Harris: Your 2014 All-Dud Fantasy Football Team
By Adam Harris-
(CBS) It's both fun and agonizing to go back and look at your league's fantasy football draft 11 weeks into the season.
There will be a few picks that worked out, leaving you satisfied and smiling ("That's what she said," #TheOffice). There will be a few picks that will ruin your day because they were the wrong guy at the wrong time, leaving the sleeper pick out there.
Today's fantasy article will give all you second-guessers, last-placers and fringe playoff-ers a chance to read about your players in a fantasy blog. Not because of their success, potential or sell-high/buy-low status, but because they stunk this year. It's the 2014 All-Dud Fantasy Team.
Disclaimer: These players made this team because they have simply performed below expectations. If a player has under-performed due to injury, he won't appear on this list.
Now, on to the team you don't want to be a part of...
Quarterback
Andy Dalton, Cincinnati -- Maybe it was the new haircut that caused the heightened expectations for Dalton's 2014 campaign or maybe it was the fact that he exceeded high expectations last year and finished as the fourth-best fantasy quarterback, behind only Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and Cam Newton. Whatever the case, Dalton's fantasy arrow had been pointing up entering each of the last three fantasy drafts, and he has met those expectations each time -- until this year.
Dalton's three scoring passes this past week skyrocketed his projection to 17 touchdowns and 3,488 yards. He's projected to amass 243 fantasy points this year, his lowest output since his 2011 rookie campaign. Dalton is owned in 58 percent of fantasy leagues and was recently dropped by Nick Shepkowski, friend and fellow producer, in The Score's 14-team fantasy league.
Shep has decided to roll with Teddy Bridgewater or Kyle Orton instead, and why not? Dalton has put up fewer than 15 points in four of 10 games this year, amassing two horrific games, of five points and just more than one point. There's some hope with the return of star receiver A.J. Green -- but not enough to clear him of QB1 status on the 2014 All-Dud Team.
Backups -- Since his 33-point game in Week 1, Atlanta's Matt Ryan has averaged 16 points per week, with six below the 16-point threshold. Detroit's Matthew Stafford has two games of fewer than seven points and four under 14 points, but the good news is that star receiver Calvin Johnson is back.
Running back
Zac Stacy, St. Louis -- Stacy entered this season as the Rams' lead back, expecting to build on his unexpected 170-point, 13-game game run in 2013. Stacy ranked 13th among running backs and had three games of more than 100 yards rushing, two of which went for more than 130 yards on the ground. This year, Stacy lost his job. He must have said something wrong to coach Jeff Fisher because he was having a decent season and then was just placed on the sideline like yesterday's news. Stacy has 48 points right now and isn't expected to come close to the low RB1/high RB2 production expected by those who drafted him.
LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia -- The fantasy world projected McCoy as a slam dunk, top-five fantasy running back entering this year. The dynamic back was the focal point in a high-powered offense that runs close to the most plays in the NFL. Take him first overall, we (fantasy experts) all screamed. McCoy has simply not performed even close to expectations. He has been a great RB2, averaging 10.5 points per week, but has done so on RB1-like touches, averaging 21.8 of those per week. You didn't draft McCoy first overall for RB2 numbers, and his projected 2014 season will bring just that at 1,166 yards and just three scores. Shame, shame, Shady.
Backups -- Tampa Bay's Doug Martin lost his job to Bobby Rainey due to being bad, and then he got injured. Minnesota's Adrian Peterson created his own undoing, and therefore isn't good enough to even start on a dud squad.
Receiver
Keenan Allen, San Diego -- Allen defines sophomore slump. Allen was drafted in the third round on the 2013 NFL draft and wasn't expected to do much, then went off. He finished with 184 fantasy points, good for 12th-best among wideouts, and he did so in 15 games. This year, Allen was expected to be a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 and again defied expectations, only in a bench-able manner this time. He most likely stole a few wins from your team, forcing you to play him early on and then going for 6, 8, 2, 4, 4, 8 and 6 points at one point in a nine-week stretch.
Cordarrelle Patterson, Minnesota -- Patterson was supposed to be the 2012 Percy Harvin, who was terrific several years ago before being placed on injured reserve. Patterson was supposed to be a weapon in PPR formats and instead this multiple-use playmaker has slipped into the same sophomore slump that Allen has slipped into. The only question is, which receiver is dud-lier? Patterson is on pace to catch only 44 balls and only score three times, one fewer than his numbers in those respective categories last year.
Backups -- Chicago's Brandon Marshall and Atlanta's Julio Jones are in the same category of not living up to their second-round draft status. They are currently the 14th- and 12th-best players at their position, respectively.
Tight end
Vernon Davis, San Francisco -- Davis is perhaps the bust of all busts this year. He was second last year to Jimmy Graham in fantasy tight end production. Davis scored 187 fantasy points in 2013 with 13 touchdowns and 850 yards. Davis was Colin Kaepernick's main squeeze, but now it looks like they are seeing other people (cough cough Anquan Boldin). Davis is on pace for 62 fantasy points this year. He scored 18 points in Week 1, which is almost half of his current total of 39. Since Week 1's anomaly, Davis has averaged 2.2 points a week. He is droppable in all leagues after being expected to put up the third- or fourth-best tight end numbers. He has left fantasy owners screaming "can't win with him!" in their Mike Singletary voices.
Jimmy Graham, New Orleans -- We called him the difference-maker, the end-all be-all, the only tight end worth a first-round pick. And now we call him a major dud. Graham scored 260 fantasy points last year, which was about 80 points more than the next-best tight end. That means Graham owners began each week with a five-point advantage over owners with the next-three best tight ends, to say nothing of the more mundane players. That was fantasy domination. This year, Graham is expected to score 209 points and waste his owners' first-round selection.
Congratulations to all the members of the 2014 All-Dud Fantasy Team. You have put your owners through pain, frustration and tough decisions each week over which mid-level replacement they should think about picking up and play in your place. Keep on dud-ing.
Adam Harris is a producer for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @aharris670 and feel free to ask fantasy questions.
