Fantasy Football Value: St. Louis Rams WR Danny Amendola
The St. Louis Rams expect a bounce back year from quarterback Sam Bradford in 2012, but they anticipate much of his success to come with wide receiver Danny Amendola’s reinsertion into the lineup. A freak injury cost Amendola his entire 2011 campaign and consequently gave Bradford one less reliable target to throw to last season. In his rookie year of 2010, Bradford found Amendola with regularity as the two formed quite a rapport. A resumption of that familiarity will breed some big things for both players in the year ahead.
An elbow dislocation in the first game last year is the freak incident that cost Amendola all of 2011. Bradford hooked up with him often as a go-to possession receiver in 2010 with 85 catches for the 5’11” 188 pounder. Of that scary looking injury, Amendola said: “I’ve never seen it, I don’t even care. The words don’t haunt me, either. Injuries are part of the game and that’s the way it goes sometimes. It’s all right, it’s all good. I’m back.”
Back indeed says newly signed cornerback Cortland Finnegan of the team who has been going up against Amendola in drills. He offered up this succinct praise of Amendola saying: “If you can cover him in the slot pretty much, there isn’t any guy in the NFL you can’t cover in the slot.”
That’s quite a lofty compliment for a player coming off of a season away from the game. Finnegan is widely considered one of the feistiest, toughest cover corners in the game today and if he thinks that Amendola is a difficult match-up, the rest of the league better watch out.
Given the positive history between Sam Bradford and Danny Amendola, he will be a valuable fantasy football receiver in 2012. He is clearly a reliable flex option in any league, but depending on how camp plays out and where he lands on the depth chart, it may not be a stretch to consider him a number two receiver this year. When a receiver and quarterback are on the same brain wave as often as this Rams’ duo is, the results have the potential to be off the charts.
Follow Anthony Blake on Twitter @ChargingBolts or on Facebook at Anthony Mizarkus Blake
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