2003 Top Fantasy Quarterback Disappointments 

Listen up Freaks, the fantasy season is over for most of you unless you play throughout the playoffs.  As the majority of us are done with our fantasy season now it’s time for the season ending review.  Today I will be ranking the most disappointing quarterbacks of the 2003 fantasy season.  

These are the guys who were expected to help your fantasy team but instead left you scratching your head and yelling obscenities at the television week-in and week-out.  You called their names on draft day and it didn't take long before you wished you never had.  

10.

Drew Brees

In 2002 Drew Brees appeared to have established himself as the quarterback of the future in San Diego and in 2003 he was getting a new stud receiver in David Boston.  Unfortunately, Boston landed himself in coach Marty Schottenheimer’s dog house and when he was on the field Brees was so inaccurate with his passes that he couldn’t get the ball to him.  Drew was so terrible that he was benched for 41 year old Doug Flutie.

9.

Chad Pennington

Pennington was injured in the preseason and he was going into the year without his best receiver from 2002 (Laveranues Coles) so his stock was down. Once he returned as the starter he threw 12 touchdowns in his first 5 starts and became a must-start player in fantasy leagues.  Once the fantasy playoffs began in weeks 14-17 however, Pennington crushed the hopes of his owners by not throwing one touchdown in the remaining four games and failing to even throw for 200 yards in two of those games.

8.

Tom Brady

Tom Brady is a winner and he has done a fantastic job of leading the Patriots to the Super Bowl, but after leading the league in touchdown passes last year his numbers dropped down to the middle of the pack.  Brady failed to throw a touchdown in six games this season.  In Tom’s defense, the Patriots' defense was so good that Brady wasn’t forced to throw the ball as much as he did the previous year. If he wins another Super Bowl I will start calling him the Troy Aikman of the fantasy world. He doesn’t have spectacular stats but he keeps winning ball games.

7.

Kerry Collins

Kerry Collins threw for over 4,000 yards in 2002 and he had Shockey, Toomer, Barber and a healthy Ike Hilliard to work with coming into this year.  Some thought that this team was a Super Bowl caliber team but the Giants turned out to be far from that. Collins could not lead the Giants to the playoffs nor your fantasy team to a championship with the numbers he put up this season.

6.

Tommy Maddox

I expected big things from Maddox because going into the season he had two of the best receivers in the league to work with in Plaxico Burress and Hines Ward.  Burress was awful this year and the Steelers offensive line was horrible too. They couldn’t run block or pass block.  Pittsburgh could not run the ball which made their offense predictable and inefficient.

5.

Drew Bledsoe

Drew Bledsoe was a major bust this season.  He played in eight games in which he was unable to throw a touchdown pass.  He actually had a four game stretch where he did not throw for a single score. The loss of Peerless Price and injuries to Eric Moulds were the downfall to Bledsoe’s season.  I kind of feel bad for Bledsoe.  He will be on his couch like the rest of us watching Tom Brady quarterback his ex-team in the Super Bowl yet again.

4.

Michael Vick

We were cautious about Michael Vick heading into 2003 because he takes a lot of hits with all of the running that he does. If your draft was before the preseason match up against the Ravens then you were devastated when Vick was carried off the field.  There were many who drafted him in the mid rounds thinking he would only be out the first month, but as the season progressed Vick stayed on the sidelines. When Michael did return as the starter he had an impressive victory over the Panthers at home but in 4 games he totaled just 5 touchdowns and failed to throw for 200 yards in any of his games.

3.

Donovan McNabb

There was a lot of hype about McNabb coming into the 2003 season because in the prior year he missed six games due to injuries but he still had had outstanding production before he broke his ankle.  I warned you that McNabb put up those numbers against weak opponents (See StingRay's Donovan McNabb - Buyer Beware article) and those who listened were smart enough to stay away from him this season.  A brutal schedule and lousy receivers does not bode well for your fantasy quarterback.

2.

Kurt Warner

After an off-season of speculation on who would be the starting quarterback in St. Louis, coach Mike Martz told everyone that Warner was his guy. They even paid Warner a huge six million dollar roster bonus.  Then Kurt plays one game (half of it with a concussion) and because of his shaky play he is benched for the season!  Mike Martz was the same genius who only gave the ball to Marshall Faulk 9 times and threw it 54 times in the game that was only 10-6 at the half.  By the way, this is the same Giants team that Warner and the Rams usually struggle against.  (See StingRay's Kurt Warner vs. the New York Giants Defense article.)

1.

Rich Gannon

In 2002 Gannon had an unbelievable season until the Super Bowl disaster against Tampa Bay.  Since then it has been all downhill for Gannon and the Raiders.  Rich started the season off with two touchdowns in week one then went consecutive games without tossing a TD.  Then after a three TD performance against the pathetic Chargers defense he throws only one touchdown in his next 3 games before his season ends due to injury.  Not the year that fantasy owners expected of him when they drafted Gannon as their number one quarterback.