Fantasy Football 2011: Kevin Kolb and 5 Players To Stay Away from on Draft Day

When drafting for your fantasy team, it is sometimes just as important to avoid certain players as it is to draft them.

A bad early round draft pick could cost an owner the entire season due to a missed opportunity. You do not want to look back after the season and wonder why you are stuck with a disappointing running back while the next pick led the league in points.

Of course, injuries and bad luck happen. No one could have predicted that Ryan Grant would be out for the year in game one. However, there are some mistakes that can be avoided.

Here is a list of players that should be avoided. Some are high draft picks and others are low, but it makes sense to let your friends keep them as their teams stay at the bottom of the standings.

Kevin Kolb

Many people have Kevin Kolb listed as the sleeper pick of the draft. They have seen him with a few samples of success with the Eagles and think that will automatically translate into success in Arizona. However, you should not jump on the bandwagon just yet.

Kolb has only had seven starts in his brief career. He threw for high yard totals because they were in Andy Reid’s pass happy offense. He has only thrown 11 touchdowns to 14 interceptions. Philadelphia also had a solid but not great offensive line giving him adequate time in the pocket.

With the Arizona Cardinals, Kolb has to learn a new system, which is an underrated hindrance for young quarterbacks. He also will be behind one of the worst offensive lines in football, and be surrounded by only one true weapon in Larry Fitzgerald. The run game is also very unproven and will not help the young quarterback at all.

Kevin Kolb has a very good chance to succeed in the National Football League, but he will have some growing pains with a rebuilding team. Fantasy owners should treat him like a rookie and wait until later in the season to possibly acquire him.

Peyton Hillis

Last season, Peyton Hillis became one of the darlings of the NFL. He finished fourth in fantasy points among running backs in standard scoring leagues, and he was voted by fans to be on the cover of the new Madden football game.

Unfortunately, fans should not expect a repeat performance out of Hillis. While he will still be the number one running back in Cleveland, he will lose some touches to Montario Hardesty and Brandon Jackson. Hillis received a lot of carries each game last year mostly due to a lack of options. This year the options will be there.

More importantly, at the end of last season Hillis was not running as wild as he started out in the season. Despite 11 touchdowns in the first 11 games, he was shut out of the end zone in the last five. He also only broke 60 yards rushing once in those last 5.

These numbers either show that he broke down late last season, or his best games were more of a fluke than the norm. Neither of these excuses bode well for Peyton Hillis this season. You also should not forget about that Madden Curse.

Jeremy Maclin

Sometimes as fans we get too involved in the sport and forget the importance of players’ health. Jeremy Maclin currently is battling an unidentified illness, and no one knows the extent of the problems.

Andy Reid has said that he hopes Maclin will be ready for the beginning of the regular season, but he might be in the minority as an optimist. Many of his teammates have said both on and off the record that they do not believe he will be back so soon.

Within a football perspective, Desean Jackson is one of the best receivers in the game and the Eagles recently signed Steve Smith as a possible insurance policy if Maclin cannot return.

While everyone wishes him well towards a speedy recovery, fantasy owners should not risk a draft pick until more knowledge is released on the health of Jeremy Maclin.

Marques Colston

Marques Colston had a very productive year last year, finishing with over 1,000 yards receiving for the fourth time in his five year career. The problem is that he is not dependable enough to warrant the fourth or fifth round draft pick he is getting in most mocks this year.

The Saints have an outstanding offense, but there are too many players looking to share the wealth. Lance Moore, Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem are three receivers looking to steal some of Colston’s touches. Sure they have been there for a few years now, but when they are all healthy Brees loves to spread the ball around and keep defenses guessing. The more teams key on Colston, the less touches he will receive.

Another reason for a possible decline will be the emergence of Jimmy Graham. The former basketball standout at the University of Miami might be one of the most talented tight ends in the league, and this year he is ready to show it. The 6’6” Graham will take a lot of red zone targets away from Colston and the other weapons on the Saints.

LaDainian Tomlinson

LaDainian Tomlinson surprised a lot of people by showing up rejuvenated for the New York Jets last season. The future Hall-of-Famer set out to prove he still had some fuel left in the tank, and he accomplished that feat.

Unfortunately, this is the season where the tank will show empty. With Shonn Greene ready to take over for Rex Ryan’s offense, Tomlinson should take the backseat and not receive more than 10 touches a game. This will not amount to the type of production from a fantasy player you'd expect, no matter how late he is drafted.

He also showed his true form last year as the season progressed. Tomlinson never had more than 60 yards rushing over his last nine games and scored only one touchdown in that time frame. In addition, he only averaged 3.3 yards per carry over the last 11 games of the year after he started the season rushing for 5.7 yards per carry.

He might have fooled some people last year, but LDT is done being productive.