Fantasy Football Preview: Tom Brady or Drew Brees?

After countless hours of research and more mock fantasy football drafts than we care to account for; it's obvious that “experts” and novices alike view Drew Brees as the overwhelming favorite to be 2009’s top fantasy football QB. It's easy to comprehend at first glance, considering Brees’ lofty numbers in 2008.

Sure, we understand the concern for Brady’s health. We also get the concept that basically missing the entire 2008 season leaves some doubt as to whether or not Brady still has the tools to be an elite fantasy QB. The fact of the matter is, however, that many great QB’s have rebounded strongly after the exact same injury. To name a few examples in recent years, there's Donovan McNabb, Carson Palmer, and Phillip Rivers, who had his best season ever returning from ACL surgery last year; and even Drew Brees himself tore his ACL as a junior in high school.

It isn’t like we're talking about a RB or WR who typically struggles to return to form after knee ligament tears. We are dealing with a pocket QB; a pocket QB that was never exactly known for his running abilities in the first place. By all accounts Brady has made a miraculous recovery. While there will almost certainly be some rust to knock off early in the season, Brady should return to form fairly quickly. It may not be 2007 Tom Brady form, but we doubt anyone can expect superhuman numbers like that to be put up by an NFL signal caller ever again.

We get that Drew Brees had a great 2008 season and we certainly consider him a top flight fantasy QB, but from a potential standpoint, Brady still has the edge, and here's why:

Considering the vast majority of fantasy football leagues are played head-to-head on a week-to-week basis, the name of the game is consistency. At season's end a QB can amass huge stats, but it's what he does on a weekly basis that really matters. For example, if Brees throws for 400 yards and 5 TD’s in a given week, you are probably going to win your head to head match up that particular week, but going into the following week, those stats are of no help whatsoever. Point being, that many of you may be shocked to know that while Drew Brees was spectacular in his 8 home games in 2008, throwing 23 TD passes with only 5 interceptions; he was the exact opposite in his 8 road appearances throwing for only 11 TD’s with 12 picks. That's 8 weeks of sub par QB play, not exactly the kind of consistency you are looking for from a so called #1 ranked fantasy QB.

Tom Brady, however, will be a more consistent QB in 2009 and the odds of Brady re-injuring his knee are really no greater than Brees suffering a season ending injury himself. At last check, Brady’s golden arm and decision making skills are no different than they were during his record setting 2007 campaign.

We aren’t saying that Drew Brees is going to be a bust. In fact, if Marques Colston remains healthy; Brees should exceed his 2008 numbers. We just feel that too many so-called experts look at the big picture and assume Brees is the better and safer option. The truth is that Brady is getting a bad rap over a fairly common injury, an injury that Brees himself has suffered.

Another valid case to be made for Brady as the top 2009 fantasy QB is that everything that he had in place in New England in 2007 is still in place in 2009, and then some. Bill Belichick is still running the show. Randy Moss and Wes Welker should be as solid as ever, and Brady will have a stable of talented running backs at his disposal. In fact, Brady probably has more talent surrounding him for 2009 than he had during his miraculous run in ’07. If you were burnt by drafting Brady last season, we can completely understand why you would be sour on him this year, and Brees is an excellent alternative, but if you want the best QB for your fantasy roster in 2009, no one will outshine Brady, and you will likely get him at a steal in rounds 2-4 of most drafts.

FINAL ANSWER: Tom Brady

Former NFL QB Steve McNair Shot Dead

1973-2009

Former Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair has been killed. Police said McNair suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the head in downtown Nashville, Tenn.

The incident happened at 2nd South & Lea Ave. Police said it looked like a double homicide. A female victim was also found dead.

A law enforcement source close to the investigation said the woman is McNair's girlfriend and that the residence is her condominium in downtown Nashville.

McNair played 13 seasons in the NFL before retiring in April 2008.

He played college football at Alcorn State and was drafted by the Houston Oilers, third overall, in the 1995 NFL Draft.

McNair played 11 seasons with the Titans franchise, leading the team to the Super Bowl in 1999.

He played his final two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.

McNair was selected to the Pro Bowl three times and was the co-MVP of the league in 2003, sharing the award with Peyton Manning.

He was 36 years old.

Fantasy Football Links: Happy 4th!

Some people celebrate the July 4th weekend with fireworks. We, however, like to shoot off fantasy football links to keep you informed on the upcoming season. God bless America! And don't forget to sign up for our free Fantasy Football Draft Guide, coming July 19.


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If you've ever wondered exactly where all the NFL training camps are located, and when players have to report to camp, wonder no more. Here's a quick guide to them all.

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Fantasy Football Preview: T.J. Houshmandzadeh

In spite of his 92 receptions and 904 receiving yards, the vast majority in the fantasy football community considered T.J. Houshmandzadeh’s 2008 campaign with the Cincinnati Bengals to be a flop. The reason being that Houshmandzadeh’s TD total dropped from an impressive 12 in ’07 to a less than productive 4 in '08. The main culprit being the loss of star QB Carson Palmer to a season-ending shoulder injury and a lack of red zone chemistry with mediocre backup signal caller Ryan Fitzpatrick. The absence of a solid running game also crippled the Bengals passing game severely. If you were fortunate enough to be in a points per reception league, Housh proved to be somewhat valuable, but in most leagues where finding pay dirt is the name of the game, he fell well short of expectations.

In 2009, the 31-year-old veteran wide out finds himself in new surroundings in Seattle after spending his entire 8 season career in Cincinnati. While the challenges of this transition will be plenty including a new town, a new head coach in Jim Mora, a new QB in Matt Hasselbeck and a new West Coast offensive scheme under offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, Houshmandzadeh looks to regain his top flight fantasy status with the Seahawks. Probably the biggest adjustment Houshmandzadeh will face in Seattle will be comprehending the nuances of Greg Knapp’s West Coast offense. This offense will be different from the one Houshmandzadeh was so successful with in Cinci, both in philosophy and terminology. When most people think of the West Coast scheme, they immediately think pass heavy offense. In all actuality, the West Coast offense was designed to open up the running attack. While most offenses use the run to open up the passing game, the West Coast offense is the exact opposite, using a pass first philosophy to open up the run. So long story longer, this offense will be vastly different from the pass happy scheme using multiple receiver sets you have grown accustomed to seeing the last few years in Seattle under former head coach Mike Holmgren.


Don’t get us wrong, we still expect Seattle to throw the ball early and often this season, especially with their lack of talent at RB, and a great wide receiver like Houshmandzadeh can flourish in this offense. In fact, the best wide receiver in the history of the NFL, Jerry Rice, owes much of the credit for his success to Bill Walsh’s West Coast offense. The good news is that Houshmandzadeh has been quick to pick up on the new offense, and by all accounts, the chemistry between himself and QB Matt Hasselbeck has been outstanding in mini camp, especially in red zone drills.

While we don’t anticipate Houshmandzadeh to put up monster reception and yardage totals in Seattle, he should be in the ballpark of last season’s totals. We do, however, expect to see his TD total to rise significantly from last season.

There is little doubt that he will be the go to guy in the red zone in the Seahawks revamped passing attack. Another great thing about Houshmandzadeh in terms of fantasy appeal is his ability to play through nagging injuries and play well. He also isn’t a guy that tends give less effort in a non contract year. He is a blue collar type receiver that isn’t afraid to do whatever it takes to get the job done. That said, we don’t foresee Housh as an elite WR1 candidate in fantasy drafts, but he is about as solid a WR2 candidate as you will find for your fantasy roster in 2009.

For more information on T.J. Houshmandzadeh and over 200 other NFL fantasy draft prospects, be sure to sign up for the Mac Bros fantasy football draft kit which will be released mid-July. After all, it’s free, so be sure to get on board with the best fantasy football draft analysis on the net and bring home the hardware in your league!