Derrick Mason announced his retirement a few weeks ago but he pulled a very Favre-like stunt recently and came out of retirement for one more year in the NFL.
Mason has never been the best WR out there but he's posted 1000+ yard seasons very consistently. If you don't include 2006-07 (where there were no good fantasy WR with the Ravens), Mason has put up seven 1000+ yard seasons in a row. He also has played 16 games per season for the last six seasons. Do you know any first round fantasy football stud that can say he's done that?
Joe Flacco had a great rookie season last year and only looks to improve in his second season in Baltimore. Mason will be to Flacco what Donald Driver is to Aaron Rodgers. Driver is being drafted in the 7th-9th round.
Now, we know Mason is old. We have also seen the ceiling (best possible stats) that Mason can provide us. The thing that is interesting about Mason is that he's flying way under fantasy radars. One could even call him a "sleeper" of sorts. I bet you could draft Mason in the 14th round in some drafts. How many 1000 yd WRs will you find in that round?
There is a reason that Derrick Mason came out of retirement. That reason may be that he was having football withdrawal, but I like to think that he has some gas left in the tank. If he couldn't play anymore, the Ravens wouldn't have take him back. It's not crazy to think Derrick Mason could post a useful season similar to what he did last year since he will have the same QB throwing to him. Don't overlook this veteran when drafting players.
Prediction for Derrick Mason in 2009-10:
16 games, 89 rec, 1050 yds, 6 TDs
