Fabiano’s Fantasy Focus Playoff Edition, Volume III

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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 (January 27th) with the Fantasy Sports Writer’s Association Hall of Famer.

Last year Carson Palmer was unbelievable here in Arizona. Could he climb up some boards or will he again be one of those late-round value selections? “Palmer will move into the middle rounds without question. In fact, he will be one of the first five quarterbacks drafted in a lot of leagues. I dint know if he can put up a duplicate season to his 2015 campaign, but Palmer’s value has risen regardless.”

Cam Newton has proven to be one of the most valuable fantasy quarterbacks since entering the league. With his monster season this year, where do you see him coming off draft boards next season? You’ve always valued QB’s that can run. “I’m sure I’ll be a first-round pick in a lot of leagues, and there’s little chance he’ll last past the middle of Round 3 in the majority of drafts. But you know me…I wait on quarterbacks, so I wouldn’t look at Newton until Round 5. So I’m unlikely to get him.”

I’m in a three-player keeper league and have Jamaal Charles. At age 30, coming off a serious injury, do I hold on to him? “It really depends on your alternatives, but I wouldn’t call Charles a “must-keep” player anymore. He’s now has two ACL repairs in five years, and he’s not getting any younger. With that said, he’s still going to be picked as a low-end RB1 in a lot of 2016 re-drafts.”

Kirk Cousins really came on during the second half of last year. Where do you see him projected next year in drafts? “I don’t see him as more than a late-round pick, due in large part to the fact that the quarterback position is just so deep. In fact, I don’t even have Cousins ranked in my top 10 among signal-callers for 2016.”

I would guess kickers, from week-to-week, are the toughest to project from a fantasy standpoint. A friend of mine is considering eliminating the position from the league he runs next summer. Is this a crazy idea? “No way! Kickers are people too, and to me they belong in fantasy football. Heck, Stephen Gostkowski, Graham Gano and Blair Walsh scored more fantasy points than five of the first 10 overall picks on NFL.com based on average draft position (ADP).”

If Tony Romo is healthy as expected, do you view Dez Bryant as a first-round pick? Why/why not? “First round is a little too rich for my blood, but is he surprised if Bryant lasted beyond Round 2 or 3. Forget about this season. He’s was never really 100 percent, and losing Romo was a massive detriment to his value and production. He will bounce back.”