2010 WR5 Value Analysis

I'm going to highlight a few guys you should keep an eye on with a flier WR5 pick rather than list everyone:

Mike Williams - Williams is a talented rookie WR with Tampa Bay, and he's been making noise at Tampa's camp all offseason.  He is locked into a starting job at split end, and he's going to be a play-maker.  His deep speed matches well with Freeman's big arm, but it will probably take a year for Williams to develop a well-rounded game.  He should be targeted often to help make up for that, however.

Laurent Robinson - A rookie QB is never great news for fantasy WRs, but someone has to step up in STL.  Laurent Robinson looked really good last year prior to a torn knee ligament, and he fits the profile of a true #1 WR with his size/speed combination.  He's a solid stash as a WR5.

Devin Hester / Johnny Knox - Thanks to last season's strong finish, Aromashodu is getting picked well ahead of these two.  You know Martz will turn this passing game into a good one, and there's going to be at least one, if not two, fantasy contributors from this passing attack.  Since this situation is up in the air, it might make more sense to pass on Aromashodu's higher price tag and take one of these guys instead.  Knox has been making a ton of noise in camp, and I'd probably take him first.  His ADP is rising, and I would honestly have no problem drafting him as high as a WR3 at this point.

Bernard Berrian - Favre is back, Rice is out half of the season, and Harvin's headaches are unpredictable.  The Vikings need to throw to someone, and Berrian is still a very good deep threat.  He's a great WR5.

Jabar Gaffney - Gaffney blew up the final two weeks of the season, especially in week 17 when Brandon Marshall was suspended, and he heads into the 2010 season as the starting Broncos WR opposite whatever role Eddie Royal plays.  He's not a big name by any means, but he's a McDaniels type of player, and he'll produce while he's starting.  He's a good candidate stash, and might actually provide better value than Eddie Royal.

James Jones - He's worth a stash in case Donald Driver isn't the same after his dual offseason knee surgeries. He's bee more productive than Jordy Nelson when on the field, and he'd likely start opposite Jennings should Driver fall apart.  He's especially attractive if you draft Driver.

Jacoby Jones - Kubiak wants Jones to win the starting job opposite Andre Johnson, and he certainly has the talent to do it, but like several other WRs I've talked about here, he's gotta be right mentally.  I think he's an excellent stash if he wins the job given the explosive nature of Houston's passing attack.  He's a perfect WR5.

WR5 Thoughts: There's a lot of good talent here, and while it's risky, if you wanted to stock up on other positions and then grab your WR depth here, I don't think you'd be doing yourself a disservice.  I really like Mike Williams and Jabar Gaffney as guys this late, but there's a lot of other interesting prospects as well.