Stock Watch: Laurent Robinson on the rise 

September, 1, 2010
09/01/10
5:12
PM ET
What I think is odd about the declining draft positions of Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb (down 8.0 draft spots compared to seven days ago, according to our Live Draft Results) and running back Clinton Portis (down 2.4 draft spots), which was no doubt caused by their lingering preseason injuries, is the fact that most fantasy owners probably didn't need them for Week 1 anyway! If they were sleeper mid-round picks a month ago, then why wouldn't they still be mid-round sleepers today? If Larry Fitzgerald, a weekly fantasy starter, were expected to miss time, now that's different. But McNabb is the No. 15 quarterback, outside the top 100 in ESPN average live drafts, while Portis has slipped to Round 9.

I admit I am concerned about the overall health of these "older" gentlemen, players with a lot of mileage on their tires, so to speak. But if you already have your starters selected in a draft, I see little reason these players would slip; they're more for depth than anything else. With McNabb, the walking boot is off his troublesome ankle, and he is day-to-day. He might cede starting duties in Week 1 to … wait for it … Rex Grossman. (Yikes!) But so what? Certainly McNabb would be relied upon in deeper leagues for Week 1, but I'm guessing not many of you are. You shouldn't have expected 16 games from McNabb when you drafted him. And Portis shouldn't be considered starter material on draft day either, and he might not help much in September. But he's a huge bargain in Round 9. After all, who's better than Portis? Larry Johnson? Willie Parker? John Riggins?


To see who makes Eric's "Rising" and "Falling" lists this week and why, you must be an ESPN Insider.

Eric Karabell | email

ESPN.com Senior Writer

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