8/16 Sleeper of the Day: Chad Henne

QB CHAD HENNE, Dolphins

The young man from Michigan was nearly a top-20 QB last year, and that was in just 14 games (13 starts) and with essentially no receivers. It was an up-and-down year, to be sure - he topped 300 yards passing three times but also threw for 140 or fewer three times. But when you consider it was basically Henne's first year (he played sparingly as a rookie in 2008 - it wasn't all that bad.

Fast forward a year, and Miami has raised expectations for its QB. And make no mistake, this is Henne's team now, with former starter Chad Pennington relegated to possible third-string duties. Henne's the man in 2010, and as such the Dolphins have given him a shiny new toy in the form of star WR Brandon Marshall. The once-disgruntled Bronco gives the Miami WR corps an immediate upgrade and makes Henne that much more fantasy relevant. You can pencil in Marshall for at least 100 catches (101, 104 and 102 the past three seasons) and 1,000 yards, which will boost Henne's stats. Brian Hartline and Davone Bess are decent complementary pieces, and the Dolphins figure to have a strong running game their young QB can lean on.

I'm not ready to make any Dan Marino comparisons just yet, but I can foresee Henne being at least a serviceable QB2 in 2010, which places him solidly in the sleeper category.


Photo by The Associated Press

Wideouts bring baggage to AFC East

The AFC East just got a lot more interesting: The Jets and Dolphins have each added a troubled WR (isn't that an oxymoron by now?) to their squads in the past week.

We begin with Santonio Holmes, traded from Pittsburgh to New York for a fifth-round pick. There's no denying his talent - everyone who saw his game-winning catch in Super Bowl XLIII (above) will agree - but let's just say his character leaves something to be desired. He's fresh off an assault charge and he'll be suspended for four weeks in 2010 for violating the league's substance abuse policy.

The Jets were willing to take a chance on Holmes, a 1,000-yard receiver last year with the Steelers who will provide second-year QB Mark Sanchez another option along with wideouts Jerricho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards and TE Dustin Keller. While the trade makes Sanchez a viable fantasy No. 2 QB, it hurts Holmes' value. The Jets are a run-first team, and all those pass-catchers, plus the four-game suspension, make it unlikely Holmes will repeat his 1,000-yard performance. Consider him a No. 3 WR next year.

Oh, and one guy benefits in Pittsburgh: WR Mike Wallace, who should step right in and take up the slack behind No. 1 Hines Ward.

Now we move to Miami, where mercurial wideout Brandon Marshall was sent for two second-rounders. Marshall's troubles in Denver were nearly endless, but so were his talents as a dynamic possession receiver - see his three straight 100-catch seasons, plus last year's 21-catch, 200-yard, two-TD showing in Week 14.

The Dolphins provide Marshall with a number of advantages: A fresh start, a promising young QB in Chad Henne and a clear opportunity to be the No. 1 WR (sorry, Ted Ginn). I expect Marshall to be a good citizen and a top-10 WR in 2010, maybe even top-five.

Hot Pickups: Week 4

FIVE STARS (Out of five):

- RB GLEN COFFEE, 49ers: Frank Gore's understudy got rave reviews in Niners training camp. Now the rookie gets a starting gig with Gore out for the next three weeks with an ankle injury. It doesn't seem like San Fran will hesitate to lean on Coffee - he got 25 carries (for 54 yards) in relief of Gore last week against the run-tough Vikings. Now he gets a crack at the run-soft Rams D on Sunday.


FOUR STARS:

- WR KEVIN WALTER, Texans: Some owner may have lost patience with Walter after he missed Weeks 1 and 2 with a hamstring injury and dropped him. He made them look really bad with a 7-catch, 96-yard, 1-TD effort in Week 3. He's back, and he should be on your team and in your lineup as a No. 2/3 WR or flex player against the Raiders this week.


THREE STARS:

- RB FRED TAYLOR, Patriots: His performance last Sunday (21 carries, 105 yards, TD) will automatically stamp him as a hot pickup in any league in which he's not already owned. There will probably be more of these types of performances to come, too. But be forewarned: He's facing the Ravens this week, and there's a decent chance Laurence Maroney or Sammy Morris or Kevin Faulk could lead the Pats in rushing on any given week.

- WR PIERRE GARCON, Colts: The dude with the cool name (wish I knew how to type that little accent thing under the C in his last name!) has now scored a TD in two straight weeks and seems to be rounding into a big-play threat for Peyton Manning in Anthony Gonzalez's absence. And that means he belongs on a fantasy roster.


TWO STARS:

QB CHAD HENNE, Dolphins: Henne's the man in Miami now that Chad Pennington is out for the season. Does that mean he should be picked up? I'd take a wait-and-see approach for now - chances are the Fins will lean heavily on Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown with a little bit of Pat White mixed in.