SDMB All-Pro Fantasy Football league

[SenorBeef]

Damn I’ve grown to hate kickers. I’ve lost a few games where the other guy’s kicker outscored mine by 10+. It seems like it’s almost entirely noise from week to week - you can put up a top 5 kicker against a team that gives up a top 5 score to kicks and still end up getting nothing.

[Jules_Andre]

I was up by .7 points with ADP left to play. Knowing his love of the fumble, I considered benching him to secure the win. I’m glad I didn’t, because next time I looked I was down by 5.x points.

…and not I’m up again. Game has started though. I’m glad I didn’t get a choice in this matter.

[SenorBeef]

It turns out that I have receivers. And a quarterback!

If only I could’ve had this game one week ago…

[Jules_Andre]

My score fluctuates between 127, 133, and 140, depending on how many times I refresh my yahoo matchup page. Really odd.

[SenorBeef]

Looks like our championship game is going to be Jules Andre vs Petey.

[Jules_Andre]

Chris Johnson? (gulp) DeSean Jackson? (gulp) Philip Rivers against Tennessee? (gulp!) Indy defense against the Jets? (gulp!) And I probably won’t have my QB? Congrats Petey!

[SenorBeef]

Does yahoo reseed the playoffs every round so that the high seed always plays the lowest seed, or is it a fixed bracket? I’m wondering if had I won last week I would’ve played Quentin’s Jammers (in my bracket) or Frosted Lightning (he was top seed, I was bottom). Just curious to see how I’d end up had my team not laid an egg during week 15.

[Jules_Andre]

@SenorBeef

Does yahoo reseed the playoffs every round so that the high seed always plays the lowest seed, or is it a fixed bracket? I’m wondering if had I won last week I would’ve played Quentin’s Jammers (in my bracket) or Frosted Lightning (he was top seed, I was bottom). Just curious to see how I’d end up had my team not laid an egg during week 15.

Looks to me like the bracket is fixed. In the Big League the second round was made of two games between the 1 and 4 and the 2 and the 6.

[SenorBeef]

Huh. Even less theoretical advantage to having a higher seed then.

[Petey]

@Jules_Andre

Chris Johnson? (gulp) DeSean Jackson? (gulp) Philip Rivers against Tennessee? (gulp!) Indy defense against the Jets? (gulp!) And I probably won’t have my QB? Congrats Petey!

You’ve scored 40 more points than me and you’re worried?

Manning’s going to play no matter what they say. My only chance is for Chris Johnson to go nuts. If he gets only 100 yards and 0 TDs like last week, I have no chance.

[Jules_Andre]

@Petey

You’ve scored 40 more points than me and you’re worried?

Yeah, very. Your matchups are all pretty good and any one of three or four guys on your team could spring for 40 without a second thought. Looks scary! (And you’ve got the better projected score, so I’m not the only one who sees your advantage)

Manning’s going to play no matter what they say.

Sure hope so!

[SenorBeef]

Well, Isotope’s guys performed almost exactly to projections, which is bad news for Jules since their projections were fairly high. Vince Young, though… I admire the balls, but that’s gonna sting. Normally I’d hope for Manning to put up 47 points so you could beat yourself up like I do almost every year, but since I’m playing against him in the auction league championship I’m hoping that Revis makes him his bitch. I doubt it though - the Colts have so many receiving threats (or, more accurately, Peyton can make your 5th WR scrub into a star) that they’ll run out of coverage before Peyton runs out of options.

[Jules_Andre]

@SenorBeef

Well, Isotope’s guys performed almost exactly to projections, which is bad news for Jules since their projections were fairly high.

Yup, gotta swing for the fences when you don’t have a chance anyway. Oh well.

Vince Young, though… I admire the balls, but that’s gonna sting. Normally I’d hope for Manning to put up 47 points so you could beat yourself up like I do almost every year, …

I wouldn’t second guess that choice even if Manning put up 40. It was the right choice yesterday, it’s the right choice today, and it’ll be the right choice Sunday. I’m not quite out of it, but at this point I’m fouling and hoping Isotopes doesn’t makes his free throws.

[Omniscient]

I’m up late and bored and there isn’t nearly enough chatter in the HHM thread where I still have something to play for, I figured I’d take a minute and review my preseason predictions.

@Omniscient

Quentin’s JAMmers - Jules Andre
QB - Peyton Manning, Jay Cutler, David Garrard
This is easily the safest QB situation in the entire league. Perhaps not the best, if Brady, Brees and Rodgers play all 16 games, but this one is rock solid secure. Manning might not put up the numbers he used to but you can almost certainly count on consistent top 5 QB production. Just the fact that he spent 3 picks on QBs is cautious but all three of these guys played all 16 games and Manning and Cutler essentially take every snap of every game they play.

Manning at the top of the 3rd round is a pretty good value, I like Rodgers point potential slightly more but it’s close, and I think he’ll be a rock week to week. The risk with him is his receiving corps this year, they are really shallow and if either Wayne, Clark or Gonzales get hurt his numbers could suffer badly. He also faces several stout defenses and plays in 3 domes on the road. Of course if anything goes awry with Manning, Cutler will probably be a really good backup. I’m a homer here, but Cutler should reliably put up big numbers as well. The Bears system will eliminate a lot of his INTs from past seasons and the security blankets in Forte and Olsen will keep his production up. You probably won’t get many 25+ point weeks out of him but he’s highway robbery in the 7th round. I don’t love Garrard but him as a 3rd QB in the 11th round is absurd. He’s better than some teams’ starters.

I’d be looking to leverage one of those QBs in a early season trade for a WR2 or RB2. Grade: A+

RB - Adrian Peterson, Darren McFadden, Donald Brown, Jerious Norwood, James Davis
There’s not much to quibble with when it comes to taking All-Day #1 overall. He’s a horse. I wouldn’t have criticized you if you’d have gone with MJD or Burner Turner there since AP will probably miss a game or two and has been known to disappear entirely some weeks, but that’s over thinking things. McFadden is a pretty iffy RB2 considering the pressure from Michael Bush and the overall pathetic-ness of the Oakland offense but in this format you can flex a WR instead and hide him. That said, there wasn’t really anyone left on the board when you took him who was clearly better so those are the breaks.

Brown, Norwood and Davis are all excellent upside replacements. Popular consensus is that Turner will probably miss some time due to the curse of 370 and having his backup is a wise move in the 10th round. Donald Brown could be a star in Indy but the situation there is murky. Addai might retain the lead job and the Colts running game could just be crummy all around, neither guy has really impressed in preseason. James Davis will probably get the ball if Jamal Lewis finally gets put out to pasture but who knows how productive the Browns running attack will be. Fabulous value in the 15th round though.

You might not have a clear RB2 but it’s almost a certainty that at least one of these guys will end up being reliably productive. A future handcuff trade could net you dividends too. Grade: B+

WR - Marques Colston, Roy Williams, DeSean Jackson, Steve Smith
Here’s where you paid the price for the depth at QB and RB. I like Colston a lot but you can’t ignore his injury history (microfracture!). I’m not convinced he’s clearly more valuable than anyone in the group of guys drafted in the 3rd round after him. Considering the format of this league WR depth is very important. Roy Williams is equally questionable. He’s hurt right now (during a non-contact walk-through in shells no less) and it’s unclear if he can be productive in Dallas at all. On paper it should work, him being the #1 in a high powered offense, but I’ve never seen anything impressive out of him in about 3 years and he looks out of shape to me.

I love DeSean Jackson and I bet he replaces Williams as your starter early in the season but he’s a bit slight and he can’t be counted on week-to-week. If you’d have landed Berrian here instead I’d have loved it. I guess a little homerism is to be blamed. Steve Smith might pan out but if you have injuries or if you need a WR to play flex you could be in trouble, bye weeks might be especially painful.

A trade for another WR would be very helpful and you have the tools. Grade: C-

TE - Zach Miller
Miller’s an excellent option. Someone has to be the bail-out option in Oakland and Miller is the most likely candidate. I worry about Russell’s accuracy getting him killed over the middle at some point but until that happens Miller should net some catches. It would be nice if they developed him as a Red Zone threat but that probably not going to happen. The only issue is that you took him in the 8th round, that’s way too early. There are useful TEs still left in FA and that pick would have been much better used on another WR. Grade: C

K - N/A
Um, you do need one. You have depth at QB and RB and you’re gonna need to dump one before week one because you didn’t draft a guy here and you’ll be stuck with remainders. You could have had a top 5 kicker in your back pocket all season if you’d have ditched the 2nd defense. Grade: INC

DEF - Dallas, Green Bay
You put yourself in a pickle here. I like both defenses quite a lot and playing matchups with 2 defenses week-to-week can be a very productive strategy but it’s a luxury to do so. You have issues at WR and K and might have to abandon this strategy before it even begins. At least you waited until your 13th and 14th picks. Grade: C+

Overall: I like this team quite a bit and the QB and RB positions will win you a handful of games, but the deficiencies elsewhere could undermine what wee some savvy selections. Because of those great depth picks you have the tools to fix your problems but as it stands this team is only half-baked. It just doesn’t do you any good to have the highest scoring bench if you have to play FA roulette at 2 or 3 positions.

Preseason Grade: B-

Finish:
2nd Place Regular Season (8-5)
1st Place Overall Points (1452.61)
Championship Game (Result Pending)

This team got an almost complete overhaul as the season progressed beyond the top 3 picks and fortunately for him those three guys have played pretty well, but all three probably slightly underperformed their draft position. His 8-5 record pretty accurately reflects the preseason grade I gave him, but the Championship game and Overall score record are a bit perplexing. Clearly he worked the Waiver wire fantastically and managed a couple positive trades. This team got a B- largely because of the holes at WR, and since the position was totally flipped over the course of the season I’m giving myself credit for being right. Ironically I was totally wrong about the RB position but roster moves fixed those holes. Still, that this team outscored the next best team by over 100 points is bizarre.

[Omniscient]

@Omniscient

Exploding Pancakes - SenorBeef
QB - Matt Hasselbeck
Yikes. It’s almost as if you were trying to be the exact counter-point to Jules Andre’s team. This is a wildly unsafe team. I know that Hasselbeck was pick of necessity in the 8th round and it’s clear that he has some upside, but good god he’s all you got. Drafting a backup, even with the immediate next pick (Cassel, Big Ben, Garrard, Favre), was about as mandatory a pick as can be. The later you wait on a QB the more crucial the backup becomes.

Now, about Hasselbeck; Housh should give him a big reliable target and a healthy Burleson and Branch can be productive if the system allows. The O-Line is already falling apart and no one really knows if Mora can coach worth a damn. The running game is made up of a bunch of cast offs and no one knows how his back will hold up. The net-net will be inconsistency in spades. Climb aboard the roller-coaster, you’d better hope there are enough ups to get your through the downs.

Lucky for you there are some starters available in FA. Grade: D

RB - Maurice Jones-Drew, Pierre Thomas, Marion Barber, Ray Rice, Knowshon Moreno, LeSean McCoy, Jerome Harrison
Let me say this, it was faster for me to C&P your entire roster here and delete the non-RBs than to paste them in one at a time. That’s just silly, 7 god-damned running backs on a team that only allows you to start 2, why? I know you claimed to be drafting for value, and I don’t disagree that many of these guys were better players than the other positions available, but perhaps when the entire league seems to be going the other way on something perhaps it’s time to pause and consider if you really are smarter than everyone else.

MJD is going to be great in this league. No question. The Jags lost a lot of O-Lineman to injury last year and addressed the position in the draft, this will help him a lot and the absence of Used-to-be-Fragile Freddy will net him more carries, but it’s worth noting that he’s still essentially unproven. Most people think he can handle the load, but perhaps the loss of Taylor will hurt him over the balance of the season. I loves me some Pierre Thomas, fellow Illini alum, but he’s massively over-valued. The guy looked excellent in limited time but he’s a still basically an unknown. The Saints are looking at a 3 headed RBBC similar to the Ravens last year and it’s unclear which player will be used around the goal line. The depth at RB, as evidenced by the rest of your draft, makes taking him in the second round just to go RB-RB (in a league with just one RB slot no less) very suspect.

The backups are legion. I like all of those guys and frankly they were all great values where they were taken. Barber is a load and I expect him to retain the vast majority of the work, in fact I bet he replaces Thomas as your Flex player before week 4. Everyone loves Ray Rice in Baltimore and they will use him a ton due to the lack of talent at WR but remember that the Ravens have a lot of RBs and they like to use them all. Rice is getting a ton of work in the preseason in all situations but who knows if that will hold in the regular season or not, McGahee and McClain probably won’t be holding clipboards. He’s good but I’m not sure why you think he’ll be more valuable than one of the 3rd tier QBs who were available. Either Moreno or McCoy will probably be a valuable rookie but I don’t think either is likely to be the next Forte or Chris Johnson, which is what it would take to unseat any of the 4 guys ahead of them on your team. Harrison is a upside guy I like and a homer pick, but it’s just asinine overkill considering your roster.

So, how do I grade this team? There’s almost no question that your RBs will produce a ton, and you almost certainly have the very best top 4 backs in the league (though not the best top 2). You won’t have any issues with injuries or bye weeks and you have trade bait. But, you hurt your team elsewhere. I suppose the low marks in other areas will suffice. Grade: A+

WR - Steve Smith, Anthony Gonzalez, Lance Moore, Devery Henderson, Joshua Cribbs
Solid starters for sure and surprisingly you managed some decent depth in spite of the RB madness. As a Bears fan I know all too well how sick Steve Smith can be but I really hate Delhomme this season. Smith is banged up and I think Jake’s potato arm is going to hang him out to dry one too many times this year. We shall see, but he’s a pretty solid value in the 3rd round. Gonzalez is being counted on in Indy and he’ll also put up excellent numbers. I don’t expect him to reach latter day Reggie and Marvin type numbers and the Colts coaching changes have to make you pause a little but again he’s a steal in the 5th round.

Lance Moore and Devery Henderson are going to get plenty of balls in New Orleans, but if Colston stays healthy expect a drop off from last year. Perfectly good backups and the flipside is that Colston might get hurt making them golden. Cribbs is a throwaway homer pick and I doubt he does much besides returns. If he’s seeing time for you that means you suffered a major injury and will be looking for an upgrade elsewhere. The lack of depth makes having 2 Saints a little iffy in the bye week but that’s week 5 and both your starters should be healthy.

All in all not bad, especially the values, and a RB trade for another set of hands mid-season could be big. Grade: B

TE - Visanthe Shiancoe
I like him. Favre throws to the TE a bunch and Shiancoe has played pretty well as of late. I’m not sure he’ll get many red zone looks so long as AP and Chester Taylor are rolling but in the 13th round he’ll over-produce. Grade: B+

**K - N/A **
Strange considering the energy spent discussing kicker values in this thread that 2 people already bypassed the position completely. You’ll probably be dumping one of those Cleveland guys before week one to get one so why not draft one and get a little better choice? Grade: INC

DEF - Cleveland
Homer pick again. You took them in the last round, so that’s fine, but I suspect they’ll disappoint you. Odds are good that you’ll be playing defense roulette all season long here, the penalty for all those RB picks. Grade: C-

Overall: You’ve got pretty good starters at the core positions. Hasselbeck is the weak link for certain but a lot of FFLs have been won by simply getting by at QB in favor of studs at RB and WR. However that strategy requires you to be solid at every other position and flexible at QB. You will be giving away points at QB, TE, DEF and K all season long and the strength at RB and WR won’t be enough to help you every week. There is value left on the waiver wire so you’ll be able to repair it, but you wasted opportunities in the draft unless you can wheel and deal.

Preseason Grade: B-

**Finish: **
6th Place Regular Season (7-6)
1st Place Overall Points (1249.14)
5th Place Finish

Pierre Thomas is pretty much the only guy of merit still left on this team. He totally rebuilt it as the season went along, for better or worse. The final results pretty much bore out my grade, I figure that I assessed the value accurately and the trades summed up to about the same inherent value. The losses at the start of this season before the roster was repaired might have cost him a spot in the title game when you see how tightly bunched the final records were.

[Omniscient]

@Omniscient

Kid_A - Kid A

QB - Donovan McNabb, Kyle Orton
I hate the McNabb Fantasy experience. I’ve had him several times and I had him when he had that monster year in 2004, but I still didn’t enjoy it. Reid’s pass happy offense creates points and the volume of screens he throws are easy money. He’s probably valued about right where you took him and the Vick experiment doesn’t worry me but I just don’t see anyone winning with McNabb as their QB. It seems that in weeks 14-17, fantasy playoffs, are when the NFC playoff race heats up and when McNabb melts down. He’s got plenty of WRs, a better crew than he’s had in recent memory (though pixie-like), and there’s no reason to think he’ll be a bust but it leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Were you aware of Orton’s injury before you drafted him? He split his index finger open during the Bears game and it’s his throwing hand. Even it it’s just a cut it will probably slow his development and if it lingers could cause all types of problems with his accuracy as the season progresses. I suppose as a backup you’ll be unlikely to need him in the first 4 weeks and he ought to be healed by then but it’s worrisome following an already suspect preseason performance. I’m glad you took him and felt me Flacco, but I can’t justify it here.

All in all an uninspired group, and the Orton injury should have led you to finding a better backup option, but you didn’t spend too much. It should work. Grade: B-

RB - Michael Turner, Willie Parker, Kevin Smith, Marshawn Lynch
Michael Turner was kind of a no brainer here with AP and MJD off the board and I’m still a fan. I loved him before his move to Atlanta and I think he’s built to handle the load for at least a few more seasons. A few people have made the case that Gonzo will hurt his TD totals but that doesn’t make a ton of logical sense to me, if anything he’ll open it up and make it easier for him. The Falcons will be scary in the red zone, period. Still, I might have liked to have his handcuff. You’ve edited your roster to reflect Parker as your starter so I’ll keep him there for this discussion. I think Smith and Lynch are clearly better players, but you’ll figure that out eventually. Fast Willie is losing a lot of ground to Mendenhall and simply isn’t going to get into the endzone very much. I can’t quibble with his value in the 8th round but I expect his production to be unpredictable and frustrating week-to-week. He’ll probably wait until you bench him to have a 20 point day.

The backups are stout. Kevin Smith is going to get all the love in Detroit and Lynch will probably be nearly as close to a full time back. Lynch needs to stay healthy and Smith needs Detroit’s offense to be more productive to create some breathing room and goal line chances. I think both are liable to happen. Lynch’s suspension dulls his value and it’s an opportunity for the other RBs on the roster to earn touches but when push comes to shove Lynch is going to be the guy. In Detroit there are positive signs for the offense and they might be involved in some shoot outs. I think Stafford will eventually win the job and Smith’s touches will become productive as he starts throwing downfield.

You took a good, measured approach and got great value and depth. The players you took are solid and mostly reliable, though not particularly explosive. Your upside is less than it could be, but so is the risk. If Parker gets hurt early or isn’t a 100% while Lynch is suspended the first few weeks might get tense, but that’s manageable. Grade: B+

WR - Roddy White, Greg Jennings, Devin Hester, Chris Henry, Josh Morgan
White and Jennings probably aren’t the best known WRs in the league but Fantasy guys know how good they are. I think you’ve got the best starting tandem in the league and since you spent the highest pick value to get them you should. As a Bears fan I dislike the prospect of a explosive Jennings and I can’t think of any reason why his production won’t improve. The Pack play some pretty soft pass defenses, the Bears included I fear, and Rodgers loves him. White is a guy that sort of came out of nowhere but Matty Ice has turned him into a super star. He reminds me of the old Andre Johnson in the way he quietly put up monster years. The only risk with him is that he gets fewer TDs than he should and the addition of Gonzo might exacerbate that issue.

The backups are all terrific picks. Hester is a bit of a wildcard and he and Cutler haven’t made magic in the preseason yet, but he’s getting a lot of looks and he’s been open on a bunch of deep balls. Cutler will start finding him in due time. People love Chris Henry in the absence of TJ and he’s going to be a TD monster but I think the fact that Ocho looks to be elite again could hurt him. He’s still a bit of a headcase and who knows if he’ll be around all year. More pressingly the Bengals offense might be sluggish this year with the issues at TE and RB. Great value nonetheless. Josh Morgan is the only SF WR worth having but he’ll have to manage to stay on the field and the Niners need to figure out the QB situation. I still think highly enough of Crabtree to think that Morgan could end up overshadowed if he ever gets on the field.

In this league WR depth is pretty crucial and possession guys are favored over big play guys and I might like to see another guy like that on this team, especially with the backups, but that’s probably just nitpicking. Grade: A

TE - Chris Cooley, Dustin Keller
I’ve never been a huge Cooley fan. His numbers are tough to argue with but he seems like a guy that liable to put up a goose egg once or twice a season. This is probably true of most TEs, but for how high he gets drafted that’s a big issue. However, you managed to get him in the 7th round which is below where he usually goes so kudos.

I’m not sure you want to draft a backup TE, especially in the 13th round, when you have a supposed stud like Cooley on your roster and I think there were better values than Keller on the board. Grade: B-

K - Nate Kaeding
He’s one of the best on a good offense and a good defense. You got him in the final round. Job well done, he’ll serve you well, especially in those one sided AFC West divisional battles. Grade: A

DEF - Carolina
I think they are a middling unit and they’ve got a pretty brutal schedule. You took them late which is fine and I suspect you will be making a handful of swaps when the matchups are unfavorable. Peppers being back might generate some sacks but they do have to face Atlanta and New Orleans twice and the Pats and Cards once. Grade: C+

Overall: This is a very solid but uninspiring team. I won’t relish facing those WRs and I suspect the RBs will generate a consistent 20+ points a week and there aren’t any holes. Still, I feel like the team is missing a mid-to-late sleeper who’ll propel them to the top.

Preseason Grade: B+

Finish:
10th Place Regular Season (4-9)
7th Place Overall Points (1254.74)
No Playoffs

This was the under performing king of all teams. Pretty much everything that could have gone wrong with this team did. McNabb was predictably frustrating with wild swings from week to week and Turner broke down just like everyone feared. Pretty much every player drafted was a disappointment and only a few of those were predictable. That this team managed to get into the middle of the pack in total points is an impressive feat itself.

[Omniscient]

@Omniscient

New York Fanboys - Ellis Dee

QB - Aaron Rodgers, Trent Edwards
I really like this tandem. Rodgers, as previously mentioned, is on track to have a incredible year. His schedule is favorable and he’s got lots of weapons, and a healthy Ryan Grant will probably make him even more explosive. As a Bears fan I hope that the wheels come off somewhere since I’m not sure we have the defense to contend with them, but I can’t really form an argument to predict that. I suppose the weather in Green Bay could be worse than usual keeping his numbers down, especially come playoff time, but that’s a reach.

I had Edwards queued up as my backup of choice in the 11th and consider him a fabulous value here. I’m not high on TO himself but I am convinced that he’ll have a positive net effect on the Bills passing attack, if only to pressure them to be more aggressive to keep him happy. Lee Evans will have a very nice year and I expect Edwards to have an excellent year overall. Certainly his TD total will go way up with Owens around.

Both guys play in Wintery locations and could struggle in those all important playoff weeks, Rodgers are especially bad, and Edwards has been bit by the injury bug but all in all this is a great pairing. Grade: A

RB - Matt Forte, Ryan Grant, Felix Jones, Kevin Jones, DeShawn Wynn
Well, you’ll be watching a lot of NFC North games this year. Forte is a horse and will carry the Bears and your team. It will be interesting to see if he becomes more explosive with Cutler under center or not. Last season he was regular as a metronome but never had the AP-like 30 point week, this year I think he will with a better O-Line and passing attack. So long as the Line run blocks as well as it did against the Giants anyways. You’ll enjoy watching him I think. Ryan Grant I’m less confident in and I don’t think he’s a good fit for a zone blocking scheme. His previous success was in being decisive and hitting the hole hard and upfield, the zone blocking scheme seems to have made him tentative and indecisive. You’ll regret spending such a high pick on him, though there’s something to be said for him being healthy and not being in a timeshare.

You snagged the likely handcuffs for both guys and that’s wise in Forte’s case. Less wise in Grant’s. Kevin Jones is expected to get a lot of work and the powers that be are committed to him. He’s yet to really impress in preseason which is troubling, but there’s no doubt he’d get all the touches if Forte were out. Wynn has a much less firm hold on the 2nd job and frankly the Packers running game on the whole is nothing to write home about. If Grant disappoints you might have been better off looking for another team’s RB instead of an equally disappointing backup. Felix Jones is dynamic but I’m not sure he’ll ever be reliable enough to be a weekly starter if you lose a starter.

You really needed another upside guy, a rookie with a shot to explode or someone’s high priced handcuff. I’m guessing you’ll be stuck starting a WR in your flex spot before too long. Grade: C

WR - T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Braylon Edwards, Donald Driver, Domenik Hixon, Michael Crabtree
Your starters are solid but not impressive. The issue with both is their QB situation. We really have no idea what to expect out of TJ outside of Cincy as the featured guy and the aforementioned Hasselbeck injury situation is dicey. I think he’ll put up similar numbers to last season and frankly those don’t justify the WR1 slot. I think Edwards actually is the better of the two, especially if Anderson wins the QB job, and as he goes the Cleveland offense goes. I expect a pretty good year from him but that’s more or less just a gut feeling. I haven’t seen enough Browns preseason work to gauge the new offense but I think 12 TDs is a realistic expectation. I’m not as high on Mangini as SenorBeef but it has to be an improvement over last year and that helps Braylon.

Driver is an excellent backup, I’ve made my thoughts on the GB passing attack clear. Hixon and Crabtree could be diamonds in the rough, if Crabtree ever gets into camp, but there certainly isn’t anything dependable about them. Hixon is the Giant WR you want to have for my money but I think you drafted both far too early, Hixon is my least favorite WR pick of that round by a wide margin.

All in all this category suffered from your selection of Grant. You should have let someone else make the mistake with him and taken Rodgers there and gone WR in 3 and RB in 4. Grade: C

TE - Owen Daniels
Daniels is a good one and you took him in the right spot. He’ll put up similar numbers to previous years but he’ll still suffer from a lack of TDs, perhaps you might have been better served to wait for a TE later and bolster your WR or RB with this pick considering you have a few guys with question marks. Grade: B-

K - N/A
Again with the no kicker. I did this once before in the He Hate Me League when I accidentally drafted the wrong guy in the 2nd to last round and I regretted it. Kickers are more valuable in this league than that, so bypassing entirely will pose problems. Grade: INC

DEF - New York, Philadelphia
These are going to be two very productive defenses and playing matchups will pay big dividends. I dislike that you took the Eagles so early though. you spent a lot for them and will really need them to outperform those taking in the final 3 rounds to justify it. Generally I think you take 1 defense early or you take 2 late and play matchups, you over spent by doing both. Grade: B

Overall: This isn’t a badly flawed team but it’s a team filled with consistent performers and no difference makers. Forte is the anchor and he’s not going to explode. Neither WR is likely to have a 3 TD day. The Bench doesn’t have a potential top 20 sleeper in it. No elite TE, DEF or K. Frankly it’s a team without a identity. It won’t lay an egg in any given week, but it won’t blow anyone away either. Frankly it looks like a .500 team.

Preseason Grade: C+

Finish:
8th Place Regular Season (6-7)
5th Place Overall Points (1283.60)
No Playoffs

This team is pretty similar to the one that was drafted now and the results are right in line with predictions. Considering how disappointing Forte and Housh were the middle of the pack finish should feel like a victory.

[Omniscient]

@Omniscient

**Court Jesters **- D_Odds
QB - Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger
Not a great pairing by any stretch. Eli wasn’t a top 10 QB when he had Plax and Toomer, and there’s no scenario where he’s better this year. At least in the Tiki days they screened the shit out of teams. I don’t think that’s a reasonable expectation with this RB group. Bradshaw might be productive situationally, but Jacobs isn’t going to be catching balls. I’m OK with waiting on a QB and taking a mediocre FFLer in the middle rounds as your starter, especially when he’s as steady and durable as Eli, but you did it about 3 rounds too soon. Hell Cutler and Palmer were on the board for another 2 rounds.

Big Ben has been my Fantasy QB far too often as I employed the wait-on-a-QB theory and I think he’s clearly better than Eli this season. In the 9th round he’s actually a fair value, even a steal considering the doubts about their running game, and he’d be a fine starter…if you hadn’t wasted a 5th round pick on Eli. He always won me one or two weeks a year with a big game and a rushing TD or two and he rarely lost me one. I like the pick, and I’d love it if he were backing up a stud.

Just a ton of value spent on the position and your two guys are close enough in talent that you could really do some nice things playing matchups. It’d be a great tactical move if only you’d have done it in 8/9 and not 5/9. Grade: C-

RB - Brandon Jacobs, Ronnie Brown, Darren Sproles, Sammy Morris
I love Jacobs, I really do, he made a mockery of the Bears defense as he bounced off of white jerseys on every carry until they learned to go low. And in that sentence lies the issue with Jacobs, tacklers need to go low to bring him down and going low will take a toll on his legs and feet. He’s almost assured of missing some time. Nonetheless, I’d have loved him at the 7 or 8 spot in the first round. Few people have him rated that high, but I do. But there’s just no way he should have been drafted before DeAngelo Williams or LDT. Even Chris Johnson is probably a better pick, but I wouldn’t begrudge you going with size and TDs over speed since they have equal injury doubts. Ronnie Brown I’m much less bullish on. He’s probably going to monopolize the work in Miami as Ricky seems to be growing moss and I expect a uptick in results from last year. Also, he’s a steal in the 3rd round by my count, so kudos all around. However you need to be counting on him as your Flex and probably as your RB1 when Jacobs missed time and Ronnie Brown is injury prone. You’ll be in a world of hurt if both are hurt in the same week or you have byes while one is dinged.

The backups I hate. Sproles is crazy popular and if LDT goes down he’ll be the guy, but I’m telling you right now he’ll be useless if the Chargers have him taking all the snaps. I’ve seen him going earlier than the 8th round so I can’t really call this a reach but there were starters still left on the board there. Its worth mentioning that I think LDT is due for a monster year so that colors my projection. Morris another iffy backup. The Pats RB is a complete mystery and it’s not clear who is getting the lions share of the touches. It’s safe to say that it’s NOT Morris though. He might be the goal line guy, but he might also be in street clothes. IF you’ve have gotten a handcuff for one of the top 2 I’d have been much higher on this situation.

You really put me in a pickle with that Jacobs pick. I didn’t think there was any way that both Williams and LDT fell to me at 6 and I agonized over the decision. I’m still not sure I made the right choice. Grade: C

WR - Reggie Wayne, Antonio Bryant, Lee Evans, Muhsin Muhammad, Hakeem Nicks
I’m predicting some struggles in Indy and as a result I had Wayne ranked below a few of the guys drafted after him. However, that is just one mans guess, by all accounts this is a very good value. His biggest attribute is that he’ll never be shut out and he could have a 3 TD game at any time. He’s the perfect combo of steady and explosive. So long as the Indy O holds form and Gonzalez lives up to expectations you’ll be gold, but I think those two are bigger Qs than most. Bryant’s QB situation really scares me. His stats last year were fantastic and he appeared to be making the leap but there’s a regime change and a QB issue that could turn him into a total bust. Not the scenario you want from a WR2 in this league because you might very well be using that WR3 when your RBs get dinged up.

Speaking of WR3 Lee Evans is a great one. Second best in our entire draft by my count, but the doubts around Bryant require it. I think the addition of Owens will help more than it hurts I’ve already noted that I’ve liked what I’ve seen of Edwards this preseason. The other two have issues. Moose simply is done, stick a fork in him, everything we’ve said about Steve Smith’s being hurt by Delhomme applies triple to Moose. Jake can’t thread the needle and Moose can’t create separation, bad combo. Nicks hasn’t impressed in camp and who knows what the Giants passing game will be like. I can’t hate on the late round homer pick though.

The value of this group depends on 2 things, the ability of the Tampa QBs and the health of the RBs. I think both will be bad. Grade: B-

TE - Jeremy Shockey, Kevin Boss
Gag!!! Shockey gets more hate than he deserves and anyone in that NO offense could be a surprise but in the 7th round taking him is madness. There were much better options available. Boss on the other hand is a steal in the 14th, he’s the only known quantity in the Giants passing game. Getting steals in the 14th when you over pay for a starter in the 7th is like your girlfriend having a really hot sister, though. Grade: C-

K - Kris Brown
He’s a good one. I had him queued up alongside Elam in the last round. I hadn’t entirely decided which I wanted but you could make a pretty good case for Brown being the crazy break out Kicker of this season. Grade: A-

DEF - Tennessee
I like this defense, even without Haynesworth. I’m less sold on them in the 10th round though. I just don’t think they’ll generate sacks and turnovers reliably enough to justify being drafted ahead of your WR/RB4 aka Bye Week Flex Guy. Grade: B-

Overall: This is a homer corrupted team that has some real flaws and some real reaches. The end result isn’t nearly as flawed as it could be considering some of the gaffes but it’s not very deep at all. The WRs and RBs will need to almost entirely carry this team even though you spent 4 picks on QB and TE. That’s a issue.

Preseason Grade: C

Finish:
9th Place Regular Season (6-7)
10th Place Overall Points (1230.26)
No Playoffs

Lots of poor performers on this squad and the final roster reflects the need for many of those changes. Inconsistency and the underwhelming play of the Giants dragged this team down. All in all reaches and misses were unable to be repaired with copious roster moves.

[Omniscient]

@Omniscient

Omni’s Omnipotents - Me
QB - Tom Brady, Joe Flacco
I have to say I’ve always shied away from doing the Stud QB thing in fantasy. So much of your fate can be undone in one play, it always stressed me out too much. Then again my history of McNabb/Roethlisberger/Favre/Delhomme experiences aren’t exactly calm and relaxing week to week so perhaps it’s a poor gauge. And knowing that this 1 RB league softens the penalty for waiting on RB as much as it does it was the perfect time to go for it. Brady is going to be a monster. I actually have him rated ahead of Brees by a fair margin so getting him in the late second is a steal in my book. Frankly, in this league Brees and Brady should have gone 8th and 9th overall by my count. I’m thinking 25 points a week easy.

The backup situation is also solid. Flacco’s value there is great and so long as I don’t need him more than 3 or 4 times all year I should be golden. I had Edwards ahead of him but he came off the board in the same round. I almost went Edwards in the previous round but seeing the depth remaining I knew I could wait and waiting netted me Bradshaw. That’s a win for the difference in Edwards and Flacco.

As Brady goes I go, and I’m good with that. Stud QBs tend to stay healthy, much moreso than the perception. Grade: A+

RB - DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart, Beanie Wells, Ahmad Bradshaw, Fred Taylor
Going in at the 6 pick I essentially took the position that I’d be happy with whatever fell to me. I felt pretty strongly that there was a clear drop off after the top 6 and between 2 and 5 it’s muddled. In short, I have the perfect draft spot. I did not expect to be choosing between 2 of those guys though and I’ll probably be second guessing passing on LDT all season. My gut tells me DeAngelo is the better guy in the better situation and he’s more likely at this point to dominate any given week, but LDT seems to have fewer “buts” associated. I’m not expecting Williams to match his TD totals but if he gives me a reliable 12-15 points a week I’ll be unstoppable.

Once I took Brady in the 2nd I made the executive decision to ignore the RB2 position in favor of exploiting the increased PPR scoring system wholly. So I made the tactical decision to focus on merely carrying 1 RB in my starting lineup. The risk in this, since I have a stud, is injury and by drafting his highly rated handcuff I should ensure that I’ll been getting the Panther’s entire rush game in my one RB slot regardless of which guy happens to be healthy. If this somehow devolves into a 50-50 split of some kind I’ll have issues, but that doesn’t appear to be likely. Wells was an upside guy and the Cards seem to be just waiting for him to claim the starting job. He looked good when he was on the field in preseason and I think he’ll eventually claim the starting gig and the lions share of carries if he’s consistently healthy. The mistake I made was taking a back with the same bye as the Panthers and were it not for that fact I’d have continued the strategy and taken Hightower as the handcuff. For that reason I was forced to grab Bradshaw and Taylor in late rounds, and frankly each was a very strong value.

With the RB position I’m counting on 1 starter per week and a solid bye week option. I got it. If I take serious injuries to my WRs and have to trot out 2 RBs every week I’ll be worse for it unless Wells becomes a reliable performer. Mission accomplished but I’m by no means loaded. Grade: B-

WR - Wes Welker, Vincent Jackson, Eddie Royal, Torry Holt, Ronald Curry
Bar none, I have the very best WR corps in the league. The Best top 3 and Welker and Royal might just be 1-2 in receptions at the end of the season. Jackson should be an absolute monster and pick up the TD slack, I expect 10+ from him in a contract year. The biggest question mark will be Royal’s production if Orton misses extended time with his finger, but someone there needs to catch balls and Royal just out works everyone. If McDaniel’s system mimics that in New England then Royal will be the Mile High version of Welker. I couldn’t be giddier about these three guys.

The backups are polar opposites. Holt is a steal in the 9th round, he’s going to be a much more reliable target than anything Garrard had last season and he’s the undisputed #1 there. MJD will suck in the Safeties and I think a lot of play action will get Holt open downfield. I won’t hesitate to slot him in to start in those bye weeks. Curry is a bit of a crap shoot. I heard talk that he was over thrown and under thrown on some absurd number of targets last season in Oakland and that with Bulger he could return to form. The Rams offense won’t be good and Curry might not amount to anything but in the 14th round I figured he was as good of a super sleeper as anyone.

The top 4 are pure gold and pretty good values all. They will carry me far. Grade: A

TE - Greg Olsen
I’m not the first one to say it, but Olsen and Cutler will make magic. First off, 80 catches is a real likelihood this season and Olsen has been getting better and better each season. He’d break out this year anyways, and Cutler will simply make it all the more dynamic. The icing on the cake is the Bears 2 TE system which will ask Olsen to fill the role of WR frequently, especially in the end zone where he’ll get the call on jumpballs. I’m expecting top 3 TE numbers from him. Grade: A-

K - Jason Elam
He kicks a ton of 40+ yarders and he kicks in a dome. His offense should be very consistent and he should be a reliable performer. Got him in the last round. Grade: B+

DEF - San Diego
The Chargers pass defense sucked last season and they got caught in a few shootouts, but I expect them to return to top 5 form this year with the dramatically improved pass rush. The changes in Denver and KC will do nothing but help them statistically and there look to be a ton of sacks and interceptions waiting in those divisional games. I especially like the matchups in the final 4 weeks. Grade: B+

Overall: I’m thrilled with this team. I think I have the best collection of starters in the entire league and while my bench isn’t loaded with potential they are assembled in a way that compliments my starters well. The experiment at RB will be educational and if Williams does what he did last season it’s all moot. A little additional depth at WR would be nice but I expect there to be a couple FA moves to be made after we see Week 1 shake out.

Preseason Grade: A

Finish:
7th Place Regular Season (7-6)
9th Place Overall Points (1242.33)
No Playoffs

I don’t get how I fell short. I discussed it earlier but it still eludes me. It’s like everyone on my team, while not being a complete bust, under performed by just enough to kill me and no one really exploded. Still, Brady, Williams, Welker, Jackson…they all played pretty well and were right in the middle of their projected scoring ranges. I think Eddie Royal killed me. My strategy hinged on being a 3 WR team and while I had pretty good flex alternatives in Bradshaw, Stewart and Wells I waited far too long to go with them and those early season losses bit me in the ass. Between some bad luck with Kicker and Defense roulette and the Olsen disaster I couldn’t afford a lackluster flex spot and Royal teased me just enough to bury me. Crap.

[EllisDee]

I don’t know, I have DeAngelo Williams in a league and he’s felt like a team-sinking bust all year. Then again, I think I’m in the Championship game in that league, so perception may not equal reality.

Props to your prediction of my season based on my draft. The only quibble I have is that my finish is much more middle of the road than my season was, with a couple extra wins tacked on at the end to make it look respectable. For the vast majority of the season, I had a stranglehold on dead last. Matt Forte sucks balls. heh.

EDIT: Oops, got this confused with the keeper league. I did pretty middle of the road all season in this one, so, er, forget my previous paragraph. Except for Matt Forte, because he still sucks.