Some love for Royal

[D1g1tal j1m]

some love (http://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy/blog/roto_arcade/post/Exhibitionist-Eddie-Royal-is-slightly-more-athl;_ylt=Auk__xnSnrwbU7IQxCo.Dm5NC5kB?urn=fantasy ,102355)

Exhibitionist: Eddie Royal is slightly more athletic than Queen Elizabeth II

By Big Noise

Presidential hopeful Barack Obama may wax poetically about the virtues of democracy next week at Invesco Field, but Broncos fans in attendance probably wouldn't mind being autocratically ruled.

Why?

Mile High monarch Eddie Royal could have Orange and Blue loyalists kissing his feet by year's end.

The second-round draft choice from VA Tech has rapidly ascended the Denver depth chart, entrenching his place as the Broncos' No. 2. His eyebrow-raising camp has translated into instant success in exhibition play. In two preseason contests he's snagged four passes for 80 yards, including two electrifying 30-plus yard bombs against Dallas August 16.

Royal's seamless transition from the collegiate to the pro game is rooted in his mental approach. Confident, highly intelligent and ultra-competitive, he isn't intimidated by the increased speed of the game or the pressure to produce.

The 5-foot-10, 182-pound receiver is similar to Washington's Santana Moss physically and athletically. Blessed with blazing 4.3-forty speed, he possesses a pull-away gear that can leave defenders in the dust. Royal can also gain adequate yards after contact and has shown acrobatic abilities adjusting to passes midair.

Teammates Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler have certainly been impressed by the youngster's cannonball splash telling the Associated Press August 18:

"The kid's amazing," Marshall said. "Honestly, when they first drafted him I was like, ‘Who is this guy? Why'd we get him?' And now I see. The guy's a playmaker. I'm glad I've got him on the other side."

"I didn't know he had those type of receiving skills," Cutler said. "I thought we drafted him a little bit more as a returner. I didn't really realize he could be our starting Z (flanker). He's a go-getter. He picked up the offense quick. He attacks the football. He's got great speed, gets in and out of cuts. He's fun in the huddle. He understands what we're doing."

Savvy fantasy players would tell you the learning curve for any rookie wideout is incredibly steep, which is true. In his inagural season, Calvin Johnson, who is arguably the most physically gifted receiver to enter the league since Randy Moss, only mustered 6.6 fantasy points per game (42nd among WRs) in a pass-heavy Mike Martz system. But Royal's smooth adjustment, raw talents and numerous projected targets could challenge rookie receiver conventionalities.

Because he's still an unpolished route runner, the former Hokie likely won't have an Anquan Boldin-like initial campaign. However, he'll definitely outperform his current 192.1 Mock Draft Central ADP.

Given Cutler's fondness for the youngster, the two could build an unbreakable rapport to start the season. With Marshall slated to sit the first 2-3 games, Royal could post appreciable WR3 totals in Weeks 2 (vs. SD) and 3 (vs. NO) - the Broncos face Oakland's dynamic duo of Nnamdi Asomugha and DeAngelo Hall Week 1.

For those who've already drafted, Royal, owned in 22 percent of Y! leagues, is smart money in 12-team leagues with deep benches.

Fearless Forecast: 52 receptions, 785 receiving yards, 4 touchdowns

Feel free to post your Royal 'Fearless Forecast' below.

[Tned]

It's interesting that in the post draft interviews that Shanahan stated something like that while his return skills were good, what really impressed him about Royal was his receiving skills and his ability to get seperation at the line.

Many of the Shanny nay sayers slammed him for the pick, and while it is still too early to know, I think what we have heard about from camp, and seen in the first two games is what Shanny was talking about in the post-draft news conferences.

[Tned]

Here is him talking about Royal in the presser after the first day of the draft:


On whether he has ever had his first two choices available when drafting
"It hasn't happened that way before, but we have never picked with the 12th pick, either. You have a little bit better chance, but you don't always know in the second round if that guy is going to be there."


On what Royal can contribute offensively
"I thought he was the best wide receiver versus bump coverage that came out [in the draft]. He has that type of ability to be bumped. That's where you start off as a wide receiver--if you can't beat bump coverage, usually you are selling cars in a short time, it's just the nature of the business--or you're coaching, one or the other. He has the ability to be bumped and he played with three other receivers who were fairly productive. I'm glad he didn't get a lot of balls because I think if he did he would have probably went earlier [in the draft].

"A lot of guys you get in the second round as wide receivers, it's a year's growth. It takes a while to understand the NFL and get used to it, but this is the type of guy that has the ability to help us in special teams and he doesn't have to help us right away [on offense]."




On whether he considered moving out of the second round to acquire additional draft picks
"There could have been if Royal wasn't there. We had a number of options to move back and we could have gotten a third or a fourth, depending on how far back you want to go. You can do that quite a bit, but sometimes when you do that you lose out on guys that you think can help your football team."


http://den.scout.com/2/750170.html

[dogfish]

i admit, i wasn't overly thrilled with the pick-- i can't help being a little jaded when it comes to shenanigans and wide receivers, and his repeated failed attempts to add punch to the return game-- but this kid really does look legit. . . i think his strength (24 reps on the bench at the combine, that's as good as some LBs-- he's pretty much pure muscle) is probably what will separate him from other undersized WRs that have to make their mark mostly in the slot and/or return duty. . . nonetheless, when stokley leaves in a year or two i can see us moving eddie into the slot when we go three-wide to take advantage of his quickness. . . if he can continue his strong play in the regular season and develop into a quality #2 for us, it will redeem a few of our previous busts at the position. . .

[topscribe]

Here is him talking about Royal in the presser after the first day of the draft:








http://den.scout.com/2/750170.html

The Broncos were after Fast Eddie. Period.

And we're beginning to see why.

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