Thomas Jones Heads List of Guys You Hate, but Should Love, in Fantasy Football

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Experienced fantasy players know that you can't win based upon just picking a stud first-rounder and sitting on your laurels for the rest of the draft. The key to a stellar team is constructing the best team based upon value. Will Brinson recently discussed a handful of overvalued guys heading into this season, and now I'm here to present a group of guys that fall exactly on the opposite side of the spectrum ...

The undervalued. Some people call them sleepers, some call them breakouts. It's all relative to value. If you draft a player in the 8th round and he plays all season like a third-rounder, you have garnered incredible value with that pick.


There are several reasons people undervalue players. The predominant one that transforms normal fantasy players into undervalued ones, though, is when they are coming off an uncharacteristically bad season.

Think about Ben Roethlisberger last season. He was coming off a disastrous 2006 season in which he followed up a Super Bowl victory with a motorcycle wreck and his worst on-field season. No one even cared to draft him as their starting QB. And, of course, he blew up.

This year's Big Ben is Thomas Jones.

One of the biggest busts of 2007, people are understandably cautious to jump back on the Thomas Jones bandwagon. The 2007 Jets season was a colossal bust, so the lackluster fantasy performance of their top running back shouldn't be a big surprise. The problems were plentiful, but the most glaring issue was the absolute disappearance of Jones' presence in the end zone. He scored twice, once on the ground. The scores came in Weeks 13 and 17, respectively. In other words, after his fantasy owners' seasons were over, considering they wasted a second-round pick on him.

Things will be different this time. Why? First, the offensive line is exponentially better. Perennial Pro-Bowler Alan Faneca (left) was brought over from the Steelers -- I hear they run the ball a little bit in Pittsburgh -- and veteran Damien Woody was acquired to play right tackle. D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold are both entering their third season in the league and will come into their own. Under Faneca's leadership, their potential for growth is vast. Simply put, last year the line was a weakness, and this year it's a strength.

Oh, there's more blocking news. The Jets have also acquired fullback Tony Richardson. If you don't know who that is, let me help you a bit ... he's the dude who has cleared holes for fantasy beasts Priest Holmes, Larry Johnson, Chester Taylor, and Adrian Peterson. You don't need me to tell you three of those four have been elite fantasy players. Find each runner's best fantasy season, and Richardson was leading the way.

It's not all externalities. Jones himself was not ready to have a poor season last year. The absence of TDs didn't make sense, but that happens sometimes by haphazard coincidence. Don't count on it again. If you are worried about him breaking down, please stop. He's turning 30 this year, but his workload has been significantly less than most 30-year-old runners. He's only carried the rock 1,659 times in his career, and the wall is somewhere around 2,500 carries, varying slightly from back to back. He's not close to breaking down.

With an average draft position (ADP) of 25th among rushers, he's being seriously undervalued. Translation: this guy can help you win your league.


A few others in the same boat:

Rudi Johnson -- At 1,441 carries and age 29 (on October 1st), he's not yet to the wall I just mentioned. Before the injury-plagued/ineffective 2007 season, Rudi piled up three consecutive 1,300-plus yard seasons with 12 TDs in each of those campaigns. The Bengals still haven't gone out and drafted or signed a big name to replace Rudi. Sure, they have three options in house, but Kenny Watson, Chris Perry, and a surgically repaired Kenny Irons aren't exactly causing Rudi to lose sleep. His ADP is 27th among rushers, so you can get him as your third RB. Yes, Rudi Johnson could be your flex back. He was a No. 1 heading into last year on many teams. One year, and you're scared? C'mon.

Ravens D/ST -- Other than Ed Reed, everyone that mattered missed time due to injury last year. Plus, Brian Billick had lost control of that team -- falling apart against the Patriots and embarrassing themselves by blaming the officials illustrates this point. They ended up as one of the least-usable fantasy units in the league. Now, there's a new administration in town, and the Ray Lewis-led defense feels like it has something to prove. Would you want to be lining up opposite them? Me neither.

Marvin Harrison -- Injuries, foreign custom-made weapons, being passed on the depth chart, being called old ... Marvin's had to deal with a lot this offseason. He just endured the worst year of his career on and off the field. He's also getting drafted behind Calvin Johnson in the average league. I'm a fan of Johnson, but this is a little much. Marvin's gonna be fine, and he's a big-time bounce-back guy.

Matt Leinart -- Broken collarbone, being accused of partying too much, being overshadowed by an older/less-talented QB ... there's been a lot of crap on Leinart's plate this past 12 months, no? Just remember, the Cardinals have a high-octane passing offense, and the line was constructed for a left-handed QB, not a fumbling right-hander (only two QBs turned the ball over more than Kurt Warner last year, by the way). Yet somehow Warner is being selected ahead of Leinart in most drafts. I'm just shaking my head in disbelief.

Roddy White -- He doesn't qualify under the "had bad things happen last year" corollary, but he's being underestimated heading into the preseason. The reason is different, yet simple: everyone is terrified to take a receiver on a bad team with an either unproven or bad QB. You could place Dwayne Bowe in this boat as well, but I'm more hot on White.

The flip side to the above "bad team, bad quarterback" argument is that White put up 83 catches, 1,202 yards, and six TDs with an abysmal team predominantly quarterbacked by Joey Harrington last year. Can the team and/or quarterback really get worse?

Other undervalued stars to consider: Julius Jones, Laurence Maroney, Jake Delhomme, Marc Bulger, Donovan McNabb, and Javon Walker.

Don't overlook anyone on this list. These are the types of guys that win you fantasy leagues ... like the one you haven't yet signed up for on fleaflicker for free.