Imagine a place called Revis Island. It sounds like a tropical destination, lined with palm trees and surrounded by crystal-clear water as far as the eye can see. But in reality, Revis Island is a nightmare -- at least if you're an NFL wide receiver. It's a cold, dark place where wideouts disappear like boats in the Bermuda Triangle.
The ruler of this terrible place is Darrelle Revis, the most-feared cornerback this side of Deion Sanders. But Neon Deion wasn't in his prime while fantasy football was such a phenomenon. In my 10-plus years in this business, I can say with complete faith that I've never seen a cornerback make such an impact in traditional fantasy leagues.
Last season, Revis was kryptonite for superstar wide receivers. It started in the regular-season opener against the Texans, when Revis held the great Andre Johnson to four catches for 35 yards and no touchdowns.
In Week 2, Randy Moss was left stranded on Revis Island.
He caught just four passes for 24 yards, and also failed to score a touchdown. After facing a Titans offense with no legitimate No. 1 wideout, Revis went on to hold Marques Colston to just two catches for 33 yards with no touchdowns.
So in matchups against three of the top 12 wideouts in fantasy football, Revis allowed an average of a mere 2.6 points in standard scoring formats.
One week after facing a Dolphins offense with a less-than-impressive wide receiver corps, Revis once again put the clamps down on one of the top wideouts in the league. Terrell Owens was unable to escape unscathed, as he left the Meadowlands with three catches, 13 yards and no touchdowns. The Raiders and Dolphins offered little resistance over the next two weeks before a matchup against the Jaguars and Mike Sims-Walker. While Sims-Walker did post a touchdown, he wasn't being covered by Revis at the time.
Another contest against Moss was more of a draw, as Revis allowed five catches for 34 yards and one touchdown. As if that upset him, Revis was even more difficult to produce against down the stretch. Over his final six games, he allowed a combined 13 receptions for 124 yards to six of the league's most talented wideouts. Carolina's Steve Smith (one catch, 5 yards), Owens (three catches, 31 yards), Antonio Bryant (two catches, 22 yards), Roddy White (four catches, 33 yards), Reggie Wayne (three catches, 33 yards) and Chad Ochocinco (0 catches, 0 yards) all crashed and burned in their attempt to make Revis Island their own statistical destination.
Oh, and not one of those wide receivers scored a single touchdown.
If we combine the total number of fantasy points Revis allowed to the top-notch wide receivers (Johnson, Moss, Colston, Owens, Smith, White, Wayne, Ochocinco) in 2009, it would come out to 27. (No, that's not a misprint). So in a total of 10 games, Revis allowed fewer points than Brandon Marshall scored (32) in one game against the Colts.
That should be enough reason for fantasy owners to know the wideouts who'll have the daunting task of facing Revis in 2010. Based on how his opponents performed (or didn't perform) in 2009, those receivers will be in danger of disappearing off the stat sheets for at least one week. So who are the poor souls who must face the league's best cornerback?
Here's the list, and it's an impressive one:
Andre Johnson, Texans: Johnson was held in check by Revis in last season's opening week, and he'll have to face him again in Week 11. He's the top wideout in fantasy land in all formats, but for one week Johnson will be considered a risk.
Randy Moss, Patriots (2): In two meetings against Revis last season, Moss produced a combined nine receptions, 58 yards and one touchdown. It's hard to bench a player of his caliber, but Moss could struggle against him in Weeks 2 and 13.
Brandon Marshall, Dolphins (2): Marshall's move to Miami has one downfall from a fantasy perspective -- there's a good chance he'll be non-existent in two games (Weeks 3, 14) against Revis. Regardless, he's still a No. 1 fantasy wideout.
Calvin Johnson, Lions: Johnson should rebound from a disappointing 2009 season and put up solid overall numbers this season. Megatron might see a slight bump in the road in Week 9, however, when he faces Revis at Ford Field.
Sidney Rice, Vikings: Rice is coming off his best season at the NFL level, so his draft value has never been higher (assuming, of course, that Brett Favre returns). He could struggle against Revis, though, as the two match up in Week 5.
Greg Jennings, Packers: Much like Johnson, Jennings should produce improved totals compared to his final 2009 stats. But in Week 8, he'll visit Revis Island. That alone will make Jennings a bust candidate for that particular Sunday.
Anquan Boldin, Ravens: Boldin should record nice totals in his first season with the Ravens, but he's likely to get off to a very slow start. The veteran will go up against Revis and the Men in Green in his regular-season debut.
Chad Ochocinco, Bengals: When Ochocinco went up against Revis at the end of last season, he caught as many passes in the contest as I did. Zero. I doubt he'll find much more success when he faces the feared cornerback in Week 12.
Hines Ward, Steelers: Whether Revis is slated to cover Ward or Mike Wallace remains to be seen, but the wideout who draws the task in Week 15 will be a major risk for owners. The game also comes during the fantasy playoffs.
Lee Evans, Bills (2): With Owens out of the mix, Evans gets the "privilege" of facing Revis twice and will be a player to avoid as a starter in Week 4 and 17. At least most fantasy leagues are over before the last contest.
Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on NFL.com. Have a burning question for Michael on anything fantasy football related? Leave it in our comments section or send it to **AskFabiano@nfl.com**!
