Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) I was able to grab Slaton in the 14th round last year in my main money league's draft. Obviously that won't be the case this year. Slowly this summer I'm looking at Slaton as a viable RB1 and if he slips out of the top 10 RB's drafted, a potential draft day steal. He's not in the tier with AP, MJD, Turner, and Forte, but after that I think an arguement could be made for Slaton over the next 6 RB's off the board. Houston didn't draft a RB but added Arian Foster and Jeremiah Johnson via UFA (both had 1,000 yard seasons while playig for the Volunteers and Duck's respectively) . Slaton seems to me to be the unquestioned feature back/ RB1, he plays one of the 5 easiest schedules against the run in the NFL, he plays for a pretty prolific offense with one of the best WR in the league as well as a top 10 TE and a QB who's better than about half the starters in the league. He hits the hole created by the O-line and is gone. I began to think of another 2nd year back in Kubiak's system running behind Alex Gibbs O-line who had similar numbers his rookie year and then proceeded to scorch defenses for 3 seasons en route to 2 Superbowl championships. At this point it seems Slaton, much like the great Terrell Davis, will be the starter, third down back and goal line back. He hauled in 50 of his 59 pass targets and had more red zone rushing attempts than everyone except Michael Turner. Call me crazy but this guy seems like fantasy gold to me. Edited July 27, 2009 by Big Ernie McCracken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 +1. I've got him ranked just ahead of Portis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeb Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 i agree with you on everything you said about slaton in fact i took him at 1.05 in a 12 team ppr draft that we have going right now and got chuckled at by some of the other owners drafting. but i think slaton has huge upside this year and i am planning on him being one of my 3 keepers in this league for the next few seasons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 i agree with you on everything you said about slaton in fact i took him at 1.05 in a 12 team ppr draft that we have going right now and got chuckled at by some of the other owners drafting. but i think slaton has huge upside this year and i am planning on him being one of my 3 keepers in this league for the next few seasons That is early. I have him in one dynasty and took him at 2.01 in our rookie draft last year. He was seen as only a COP back last year. Who is one this year? ADP recent PPR drafts. Slaton is 10, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keggerz Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I am curious what people predict for Slaton this year: Rushing yards: ???? Receptions: ???? Receiving yards: ???? Total TDs: ???? I bet the numbers are all over the place but still I am interested. Many times people say they expect a player to rank X but never give the numbers they feel that player will accumulate....color me curious Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keggerz Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) i agree with you on everything you said about slaton in fact i took him at 1.05 in a 12 team ppr draft that we have going right now and got chuckled at by some of the other owners drafting. but i think slaton has huge upside this year and i am planning on him being one of my 3 keepers in this league for the next few seasons Huge upside is another term that gets tossed about. I am curious what you see as his upside and I am being serious. Edited July 27, 2009 by keggerz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xPattonx Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I was able to grab Slaton in the 14th round last year in my main money league's draft. Obviously that won't be the case this year. Slowly this summer I'm looking at Slaton as a viable RB1 and if he slips out of the top 10 RB's drafted, a potential draft day steal. He's not in the tier with AP, MJD, Turner, and Forte, but after that I think an arguement could be made for Slaton over the next 6 RB's off the board. Houston didn't draft a RB but added Arian Foster and Jeremiah Johnson via UFA (both had 1,000 yard seasons while playig for the Volunteers and Duck's respectively) . Slaton seems to me to be the unquestioned feature back/ RB1, he plays one of the 5 easiest schedules against the run in the NFL, he plays for a pretty prolific offense with one of the best WR in the league as well as a top 10 TE and a QB who's better than about half the starters in the league. He hits the hole created by the O-line and is gone. I began to think of another 2nd year back in Kubiak's system running behind Alex Gibbs O-line who had similar numbers his rookie year and then proceeded to scorch defenses for 3 seasons en route to 2 Superbowl championships. At this point it seems Slaton, much like the great Terrell Davis, will be the starter, third down back and goal line back. He hauled in 50 of his 59 pass targets and had more red zone rushing attempts than everyone except Michael Turner. Call me crazy but this guy seems like fantasy gold to me. I have Slaton ranked as the #7 RB and #7 player in all of fantasy so obviously i like him a lot. I just like Chris Johnson a little better and here's why. The Titans should be an extremely dominant running team again this year and it's already being reported that Johnson's work load will increase and that the Titans will play a more ''wide open'' style on offense which will even feature Chris playing the slot at times. That means the fastest RB in the NFL will be the focal point of the offense. There will be a lot more ''dash'' and a lot less ''smash'' most likely and with the success Johnson had last year I see Johnson as easily having top 5 potential this season. I see it like this if even 3 of Lendale's 15 td's would have went to Johnson last season almost everybody would be talking about Johnson as a top 5 rb and that is exactly what I expect to see happen this season with Johnson finishing with 13-15 total td's. Slaton has the same kind of upside but like I said I just like Johnson's upside/circumstances a bit more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wolf Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I have Slaton ranked as the #7 RB and #7 player in all of fantasy so obviously i like him a lot. I just like Chris Johnson a little better and here's why. The Titans should be an extremely dominant running team again this year and it's already being reported that Johnson's work load will increase and that the Titans will play a more ''wide open'' style on offense which will even feature Chris playing the slot at times. That means the fastest RB in the NFL will be the focal point of the offense. There will be a lot more ''dash'' and a lot less ''smash'' most likely and with the success Johnson had last year I see Johnson as easily having top 5 potential this season. I see it like this if even 3 of Lendale's 15 td's would have went to Johnson last season almost everybody would be talking about Johnson as a top 5 rb and that is exactly what I expect to see happen this season with Johnson finishing with 13-15 total td's. Slaton has the same kind of upside but like I said I just like Johnson's upside/circumstances a bit more. Hmmm...Felix Jones may have something to say about that. Hijack over. Please continue! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) I am curious what people predict for Slaton this year: Rushing yards: ???? Receptions: ???? Receiving yards: ???? Total TDs: ???? I bet the numbers are all over the place but still I am interested. Many times people say they expect a player to rank X but never give the numbers they feel that player will accumulate....color me curious I have him ranked 7th(I see him ranked 5th to 11th a pretty wide margin and lately he's higher than Chris Johnson) 275 carries 1250 yards 9 TD's 50 receptions 340 yards 2 TD's 11 total TD's. Edited July 27, 2009 by Randall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wolf Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 But you're not saying he has high upside, right? Cuz your projections are, essentially, identical to last year. Does anyone see him doing substantially better than that? What are your projections Opie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 I could see Slaton posting about 290/ 1250yds. 9-11 tds with 45-50 receptions for another 300-350 yds. and 1 or 2 tds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wolf Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 I project that wolf t-shirts will return to cool status before you win a championship. Bro, the Edsel could make a return before I win another championship.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. Stanky Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) All the talk before the draft was that Houston wanted to find a running mate to pair with Slaton. It appeared that they didn't want to make Slaton a featured back due to his small stature, but after the draft they settled for some UFA. My only concern is that Hou. will lighten his load this year, and possibly take goaline duties away. There's been talk of Chris Brown taking the goaline work, but I'm always skeptical of Chris Brown. I like Slaton, but feel he has too many question marks to be taken prior to the end of the first, in a 12 team league. I would probably take Fitz, Moss and AJ before him, because I feel more confident that they will be top 6 at their position at worst. I can't say the same about Slaton. Edited July 27, 2009 by Capt. Stanky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 But you're not saying he has high upside, right? Cuz your projections are, essentially, identical to last year. Does anyone see him doing substantially better than that? I hope he does but I don't see them using him too much. He could have a few more breakout runs and go 1500/12 TD's but I'm not predicting that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 ohhh, okay, serious response... I see his ceiling and floor pretty tight and that the projection that Randall made is just on the upside of the bell curve. Between my bias for Arian Foster, to steal some carries, and what I've heard about the HOU pass game, like getting David Anderson into a Wes Welker role bookended by a stud WR and an under-rated WR, I think the peak of the bell curve would be about 5% less than last year... which is not a big number. So you see a better offense causing a drop in numbers in his best case scenario? :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 I hope he does but I don't see them using him too much. He could have a few more breakout runs and go 1500/12 TD's but I'm not predicting that. At this point what RB's are you drafting before him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wolf Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 So you see a better offense causing a drop in numbers in his best case scenario? :confused: I am reading it that the presence of Foster taking some carries as well as the planned creation of a "Welker" role could mean less touches for Slaton and thereby a drop in performance. That's how I am reading it anyway. Could be wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Irish Doggy Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Jeesh, the guy put up terrific, consistent numbers already last year. It would be hard to do much better for any RB. The schedule isn't overly tough or easy for him, so predicting similar numbers +/- 10% seems about right to me. I have him in a dynasty league, so I'd love for him to do better of course, but he's gotta prove last year was no fluke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 I am reading it that the presence of Foster taking some carries as well as the planned creation of a "Welker" role could mean less touches for Slaton and thereby a drop in performance. That's how I am reading it anyway. Could be wrong. Between Moats and Green there were another 100 attempts, which I could see the backups accumulating again. If Houston is going to take the step and win a few more games, they'll also likely be protecting a couple more leads. It's funny that people are worried about him wearing down in the second half of the season. Over his last seven games, he went for 144/ 737 for 4tds. a 5.1 aypc compared to a guy seen as a tireless, limitless workhorse such as Clinton Portis whose last seven went for 142/ 492 2 tds. a 3.5 aypc. It's pointless to figure in an UFA commanding carries when they may not make the final roster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) That's exactly what I'm saying. I don't respond to Big Ernie cuz he's too often a waste of space on this board and should go away. I'm a waste of space Let's take a look at the last few threads you started http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...p;#entry2882582 http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...p;#entry2882104 http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...p;#entry2881208 http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...p;#entry2881194 quality stuff you noodle great football acumen I'll be looking foward to your "why is the sky blue thread" Edited July 27, 2009 by Big Ernie McCracken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peepinmofo Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) Here we go again... Every single thread you linked are all in the Tailgate. In case you were uninformed, the TG is for posting non football stuff. Im not sure how that qualifies as "a waste of space". In fact, this thread seemed a-ok until you posted your usual drivel... Time for a BAN! Edited July 27, 2009 by peepinmofo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) Here we go again... Every single thread you linked are all in the Tailgate. In case you were uninformed, the TG is for posting non football stuff. Im not sure how that qualifies as "a waste of space". In fact, this thread seemed a-ok until you posted your usual drivel... Time for a BAN! This is a football web site chuckles and some of your best work http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...hl=adam+lambert Edited July 27, 2009 by Big Ernie McCracken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peepinmofo Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) and some of your best work http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...hl=adam+lambert Again ... That is a TG thread. Edited July 27, 2009 by peepinmofo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ernie McCracken Posted July 27, 2009 Author Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) Again jackass... That is a TG thread. You're the pop culture expert Perez http://forums.thehuddle.com/index.php?show...hl=adam+lambert Edited July 28, 2009 by Big Ernie McCracken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xPattonx Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) Hmmm...Felix Jones may have something to say about that. Hijack over. Please continue! The only thing Felix Jones might have to say about that is something like "man i wish I had that kind of speed" and that's about it... Felix isn't even in the conversation when it comes to the fastest rb's in the NFL. Just looking at last year rb class it was a poor 40 time from Felix that raised red flags coming out of the combine (4.47) In comparison Slaton was considered to have a relatively slow 40 time and he ran a 4.44. Rashard Mendenhall, (4.37) is even faster than Felix Jones. Chris Johnson on the other end of the spectrum ran a 4.24 which does currently make him the fastest rb in the NFL. You can talk about ''game speed'' all you want but it still shows with Chris Johnson with his pads on so fact is nobody has him beat in the speed dept at rb in any way, shape, or form. Edited July 27, 2009 by xPattonx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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