Fantasy: Charles, Green and other must-watch storylines from AFC West training camps

With NFL training camps underway, theScore's Justin Boone and David P. Woods take a look at the biggest fantasy questions facing each team over the next six weeks. 

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AFC WEST

Is Jamaal Charles worthy of the No. 1 overall pick?

If luck shines on you and you draw the No. 1 overall pick in your fantasy draft later this summer, your decision should come down to two players: Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles and Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy. 

The two finished as the Nos. 1 and 2 scoring running backs a season ago, and the stars have aligned to put them in position to do it again (despite Charles' one-day holdout). 

Which player is the better No. 1 pick? Right now, McCoy is the choice of average drafters by a very small margin. McCoy is a year-and-a-half younger than Charles and the prevailing thought is that the Eagles' offense will be even better than a year ago, whereas there are some concerns that the Chiefs' offense (and Charles' involvement in it, in particular) maxed out in 2013.

A quick look at their 2013 numbers suggests this perspective is the correct one:

Any savvy fantasy owner knows touchdowns are unpredictable and yardage is far more sustainable, and Charles scored an inordinately high percentage of his 2013 fantasy points by crossing the stripe. Expect those numbers to regress (especially Charles' ridiculous seven receiving touchdowns), dropping Charles just below McCoy in the fantasy pecking order. 

Perhaps the biggest takeaway here is that the second overall pick in drafts may be preferable to the first pick this year. Scoop up Charles (or McCoy if he falls) and enjoy a slightly earlier second-round pick.

Is Ladarius Green ready to emerge as a TE1?

Entering his third NFL season at age 24, San Diego Chargers tight end Ladarius Green appears poised to burst onto the fantasy scene.

All the elements of a breakout are there: a supremely talented young player just entering his prime both physically and mentally, an aging veteran ready to step aside, and an offense that lacks weapons. 

In Green's case, the veteran is Antonio Gates and the offense really only has Gates and sophomore wideout Keenan Allen as viable threats. The opportunity is there.

Green is part of a new breed of tight ends in that he's a true deep threat. In fact, he averaged more yards per reception than any player (wide receivers included) who caught at least 10 passes in 2013. That's remarkable. Statistically, Green was a better deep threat than Josh Gordon.

Green's breakout isn't a slam dunk, however. There are two reasons to believe he won't be featured in the Chargers' passing attack as much as he perhaps deserves to be. The first is loyalty to Gates; the second is Green's effectiveness as an inline blocker.

Green's ADP is in the 11th round currently, but it will rise if he's a big part of the Chargers' offensive attack in the preseason. For now, the smart move is to pair him with another high-upside tight end in the later rounds of your draft (Zach Ertz and Eric Ebron are good candidates) and pray for one of them to break out.

Which Broncos receiver will benefit most from Eric Decker's departure?

Eric Decker finished as the No. 8 scoring wide receiver in fantasy football a year ago, posting 1,288 yards and 11 touchdowns in a historic Peyton Manning-led offense. Then he left for big money with the New York Jets.

The Broncos signed former Pittsburgh Steelers wideout Emmanuel Sanders in free agency, but he won't necessarily be Decker's replacement. Sanders stands 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, whereas Decker is 6-foot-3 and 214. There's some thought that Sanders' future with the Broncos is in the slot - in place of an aging Wes Welker - rather than on the outside.

If that's the case, who will line up along the sideline opposite Demaryius Thomas? The best bet is second-round pick Cody Latimer. The physical freak (6-foot-3, 215 pounds) shot up draft boards this spring and has reportedly impressed onlookers at camp.

Look for Latimer to be eased into the Broncos' offense, but he offers perhaps as much upside as any rookie receiver not named Sammy Watkins. Latimer is going undrafted in standard 12-team leagues. Add him to your watch list and be prepared to pounce on him as a priority waiver wire pickup.

Is any Raiders running back worth owning?

In shallow leagues, the answer is probably no. In deeper leagues, the answer is a little less clear.

The Raiders re-signed running back Darren McFadden this spring after months of speculation that he would depart in free agency. Then they went out and signed former Jacksonville Jaguars star Maurice Jones-Drew. 

McFadden's still only 26 years old, despite what feels like a full decade that he's been in the NFL. Jones-Drew is 29. Both have been beat up over the years.

The conventional thinking is that the pair will split carries in the Raiders' backfield. At this moment, Jones-Drew's ADP is in the seventh round and McFadden's is in the eighth. 

Don't waste your time with either player. Each will likely need an injury to the other (which, frankly, sounds inevitable) to be startable as anything better than a FLEX, and even in such a scenario each would only be a weak option running behind what promises to be a train wreck of an offensive line.

Instead of wasting a mid-round pick on Jones-Drew or McFadden, use your mid-round picks to draft players with more upside, like rookies Terrance West, Jeremy Hill and Devonta Freeman. Or, better yet, use your early picks on running backs and draft your quarterback in the seventh or eighth round.