What are your projections for Tavon Austin?
Rizzla: Coach Jeff Fisher admitted to not revealing how they plan to use Tavon during the regular season during preseason action so the opposition would not have film to gameplan on. Expect the Rams to employ Tavon as the moveable chess piece he was drafted to be lining him up in the slot, out wide and in the backfield. 1,500 all purpose yards seems like a cinch here as he carries considerable special teams value but from scrimmage I expect him to flirt with 1,000 yards with about 800 receiving yards and 150-200 rushing yards. Lost in the hoopla over who was going to start at running back for the Rams was the fact the Tavon is fully capable of pounding the rock 6-8 times a game out of the backfield if so needed.
Jhas: As I was writing this, Tavon Austin just fumbled his reception in the Rams’ fourth pre-season game (PVR’d), so I may have a bit of bias. Last year, Sam Bradford spread the ball around as indicated by four players having at least 40 receptions. But with Amendola and Brandon Gibson gone, Austin has a huge opportunity to become the go-to-guy in St. Louis. A line with 6 touchdowns and 750 yards is my projection for Austin this season.
Who is the top running back behind Eddie Lacy?
Rizzla: In dynasty leagues one could make the argument for Marcus Lattimore or Christine Michael who may well be the two most talented running backs in this draft class but for redraft league purposes I have to go with Giovani Bernard who will make himself a fantasy asset in both standard and PPR leagues. Montee Ball is a close second and I thought of selecting him until I remembered Bernard excelling at the goal line in preseason action. Bernard may not be named the starter immediately but he faces a much less cloudy situation with Hue Jackson and Marvin Lewis as opposed to John ‘veteran deference’ Fox who seems destined to employ some sort of RBBC until Montee runs with the job.
Jhas: Christine Michael may have the most talent of the bunch, but Giovani Bernard appears to have best opportunity to put up big numbers in his rookie year. Based on preseason play, whether he or Green-Ellis starts, Bernard should be the goal-line back of choice in Cincinnati. During the preseason, he scored three 1-yard touchdowns.
