BUST OUT PLAYERS FOR ‘07

By Brad Kurtzberg, NFL Draft Bible Sr. Writer

The difference between a good team and a great team is decided in the middle and late rounds of your draft, when people pick players who are not household names now, but will have breakout seasons and become fantasy starters. Here is a look at some players lower down in your fantasy depth chart who have the potential to make a big impact this year.

Here they are, the players who can really make a difference in your fantasy season.

QUARTERBACKS
Alex Smith, QB, San Francisco—The 49ers quarterback has shown steady improvement over his first two seasons and finished 2006 with 16 TDs. He has a strong arm, is gaining experience and has a strong running game led by Frank Gore. As he continues to progress, Smith should become a steady fantasy starter this season.

Jay Cutler, QB Denver—Cutler had an 88.5 QB rating with 9 TDs and only
5 INT as a rookie. The Broncos always have a good running game and Cutler will also benefit from having a great receiver like Javon Walker available to him. The Denver offense emphasizes the run first, so Cutler won’t be putting the ball up 40 times a game too often, but his football smarts and arm strength should make him a solid fantasy QB for years to come.

Matt Leinart, QB Arizona—Leinart has more weapons at his disposal than any other young QB on this list. WRs Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald may be the best duo in the league, while RB Edgerrin James adds leadership and experience. They key may be how well the Cards traditionally weak offensive line does at protecting him. Leinart’s shoulder injury appears to be healed and he has excellent leadership skills.

RUNNING BACKS
Brandon Jacobs, RB NY Giants—With Tiki Barber’s retirement, Jacobs will get the first crack at being the Giants’ feature back. Reuben Droughns will get some carries, but Jacobs will touch the ball the most if all goes according to plan. Jacobs had 9 TDs on just 96 carries last season, with 250 plus carries, the TDs should hit double digits easily.

Jerious Norwood, RB Atlanta—Norwood averaged over six yards per carry on 99 attempts in spot duty last year. He was expected to battle with veteran Warrick Dunn for the starting job but Dunn is injured and will be out at least until the season opener. Look for Norwood to shine this year when given the opportunity to start.

Cedric Benson, RB Chicago—The biggest question for Benson may be whether or not he can stay healthy. The Bears traded Thomas Jones so Benson should be #1 in Chi-Town. If he stays healthy, 1,000 yards and 10 TDs should not be a problem.

WIDE RECEIVERS
Santonio Holmes, WR Pittsburgh—Holmes started four games last year for Pittsburgh and finished with 49 catches and 2 TDs. He also averaged almost 17 yards per catch, which shows his speed. A healthy Ben Roethlisberger will help the Steelers’ receiving stats. Hines Ward will still be the number one guy, but expect 65 catches or so from Holmes and at least 8 TDs with more and more production as the season progresses.

Vincent Jackson, WR San Diego—Jackson is everybody’s choice to bust out at WR this year because of his size and physical ability. He will benefit from the maturity of QB Philip Rivers and the fact that defenses will be geared to stop the San Diego running game. Jackson has a lot of potential and should at least double his 27 catches from last year. Expect at least 7 TDs as well.

Braylon Edwards, WR Cleveland—Edwards has three major obstacles that have kept him from becoming an elite NFL receiver. The first has been his health, which, so far this year, appears to be good. Second, is his lack of maturity on and off the field, which hopefully has been improved. Lastly, has been the Browns lack of a NFL caliber QB to get him the ball. If Brady Quinn steps forward and answers the third issue, expect Edwards to be the team’s top receiver with at least 75 catches and 10 TDs. If Quinn is slow to develop and nobody else steps up at QB for the Browns, Edwards remains a strong fantasy backup at best.

Greg Jennings, WR Green Bay—Jennings got off to a hot start last season before an injury slowed him down midway through the year. He should start and while Donald Driver will remain Favre’s number one target, a healthy Jennings should catch in the neighborhood of 65 balls with at least 7 TDs.

TIGHT ENDS
Vernon Davis, TE, San Francisco—Davis broke a leg, which cost him six games and a lot of time that could have been spent learning the system during his rookie year. Davis has great size and the speed of a WR so he should create plenty of mismatches for both safeties and LBs trying to cover him. He also has a young and improving QB and a system that will help get him touches. This could be a huge year for Davis.

Marcedes Lewis, TE Jacksonville—Lewis was the Jaguars first round pick last season but he missed nearly half the season due to injuries. Last year’s starting TE Kyle Brady, has been released and the new offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter is supposed to feature the TE more in his offense. The Jaguars are unsettled at WR, so Lewis should become more of a focal point of the offense this year.

Brad Kurtzberg is a Senior Writer for the NFL Draft Bible and author of "Shorthanded: The Untold Story of the Seals:Hockey's Most Colorful Team"

Email: brad@nfldraftbible.com