He Hate Me FF keeper league - year 8

The Game Room
141

New York Fanboys - Ellis Dee
1 (5) Peyton Manning
2 (24) Jahvid Best
3 (33) C.J. Spiller
4 (61) Chad Ochocinco
5 (80) Ahmad Bradshaw - Keeper
6 (89) Santonio Holmes
7 (108) New York - Keeper
8 (117) Anthony Gonzalez
9 (136) Hakeem Nicks - Keeper
10 (145) Dustin Keller
11 (164) New York
12 (173) David Garrard
13 (192) Darrius Heyward-Bey
14 (201) Tim Tebow
15 (209) Lawrence Tynes
16 (220) Kevin Boss

QB - Peyton Manning, David Garrard, Tim Tebow
As Peyton Manning goes this team goes. No pick will impact a team as much as that one does here. It’s pretty much universally agreed that Peyton was way overdrafted here and I’m not sure of the last time Peyton lead all QBs in fantasy scoring, it’s been a long time though. He’s steady as a metronome but the 5th overall pick shouldn’t be steady when talking about QBs. If say Joe Flacco gives you a reliable 13 points/week to Peyton’s 18 points/week is it really worth 5 rounds? With Turner still on the board you could have probably gotten Peyton in round 2. Still, the guy is going to be there every week for you. If the Cols somehow become a 35 points a game team you might justify this pick, I don’t see that happening.

You got a pair of backups which frankly makes no sense to me. Peyton never misses a game and that’s not likely to change. If he gets hurt your season is screwed anyways so you might as well gamble with the waiver wire. Garrard is going to be a bust this year as I’ve said multiple times though I suppose the value in the 12th is ok. Drafting a backup AND a keeper is a terrible idea though, these rosters aren’t deep enough for that. Tebow is a gamble I can respect but if you planned on that you should have either trusted that he’ll win the job this season and be your backup or just concede that if Peyton goes down you’re playing for next year anyways.

With Peyton you’re in the hunt always, but damn this position was pricey.

RB - Jahvid Best, C.J. Spiller, Ahmad Bradshaw
And all that spending on QBs rears it’s ugly head. You are in a very perilous situation here. I dislike rookie running backs in general with the exception of those looked at as keeper candidates. You spent two high picks there on two terrible teams who you can’t keep. That’s painful.

Bradshaw is probably your RB1 and keeping him in the 5th is a really good value, he might be worth a 3rd next year, but you’re in trouble behind him. Obviously I think Bradshaw will be the full time starter on the Giants this season so that’s strong option if he stays healthy. Going with back to back rookies in Best and Spiller is a sketchy move. Both have looked great but both are entirely unproven. I would be enthusiastic about gambling with one of them and pairing them with a more reliable guy but taking 2 puts all your eggs into essentially the same basket. Of the two Best looks to be in the better situation and will probably have to be your RB2, I’m not sure Spiller will be safe enough of a play for your Flex from week to week in Buffalo.

WR - Chad Ochocinco, Santonio Holmes, Anthony Gonzalez, Hakeem Nicks, Darrius Heyward-Bey
Little bit of trouble here too. 85 isn’t going to be a suitable WR1 this season, I think there’s little chance that he reaches 1000 yards and Gresham and Owens will steal all the redzone targets. Palmer has been iffy for 2 seasons and while there’s some reason for optimism with the talent around him I’d want to see him prove it before I stake my season on his #1. Holmes is getting a lot of positive press on Hard Knocks but he’s got three massive issues. A 4 game suspension, a great running game and Mark Sanchez’s noodle arm. All these conspire to make him a serious gamble but also a serious upside play…but not in the 6th round.

I already discussed Gonzalez when I talked about Collie, but let’s just say that I’m a long ways from convinced that he’ll step back into his pre-injury role. Garcon, Wayne and Clark are the guys to have. Collie and Gonzalez will get nothing but scraps. Nicks will be the key. If you’re right about him becoming Eli’s top target and deep threat, then he could salvage this group and solidify your flex position should a RB falter. You’ll need it, I’m not sold. DHB is a really nice value where you got him and there’s at least some chance he becomes a steady producer, someone in Oakland has to catch balls besides Miller and the running game looks pretty good which could open up some deep balls.

TE - Dustin Keller, Kevin Boss
I’m OK with both these guys. I think you should have taken a stab at a RB keeper instead of taking two TEs but there’s a decent chance that Boss is worth hanging onto next season. I suspect that Keller will see his targets disappear this season with Holmes and LDT in tow so I’m not liking that pick as much but you waited until the end so it’s not a back breaker. Still, I think the NYC myopia hurt you a bit here.

DEF - New York Jets, New York Giants
Why? You kept the Jets, which is questionable but defensible. Then burned a pick on the Giants. There’s no excuse for this except Fanboyism. If you think the Jets are good enough to keep in the 7th round, then by extension you don’t plan on playing matchups or defense roulette…yet you have 2 Ds? If you ever start the Giants on a non-bye week you’ve essentially undermined the Jets keeper. Silliness.

K - Lawrence Tynes
You got one, second to last round. Hunky dory.

All in all I think this team was poorly executed and it looks far to similar to the bygone New York FANBOYS teams of yore. If you really wanted a NY team you’d have been better off landing Shonn Green with that fifth pick and taking Peyton or Eli later. Only 3 RBs in a league that can start 3. 3 QBs, 2 TEs and 2 Defenses, you can afford one of those, not all three.

Potential Keepers: Ahmad Bradshaw, Santonio Holmes, Hakeem Nicks, Darrius Heyward-Bey, Tim Tebow, Kevin Boss**

Grade: D

142

I thought I had the best keeper trio of anyone, bar possibly Omni, and that argument boils down to where the keepers were drafted. I’m not going to grade everyone, I have enough trouble grading myself, but here are my thoughts on my draft:

1 (11) Shonn Greene
The player I wanted coming into the draft. Uncontested #1 RB in a Rex Ryan offense with a good but young QB who is going to lean on the running game? Yes, thank you sir, I’ll have another.

2 (27) Ray Rice - Keeper
“One year wonder”? Keep dreaming. A top 4 RB in the second round, that’s gold. My Ravens are an honest to God, no fooling, for real, offensive team now(I know, I can’t believe it myself), and that’s built around Rice.

3 (39) Felix Jones
Not my 1st pick here, I was hoping for Michael Bush, but he went 2 picks earlier. Still, Jones is the RB in Dallas who can catch passes out of the backfield, and I’ll take that.

4 (55) Matt Schaub - Keeper
RNATB regrets trading him to me. 'Nuff said.

5 (67) Tony Gonzalez
Gonzo isn’t the player he was 4 years ago, but who is? Last year he led the NFL in targets for TE, and that’s what I want. He somehow only got 5 TDs last year. He’ll get more this year, that was an aberration
.
6 (74) T.J. Houshmandzadeh
I didn’t actually mean to take Housh here, I had him and D. Mason queued, and I meant to take Mason, but I didn’t realize I had TJ highlighted, so when I hit draft I got TJ instead of Dmas. No matter. He got canned from Seattle because he’s kind of a loudmouth, but here in Baltimore, we have Ray Lewis who WILL forcefully keep him in hand, and he’s going to be running against the opposing team’s 3 or 4 cover man. Challenge: Name a 3 or 4 DB, ANY 3 or 4 DB, that can keep a talent like TJ in check. You can’t. I see lots of FF points in my future.

7 (95) Kenny Britt
Tennessee’s most talented receiver. Sure Tn. runs more than it throws, but they gotta throw to someone, and he’s the best of the lot. Possible keeper if he has a breakout year.

8 (102) Peyton Hillis
Hardesty is on IR, and Harrison fumbles too much. Look for Hillis to earn more reps than you’d think. Another possible keeper.

9 (123) Miles Austin - Keeper
Another “one year wonder”, eh? Keep telling yourself that. I bet I’ll keep him next year too.

10 (130) Mohamed Massaquoi
If Delhomme has anything left in the tank(and that’s a gamble), he’ll be productive.

11 (151) Alex Smith
Best backup QB left on the boards. SF will throw more this year. Hopefully that will translate into production the week Schaub has a bye.

12 (158) Philadelphia
They ruled for me last year. They will do the same this year.

13 (179) Arrelious Benn
I would have taken Todd Heap here, except he has the same bye as Gonzo. We’ll see.

14 (186) Nate Kaeding
The # 2 kicker on my board. Solid value in the 14th, top flight kickers score a lot of points.

15 (207) Rob Bironas
Not my pick at all. I had a couple of players queued, and I went to the john, and you bastards drafted so quickly(drafting all the players I had queued, BTW) that I got back just in time to see Yahoo draft me a second kicker (thanks Yahoo). He’s my “piss kicker”. (I wonder if I could drop him and take a flier on a longshot undrafted rookie potential keeper in this slot instead. What say you Ellis?)

16 (214) Chaz Schilens

Discombobulated from the kicker mishap, this was nothing more than a grab at a potential keeper. He’s hurt for the first half of the season, let’s see if I have to drop him for a bye week replacement or if he can reward me in the 2nd half of the season, looking towards next year.) Donte Stallworth might have been better here.

143

Spiritus Mundane - Spiritus Mundi
1 (6) Michael Turner
2 (23) Tony Romo
3 (34) Matt Forte
4 (51) Jermichael Finley
5 (62) Pierre Garcon
6 (79) DeSean Jackson - Keeper
7 (90) Devin Hester
8 (107) Jacoby Jones
9 (118) Willis McGahee
10 (135) Minnesota
11 (146) Lee Evans
12 (163) Bernard Scott - Keeper
13 (174) Joshua Cribbs
14 (191) Josh Freeman
15 (202) Garrett Hartley
16 (219) Nate Burleson

QB - Tony Romo, Josh Freeman
You drafted a stud QB and a very late youngster with keeper potential. I think this is the way to go. One small problem, I don’t think your QB is a stud. I had a very clear set of QB tiers this season. Brees and Rodgers at the top, Manning and Brady in the next tier close behind and then Schaub, Rivers and Romo a fair ways down in the 3rd tier. Now, Rivers and Schaub were keepers and with the top 4 gone you had a decision to make, Romo was the next guy in line but I’d have held off a round and see what remained. Frankly, even in a keeper league, Romo at 23 overall is way too early. The Cowboys offense has looked seriously dodgy and the defenses he faces are fairly solid. If Bryant and Austin live up to the hype and Witten regains his form you might be okay, and really if this was your strategy waiting on Romo could have been too big a gamble to take. We shall see.

Freeman is a nice late keeper possibility. I don’t think he and the Tampa offense will progress far enough to justify that and if he’s got to play for you you’re in trouble, but as a guy who’s relying on Bradford to back me up I probably shouldn’t throw stones.

RB - Michael Turner, Matt Forte, Willis McGahee, Bernard Scott
Only 4 running backs is a little worrisome, but as you’ve probably noticed Turner and Forte are names I’ve been mentioning a lot. I love Turner this season and at #6 he’s a virtual steal. Atlanta runs the ball a lot and very effectively and they’ll incorporate more screen plays adding to his touches. I think of the top tier RBs the risk of injury may be at it’s least with Turner, and while he’s not a threat for 1600 yards he’s money on the goal line. Forte was a steal in the third round and it seems like he burned so many bridges last year owners were prejudiced against him unfairly this year. In what was probably a perfect storm of terrible things he still managed over a 1000 yards last season and he’s healthier now and should benefit from Martz and a line that can’t possibly be that bad again.

After the starters your really thin though. Neither guy is a flex option and McGahee will only have value as a TD vulture and I’m not sure you can afford to play him as a flex. He’s probably a bye week sub at most. Scott is probably the most coveted ambulance chaser in the league which is a nice guy to have and you didn’t spend much on him. They are high on him and there’s always a very real possibility that Benson could be suspended or kicked off the team before the start of next season. You really could have used another warm body here.

WR - Pierre Garcon, DeSean Jackson, Devin Hester, Jacoby Jones, Lee Evans, Joshua Cribbs, Nate Burleson
You had essentially the exact same draft as Wilson, waiting until the 5th round to address the WR position. I like the guys you got better than his but you went a little overboard on the quantity. It’s almost as if you felt like you waited too long and panicked, filling up your queue and drafting WRs until your fingers bled. I like Garcon a bunch this year, I’m one of those people predicting the demise of Reggie Wayne and Garcon is the guy that’s going to get all the plum looks. I think he’s the best guy taken at the position in that round. Jackson is a nice keeper, one I traded you as a matter of fact IIRC, but I worry about the change at QB and how it will impact him. The ESPN guys have spent a lot to time predicting is demise and I think I agree. Maclin has looked excellent and Jackson scored a ton of his fantasy points on big plays that are at least somewhat lucky.

With the flaws at RB you’ll be looking for a Flex from the rest of the group you spammed the rest of the draft with. I like Hester this year to bounce back, Martz is moving him to a quasi-slot position and will be moving him all over the formation to get him the ball in space. I think this is what they should have done with him from the outset and lining him up on the outside was always a mistake. Martz is smart enough to see what he’s got. I’m also chugging the Jacoby Jones Kool-aid. Monster upside from him this year if that Texans offense is close to projections. Lee Evans is the only weapon Edwards has so he’s a pretty great value at this point in the draft, but when that Bills offense struggles he could disappear some weeks entirely.

Cribbs is interesting but I’m just not sure how the hell he’s ever going to be a reliable fantasy play. The injury to Hardesty might lead the Browns to start working Cribbs into the backfield more often, but I suspect Homlgren will want a more conventional offensive system. We shall see, but they did pay the man so with that pick it might be a sneaky value if they’ve got something up their sleeve. Burleson was a savvy late pick, there’s a pretty decent chance that he’s productive if I’m right about the growth of the Lions offense.

TE - Jermichael Finley
There’s not much that hasn’t already been said about Finley. I don’t like the 4th round pick with him, Clark and Gates are one thing but at this point Finley is still mostly just potential. Remember a couple years ago when Olsen was gonna be the next monster TE? We’ll see if Finley can repeat last years numbers, and I don’t think he’s got a 1000 yard season in him. I think he and Witten are far behind the top two.

DEF - Minnesota
I’ve read multiple reports and comments about the Vikings defense being one of the elite ones. That my friends is crazy talk. They are average or slightly better. They should have been drafted in the 14th round, the 10th is sheer lunacy. It’s a potent division with dynamic offenses and the Vikings secondary is pretty iffy. The D-line is their strength but what happens if the Williams’ finally serve the suspension they should be serving?

K - Garrett Hartley
Kicker. Saints. 15th round. Score.

This team has some excellent starters and some excellent depth at the WR position. The real problem is depth and keepers. All that WR madness leads to a dearth of RBs and some potential for misery. Still, the front line guys can compete with any team in the league. Those high upside middle round receivers all might be just beyond where they have serious keeper value.

Potential Keepers: Pierre Garcon, DeSean Jackson, Jacoby Jones, Lee Evans, Bernard Scott

Grade: B-

144

Quentin’s JAMmers

1 (8) Ryan Mathews
2 (21) Steve Smith
3 (36) Jonathan Stewart
4 (49) LeSean McCoy - Keeper
5 (64) Malcom Floyd
6 (77) Mike Wallace
7 (92) Donovan McNabb
8 (105) Bernard Berrian
9 (120) Fred Taylor
10 (133) Matt Ryan - Keeper
11 (148) Larry Johnson
12 (161) Brent Celek - Keeper
13 (176) Legedu Naanee
14 (189) Indianapolis
15 (204) Keiland Williams
16 (217) Robbie Gould

Best Pick: Not really a pick, but the whole draft. I think you ran the draft very well, usually getting the BPA, filling out the whole roster, and grabbing keeper potential. A very balanced, high potential draft.

Worst Pick: Ryan Matthews. I like him and his situation, but he’s a rookie who will hit the wall late in the season and isn’t a sure thing at all. I think you’ll regret passing on Andre Johnson.

Strengths: Well balanced, powerful team. While Ryan/McNabb aren’t studs, they have enough potential and enough scoring to keep you in the game, McCoy and Matthews should be solid starters, with Stewart there to take up slack and a couple of vets. And I love the potential in the WR crew.

Weaknesses: A lotta eggs in the Chargers basket. If Rivers goes down, or the O Line struggles, this team could take a dive rather quickly.

Overall: I really like this team. Although it is very young and unproven, there is a lot of potential there to really shine. Add in a nice mix of veteran filler and projects and this team has a good shot at the playoffs. But it’s far from proven.

145

Crabby Hermits

1 (7) Randy Moss
2 (22) Tom Brady
3 (35) Marion Barber
4 (50) Hines Ward
5 (63) Fred Jackson
6 (78) LaDainian Tomlinson
7 (91) Robert Meachem
8 (106) Visanthe Shiancoe
9 (119) Pittsburgh
10 (134) Jerricho Cotchery
11 (147) Kevin Smith
12 (162) Dennis Dixon
13 (175) Nate Washington
14 (190) Mewelde Moore - Keeper
15 (203) Antonio Brown
16 (218) John Kasay

Best Pick: Nate Washington in the 13th is nice value. He’ll outperform Britt and has some nice keeper potential.

Worst Pick: Randy Moss. Don’t get me wrong, I think he’ll have a good year (although I do have my doubts). But passing on Andre Johnson to grab him really surprised me. Plus, Randy is already whining about not feeling “wanted”.

Strengths: Experience. Brady, Moss, Barber, Ward, and Tomlinson make me feel like 2004 all over again.

Weaknesses: Age. Those guys are old. I also don’t see much upside on this team. Ward, Tomlinson, Barber, Cotchery, Smith, and Moore are all safe, steady picks, but not a one of them has the ability to really turn on the scoring.

Overall: I’m guessing you’re a Steeler fan. I must say I’m not really feeling their fantasy potential this year, especially without Mendenhall in your lineup. While the Brady/Moss team will help this team stay in the fight, I don’t think this team has the firepower to make the playoffs.

146

He went for 1699 in 2008.

147

Spiritus Mundane

1 (6) Michael Turner
2 (23) Tony Romo
3 (34) Matt Forte
4 (51) Jermichael Finley
5 (62) Pierre Garcon
6 (79) DeSean Jackson - Keeper
7 (90) Devin Hester
8 (107) Jacoby Jones
9 (118) Willis McGahee
10 (135) Minnesota
11 (146) Lee Evans
12 (163) Bernard Scott - Keeper
13 (174) Joshua Cribbs
14 (191) Josh Freeman
15 (202) Garrett Hartley
16 (219) Nate Burleson

Best Pick: Getting who you want. Romo, Turner, Forte, and Finley are a great start to a fantasy football team, and although they may have been bits of reaches, none of them were insane reaches. Not being afraid to reach for a guy you want is nice.

Worst Pick: Vikings D and the Josh’s. With your lack of depth at RB and some questions at WR, I think it was a mistake to grab a defense that early. Guys like Laurent Robinson, Tashard Choice, Larry Johnson, Slaton, Lynch, were still available. Also, Cribbs is the #3 WR on a team with Jake Delhomme throwing and I really think Josh Freeman is destined for Bustville, so they were, to me, wasted picks.

Strengths: A good core of players, with a lot of potential at the WR position. I really like the way you mixed up the core of your team with the potential at WR. You plug in Romo, Turner, Forte and Finley each week and hope one or two of your WR’s make a move this year. Jones, Garcon, Evans, and Hester (well, not Hester) have potential to be gamebreakers. And I like Burleson to be a great complimentary receiver.

Weaknesses: The potential and sheer numbers at WR left you painfully thin at RB. If Turner or Forte don’t produce and Benson doesn’t get hurt/demoted, you could be in trouble.

Overall: This team needs to stay healthy, or there could be trouble. Of course that is true for many teams in a 14 team league. I like some of the potential at WR to emerge, and the core of this team will give him a chance to compete week in and week out. With just a bit of luck, this team could be headed to the playoffs.

Grade: B+. Docked for the Josh issues.

148

Freeman’s numbers last year were almost identical to Mark Sanchez and Matt Stafford’s, and if you take his rushing production into account he outperformed both. Keep in mind that he didn’t have Braylon Edwards or Calvin Johnson to throw to, let alone one of the league’s leading rushing offenses to take pressure off him.

I was not a happy camper when we drafted Freeman, but while he hasn’t made a believer out of me yet I think he’s a starting caliber NFL quarterback.

149

If it’s any consolation, I think Sanchez sucks too. Of those three, I think a healthy Stafford has the best chance of sticking in the league. I’ll also note that such luminaries as Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brady Quinn had higher QB ratings than those three.

He’s clearly at the bottom of the pack of NFL quarterbacks (28th in yards, 30th in QB rating). He’s a starter based on potential, not performance, which is fine for a 2nd year QB. He’s certainly showed some flashes of being good (GB, Atlanta, and Seattle last year), but I’m not convinced he’ll cut it in the NFL, let alone be worth a pick in fantasy football.

150

He’s 30th in yards because he only started 9 games.

151

Actually, I put him at 28th in yards, but you’re right. He moves up to 23rd in the NFL in yards per game, with the 28th rated completion percentage. This is all kinds of superflouous though. We will eventually find out how good a quarterback he is. But I do think it’s a bit early in his career to be calling him a starting caliber NFL quarterback.

152

But not too early to call him a bust? :wink:

153

I did say “destined for Bustville”. He hasn’t arrived there yet. :stuck_out_tongue:

154

No argument from me - he isn;t even a bye week sub for me this year. He is pure keeper potential. I believe in his potential enough to hold him at least until I get an idea of how he is developing with his new WR corps and a year of NFL experience under his belt.

155

Apart from anything else, he’s useless for fantasy purposes because he has nobody to throw to.

156

Not quite true - I’m a Mike Williams believer and Winslow is a good target as well. Certainly not Indy quality across the board, but not entirely without hope.

157

Believer or not, Williams is a rookie, and a great tight end (which Winslow isn’t at this point) is never going to catch as many passes for as many yards as a great wideout.

158

Couple of weird things.

  1. For some reason the mods aren’t deleting that stupid post I made. Hmm.

  2. Yahoo updated their draft results page in the middle of my reviews to now display the drafted players team and position. I was actually wishing to myself that that was there when I was slicing and dicing the results in Excel to post here. Wonder why they got around to it now of all times.

More reviews coming.

159

Crabby Hermits - The Mad Hermit
1 (7) Randy Moss
2 (22) Tom Brady
3 (35) Marion Barber
4 (50) Hines Ward
5 (63) Fred Jackson
6 (78) LaDainian Tomlinson
7 (91) Robert Meachem
8 (106) Visanthe Shiancoe
9 (119) Pittsburgh
10 (134) Jerricho Cotchery
11 (147) Kevin Smith
12 (162) Dennis Dixon
13 (175) Nate Washington
14 (190) Mewelde Moore - Keeper
15 (203) Antonio Brown
16 (218) John Kasay

QB - Tom Brady, Dennis Dixon
You executed the QB strategy that I’ve been talking about pretty well. I expect a very nice season from Brady this year and I think the odds are very good that he leads all QBs in scoring. I like him more than Manning this season and I’d be very tempted to take him over Brees if you held a gun to my head. Moss is grumbling and I suspect that that discontent will lead to Moss blowing up in a good way this season in one last contract push. It won’t be in New England, but he’s playing for big money. I love the additions at TE and Tate looks like he’ll be a very nice addition to the mix, especially in the redzone. The Pats running game is still iffy and they’ll be throwing in the redzone all year. Last but not least, Brady might be in Fuck You Mode this year after the contract negotiations and his falling out of the elite QB discussion. Getting him in the middle of the 2nd round was a steal.

Dixon is interesting. He’ll be starting in Pittsburgh for the first 4 games which probably won’t mean a thing to you and he’s looked pretty bad in the preseason. I was high on him based on his performance last year in relief but that doesn’t appear to have translated to this season. There’s some people wondering if Ben’s days in Pittsburgh are numbered which might mean Dixon is primed to be the starter next year making him an excellent keeper possibility. But, and it’s a big one, that’s probably not going to happen. Ben is too good and if he’s on good behavior the Steelers will keep him making Dixon useless as a keeper and useless as a backup for this season. In the 12th I dislike the gamble, in the 14th or later I’d have supported it.

RB - Marion Barber, Fred Jackson, LaDainian Tomlinson, Kevin Smith, Mewelde Moore
This has got to be the shakiest group of running backs in the entire league. No one seems to know who’s going to be the man in Dallas and Barber seems to be the less favored of the big two. There’s a good chance he retains the goal line roles and with Jones’ injury issues he could have some big games but Barber is a long ways from durable himself. I suspect that the first RB to get injured will find himself losing his shot at the starting job for the season. The Cowboys offensive line is worse, especially run blocking, and this could end up being the Patriots South with their pass/run splits. Jackson isn’t a starter in the NFL let alone fantasy, he’s currently hurt and facing stiff competition from not one but two other backs. If Lynch gets traded and Spiller struggles I suppose he could win the starting job and be a keeper, but that still means you’ve got the Bills starting running back. Yikes.

I’m a big fan of LDT this year. I think he’ll look rejuvenated running behind that Jets line, not getting touched until you are 2 yards downfield is the fountain of youth for RBs. Tomlinson actually hasn’t slowed down that much and he still has a nose for the endzone. He can’t do it by himself any more, but this change of scenery is just the fix he needed. No keeper value but I actually like him over Jackson this year and wouldn’t be surprised if he out played Barber too.

Smith and Moore are nothing. Smith can’t stay healthy, plays behind a shaky offensive line and is getting pushed aside by a stud rookie. He’s basically Fred Jackson! You got him 6 rounds later, that’s a very good thing, but I’m not sure he’ll amount to much. Moore is like the 4th stringer in Pittsburgh. They are giving Redmond the goalline and short yardage touches and Mendenhall is gonna be a full time back. Dwyer has disappointed but they spent a draft pick on him so he will get the looks. You’re gonna have to do some wheeling and dealing at RB, you’re thin this year and I don’t see a keeper in the group.

WR - Randy Moss, Hines Ward, Robert Meachem, Jerricho Cotchery, Nate Washington, Antonio Brown
As mentioned in the Brady section I love Moss this year. But, big but, there’s not chance in hell that he’s better than Andre Johnson. Taking Moss is doubly quizzical since you apparently targeted Brady, marrying a QB/WR combo is a risk, high upside but high risk and it could have been avoided with Johnson. Now, I think Brady/Moss is the combo plate to gamble with this year of all of them but Johnson gives you all the upside with none of the risk. Still, if Moss and Brady have the years I think they will you’ll be just fine. Ward is a nice WR3, not a good WR2. He’s old and without his superstar QB for the first 4 games. He’ll be a steady producer but he’s got a low ceiling.

The Meachem pick is a decent gamble. I’m betting that the Saints offense is a crap shoot all year and getting Meachem for the fraction of the cost of Colston is great, as noted in my discussion of Henderson. Still, week-to-week there could be real frustration because I think all 3 WRs are liable to disappear when the scheme of coverage shifts. Not sure you’ll like having him as your Flex. Cotchery is a forgotten man in NY but he’s the steadiest guy they have. He’s basically Hines Ward light, but with a much crappier QB and less potent passing game. The lack of Holmes for 4 weeks will help him at the start though. Nate Washington is a great late pick and I wouldn’t be remotely surprised if he becomes your WR2 before too long. Kenny Britt seems to be a head case and somebody has to catch Vince Young’s scattershot. Hell of a keeper option too. Brown is a return game specialist, if Ward goes down he might have value but that’s about it. If Ward falls off a cliff and is gone next year Brown could be the heir apparent.

TE - Visanthe Shiancoe
I’m not buying the hype on him. I do like where you got him, the 8th round is about right and you might get similar production from those cats taken in the 4th round, but all those TDs were likely a bit of a fluke. I’ve beaten the anti-Favre drum all preseason, but without Rice and maybe without Harvin Shiancoe is about the only guy Favre is comfortable with left. I like this pick a bunch, even if I think he’ll take a small step back from last season.

DEF - Pittsburgh
Homer pick and a reach. I don’t like taking defenses early and I’m not sure the Steelers qualify as an elite one this season. They will get sacks and picks but they’ll also give up a lot of points. That’s a good combo in the 13th round, in the 9th you better be getting it all. If the offense really struggles in the first 4 weeks the defense will pay the price too putting you behind the 8 ball.

**K - John Kasay **
Kicker, last round, huzzah! Man that Gostkowski pick pisses me off.

Giant gaping holes on this team and the keeper situation is not great. The QB, WR1 and TE positions are all quite solid but it’s a crap shoot at best at all the other spots. That’s not a recipe for success and if this Brady/Moss thing doesn;t work out you might be struggling to win a single game.

Potential Keepers: Visanthe Shiancoe, Dennis Dixon, Nate Washington, Antonio Brown

Grade: D-

160

There is no commissioner tool for fast-tracking a trade that I can see, but I can retroactively change lineups for games already played. So if that draft-day trade doesn’t go through in time, remind me to set it for you after the week is over.