Dynasty Diaries: Mendenhall over Parker? - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

Dynasty Diaries takes a look at keeper leagues for fantasy football as the season quickly approaches.

When the Steelers had Rashard Mendenhall fall into their lap during the draft a few weekends ago, some major fantasy implications were brought forth. For this upcoming season things may not be changing much, but in Dynasty Diaries we like to look ahead a bit.

Obviously the job belongs to Willie Parker in Pittsburgh as long as he's still there. Of course, Mendenhall should begin to steal many short-yardage vulture-type carries this season and could be banging between the tackles in order to keep Fast Willie fresh. Parker has taken a nice little beating on his diminutive frame the past three seasons. I still believe, as I alluded to earlier, that Fast Willie's a strong late-first-rounder in yearly fantasy drafts this season with Mendenhall playing the Jerome Bettis of 2005 role ... and serving as a must-have handcuff for Parker owners.

As for the future, that's a different matter altogether. I'm of the belief that you can win some keeper leagues simply by trading perceived future stars for older studs in order to win almost annually because too many owners get caught up in the "keeper" aspect and lose sight of the winning games aspect. Assuming you don't play with a bunch of hacks like that, Mendenhall is a very enticing keeper prospect.

First of all, the Steelers have a history of cutting ties with guys when they show even the slightest signs of getting worn down or overrated. I'm not saying this is the case with Parker currently, but he has two more years under contract. Let's modestly give him another 600 carries (he had 658 the past two years) ... that's a lot of tread on those tires for a small 30 year-old running back. No way the Steelers pay him, and there's a 100% chance someone else will. So that's one point.

The Steelers predicate themselves on continuity in head coaching, a hard-hitting defense, and a bruising running game. Mendenhall embodies the last part. So that's two points.

The offense in Steeltown is as balanced as ever, with Ben Roethlisberger becoming a prolific passer last season instead of a boring game-manager. Hines Ward may be old in two years, but Santonio Holmes and Limas Sweed are going to be around for a while and still have tons of untapped upside. With this passing game, the running game will be open for success as well. So that's three points.

Is three enough? In deep keeper leagues where you are playing for both this season and the future, absolutely. If you own Willie Parker in a dynasty league, you must grab Mendenhall to create a smooth transition for yourself ... the running game in Pitt is a smorgasbord for fantasy owners.

Matter of fact, I wouldn't mind building a dynasty team around Big Ben, Santonio, Limas, and Mendy.