admin Posted on 10:39 pm

AFC South off-season changes

Indianapolis Colts:

The Colts are another team with too many wide receivers and most of them can be started on any team. However, that didn’t stop them from using their first-round pick on ANOTHER receiver. After watching their defense get pummeled by quality offense last year, you’d have thought all first picks would be spent on defense, but the Colts don’t work that way. WR Philip Dorsett is an absolute burner for Miami at 4.33 40-yard dash speed, but how much will he factor into the game plan this year with so many other options? Sure, they went defensive with their next 4 picks; Florida Atlantic’s CB D’Joun Smith, Stanford’s DE Henry Anderson and Central Florida’s S Clayton Geathers, as well as Georgia’s LB Amarlo Herrea, but these guys are going to have to get past their draft placement to justify taking another WR, albeit a very talented one. , with your first choice.

The Colts took a veteran pass catcher in Andre Johnson to help get their talented youngsters up to speed in the NFL. He should help educate Dorsett and Donte Moncrief into better receivers for the foreseeable future. They added WR Vincentt Brown from San Diego in free agency to further complicate matters. I’ve always thought Brown is underrated, but he sure as hell can’t stay healthy to prove me right. After failing to find a complementary running game to go along with their passing assault, the Colts turned to free agency and brought in veteran Frank Gore. Most teams rely on 30-plus running backs, but the Colts hope that having Daniel “Boom” Herron and a healthy Vick Ballard help shoulder the load and keep Gore fresh all season. I also like the addition of Philadelphia LB Trent Cole via free agency.

Fantasy starters: QB Andrew Luck, RB Frank Gore, WR TY Hilton, WR Andre Johnson

Fantasy bench: TE Dwayne Allen, TE Coby Fleener, RB Daniel Herron

The Fantasy Sleeper: WR Philip Dorsett

Tennessee Titans:

The Titans were in an enviable spot in the draft due to an unenviable position with their roster this year. It seems they were offered multiple trades that could have benefited them at many more positions than the second pick, but they turned them down, deciding that quarterback Marcus Mariota was their franchise quarterback. This could be a decision that catapults them back to respectability or dooms them even more for years to come. If the trade rumors were true, they must have been high school sweethearts in love with Mariota to roll the dice as they are. To further prove their love, they used their second-round pick on a WR wager on Dorial Green-Beckham. He is HUGE but troublesome and inexperienced. The ceiling on him is tremendous, but he too could easily be knocked out of the league in no time. He can safely say that Titans ownership is a group of risk takers! The remaining 7 picks were spread across most positions as a testament to how poor the talent is on this team. After another year of underperforming running backs, they actually found a sleeper in Minnesota’s RB David Cobb in the fifth round. He is the anti-Chris Johnson; he’s not very fast but he gets a lot of yards after contact. He expects them to use him in close range situations early on, as RB Bishop Sankey will have one last chance to impress.

In free agency, the Titans didn’t overwhelm, but I like the addition of WR Harry Douglas from Atlanta. I think his speed in the slot will help Mariota a lot and complement WR Kendall Wright very well. They also added WR Hakeem Nicks, but he’s been in a steady decline since his rookie season. On the defensive side of the ball, they smartly added Washington LB Brian Arakpo. It was a smart move since his current linebackers are lost and it’s a way to keep him busy learning a new playbook instead of entertaining more terrible trade ideas.

Fantasy starters: WR Kendall Wright, TE Delanie Walker

Fantasy bench: QB Marcus Mariota, RB Bishop Sankey, WR Dorial Green-Beckham, WR Harry Douglas

Fantasy sleeper: RB David Cobb

Houston Texas:

Can JJ Watt QB in addition to playing TE and be the most dominant defensive player in the league? The Texans may be waiting for him, since they can’t get a quality signal call under center. Bill O’Brien has to seriously choose between Ryan Mallett, Brian Hoyr and Tom Savage to start the year. It seems like another year of giving Arian Foster the ball 350 times!

It’s going to be weird to see the Texans on the field but WR Andre Johnson playing for an enemy division. Based on the prospects for this offense, I’m happy for him. He deserves a shot at a Super Bowl. WR DeAndre Hopkins proved himself a worthy running mate last year and inherits the #1 WR ranking. To help him out, the Texans added WR Cecil Shorts III and Nate Washington, but more importantly, they took WR Jaelen Strong out of Arizona St in the third round. This kid can play and is a bit stronger than Hopkins to match them up well. Before him, the Texans filled two glaring gaps by drafting CB Kevin Johnson from Wake Forest and LB Benardrick McKinney from Mississippi St.

When it comes to defense, he has a chance to be the top unit in the AFC. In addition to JJ and the draft picks, they could have a healthy Jadeveon Clowney (remember last year’s No. 1 draft pick?) and added DT Vince Wilfork in free agency, plus Denver’s S Rahim Moore.

Fantasy starters: RB Arian Foster, WR DeAndre Hopkins, Houston D

Fantasy bench: RB Alfred Blue, WR Jaelen Strong

Fantasy Sleeper: TE Garrett Graham

Jacksonville Jaguars:

When you’re the Jaguars, bad luck follows you. After scoring with his first-round draft pick on DE Dante Fowler Jr, he promptly tore his ACL in his first practice. This was clearly an area that needed to be addressed on the Jags D. Thankfully, they pulled off a small steal in round six by sacking Ohio State DT Michael Bennett. It’s not much of a consolation prize right now, but he’ll contribute this season. On offense, they needed to improve their backfield after RB Toby Gerhart turned out to be an absolute dud. WR/RB Denard Robinson ended up completing very well last year, but they needed to think longer term. So, they grabbed Gamecock G AJ Cann in the third round to help block RB TJ Yeldon, who they grabbed in the second round of Alabama. Yeldon won’t blow you away as an all-around runner, but they needed some help and they’re hoping he’ll provide it.

They nabbed a few later WR picks to add to their current stable of mediocre receivers. No team in the league has a WR Nos 3-5 group like the Jaguars do. How they will be able to separate them and call either of them their #1 and #2 is beyond me. I know new free agent acquisition TE Julius Thomas will definitely be THE go-to target.

Fantasy starters: TE Julius Thomas

Fantasy bench: RB TJ Yeldon, RB Denard Robinson, WR Allen Hurns

Fantasy Sleeper: WR Marquis Lee

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