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I woke up this morning and really, really felt like watching some tape.
Not on any of the familiar faces surrounding Fantasy Football, but more so the promising rookies that headline the 2013 season. While watching some of their film, I liked a lot of what I saw and decided to write a column talking about these young guys, stating that they must be on all dynasty league radars. Let’s get into who I watched.
Zac Stacy, St. Louis Rams: First and foremost, Stacy already has an opportunity to make his name for himself this season. After already landing in the doghouse for struggling, Isaiah Pead has been suspended for the first game of the season. This gives Stacy an opportunity to run away with the starting job. Stacy was the first player I watched this morning and I feel like he has some underrated skills. He ran a respectable 4.55 40-time, but seems more quick than fast. Yes, there is a difference. He doesn’t have breakaway speed, so the home run threat won’t always be there, but he can get around defenses. The versatility is there, as Stacy often operated out of the wildcat a ton in his days at Vanderbilt. Perhaps it’s that very versatility that the Rams will look to use more in that revamped offense. Although he has only caught 46 passes in his collegiate career, from watching Stacy, he looks like he can do more damage in the passing game than he has shown. There isn’t much competition in St.Louis and I already feel like Stacy could be a more balanced back than Pead or Daryl Richardson.
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Mike Gillislee, Miami Dolphins: Call me crazy, but I think Gillislee may be the best back in Miami. Sure, Lamar Miller will likely be the starter, but there’s just something about Gillislee that makes me think he will be an NFL starter in no time. I watched him a lot in college and loved what I saw. He absolutely explodes through the holes and shakes off tackles often. A strong combination of power and speed makes for a difficult guy to bring down when he is coming at you with a head of steam. He sees the field very well and possesses strong lateral quickness, as well as right up the gut. Keep in mind, Gillislee is already a much better pass blocker than Miller, which could result in some more playing time this season. If you try to tackle this guy, you better watch his hips. Every highlight film I watched there was a plethora of clips showing him shaking off defenders with his quick footwork. I strongly believe that Gillislee will be an absolute gem for the Dolphins and wouldn’t be surprised if he is a starter in this league before you know it.
Stepfan Taylor, Arizona Cardinals: The pedigree is certainly there for Taylor. He is Stanford’s all-time rushing leader with 4,300 yards. His 40 career rushing scores ranks second in school history and 45 total touchdowns ranks first. So, why wasn’t he selected until the 5th round of this year’s draft? Well, his less than exciting 4.76 40-yards dash time certainly didn’t help his cause. Still, he was an absolute workhorse for the Cardinals, but can he be one for the professional Cardinals? There is a lot of uncertainty at the running back position for this team. Rashard Mendenhall is on the decline and coming off of injury and Ryan Williams hasn’t been able to stay on the field. There is opportunity for Taylor to eventually earn a starting job. He is a an overall balanced who can catch the ball out of the backfield in reliable fashion. No, he won’t blow anyone away with his speed, but between his workhorse history, pass catching and pass blocking, Taylor shows the signs of a prototypical three-down back, which will make him fantasy relevant down the road.
Marcus Lattimore, San Francisco 49ers: After a gruesome injury to not only one of college football’s better players, but better people in general, Lattimore worked his way back and declared for the draft. The 49ers selected him in the fourth round and could very well be their running back of the future, which makes him viable for dynasty watch. Don’t forget, at one point this guy was highly regarded as the best running back in all of college football. Of course, Frank Gore is still the starter, but there is certainly a lot of tread on those tires. His carries have gone down the past two seasons and seems to have some sort of minor injury each year. Lattimore, meanwhile, will have some time to fully recover and when he gets the chance, watch out. He runs hard north and south, making for a dangerous runner inside the five.
Adam Pfeifer is a featured fantasy sports columnist for Rant Sports.
You can follow him on Twitter @aPfeiferRS.
