The Ten Draft Commandments

Uhh, it’s the 10 draft commandments

What, uhh, uhh

Cuh can’t tell me nothin bout this fantasy, uh-huh

Can’t tell me nothin bout these receivers, these QB’s

To my commissioner cuhs

Cuhs on the internets I ain’t forget you, cuh…

Draft running backs back to back cuhs, word up

 

Been in this game for years, it made me an animal

It’s rules to this isht, I wrote me a manual

A Step by step booklet for you to get

Your draft on track, not your team push backed

Rule Nombre Uno: never miss your draft

This is the foundation of your season. It accounts for probably 50% of your success during the year.

While an auto draft may give you a balanced team – autopick will overdraft a kicker or a team

defense (which you should only draft in your last two rounds) or give you Lance Kendricks (who?!) as

a second TE. You will miss out on a solid bench player with starter upside (see: Morris, Alfred – 2012

season).

Attend the draft. Get your targeted players. Draft Kickers and Defenses last. Talk some trash to your

opponents at the same time. It’ll be fun, trust me.

Number two: Never let ‘em know your next move

Even better, have a next move. Research draft strategies. Are you going old school (two running backs in

the first two rounds), progressive (tight end/QB in the first round), or best available player (value based

drafting)? It does not have to get too technical, but a little planning never hurt nobody… (insert the 12

P’s).

There are countless resources (paid and free) for information; it will help you win (no one sets out to

lose their league, right?). You’ll have more fun, your league will be more competitive, and you’ll find you

enjoy the NFL a bit more.

Here are some good resources:

Footballguys.com

Rotoworld.com

FFToday.com

Twitter has countless people to follow (Matt Waldman, Sigmund Bloom, Evan Silva to name a few). Get

active and use your resources.

Number three: Never refuse to draft no-bod-y

Don’t be a homer. Skins fans, look for Romo to put up big points for you despite his propensity to turn

the ball over.

This applies for any draft-worthy player on all 32 teams, no matter who your squad is.

Number four: I know you heard this before – never get high on your own supply

Here’s a story: the year was 2008. It’s draft day for my 12 team fantasy league. One guy (let’s say his team

name was “Bellicheck’s Hoodie” to protect the innocent) gets the 4th overall pick.

Here is his draft (warning graphic content below):

Round 1 (Pick 4): Randy Moss – WR, New England

Round 2 (Pick 16): Tom Brady – QB, New England

Round 3 (Pick 28): Wes Welker – WR, New England

Round 4 (Pick 40): Laurence Maroney – RB, New England

Round 5 (Pick 52): Benjamin Watson – TE, New England

Round 6 (Pick 64): Stephen Gostkowski – K, New England

Round 7 (Pick 76): Patriots Team Defense

…

Tom Brady would go on to blow out his knee in the first game.

You can guess where “Bellicheck’s Hoodie” placed that year.

Don’t be that guy (or gal).

Number five: never go and draft without practice

Try a few mocks. It will help you get a feel for where players you are targeting are getting drafted. It will

help you test out your strategy and see where your people draft your targets. Trust me, you will benefit

from having a plan and some (simulated) experience with live bullets.

Here are some sites:

football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/‎

MockDraftCentral.com

fantasyfootballcalculator.com/mockdrafts

Remember: you play liked you practice.

Number Six: your league scoring rules, get it

In other words, KNOW THEM! The scoring format (Flex WR/TE/Rb, Yards per completion, Points per

Reception [PPR], etc…) should shape your draft.

If your league allows a flex WR/RB/TE, then draft an extra running back or receiver early. If you get

rewarded points per reception, keep that in mind when drafting running backs.

Not knowing your league scoring will set you behind the competition. It only takes a minute.

Seven: this rule is so underrated / keep your family and fantasy completely separated

Have fun but don’t overdo it. Know your limits and take it one week at a time. I once played in 10

leagues at one time. That was not a fun time, as you can imagine.

Number eight: never have to wait for the computer

Get mobile. Sign up for leagues that have a good mobile app to manage your roster. They are often

quick and easy and keep your team competitive while you are out and about. My personal favorite is

Yahoo! but NFL.com, CBS Sports, and ESPN all have decent mobile apps.

Number nine shoulda been number one to me / Don’t blow off the rest of your draft because you

missed on RG3.

Have a plan b (or c or d). Yes it sucks, someone sniped your top target a few picks ahead of you. But

remember, one player will never make or break your draft.

Try not to reach for a player because of a run on a position or missing a target, either.

Number ten: a strong word called commitment / Strictly for live men, not for freshmen

Stay active in your league. This makes up the other 50% of your success. Active managers who set

their line ups on before games, play the waiver wire, wheel and deal players give themselves the best

shot at winning the league.

Play the match ups and trade/look for undervalued players who may have had a recent rough patch but big

point potential.

As a general rule, it is better to be early than late to pick up players on waivers that blew up the week

before. Also, trade to improve your team earlier than late in case it does not pan out.

Follow these rules you’ll have mad bread (or chips) to break up/

If not, double digit losses, on the wake up…

Gotta go gotta go more leagues to blow up, word up, uhh

Good luck this year – here’s to second place if you’re playing against me.

Your Champion,

Fantasy King, Diwigit Blizzard aka D-Wight the deputy.

HTTR.

the morning after… [fantasy football thoughts – wk 2]

What’s good everyone? Hope your first ffb weekend went well for you. Here are my observations from this weekend…

Again, it’s always better to be early than to be late when it comes to picking up players on the waiver wire.

Running Back

1. Steven Jackson — quad injury. It’s so bad that the Rams have already ruled him out for next monday. What does this mean? If you need a running back or just want to screw your league, target Cadillac Williams. He had a decent game against the Eagles D (91 yards on the ground, 49 receiving).

2. Derick Ward got dinged against the colts and Ben Tate took advantage of it. If you haven’t picked him up now, I’d suggest you try. It’ll be hard since he’s a hot commodity.

Quarterback

1. Cam Newton. Personally, I think this bodes more about Arizona’s Pass D than it does Newton’s prowess — he’s a rook, so he’s going to have his ups and his downs. But Newton will probably be a much better Fantasy QB than a real QB this season. 400 yards is hard to ignore on any level and there is the threat of rushing yards/TDs. Plus with Steve Smith and the a dynamic duo at TE, he should be able to put up decent numbers.

2. Ryan Fitzpatrick. The guy looked sharp in Buffalo’s demolition of KC on the road. 4 TDs is nothing to sneeze at. It looks like Chan Gailey has a decent passing game working and if you need a QB because you Drafted oh, let’s say, Donovan Mcnabb (who put up up warner numbers – 7-15 for 39 (thirty-nine!) yards).

3. Rex Grossman. Yea the Giants were down a few CBs. Yes the Skins OL had a few struggles in pass protection. But Rex distributed the ball well all game and remember, if you snooze, you loose. Rex placed the ball in decent positions all game hitting 6 different receivers and putting up over 300 yards. Oh yea, the skins get the Cardinals next week (remember they gave up over 400 yards to a rookie who’s name rhymes with Sham Gluten…)

Wide Receiver

1. Kevin Walter has a broken shoulder blade and will be out 10-12 weeks. Go pick up Jacoby Jones. Now. Jones may finally take that leap he has been supposed to take the last few years. He can also help your team out if you get points for Return TDs.

2. Ted Ginn Jr. Yes the 49er’s QBs are suspect. But the man had a Punt and a Kick Off Return TD. The 49er’s will need to get him involved as much as possible. Again, if your league doles out return TDs, pick the man up.

3. Marques Colston is out with a collarbone issue. That means you can upgrade Meachem, Henderson, and maybe snag Adrian Arrington.

4. Jabar Gaffney may also be a decent play this week. He was close to having a big game on Sunday and he has rapport with Grossman from their days at Florida. Trust me on this one. Or roll the dice with your crappy receivers. Your choice.

Tight End

1. Scott Chandler. He had 63 yards and 2 TD’s in Buffalo’s rout of Kansas City. If you need a TE upgrade, pick him up.

2. Fred Davis. With Chris Cooley still recovering from knee surgery, Davis has seized his opportunity. Cooley played last Sunday against the Giants, but Davis at this point is the better athlete. Freddy D went for over 100 yards and got close to getting in the endzone. On a team hurting for big receivers and playmakers in the redzone, Davis should continue to flourish and get opportunities to score TDs. TE’s are bonus points in fantasy, any how, so you might as well find a decent one with some upside. Fred Davis could be your guy…

I’ll be back later in the week with Starts/Sits for the week and the players I like as sleepers for week two. Be Easy.

D.

The Morning After… [fantasy football thoughts]

Last nights season opener was a fantasy owners dream — if you had the right players… Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees showed everyone why you should draft elite QBs like people used to draft RBs. Shoot, Darren Sproles [75 receiving yards, 1 return TD ] reaffirms this — if the elite running backs (read: Peterson, Rice, CJ2K — maybe Jamaal Charles – though I’m not ready to anoint him as elite yet..) are gone, strongly consider a top Notch QB in the middle-late First/early second round. The last couple of years, I’ve been content to draft two stud receivers and go the RB/QB value/sleeper route. I digress…

In fantasy it’s always better to be early than late… after last night’s game/yesterday’s news, here are some moves I’d recommend.

1. Pick up a 3rd QB if you drafted Manning — I’d consider dropping him. They are calling for him to take up to three months to fully recover – Colts are probably considering putting him on IR. With that said, I’d still draft Clark and probably would upgrade Addai. I think the Colts become a more run heavy team with Manning down. I think Clark is affected less than Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie, or Pierre Garcon because Kerry Collins (aka Bobby Reese) loved the TE in Tennessee.

Kerry Collins Totally looks like..

I’d be interested to see how this first game goes for Wayne and the WRs, I’d probably consider dangling them for trade bate — maybe pick up an undervalued Santana Moss + a Running back.

2. Look to pick up Cobb/Nelson from the Packers. The two look like nice safety valves for Rodgers, both put up solid games, and both are probably available in your league. Pick them up, now. Drop that second TE or second Kicker you drafted for whatever reason and pick up a big play threat in Cobb or a reliable, strong route runner in Jordy Nelson. Do it. Now.

3. If you are hurting for a running back, look to pick up Sproles. Saints offense is predicated on players like him and Reggie Bush and Sproles is a match up nightmare for linebackers. Did you see the way he burnt AJ Hawk? I see more of this to come and this is probably only the beginning. To me, Ingram seemed to struggle a bit and consistently ran up people’s backs instead of running to daylight. Ingram seemed to go down easy — maybe he doesn’t have any wiggle — maybe he’s just getting warmed up. To me, it seems that Ingram would be better in an offense that needed a work horse — he kind of seems like a Steelers style back, give him 30 carries and he gets better as the game progresses. Thomas may have affected his rhythm. Speaking of Thomas, he ran hard but he really didn’t do too much. Now, this may all have to do with the Packers DL — particularly BJ “you gone eat yo conebread?” Raji.  (Raji TD Video – #nh)

BJ Raji in the famous movie “Life”

BJ Raji

But the Saints short yardage offense was woeful at best. Not saying you should give up on Ingram — he has potential to be a double digit TD man this year, just if you need RB help — stash for Sproles and don’t look back.

Needless to say, I’m pumped for the rest of this football season, and I am looking forward to kicking some ass in fantasy… Maybe I can help you out while I’m at it… feel free to hit me up on twitter: @diwigit06. Good luck, I’m out.

Fantasy Profiling: What kind of fantasy football player are you? Where do you (or your rivals) fit in?

There are several different kinds of players, allow me to help you recognize what you’re dealing with. I’ll give you some signs and some general tips along the way… without further adieu…

First up: The Novice

 

Ok so you want to play fantasy football – great. You understand the game and you want to enhance your football season experience by trying your hand (hopefully with no money involved) at fantasy football. Grab a magazine, find some blogs, just promise that you’ll at least stick with it throughout the year. Few things are more frustrating than being in a draft with an autopick person who in turn never changes their roster the whole year (even on bye weeks). Fantasy football can be as involved or uninvolved and fun as you like, but most people would appreciate at least some level of active participation. I’m all for winning, but I’d at least like to know I beat you at your best (whatever that may be).

 

The Oblivious Jackass

 

So – you’ve been around the block before & officially “get” fantasy football better at some level higher the Novice. But you have no flippin’ idea who’s worth that mid round pick or who’s really going to help your team. This player may pick someone just because they recognize the name or they were good 4 years and 2 knee surgeries ago…

 

Case and point: I was in a draft in 2006, had the 6th overall pick in the first round. Who falls in my lap? LaDainian Tomlinson.

 

(side bar: check out this high-coonery: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GExIu9-QXbI)

This guy, (we’ll refer to him as, uhm, Gavin) said “Oh you know LT is DONE…blah blah blah). That year LT ran for 1,815 yards and 33 total touchdowns (28 rushing, 3 receiving, 2 passing).

Maybe Gavin was just talking crap – who knows, but the next year (2007) Gavin proceeded to draft Tiki Barber in the 4th round… after Barber had retired…

Later that season, I picked up Adrian Peterson from the Bears (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_N._Peterson).

 not to be confused with… 

This guy sent me a trade offer giving me Reggie Wayne & Kurt Warner for Peterson. Of course I accepted it. Need I say any more? Take advantage of these ass-clowns when you find them. Do your due diligence to NOT be that guy…

 

The Homer

 

Great, you’re a football fanatic (aren’t we all?!). You’ve got the ropes of fantasy football down to a T and you’re pumped for draft day. The only problem is, you throw all of your eggs in one basket – you’re a homer. Having a team is great, matter of fact, I encourage it (so long as your not a bandwaggoner…) – it makes the season that much more interesting. But don’t take it too far… I’ve been in a draft where one guy selected: Tom Brady, Wes Welker, Randy Moss, Lawrence Maroney, Benjamin Watson and the Patriots Defense – really?! Talk about bye-week hell – let alone being a major injury or two away from a wasted fantasy season (and money if they are dumb enough).

 

On the other hand, there is a milder version of the Homer, the person who avoids players from a team because the play on their favorite team’s rival. As a Skins fan, if there is a Cowboy player that will help me win (and win money) I’m drafting him. So I’ll draft Tony Romo, and I hope he throws for 400 yards and 4 TD’s against the skins – but also he throws 3 pick 6’s and the cowboys lose by at least one point. If a player is good, draft him. It’s as simple as that. Now if the team sucks (read: the Bengals this year) – avoiding players on that team may not be so hare-brained. But keep in mind that someone on that team is going to have to run and pass and catch the ball. You could find some gems on these sorry squads (see Calvin Johnson 2008 – Lions went 0-16 – Megatron went for 1,331 yards and 12 TDs).

 

The Shit-Talking Average Joe

 

Ok maybe you’ve played for a few years, even made the playoffs a few times. You show up for your draft (maybe leaving after the 9th round?) and you always bench players that are on a bye. Bravo. But you talk a bunch of crap (which is all in fun) but your team is average as hell. Few things are more frustrating than to lose to someone who’s kicker goes for 20 points in a game and you lose by 1 point to this clown. This guy might also draft the Steelers and the Ravens defense back to back and hope you are desperate enough to trade for them. Hardcore players, beware…

 

Regular dude

 

Generally unremarkable. Like S.T.A.J. but minus the shit talking.

 

Demi-Guru/Hardcore player

   

Ok, admittedly I spend too much time on this stuff. But I have made money in the process. Last year I played in 13 leagues and I won 4. Not a perfect record, but 9 of my teams made the playoffs. With the amount of uncertainty and luck involved in fantasy football – I’d say that’s pretty good. But back to the hardcore players, you do your scouting in the preseason, maybe buy a magazine or two. Shit, you may even subscribe to a site like Rotoworld.com. You run a few teams every year and you make the playoffs more often than not. Maybe theMancave can put you over the top…

 

Other comments…

 

With fantasy football, you usually get back what you put in. At some point you may realize your team isn’t going anywhere but there’s always next year. Maintain the integrity of the league and don’t cut all of your players. Accept your team’s position and maybe try to knock someone out of the playoffs. All in all, fantasy football makes the entire season more interesting and expands fans from their niche of their favorite team to becoming fans of the entire league. Good luck this season (unless you’re playing me).

 

Be Easy,

 

D.