Donte Stallworth of the Cleveland Browns has been suspended indefinitely by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Stallworth, who recently plead guilty to DUI manslaughter in which a pedestrian was killed by a car Stallworth was driving, also won’t get paid during his suspension.

Donte Stallworth Suspension (Image: Newscom)

In the fantasy football world, this makes Stallworth completely valueless. He had minimal value prior to this incident but now there’s no situation in which he should be selected in a 2009 fantasy football draft.

According to reports, Stallworth received 30 days of jail time, two years of house arrest and eight years of probation. Considering all that baggage and the fact that he’s suspended indefinitely without pay, that will likely lead to the Browns releasing him and cutting all ties.

In fact, some experts believe there’s a good chance that Stallworth never plays in the NFL again. He was a talented player but not talented to the point that a team is likely to roll the dice on him. And with Goodell trying to clean up the league’s image, there’s a good chance that Stallworth will be suspended for a long while.

Today, Brian Westbrook will have surgery on his ankle. There are already rumors out there that Westbrook will be out until the regular season. While the Philadelphia Eagles haven’t given specifics of when they expect Westbrook to return, it’s likely that they take things slowly with their starting running back.

In the fantasy football world, this is bad news for Westbrook owners. He has always been a fragile player and he’s now undergoing his second offseason surgery. It’s difficult to imagine that he’ll be able to play all 16 games given the amount of rehab he’ll need just to get on the field for Week 1 of the regular season.

That said, Westbrook is a very enticing fantasy football running back. When he’s healthy, he’s one of the biggest threats — both running the ball and receiving the ball out of the backfield.

Considering his injury woes, the best idea is to take Westbrook but be sure to handcuff his backup. Second round pick LeSean McCoy will likely be the backup and if he is, he’s a must own if you decide to roll the dice with Westbrook in the 2009 fantasy football season.

Tony Gonzalez was traded to the Atlanta Falcons during the offseason. Recently, he has started to practice with the team during Atlanta’s minicamp. Considering that Gonzalez was arguably the best fantasy football tight end last season, this trade made a big impact in the fantasy world.

Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons - Fantasy Football 2009 (Image: Newscom)

Will Gonzalez be better off with the Falcons? Considering that he had 96 catches for 1,058 yards and ten touchdowns, it’s difficult to imagine him doing much more. But with the Falcons, Gonzalez very well might be able to top those numbers.

The best thing going for Gonzalez is Falcons’ quarterback Matt Ryan. Coming off of a fantastic rookie season, Ryan should continue to blossom in his second season. With running back Michael Turner helping to move the chains, Gonzalez could often find himself in position to pick up a touchdown.

On the other side of the coin, three things may hold Gonzalez back during 2009 fantasy football. First of all, he’s 33 years old and he could start slowing down. If he loses too much speed, he’ll be much easier to scheme against.

The second and third things that could hold down Gonzalez’s numbers are Roddy White and Michael Jenkins. With the Kansas City Chiefs, Gonzalez didn’t have a wide receiving duo that demanded targets. In Atlanta, he has White who is coming off of an 88-catch campaign and 50 additional catches by Jenkins. With all the weapons on offense, each part may suffer a little bit statistically.

All that said, Gonzalez remains a very good fantasy football prospect at the tight end position in 2009. If he’s the first tight end off the board in your 2009 fantasy draft, don’t be surprised.

In the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft, there were a number of players taken that could have a fantasy football impact during the 2009 season. We’ll take a look at these prospects in Part 4 of this series.

• 2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 3
• 2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 2
• 2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 1

2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 4:

RB Shonn Greene, New York Jets
With the first pick in the third round, the Jets got a running back who could take over the reigns in a year or two.

RB Glen Coffee, San Francisco 49ers
With Frank Gore always an injury risk, Glen Coffee will be a must-have handcuff.

WR Derrick Williams, Detroit Lions
The Lions will try this new Williams next to Calvin Johnson.

WR Brandon Tate, New England Patriots
Don’t look for him to have an impact this year but down the line Tate has potential.

WR Mike Wallace, Pittsburgh Steelers
Wallace could eventually fill in for Hines Ward but not this season.

WR Ramses Barden, New York Giants
With Plaxico Burress out of the picture, the Giants are looking for wide receivers.

WR Patrick Turner, Miami Dolphins
He’s a big target who could eventually become a touchdown-heavy wide receiver.

TE Jared Cook, Tennessee Titans
Cook doesn’t have a high ceiling next season but could eventually win the starting job.

WR Deon Butler, Seattle Seahawks
With so many injures last season, the Seahawks decided to add another Deon.

TE Chase Coffman, Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals have had a lot of trouble finding a reliable tight end. Coffman could be the answer.

TE Travis Beckum, New York Giants
Beckum isn’t the toughest player around but he has a chance to be good receiving tight end.

In Part 3 of our fantasy football analysis of the 2009 NFL Draft, we take a look at the picks that were made in the second round. A few of these picks should become fantasy football relevant by the end of the 2009 fantasy campaign.

Pat White, Miami Dolphins - Fantasy Football (Image: Newscom)

WR Pat White, Miami Dolphins
In the 2009 fantasy football season, Pat White could be a hot name. He was a quarterback in college but most believe he’ll end up as a wide receiver in the NFL. However, other scouts insist he might be able to play QB in the NFL. Whatever the case may be, White could cause havoc with the Dolphins — especially if they use more of their “Wildcat” sets.

WR Brian Robiskie, Cleveland Browns
WR Mohamed Massaquoi, Cleveland Browns
The Browns need wide receivers. In the second round, they drafted a pair of receivers. With Braylon Edwards coming off of a disappointing season and Donte Stallworth in trouble with the law, Robiski and Massaquoi should provide good depth.

RB LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia Eagles
Brian Westbrook now has some legit competition in Philadelphia. LeSean McCoy has been rated highly for most of the last year and the Eagles were able to get him in the second round. If you draft Westbrook, make sure to handcuff McCoy.

TE Richard Quinn, Denver Broncos
Although Richard Quinn is mostly a blocking tight end, he could get some action around the goal line. Head coach Josh McDaniels is from New England, where they like to roster multiple tight ends.

In the second part of our fantasy football analysis of the 2009 NFL Draft, here’s a look at the player drafted in the second half of the first round.

2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 1

2009 NFL Draft - Fantasy Analysis Part 2

QB Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Some experts were surprised that Freeman went so high in the draft but the Bucs loved his size and potential. That said, he’s a long-term project for Tampa Bay.

WR Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia Eagles
For fantasy football purposes, Maclin fell into a perfect situation. The Eagles need wide receiver help and Maclin should be able to help right away. After DeSean Jackson played so well last year, Maclin could become fantasy relevant very quickly.

TE Brandon Pettigrew, Detroit Lions
Pettigrew has some fantasy football potential but he landed in a difficult position and probably will need a few years to blossom.

WR Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings
The good news for Harvin is the Vikings desperately need a wide receiver. The bad news is they don’t seem to have a quality QB that can get him the ball.

RB Donald Brown, Indianapolis Colts
With Dominic Rhodes out of the picture, Donald Brown should be able to step right in. Though Joseph Addai will be the starter, Brown has a chance to make noise in the fantasy world — especially if Addai gets hurt.

WR Hakeem Nicks, New York Giants
The Giants need a replacement for Plaxico Burress and Nicks has a chance to be that man. However, be careful because the Giants have many options at the wide receiver position.

WR Kenny Britt, Tennessee Titans
Britt is another wide receiver drafted in the first round who is going to a team desperate for production from the wide receiver position. If Britt is named as a starter, he’s a definite sleeper.

RB Chris Wells, Arizona Cardinals
Wells was once projected to be a top ten pick in this draft. For the Cardinals, he should be a great match to pair with Tim Hightower. With Hightower struggling at times last year, Wells could quickly prove to be a better RB.

Chris Wells, Arizona Cardinals (Image: Newscom)

Those of us obsessed with fantasy football now have some tangible information to start studying. On Tuesday, the league released the 2009 NFL schedules for each team.

While it’s a lot of information to digest at once, one team that looks to have a friendly fantasy football schedule is the Arizona Cardinals. Last season, Kurt Warner and the Cardinals made it to the Super Bowl. This coming season, a lot of fantasy football owners could be counting on Warner to lead their teams to a fantasy football Super Bowl.

Here’s a look at the Cardinals schedule:

Week 1 - San Francisco
Week 2 - @ Jacksonville
Week 3 - Indianapolis
Week 5 - Houston
Week 6 - @ Seattle
Week 7 - @ NY Giants
Week 8 - Carolina
Week 9 - @ Chicago
Week 10 - Seattle
Week 11 - @ St. Louis
Week 12 - @ Tennessee
Week 13 - Minnesota
Week 14 - @ San Francisco
Week 15 - @ Detroit
Week 16 - St. Louis
Week 17 - Green Bay

Pay special attention to the money weeks of the fantasy football season — Week 14 through Week 16. Three games against bad defense during the fantasy playoffs? That fact alone just raised the stock value of everyone on the Cardinals’ offense including Kurt Warner.

Kurt Warner, Fantasy Football Star in 2009? (Image: Newscom)

The fantasy football value of Marshawn Lynch took a major hit today when the NFL suspended him for the first three games of the 2009 fantasy football season. The announcement was made by Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL.

Marshawn Lynch Suspended (Image: Newscom)

The running back for the Buffalo Bills was suspended due to two brushes with the law. His first incident was when he hit a pedestrian near a bar in Buffalo. The second incident was a gun charge in California.

Three games in a fantasy football season is quite a big chunk. This news could drop him from a second rounder all the way into the fourth a fifth round. Any fantasy team that drafts Lynch would be handicapping themselves in the first three weeks of the season.

The player who will see his value increase is backup Bills running back Fred Jackson. He showed some glimpses last season and he’s likely to start the first three games of the season. If you are thinking about drafting Lynch, be sure to handcuff Lynch with Jackson.

In the second half of the fantasy season, Lynch could hold a lot of value. By then, he should be back into the groove and the Bills offense should be much improved due to the acquisition of Terrell Owens earlier in the offseason. If everything goes as planned, Lynch has a chance to be a sleeper acquisition for the second half of the fantasy football season.

On Friday, the New York Giants cut their ties with wide receiver Plaxico Burress. Although Burress was instrumental in the Giants’ Super Bowl victory in 2007, the team decided that the bad now outweighs the good. In 2009 fantasy football drafts, fantasy owners will have to make a similar decision.

Plaxico Burress Released by the Giants (Image: Newscom)

The major trouble for Burress started when he shot himself in the leg back in November. Due to that incident, Burress faces a felony charge that could very well lead to prison time. Even if he’s not sent to prison, he could face a suspension from the NFL.

His value in fantasy football will depend on which team he lands with and how much action he will miss. Even though he has had a lot of personal problems over the years, Burress is a very good fantasy player. In 2006 and 2007 combined, Burress had 22 touchdowns and more than 2000 yards receiving. That type of production makes him viable in the fantasy world any time he steps onto the field.

As for the Giants, they actually have a lot of wide receiver talent and they should be able to pick up most of the slack. Domenik Hixon, Mario Manningham, Sinorice Moss and Steve Smith are all very capable of stepping into larger roles. That said, quarterback Eli Manning’s stock is lowered due to this news because Burress was his favorite option and it will be harder now for Manning to accumulate touchdown passes.

Fantasy football owners are trying to digest the news that Jay Cutler was traded to the Chicago Bears from the Denver Broncos. This news will affect many NFL players in the fantasy football world.

Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears (Image: Newscom)

First of all, Cutler himself probably sees his stock lower quite significantly. In Chicago, he joins a team with a mediocre receiving corps and a history of running the ball often. Logic suggests his stats will drop after spending his last few years in the wide open offense run in Denver.

For the Broncos, the wide receivers also see their stocks go south. Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal aren’t worth as much without Cutler delivering passes. However, whoever wins the running back battle for the Broncos could see their stock rise due to more carries.

In Chicago, the Bears receivers are now viable in the fantasy world. Devin Hester, the return specialist turned wide receiver, will be a popular sleeper pick during 2009 fantasy football drafts. If he enters the season as the number one wide receiver, Cutler could look for him early and often.

Tight end Greg Olson should also see his stock rise considerably following the acquisition of Cutler. He seems to have all the tools to be a star at the position and Cutler may be able to push him to the next level.

Also keep an eye to see on who will become the quarterback in Denver. With a new regime in town, the offensive tinkering may just have just begun.