plenty to offer, but Henry's presence will make things interesting.
Denver TE1: Virgil Green vs. Jeff Heuerman
The wideouts have done most of the damage in Denver's offense in the past few seasons, but with either Mark Sanchez or rookie Paxton Lynch handling the offense this season, the tight end may be utilized more as a safety net. With the departure of Owen Daniels, Virgil Green makes for an interesting sleeper candidate at the tight end position. He hasn't proven much over his five year career, amassing only 35 receptions, 379 yards and two touchdowns. He is also nursing a finger injury which has kept him out of OTAs. Heuerman was a third-round pick last season, but is recovering from ACL surgery and is yet to register an NFL catch. Demaryius Thomas will be double-teamed in the end zone on a regular basis and Emmanuel Sanders is undersized, so one of the big men will have the chance to be a secondary target in the red zone. Both are big question marks, but the training camp may give us a glimpse as to who has the edge to be an in-season streamer candidate. .
Los Angeles TE1: Tyler Higbee vs. Lance Kendricks
As a 2nd round pick out of Wisconsin, Kendricks was supposed to be an immediate pass-catching threat. However, his lackluster output led the Rams to bring in locker-room headache Jared Cook, who performed fairly well, but he is now in Green Bay after being released. Kendricks logged 519 yards in 2012, but hasn't surpassed 260 yards since then and has a 21.2 receiving yards per game career average. The Rams failed to sign a free agent to compete and instead opted to make Tyler Higbee a 4th round selection. Higbee gained some pre-draft buzz for his athleticism, but as a D-II player in college he may require an adjustment period. Jared Goff will surely rely on his tight end a lot in his rookie season, so the chemistry he develops with each receiver will be telling.
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