Mining your way to fantasy gold - NFC East QBs Edition

I've decided to change gears on my fantasy previews and will instead focus on the remaining divisions one at a time, instead of team by team.  Basically, I'm going to take a look at each position in the division and give my two cents on which player may serve you more productively than others.  The NFC East has a cornucopia filled with fantasy options.  Michael Vick is an interesting character in the division, and I did my 30 mock drafts prior to his signing.  Having said that, I begin with the quarterbacks.

NFC East QBs

1. Donovan McNabb PHI
2. Tony Romo DAL
3. Eli Manning NYG
4. Jason Campbell WAS

*-100th selection = 10th pick round 10 (10 man); 6th pick round 9 (12 man); 3rd pick round 8 (14 man)

After the jump, I break down the QBs, and forecast some numbers using my fancy calculator (my brain)...

Donovan McNabb

In 2008, McNabb was the top fantasy QB in the NFC East (and 8th overall), and I've ranked him number 1 heading into 2009.  The Eagles have weapons all over the field suddenly, especially with the signing of Vick, and McNabb is the perfect QB to lead the team.  Last season McNabb produced three 300-yard games, to go along with seven multi-TD games.  For the year McNabb averaged just under 245 passing yards per game with 23 PaTDs to just 11 INTs.  With the receiving corps steadily improving, and an excellent backfield, Donovan McNabb is the best fantasy option at QB in the East.  I would feel comfortable selecting McNabb in the top 50 selections.  Fantasy Forecast:  3700 pass yards, 26 PaTDs, 12 INTs

Tony Romo

Romo's passing numbers were equally impressive in 2008 as he finished 12th in fantasy scoring amongst QBs.  The Dallas QB passed for 3448 yards, 26 TDs and 14 INTs, but what really hurt Romo were his 7 fumbles lost.  McNabb had 5 fumbles lost, but made up for it by rushing 2 TDs; Romo had 0 rushing TDs (and just 41 yards rushing).  Roy Williams officially becomes Dallas' WR #1, but after that, Jason Witten is the best reciever the team has (and he's a tight end).  The Loss of T.O. may have a bigger impact on Romo than anyone in Dalls would like to admit.  Personally, I'd try finding another option ahead of Romo mainly because he's probably going to cost you a pick in the 30s ahead of McNabb.  I also firmly believe that Romo is going to take a step back in 2009 and struggle with a weak WR Corps.    Fantasy Forecast: 3300 pass yards, 22 PaTDs, 13 INTs

Eli Manning

Everyone loves to use Eli as their whipping boy, and no one outside of Archie is on the Eli FF bandwagon.  While Manning has led his Giants to numerous big wins, his numbers just don't add up for a weekly starting QB on your fantasy team.  In 2008, Manning had a grand total of one 300-yard passing game, compared to the 10 games he had below 200 yards passing.  The Giants are a run-driven, defensive powerhouse, not a team that airs it out.  Manning is asked to avoid losing, not win games on his arm.  He did have 5 multi-TD games, so he's got some value as a strong backup for favourable match-ups.  In most leagues you'll be able to find Manning after pick 100, which is never a bad time to think about a back-up QB.  Fantasy forecast:  3100 pass yards, 21 PaTDs, 12 INTs

Jason Campbell

I'll be the first to admit it that I thank Jason Campbell get's ridiculed far more than he should.  Campbell is not the greatest QB in the world, but he refuses to throw interceptions.  Unfortunately, he doesn't like throwing TD passes all that much either.  At the NFL level Campbell is a servicable starter, but in the fantasy football world, he's nothing more than a back-up.  The Auburn product finished 16th amongst QBs in 2008 and has yet to throw for 20 TDs in a season.  Campbell had 8 games in 2008 in which he did not reach 200 yards passing and had two 300-yard games (and just two 2 multi-TD contests).  Considering you likely won't have to invest a pick in the top 150, Campbell is a nice sleeper reserve for your roster.  Fantasy Forecast:  3400 pass yards, 17 PaTDs, 10 INTs

* all fantasy stats are based on 2007-2008 Yahoo! Standard Public league scoring