The Pigskin Guy

Throughout the boring summer months I will be looking at some fantasy players I love for the upcoming season (Fantasy Gold) and some guys I’m not very high on (Fantasy Junk). In this post I will look at a receiver I’ve been yapping about since he came out of college: Eric Decker.

I have been pushing Decker down people’s throats since he was a rookie. Last year I said Decker would catch 60 balls when very few others were even mentioning his name.  He was well on his way to making me look smart until Tim Tebow took over at quarterback and killed his chances. Still, catching 44 passes for 612 yards and 8 scores when your team is running the option for half the season isn’t too shabby.

Now Decker must feel like he’s died and gone to heaven with Peyton Manning taking over for Tebow. In my opinion no player will benefit more from having Manning in Denver than Decker. Demaryius Thomas is a stud regardless of who is under center. Thomas proved that last year when he was the second best fantasy receiver over the last eight games behind only Calvin Johnson.

It was Decker who really suffered in the Broncos run-oriented offense. Decker is more of a possession receiver and throwing short-to-intermediate passes isn’t Tebow’s strength. Thomas’ numbers stayed high because when Tebow ran out of the pocket to keep plays alive, he looked down the field for Thomas. Decker is going to put up better numbers with a pocket passer. I think I read somewhere that Manning is a pocket passer.

No team in the NFL will look more different on offense this season than the Broncos and Thomas, Decker and tight end Jacob Tamme will all reap the benefits. Manning is going to love Decker. He’s big, physical, runs great routes and has good hands. Manning is really big on trust and he’ll learn early that he can trust Decker early on in training camp. Right now I’m seeing “experts” rate Decker around No. 40 at receiver, which is an absolute joke. That’s the problem with these fantasy geeks; they base their rankings on last year’s stats.

Decker did suffer a sprained MCL in the playoffs but in 2012 that’s like a bruise. He’ll be fine when the season kicks off. Look at it this way: Decker will be playing the exact same position that Austin Collie played in Indianapolis. Before Collie got hurt two years ago he was the leading receiver in fantasy football. I advised everyone to grab Collie a couple of rounds early that year and this season I’m doing the exact same thing with Decker. He’ll catch 70 balls for fun. Mark it down.

The Pigskin Guy’s Projection: 74 receptions, 1,078 yards, 7 Touchdowns
Current Position Rank: 26