Andrew Luck and his beard were the top keeper in 2014.
We are 25 days away from keepers being due. I know, right around the corner. However, before you start stressing about it, if last year taught us anything, the keepers don’t matter as much as we think they do. 2014’s keepers could end up being one of the worst collection of keepers of all-time. Time to look back and check out your keeper grades.
ROBIO MURRAY
THOUGHTS: Wow, one of my worst keeper classes I’ve ever produced, as both my keepers were projected starters for me. Allen failed to repeat his freshman numbers and was benched, eventually traded away to Matt in part of a stunning 9-player trade. He never sniffed Matt’s starting lineup. Worse yet was Ball. The projected starting running back in Denver struggled out of the gate and then got knocked out of the lineup due to injury. Just like in reality, once he was on the bench, he never got his ass off it. FINAL GRADE: F
GRIFF COOMER
THOUGHTS: 14,167 points. That’s how many points Peyton Manning delivered the last three seasons to Griff, an amazing fifth-round keeper. Best yet, it appears Griff got to enjoy Peyton’s best final three years, based on how bad he was at the end of the 2014 seasons (In Manning’s final five NFL games, he averaged just 156.8 points per game in fantasy). On the flip side, Spiller had a fantastic season for Griff in 2012 (finishing 5th overall among running backs), but he got worse every season afterward, struggling to stay healthy. He finished #56th in 2014, although he still found himself in Griff’s starting lineup come playoff time. However, that had more to do with Coomer simply not having a better option at RB2. FINAL GRADE: C+
MOLLY COOMER
THOUGHTS: Just imagine how good Molly’s 2014 could have been if her top player, Adrian Peterson, disicplined his kids like a normal person. Instead, he decided to beat them with a tree and Molly ended up losing one of the league’s best players in week two. She did land Roethlisberger, but he never could sneak past Russell Wilson as a consistent starter for Molly. He did finish 7th among all quarterbacks, but that number is inflated by the fact that he had 1,236 points in weeks seven and eight, both sitting on Molly’s bench at the time. It’s not quite a F, but close. as not only did her keepers not help her in 2014, losing Peterson was costly, as she never was able to fill that hole at running back. FINAL GRADE: D-
DON VOZZOLA
Rd 8 – Colin Kaepernick, QB-SF | Pos Rank: #14
THOUGHTS: It’s safe to say that keepers have not really been Don’s thing. In fact, looking back, outside of a couple of low-end WR1’s in category two, it’s hard to find a stud keeper that he didn’t keep in round one. 2014 was no different, as Kaepernick struggled to produce, eventually getting replaced by Ryan Tannehill late in the fantasy season. In the end, Don avoids the ‘F’ grade simply because he avoided any category one busts. FINAL GRADE: D+
ERIC VOZZOLA
Rd 5 – Robert Griffin III, QB-WAS | Pos Rank: #42 Rd 6 – Alfred Morris, RB-WAS | Pos Rank: #9 Rd 11 – Percy Harvin, WR-SEA/NYJ | Pos Rank: #67
THOUGHTS: RGIII was Eric’s reward for dumping the previous season, but Griffin proved to be anything but a reward. He got hurt, was benched, eventually getting the boot by Eric. Alfred Morris’ final position rank (9th) is still a bit shocking. Part of the reason was the fact that he didn’t really get going until Eric was already sinking into the league basement. It’s hard to call a 11th round keeper a bust, but Harvin was expected to be a solid WR2. Instead, he was traded to the Jets. Ouch. FINAL GRADE: C
ROB MASTERSON
Rd 3 – Vincent Jackson, WR-TB | Pos Rank: #35 Rd 7 – Ben Tate, RB CLE-MIN | Pos Rank: #46 Rd 11 – Jordan Cameron, TE-CLE | Pos Rank: #30
THOUGHTS: I’ve already said this, but it is worth repeating…I’m still not sure how Rob put together a playoff team last year. Of course, my skepticism starts here with the keepers. Prior to the season, I would have projected three full-time starters for Rob (and that’s not even including Josh Gordon), yet all three were just awful in 2014. Vincent Jackson was a huge bust, finding himself on Masterson’s bench. Ben Tate was cut by Cleveland and by Rob and Jordan Cameron didn’t even get onto the field due to injuries until it was way too late. FINAL GRADE: F
RICHARD BURRIER
THOUGHTS: It took three years, but Andrew Luck paid off, becoming the top quarterback in fantasy football in 2014 (after finishing his first two seasons #9 and #10). Too bad Rich didn’t listen to me three years ago and redshirt Luck. Then he could have him again for this season. Anyhow, Luck was the main reason Burrier was able to salvage an 0-3 start to become a playoff team. Despite never having a quarterback, DeAndre Hopkins still managed to be a low-end WR1, relying on some big stats from big games, ending the season as a starting WR2 for Rich. FINAL GRADE: B+
RICH CALDERON
Rd 1 – LeSean McCoy, RB-PHI | Pos Rank: #10 Rd 9 – Julian Thomas, TE-DEN | Pos Rank: #7 Rd 13 – Zac Stacy, RB-STL | Pos Rank: #55
THOUGHTS: Calderon did pretty well for himself, although McCoy finishing 10th isn’t what you want from a first-round pick. Julian Thomas was having a good season, until he got hurt. Too bad he went to Jacksonville, which makes him pretty worthless now. Zac Stacy looked like the steal of the draft, but couldn’t even remain the starter in week one. FINAL GRADE: C
BOB CASTRONE
Rd 4 – Rob Gronkowski, TE-NE | Pos Rank: #1 Rd 6 – Andre Ellington, RB-ARI | Pos Rank: #11 Rd 13 – Danny Woodhead, RB-SD | Pos Rank: N/A
THOUGHTS: It took Gronkowski a little time to shake off the cobwebs, but once he was healthy, he was arguable the most dangerous player in fantasy football. Not bad for a fourth round pick. If he was a free agent right now, he’d probably be drafted at the end of the first-round. Ellington was in a good spot in Arizona and put up some decent numbers, but he just couldn’t stay healthy down the stretch. Luckily, Bob was covered with Lamar Miller. Danny Woodhead caught a break with Ryan Mathews going out, but then Woodhead got knocked out for the season. FINAL GRADE: B
MATT NEATOCK
Rd 4 – Eddie Lacy, RB-GB | Pos Rank: #7 Rd 8 – Nick Foles, QB-PHI | Pos Rank: #23 Rd 14 – Jeremy Maclin, WR-PHI | Pos Rank: #5
THOUGHTS: Matt’s always had success with keepers and 2014 was no different. Eddie Lacy was a rock, despite suffering a concussion in week one. In fact, he was arguable the best back down the stretch and almost delivered Neatock a third title. Nick Foles was a major bust, but at least Maclin came back and had his best year ever. While he didn’t win a title for Matt, Maclin was the centerpiece in the nine-player trade that landed Neatock Dez Bryant. FINAL GRADE: A-
COLBY HALL
Rd 3 – Brandon Marshall, WR-CHI | Pos Rank: #22 Rd 6 – Rasheed Jennings, RB-NYG | Pos Rank: #19 Rd 15 – Alshon Jeffery, WR-CHI | Pos Rank: #13
THOUGHTS: The Bears offense was a mess in 2014 and it showed on Colby’s keepers. Despite occasionally putting up a great game or two, neither Marshall nor Jeffery were able to be the studs that they were the previous season. Jeffery still manged to finish as a high-end WR2, which is amazing for a 15th round keeper, but Marshall in particular had too many bad games, failing to hit 100 fantasy points in seven games. Rasheed Jennings should have been a strong RB2, but he missed 4+ games due to injury and was just awful down the stretch and was benched for Colby’s post-season run (or lack of). FINAL GRADE: B-
JEFF GREENBLATT
THOUGHTS: Jamaal Charles did finish 8th among all backs, but that has to feel like a disappointment, as he was one of the highest kept players in league history (fifth overall pick). Golden Tate was a stud when Calvin Johnson was out injured, but when Megatron was around, he was decent at best. FINAL GRADE: C-
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