What's new
Fantasy Football - Footballguys Forums

Welcome to Our Forums. Once you've registered and logged in, you're primed to talk football, among other topics, with the sharpest and most experienced fantasy players on the internet.

Michael Crabtree (1 Viewer)

whodeywhodey

whodeywhodey

Footballguy
Didn't see a player spotlight or much discussion in a search.

Yes, I know that Vernon Davis may be the best passing option on the team. And yes, I know that the 49ers have a recent history of a conservative offense.

But I still think Crabtree is the #1 WR on a very good team and deserves some discussion as a WR3 pick on many fantasy teams.

I think its players like him that can potentially win a lot of teams a lot of close games in fantasy. Reports from camp are that his hands, speed and health are better than they have ever been. Couple this with the weapons at WR that the team has brought in that may take some pressure off Crabtree and I really am loving him at his ADP which is middle 11th round for a WR1. He somewhat quietly caught 74 balls last year. If the TDs were a few more he would have made a strong WR2 (#13-24 ranking) in many leagues.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
'12punch said:
you need at least 5 td for a spotlightare they kicking crabs into the slot in 3 wide?
Click to expand...
The point is I have read almost nothing on him. I can't think of a single player after round 10 with more upside out of the gate.I think he at least needs to be discussed.
 
No, he hasn't been moved to the slot in everything that I have read and seen.

People reading this should consider him in round 10 or later. I know talking about WR3/4 in round 11 isn't all that sexy but this is where leagues are won.

 
He is probably a little underrated. Although I would put him at 70/900/5, it is possible he has a big TD season. Just not a very exciting pick vs. other WR3s.

 
'Chicago Hooligan said:
He is probably a little underrated. Although I would put him at 70/900/5, it is possible he has a big TD season. Just not a very exciting pick vs. other WR3s.
Click to expand...
I waited on a WR3 and loaded up on an early QB, early TE, an elite WR and mid round RBs. So to me he's exciting in round 11. The fact that he isn't exciting to others is exactly why he needs to be discussed. I think a lot of people are sleeping on him.73/880/4 last year. Good enough for WR33 (WR3) playing injured for most of the year.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Last edited by a moderator:
The 49ers for the first time in a long time have a lot of receiving options. Moss, Manningham, Crabs, Davis, Walker, Jenkins, Williams etc, and there will be some trimming of the roster before the regular season. Lot's of balls to go around, but you have Alex Smith at QB who I hope is able to utilize these weapons. Plus you have the RB's who will get some balls thrown their way which Smith will dump off to a lot. Smith's career high of TDs thrown in the regular season was 18 in 2009, with the bulk of those to Davis. So with 2012's roster, Smith could throw for 28 TDs. Where Crabs fits in as far as targets I can't guess at this point.

I don't play FF. But I'm more interested in Delanie Walker, who will be used a lot more in the offense this season in various ways. He might line up anywhere in the offense, and in two TE sets, he might take a few plays away from Crabs.

ETA: I always thought of Crabs as a true #2 WR, a possession receiver at best. So he is kind of a bit in a battle for that spot. But you never know with Harbaugh who loves a lot of options on offense.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Michael Crabtree = Roy Williams. Another WR enigma from the state of Texas. Good luck figuring out if he will ever live up to all the potential on paper. These are the types of guys that were legends in high school and college but seem to be lacking some of the intangibles necessary to be elite consistently at the Pro level.

 
'TwinTurbo said:
Michael Crabtree = Roy Williams. Another WR enigma from the state of Texas. Good luck figuring out if he will ever live up to all the potential on paper. These are the types of guys that were legends in high school and college but seem to be lacking some of the intangibles necessary to be elite consistently at the Pro level.
Click to expand...
Well I don't think Crabs would ever be Elite on the 49ers roster with Smith @ QB. But he has bailed out Smith on a lot of bad throws, running the proper route. He can snatch a ball out of air like a madman. He has played with sub-par to average QB's in SF in Raye/Johnson's offense, and then Greg Roman's. Kinda hard to gauge his ceiling playing in SF over the past few years. But he is still at best a #2 WR IMO.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
I realize the 49ers are a run-heavy team, that Alex Smith is nothing more than a game manager type QB, and that Vernon Davis is arguably the top option in the passing game. All of those things were true last year. I'm not buying the Randy Moss hype (as far as it relates to Crabtree potentially rotating at WR). I can't imagine Crabtree losing snaps because of Moss or Manningham; rather I think those 2 will cut into each others snaps. In fact, I have seen reports that state that Moss will only play about 20-25 snaps per game. If any of those are in sets with 2 WRs, I have to believe Manningham is going to be out rather than Crabtree.

As far as Crabtree himself, he was definitely not healthy at the beginning of training camp last year and struggled early in the season. But once he got healthy, he showed dramatic improvement and posted 43/560/3 over the last 8 games. Projected over a full season, those are top 15 numbers (I'm not saying he will be a top 15 WR this year). In addition, Crabtree had more targets than Vernon Davis in the 2nd half of the season. He was Alex Smith's top option once he was healthy and the numbers he posted in the 2nd half of the season were very good. Crabtree only had 314 receiving yards in the first half and still finished as WR33 last year. Now he is being ranked lower and that makes no sense to me at all. I think the only thing that keep Crabtree from the top 30 (at worst) is injury. The only way I can see anyone not liking Crabtree this year is if they think Moss or Manningham steals some of his targets. I just can't see it.

I think Crabtree is a solid top-30 WR. He is being drafted as a WR4 right now. He did better than that last year and he wasn't even healthy early in the year. The value to me is insane.

 
'Anthony Borbely said:
I realize the 49ers are a run-heavy team, that Alex Smith is nothing more than a game manager type QB, and that Vernon Davis is arguably the top option in the passing game. All of those things were true last year. I'm not buying the Randy Moss hype (as far as it relates to Crabtree potentially rotating at WR). I can't imagine Crabtree losing snaps because of Moss or Manningham; rather I think those 2 will cut into each others snaps. In fact, I have seen reports that state that Moss will only play about 20-25 snaps per game. If any of those are in sets with 2 WRs, I have to believe Manningham is going to be out rather than Crabtree.

As far as Crabtree himself, he was definitely not healthy at the beginning of training camp last year and struggled early in the season. But once he got healthy, he showed dramatic improvement and posted 43/560/3 over the last 8 games. Projected over a full season, those are top 15 numbers (I'm not saying he will be a top 15 WR this year). In addition, Crabtree had more targets than Vernon Davis in the 2nd half of the season. He was Alex Smith's top option once he was healthy and the numbers he posted in the 2nd half of the season were very good. Crabtree only had 314 receiving yards in the first half and still finished as WR33 last year. Now he is being ranked lower and that makes no sense to me at all. I think the only thing that keep Crabtree from the top 30 (at worst) is injury. The only way I can see anyone not liking Crabtree this year is if they think Moss or Manningham steals some of his targets. I just can't see it.

I think Crabtree is a solid top-30 WR. He is being drafted as a WR4 right now. He did better than that last year and he wasn't even healthy early in the year. The value to me is insane.
Click to expand...
+1000Those are my exact thoughts as well. Great post.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
'Anthony Borbely said:
I realize the 49ers are a run-heavy team, that Alex Smith is nothing more than a game manager type QB, and that Vernon Davis is arguably the top option in the passing game. All of those things were true last year. I'm not buying the Randy Moss hype (as far as it relates to Crabtree potentially rotating at WR). I can't imagine Crabtree losing snaps because of Moss or Manningham; rather I think those 2 will cut into each others snaps. In fact, I have seen reports that state that Moss will only play about 20-25 snaps per game. If any of those are in sets with 2 WRs, I have to believe Manningham is going to be out rather than Crabtree.As far as Crabtree himself, he was definitely not healthy at the beginning of training camp last year and struggled early in the season. But once he got healthy, he showed dramatic improvement and posted 43/560/3 over the last 8 games. Projected over a full season, those are top 15 numbers (I'm not saying he will be a top 15 WR this year). In addition, Crabtree had more targets than Vernon Davis in the 2nd half of the season. He was Alex Smith's top option once he was healthy and the numbers he posted in the 2nd half of the season were very good. Crabtree only had 314 receiving yards in the first half and still finished as WR33 last year. Now he is being ranked lower and that makes no sense to me at all. I think the only thing that keep Crabtree from the top 30 (at worst) is injury. The only way I can see anyone not liking Crabtree this year is if they think Moss or Manningham steals some of his targets. I just can't see it. I think Crabtree is a solid top-30 WR. He is being drafted as a WR4 right now. He did better than that last year and he wasn't even healthy early in the year. The value to me is insane.
Click to expand...
Nice post. To me though, he's valued fairly close to where he should be. According to FBGs ADP sorter he's coming off as WR40. As I look at the guys around him, I'd probably move him up about 5 spots. I think he's got a reasonably high floor, but also comes with a moderate ceiling too. Frankly, I just don't trust Alex Smith to light up the scoreboards this year. So it seems likely to me that even if Crabtree is bigger, stronger, faster this year, he still may be capped at 1100/8. With reality probably being closer to 900/6. Now to be certain some of those guys with ADPs in the 30s have lower floors than Crabtree. That's true for even the 5 guys I'd likely take ahead of Crabtree. I just can't help but think they have a better chance at reaching 1000/7+ though. I guess what it really comes down to is would you prefer Crabtree or a Justin Blackmon/DHB type guy?
 
I think both those guys have way more question marks than Crabtree as a wr1 on their respective teams.

Btw Blackmon is going 4 rounds earlier and dhb 3 rounds earlier.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
'whodeywhodey said:
I think both those guys have way more question marks than Crabtree as a wr1 on their respective teams.Btw Blackmon is going 4 rounds earlier and dhb 3 rounds earlier.
Click to expand...
FBGs ADP sorter has DHB as the 101st player taken, Blackmon at 105, and Crabtree at 108. Like I said, those guys have lower floors, but I think they also have higher ceilings. If I'm looking for a guy I can count on to finish WR20-35 I take Crabtree. I think DHB and Blackmon each have top 10 upsides.
 
'Kitrick Taylor said:
'whodeywhodey said:
I think both those guys have way more question marks than Crabtree as a wr1 on their respective teams.Btw Blackmon is going 4 rounds earlier and dhb 3 rounds earlier.
Click to expand...
FBGs ADP sorter has DHB as the 101st player taken, Blackmon at 105, and Crabtree at 108. Like I said, those guys have lower floors, but I think they also have higher ceilings. If I'm looking for a guy I can count on to finish WR20-35 I take Crabtree. I think DHB and Blackmon each have top 10 upsides.
Click to expand...
Fbg Adp sorter is not accurate for current drafts.
 
Blackmon is a rookie wr on a bad team with a bad qb.

Dhb has Palmer. Enough said.

And like I said they are going in the 7th and 8th rounds respectively.

 
'Kitrick Taylor said:
'whodeywhodey said:
I think both those guys have way more question marks than Crabtree as a wr1 on their respective teams.

Btw Blackmon is going 4 rounds earlier and dhb 3 rounds earlier.
Click to expand...
FBGs ADP sorter has DHB as the 101st player taken, Blackmon at 105, and Crabtree at 108. Like I said, those guys have lower floors, but I think they also have higher ceilings. If I'm looking for a guy I can count on to finish WR20-35 I take Crabtree. I think DHB and Blackmon each have top 10 upsides.
Click to expand...
wut?
 
'12punch said:
'Kitrick Taylor said:
'whodeywhodey said:
I think both those guys have way more question marks than Crabtree as a wr1 on their respective teams.

Btw Blackmon is going 4 rounds earlier and dhb 3 rounds earlier.
Click to expand...
FBGs ADP sorter has DHB as the 101st player taken, Blackmon at 105, and Crabtree at 108. Like I said, those guys have lower floors, but I think they also have higher ceilings. If I'm looking for a guy I can count on to finish WR20-35 I take Crabtree. I think DHB and Blackmon each have top 10 upsides.
Click to expand...
wut?
Click to expand...
Blackmon is looking like he is a tackle breaking machine. He's unquestionably the #1 target there, and early signs are Gabbert has improved. There are signs of an Anquan Boldin type breakout there. Is that probable? Not really. But certainly it's looking more promising than it did a month ago. Also, when he was healthy last year, DHB put up some very nice numbers. Right now, he's the healthiest starting option Palmer's got.
 
I think this pretty much sums up the perceived lack of interest in crabs - he's a solid wr3, but most people don't draft for that.

Crabtree is a known, and boring, commodity, while many going around him are more unknown, and in the world of fantasy unproven = top ten gold.

 
'12punch said:
I think this pretty much sums up the perceived lack of interest in crabs - he's a solid wr3, but most people don't draft for that.Crabtree is a known, and boring, commodity, while many going around him are more unknown, and in the world of fantasy unproven = top ten gold.
Click to expand...
Which is a potentially dangerous ideology.
 
I don't understand the lack of interest in this guy. It appears he got hurt in week 1 and missed week 2. In the next 14 games he saw 112 targets and caught 72 of them. Considering Alex Smith only completed 61.4% of his passes, a WR catching 64.3% is very solid. 72 catches over 14 games equates to 82 in 16 games. These fears about him losing snaps are baseless. From what I've read, Crabtree is staying on the field at all times while Manningham and Moss split time at WR2.

I don't see how a guy who finished last year as WR33 in basically 14 games is being drafted as WR42 this year. I could understand that if he was 35 years old or something, but he's going into his 4th season. I feel like he has at least an 80% chance of 80/1000/6 if he stays healthy for 16 games. Not quite steal of the draft numbers, but great value in standard scoring and ridiculous value in PPR.

 
'FF Ninja said:
I don't understand the lack of interest in this guy. It appears he got hurt in week 1 and missed week 2. In the next 14 games he saw 112 targets and caught 72 of them. Considering Alex Smith only completed 61.4% of his passes, a WR catching 64.3% is very solid. 72 catches over 14 games equates to 82 in 16 games. These fears about him losing snaps are baseless. From what I've read, Crabtree is staying on the field at all times while Manningham and Moss split time at WR2.

I don't see how a guy who finished last year as WR33 in basically 14 games is being drafted as WR42 this year. I could understand that if he was 35 years old or something, but he's going into his 4th season. I feel like he has at least an 80% chance of 80/1000/6 if he stays healthy for 16 games. Not quite steal of the draft numbers, but great value in standard scoring and ridiculous value in PPR.
Click to expand...
That was good for 11th in the league. I know Smith isn't an exciting QB but its not his completion % that is the problem.
 
Definitely not exciting but considering where he is going I have picked him up in several leagues very late.

He wasn't that bad in PPR leagues last year (finished 33rd). I'm not buying that the offense is going to change at all with the WR additions. Crabtree is still going to lead the WRs in targets and will be a fine flex/WR4 play every week.

Considering he has gone undrafted or in the 12th+ round in most of my leagues I think he holds value. I have him as my last bench spot in several leagues.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Much in the general tone of the thread, I'm not very happy that he's my WR3 in my 12 team PPR, but I AM starting him with confidence in Week 1 v the Packers. Hoping he can do something in what I expect to be a bit of a shootout.

 
'Goat Herders said:
'FF Ninja said:
I don't understand the lack of interest in this guy. It appears he got hurt in week 1 and missed week 2. In the next 14 games he saw 112 targets and caught 72 of them. Considering Alex Smith only completed 61.4% of his passes, a WR catching 64.3% is very solid. 72 catches over 14 games equates to 82 in 16 games. These fears about him losing snaps are baseless. From what I've read, Crabtree is staying on the field at all times while Manningham and Moss split time at WR2.

I don't see how a guy who finished last year as WR33 in basically 14 games is being drafted as WR42 this year. I could understand that if he was 35 years old or something, but he's going into his 4th season. I feel like he has at least an 80% chance of 80/1000/6 if he stays healthy for 16 games. Not quite steal of the draft numbers, but great value in standard scoring and ridiculous value in PPR.
Click to expand...
That was good for 11th in the league. I know Smith isn't an exciting QB but its not his completion % that is the problem.
Click to expand...
You miss the point completely. WRs typically are a bit lower than their QB's completion % while the dump offs to the RB and TE raise the QB's completion %. Crabtree's catch % indicates he's doing something right - maybe it's just good hands... maybe he's running good routes... I don't know, but it is a very positive sign for a young WR.meyerj31 - I'm seeing him as WR27 in PPR and WR33 in standard scoring. If he's going undrafted, it might be time to step up from the 8-team leagues.

 
It's hard for me to discuss Crabtree. He was supposed to be the next "one". He had the potential to be the next big-time WR in fantasy.

Looking back on it, I think what did him in was timing, the bad advice he took, injuries/preparation, and the QB and team he was surrounded in. When you come into this league, if you do not have a lot of self-instilled discipline and maturation, you can get mrphed into something that is less than ideal and your outlook and practice habits can reflect it. I honestly think that's what has happened to some guys like Roy Williams, Charles Rogers, Vince Young, etc.

But you could tell it as soon as they hit the league: for lack of a better way to describe it, it was like you were looking in and you saw this kid that acted like he was still a big man on a college campus somewhere instead of an adult taking things seriously. Cedric Benson was another guy. Came in and acted liek he was being disresepcted for "only" being drafted 4th. It carried over to the locker room and before you knew it, it was 5 years or so before he ever got his head on straight. Kinda funny that a lot of these guys all come out of the state of Texas (I'm sure that is coincidence).

But that is the impression I get with Crabtree. But the good news is that it CAN be turned around if the guy gets with it. I think we saw that with Vernon. But as of right now, I think the presence of mario manningham hurts Crabtree more than anything if Crabtree doesn't/hasn't changed. Manningham was a bit of a knucklehead but the Giants don't play that game and I think we've seen him mature a great deal. I think those kinds of things should not go overlooked because I'm sure they have a big impact with the team in real life.

 
Any chance Crabtree takes the next big step, even in this offense, under the tutelage of one of the best WRs of all time, Randy Moss. Assuming he's been a model citizen (and I assume he has, as we haven't heard anything bad) think what someone with the physical tools of Crabtree could learn from Randy.

I'm not a big Crabtree guy, but this is an intriguing thought to me.

 
'Shutout said:
It's hard for me to discuss Crabtree. He was supposed to be the next "one". He had the potential to be the next big-time WR in fantasy.Looking back on it, I think what did him in was timing, the bad advice he took, injuries/preparation, and the QB and team he was surrounded in. When you come into this league, if you do not have a lot of self-instilled discipline and maturation, you can get mrphed into something that is less than ideal and your outlook and practice habits can reflect it. I honestly think that's what has happened to some guys like Roy Williams, Charles Rogers, Vince Young, etc. But you could tell it as soon as they hit the league: for lack of a better way to describe it, it was like you were looking in and you saw this kid that acted like he was still a big man on a college campus somewhere instead of an adult taking things seriously. Cedric Benson was another guy. Came in and acted liek he was being disresepcted for "only" being drafted 4th. It carried over to the locker room and before you knew it, it was 5 years or so before he ever got his head on straight. Kinda funny that a lot of these guys all come out of the state of Texas (I'm sure that is coincidence). But that is the impression I get with Crabtree. But the good news is that it CAN be turned around if the guy gets with it. I think we saw that with Vernon. But as of right now, I think the presence of mario manningham hurts Crabtree more than anything if Crabtree doesn't/hasn't changed. Manningham was a bit of a knucklehead but the Giants don't play that game and I think we've seen him mature a great deal. I think those kinds of things should not go overlooked because I'm sure they have a big impact with the team in real life.
Click to expand...
Agree with all of this, nice summary of my thoughts as well. I was hoping to see a leap from him end of last year, didn't happen although he did show improvements. Some of that definitely had to do with the state of the team as a whole as you stated and the trouble with having had Smith in and out of the starting line up in the years past I'm sure didn't help either. The team chemistry before Harbaugh had to be suffering, it's no coincidence that the talent level for this team looks night and day after Harbaugh despite the offensive starters being generally the same for the past few years. I passed on him in the draft this year and I think we'll see in the first couple of weeks whether we should be talking about him as a breakout candidate anymore. He got a pass due to his injury too, unfortunately it may be he just isn't as good as advertised. I will be keeping my eye on him.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

eighsse2
All-Non-Playoff Team
Replies
4
Views
385
Gawain
Gawain
JohnnyU
My Top 5 WRs in the 2024 class, plus notes on 3 more
2
Replies
94
Views
3K
Max Power
Max Power
Ministry of Pain
How can an NFL team have WR be their No 1/2/3 priority when you just watched the Chiefs win B2B Super Bowls without them?
2
Replies
55
Views
1K
FairWarning
FairWarning

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Top