Still Big Fantasy Value at SMU
Without wide receiver Aldrick Robinson, questions abound regarding how well quarterback Kyle Padron will do without Robinson. And the bigger question is which wide receivers will step up and be the beneficiary of Robinson’s departure. In most leagues, there should be five or six Mustangs on somebody’s roster…you just need to get the right ones.
Kyle Padron, QB
Padron threw for 3,828 yards and 31 touchdowns last season. He also threw 14 interceptions, but considering he put the ball in the air 508 times, 14 interceptions is not too bad. Padron is not much of a rushing threat, but he did score four times on the ground. With 4,000 yards a distinct possibility, Padron should be drafted in every fantasy league and will make a great top quarterback.
Zach Line, RB
In a passing offense, Zach Line often gets overlooked. However, he will be on the field a lot this season. Line carried the ball 244 times last season and the next highest rusher had just 33 attempts. As long as Line is physically capable of being in the backfield, Coach June Jones will have him there. Line, a bruising 6-1, 230 pound junior, rushed for 1,465 yards and ten touchdowns in 2010 and should be in for a big 2011 campaign. There are some more dynamic rushers out there, but Line will make a good third or fourth running back in most leagues.
Cole Beasley, WR
Even with Aldrick Robinson on the team last year, it was Cole Beasley who led the Mustangs with 87 receptions. He was not the big play receiver that Beasley was, but he could emerge as that player. Even if he does not, quarterback Kyle Padron will look his way very often and there is little reason to doubt that Beasley cannot catch 87 or more passes again this time around.
Darius Johnson, WR
Darius Johnson will not be too far behind Cole Beasley on most draft boards. He caught 78 passes for 845 yards and six touchdowns last year. With Aldrick Robinson gone, Johnson should get even more looks this season.
Terrance Wilkerson, WR
So who is going to step up and play behind Cole Beasley and Darius Johnson? Terrance Wilkerson is one option. The 5-10 senior missed last season, but he was third on the team with 42 receptions for 527 yards and four touchdowns back in 2009. Considering Emmanuel Sanders and Aldrick Robinson were the two players ahead of him in receptions and yards, Wilkerson is expected to be one of Coach Jones’ four receivers.
Bradley Haynes, WR
There may not be enough passing to go around for there to be four viable wide receivers on SMU, but that does not mean Bradley Haynes is not worth a late round flyer in deeper leagues. As a junior last year he caught 35 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns. Obviously Haynes was the receiver that was often left out of the mix, but at 6-3, he is the big target on this team. He was last year too and did not get too many touches out of it, but he will have an opportunity and for an SMU receiver he is worth a late round draft pick.
Read the in-depth football preview for this team
