Drop Zone: 20 Dynasty Fantasy Football Players Who Belong on Waivers

Dynasty league owners become infatuated with their own players.

Many times, that’s the biggest weakness an owner can have. When you fall in love with your guys, it makes it incredibly difficult to cut ties with them. You feel a personal connection to them and it sometimes feels like putting them on the bus and waving goodbye.

Unfortunately, holding on to players year after year with the hopes they’ll blossom into stars or experience a resurrection in their career could leave you missing out on important waiver wire prospects.

When making trades with others, I typically hear something like, “I just don’t have the roster space to add two players.” I do the same thing every time. I look at their rosters and immediately find two or three players I’d dump in a heartbeat.

Again, dynasty owners fall in love with their own players.

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but they also say love is blind. You need to figure out where you stand within those two statements.

If you’re having trouble cutting ties with some players and need an unbiased opinion to set them free, I sincerely hope you find them on this list I’m going to reveal.

Now, keep in mind that all leagues have different roster sizes and restrictions.  If you have 50 roster spots, you’ll probably want to argue on a few of these players. In the end, I see this group as having little hope of ever reaching or returning to the fantasy elite.

In essence, here are 20 players I wouldn’t pick up if they were dropped in my dynasty league.

1. Andre Brown, RB, NYG

His recovery from a ruptured Achilles tendon last year has been very slow. It seems just as he gets back to full speed, he has a setback.

Fact is, that injury is incredibly difficult to recover from and the Giants have a lot of running backs on the roster ahead of him.

I just don’t see a bright future for this former member of the NC State Wolfpack.

2. Brady Quinn, QB, DEN

It's a constant tale of irony for Quinn.

First, he was seemingly disrespected in the 2007 NFL Draft and fell all the way to the end of the first round to the Cleveland Browns. It seemed to be a dream come true for Quinn to play for his hometown team. His career there can only be described as a nightmare.

A trade to Denver seemingly gave Quinn’s chances a quick renaissance, but that was extinguished quickly when they drafted Tim Tebow and extended Kyle Orton’s contract.

I do think it’s possible that Quinn gets another chance somewhere at some point. You could even give him another preseason game or two to decide.

However, do you really want to hold on to him for six whole seasons before he gets another realistic chance to take over a team?

Even that scenario isn’t guaranteed.

3. Brian Brohm, QB, BUF

We were pretty excited about Brohm’s chances in Buffalo earlier this season.

Unfortunately, it looks like Trent Edwards has taken the reins again for the Bills. The starter there is roster worthy, but it’s hard to look at Brohm right now and still have a lot of hope he could ever reach his potential.

4. Brian Urlacher, LB, CHI

Urlacher is going to be on a lot of rosters this year. In deep IDP leagues, he’s probably owned in all of them.

With Urlacher, the expectations just have to be toned down. He hasn’t had a 100-tackle season or a sack since 2007. He was hurt for most of last season, but it’s obvious he’s simply not the same player, nor is he used the same way.

I could name 20 other linebackers who will have similar years to Urlacher.

5. Brodie Croyle, QB, KC

He may get a chance next season if he leaves Kansas City as a free agent, but his durability is a major question.

There’s little doubt that Croyle has talent. There’s also little doubt he’s backup material in the NFL, not a starter.

6. Chris Henry, RB, HOU

He’s in a battle with Jeremiah Johnson to be the No. 3 running back behind Arian Foster and Steve Slaton.

Fact is, Henry is known for being a pretty good practice player who disappears in games. Some owners find it hard to let him go since he was likely a first-round rookie pick, but the writing has been on the wall for some time now.

7. Dwayne Jarrett, WR, CAR

Jarrett is going to go down as yet another USC wide receiver who doesn’t reach expectations in the NFL.

He had yet another golden opportunity this season to grab the starting job opposite Steve Smith, but Brandon LaFell and Kenneth Moore have both looked better than Jarrett so far in camp.

It will be surprising if he makes the team. He certainly shouldn’t make yours.

8. Earl Bennett, WR, CHI

There was a time last year when Earl Bennett looked like the best Chicago wideout to have in a dynasty league. After all, he and Jay Cutler had a long history dating back to their college days at Vanderbilt.

Unfortunately, Bennett has been surpassed on the depth chart by Johnny Knox, Devin Hester, and Devin Aromashodu.

I certainly don’t have room for the Bears No. 4 wide receiver on my roster.

9. Gartrell Johnson, RB, NYG

San Diego tried unsuccessfully to sneak him on their practice squad after taking him in the fourth round last year. The Giants jumped on him.

Johnson has some power and speed, but the road to prominence in New York is just brutal. Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs, and Danny Ware all stand in the way of Johnson having some type of impact.

He’s still a decent stash in a really deep dynasty league, but he’s the definition of a long-term project.

10. JaMarcus Russell, QB, FA

Does it even need to be said? Russell is STILL owned and drafted in a lot of leagues.

It’s over.

He got his money and never really had the passion to play football.

Wait, sorry, it’s not his fault. I forgot about that. Let me rephrase that from JaMarcus Russell’s viewpoint.

Russell was never given a chance in Oakland. They never talked to him about his failed drug tests and never had any type of intervention to help him. The offensive players also didn’t try hard enough to make him successful. It was never his fault they lost any games.

Either way, he’s done.

11. James Hardy, WR, BUF

Hardy was a highly regarded prospect coming out of Indiana. His career has been full of injuries and it’s likely he doesn’t even make the team this season after once being considered the future No. 1 or No. 2 wide receiver.

12. Justin Fargas, RB, DEN

Fargas has made the most of his situations in the past, but he’s banged up at this point. He hasn’t topped 3.9 yards per carry since 2007, and there’s little chance he could return to prominence in Denver.

He had a terrible time just passing a physical to sign a contract. That’s a bad omen.

13. Limas Sweed, WR, PIT

I feel bad for Sweed.  I really do.

The former Longhorn was arguably the best wide receiver in the 2008 class. His career has been full of drops, injuries, and bouts with severe depression.

It’s a real long shot for him to come back and ever make an impact, especially coming back from his latest injury, a torn Achilles tendon.

14. Matt Jones, WR, CIN

Jones’s fate with the Bengals was sealed the moment they signed Terrell Owens. He’s not going to make this team and may have run out of chances in the NFL.

15. Michael Clayton, WR, TB

It’s crazy, isn’t it?

Clayton is one of the biggest dynasty league disappointments of the last decade.

After an extremely promising start with 80 catches, 1,193 yards, and seven touchdowns in his 2004 rookie season, he’s followed it up with 141 catches, 1,743 yards, and just three touchdowns combined in the last five seasons.

That type of cataclysmic dropoff for a young WR is almost unprecedented. The hope for Clayton is dwindling by the day.

16. Pat White

White was a sexy pick out of West Virginia for the Dolphins last year. He had some success as a Wildcat quarterback, but it’s apparent he doesn’t have a future as an NFL signal caller.

They may try him at a different position, but his ceiling is probably that of New York Jets gadget man Brad Smith.

I’ll pass.

17. Patrick Turner

The other Pat the Dolphins took a chance on was Patrick Turner from USC.

He’s been a disappointment from day one and has been recently surpassed on the depth chart by Marlon Moore. That’s not a good sign.

18. Ted Ginn, Jr., WR, SF

He is what he is. It’s really that simple with Ginn.

He’s a good return man and deep threat, but that’s about it. With Michael Crabtree and Josh Morgan entrenched as the starters in San Francisco, you’d likely keep Ginn on your roster and never use him during the season.

There are simply better uses for roster spots.

19. Troy Williamson, WR, JAX

He’ll probably catch two or three more long touchdowns during the preseason, then drop off the face of the planet.

Again.

20. Willie Parker, RB, WAS

Parker is clearly on the outside looking in when trying to make the Redskins roster. He’s squarely behind Clinton Portis and Larry Johnson.

Parker has most certainly lost a step. For a player who relies so much on speed, that’s a significant development.

In fact, I’d rather take a flier on Keiland Williams in Washington over having Parker on my roster.

SUMMARY

You have to keep in mind that all leagues have different roster sizes and restrictions.  If you have an abundance of roster spots, you’ll probably want to argue on a few of these players.

All in all, this group of youngsters and veterans just have little chance of ever providing significant value to fantasy teams any time soon, or quite honestly, any time at all.

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For the complete set of strategic 2010 dynasty rankings, click below:

Strategic Quarterback Rankings
Strategic Running Back Rankings
Strategic Wide Receiver Rankings
Strategic Tight End Rankings
Strategic IDP Rankings

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