A report by ESPN’s Pat Yasinskas confirmed what many believed for a while, that the Falcons would be reducing Michael Turner’s carries this season. In fact, Yasinskas says that they have told him “repeatedly” that they’d be reducing Turner’s carries. This makes a lot of sense. Turner is 30 and has carried the ball 300 times in 3 of the last 4 seasons. The Falcons will be going more pass heavy and no huddle this season, which is where Turner is a liability because of his inability to catch passes.

His backups, Jason Snelling and Jacquizz Rodgers, are much better in passing situations and the Falcons are reportedly very high on Rodgers, a 2011 5^th round pick. It’s unknown exactly how much Turner’s carries will be reduced, but given all of those factors, I would stay away from Turner in fantasy leagues and make him someone else’s problem, especially at his current ADP, which is in the 3^rd round.

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Robert Quinn was a 1^st round pick of the St. Louis Rams in the 2011 NFL Draft and he was viewed as such a steal at 14 that the Rams took him even though they didn’t have an immediate need at the position. Quinn played in a situational role last season as a rookie, with 6 sacks, 9 quarterback hits, and 21 quarterback pressures, though he graded out negatively against the run on ProFootballFocus. With starter James Hall gone, Quinn is expected to have a much bigger role in 2012 as the starting defensive end opposite Chris Long, another former 1^st round pick.

ESPN Draft Guru Mel Kiper stated earlier this offseason that Quinn was a potential breakout star for the Rams with the potential to have double digit sacks in 2012. Quinn has reportedly been impressing throughout the offseason in practice and the Rams have “sky high” expectations for Quinn in 2012, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Defensive line coach Mike Waufle calls Quinn “God-gifted” and praises Quinn’s ability to play the run. Quinn definitely has the natural ability to get double digit sacks this season and flashed his talent last year. He’ll need to improve against the run from last season, but between him and Chris Long, the Rams might have league’s best 4-3 defensive end pass rushing duo.

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Kenny Britt, who missed 13 and ½ games last season with a torn ACL, caused some concern this offseason when he needed another, albeit minor, procedure on that same knee to alleviate what he called a “clicking sound.” That injury put him in a race to play week 1, but the good news is that he’s ahead of schedule so he appears to be winning the race to play week 1.

On the final day of minicamp, Britt ran cutting drills, nearly a week ahead of schedule. He says he did it without a brace and that the coaching staff “surprised the heck out of him” with their revised schedule but that he “felt good” and was able to go “all out.” Britt earlier this month said that he was “praying” he’d be able to play week 1, but now it looks like he might be back before that. There’s legitimate fantasy upside with a player who has caught 56 passes for 1046 yards and 12 touchdowns in his last 14 full games. At an ADP in the 6^th round, he’s a good value.

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With Brandon Weeden impressing in offseason practices, speculation has picked up once again about the Browns possibly trading Colt McCoy. The Browns tried to move McCoy on draft day, after using a 1^st round pick on Brandon Weeden, but could not find a suitor. According to ESPN Cleveland’s Tony Grossi, the Browns are not only interested in moving McCoy, but won’t ask much in return for him, which suggests that they may have had their asking price too high the last time they traded him.

ESPN’s John Clayton mentioned Green Bay as a potential landing spot for McCoy and he’s not the only one with that opinion. The drop off from Aaron Rodgers to Graham Harrell if something were to happen to Rodgers would be a significant one and McCoy is an experienced starter who is still young and he’d come cheap. The Packers might be able to get him for a mere 7^th rounder and his salary for the 2012 season is only 540 thousand.

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Jermaine Cunningham was a 2^nd round pick of the New England Patriots in the 2010 NFL Draft, but he has barely done anything in his first 2 years in the league. He’s been too much of a defensive end/linebacker tweener and has yet to establish himself anywhere with the Patriots switching schemes from a 3-4 to a 4-3. In 2010, he was solid with 1 sack, 4 quarterback hits, and 24 pressures as a part time player at linebacker, but last year, after high expectations in the offseason, he played just 48 snaps at defensive end and did not manage a sack, hit, or pressure on the quarterback.

He doesn’t appear to be in any position to change that in his 3^rd year in the league as he is now buried on the depth chart at defensive end behind Chandler Jones, Jake Bequette, Trevor Scott, Brandon Deaderick, Jonathan Fanene, and even Rob Ninkovich and Dont’a Hightower, linebackers who can play defensive end. The Patriots have also talked about bringing back Andre Carter, who would also likely be ahead of him on the depth chart.

That being said, the Patriots still praised the 3^rd year player out of Florida for his performance this offseason. Belichick was quoted as saying about Cunningham “a player’s physical improvement, overall mental grasp of what we’re doing and what we can see on the field which is non-contact but reactions and technique.” Still, he is buried on the depth chart and is no lock to make the final 53 man roster. Cunningham looks like he could end up being a wasted 2^nd round pick, but maybe Belichick will end up being right.

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Mike Sims Walker worked out with the Texans late last month as they need veteran receiver help with their #3 through #5 wide receivers having a combined 0 career catches. He was not signed, but they remained interested. This week MSW participated in the Texans’ minicamp, giving the Texans more of a chance to see what the 27 year old receiver had. He caught 63 passes for 869 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2009, but injuries have limited him to just 55 catches in the last 2 seasons, including just 11 last year with St. Louis and Jacksonville.

If he doesn’t get a contract offer from the Texans in the next few days, it’s a pretty good sign that they’re not interested. The Texans have been impressed with their young receivers, particularly 2011 undrafted free agent Lestar Jean, this offseason and they’ve also been linked to the Packers’ James Jones should he become available through trade, so the Texans don’t have to settle for Mike Sims Walker if they feel he doesn’t have anything left to offer. Other free agent options include Braylon Edwards, Mark Clayton, and Plaxico Burress. The Texans are one of the league’s receiver neediest teams so if he can’t catch on with them, he might not play in 2012.

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Seneca Wallace is currently the Browns’ 3^rd string quarterback and when asked about staying the 3^rd string quarterback, Seneca Wallace said today, in an interview with the Cleveland Plain Dealer, that he might request a trade if that continues to be the case. Wallace will almost definitely be the Browns’ #3 quarterback unless the Browns lower their asking price on Colt McCoy and find a suitor for him.

It might seem kind of ridiculous for a player like Seneca Wallace to request a trade, but Drew Stanton did it earlier this offseason and a trade was actually able to be made as he ended up in Indianapolis. Wallace is a similar caliber player to Stanton and could be the primary backup for a few teams out there. He might even be fine with being the #3 quarterback somewhere else, as long as it would get him away from being the #3 quarterback on what figures to once again be a last place team in Cleveland. It’s worth noting that in the interview Wallace hinted he sees himself as a starting caliber quarterback.

If Wallace requests a trade and the Browns can’t deal him, he’ll probably be cut. Wallace is owed 2.85 million this season so that’s the more likely outcome. Trading McCoy and keeping Wallace would make more sense though for the Browns. McCoy would bring back more value in a trade, as a 25 year old with starting experience and a 540 thousand dollar salary, while Wallace would serve as a better veteran mentor to Brandon Weeden in his age 32 season and he would be seen as less of a threat to his job.

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A little known Packers wide receiver earned public praise today from two very important men, Head Coach Mike McCarthy and quarterback Aaron Rodgers. That wide receiver is Diondre Borel. Borel is not a well known player by any stretch of the imagination. He is a 2^nd year player out of Utah State and was a collegiate quarterback, spending last season on the practice squad learning the wide receiver position.

The Packers have a knack for finding diamonds in the rough like this and Borel could definitely end up making the 53 man roster, especially if the Packers trade James Jones. Borel’s development, as well as the development of 2011 2^nd round pick Randall Cobb, could make James Jones expendable and he’s already seen his name in trade rumors with the Houston Texans this week.

If Jones is traded, Borel could make the roster and even compete with veteran Donald Driver for the #4 receiver job. If Jones stays, Borel’s chances of making the roster would be much smaller and would be tied to the Packers keeping 6 wide receivers as Greg Jennings, Jordy Nelson, James Jones, Randall Cobb, and Donald Driver are all virtual locks to make the roster for various reasons.

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The New Orleans Times-Picayune says that 4^th round rookie Nick Toon has a good chance to win the #4 receiver job, a competition that the New Orleans Times-Picayune predicted would be a heated one earlier in the week. Toon reportedly impressed in minicamp, catching “nearly everything” thrown his way and “seems to be better than a 4^th round pick” which is a sentiment I agreed with when I called Toon a steal in the 4^th round. Toon’s other competition for the job is two unproven players, Adrian Arrington and Joseph Morgan.

The competition for the #4 receiver job in New Orleans is significant because new starting receiver Devery Henderson is unproven and if he struggles, the Saints would likely insert their #4 receiver into the starting lineup opposite Marques Colston because they prefer to keep Lance Moore in the slot. They did the same thing this offseason, moving Devery Henderson into the starting lineup from the #4 spot when Robert Meachem signed in San Diego. Toon could easily end the season as a starter, which makes him an interesting fantasy sleeper, especially in keeper leagues, given how explosive the Saints’ offense is.

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The Cardinals are one of several teams holding a competition for starting quarterback this offseason. They traded a 2^nd round pick and a starting cornerback for Kevin Kolb last offseason and gave him a 5 year deal worth max 63 million, but John Skelton arguably outplayed him last season, putting up similar stats and going 6-2, as opposed to 2-6 for Kevin Kolb.

When asked about the situation today, Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt says he’s in no rush to name a starting quarterback and admitted that the competition could go deep into the preseason, possibly even to the 3^rd week. The Cardinals really seem like they have no idea who they’re quarterback will be and want to take as long as possible to make sure they pick the right one and that they’ll be able to count on him for 16 games. Both are splitting 1^st teams reps evenly, and, while Ken Whisenhunt admits he wants Kolb to win the starting job because of how much the team invested in him, he’ll pick the quarterback he thinks he will him the most games. Another bad year could put Whisenhunt on the hot seat.

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