The Five Most Improved NFL Players

1)      Ray Rice (Bal) – The second year running back is slated to start for the Ravens week one against the Kansas City Chiefs. The former Rutgers running back should have a strong day against the Chiefs and we expect Rice to rush for over 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. Rice had 454 rushing yards and 273 receiving yards as a rookie last season. Rice will be rushing behind an improved offensive line now that the Raves added Matt Birk and rookie Michael Oher in the offseason. Rice is playing with a very solid quarterback in Joe Flacco and we expect Rice to be the biggest surprise of the 2009 NFL season and our most improved player.

2)      Chris Henry (Cin) – The wide receiver that Carson Palmer nicknamed “Randy Moss Jr.” is going to bounce back after finally having a trouble-free offseason. Henry had 220 receiving yards last season, but those numbers will be dramatically improved now that Palmer is back. We expect Chad Ochocinco to make it back to the Pro Bowl and we like the addition of Laveranues Coles. Henry will be a big mismatch going up against safeties and nickel corners with team’s starting corners having to double Ochocinco or cover Coles. Henry is capable of having a 1,000 yard season, so we see Henry having at least 800 yards this season. If Palmers stays healthy all season, the Bengals could have three receivers with close to 1,000 yards.

3)      Limas Sweed (Pit) – It is a scary thought to think that the Pittsburgh Steelers won the Super Bowl last season with Sweed only having 64 receiving yards. Sweed has looked better in the preseason and we expect Sweed to be a very good third receiver for Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers. Just like we mentioned with the Bengals, teams are going to be so focused on stopping Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes that Sweed should be able to put up big numbers as the third receiver. We expect the run game in Pittsburgh to improve now that Rashard Mendenhall is healthy and this should take some pressure off of Big Ben. Roethlisberger should have a career year and Sweed will be a big reason why the Steelers make it back to the Super Bowl.

4)      Fred Jackson (Buf) – The former Coe College running back will start week one against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football. Marshawn Lynch is suspended for the first three games of the NFL season and Jackson will have a very strong start to this season. Jackson rushed for 136 yards to end the season last year against the New England Patriots, so Jackson is a must-start against the Patriots in week one. Jackson is a very versatile back that runs hard for a back that is 6-1, 215 pounds. Expect Jackson to have close to 900 yards while also chipping in with 500 receiving yards. The run game will be improved now that the Bills have Terrell Owens in Buffalo. People forget that T.O. is a very good blocker along with being a great receiver.

5)      Cadillac Williams (TB) – This is a very risky pick, but we couldn’t keep him off of the list now that he is starting for the Buccaneers. Williams is healthy and has looked very good so far in the preseason. People forget that Williams ran for 1,178 yards as a rookie in 2005. Some might think that Williams will have bad numbers since he is splitting carries with Derrick Ward and Earnest Graham. We have no faith in the quarterbacks on the roster and we see the Buccaneers being a run-first type of team with enough carries for all three backs. We are putting a lot of stock in the fact that Williams is listed as the starter and we think the former Auburn running back will have at least 800 yards this season after only having 233 yards last season. It is hard not to root for a player like Williams that has had to deal with so many unfortunate injuries during his young career.