A good read on Priest Holmes, arguable the greatest three-year stud in fantasy football history.
I have fond memories about the former Browns/Chiefs running back in Robioland.
2001 was his breakout year. He earned first-team All-Robio that season with the Browns, delivering over 2,200 total yards, leading former league member Rick back into the post-season.
The following season, he fell to me to the seventh pick in the first-round and I snagged him up. He dominated again with nearly 2,300 yards and 24 touchdowns, helping me to a division crown and a 3-seed. However, in the season’s final week where he ran for 161 yards, he got hurt and was done for they year. Luckily for me, I had his handcuff in William Green, who who eventually rush for 178 yards in the title game, leading me to my third title in four seasons.
In 2003, it was Masterson who got a hold of him with the fourth pick. This was huge, because these group of players would become the first eligible players to be kept next year (this was when we had no restrictions on how long you could keep someone). Pick wisely and this one player could lead a team to victory for years to come. This was the same draft and round where Burrier landed L.T. and Griff got Shaun Alexander.
Anyhow, the year began with Holmes in a new town, having been traded to Kansas City, but that didn’t matter as the back failed to disappoint. He finished with over 2,100 yards and 27 touchdowns and was the top back all season long. He would end up earning another first-team All-Robio award and help lead Masterson to a record-breaking performance in the quarterfinals and within one game of the the finals.
Expecting the good times to keep rolling, Masterson kept Holmes in round one in 2004 and again, he dominated. Through eight games, the Chiefs back had over 1,000 total yards and a stunning 16 touchdowns, helping Rob to a 4-4 start. Yet, in that week eight game, Holmes would get hurt and was done for the year. His injury along with the others was too much to overcome. Rob would finish the season 1-5 and miss the playoffs for the first time.
The following season was the infamous morning draft. Hungover and late, Rob was worried about keeping Holmes and knew he had to get his handcuff, up-and-coming Larry Johnson. As we all know, he waited too late and Griff snagged Johnson in round eight.
Seven weeks into the 2005 season, Rob was sitting pretty at 4-3, despite losing two of his top four picks, thanks to Holmes’ 1,000 total yards and 15 touchdowns, yet it all crumbled when Holmes once again was knocked out for the season. Rob had nothing to replace him and like last season, finished 1-5 down the stretch and missed the playoffs. Meanwhile, Griff would ride Larry Johnson to his first title later that year.
Holmes would end up playing just four more games in his career, never sniffing a Robioland roster. While it would take years for Masterson to dig out of his Priest Holmes size hole, we can only imagine what could have been with a healthy Holmes on his roster, especially after seeing what the Burrier/Tomlinson and Griff/Alexander tandems achieved. Those pair would crash the post-season together for five straight years (2003-2007), each winning one title, while Rob would miss the playoffs four times in six years starting in 2005.
Just think of this…despite Priest Holmes’ success being so minimal, he still just barely missed making it onto the All-Decade team, as he’s just one of three running backs to earn three first-team All-Robio awards (Tomlinson and Faulk are the others) and one of just two to do it three years in a row (Faulk, 1999-2001).