Spotlight - WR Peter Warrick & Kelley Washington, Cincinnati Bengals
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Posted 8/22 by Jason Wood and David Yudkin, Exclusive to Footballguys.com
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Jason Wood's Thoughts
Peter Warrick acquitted himself nicely last year. After coming out of college
with much fanfare and a reputation for making game breaking plays in a variety
of manners, he struggled to establish himself as a difference maker in his first
three seasons with the Bengals. Yet, under new head coach Marvin Lewis, Warrick
set career highs for receptions (79), yards (819) and touchdowns (7); which
collectively were good enough for Warrick to rank 16th among fantasy receivers.
Warrick benefited from the presence of Chad Johnson, who is among the top five
or six best receivers in the league and draws frequent double teams. Johnson's
ability to score from anywhere on the field opened the middle of the field where
Warrick did his best work. Warrick lacks the ability to get separation, and
he's not going to beat too many corners deep (witness his career 10.6 yards
per reception) but he's sure handed, runs precise routes, and is a proven scoring
threat.
Kelley Washington, seeing the field for the first time in 2003, is a physical
specimen who lacks neither the confidence nor the athletic ability to differentiate
himself on the field if given the opportunity. Yet, having one season of 22
receptions, 299 yards and 4 touchdowns isn't exactly a resume that begs comparisons
to young Jerry Rice.
So what has changed between this year and last that would suggest Washington
has a reasonable chance of overtaking Warrick as the team's WR2?
- Peter Warrick's knee injury - Peter Warrick tore knee cartilage in
Week 16 last season, and although he played in the final game, Warrick underwent
surgery this offseason to correct the problem. Warrick was forced to sit out
the majority of the team's minicamps and according to HC Marvin Lewis, Kelley
Washington played well in Peter's stead. To be clear, Warrick appears ready
to participate in training camp and enters camp as the team's starter opposite
Chad Johnson, but this bears watching as the team puts on the pads, is Warrick
really 100% healthy?
- Carson Palmer at QB - Carson Palmer takes over for Jon Kitna as the
Bengals' starting quarterback. Whether Palmer will be as productive in his
first year is up for debate, but what's not in question is the fact that Palmer
and Washington spent the majority of last season building a rapport during
practice. As second teamers, it was Washington who caught a good chunk of
Palmer's throws; the same throws that wowed the coaching staff enough to name
him a starter this year despite Kitna's impressive showing.
- The System - Offensive Coordinator Bob Bratkowski wants the team
to throw downfield. It was Palmer's ability to throw the deep ball with accuracy
that primarily led to Kitna's displacement. It is that same focus on the vertical
passing game which may serve to increase Washington's role. Warrick, talented
as he may be, is a more natural slot receiver. Sure handed, able to make catches
for first downs in traffic, but NOT a deep threat.
Positives for Warrick
- Sure handed, and a precise route runner
- A dangerous open field runner, used on reverses and draws as well as WR
screens
- A proven contributor in this offense, enters camp as a starter
Negatives for Warrick
- Must show he's 100% healthy after offseason knee surgery
- Limited downfield threat, averaged less than 11 yards per catch over his
career
- Invaluable as a punt returner, team could use him in that role & slot
receiver to optimize his value
Positives for Washington
- Physically imposing, has the size/speed combination that elicits comparisons
to Terrell Owens
- Has a rapport with Carson Palmer from spending time on the 2nd team together
last year
- Played well in Warrick's stead during minicamps
Negatives for Washington
- History of injuries, including a fused spine
- Attitude issues (think prima donna) doesn't resonate well with coaches,
especially a hard nosed coach like Marvin Lewis
- Must improve his route running and consistency to legitimately displace
Warrick in the lineup
Final Thoughts
Both receivers are talented enough to start opposite Chad Johnson. In Warrick,
you have a proven commodity who doesn't appear to have a 1,000+ yard level of
upside but will make the most out of what he's given; convert first downs, work
the middle of the field, and contribute as a runner and return man. Washington
is "Mr. Potential" who has yet to prove himself, but showed glimpses
last season (4 touchdowns in 22 receptions). Ultimately, I believe both players
will be used heavily this year as Carson Palmer spreads the ball around. It
wouldn't surprise me if Washington had slightly better stats than Warrick, or
vice versa, but when you consider Warrick is being drafted as a WR3 in most
drafts while Washington is being taken as a WR5/WR6; I think the smart move
is to place your bets on Washington very late and let someone else count on
Warrick repeating last season's success.
David Yudkin's Thoughts
A big question mark heading into training camp and the regular season is how
the Bengals' offense will fair with unproven QB Carson Palmer leading the offense.
Overall, QB that have had limited time as starters historically have not been
very productive fantasy performers, although there have been some exceptions.
Palmer may do well, but there's a decent chance he will struggle. There's little
doubt that his primary target will be Chad Johnson, but how the rest of the
WR workload will be divided is a bit of a mystery.
Bearing that in mind, let's review the outlook for the two players battling
for the WR2: incumbent Peter Warrick and challenger Kelley Washington.
- Warrick, 5'11", 195 lbs, was a first round pick out of Florida State
(4th overall) in 2000. He looked promising his rookie season, totaling 740
combined yards with 6 TD, ranking as the #31 WR. His next two seasons, he
didn't really live up to the promise and the hype expected of him, ranking
51st and 49th. Fans and coaching staff alike began to wonder if Warrick would
ever be productive, but in 2003 he jumped to the #16 WR ranking with 962 combined
yards and 7 TD.
- Washington, 6'2", 223 lbs, suffered a freak injury playing baseball
at the University of Tennessee. What was thought to be a concussion ended
up requiring two vertebrae to be fused in his neck. Prior to the injury, Washington
was projected as a late first round pick but instead fell to the top of the
third round, where the Bengals snagged him as the 65th pick in the 2003 draft.
The knock on Washington was his limited speed and poor route running, but
his toughness and ability to catch the ball was never questioned.
Last year, Washington began to get more involved in the offense in the latter
part of the season, scoring 3 TD in the final 5 games of the season. His neck
injury did not seem to impact him much at all, although he did experience some
hamstring issues that limited his time on the field.
This offseason, Washington earned praise and accolades after a very strong
minicamp. Coach Marvin Lewis commented that "Kelley has been working extremely
hard this offseason. He's competing with Peter Warrick to be a starter."
Heading into camp, there has been some talk of Warrick potentially moving into
the slot, which might negatively impact his overall value.
Positives for Warrick
- First round draft picks often get the benefit of the doubt and get preferential
treatment. The Bengals invested a lot in Warrick and that could still play
in his favor
- Warrick had a much better your last year and could be rewarded for being
a lot more productive
- Has first step quickness and quick off of the line, which would be a great
benefit if the Bengals could manage to spread the field and get Warrick single
coverage. Had a 77-yard TD last year
Negatives for Warrick
- Some feel he has a questionable best work ethic. Has on occasion been labeled
as lazy, dropping balls due to concentration lapses, and missing routes
- How likely is Warrick to get almost 150 rushing yards again?
- If Palmer struggles, it seems reasonable that Chad Johnson's numbers will
not suffer but those of the other WR will
Positives for Washington
- Received rave reviews from coaches during minicamp. and practice. The buzz
was circulating on Washington
- Any WR that could produce an 11 catch, 256 yard receiving effort (vs LSU)
in a Division I college football game has to have some serious skills
- Unlike Warrick, the scuttlebutt on Washington has been that he has worked
his tail off and has made great strides to better himself and learn the game
at the NFL level
Negatives for Washington
- His neck injury was once feared to be so severe that it could have ended
his career. Whether this will impact Washington's career short term, long
term, or not at all is hard to predict
- With Warrick having a very strong year in 2003, Washington will have an
uphill battle to gaining the #2 WR job
- Only has had 22 receptions in his brief career, so how much he has mastered
the pro game is still unknown
Final Thoughts
Warrick probably will not rank as high as he did last year, although he should
still be a decent consideration for fantasy teams that start 3 WR. Washington
should continue to improve as the season progresses and at some point should
at least get even production wise compared to Warrick. He may even surpass him
altogether and limit Warrick to three WR sets. I'm not that optimistic as others
are on Washington, as I don't see Washington becoming the clear starter and
Warrick riding the bench.
Quotations from the Message Board Thread
To view the entire Player Spotlight thread (there's a ton of fantastic commentary
in there), click here.
KKrew:
"I see the Bengals offense taking a slight step backwards in 2004. Why?
Simply because they'll experience a few growing pains with Carson Palmer at
the helm. CJ is the prime target & will continue to be 'the' guy. Washington
& Warrick will share the leftovers ... which aren't all that bad."
Iwannabeacowboybaby!:
"I watched a lot of Bengals games last year and I was really impressed
with K. Washington. He's got good hands, speed and gets open. Plus, Cincinnati's
coaches were not afraid to throw to him in the redzone; they definitely had
plays drawn up to go to him, that's huge."
Birdie048:
"The part of Kelley Washington I like is he & Carson Palmer did
a lot of 2nd string work together last year. The 2 were always working together
getting timing & chemistry down. Warrick had the "I am not the 2nd
team" attitude and did not make any effort to work with Palmer. It will
show this year."
smasher10:
"Kelley Washington is 6-3 225 lbs and built like a truck. Physically
looks a lot like Terrell Owens. I'm a UT fan and watched him play there his
freshman year, he dominated the competition. Yes, he was a 23 year old freshman
but he hadn't played football in 4 years and just stepped in and killed people."
Peter Warrick Projections
Source |
Rec
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Yards
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TDs
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FntPts
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Jason Wood |
62
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620
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4
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86
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David Yudkin |
65
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700
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6
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106
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Message Board Consensus |
54
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613
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3
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79
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Kelley Washington Projections
Source |
Rec
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Yards
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TDs
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FntPts
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Jason Wood |
50
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690
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4
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93
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David Yudkin |
45
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600
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4
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84
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Message Board Consensus |
62
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796
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5
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111
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