With the second pick.........

Who you should take after Purple Jesus goes no. 1?

Fantasy football talk is picking up steam. Most people are really starting to pay attention now, although for me the "pay attention" time starts at the NFL draft, and most drafts are going to take place in the next month. (The official Boom Roasted Sports fantasy league's draft is in late August. Prepare to hear more about that.)

Here at BRS we take fantasy football kind of seriously. I have been playing fantasy football since 1998, and with the same group of guys since 2001. This year I am in two different leagues for money. We are fantasy nerds.

So this year, for the benefit our dozens of readers, we will doing a few fantasy columns, to get you prepared to dominate your league.

Dave has gone through his top picks overall for this year, and now I'm going to do the same thing.

So, in particular order, here are my top six candidates for the number two pick this year. (If you don't know that Adrian Peterson of the Vikings is the consensus no. 1 pick, contact me, I have a high stakes league I want you to join.)

Larry Fitzgerald: 69 receptions, 946 yards, and 6 touchdowns. Not bad numbers. Perfectly acceptable for most receivers. Those were Larry Fitzgerald's numbers in 2006 when he missed 3 games. Take away that year and he has averaged 99 receptions, over 1400 yards, and 10 touchdowns a season since 2005. The Card's offense shows no sign of slowing down. Fitz is still a physical freak of nature. The only small question marks are Kurt Warner's age and the effect of Anquan Boldin's antics. Expect another stellar season from this fantasy stud.

Andre Johnson: Andre Johnson is arguably the most physically gifted WR in the NFL. Over the last two seasons, 25 games played, he has averaged 96 receiving yards per game, easily the best in the NFL. With Steve Slaton the Texans have a legit running game and that takes a lot of pressure off of Johnson and the passing game. QB Matt Schaub has a cannon for an arm and as long as he stays healthy expect Johnson to keep putting up big numbers.

Matt Forte: Forte accounted for more of his team's offense than any other running back in the league. (I didn't know that off of the top of my head, I've read it multiple places.) He did have over 1,700 combined yards and 12 touchdowns last year, as a rookie. The Bears improved their O-Line and upgraded significantly at QB this offseason, meaning they won't see 8 men in the defensive box as much as they did last year. The only downsides are the possibility of a sophomore slump and health, but you can raise the health question with any player.

Michael Turner: Turner spent years as the best back-up RB in league. Last year he finally had the chance to be the man and all he did was run for 1699 yards and 17 touchdowns. The obvious concerns of health and fatigue are there. Turner is a non-factor in the passing game, but that's because the Falcons pass offense came into it's own, especially Matt Ryan and Roddy White. If Ryan's performance falls off then defenses might key on Turner a little more.

Maurice Jones-Drew: Last year Fred Taylor was still on the Jags' roster and Mojo D racked up 1,389 total yards and 14 TD's. This year the show will be his. He has never carried the ball more than 200 times in a season (NFL or college), but you only need to look at what Michael Turner did last year to see that isn't much of a concern. The Jags added Torry Holt so there passing game should get a little more respect and take some of the pressure off of Mojo.

Tom Brady: Tom Terrific is back and the word is he looks as healthy as ever. The Pats primarily play out of a three WR set and no one spreads the ball to more receivers than Brady. The Patriots are going to return to their 2007 form. Don't expect 50 TD's again, but he will probably lead the league in all of the significant passing categories.

Bonus: Stephen Jackson
The only reason, only reason, I don't put Jackson on the list is his health. He has played 16 games in a season only once in his career. If he could stay healthy I would put him ahead of everyone, including A.P. He has all-world talent. He is St. Louis' first option in the running and passing game (Sorry, I'm not jumping on the Donnie Avery bandwagon). Most importantly, his new OC is Pat Shurmur, who brings his west-coast-make-running-backs-into-fantasy-studs-offense from Philly. New Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo is a defensive genius (there is the Giants fan in me), so he'll leave the offense to Shurmur. If Jackson can stay healthy he is going to end the year as the top fantasy producer in the NFL. That is a big if.

Note: All of the RB's in this piece are the man on their team. No platooning. No third down change of pace back. They are the first, second, and third option. These type of guys are very rare.

There, consider some knowledge dropped on you.