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As we finish up our first football issue of Fantasy Sports Magazine, the staff has listed the Top 20 rookies in terms of pure fantasy potential just for 2004. With that in mind, here is our Top 20 list:

1. Kevin Jones, RB, Detroit
2. Julius Jones, RB, Dallas
3. Tatum Bell, RB, Denver
4. Kellen Winslow Jr., TE, Cleveland
5. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona
6. Reggie Williams, WR, Jacksonville
7. Roy Williams, WR, Detroit
8. Steven Jackson, RB, St. Louis
9. Greg Jones, RB, Jacksonville
10. Chris Perry, RB, Cincinnati
11. Lee Evans, WR, Buffalo
12. Rashaun Woods, WR, San Francisco
13. Michael Clayton, WR, Tampa Bay
14. Eli Manning, QB, NY Giants
15. Philip Rivers, QB, San Diego
16. Ben Troupe, TE, Tennessee
17. Mike Jenkins, WR, Atlanta
18. Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh
19. Ben Watson, TE, New England
20. Nate Kaeding, K, San Diego

We are looking for feedback before we finalize this story, so feel free to modify our rankings or give us your version of fantasy's Top 20 rookies. Thanks.

I would bump Perry up a few spots, he should get more carries in Cincy than Jacskon will in Det or Jones will in Jacksonville. Look at who the competition is in each city. You really thing R. Johnson is the real deal in Cincy?

Also is Kevin Jones a true lock? Did the Lions dump S. Bryson and not tell anyone. He did have 54 catches last year. The Lions will NEVER be a running team with what they are building. I would move Roy Williams up to the top-3.

1. I'd find a way to get Drew Henson in my top 5... good chance that he'll be the starting QB in Dallas and he does have the goods. (he should clearly be in the top 20, unless you are not considering him a rookie for some reason?)

2. Kevin Jones is not immediately in competition with Bryson for the carries in Detroit. Bryson will be the 3rd down back and the pass-catching specialist. The Lions are incredibly high on Artose Pinner - they feel he would have been a mid first round pick last year if not for his major injury. This will actually be Artose' first real year of playing with the Lions and he is one year of study ahead of Kevin Jones. I'd put Jones back a little, personally.

My top 5 would be:

1. Tatum Bell
2. Kellen Winslow, Jr.
3. Larry Fitzgerald
4. Reggie Williams
5. Drew Henson

Then again - this is without any benefit of training camp reports, etc. - so I'd have a lot of reservations about all of them

Dave

Dyv, you're not a Michigan fan by any chance, are you? Henson hasn't played football for a few years, but you are right he is a rookie and he does have the physical skills. I guess we're not counting on him winning the starting job and even being a productive fantasy QB if he does. We'll see, however, when training camp opens if we're wrong.

I agree that Pinner could be a surprise in Detroit. I met him last year at an NFLPA and he's strong and a smart kid. I agree that he will get a long look and we'll see if Jones can beat him out for the starting job or not.

Nathan, we're not convinced that Marvin Lewis will go into the season with playoff hopes riding high in Cincinnati with a rookie QB (okay, Carson Palmer is a second-year pro, but he didn't play at all last year) and a rookie RB in Chris Perry. Rudi Johnson will still be the workhorse, but we'll watch that situation closely. Thanks for all the input as the feedback has helped.

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:
Dyv, you're not a Michigan fan by any chance, are you? Henson hasn't played football for a few years, but you are right he is a rookie and he does have the physical skills. I guess we're not counting on him winning the starting job and even being a productive fantasy QB if he does. We'll see, however, when training camp opens if we're wrong.
. Of course I'm a Michigan fan...and alum... but don't hold it against me. All it really does is help me in following Michigan-related players

I'm not terribly high on Chris Perry, for example - because although he's solid - he's not going to be a breakaway back. You might get a Jerome Bettis kind of high end production out of him in a few years... which isn't all bad, but he's not going to come in and blow away the league. Even Anthony Thomas was clearly a more productive looking back going in. No way can he run in any open space with Carson Palmer doing nothing to help him out.

One might say Henson has not really been playing baseball for a few years...lol... but he was arguably a #1 overall draft pick had he chosen NFL a few years back. That talent hasn't gone away - and hopefully his football brain hasn't gone away either. His dad was a high end high school football coach in Brighton, MI and Drew has been around the mental side of the game his entire life. If Eli Manning and Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger make your list, then Drew should at least get a shot in the top 20 ahead of some stinking kicker

I don't see Quincy Carter as anything but mediocre... will the Tuna fish for more help or flounder around with Quincy? Tune in for more....

D

One of the things that impressed me the most about Rudi Johnson last season was he had better breakaway speed than I assumed. He had some huge runs last season where he got into the open field pretty quickly and chewed off big yardage. I think he's the real deal, but the Bengals obviously liked Perry and it's also important to remember Rudi will possibly be an unrestricted free agent after this season. If he has a huge year and prices himself out of the Bengals' plans, they could have a possible replacement on the roster with Perry if he proves to be legit.