Fantasy Football Rankings 2011: 10 Big Names Destined to Disappoint

Every fantasy football season is filled with pleasant surprises and colossal disappointments.

Each year, players wind up overachieving and giving owners a major boost or underacheiving and making owners consider chucking their computers into the nearest river in frustration. 

The surprises are tough to predict, but the players who disappoint can be even harder, making the game all that much more frustrating for players. How can you know who's destined to underwhelm, to underperform, to underachieve? 

While it's impossible to truly know who's going to be a disappointment next season, these 10 players are the likeliest suspects.

Thanks to a history of being injury-prone, inconsistent or just plain overrated, these guys look most destined to disappoint.

That doesn't mean they'll be bad; in fact, they could still be quite good. But they're not going to live up to the hype. 

10. Arian Foster, RB, Houston Texans

Here's the deal: Foster isn't going to become a complete bust or waste of space. Last season wasn't a fluke. He'll remain an elite back and could even remain the sport's top point producer once again. 

But if you think he's a lock to stay there, you're kidding yourself. Last year was the kind of season almost no running back can duplicate and even one with Foster's gifts is sure to regress a bit.

He wasn't the focus of many defenses in the early portion of last season, and with a full year to watch him, you can bet teams are going to be a lot more focused on keeping him contained. 

On top of that, fullback Vontae Leach, widely seen as one of the best blocking fullbacks in the sport, is an unrestricted free agent bound out of Houston next season.

If the Texans don't re-sign the blocker, we could see Foster's stats take a bit of a hit or see his fumbles increase like they did in college. 

I'm not saying he's not worth a top two or three pick, but there's a lot here to indicate that we should see a slight slide in 2011. 

9. Michael Vick, QB, Philadelphia Eagles

Much like Arian Foster, Vick enjoyed a tremendous 2010-11 campaign. He was one of the most exciting players in the sport, and that doesn't figure to change next season. But for all his considerable gifts, there's a lot to be worried about next season. 

He turned the ball over a surprising amount for a player putting up the numbers he did last season, and his completion percentage dipped as defenses adjusted to his skills. He showed himself vulnerable to blitzing in the latter half of the season, looking merely good instead of great at times. 

He's 31, and no one's quite sure when the blazing speed that has served him so well in being a dual threat quarterback will start to leave him. He's not a big guy, and if he takes as many hits as he did last season, he's sure to start to break down. 

Vick should still be one of the elite quarterback performers in the NFL, but don't expect another masterwork like he showed last season. 

8. Marcedes Lewis, TE, Jacksonville Jaguars

Lewis was one of last season's pleasant surprises at the tight end position, emerging as one of the best touchdown threats in the sport. The big, strong pass catcher pulled in 10 touchdown passes and seemed to become the red-zone threat many thought he could become. 

But can he really be trusted? Lewis had a grand total of zero 75-yard receiving games last season, and of his 10 touchdowns, just three came in the second half when teams adjusted to his skill set. 

I'm not saying he's going to be completely useless, but don't expect a level of production near the same one he had last season. It felt more like an outlier than the start of a trend. 

7. Michael Turner, RB, Atlanta Falcons

Here's the thing about "Burner." He's lost his gas pedal, to an extent.

With a slowly shrinking yards per carry average, a nasty second-half fade, and a carry total that exceeded 340 for the second time in three seasons, there are a lot of red flags hinting at a slide here. 

He'll still be a good rusher and could be a great one, but his lack of consistency down the stretch is a major concern.

He's not going to be able to carry your team, and grabbing a decent back to pair him with would be smart. 

6. Kenny Britt, WR, Tennessee Titans

Britt's talent is undeniable. His physical gifts helped him produce a few stellar showings last season to make him a high-upside pick in this year's draft. 

But he's also a walking talking red flag. From the major injury he suffered last season to the black hole that is the quarterback position in Tennessee to his myriad off-the-field problems, Britt is the ultimate high-risk pick.

He needs a whole lot to go right to live up to his potential (Tennessee needs to find a quarterback and actually keep him on the roster) and is going to come with serious risk involved in getting him. 

Even if all that wasn't true, Britt was maddeningly inconsistent last season and couldn't be trusted as an elite wideout next season either.

5. Brandon Marshall, WR, Miami Dolphins

Marshall was a colossal disappointment in 2010-11. He struggled to learn the system in Miami and was the victim of one of the worst quarterback situations in all of football. 

This season, that quarterback situation is virtually unchanged (and may even be worse), the running game is in a rebuilding stage and Marshall remains the offense's only weapon in the passing game. 

That screams a second season of struggles for the physically talented but certifiably insane wideout. 

4. Cedric Benson, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

Benson's career high in touchdowns last season masked the confirmation of what many fantasy owners have suspected about the Bengals' back. He's a three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust grinder who isn't going to deliver anything resembling a stellar outing or a big run. Ever. 

He's totalled 667 carries in the last two seasons and is already 28 years old. He's not going to kill you, but don't expect Benson to deliver those massive games you want out of a top-tier back.

He's decidedly mediocre and figures to stay that way for the foreseeable future. 

3. DeAngelo Williams, RB, Carolina Panthers

There are a lot of people who think all Williams needs to become the elite back his talent would indicate he can be is a trip out of Carolina. 

A lot of people are wrong. Apart from being incredibly injury-prone (16-plus games just twice in his career), the 28-year-old Williams wasn't all that effective when healthy last season, struggling to amass just 361 yards on 61 carries in six games last year. 

Williams could become an elite back in a one-back system at some point, but there are too many red flags here to recommend him next season.

2. Steve Smith, WR, Carolina Panthers

Smith finally had the down year everyone was waiting for him to have last season, doomed by a lousy quarterback situation in Carolina. He's still as skilled as ever, but he's the ultimate high-risk pick. 

Coming off an injury-plagued season in which he was doomed by one of the worst offenses in the sport, Smith is angling to get out of Carolina. If he does, he could still be fine.

But if he listens to new quarterback Cam Newton, who's attempting to convince Smith to stay with the Panthers, it's going to be another long, hard season for the pint-sized playmaker. 

With that much risk or reward, there's a great chance that the talented wideout has himself another season that doesn't live up to his skills. 

1. Brandon Lloyd, WR, Denver Broncos

You want to talk surprises from last season? How about Lloyd, who was the top-scoring wideout in the NFL and delivered a surprisingly consistent, dominant performance from the start of the season until its end. 

Surely there's no reason for concern there, right? 

Wrong. Lloyd's season screams outlier based on previous performance, as he's had just one 700-yard season previously, much less a 1,000-yard output.

He's a deep threat, pure and simple, and there's a good chance he's about to lose current quarterback Kyle Orton for much less accurate quarterback Tim Tebow. 

On top of that, Lloyd is a notorious headcase who might be certifiably insane, making him a very risky pick. 

I think Lloyd will perform next year, but don't draft him expecting another massive season. He'll likely be good for the Broncos but not nearly as good as he was last year.