Marshawn Lynch: Come On Man

Immaturity seems to be the word that comes to mind with Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch. No one can deny Lynch had the talent coming out of the Cal Bears program to be a legit feature running back at the NFL level.

Not only was Lynch a tough runner with solid moves in the open field, but he had good hands for the passing game as well. With a solid rookie season followed by a respectable second year, it only seemed likely that Lynch would be a productive player for years to come.

Sure, he had his issues off the field and was hurt by the fact that Fred Jackson took away valuable touches throughout the 2008 season. Still, Lynch received the bulk opportunities to shine in his first two years, and I didn’t expect that to change even when he started ’09 on a four game suspension.

While I did believe Lynch would struggle last year I thought it would be because the organization dismantled his offensive line in contrast to him conducting his business on and off the field.

Nevertheless,  Lynch failed to come back strong in October as he rushed for more than 69 yards in a game one time and only scored two touchdowns.

Late in the season interim coach Perry Fewell benched Lynch in favor of Jackson for the final six games of the season.

New Year, Bad Early Returns

With a new coaching staff and a projected return to smash mouth offense one would have thought Lynch would be ready to go this March to impress his new coaches.

Yet, here we are with voluntary workouts already started and Lynch is not with the football team.

This is not the type of work ethic his coach are hoping to see (don’t know that for a fact, but, unless there is a good reason for being absent this can’t be good) and fantasy owners shouldn’t feel good about Lynch returning to former production.

That said, it’s still very early in the offseason and things can change as we head closer to September. Just look at Brandon Marshall, just a week before the season started.

Coming off a hip surgery and a team suspension in August it didn’t look like he was going to have a productive fantasy season. Yet, at the end of the year he set the single game reception record and had a solid year for fantasy owners.

No doubt, Marshall came at a cheap price in drafts last year (I got him in the ninth round in one very competitive league) and his return on value was terrific.

Since Lynch is a talent, he could still make for a cheap draft pick for depth on your fantasy team. If he fails to produce, scrap him after the first few games. Just don’t expect Lynch to be a starter for your fantasy team to start the season.

NFL fantasy football player rankings writer Sean E. Douglas: fantasy-info.com

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