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| Newsday |
Top
10 UFA TEs:
1
– Jermichael Finley. His offense has slowed but Finley is still
pretty clearly the best receiving TE available, provided he is indeed
cleared for action (expected this week) after spinal fusion surgery.
Was on pace for 66 catches, 800 yards, 8 TDs last season.
2
- Scott Chandler. Good hands, reliable big target over the middle and
has been surprisingly productive in the red zone. 53-653 last year
for career highs in catches and yardage; had 6-TD seasons in ’11
and ’12.
3
– Garrett Graham. Reliable checkdown receiver with 49 catches, even
though he’s not considered much of a playmaker, and might only have
been Houston’s third-best TE.
4
- Jeff Cumberland. Came into league as a blocking TE only but has
developed into a pretty good all-around TE, with 7 TDs the past two
seasons. Good hands.
5
– Andrew Quarless. He’s a big TE first, but contributed 32
catches in Green Bay last year and is just 25. Should still have
upside.
6
- Brandon Myers. Looks like that big year in Oakland was a fluke, and
he’s not talented enough to be a #1 TE, but even at that, you can
get Brandon Pettigrew’s likely production for a lot less money.
7
- Brandon Pettigrew. Raise your hand if you’ve ever drafted this
guy too high in your fantasy league. Wants $6 mil a year coming off a
41-catch season, doesn’t have good hands and has declined a lot as
a playmaker. Good luck.
8
- Michael Hoomanawanui. Lack of durability has always been an issue,
but Illini Mike’s 12-136-1 TD last season was actually close to
career highs. He’s just 26, can make acrobatic catches and put on
one of the best blocking performances you’ll ever see against the
Colts in the playoffs. Best of the blocking TEs here.
9
– Jim Dray. With 26 catches for 215, of the tight ends left, Dray
is the best combination of a blocking TE who can provide a little
offense. (No, it’s not a high hurdle to clear at this point.)
10
– Alex Smith. One of the better run-blocking TEs out there but
hasn’t created much as a receiver in recent seasons.
Sleepers:
A
big disappointment in Baltimore, Ed Dickson’s your guy if you’re
good at reclaiming other teams’ still-young draft disappointments.
He could be a candidate for the change-of-scenery career bounce.
Wild
card: There are several decent blocking tight ends in the also-rans list, including former Ram Matthew Mulligan. If you're digging deep for some offense at TE, you'll have to hope physicals for Dustin Keller or Tony Scheffler go well. They've both been productive TEs in the past.
Tag
you're it: Jimmy
Graham (Saints)
(Also)
out of the running: Dennis
Pitta (re-signed by Ravens); Clay Harbor (re-signed by Jagwires);
John Carlson (signed by Big Dead); Dallas Clark (rumored to be retiring); Fred Davis (suspended
indefinitely for substance abuse violations, and collected a DUI in
February while suspended)
Voting
present: Ed
Dickson, Matthew Mulligan, Bear Pascoe. Dante Rosario,
Nate Byham, Jeron Mastrud, Kellen Davis, Michael Palmer, David
Johnson, Chase Coffman, Kory Sperry, Ben Hartsock
The
doctor will see you now: Dustin
Keller (severe knee injury last preseason, missed all of ’13 season
and is questionable for start of ’14); Jeff King (out all of ’13
with knee problems); Anthony McCoy (torn Achilles, out all of ’13);
Tony Scheffler (out most of ’13 with serious concussion problems)
Gawd
no: Fortunately
for them, the lasting single image of anyone from the Kellen Winslow
family will always be Kellen Sr.’s epic 1982 playoff performance
against Miami, and not Kellen II’s performance in a New Jersey
Target parking lot that led to getting him arrested for marijuana
possession in November. Let’s hope.
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| AP |
RamView’s
moves:
The Rams already have too much invested at tight end for a
significant UFA signing to make any sense, and there’s almost no
one here worth signing anyway. The best thing the Rams can do at the
position is figure out how to keep a fire lit under Jared Cook, to
get more Pro Bowl games out of him and fewer toilet bowl games. His
inconsistency was a known issue when they signed him to the big
contract, so they must have had a plan for improving him past that.
Right?
Shoot
the moon: You’ve
got an extra first-round pick, and can probably trade the #2 pick for
another next year… make Jimmy Graham an offer! Sure, you’d have
to cut Bradford, most of the offensive line and probably Rampage to
fit him under the cap, but Paul Boudreau’s always been able to do a
lot with a little up front, right? Who could stop that 2-TE attack,
assuming the QB got more than 2 seconds to throw?
Prediction:
The
Rams will stand pat at tight end.
-$-
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