FANTASY FOOTBALL PRE-SEASON FEATURES

Gordon signed with the Dolphins and should be nearly an immediate starter. But the Dolphins are still likely to use RBBC and struggle with a bad offensive line.

Minor falls with the signing of Lamar Grodon.

Jones gets a bump up with Eddie George looking like really has played too much, too long. Jones has not shown bigtime ability yet, but his opportunities should be higher than believed before George looked ineffective.

Russell was released by the Dolphins at the 53 man roster limit.

Anderson was cut at the 53 man roster limit.

Cobbs was placed on the PUP list.

Levens was cut at the 53 man roster limit.

Hambrick was traded to the Cardinals for undisclosed draft picks where he once again finds himself behind Emmitt Smith and yet without that bothersome optimism and confidence he had two years ago. Hambrick will likely figure in given the age of Smith, but he has already proven to be only back-up quality at best.

Scobey sniffs the rare air of being the #2 only momentarily before once again sliding back to more familiar ground.

Hearst moves up with Mike Anderson going on Injured Reserve. It is still unlikely that he does anything long-term this season, but until Bell catches on he will serve as the #2 behind Griffin.

Bennett will miss one to three weeks after spraining his right knee and may not be ready to play against Dallas in the opener. He drops three spots from the missed production and increased risk.

Sneaks into the rankings with the acquisition by the Eagles but suppress your expectations.

Moore will serve as the backup to Michael Bennett while Onterrio Smith is suspended for four games and then will back-up Moe Williams.

Smith will not be used in relief of Chris Brown unless absolutely neccessary due to injury.

Back down where he started. Dayne was not nearly as effective in his second preseason game and should not be considered much differently than if he never broke two long runs against an always giving KC defense.

Looked good against the Steelers and cemented the #2 role behind the less than durable Westbrook.

Griffin has weathered the storm and remains the #1 RB in Denver. Thanks to Tatum Bell's broken finger, the true challenge never happened and the Broncos show of Mike Anderson lately is more related to trying to showcase him for a potential trade. He may not last the entire season, but he deserves a bump up as the starter for a team that likes the run.

Brown looks like a safe bet to be a solid player this year and could easily do better than this ranking. We have yet to see what his durability will be like and he does run upright without shying from contact.

Portis gets a slight nudge down from a shakier looking line and the fact Shaun Alexander looks like a safer play this early.

While Jones has not been spectacular in preseason, he has been very solid and recent statements by the coaching staff supports that both he and George will be getting playing time this year. Unfortunately for fantasy owners, it will likely be swapping roles between George and Jones for different games than merely downs.

Smith gets a drop thanks to his four game suspension to start the season. While he will miss the first month, he still could be a nice draft pick available much deeper for you that only pays off later in the season.

Suggs gets another bump up as he continues to play well and hold onto the starting slot in Cleveland. Last night both he had Green had six carries each. Suggs had 63 yards and two TD's while Green only managed 24 yards. There still is no guarantee both will not be mixed this season but Suggs continues to hold to the primary role.

Green is not playing badly, but most importantly he is being showed up by Suggs in preseason games and the risk is greater that Green is not the eventual winner of the primary back derby.

Westbrook gets a bump up with the loss of Buckhalter but after only 116 carries last season, he already was having a hard time staying healthy. Westbrook is only 5'8" and about 200 pounds. He will see more work from the Buckhalter injury but it is not the style of the Eagles to use a single back and Westbrook has not shown the durability to be one regardless.

The Eagles only had four running backs on their roster and just lost Buckhalter. That should mean that Mahe steps up into a #2 role now unless someone else is brought in. Mahe is only 5'10, 210 lbs. so he is not the same size of Buckhalter. At this early date, Mahe is the best candidate for a biggger role in the wake of the Buckhalter injury. Eric McCoo is the only other running back on the Eagle's roster right now.

Buckhalter falls out of the rankings in light of his torn patellar tendon in his right knee. He is expected to miss the 2004 season.

The Texans continue to assert that Hollings will get upwards of 10 carries a game and he has looked good enough this summer to give him the benefit of doubt. While this seems to suggest a drop for Domanick Davis is in order, the reality is that the four backs behind him all have sharing questions as well.

Anderson is now #3 on the depth charts in Arizona, though eventually they may get there this season.

Scobey is now considered the #2 RB in Arizona, over Damien Anderson

All the current talk about the Raiders and Wheatly does not share one thing - no one talks about Hambrick. He's likely to drop even more.

Zereoue gets a bump since the offense has been starting him as the third down back so far in preseason.

Russell had a nice run last week but is being primarily considered as a kick returner since he is only 5'7" and 193 pounds. Even in the current mess in Miami, Russell is likely to only get occasional spot duty if that. Leonard Henry has dropped from the rankings.

Morris is the current #2 in Miami though played mostly as a fullback up until now. The Dolphins are still looking at bringing in a new player (latest - James Jackson) so there is little confidence that Morris will be the one.

Wheatly ran strong in the first preseason game and received accolades from HC Turner who is looking for a power back. Encouraging too was the improved line play of the Raiders so far. He is old and he has never done that much in his career, but this may be the stage he needs. He distanced himself from the veritable heap of runners in Oakland lately.

Jones rises in the rankings as one of the dwindling number of runners who have a lock on the starting role for his team. So far, the new regime is very happy with their free agent pick-up this season and he has been fast and strong in camp.

Brown is looking strong and running hard in camp and preseason games. What he looks like is Eddie George five years ago.

McGahee has been impressive in scrimmages and exhibition games so far and is certainly working his way into a rotation at the very least. He's looked good enough to publicly concern Henry and is likely to rise more depending on more work and coaching decisions. If you have Henry, you better have McGahee.

Henry is watching McGahee get better and better and has already asked to be traded if he is not the starting running back. The slide down may only be starting if McGahee continues to impress.

Barber was the starting RB in the first preseason game, but the two long Dayne scores does not help his case. Chances are Barber will still play better than Dayne and deserves to be drafted first but his numbers are almost certain to be watered down this season and his touchdowns reduced significantly.

Dayne recorded two long touchdowns of 29 and 67 yards in the exhibition game against the Chiefs and "showed something" with a slimmer form and a faster run. A dose of reality so far is that his other nine runs only netted 22 yards and he was facing one of 2003's worst rushing defenses (and that was when they had their first team in all game). What it mostly does is devalue Barber, since Dayne has not given the Giants a reason not to use him much more. Barber has admitted that his carries apparently will be much reduced this season. It is still a little early for the Dayne bandwagon quite yet, but it is headed in the right direction.

Lewis remains, appropriately, a tier one back but falls behind Alexander and Edgerrin James with the potential of a court case in November. It could still be delayed or even dismissed and regardless, Lewis claims he will not miss any playing time even if it is held. The slight risk that offers makes him the end of tier one. If it is delayed or dismissed, he goes back to #6 on the board.

Suggs is helping his case to remain the #1 RB in Cleveland with four carries for 80 yards during the scrimmage with the Bills that included a 50-yard run. William Green only managed six yards on five carries. He is the current front runner for the job and appears to be maintaining it.