Ronnie and Ricky: An Intriguing Pair
Ronnie Brown is coming off ACL surgery and his boy Cam Cameron no longer coordinates the Dolphin offense. Ricky Williams is a strange cat who is on the wrong side of 30 and trying to bounce back from a torn pectoral muscle. But despite all that baggage, this backfield has me intrigued with training camp bearing down on us. Not Brown or Williams individually, per se – the tandem, together, as one unit.
First off, Brown broke out last year in a huge way. He was a beast before he suffered the knee injury, leading the NFL in total yards from scrimmage and notching four consecutive 100-yard rushing games. And for your PPR leaguers, it’s worth noting that he was on pace for 80+ receptions.
Meanwhile, Williams has demonstrated a tremendous work ethic this off-season and he’s healthy. He’s in phenomenal shape, he’s reportedly focused on helping the team, and he’s ready to take whatever part of the load Brown can’t handle.
At this point, we’re not sure exactly how the carries will shake out early in the season, how the young O-line will mesh, and who the QB will be. Yet you can bet your bottom dollar that the Dolphins will be a run-friendly team in 2008. They have no choice, actually. Ted Ginn and Ernest Wilford can’t carry an offense on their unproven shoulders. And no quarterback on their roster has any upside at all.
So I’m going to go out on a limb and speculate that head coach Tony Sparano is going to run Ronnie and Ricky into the ground in 2008. For fantasy, that’s the kind of situation you may want to capitalize on.
I think this will be one of the more productive RBBCs in the NFL this year, of course, assuming Brown doesn’t have any major setbacks in-season. You’ll love what Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew give you and you should enjoy success with Willie Parker and Rashard Mendenhall. But consider the value you could get with Ronnie and Ricky. Many will be scared off by Brown’s surgically repaired ACL and Williams’ past transgressions. You shouldn’t be when the price is right.
You won’t go out on a limb, but I will. Die hard Phish fan, and I love to see my boys get some Dap from Zap. I think they will produce some great numbers, Sparano will run, run run this year. Ricky will produce more than guys like Fred Taylor in RBBC. I usually don’t like targetting guys on my favorite team, but Ricky is getting targetted because he is a great value. Drafted pretty late in the mock drafts and real drafts I have done so far.
Comment by JBeau — July 17, 2008 @ 11:49 am
No way would I spend a late first/early second round pick on Brown. There are too many more reliable options in those spots. A late round flyer on Ricky does sound intriguing though.
Comment by Doug — July 17, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
Well, I has hardly condoning taking Brown that early. That would just be reckless. But if you see your competition avoiding the Miami RBs, don’t hesitate to pounce.
Comment by Zap — July 17, 2008 @ 4:56 pm
Where does Zap say anything about a late 1st/early 2nd? His ADP is in the 3rd, meaning you should be able to get Brown in the late 2nd or possibly even in the early 3rd. If I get a top 3 pick in my draft, I’m taking my RB De Jur, a top QB/WR (depending on who’s there and no better RB has slipped that far), and Ronnie Brown on my way back up in the 3rd. As long as I can still get Ricky at the end of the 8th, I’m going to be very happy with my 1st 3 picks.
Comment by Bryan — July 17, 2008 @ 7:50 pm
My bad. I was looking at RB rankings, not ADP.
Comment by Doug — July 18, 2008 @ 6:36 am
i’ll let someone else take a chance on ronnie in the 3rd. if he’s there in the 4th, i’ll think about it…
taking ricky late is something i have been trying to do in mocks though. i’ve seen him go pretty late.
Comment by JOOCE — July 18, 2008 @ 8:02 am
Jooce, every league is different, so Ronnie in the 4th might not be out of the realm of possibilities, although it’s a longshot. Late 3rd, if I had say a Gore and a Wayne, I’d go for Brown and handcuff him to Williams.
Comment by Zap — July 18, 2008 @ 8:58 am