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 Texans 2013 houston texans Fantasy Preview

While Arian Foster is still Arian Foster, there's a couple of fantasy worry spots in Houston. Matt Schaub threw for just over 4,000 yards with 22 TD's - his lowest total in a full season in both those categories since 2008. Houston is also still searching for that legitimate number two wideout opposite Andre Johnson, who desperately needs help at this point in his career if he's going to continue to put up numbers and still be fantasy relevant. Owen Daniels was a terrific fantasy TE until the last five weeks of the regular season in 2012 - or just when you needed him the most in your playoffs. He failed to crack five fantasy points in any of those games. But, due to the dearth at the position, he's still one of the top eight at the position headed into 2013 and should be drafted as such.

23

Arian
Foster

RB - Texans

FACT: Foster has the second-easiest schedule in the league among fantasy running backs this season.
Offseason Moves

The man with all eyes on him this season is WR DeAndre Hopkins. Houston hopes the first-round draft pick out of Clemson will start opposite Andre Johnson in the Texans never-ending search for a solid No. 2 WR. He'll draw some interest late in your draft to fill out your bench. Elsewhere, they added FB Greg Jones, while on defense they bade farewell to Connor Barwin and said hello to Ed Reed. The Texans 'D was a pretty good fantasy outfit a year ago. Reed's ballhawking and playmaking skills will keep that trend going. There's no reason why they can't be a Top 5 fantasy defense in 2013.

Sleepers & Busts

Ben Tate would most likely have had a nice season were it not for his being dogged by injuries. A healthy Tate sees his share of carries and has played his way into being a decent flex option in the past. Head coach Gary Kubiak has already gone on record saying the team needs more from him in 2013, and don't forget - it's a contract year for Tate, who will be a free agent after 2013. He needs a big enough year in Foster's shadow for a big paycheck to come his way, and I'm a big believer in that being the number one motivator for players. When it comes time to drafting true No. 2 RB's on teams (not players in a time-share situation, but true No. 2's who sit behind No. 1's), Tate should be at the top of your list. Andre Johnson scares me. Every year I wonder if this is the year he becomes a No. 2 WR in fantasy. This is that year. He was on his way to oblivion in 2012 with two 100-yard games and two TD's in the first 9 weeks, before bouncing back down the back stretch. Still though, he only had four TD's for the season. Houston is throwing the ball less and less with a heavier reliance on the running game. Gone are the days where Schaub would air it out for 400 yards a game. If Johnson's the first WR I draft, I'm in trouble. If he's the second one? Then I feel a little bit better.

Fantasy Depth Chart
POSFIRSTSECONDTHIRDOTHER
QB Matt Schaub T.J. Yates Case Keenum Stephen McGee
RB Arian Foster Ben Tate Deji Karim Ray Graham
WR Andre Johnson DeAndre Hopkins DeVier Posey Lestar Jean
TE Owen Daniels Garrett Graham Ryan Griffin Phillip Supernaw
K Randy Bullock - - -

( ) Projected Round


Top 5 Board
#NamePos. Rank
1 Arian Foster 2
2 Andre Johnson 7
3 Owen Daniels 9
4 Matt Schaub 20
5 Texans defense 5
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