The Fantasy Football Geek Blog

At this point, it’s really anybody’s guess as to where soon-to-be free agent Houshmanzilly will be playing next season, so it’s nearly impossible to say how much we’re going to like him going into this year’s draft. If he lands in a situation with sky’s-the-limit potential, don’t be surprised to see him become the trendy #2 WR taken in drafts (after Fitzgerald, who probably has a lock on the top WR pick). Nobody wants to pass on this year’s version of Randy Moss circa 2007, and all of the other options for #2 WR taken have question marks:

• Brandon Marshall might have a higher ceiling than any receiver in the league, but he’s maddeningly inconsistent at times.
• Andre Johnson is great… when… he’s… healthy.
• I’m keeping Randy Moss at arm’s length until I know for sure what’s up with Brady’s knee – which means I’m probably not drafting him until 2010.

So where would Housh have to land in order to warrant a higher pick than any of those guys? A few intriguing scenarios that are at least somewhat plausible:

• Giants - Eli’s going to need a new Plax, and TJ could step right into that role. He’d probably jump at the opportunity to join a Super Bowl contender. This isn’t the most explosive passing offense out there, so I wouldn’t call it an ideal fantasy situation, but there’s definite potential here. A lot would depend on whether Housh and Eli could mind-meld in the preseason a la Brady and Moss.
• Falcons – If it weren’t for the Michael Vick contract situation, the Falcons would be an obvious potential destination. They’ve got a young QB with obvious talent but no big-time receivers to throw the ball to. Ignoring the risk that Vick could be reinstated this season, thus putting them over the salary cap, the Falcons have plenty of available cap space to play with. The only question here from a fantasy perspective is whether Matt Ryan, who looked great until his late-season fade, is the real deal or a one-year wonder.
• Cowboys – Now that Jerry Jones is more or less publicly acknowledging that T.O. is persona non grata in the locker room, he can talk all he wants about keeping him – you know he’s working overtime to find a way to dump him without badly depleting the talent level of the receiving corps. Housh would be a perfect fit, and he and Roy Williams would make opposing defenses miserable – and their fantasy owners very happy.

Regardless of where he winds up, he still a low-end WR1 at worst. Let’s just hope this situation doesn’t end with a giant yaaaaawwwwnn from the fantasy football world as he signs on with, say, the Ravens, Vikings or Dolphins – all of whom are probably in the running to get him.

*** UPDATE 3/1 – Yawwwwnnn.