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2002 Fantasy award winners

Priest Holmes proved he was no fluke, scoring 24 TDs in 14 games this season. AP

By Bob Harris, Special to CNNSI.com

Wow. ... Another season has come and gone. The good news, however, lies in the fact its frantic pace was matched if not outpaced by the remarkable number of exciting, record-breaking, controversial and, in many cases, exceptionally fantasy-friendly performances posted by both established and emerging stars.

All of which, of course, was balanced by some frighteningly unexpected and often downright disappointing efforts.

Which brings us to the point of this week's column: It's time to hand out the hardware!

Those of you who haven't been following along the past two seasons will find a full breakdown of the award criteria and history included with the 2001 Back Page Awards.

With that out of the way, let's get down to business, eh?

Fantasy MVP: Priest Holmes, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
(First-quarter winner: Priest Holmes, RB, Kansas City Chiefs; second-quarter winner: Drew Bledsoe, QB, Buffalo Bills; third-quarter winner: Hines Ward, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers; fourth-quarter winner: Rich Gannon, QB, Oakland Raiders)

This was far from a slam dunk. Sure, Holmes, who led the league in rushing in 2001, was doing the same again this year when he went down awkwardly and injured a hip on the tail end of a 56-yard run against the Broncos in Week 14.

Despite his phenomenal numbers -- 1,615 yards rushing (2,287 total yards from scrimmage) and 24 touchdowns, I had reservations about naming a guy who spent the final two games of the season, a.k.a Fantasy Crunchtime, watching from the sidelines in street clothes my 2003 Fantasy MVP.

But the truth is, before his untimely injury the diminutive Holmes was well on his way to finishing the 2002 campaign with one of the most prolific offensive performances in the history of the game.

And if you think that's going a bit overboard, I'll remind you that by scoring a touchdown in 11 straight games, the former Raven tied the NFL record set almost 40 years earlier by Hall of Famer Lenny Moore. Holmes was also two touchdowns short of the NFL record and 142 yards from scrimmage short of crushing yet another NFL record.

But the argument that ultimately won me over came from a neighbor -- a card-carrying member of Raider Nation, no less -- who argued that even though he wasn't there for most championship games, Holmes was still the horse many an owner rode to that game. That's a distinction they almost certainly wouldn't have been able to lay claim to without Holmes in their stable.

Bottom line? We're all well aware of the difference between NFL greatness and fantasy greatness, but you'd have to be crazy not to recognize Holmes' 2002 effort for what it was: one of the most impressive seasons ever by an NFL running back.

Fantasy Flop: Marshall Faulk, RB, St. Louis Rams
(First-quarter winner: Randy Moss, WR, Minnesota Vikings; second-quarter winner: Anthony Thomas, RB, Chicago Bears; third-quarter winner Tim Brown, WR, Oakland Raiders; fourth-quarter winner: Ahman Green, RB, Green Bay Packers)

It might come across as ungrateful and harsh, given his long history of superior performance and the fact he obviously wasn't able to work at full speed for much of the season, but based on the draft pick most owners burned to secure his services this year, Faulk might be one of the biggest flops in recent memory.

How bad was it?

Let me put it this way: Saying the former San Diego State star, who racked up a whopping 47 touchdowns over the two previous seasons, came up small in 2002 would be akin to Noah saying it looked a little like rain.

In addition to putting the kibosh on his a streak of five straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons, Faulk's 10-TD output was even more disappointing due to the fact he scored No. 10 on Nov. 3 and failed to find the end zone for the remainder of the season.

Ouch.

My guess says you won't have to look any further than your own league to find an example of the devastating impact Faulk's shortcomings had on owners across the land this year.

On a more positive note, Pro Football Weekly reported early this month that Faulk already has vowed to be the first one to show up and set the example for what is expected to be a much more demanding conditioning program this offseason.

Which is more than enough for me to immediately install Faulk as the early favorite to earn 2003 Comeback Player of the Year honors (feel free to check back about this time next year).

Ambush Award: Clinton Portis, RB, Denver Broncos
(First-quarter winner: Donald Driver, WR, Green Bay Packers; second-quarter winner: Tai Streets, WR, San Francisco 49ers; third-Quarter winner; Koren Robinson, WR, Seattle Seahawks; fourth-quarter winner: Chad Pennington, QB, New York Jets)

This one was closer than you might have guessed. I really like the way Chad Pennington came out and made the Jets his team with a combination of fiery leadership and outstanding play -- a level of play high enough to allow those around him to pick up their own game a notch or two.

However, Portis, who entered the season as the third option in a three-man rotation, came on stronger than any other player in the league, especially over the final two weeks of the season when it counted the most.

That's right. Portis, who finished the season with one of the greatest rookie campaigns in NFL history (his 1,508 rushing yards ranked fifth on the all-time rookie yardage list, while his 17 combined TDs ranked third best all-time), was a difference maker down the stretch.

Talk about your Decembers to remember. The former Hurricane racked up 672 yards rushing, 154 yards receiving and scored nine touchdowns over the final five weeks of the year.

Denver Post beat man Patrick Saunders suggested way back in August, "Portis is a special player. He has great speed, the ability to baffle defenders and a swagger that serves him well."

Good call.

Especially when you consider we're talking about the 51st player selected in last April's NFL Draft and a guy who went for next to nothing in most Fantasy drafts.

Top Comeback Player: Jamal Lewis, RB, Baltimore Ravens
(First-quarter winner: Drew Bledsoe, QB, Buffalo Bills; Second-quarter winner: Tommy Maddox, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers; Third-Quarter winner: Curtis Martin, RB, N.Y. Jets; Fourth-Quarter winner: Tommy Maddox, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers)

Despite the comeback-within-a-comeback Tommy Maddox pulled off after suffering a frightening -- and what appeared at the time to be a career-threatening injury -- in Tennessee on Nov 17, I went in another direction with this one.

While he was far from the most imposing or dominating back in the league, Lewis gets the nod here based in large part on something Bill Parcells reminded viewers of during an appearance on ESPN's NFL Countdown late last month:

For every running back that returns from a torn ACL, there are 20 others who don't.

That being the case, it's hard not to go with a guy who -- in his FIRST year back from reconstructive surgery -- ran for 1,327 yards on 308 carries, a total made even more impressive by the overall lack of talent surrounding him in Baltimore. The former Volunteer also tied for third in the league with 10 carries of 20 yards or more, including a season-long 75-yarder.

Ask Edgerrin James how hard that is.

The Candy Bone Award: Kurt Warner, QB, Rams
(First-quarter winner: Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis Rams; second-quarter winner: Bill Schroeder, WR, Detroit Lions; third-quarter winner: Jay Fiedler, QB, Miami Dolphins; fourth-quarter winner: Donovan McNabb, QB, Philadelphia Eagles)

No surprises here, boys and girls. A no-brainer if ever there was one. Warner missed half of the season with a broken pinkie and a broken bone in his hand, then finished the year on injured reserve after the second break suffered during a Dec. 1 loss to the Eagles.

The end result is that Warner, coming off an NFL-best 36-TD effort (sufficient to him a second NFL MVP award) in 2001, finished the 2002 season with three touchdown passes and 11 interceptions.

Bottom line? Warner had as many broken bones as TD passes. I created the Candy Bone Award with precisely this kind of season in mind.

I'll also remind you that Warner's injury problems weren't limited to the physical world.

That's right. I'm talkin' hurt feelings.

In an article published Jan. 3, St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz warned readers that head coach Mike Martz was hurt when Warner did not apologize after his wife, Brenda, called a radio station to question Martz's honesty over an order to have the former Arena League star's hand X-rayed.

Miklasz added that Martz continues to be sensitive about Warner's health -- to the point where he and team officials insisted Warner undergo thorough testing in order to ease their worries. Along the way, the coach admitted his star signal-caller hasn't been the same in terms of throwing the deep ball since spraining his right thumb in the 2001 season opener at Philadelphia.

On a more positive note, Warner went through the above mentioned battery of tests, suggested by the team, in Los Angeles last week. And according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein, he passed those tests without difficulty.

Which is even better news than originally suspected in light of an item first reported by Sports Illustrated's Peter King, who offered readers the following in an article published Jan. 6:

"I hear team medics have told Rams higher-ups that Marc Bulger will be hard-pressed to ever make it through a 16-game season healthy. The Rams have to be apoplectic over what once seemed like a terrific quarterback situation but now is filled with question marks."

Which reminds me, there is no offseason.

Even as I offer congratulations -- or not, as the case may be -- to all of this year's Fantasy Award winners, I'll also remind you that St. Louis is only one of a handful of teams heading into 2003 with major questions under center. And, of course, the same holds true of all the offensive skill positions.

So stay focused, keep your eye on the prize and check back in on a regular basis over the coming months as I continue to do everything in my power to make you just a little slicker than the next owner.

Bob Harris is Editor and Webmaster of the TFL Report and Senior Editor for Fantasy Sports Publications.

 

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