2006 Week 1 Fantasy Football Picks


June 5, 2008 | Posted By Larry Cook

We want to give you some help with your 2006 fantasy football week 1 decisions, so we enlisted some help from the experts.  Use this article to get off on the right foot and make the most of your fantasy football experience this season.

There are few things better than NFL football but Scarlett Johansson in a thin bathing suit is one of them. For now, we’ll keep that sweet thought in the back of our minds and deal with what is in front of us and that is the upcoming opening week of NFL action.

BetUS was kind enough to post some fantasy football player match-ups and here are the groupings along with some observations.

Quarterbacks:

Total Passing Yards:
Peyton Manning
Eli Manning
Matt Hasselbeck
Carson Palmer

The Sunday night contest will be the first ever Manning Bowl and will pit two brother quarterbacks against each other for the first time. Peyton seems like an obvious choice from this foursome but the Colts may be out to prove that they have a functional running game on national television while the Giants may be out to prove that their secondary is upgraded. Carson Palmer takes his prolific passing attack to Kansas City and Matt Hasselbeck faces off against a soft defense on the road.

Pick: Carson Palmer

Running Backs

Rushing Yards:
Group 1
Shaun Alexander
LaDainian Tomlinson
Larry Johnson
Rudi Johnson

This group features the big three, which went first, second and third overall in most fantasy drafts this season, along with near-1500 yard back Rudi Johnson. Johnson may be the least sexy pick but he is squaring off against a defense that Roseanne could gain decent yardage against. Tomlinson, who handled zero carries in the preseason, might be rusty heading into Oakland on Monday Night Football. Alexander heads into Detroit and Johnson faces off against the Bengals. In both cases, they will be facing an opponent who claims they have improved their run defense in the offseason.

Pick: LaDainian Tomlinson

Group 2
Edgerrin James
Steven Jackson
Tiki Barber
LaMont Jordan

Edgerrin James may look like the best pick out of this grouping, considering he is facing off against San Francisco, but he averaged only 1.8 yards per carry in the preseason. Steven Jackson is a stud while the remaining two backs play in nationally televised games. Tiki Barber is going to test the Colts defense, which lost linebacker David Thornton and Larry Triplett in the offseason.

Pick: Tiki Barber

Wide Receivers

Receiving Yards:
Group 1
Terrell Owens
Chad Johnson
Larry Fitzgerald
Marvin Harrison

Two showboats and two quietly productive wideouts battle in group one of the wide receivers. These four all seem to pick up yardage, regardless of the opponent or cornerback they have to face. Chad Johnson locks up with Ty Law, which might steer you aware from him and since Bill Parcells isn’t a founding member of the Terrell Owens fan club, that might deter you from Owens. Larry Fitzgerald and Marvin Harrison have easier competition.

Pick: Chad Johnson

Group 2
Randy Moss
Anquan Boldin
Roy Williams
Plaxico Burress

Heading into last season, Randy Moss would likely find himself in group one but he has much more to prove this season. He faces a soft secondary as San Diego visits but the other three wideouts also face soft coverage. Roy Williams will be the focal point of the Lions offense while Anquan Boldin and Plaxico Burress should be able to get open fairly easily.

Pick: Roy Williams

Tight Ends

Receiving Yards:
Alge Crumpler
Jason Witten
Tony Gonzalez
Antonio Gates

Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates are the heavyweights in this class. Gates will hope that there isn’t much of a drop-off from Drew Brees to Philip Rivers or his numbers will also decline while Gonzalez is hoping he doesn’t have to spend so much time blocking this season. Jason Witten will be emphasized heavily in the Dallas offense while Alge Crumpler is still Michael Vick’s favorite target. This category will be tighter than you think.

Pick: Antonio Gates

Related Articles You May Be Interested In:

Filed Under NFL