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The WESTern Perspective - Week 1By Danny West Can you feel it? It is surrounding us. Jets fans glaring at Dolphins fans in grocery store lines, the best of friends becoming sworn enemies for a couple hours every Sunday and the constant monitoring of Sports Center and online injury reports to make sure that your fantasy team is tweaked just right. Yes, my friends, football season is finally upon us. If you’ve been a long standing member of the Sports’ Outlaw community or are just now joining our ranks, you may have noticed that the threads throughout the forums asking which player to draft have been replaced with threads asking which player to start and if you search hard enough, it is an almost certainty that you will find another fantasy owner in the same situation as you, facing the same tough decision that you are. Perhaps the most intriguing “who to start” matchup (and one of the most common) has been that between Detroit running back Kevin Smith and Miami running back Ricky Williams. And to better help answer this question, let’s take a minute to break down both athletes. While Kevin Smith’s resume may be short, it is nothing short of impressive. Smith’s 2007 season at the University of Central Florida was, in one word, amazing. He ran for 2,567 yards, had 450 rushing attempts and found the endzone 30 times, leading the nation in scoring. However, the fact remains that college players can become NFL legends just as easily as they can become nobodies and what is perhaps most important for Smith’s future as an NFL player is the supporting cast he has around him. The Lions have a very good, though underrated, aerial game. Last year, the Jon Kitna lead squad, amassed a total of 22 touchdowns while averaging 242 yards per game. This threat allowed Detroit’s run game to score a season total of 13 touchdowns while averaging 4 yards per carry. What is important to note here however, is that the entire Lions team had less rushing attempts in 2007 than Kevin Smith did, 104 attempts less. And while it is certain that the Lions will not be becoming a run-first team anytime soon, you can almost guarantee that with a back as capable as Smith on their roster we will be seeing quite a few more running plays in the playbook this season. What Ricky Williams has always had is the big play capability. Whether breaking through the line for a 40 yard run or catching a little dump pass and turning it into a 60 yard gain, Williams has always been entertaining to watch. From 1999-2003 Williams was one of the most prolific backs in the NFL rushing for more than 6,000 yards and recording 41 touchdowns, and those were just his rushing stats. Then something went wrong. Something that has left a bad taste in our mouths, not as fantasy owners, but as sports fans. For me, it was never about the drug thing, what always bothered me about Ricky Williams was that here was a guy with so much raw talent that seemingly had no love for the game, whatsoever. What we have to ask ourselves now, is how much of Ricky Williams is the same runner that we once loved 5 seasons ago? How much is left in the tank? How much of a threat will he be? Williams has two good things going for him. Firstly, the Dolphins have a very talented offensive line which should have little difficulty opening holes for him to make his way through. Secondly, what we’ve seen in preseason has shed light on the player that Williams once was. Unfortunately for Williams, the odds are stacked against him. The Dolphins have little, if anything, in terms of a passing game which will force the Dolphins to run, and defenses will be ready for this. Not to mention the fact that Ronnie Brown will be waiting in the shadows, and a healthy Ronnie Brown spells bad news for Ricky Williams. Personally, I am not buying the preseason hype. Williams has a lot to prove before I am ready to jump back on the bandwagon. Kevin Smith however, has only a bright future and the endzone ahead of him. In the question of Kevin Smith vs. Ricky Williams, I
start Smith and never look back. | |
