RB Steven Jackson - St. Louis by Chris Smith
Running backs are always at a premium in dynasty fantasy leagues. The Rams RB Steven Jackson's immediate production is likely to be small, but he has the most upside over the long haul. There are three reasons to select Jackson 1st overall in dynasty drafts this season. Those reasons are (a) talent (b) desire and (c) situation.

(a) Talent - Obviously one of the first things to look for in dynasty leagues is a player's overall talent and ability. Jackson shines in this category. In his last two seasons at Oregon State, Jackson ran for 3235 yards on 669 carries, caught 61 passes and scored 39 touchdowns. He has great size and runs with both power and elusiveness. He gets better as the game goes on as he wears down opposing defenses. He has also been blessed with soft hands and is going to be a very big part of the passing game in the NFL.

(b) Desire - Jackson wants to be the best in the NFL some day. He has stated he doesn't mind coming in and backing up a future Hall of Famer in Marshall Faulk and plans on learning every thing he can from the gifted back. Jackson quote (Post-Dispatch), "…right now, I'm here to be a student. Marshall has had a great career and is going to be a Hall of Famer. So whatever I can learn from him is going to be unbelievable."

(c) Situation - The rams are a high-octane offense in which a running back can truly shine. There is a great opportunity to not only carry the ball 300+ times but also to catch 70+ passes each season. When Jackson does get his chance, he will get the ball in his hands a bunch.

While other rookie running backs are more likely to contribute this season due to their situations, Jackson has the skills to become a perennial top-ten fantasy running back beginning in 2005 or 2006. His professional career will start slowly much like RB Deuce McAllister's did in New Orleans and he will have similar success once he gets his opportunity.

RB Julius Jones - Dallas by Will Grant
If the Cowboys had drafted Steven Jackson at #22 this year instead of trading the pick to Buffalo, this answer would have been a no-brainer. Instead, the Cowboys waited until #43 to draft their running back of the future. Even though Julius Jones was the fifth running back selected this year, he should still be the guy you consider if you have the #1 pick in a dynasty league.

Here's why:

• In a dynasty league, a team's strength begins with their running backs. If you can draft a dominant RB in his rookie season, your team will have a solid source of points for years to come. Jones has all but officially been named as the Cowboys feature back, and they are currently fielding trade offers for last year's #1, Troy Hambrick. If Hambrick stays with the Cowboys, they'll probably move him back to Fullback and give Jones the green light to take over the starting role. Given Hambrick's meager stats last year (292 touches and 1071 yards from scrimmage), it is easy to see why Jones will be given every opportunity to shine. As a team, the Cowboys ran the ball 515 times for just under 2000 yards last season. As the full time starter, Jones should see the lion's share of those carries.



• Jones has great physical skills, including excellent vision, quick feet and a good speed burst. These skills served him well in college, and should ease his transition into the NFL. His kick return skills will also help as the Cowboys like their RBs to be involved on special teams as well. Jones started 17 games for Notre Dame and posted 634 carries for 3018 yards (4.8 avg.) If Jones receives 70% of the Cowboys' carries in 2004, at 4.0 YPC he'll have over 1400 yards rushing. Tack on another 150 receiving yards and eight or nine TDs, and Jones should finish in the top 15 Running Backs as a rookie. If the Cowboys can focus on improving the offensive line next year, the sky's the limit.

RB Kevin Jones - Detroit by Aaron Rudnicki
RB will always be the most important position in a normal fantasy football league. RB is also a position where rookies are most likely to make an immediate impact. Therefore, unless the draft class is very questionable (i.e., 2003), a rookie RB should always go #1 overall in a dynasty draft. Along with many, I felt there were 2 RBs that stood out from the rest in terms of their overall talent level this year - Steven Jackson and Kevin Jones. Steven Jackson would have deserved strong consideration for the #1 overall pick if he was in a better situation, but he's likely to backup Marshall Faulk for another year or two before he's given the feature back role.

Meanwhile, Jones ended up in Detroit with a team that has been desperate for a feature RB ever since Barry Sanders quit. The pieces are coming together for a very productive offense and the last piece to the puzzle is Kevin Jones. They have an improving young QB, a young and talented WR core, and a solid offensive line that just added a big free agent in Damien Woody. Throw in an offensive minded head coach and very little competition for the starting job and things are looking very good for KJ.

Not only do I think he's in a great situation, but I also believe he has the talent to be a special RB. He's got great size, sprinter speed, and natural RB skills of balance, vision, and patience. He demonstrated impressive receiving skills during his workouts, so the only remaining question about him is his ability to run inside. Given his overall strengths, and considering he is probably the most explosive RB in this class, I'm willing to take a chance that he can be the next great RB. His upside is tremendous and makes him a very worthy selection as the #1 overall pick in a dynasty league. The Lions ranked Jones as the #1 RB for a reason and traded up to get him. Fantasy owners should do the same.

QB Eli Manning - NY Giants by Mark Wimer
Eli Manning is a scion of one of pro-football's first families. Archie Manning put up less-than-impressive career statistics (2011/3642 for 23,911 yards, 125 TDs and 173 interceptions) - but his oldest son Peyton Manning has been a total fantasy machine (2128/3383 for 24,844 yards, 167 TDs and 110 interceptions) during the past 6 seasons. Peyton Manning has never missed a start, and has tossed 4,000+ yards passing every year since his rookie campaign.

All the talk about Eli Manning not being his brother is right: Eli Manning was willing to go into the pressure-cooker at Ole Miss (the senior Manning's Alma Mater) whereas Peyton Manning wasn't a Rebel. All Eli Manning did while playing in the SEC was to amass the following passing statistics: 2001 - 259/408 (63.5 completion %) for 2948 yards, 31 TDs and 9 interceptions; 2002 - 279/481 (58.0 completion %) for 3401 yards, 21 TDs and 15 interceptions; 2003 - 275/441 (62.4 completion %) for 3600 yards, 29 TDs and 10 interceptions. His quarterback rating was above 140 in 2 of his 3 seasons starting at Ole Miss (topping out at 148.1 last season).

Manning's receiving corps in New York is very solid. Amani Toomer (hasn't missed a game in 7 years, with over 1,000 yards receiving in 5 straight years) headlines, with Ike Hilliard and TE Jeremy Shockey in support (not to mention Tiki Barber snagging balls out of the backfield). Kerry Collins threw for 3500+ yards (4076 in 2002) in 3 out of the last 4 seasons in New York, and Manning has a better nose for the endzone and takes better care of the ball than Collins ever has during his career.

A dynasty league rookie draft is all about drafting guys who will be consistently solid players that are durable, long-term contributors at the top of their respective position, statistically speaking. Considering that none of the RBs in this year's draft rated as topflight prospects, I can see no better long-term prospect among the rookies this season than QB Eli Manning.