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Spotlight - WR Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks

Posted on 6/24, exclusive to Footballguys.com

Mark Wimer's Thoughts

Last year was not a banner season for Deion Branch. He held out of the Patriots' practices and forced a trade to Seattle, but arrived there after training camp and was inactive for the first two weeks as got a crash course in the Seattle offense. That's not the best way to join a new team, to say the least. The less-than-ideal circumstances led to a disappointing fantasy season for Branch, who ended the season with 53/725/4, although he did see a healthy 101 targets. However, developments during the off-season have led to a new season of opportunity for Branch to get back among the top 25 at his position.

First of all, Darrell Jackson departed the team for San Francisco, and Deion Branch is moving into his starting flanker position. "I just feel good period," Branch said on May 29th. "I'm a whole lot more comfortable now. A couple of days ago, out of the blue coaches told me to go back to (split end). I hadn't even looked at it because I've been focused on (flanker). But it's a natural thing. Once you pick up the basis you get it. Football is just football once you pick up the main concepts...That's a plus too when you have versatility with a lot of your guys. You can take advantage of a lot of teams."

Second, the Seahawks have a solid (and now healthy) stable of WRs to throw at the opposition. D.J. Hackett and Nate Burleson are battling it out for the other starting spot and Bobby Engram is in reserve. Remember, both Engram and Burleson have recovered from nagging injuries that dogged them during 2006. The presence of a good surrounding cast should help Branch find room to maneuver against opposing DBs.

Third, Branch will have the benefit of a full training camp this year. He already has 14 games worth of experience in Holmgren's system. The additional reps are sure to help him raise his number of receptions this year.

Fourth, last year Matt Hasselbeck struggled to stay on the field (12 games played) and wasn't at 100% when he was on the field due to his struggles with a sprained knee and then a broken finger. He also had surgery on his non-throwing shoulder to repair a torn labrum suffered 3 years ago -- his rehab from the surgery is going well and he's expected to be back to top form by the time September rolls around. Having a healthy signal caller under center will help Branch get into a "comfort zone" with his QB as training camp progresses.

As you can see, there are a lot of good reasons to be optimistic about Branch's upcoming season from a fantasy football viewpoint.

Positives

• Branch is now the #1 WR in the premier "flanker" position in the Seahawks system -- he should be consistently targeted in every game.
• Branch will finally have a training camp to immerse himself into the Seahawks' system.
• Branch's teammates enter 2007 in much better shape health-wise, which should help boost the offense as a whole.

Negatives

• Branch has never broken through the 1000 yards receiving barrier during his career -- we're not really sure what his ceiling is in terms of fantasy production.
• The Seahawks had to give up on TE Jerramy Stevens after he was unable to keep his life straight off the field, and the team has a lot of question marks at TE right now as a result, with a aging stable of Marcus Pollard and Itula Mili (possibly -- he might retire). The lack of a top-flight pass catcher at TE may allow defenses to key on the WRs.
• Hasselbeck struggled to stay on the field last year and his backup Seneca Wallace isn't a top-flight passer. If the injury bug comes calling for Hasselbeck again, Branch's upside will be limited.

Final Thoughts

Branch has exactly what fantasy owners look for -- top-notch talent and a prime opportunity to display that talent as the Seahawks' #1 WR. That should translate into a top 25 finish for Branch among fantasy WRs.

Quotations from the Message Board Thread

David Yudkin, FBG Staff:
My question on Branch having watched him almost every game he played in New England is whether he can do well as a WR1 (and there's some debate as to whether he'll even be that in SEA). He had some big games with the Pats when he was not covered very well and Brady kept feeding him the ball. In games when opponents game planned to double Branch or put a top cornerback on him Branch did not fare anywhere near as well. He had 30 games in New England where he had under 50 yards receiving and 18 of those were games of 30 yards or less.

Little Big Head:
Put me in the camp that believes while Branch may be #1 on the depth chart he will be #2 in fantasy scoring as a Seahawk wr behind DJ Hackett

Thom Yorke:
...That leaves us with 1875 receiving yards to go around between Branch and Hackett. Last year, Branch had 53 catches for 725 yards, while Hackett had 45 catches for 610 yards. Now, the common wisdom is that Hackett's role will continue to increase, and I think that it will in fact play out that way. That said, I do think that Branch will be the better receiver in 2007. Thus, I'm going to project Branch at 1,050 yards, and Hackett at 825.

We also need to figure out how to distribute the roughly 20-25 TD passes that Hasselbeck dishes out a season. Giving 4-5 to TE/RB, and another 2-3 to Engram, we're left with roughly twelve to split amongst Branch and Hackett. Both Branch and Hackett had 4 scores last year, and Hackett got those on fewer touches. I simply can't identify any particular reason why Branch would become favored in the red zone, particularly if he draws the opposing team's #1 corner.

Deion Branch Projections