Read our complete 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Coverage!
NFC	AFC
North	North
East	East
West	West
South	South

Baltimore Ravens

QB’s: Steve McNair led the Ravens to a 13-3 record and a division crown in 2006. He will again be the man under center and while his best days in terms of fantasy football projections are definitely behind him, he is still a good backup QB in most fantasy football leagues. Kyle Boller is the #2 behind McNair and although he is much maligned in the media and by fans, in 2006 he showed a great ability to come off the bench and be effective for a couple of games when called upon. Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith was drafted in the 5th round back in April and will be the #3.

RB’s: Jamal Lewis is gone, but the Ravens upgraded by adding disgruntled former Buffalo Bill Willis McGahee. Lewis was starting to break down, but McGahee is still young and fresh and in need of a team with a better offensive line. McGahee has been placed high on fantasy football cheat sheets for a couple of seasons in a row, but now that he is in Baltimore, there’s a great chance he deserves to be a top 10 fantasy RB in 2007. McGahee is a full time RB and can catch the ball better than most think so he will only be spelled occasionally. The backup duties will fall on Mike Anderson and Musa Smith. Anderson is a bruising style of RB who is approaching the end of his career. Smith is a young RB with a ton of talent, but has never been able to stay healthy long enough to show it off. Smith would be the high upside handcuff of the 2, but we’ll see if Anderson establishes himself as a goal line RB in training camp. P.J. Daniels and Cory Ross fill out the rest of the RB’s with Daniels having the higher upside to make the team. Veteran Justin Green and rookie Le’Ron McClain will battle it out to be the starting FB.

WR’s: Mark Clayton stepped up his game in 2006 and has established himself as the teams #1. In terms of fantasy football forecasting, Clayton rates as a decent #3 fantasy WR with a legitimate chance to be much better than that. Aging vet Derrick Mason is the other start. Mason is showing signs of slowing down and can no longer be relied on as a starter in fantasy football leagues. He is a #4 fantasy WR. Second year WR Demetrius Williams showed big play ability and could even contend with Mason in terms of receiving yards and TD’s scored in 2007 despite being the teams #3 WR. If Williams were to get into the starting lineup, his value would go up in fantasy circles. Clarence Moore, Devard Darling, and Yamon Figurs round out the rest of the WR’s. Figurs is a rookie and drafted for both explosive WR potential and big time return capabilities. One of Moore or Darling is likely to be a final cut before the season starts. Moore is a tall WR who has regressed since a good rookie season in 2004, but his 6’6” height make him an attractive red zone target. Darling is the better athlete with better overall receiving skills, but hasn’t developed as expected and has never made any impact when in a game.

TE’s: Todd Heap is one of the best pass catching TE’s in the league and consistently finishes in the top 5 of the fantasy football rankings for the position. Dan Wilcox is his top backup. Wilcox is a good blocker and an underrated pass catcher. If Heap were to get injured, Wilcox would become a top free agent pickup in fantasy leagues. Quinn Sypniewski is a strong blocking TE but has little value in the passing game.

K: Few kickers bring the consistency and accuracy Matt Stover brings. Entering his 18th season, Stover may not boom many long one’s (only 1 FG made from 50+ yards in the last 2 seasons), but 4 consecutive years with 113 pts scored or more tells you he gets the job done. In fantasy leagues, Stover’s never the first kicker taken, but he’s definitely worth taking as a starter and can be had in the last round.

Cincinnati Bengals

QB’s: Carson Palmer is an elite NFL QB with elite fantasy football projections in 2007. His 2006 numbers were nothing short of amazing considering he tore up his knee badly less than 9 months before the season started. Backup Anthony Wright is gone and Doug Johnson is now the primary backup to Palmer. Rookie 5th round pick Jeff Rowe is the #3.

RB’s: Rudi Johnson may not be flashy or exciting, but he’s dependable. And a high level of dependable at that. 3 consecutive years with 12 rushing TD’s. 3 consecutive years of 1,300+ yards of rushing. 3 consecutive years of being a solid #2 fantasy football RB. Johnson doesn’t have many huge games, but he also doesn’t have many bad ones. A reliable RB who gives you good production every season, Johnson usually gets drafted higher than he should because of it. Behind him is rookie Kenny Irons. Irons brings some playmaking speed in a compact, tough body to compliment Johnson. Kenny Watson is the versatile #3 RB and catches the ball well and runs tough inside. Veteran Chris Perry has struggled staying healthy and the drafting of Irons shows that the team doesn’t expect Perry to ever regain the form that made him a first round pick back in 2004. Terrence Whitehead and Quincy Wilson round out the rest of the RB’s. Jeremi Johnson is one of the most fantasy capable FB’s in the NFL, but that doesn’t amount to much.

WR’s: The tandem of Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh is one of the top 3 in the NFL. Johnson is a big play WR who can produce huge games any week, while Houshmandzadeh puts up steady fantasy points every week since opponents can’t double team him with Johnson in the lineup. Johnson is an elite fantasy WR while Houshmandzadeh has developed into a borderline fantasy #1/2. Houshmandzadeh is underrated and is a great potential pickup for those who wait til round 4 or later to grab their 1st WR. Chris Henry is suspended for the 1st 8 games of 2007 and that leaves a void at #3. Even as the Bengals #3, when Henry plays, he’s a borderline fantasy #2 because of all the attention the starting tandem gets. His absence means that Tab Perry, Antonio Chatman, and Glenn Holt will compete for the spot. Perry has the best chance of the bunch to be worth something in that spot, but probably not to the level of Henry. Reggie McNeal and Bennie Brazell flush out the WR crew.

TE’s: The Bengals don’t usually throw much to their TE’s and thusly their fantasy football rankings put them into the grouping with the other mediocre options at the position. Reggie Kelly is a great blocker and decent pass catcher. Battling for the primary backup are Tim Day, Daniel Coats, Bobby Blizzard, and Sean Mulcahy. None of whom are going to light the NFL or the fantasy world on fire with their stats in 2007.

K: Shayne Graham is one of the best in both the NFL and in fantasy football. He’s deadly accurate, and because of the Bengals offense, he gets to attempt over 30 FGA’s every season, while booting 40+ PAT’s. There’s no reason to not expect 120+ points from Graham in 2007, and that should make him a top 5 fantasy kicker.

Cleveland Browns

QB’s: As I’ve recently written about in my fantasy football blog the Browns will start training camp with an “open competition”, but likely it will be Derek Anderson who is the favorite to start the season as the #1. Last year’s starter, Charlie Frye, appears to have lost the confidence of the coaching staff completely, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he is traded if the team gets rookie Brady Quinn signed before too long. It would be in both parties best interest. As would just starting Quinn from the beginning of the season. But it’s likely that Quinn will be involved in a holdout that lasts into the preseason, Frye doesn’t get traded, and that all 3 QB’s see time under center during the 2007 season. It’s a real mess that only gets cleaned up if Quinn gets signed early and wins the job outright before the season starts. But that’s extremely unlikely.

RB’s: With the injuries to the OL in 2006, it’s surprising the team made Reuben Droughns a scapegoat and traded him away. Granted, Jamal Lewis is a bigger RB who can pound out the tough yards, but he’ll never regain the form he had in 2003. Lewis will have a hard time gaining much ground if the passing game struggles as expected. But his upside is there and the Browns are hopeful their OL will be healthy and much improved in 2007, so there is hope Lewis can surprise and be a good fantasy RB #2. At the very least Lewis can be considered a strong fantasy RB #3 and unlike so many RB’s, he isn’t involved in a committee. Lewis will tote the rock 80% of the time for the Browns. Backing him up are speedster Jerome Harrison, and Jason Wright. Harrison showed a lot of promise in the 2006 preseason, but it didn’t carry over to the regular season. Wright actually showed toughness despite not being a big RB and is a capable backup. Neither one though is what you would consider as a handcuff for fantasy purposes though.

WR’s: Braylon Edwards is entering his 3rd season and is primed to breakout in a big way in 2007 if the Browns can stabilize their QB situation. He has size, speed, great hands, and the desire to be one of the best. Edwards is a solid fantasy #2 who is likely being drafted as a #3, but has the upside to be a strong #1. Joe Jurevicius is the starter opposite Edwards and while he offers a lot of size, he needs to stay healthy and really isn’t much more than maybe a fantasy WR #4/5. The team acquired former Giants WR Tim Carter to compete with Travis Wilson and Josh Cribbs for the #3 spot. Rookie Syndric Steptoe is small, but could be a candidate for punt return duties. Of the group, Carter has speed but unreliable hands; Wilson had high expectations early in 2006 but really disappointed as a rookie when given a chance; Cribbs has good hands and could surprise. Biggest problem is that none of these 4 guys will do much for your fantasy football teams no matter who steps up.

TE’s: The Browns finally found out how much of a pass catching machine Kellen Winlsow Jr. can be in 2006. No TE in the league had more receptions and only 2 had more receiving yards. With another off-season to help get his knee back in shape, Winslow could be dangerous. He at least is a solid fantasy #1 TE with elite capabilities. Like Edwards though, he’d benefit from some stability at QB. Backing up Winslow is Steve Heiden. Heiden has proven a capable receiver and good blocker. If anything were to happen to Winslow, Heiden is actually a pretty good free agent pickup in fantasy leagues. Darnell Dinkins and Ryan Krause will battle it out to be the 3rd TE and neither has any fantasy value.

K: Phil Dawson is a pretty good kicker stuck on a team that doesn’t give him many opportunities to show it. Dawson has never had a season with 30 FGA’s in his career, and it’s been since 2002 since he got over 28 PAT attempts in a season. His accuracy suffered in 2006, but generally he’s reliable. All this adds up to a kicker you can find on the free agent wire for your primary kicker’s bye week.

Pittsburgh Steelers

QB’s: Ben Roethlisberger had a tough 2006, but considering all the adversity he faced, I’m willing to cut him a break and call that just a bad season in what should be an otherwise excellent career. Look for Roethlisberger to bounce back in 2007. Charlie Batch is his backup and is excellent in that capacity. He may not be as good if called upon to start a lot, but in his current role, he excels when needed. If the Steelers keep 3 QB’s, 4th year pro and backup Brian St. Pierre likely fills the spot.

RB’s: Willie Parker dispelled a lot of illusions about smaller RB’s by toting the ball 337 times in 2006 and staying healthy. He is surprisingly strong and shows a nose for the end zone. Parker is a top 10 fantasy RB. The only cause for concern is that while the Steelers want to run the ball more in 2007, they want to reduce Parker’s workload some so he doesn’t get banged around so much. To this end, the team re-signed Najeh Davenport and brought in free agent Kevan Barlow. Both are big RB’s who could compliment Parker’s game a lot. Davenport and Barlow have both underachieved but both have upside and just need to show the toughness RB’s of their size are expected to have. Both catch the ball effectively as well. Whoever wins the competition for the primary backup duty to Parker should be considered a solid handcuff to Parker. Dan Kreider is the steady FB who is a great blocker but rarely ever touches the ball.

WR’s: Hines Ward’s production in 2006 suffered with the struggles of Roethlisberger. But he’s still a solid pass catcher who is sure-handed and still possesses above average run after the catch abilities. But he’s no longer the big play WR he once was and his status as anything more than a good fantasy WR #2 has to be questioned. Second year WR Santonio Holmes quietly put up a respectable rookie season with 49 receptions, 824 yards, and 3 TD’s. It’s a good assumption he’s just going to get better in year two because of experience and a healthy Roethlisberger and that could push him into being a borderline #2/3 fantasy WR. In another year, I expect he’ll pass up Ward as the top WR in Pittsburgh. Behind them only Nate Washington and Cedrick Wilson appear to be locks to make the team. They’ll compete for the #3 job. Wilson has starting experience, but has done little with it; Washington has flashed big play ability but needs to be more consistent catching the ball. Of the two, Washington has the better fantasy football prospects and could be a fantasy #5 WR with upside to be much better than that if an opportunity arose. The 5th WR spot will be a battle between Walter Young, Willie Reid, Rasheed Marshall, and rookie Dallas Baker. None of whom stand out as having big fantasy prospects even if given the chance to move up the depth chart.

TE’s: Heath Miller is a steady TE who provides size in the red zone as a receiving option. He had an outstanding week 1 in 2006, but then really trailed off afterward. But he has the skills and is one of those fantasy TE’s who is in that borderline #1/2. He is above average, but not elite. Behind him are veteran Jerame Tuman and rookie Matt Spaeth. Spaeth could develop into the big blocking TE the team has lacked in recent years while Tuman is just a steady backup with enough overall skills to stick on the team and have some NFL value (but not fantasy value).

K: Jeff Reed has produced over 100 points in each of the last 4 seasons, although his accuracy on FGA’s has fallen each of the last 2. Reed is in no danger of losing his job in 2007, but he is just a borderline starting fantasy kicker.

See Russ's other 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp articles:

• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: AFC East
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: AFC South
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: AFC West
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: NFC East
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: NFC North
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: NFC South
• 2007 NFL Fantasy Football Training Camp Preview: NFC West
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Russ Bliss is FantasyFootballStarters.com's exclusive fantasy football expert, a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, and for 11 years has been the radio host of "The Red Zone, Talking Fantasy Football and the NFL," in Phoenix, Arizona.

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