By now, many of your fantasy football drafts probably have come and gone. Sure, your Labor Day weekend may feature a last minute draft or two, but at this point, your teams are most likely drafted and you’re just sitting back, waiting for Thursday’s kickoff to the season.

But if you are sitting back, you could miss out on some very important late news about guys on your roster, or players who will affect guys on your roster. With just days remaining before the culmination of the NFL schedule, several battles continue to wage on throughout the league. So this week, in the last of my Fantasy Football Draft Prep articles, I dive head first into 11 of the depth chart battles that will impact the fantasy football world most.

The Starting 11 – Depth Chart Battles

1 – Giants’ WRs

With the absence of Plaxico Burress, QB Eli Manning’s targets will be spread across a handful of breakout hopefuls, the likes of Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, Domenik Hixon, and Sinorice Moss. All four of these guys have upside, but none of them should be drafted early in your fantasy drafts. Until one or two of them break out as productive starters, look elsewhere for WR production.

2 – Titans’ WRs

Tennessee brought in ex-Steeler Nate Washington to bolster their wide receiver corps for this year, but with a banged up hamstring, Washington’s health makes him questionable for the season opener. Also on the roster is incumbent starter Justin Gage, along with the rookie from Rutgers, Kenny Britt. Washington and Gage are both worth a late-round pick and could provide some upside as a #3 WR, while Kenny Britt is only worth a flier pick in deep leagues or rookie-only leagues.

3 – Ravens’ RBs

The veteran Willis McGahee will most likely move aside this year as Ray Rice has been given every chance to emerge as Baltimore’s primary back. Also on the roster is Le’Ron McClain, a goal line bruiser who could steal some red zone carries away from both Rice and McGahee. Look at Rice in the middle rounds as a #3 RB, while McGahee and McClain are no more than late-round flier picks.

4 – Bucs’ RBs

Tampa Bay’s offense is in the middle of a messy transition, as evident by this week’s firing of new offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski. New head coach Raheem Morris has said he’s committed to becoming a downhill rushing team, which could bode well for newcomer Derrick Ward, and returning rushers Earnest Graham and Cadillac Williams.

Ward was a 1,000-yard rusher a year ago for the Giants, and I’ve got to believe he’ll be the one that Morris ultimately turns to and leans on most. Consider Ward a low-end #2 RB, while Graham could be seen as a #3 or #4. As of now, I don’t see the Cadillac leaving the garage too much this year.

5 – Seahawks’ RBs

We thought this would be a Julius Jones vs. T.J. Duckett battle going into the year, but the exit of Duckett and the entrance of veteran Edgerrin James shakes up the Seahawks backfield picture even more. New head coach Jim Mora Jr. has tabbed Jones as his #1 back, calling him his “top dog.” Jones just isn’t that good though, plain and simple. Don’t think of Jones as anything more than a #3 RB, while James isn’t worth picking up yet either, unless an injury comes Jones’ way.

6 – Browns’ QBs

Am I really going to talk about the fantasy value of members of the Cleveland Browns? Sure, why not, I’ve got some time to kill. Head coach Eric Mangini is keeping his QB decision very close to the vest, nearly splitting the playing time for Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson right down the middle this preseason. My money’s on Quinn to start Week 1 vs. Minnesota, but that doesn’t mean you should rush to grab B.Q. for your QB. Neither Quinn nor Anderson have much fantasy value, leave them on the waiver wire and look elsewhere for your backup QB.

7 – Browns’ RBs

Huh? Another Browns section? Really? Be honest, you’ll still read this. The Browns are like a multi-car accident on the side of the road…they’re so disgustingly awful you can’t help but pay attention to what a mess they are. And so now we turn to Cleveland’s backfield tandem of veteran Jamal Lewis, backup Jerome Harrison, and rookie James Davis. Rumors say Lewis may not even make the Cleveland roster, as his cap figure is a little high. Keep your eye on this situation this weekend leading up to Week 1, as whomever Mangini names as his starting back, would be worth grabbing as a #3 RB.

8 – Jets’ RBs

The Jets will feature a trio of quality backs this season, led by veteran Thomas Jones and the smaller pass-catching back, Leon Washington. Add to that Iowa rookie Shonn Greene, and the Jets should fly less through the air, but more on the ground. Jones and Washington both have #2 RB potential, while Greene is worth a late-round flier pick in standard leagues and has first-round value in rookie-only leagues.

9 – Lions’ QBs

Detroit’s new head coach Jim Schwartz has a decision to make, and may not make his choice until just days before his team’s Week 1 game. Does he go with top overall pick Matthew Stafford right off the bat, or instead ride Daunte Culpepper’s veteran arm until mid-season and then make the switch? Whichever way he goes, neither player is worth a pick in your standard fantasy league draft. Come mid-season, when you’re looking for a bye-week replacement for your starter, maybe, but let this position battle sort itself out before you commit to either one.

10 – Broncos’ WRs

Until Denver’s “Marshall Plan” is sorted out, the fantasy value of all of the Denver Broncos aren’t etched in stone. If Marshall continues to remain off the field once the regular season begins, the players most likely to benefit will be Eddie Royal and former Patriot Jabar Gaffney, who will likely step into a starting role if Brandon Marshall remains sidelined. Stay on top of this story, especially if you own any Broncos.

11 – Patriots’ RBs

Bill Belichick has featured a very busy backfield in the preseason, with as many as 5 different backs in play when it comes to fantasy value. Led by Fred Taylor and Laurence Maroney, complimented by Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk, and the young BenJarvus Green-Ellis, it’s anybody’s guess who will bear the brunt of the workload for the Pats’ ground attack this season. Taylor and Maroney can be considered for your #3 RB spot, but beyond that, the other three can’t be relied upon as any more than a flier pick for depth.

© Brian Kintz for Sports of Boston, 2009. | Permalink | No comment
Filed under: Fantasy, Featured.

I have my first football draft of 2008 coming up on July 26th. No doubt a day that will be spent face-to-face with several other league members while we exchange feeling of mutual respect and admiration while at the same time commending each other for what great picks we have made and telling each other how good each other’s teams are.  OK, maybe a day of expletives and mockery will be going down. But hey, a man can dream.

This league I am in has been in existence since 2004 and has become a cut-throat competition ever since. Most recently I finished 10th out of 12 teams in 2007 after what I would call a terrible draft (Rudi Johnson and Edgerrin James were my first 2 picks). This was particularly painful because in 2006, I had won the league championship over SoB’s KC in a heartbreaking defeat for our beloved Celtics writer. Thanks to Yahoo! Sports, I was able to go back to that league in 2006 and read my victory speech/story of the championship that I wrote after I had secured victory. I’ll be sure to post that in the near future. KC knows the story by heart. Poor KC.

So a year later I finish 10th and now 2008 brings some new hope. I blame my demise last year on my draft. Unlike baseball where if you have a bad draft you can still recover, football’s winners are decided in the online draft room. Having a good draft is essential if you want to bring home the championship trophy to your fake team. The consensus in fantasy football circles is that the draft strategy for the first two rounds is: RB, RB. Seeing as this position gets you on average the most points per game, then yes, it is the safe, conservative play. How have I played this game in my last four seasons? Well, lets have a look at the draft results. This is how the first two rounds of the drafts have gone in each year I have been with this league.

2004
R1- Randy Moss
R2- Kevin Jones

Can you tell it was my first year doing fantasy football? Want to know the pathetic part? I had first overall pick and I took Randy Moss. Oh it burns! What was I thinking? I could have had LaDainian Tomlinson or Priest Holmes! In 2003, Moss had 1632 yds and 17 TD and every year before that he had 1300 yds and/or 10+ TD’s per season. Then in 2004 he is injured, plays only 13 games and fails to reach 1,000 yards for the first time in his career. As for Kevin Jones? Well, I am notorious for rookies and Jones was arguably the best rookie RB to have.  In my defense, 2004 was the only year that Jones had over 1,000 rushing yds and the only time in his career that he averaged over 4.0 yds per carry. I didn’t draft my 2nd RB until round 6. FYI, it was Warrick Dunn. It’s not all tears though. I actually made the playoffs with a 6-8 record and miraculously made it to the championship game where I was defeated by fellow Fantasy guy Dev.

2005
R1- Dominack Davis/Williams (He changed his stupid name)
R2- Kevin Jones

What the hell is it with me and Kevin Jones? Well, Jones sucked. There is no other way to put it, lets be blunt. Jones played only 13 games and rushed for 664 yds. As for Dominack Davis/Williams, my first round pick got me less than 1,000 yds rushing and only 2 rushing TD’s. See, I went RB, RB and I still got screwed. As for my finish, I rightfully missed the playoffs with a 5-8 record.

2006 (My Championship year)
R1- Edgerrin James
R2- Anquan Boldin

Oh My God! Edgerrin James? Do I know anything about football? Yes, now here is my side of the story. James was a fantasy force with the Colts and 2006 was his first year in Arizona. Nobody expected that much of a dropoff. James wasn’t even my first choice. I was all set to take Portis until he got injured in the preseason. So, I had to change my strategy less than a week before the draft. Anquan Boldin was a good solid pick considering at the time he was a top-tier receiver. Surely I got my 2nd RB in the next round. Round 3, I took Santana Moss. OK, so R4 I got Daunte Culpepper. That had to be a mistake. Where the hell is my 2nd RB? Oh here he is, all the way in round 19. Round 19? I waited until round 19 of the draft to select a starting RB for my team that requires two RB positions. Well, I am all for waiting on a RB, but even I have to slap myself across the face for this one. In round 19, I took Greg Jones, the projected starter in the Houston backfield. After a preseason injury wiped that out, I ended up streaming backs until I picked up Ron Dayne. Dayne then carried me through the playoffs which included a 153 yd, 2 TD game against the Colts.

2007
R1- Rudi Johnson
R2- Edgerrin James

Screw Edgerrin James. Never again! When Rudi fell to me, I called it a blessing in disguise. When we look at it now, we see an injury-plagued season where he ran for 497 and 2 TD’s. I considered taking Brian Westbrook but was turned off by his proneness to injury. Well, 1333 rushing yds and 7 rushing TD’s tell a different story. Actually, Westbrook’s receiving numbers (90 rec, 771 yds, 5 TD’s) alone made him better than Rudi Johnson.

So now we finally come to 2008. I have been saddled with pick 11 in our 12 team league. We start 2 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, and 1 DEF. We have always used Yahoo! leagues and according to their player rankings, the 11th best players falls to Buffalo RB Marshawn Lynch. Although he is expected to be the focal point of the offense, there has been talk that he may lose some work load to fellow RB Fred Jackson. Legal problems wont be an issue anymore after the matter was finally settled in court on June 27th. However, I won’t be taking him considering he didn’t live up to expectations his rookie year and the fact that Buffalo’s offense is nothing to write home about.

I know for a fact that the people in our league are crazy about taking players way before they should be. I can guarantee everyone that both Tom Brady and Peyton Manning will be gone after round one. Also, with everyone being so RB heavy, odds are I have a very good shot at taking the best WR in the draft. Yes folks, once again I am looking at Randy Moss in round one. Coming off a career year and NFL record 23 TD’s, Moss will once again be the main WR threat for New England. The Patriots aren’t going to be very run-heavy considering the arsenal they have at WR in Moss and Welker. 23 TD won’t happen again but, you expect well over the 1,000 yard mark and 10+ TD’s from Moss once again. Those kind of points are just as good if not better than some of the RB’s being taken in round one. So I get RB numbers at a shallower position.

Now since I’ve been talking about my round one and two picks, why not see who I can have in round two. Having pick 11 has the benefit of getting your next pick almost immediately. At pick #14 Yahoo! says I should take Willis McGahee from Baltimore. Well I’ve never been one to conform to the normal rules. I have my eye on Braylon Edwards from Cleveland. Since his rookie year in 2005, Edwards’ numbers are getting better every year. Cleveland’s defense gave up 359.6 yds. per game last season and a total of 382 points which is about 23.9 points per game. Since they will probably be playing from behind most of the time, you can expect Derek Anderson to be constantly throwing the ball. With a high-power offense like the Browns and a defense that promises to not allow them to run the clock out, Edwards is looking mighty tasty in round 2.

Oh wait, am I going to skip the “RB, RB” method for the 3rd time in 5 years? Odds are the answer is yes. But hey, anything can happen on draft day.

© Pete Rampino for Sports of Boston, 2008. | Permalink | 4 comments
Filed under: Fantasy, Featured.

With football leagues already up and running, the time has come to start your draft day planning. We all know LaDainian Tomlinson or Adrian Peterson will be the #1 pick. We all know who the major players are. However, every year we all have the same thought: “I swear I won’t draft him again”. Usually this quote varies from person to person (mine has a lot of expletives), but the message is always consistent. Owners are constantly betrayed by a high draft pick and forever cast their once cherished player into the unknown, never wanting to see them again. I have graciously decided to let you in on my own experience and let you know one player I will be avoiding by all means on draft day. I just hope that you listen to me. If you don’t, then I have no sympathy for you.

Edgerrin James has not been his old self since leaving Indianapolis for the warm climate of Arizona. OK, lets be honest, James is useless as a fantasy running back. A former Pro Bowl selection and former lock for double digit touchdowns is now at best a bench player on your fantasy squad.

In seven seasons as a Colt, James averaged 4.2 yards per carry and 96.1 yards per game. He also averaged 51 receptions per season. On four occasions, he scored 10+ rushing TD’s and on four occasions rushed for more than 1500 yds.

Since moving to Arizona, James is only averaging 3.6 yards per carry and a dismal 74.4 yards per game. As for receptions per season, where he used to average 51 per year, James only has 62 catches total in his two years as a Cardinal. In his two seasons, James has 13 rushing TD’s which equals his total from his last season as a Colt in 2005.

Another reason to hate on James is Arizona’s defense. The Cardinal defense allowed over 330 yards per game in 2007 and it allowed opposing teams to score 399 total points in 16 games (almost 25 per game). With those numbers, that means the Cardinals will most likely be falling behind in games and will not have the need to run the ball but instead just throw up a prayer.

James teased me last season when during Week 2 he rushed 24 times for 128 yards and a TD. The next week he only had 10 carries but ran for 57 yards, a 5.7 avg. I thought this was a good sign. But what do I know? His yards per carry would go like this over the next few weeks: 3.7, 3.4, 3.7, 3.1, 1.7, 3.3, and 2.4. James would pick things up at the end of the season with a good game against the Browns in Week 13 (114 yds) and finally in Week 17 against the Rams (102 yds). Don’t let those numbers fool you, Cleveland gave up 129.5 yds per game to running backs last season and St. Louis didn’t fare much better giving up 115.3 yds per game to running backs.

Bottom line is, unless it is a last resort, let James slip by in your draft. If it’s the fourth round and you need to fill the position, then draft him. Don’t be like me last season and take him in Round 2. The only thing you can do is hope James is traded back to Indy. Cross your fingers people.

Pete’s Prediction: 344 carries, 1192 yds, 6 TD

© Pete Rampino for Sports of Boston, 2008. | Permalink | 2 comments
Filed under: Fantasy, Featured, Top Story.