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Marcas Grant: Now that it appears that Arian Foster is likely to miss a significant portion of the season with a groin injury, he will fall from the ranks of the top fantasy rushers in 2015. The biggest issue will be the number of games he misses. If Foster indeed ends up on the short-term injured reserve list, the earliest he can return would be Week 10 (he wouldn't be eligible to return until after Week 8 and the Texans have a bye in Week 9). That means you would only have Foster for four games before the fantasy playoffs begin in most leagues. Unless you play in a league that offers an IR spot, or has a particularly deep bench, that's a long time to hold one of your precious roster spots hostage. In short, Foster's essentially undraftable this year. Let's also remember the cautionary tale of Josh Gordon, who served a 10-game suspension last year and struggled when he returned from the field. If you're feeling bold, it might be worth picking up Foster from the waiver wire sometime in Week 7 or 8. But holding onto him all season long is inadvisable.
M.G.: If you're looking to pair Anderson with another Broncos rusher, the mind immediately turns toward Montee Ball. After all, he was the starter at the beginning of the 2014 season although he eventually lost his gig through a combination of injury and underperformance. But Denver head coach Gary Kubiak had high praise for Juwan Thompson, saying he "looked unbelievable" at a recent practice. Thompson's running style is a nice fit for Kubiak's offense and his 5.0 yards per carry average last season (admittedly on just 54 carries) is intriguing. As for your wideout dilemma, it's worth nothing that with so many shots being taken at Andy Dalton lately, it feels like A.J. Green has been an innocent bystander. However in a comparison to Julio Jones, there's little doubt that the combination of a more consistent offense and a better quarterback gives the edge to the Falcons' pass-catcher.
M.G.: I have said repeatedly this offseason that I'm excited about Ryan Tannehill's prospects. I currently have him as my ninth-ranked quarterback heading into the season and could see him challenging to finish among the top seven at the position. Jarvis Landry has a full season under his belt, and the additions of Kenny Stills, Greg Jennings and Jordan Cameron add an extra dimension to Miami's passing game. Tannehill's ability to run with the football also makes him an attractive option. He'll never be confused with Russell Wilson or Colin Kaepernick, but Tannehill finished with the fifth-most rushing yards among quarterbacks last season. Meanwhile, keep an eye out for an IDP season preview in the coming days and another full season of "Reading the Defense".
M.G.: Ever since DeMarco Murray left Dallas for Philadelphia and opened the way for Joseph Randle to step in, this comparison has come up. It got serious when Randle said that Murray left "a lot of meat on the bone" when speaking of the latter's 2014 season. It's true that Murray's 392 carries makes him a risk to break down this season, but let's not kick dirt on his fantasy grave just yet. He's likely to get rest with Ryan Mathews also in Philadelphia as a backup. And while Murray won't be running behind the Great Wall of Dallas this season, the Eagles were no slouches in the run blocking department last season. Back in Big D, Randle seems likely to begin the year as the Cowboys No. 1 runner -- especially with Darren McFadden beginning training camp on the PUP list -- but he's also likely to end up in a committee system before the year is over. There's also the issue of Randle never shouldering more than 54 carries in a season. It will be interesting to see how he handles the rigors of being a primary runner over the course of 16 games. For all of those reasons, I'm still siding with Murray as being the better back this year.
M.G.: Fan of the grey beards, eh? There's definitely nothing wrong with grabbing multiple players from the same team if you believe those players can produce. Plus, if there's any team from which to select multiple players, it's the Colts. For the record, I'm pretty high on Frank Gore this season and believe that Johnson has value as a WR3 in most leagues. But more importantly, do it if it makes fantasy football more enjoyable for you. Winning is certainly awesome, but above all, this is still a game and it should be fun. If having players you like on your roster enhances your enjoyment, then draft those players.
M.G.: Aaah, good ol' Zach Sudfeld. Back in 2013, with Rob Gronkowski injured and Aaron Hernandez occupying various Halls of Justice, all eyes were on the 6-foot-7 undrafted rookie from Nevada. His hype train reached terminal velocity after making a couple of nice preseason catches. Then in Week 1, Sudfeld had one target and no catches. Three weeks later, he had been released and picked up by the Jets. Oh well. This year, there are certain to be plenty of fantasy mirages in training camp. We're already blowing away one smokescreen with news that Jay Ajayi is struggling in Miami. I'm also taking a critical view of breathless reviews of players like Leonard Hankerson and Richard Rodgers. Stay tuned; there are certain to be plenty more of these as we progress through August.
M.G.: For the record, Jacob Tamme signed with the Falcons in the offseason. The Broncos tight end battle might be one of the more underrated in fantasy right now. There's Owen Daniels, who is very familiar with Gary Kubiak's offense. Then there's the athletic Virgil Green, who has been waiting his turn for awhile now. Finally, James Casey is a big-time athlete, and was signed by the team after disappointing in Philadelphia. Among the three, Daniels has 433 career receptions -- more than double the combined total of Casey and Green. Daniels is on the downside of his career, but he looks to be the tight end of choice in the Mile High City this season.
M.G.: A league that offers six points for a passing touchdown puts a premium on quarterbacks. In that scenario, the strategy of waiting on a quarterback isn't as likely to bear fruit. If you're sitting in the top half of your draft order it's a better idea to make sure you lock up Aaron Rodgers or Andrew Luck as soon as you can. If you're in the bottom portion of the draft order, you can take one of the top running backs and probably still get a decent quarterback early in the second round. Regardless, you'll probably see most of the top signal-callers come off the board before the end of the third round.
M.G.: Since I have Ryan Tannehill ranked at No. 9, I guess he's ineligible for this discussion. In that case, I'll roll with Tony Romo who has consistently been a fringe QB1/2 for the past several seasons. There's no reason to think he can't do it again, especially if he can continue to keep his interception totals low. The other one is a no-brainer -- Tom Brady. His suspension has pushed him out of the top 10 in most our NFL.com rankings, but having him as your "QB2" could end up as the ultimate fantasy bargain this season.
M.G.: You're on the right track. The biggest thing about a 14-team draft is that you will likely have to reach for some players a round or two earlier than you might otherwise. The positions you decide to target in the early rounds will depend on where in the order you're drafting. Regardless, you'll want to start with a couple of players you believe could be top 10 options that their respective positions. After that, it's simply about finding the best players available.
Bonus question:
M.G.: It's sorta like having a crunchy breakfast burrito. My name is Marcas Grant and I endorse this breakfast.
Marcas Grant is a fantasy editor for NFL.com and a man who is totally on board with dinner for breakfast. Tweet him your favorite nacho toppings or fantasy football questions @MarcasG.
