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James has a lot of wear and tear on his body, as he has averaged 317 carries over the course of his NFL career. Those carries (and the subsequent pounding administered by defenders) are starting to show in his yards-per-carry average. Prior to last season, James, saw his YPC average drop three consecutive years. In his nine-year career, James has averaged less than 4.1 YPC only three times, and two of those were the past two seasons.

James’ contribution to the passing game has been reduced considerably during his time with the Cardinals, as he has averaged only 31 receptions per year, compared to his 51 receptions he averaged with the Colts. Even though he has received the lion’s share of carries last season (324 of 365 RB carries), between himself, Marcel Shipp, and J.J. Arrington, he’s been the recipient of fewer than half of the RB receptions (24 of 57 RB receptions). Then again, with only 57 receptions between the three of them, the Cardinals clearly don’t depend use their running backs much in the passing game. If this trend continues, Edge’s upside will once again be limited. The lack of upgrades on the offensive line doesn’t bode well, either.

James’ fantasy success this season depends primarily on two things: the offensive line and the maturation of Leinart. Clearly the offensive line in Arizona is not on par with the line James had the benefit of running behind in Indianapolis. Will we ever see YPC averages like James saw in Indy? In his two seasons preceding his arrival to the desert, he averaged 4.4 YPC. If the O-line were to provide him the kind of protection that would allow him to even sniff anywhere near 4.4 YPC, James could be looking at 1,300-1,400 rushing yards based on his 33-carry average in Arizona. That, of course, is unlikely to happen. To be fair to the offensive line, James is not the same back he once was when he was with the Colts. For the 2008 season, consider Edge a medium-risk/medium-reward investment

Player you should not draft at what is his perceived draft slot and only should be picked up later because you (me) have the feeling he will under perform.

Every fantasy owner I know has players that they just shy away from during drafts for one reason or another, and I do the same.

Clinton Portis- Portis had a very good overall season in 2007, but was fairly inconsistent. Out of the 13 weeks in the fantasy season, Portis only had over 100 total yards 4 times, although he did perform well in fantasy playoff season.  Between his injury concerns that are very real, and the fact that there are still too many fantasy owners out there who think he will be a consistent top 5 back, I just have to look for other options.

Laurence Maroney-  There are two main reasons I stay away from Maroney; his total lack of chances and his injury history. In 2007 he only had 2 games in the regular season where he attempted at least 20 rushes, but he had 7 with fewer than 15 attempts. In his two seasons he has already missed 5 games and was limited in quite a few others. Add to this that he does not get a lot of chances on third down, as he is not a great receiver. Sammy Morris will spell trouble for Maroney.

Any Denver Running Back-  For the last 5 years, Denver’s leading rusher has been different every year.  Even when all consensus seems to favor one runner, it never works out that way. With this year’s group, Selvin Young, Andre Hall, Ryan Torain and newly acquired Michael Pittman, it is anyone’s guess who will play in 2008. Shanahan’s version of musical chairs.

I will not draft these guys , unless of course, they fall to me WELL below their normal draft position.