Fabiano’s Fantasy Focus: 2016 Training Camp, Volume II

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Every week during the season NFL Network and NFL.com Senior Fantasy Analyst Michael Fabiano joins Sports360AZ.com’s Brad Cesmat to share his insight on building and developing your fantasy team for success.

Here are some hi-lights from our most recent conversation (July 27th) with the Fantasy Sports Writer’s Association Hall of Famer.

What’s your read on Doug Martin this season?  “He was really good last year. In the two years where he was expected to do nothing in the NFL he put up 1400 yards rushing. In the two years people were expecting him to put up numbers he did nothing. So I’m a little worried about him. To me, that’s just a gut instinct for me. If you’re taking Doug Martin at the end of the first round or even at the top of the second round I think that’s a little too rich for my blood.”

How about Kelvin Benjamin over in Carolina?  “I mean, he’s going off the board in the fifth round in a lot of leagues. He had a really good rookie year but he was really inconsistent. The end numbers were a little bit deceiving. He just broke 1,000 yards. A lot of his production came as a touchdown option for Cam Newton which he will likely be again but the Panthers go from having no Benjamin to having Ted Ginn, to having Devin Funchess…Greg Olsen, Philly Brown so there’s a lot of options there for Cam. I think Benjamin might be a tad too high.”

Despite the four-game suspension are your expectations still as high as ever for Tom Brady?  “Listen. Averaged over 21 fantasy points a game last year, second-highest scoring player in fantasy. Now he’s going to be [upset] Brad. He is not going to be a happy camper. He is going to be motivated to put up some really good numbers and he’s got some really improved weapons over last year–assuming Julian Edelman’s going to be ok from the two foot surgeries. You got Martellus Bennett in there. You’ve got Chris Hogan who I think could end up eating up some targets at wide receiver there. There’s a lot of options there for Brady.”

Do you see Rob Gronkowski as a first-round pick?  “People are going to yell at me and scream but I don’t see Rob Gronkowski as a first-round pick. The tight end position is deep now. It’s really deep. I would rather draft Ladarious Green in the eighth or ninth round than take Rob Gronkowski in the first. I would just rather do that because I need to load up on running backs and wide receivers sooner than later. Gronk is awesome, don’t get me wrong…I just think that where I can get a Gary Barnidge, a Ladarious Green…Coby Fleener…I rather get one of those guys late.

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