Donovan McNabb has been traded to the Washington Redskins for the 37th pick in this year’s draft along with a 3rd or 4th round pick in next year’s draft depending on his performance or lack there of. And with that, we have a big shift in the fantasy football tectonic plates and no, it’s not Jamarcus Russell falling into the Pacific, he is somehow still the Raiders’ “QB.” The aftershocks of this trade will be felt for a long while, so let’s see if we can foretell just how they will be felt, shall we?
This is by far the best news Kevin Kolb has ever heard in his life, unless of course he’s afraid of success. Kolb has been patiently waiting (naked, with knife in hand) for one of these many trade rumors to come true and finally his day is here! He has inherited a young and talented offense manned by DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Brent Celek, and LeSean McCoy who all on their way or blowing past their way. He had two big (fantasy) games in relief of McNabb last season, throwing for 719 yards, 4 TD’s and 3 INT’s, which showed that he can lead the team. But do two games make a franchise quarterback? No, but I’m not going to discuss the reality, I’m here to discuss the fantasy! Kolb is now leading a team that throws the ball over 60% of the time and whose best running back is more of a pass catcher than a bruiser. This is very good news for anyone who owns Kolb in a dynasty league (yes, me) and for anyone who wants to draft him next season.
I cannot see him being hyped enough in fantasy circles for his ADP to go much above the 10th to 12th overall QB, which would put him between the 6th to 9th rounds which goes nicely with my two QB strategy. Yes, he’ll be on a ton of “sleeper” lists, but he won’t be going above proven QB’s like Romo, Roethlisberger, and Ryan. And with Andy Reid’s offense, he could easily end the season in their company or better.
And if that wasn’t enough to get you wanting to draft him, here’an excerpt from Kolb’s Wikipedia page: “Kolb is an avid hunter; it has been reported that he hunts wild hogs naked with a couple of dogs and a 12-inch bowie knife.” This bit of information could be key to his fantasy prospects. With that kind of naked ambition and determination, there is no way he will fail!
Now Mr. McNabb is a slightly different story. I am a McNabb fan from way back. I like the guy and he’s won me many a fantasy matchup, but the Redskins are God awful, well, were God awful. McNabb is a significant upgrade for the Redskins and their receiving game, but for McNabb to go from DJax, Celek and Maclin to Moss, Cooley, and Thomas is a downgrade. Add to that coach Shanahan’s love for a more balanced offense (yes Andy, teams can win when they run too) and you have McNabb falling to the edge of the top 12. I still have enough faith to take him when he falls in drafts, but his name value should keep him from falling into a pile of real value.
What this does do is gives Santana Moss, Chris Cooley and Devin Thomas a chance to be fantasy sleeper types. Well, Cooley is always going to be solid, but Moss has always been one of my least favorite receivers due to his ability to disappear. Now he could become more consistent. Devin Thomas flashed some skill last season, but should still be just an upside flier and Malcolm Kelly could make a run at relevance as well.
The last tremor of possible fantasy relevance will be the future of Jason Campbell. He isn’t the worst QB and has shown he can play, even on a bad Redskins team. He could easily end up with a team like the Rams, Raiders, Bills or Panthers and compete for a job. This doesn’t mean he will be a 12 team, 1 QB, fantasy draft pick, but in deep dynasty leagues and what not, I wouldn’t be tossing him on the scrap heap just yet.
