FanHouse BrianRobiskie

With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all.

Meet The ...
Team who fooled us all a year ago! So much promise, so much hype and yes so many wasted fantasy picks. The writing was on the wall for doom in Cleveland last season. Many put their faith in Braylon Edwards and Derek Anderson to be the next great QB-WR combination in fantasy football.

This season the Browns remain a little less profile. Jamal Lewis is on the cusp of crashing into the wall, Braylon Edwards is on the trading block and we aren't really 100% sure who the QB will be week in and week out. One thing is pretty certain, you can shelve Donte Stallworth for a very, very, very rainy day.

Braylon Edwards would probably like to get his hands on a time machine and go back 12 months. And as long as we're defying the laws of physics, Derek Anderson would like to hitch a ride, too. A year ago, both players were coming off Pro Bowl seasons.

Today, they're still with the team, but have endured myriad trade rumors, inconsistent play, and for Anderson, a midseason benching.

Yet, training camp is five weeks off and both remain on the roster. New head coach Eric Mangini hasn't named his starting quarterback, although the word on the street is that it's Brady Quinn's job to lose. And Edwards, the club's 2005 first-round pick, is not only off the trading block, but should be an integral part of the Browns' offense.

Perhaps the best way to ease a young NFL quarterback into the starting job is to surround him with playmakers, the support of a suffocating defense, or both. That way, he's seldom in the position of having to win a game, but has the benefit of gaining experience.

The strategy worked for the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, and the Ravens and Joe Flacco and the Falcons and Matt Ryan last season. Pittsburgh was 15-1, Baltimore and Atlanta were 11-5. It helps to have most of the pieces in place before handing over the offense to a young QB, but it's not mandatory; the Ravens won five times the year before Flacco arrived, and the Falcons won four.

In a perfect world, Cleveland would break its first offensive huddle next season, send Braylon Edwards to one side of the field, Donte Stallworth to the other, and both would catch everything thrown in his direction. But, as Browns fans can heartily attest, 'tis not a perfect world.

Bray Bray might get traded because he's got the dropsies, Stallworth is facing DUI manslaughter charges and the Browns' other returning receivers (led by Joshua Cribbs) are role players at best. So new head coach Eric Mangini is doing his best to fill the gaps -- the latest coming with the signing of former Lion Mike Furrey.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

One year removed from a 10-win season, and on the heels of a four-win effort, owner Randy Lerner decided change was in order. He fired head coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Phil Savage and brought in Eric Mangini and George Kokonis.

If the first draft under the new leadership is any indication, the Browns will use the last weekend in April to restock the roster, and eschew high-priced, quick-fix free agents. The previous regime had a healthy mix of the two: Gary Baxter, Eric Steinbach, LeCharles Bentley and Donte' Stallworth were signed as free agents; Kamerion Wimbley, Joe Thomas and Brady Quinn were all high-round draft picks.

We've already given a single post to each of the seemingly most relevant fantasy football impact players from the NFL Draft -- we say seemingly because bust-hood is always a possibility in this business -- but those are by no means the only players who might matter in this coming season. With that in mind, here are the rest of the guys who's impact will be felt:

LeSean McCoy, RB, Eagles (Round 2): If you end up with Brian Westbrook, you absolutely must have McCoy. The shifty stud from Pittsburgh is exactly the type of back Westbrook is, which means he can thrive in this offense.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The Bears enter the NFL Draft in a unique position -- especially for them. They've already made a huge splash in the offseason, and won't have a pick until the middle of the second round. With Jay Cutler in house, the Bears need to give him the weapons to be successful. The situation isn't as dire as many think. Cutler made a 2nd rounder (Eddie Royal) and 3rd rounder (Brandon Marshall) into two of the most explosive players in the league in Denver.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The Indianapolis Colts enter the 2009 season as one of the NFL's marquee franchises. They have made the playoffs nine of the last 10 seasons, and have won at least 12 games for six straight seasons. There's a reason for that. Well, there are many reasons, but everything starts with how well the Colts draft. Beginning with the franchise-making decision to take Peyton Manning over Ryan Leaf in 1998, Bill Polian has missed once in the first round. I imagine Colts fans are pretty trusting of their Team President when Roger Goodell strolls to the podium.

After the Bears made the announcement of their franchise-shattering acquisition of Jay Cutler, they didn't rest. Within a few hours, they announced they had also agreed to terms with venerable left tackle Orlando Pace. I'll admit, I was overly excited about the two new Bears, as were all my Bears fans friends -- which is weird, usually at least one of us disagrees about player movement. Make no mistake about it, though. We aren't delusional. This team is far from complete and the die-hards know it.

With the team still a decent amount below the salary cap and several holes left to fill for 2009, here's what I think the Bears should do.

Jay Cutler is going to the Bears for three draft picks and Kyle Orton. Jay Mariotti has already discussed how much it means to have a good quarterback in Chicago. Still, I bring the voice of the fan, and I've got something to say: I love this move. One thing that's great about sports, though, is there are always opposing fans trying to bring you down.

I've taken time to check out many message boards and comments sections across the internet. What I'm finding, for the most part, is that fans of teams other than the Bears think this is a terrible deal. Their "evidence," though, is usually incredibly flawed. Here are some of the reasons people think the deal is poor for the Bears, followed by my rebuttals.