Michael Pittman

An argument could be made that Pittman is a better running back than Carnell Williams. The numbers over the past two seasons say as much; over that span, Williams has averaged 3.8 YPC, while Pittman is at 5.7. Pittman also has 83 catches to Williams’ 50. Pittman’s 32 and always an injury risk, but because he’s so good in the passing game, his fantasy potential might actually be greater than Williams’ if the starter were to get hurt.

He's not the feature back any longer in Tampa Bay, but Pittman has become Jon Gruden's "ace card", playing in multiple roles and formations, catching passes out of the backfield, playing a major role on third downs, and even returning kickoffs. Combine all that with the fact that he'd get playing time if Cadillac Williams went down, and you have a valuable player in deeper leagues.

Like Thomas Jones, Pittman is also the victim of his team’s drafting another running back with an early first-round pick. Unlike Jones, Pittman's competition actually showed up in camp on day one, which isn't good news for him. In Pittman’s case, he and Cadillac Williams might operate out of a two-back set, but at this point, that sounds like an idea with which coach Jon Gruden is merely toying. At 6-0, 218 pounds, Pittman is a nice mix of speed and power, and he’s got good hands as a receiver. While he doesn’t have Williams’ explosiveness, he’s a versatile back and a good fit for Gruden’s offense. Pittman also performed well around the goal line last season, converting four of seven carries for scores, but Williams is likely to get most of the touches near paydirt.

As long as he doesn’t run afoul of his probation officer, Pittman should be in the Tampa Bay backfield mix with Charlie Garner and Jamel White. We don’t see a ton of upside here, and his downside is a prison cell.

Led the Bucs in touches in 2002, but his production was disappointingly average (only 3.5 ypa on 204 carries with just one rushing TD, just 8.1 ypc in 59 receptions). His availability in 2003 is a major question mark due to legal problems of his own making; if he gets jail time, we're tempted to say he deserves it. Stay away from him until we see how his case goes in August, and even then, don't overbid on him.