Posted by Sean in Fantasy Advice on May 3rd 2009 and last modified on May 26th 2009. (Print This)
I am extremely confident that Chris “Beanie” Wells will be the rookie of the year in 09. This is a match made in heaven. Wells fell further than anyone expected- including the Cards. He’s the right player on the right team. If Zona is able to retain Boldin, teams will be forced to defend the spread offense with Breaston in the slot. Defensive coordinators will never be able to afford to stack the box – leading to open running lanes for the talented rookie back. Wells is a strong inside runner that can quickly pick up a head of steam once he hits his hole. Arizona has become known for their high-flying passing attack, but don’t forget that coach Ken Whisehunt is a disciple of the Pittsburgh Steelers hardcore, grind it out run philosophy. Think of Wells as a hybrid of 75% Bettis and 25% Willy P. The clincher is realizing the caliber of defenses he’ll be facing with a double dose of San Fran, Seattle, and St Louis. Questions still remain around how big of a factor Tim Hightower will be. Hightower seemed to be phased out in the 08 playoffs, with the Edge and J.J. Arrington splitting the majority of snaps. With the release of Edge, and Denver’s signing of Arrington, a lot of carries are up for grabs. Wells will prove that he is not just a pony for between the 20′s and should work his way into short yardage and goalline scenarios.
Things look good for the Cardinals in 09. Wells addresses their number one concern, the ground game. Once again the NFC appears to be a much weaker conference than the AFC. The NFC East is argueably the strongest group of teams in the league, but both the Cowboys and the Giants have experienced significant free agency losses. The road back to the Superbowl is anything but easy. The Cards though might have found the missing piece of their puzzle in drafting Chris “Beanie” Wells.