Fantasy Football: Avoid this QB, these RBs, this WR, this TE in draft

Here are five players you should avoid at all costs in your fantasy drafts:

Tom Brady, QB, Patriots – If you’re hell-bent on winning Weeks 5-7, draft Brady. He’s going to come back from that four game suspension madder than a hornet in a mason jar and will lite the league on fire for a bit. But expect him to cool down the stretch. He threw for 300-plus yards just one time in the final seven games of last season – and he was mighty pissed off from Deflategate last year too if you remember. The whole idea of piecing together the first four weeks at QB with Brady riding the bench is a bad strategy.

Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings – “Fantasy football: Teddy Bridgewater injury moves Adrian Peterson to No. 1” was a headline in the Washington Post this week. We couldn’t disagree more. Defenses will be focusing on Peterson more than ever now and if Mike Zimmer thinks about using him as a workhorse back – carrying the ball 25 times per game – he will absolutely get injured. Peterson’s one of the greatest fantasy players of all-time, but he’s 31-years-old now (ancient in RB terms). Grab him if 10 other owners are down on him, but in terms of being a top five pick this year … pass.

Devonta Freeman, RB, Falcons – Freeman had a five game stretch in the first half of last season where he rushed for 578 yards total (115.6 per game). After Halloween? Not one 100-yard rushing game. There’s a reason why Tevin Coleman was the starting back for the Falcons at the start of last season. There’s a decent chance Freeman was a flash in the pan.

Jason Witten, TE, Cowboys – Witten has posted back-to-back years of just 703 and 713 yards receiving. Decent numbers, but far from his heyday of racking up 1,000-plus per season. And Tony Romo’s down and out.

Randall Cobb, WR, Packers – With Jordy Nelson out in 2015, Cobb had a career-high 129 targets. Somehow, he had significantly less yardage last season than he did the year before (1,287 vs. 829). Nelson is now back, Eddie Lacy is in shape (for real this time!), so expect Cobb’s numbers to plummet.