Griffin, Luck, or Wilson: Who is the Best Fantasy Pick Next Season?
Dorian “The Trashman” Colbert, Rosterwatch.com

Images by Getty, Photoshop by NY Daily News

The current NFL season is still in session, but it’s still not too early to begin preparing for next Fall’s fantasy drafts.

This year belonged to the rookie quarterback in fantasy and on the field, as we’ve been honored to see some of the best performances by first-year quarterbacks in the league’s esteemed history. Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck, and Russell Wilson looked like men among boys in their premiere campaigns with all of them reaching the playoffs. In Wilson’s case, he’s still going strong. Such phenomenal play by so many rookie quarterbacks in one season is unprecedented, and the question on our minds at this point is will they be able to do it again? Our fantasy lives depend on it.

In Griffin’s case, there is a very real possibility that he will lead all fantasy players in points accrued as he has physical and mental prowess that we, or at least I, have never seen paired in one player at his position until now. There isn’t a throw he can’t make, and no quarterback that played a full season threw as few interceptions as Griffin who had only five. It doesn’t hurt that he has in Alfred Morris, a running back that can take considerable pressure off of Griffin’s arm. The elephant in the room I have yet to address is the ACL/LCL tear he suffered in Washington’s wildcard playoff game against Seattle. As we’ve seen in the case of Adrian Peterson, this isn’t an injury you can’t come back from, and Griffin is fortunate that they are only partial tears. Still, it leaves a question mark about his ability to last a full season without sustaining considerable injury.

The Colts’ Andrew Luck is perhaps the most logical choice of the three to have a second stellar season. In Reggie Wayne and rising star T.Y. Hilton, Luck has potent weapons that should help sustain his record breaking numbers for another year. Also, though Luck is fairly mobile, he’s a true pocket passer who doesn’t get into the compromising physical positions that RG III and Wilson sometimes find themselves in. This fact, along with playing in a Division that doesn’t offer up too much resistance to elite quarterbacks ( yes, Luck is elite) provides Luvk with a recipe for success in year two.

Last, but certainly not least, we have my personal favorite—Russell Wilson of Seattle. Maybe it’s because he’s the least physically impressive of the three, or that he plays with so much calm under duress, but Wilson is impossible not to admire. He wasn’t handed the starting role as in Luck and Griffin’s situations. No, he had to win the job over Matt Flynn, who Seattle really wanted to be their guy and had paid him as such. Seattle plays in a division that is quickly becoming one of the league’s toughest, so that doesn’t do the Wilson any favors. But, more so than either of the other two quarterbacks in this conversation, Wilson has the most to lose in year two. Is he the future of the franchise? I think so, but I don’t know that the Seahawks are completely sold yet. Flynn is still waiting in the wings, so a sophomore slump could see Wilson on the bench sooner than Luck or Griffin. The good thing is that Wilson is very aware of that. He knows he has to work harder than the bigger and faster quarterbacks of the league, and he has shown he can compete. Wilson tallied 30 touchdowns to RGIII’s 27 and Luck’s 28 this season.

So as we’ve surmised, there are compelling reasons as to why any one of these guys could be worth a first round pick in your drafts come next season. For my money, I think Wilson offers the most value, as he’s not as sexy a pick as Luck or RGIII, and you can probably get him at least a round or two later than them. Griffin gets more points on the ground, but he’s a much greater risk for that same reason. In all honesty, you should be glad if you land any of the three, as fantasy is quickly going the way of the quarterback.