Stokley “ready to go”

Did the Denver Broncos walk away with a steal when they acquired Brandon Stokley?

Often criticized for being injury-prone, Stokley was the biggest surprise of the Broncos’ camp when he played opposite Javon Walker on the opening day of camp as Jay Cutler’s number two target.

“This is a big step for me,” Stokley said. “I’m ahead of schedule. … As far as I’m concerned, I’m full go. I’m ready to go. It felt great out there.”

Could he prove to be a capable fantasy wide receiver?

Probably not. As much as I can appreciate Stokley’s recovery, he remains an injury waiting to happen. And even if he doesn’t, the best you can expect is for him to line up as the team’s number three wide receiver, a position he will battle veteran Rod Smith for.

He does, however, have the head start on Smith since the latter will not be playing soon (perhaps a few weeks) after being added to the team’s PUP list. And as a wide receiver, Stokley can hold his own. But the Broncos are hardly a pass-happy offense, and Stokley probably won’t end up with enough catches to justify himself as anything more than a waiver-wire pickup.

In very deep leagues — think 16 teams and 3 starting wide receivers per team — Stokley may be an option. Anywhere else, I wouldn’t pay him more attention than I would Brandon Marshall, the Broncos expected number two wide receiver, barring an injury to one of the team’s top 2 — Javon Walker and Marshall.

Image: Courtesy The Denver Post