Survivor I - Kevin Curtis Commentary

NOTE: this draft was completed on 7/24

Recent Stats

YR	RSH	RSHYD	RSHTD	REC	RECYD	RECTD	FPT	RANK
2003	0	0	0	4	13	0	1.3	165
2004	3	24	0	32	421	2	56.5	72

Positives - This will be Kevin Curtis’ 3rd year in the NFL placing him into the mythic 3rd year WR category. It was obvious that Mike Martz began incorporating Curtis into his game plan more toward the end of last season. In his final 3 games, including two postseason appearances, Curtis totaled 17 receptions for 335 yards and a touchdown. He had at least one reception for 34 yards or more in each of these games. There have also been rumors regarding Curtis possibly playing some WR2 in the Ram’s offense this year. Should Isaac Bruce (33 this year) miss any time, Curtis could shine.

Negatives - Curtis isn’t the only young WR with potential on this team. Shaun McDonald has also shown flashes of great ability and should also have more passes thrown his way. It’s also not outside the realm of possibility that McDonald could outplay Curtis, bumping him to WR4 or at the very least, greatly limit his opportunities. The running game should also be better this year with Steven Jackson starting, decreasing the team’s reliance on the pass (if that’s possible in a Mike Martz designed offense). Curtis has only shown potential up to this point.

Draft Strategy - Just like Stokley, Curtis has the ability and potential to perform like a top WR for 5 or 6 weeks this season, possibly more should everything fall into place for the young WR. When Curtis has his productive weeks, he should put up solid WR2 numbers, whereas, a WR like Keyshawn Johnson may be a more consistent performer, guaranteeing me a handful of points on a weekly basis, but rarely, if ever, having the breakout game. Since I don’t need to choose starters each week in this format, I’d rather take a chance on Curtis’ upside realizing that he’ll likely disappear at times as well. I may have reached here a bit, but didn’t think Curtis would be there for my next pick. I may live to regret not selecting Marcus Robinson at this spot.