Do you folks like pizza? I know it's kind of a silly question, but my buddy English Dave hates tomatoes and as a byproduct doesn't like pizza, so it does happen. Don't get all judgy on me.
But I was at my favorite local pizza joint, Slice of New York in Huntington Beach, Calif., and tried this fantastic pie the other day, Arnold's Special. It had spinach, artichokes and pesto which provided a pretty bold taste. Quite a departure from the pepperoni, sausage and bacon I typically pile on to my pizza. (And seriously, bacon.) But the thought struck me; I would never order a spinach pizza. Or an artichoke pizza. Or a pesto pie. But when you put all of the ingredients together, it's pretty damn good.
As I sat there eating my slice and drinking my Diet Pepsi (official sponsor of the NFL and my fantasy teams), it made me think of the New Orleans Saints.
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Hear me out before you get all "Internety" on me.
The Saints offense is fantastic. It seemingly puts up 1,358 points per season. Yet, they have two fantasy guys you can trust every week: Drew Brees and Jimmy Graham. The (expletive) Cleveland Browns have two trustworthy fantasy options. The Browns! And the Saints have just as many.
(And Jimmy Graham will only be cool this year as long as you don't lose fantasy points for dunk celebrations.)
The Saints' running back position is the worst. Oh sure, it's great for "traditional" football. And those people who worry about their "team" and such. But we're talking about fantasy. And while Sean Payton has done a great job of mixing together all of the ingredients, it's left fantasy owners with a pretty bad taste in their mouths.
That could change this season. Darren Sproles is in Philadelphia ruining the fantasy lives of enthusiasts who have LeSean McCoy (actually, Shady will still be excellent).
And a quick aside, would Sproles end up as artichokes in this analogy? I mean, that has to be the standout topping, right? Maybe pesto? Nah, we'll go with artichokes.
But the point is, the Saints are now poised for a standalone topping to take control of the whole pie. That guy is Khiry Robinson.
Yeah, I know a lot of you will take a look at Mark Ingram. But he's had his chance. Kind of like Canadian Bacon (that analogy would work so well if Ingram was from Canada). It had its chance to run as a staple, but really, it's a complementary piece that only works when you pair it with something like pineapple. Which I believe might be Kenny Stills in this analogy. You know what, I'm confusing myself here with what I'm trying to say. If you've stayed with me this long, you're an awesome person. I really value you. So I will quit goofing around and get to the bottom of this right here and now.
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I'm serious. I'm going to stop with the pizza analogies and the shout outs to my buddies. Because the guy I like is Khiry Robinson.
Yes, the same person (me) who said a month ago Montee Ball is going to be a sleeper is going deep-album cut on the Saints roster to find you a running back. (And I realize many of you have no idea what an album is. But long before you started downloading songs from iTunes, ah, forget it.)
But Robinson is the point here. He looked really good in his limited playing time in the playoffs against the Eagles and Seahawks. Actually, he was really good against the Seahawks. Bill Parcells called Payton and said that he had the next Curtis Martin on his hands. Some pretty heady praise right there.
While it would be foolish to think the Saints are going to turn into a ground-and-pound team, if Robinson can continue to produce, he's going to see a lot of playing time. Even with Pierre Thomas back in the mix to go along with Ingram, Robinson is going to have his chance to shine. So keep an eye out for him in the later rounds of your fantasy draft.
And seriously, is anybody else hungry?
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