Free agency: Wide receiver impact
Most wideouts don't make Randy Moss-like impacts in their first year, and I doubt many of the guys I'll list below will either. Remember, these guys are usually available for a reason. But your bread and butter is not necessarily your top picks in your draft, so these guys may still play an important role for your team.
Bernard Berrian signs with Vikings
It's not often a No. 1 wideout is a role player in an offense, but that's what Berrian was in Chicago for his whole career. He had no touchdown receptions in 2005 despite playing 11 games: ouch.
Fantasy impact: Berrian is going from an offense with a poor quarterback to an offense with arguably the worst quarterbacking situation in the league. The Vikings have an explosive running back, on whom they'll rely to move the ball. They haven't been a big passing team since Moss was there. Berrian's already-low value takes a hit.
Marty Booker signs with Bears
Booker goes back to Chicago where he spent the first (and best) five years of his career. He's never really been a gamebreaker, but has had decent seasons where you wouldn't have regretted making hmi your No. 2.Fantasy impact: He had three of fewer touchdown receptions in three of his last four seasons, but since he was playing in Miami, that shouldn't come as a huge shock. With Berrian gone though, anyone has a chance to emerge as the No. 1 in that offense. It's probably unrealistic to expect him to get 1,071 yards and eight scores like he did in 2001 with the Bears. The very best you can probably hope for here is around 70 percent of those numbers.
Isaac Bruce signs with 49ers
Did you know Bruce's first season was in 1994? I had barely started college at the time. The Niners got rid of the hugely disappointing Darrell Jackson, even though they really haven't had any talent at the wideout position since T.O. left. Bruce won't help rectify that problem very much.Fantasy impact: He's just too old to produce at the same level he once did in his career. He's better at getting decent yardage than scores; he only found the endzone four, three and three times in each of his last three seasons, respectively.
Bryant Johnson signs with 49ers
He's been in Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin's shadow for years. Whenever he'd have a breakout game and there'd be a stampede to pick him up in the waiver wire, he'd flop the next few games. That pattern repeated itself more often than I care to look back and count.Fantasy impact: Johnson never recorded a 100-yard game in five seasons with the Cardinals, and that was with better quarterbacks and much better teammates, whom defenders had to account for. He registered 46 catches for 528 yards and two touchdowns last year. He could become San Francisco's No. 1 guy very quickly, but that really doesn't mean very much. Expect No. 3 fantasy wideout potential as his ceiling for now.
Jerry Porter signs with Jaguars
Porter had his moments in Oakland. His best season was in 2004 when he registered 998 yards and nine scores. Porter's attitude wasn't the greatest while he was in Oakland, but the same could be said about a number of other players who bolted from there.
Fantasy impact: When he wants to play hard, Porter does. The problem is he's headed to an offense which doesn't sling the ball all over the field and has never really had a true star wideout on their team. Watch how he does in preseason before you decide whether to make him your No. 3 wideout.
Donte Stallworth signs with Browns
Stallworth gets to move from one of the most explosive offenses in history to one of the best in the AFC. Who said lateral moves can't be productive?
Fantasy impact: This is one of the toughest passing attacks to cover. With defenses worrying about Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow, not to mention the running of Jamal Lewis, Stallworth should find plenty of room to gallop though secondaries on a weekly basis. He may not post huge numbers with all those other starts around, but he's definitely a worthwhile pickup if any of the top guys get hurt.
Ernest Wilford signs with Dolphins
Wilford gets to stay in Florida and make the move up north. It's not going to be a very productive one. He had one good year in his career, and even that wasn't too spectacular (681 yards, seven touchdowns in 2005).
Fantasy impact: I'll make this simple: Wilford only had 14 total touchdown catches in four seasons, so why would he suddenly start producing by going to a team with huge quarterback and offensive line issues?
And that's a wrap for this week. Remember, there's no such thing as an off-season. The draft is about a month away!
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