06 June 2011

Yahoo! Opens Fantasy Football 2011: Part 2



by Jacob Allen
This is part 2 of my original Post "Yahoo! Opens Fantasy Football 2011: Merry Christmas" and you can read about D Town Bro Co's fantasy league at "Yes, The Bros Are Fantasy Football Guys"

So I am actually doing a Yahoo! live mock draft right now.  In June.  Is this straight feeding my addiction way too early?  Yes.  Does that faze me?  No.

I promised in my previous fantasy football related post that I would go over pre-draft rankings, how it relates to me, and how it relates to you….and I will…but let’s blog, draft, and dream for now.


7:33 – I am in the 7th position.  The draft starts in: 52 seconds.  Wow I have not put any thought into this.  I’m just winging this puppy.

7:35 – Top 6 picks went in order.  All the horse RB’s I don’t even need to name.  Ray Rice was available to me, as I had the 7th pick and Yahoo! Had him ranked #7 overall.  I played it safe this pick and took Aaron Rodgers.  In a real draft you will never see me take a QB round 1, but I froze.  In my defense Rodgers is as close to sure things as you could ever get this year, and I can vividly remember all the disappointed owners that took Rice top three last year.

7:37 – I am thinking I need to go RB with the next pick, but let’s wait and see what value I can get.  This draft is basically just going in order so far and having 4 out of 12 people auto-picking is not helping the cause.

7:38 – Surprise.  I took Peyton Hillis #18 overall.  There were a lot of good receivers floating around my draft slot…and I thought about taking Jennings, Fitzgerald, or Bowe, but in the end I had to go with the RB.  Plus Hillis is the “Baddest Man on the Planet”.

7:42 – Lots of options on the board at my third pick.  I feel I reached a little bit and snagged Ahmad Bradshaw with pick #31….perhaps a few slots before he should have gone, but there’s no doubt he’s a top notch talent (despite his documented rumbling fumbling problems).  I now look strong with elite fantasy ballers at my QB, RB 1, and RB 2 spots.

7:43 – At this point I was, and had to be, emotionally committed to a Wide Out, “and with the #42 overall selection King of the Hillis select Brandon Marshall, Miami Dolphins”.  This pick could have and maybe should have gone in Dez Bryant, Santonio Holmes, or Brandon Lloyd’s direction. Marshall was probably not the best choice.

Brandon Marshall is too good to be held down
7:47 – I made Sidney Rice my WR 2 with pick #55.  Atta boy.  Nice pick.  I need thinking about a TE now, but it looks like all the nasty tight ends are gone.  Let’s hope for the best.

7:49 – I freaked out again at #67 and took Ryan Grant.  There’s no doubt that was risky, but look at it this way…I have the QB/RB combo package of the Super Bowl winning point machine Packers.


7:51 – Wrapped up the starting TE spot by taking Pettigrew #79.  I thought hard about Gronkowski from the Pats.  I drafted him last year…thus violating my rookie rule, but something just told me to grab B. Pettigrew.   I vaguely remember him giving me the business last season at some point.


7:54 – OOPS.  I did not even look at the roster slots before I started this draft and just realized there are 3 starting WR slots and only 2 starting RB slots with no WR/RB/T.  My Ryan Grant pick is now fully confirmed as not good, but I scrambled and still managed to get Robert Meacham in round 9 with the #90 overall.  Of the starting spots it looks like I just have the Defense and a Kicker spots left.   “King of the Hillis” is nearly filled out.


Mutler
7:56 –I just used #103 to draft the Detroit Lions Defense.  I promised myself and others I would not do that.  Good thing this draft is not real.  Maybe this is insight into a much larger issue in my life I need to address.  I’ll watch out for that.  They were ranked #11, but I had to take a D and didn’t have many other options.  My starting lineup is complete.


7:58 – I’m drafting my bench now.  I just took Brandon Jacobs in the 11th.  Not a bad pick.  I handcuffed Ahmad Bradshaw which is good…and Jacobs actually started playing at some point last season.  Still…I have 2 Running Backs on my bench and 2 starting with only 2 total spots available.  I need a receiver next round.  I got my eye on Steve Smith of the Giants and am crossing my fingers.


8:00 – Got him.  That was solid.  Great value in round 12.  Last year he would have gone 5th – 7th.  Take “Super Rookie” Hakim Nicks out of the equation and Steve Smith would be the #1 guy over there in Gotham City.  Eli Manning likes him.  Tom Coughlin likes him.  People on his Facebook page like him….and now I am going to like him.


8:03 – Who I WANTED to take, was Titus Young.  Who I DID take, was Terrell Owens.  Sure…we do not know where he's playing…but he won people weeks last year with top level point production, and I’ll take him this late in the draft any time.  Plus, I do not draft rookies and already have way too many Lions on my team.
Side note:  Randy Moss was also available.  I did not even come close.


8:07 – Dan Carpenter.  Kicker from Miami?  No clue who this guy is.  I do not care who this guy is.  He better kick it straight and narrow or I’m going to drive down there and go Ray Finkle on his ass.


8:10 – I just went with the highest ranked player available.  Pierre Thomas.  It seems odd that these big name backs from only a year ago are still hanging around on lonely island this late.


8:12 – Mark Sanchez.  Draft is over.  I kind of thought about taking Cam Newton, but I am about to blog about my fantasy football strategies my main ones is “do not draft rookies”.  For the sake of that post and my street cred I did not take Cam.  I really did want to though.


Done.  Let’s look over and rate my picks.

The Yahoo! Sports Fantasy team 
1. Aaron Rodgers (GB - QB)   10/10
2. Peyton Hillis (Cle - RB)   8/10
3. Ahmad Bradshaw (NYG - RB)   8.5/10
4. Brandon Marshall (Mia - WR)   7/10
5. Sidney Rice (Min - WR)   9/10
6. Ryan Grant (GB - RB)   5/10
7. Brandon Pettigrew (Det - TE)   7/10
8. Robert Meachem (NO - WR)   7/10
9. Detroit (Det - DEF)   6/10
10. Brandon Jacobs (NYG - RB)   7/10
11. Steve Smith (NYG - WR)   8/10
12. Terrell Owens (Cin - WR)   8.5/10
13. Dan Carpenter (Mia - K)   N/A
14. Pierre Thomas (NO - RB)   6/10
15. Mark Sanchez (NYJ - QB) 6/10


That comes to an average ranking of about 7.3/10 on my draft. Not bad. Not good. I will definitely get better…it’s not as if I don’t have 95 days left to do this.

The post ends here...but if anybody is interested in seeing how this entire draft went here are the results.


Round by Round results
* your team in bold


Round 1
(1) Team 1 - Arian Foster (Hou - RB)
(2) Team 2 - Adrian Peterson (Min - RB)
(3) RollTide88 - Jamaal Charles (KC - RB)
(4) Dennis - Michael Turner (Atl - RB)
(5) James M - Chris Johnson (Ten - RB)
(6) Wadsworth - Maurice Jones-Drew (Jac - RB)
(7) Snake - Aaron Rodgers (GB - QB)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Ray Rice (Bal - RB)
(9) DonnyV - Andre Johnson (Hou - WR)
(10) Team 10 - Rashard Mendenhall (Pit - RB)
(11) Team 11 - LeSean McCoy (Phi - RB)
(12) andybuckr - Calvin Johnson (Det - WR)


Round 2
(1) andybuckr - Darren McFadden (Oak - RB)
(2) Team 11 - Michael Vick (Phi - QB)
(3) Team 10 - Roddy White (Atl - WR)
(4) DonnyV - Frank Gore (SF - RB)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - Hakeem Nicks (NYG - WR)
(6) Snake - Peyton Hillis (Cle - RB)
(7) Wadsworth - Larry Fitzgerald (Ari - WR)
(8) James M - Drew Brees (NO - QB)
(9) Dennis - Greg Jennings (GB - WR)
(10) RollTide88 - Dwayne Bowe (KC - WR)
(11) Team 2 - Peyton Manning (Ind - QB)
(12) Team 1 - Steven Jackson (StL - RB)


Round 3
(1) Team 1 - Philip Rivers (SD - QB)
(2) Team 2 - Matt Forte (Chi - RB)
(3) RollTide88 - Mike Wallace (Pit - WR)
(4) Dennis - Jeremy Maclin (Phi - WR)
(5) James M - Shonn Greene (NYJ - RB)
(6) Wadsworth - Miles Austin (Dal - WR)
(7) Snake - Ahmad Bradshaw (NYG - RB)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Tom Brady (NE - QB)
(9) DonnyV - DeSean Jackson (Phi - WR)
(10) Team 10 - Tony Romo (Dal - QB)
(11) Team 11 - LeGarrette Blount (TB - RB)
(12) andybuckr - Antonio Gates (SD - TE)


Round 4
(1) andybuckr - Reggie Wayne (Ind - WR)
(2) Team 11 - Mike Williams (TB - WR)
(3) Team 10 - Vincent Jackson (SD - WR)
(4) DonnyV - Ryan Mathews (SD - RB)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - DeAngelo Williams (Car - RB)
(6) Snake - Brandon Marshall (Mia - WR)
(7) Wadsworth - Jermichael Finley (GB - TE)
(8) James M - Dez Bryant (Dal - WR)
(9) Dennis - Brandon Lloyd (Den - WR)
(10) RollTide88 - Dallas Clark (Ind - TE)
(11) Team 2 - Jason Witten (Dal - TE)
(12) Team 1 - Vernon Davis (SF - TE)


Round 5
(1) Team 1 - Stevie Johnson (Buf - WR)
(2) Team 2 - Marques Colston (NO - WR)
(3) RollTide88 - Kenny Britt (Ten - WR)
(4) Dennis - BenJarvus Green-Ellis (NE - RB)
(5) James M - Wes Welker (NE - WR)
(6) Wadsworth - Jonathan Stewart (Car - RB)
(7) Snake - Sidney Rice (Min - WR)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Steve Smith (Car - WR)
(9) DonnyV - Ben Roethlisberger (Pit - QB)
(10) Team 10 - Daniel Thomas (Mia - RB)
(11) Team 11 - Anquan Boldin (Bal - WR)
(12) andybuckr - Santonio Holmes (NYJ - WR)


Round 6
(1) andybuckr - Cedric Benson (Cin - RB)
(2) Team 11 - Owen Daniels (Hou - TE)
(3) Team 10 - Jimmy Graham (NO - TE)
(4) DonnyV - Percy Harvin (Min - WR)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - Austin Collie (Ind - WR)
(6) Snake - Ryan Grant (GB - RB)
(7) Wadsworth - Matt Schaub (Hou - QB)
(8) James M - Michael Crabtree (SF - WR)
(9) Dennis - Eli Manning (NYG - QB)
(10) RollTide88 - Pittsburgh (Pit - DEF)
(11) Team 2 - A.J. Green (Cin - WR)
(12) Team 1 - Mike Williams (Sea - WR)


Round 7
(1) Team 1 - Pierre Garcon (Ind - WR)
(2) Team 2 - Santana Moss (Was - WR)
(3) RollTide88 - Matt Ryan (Atl - QB)
(4) Dennis - Mike Tolbert (SD - RB)
(5) James M - Tony Gonzalez (Atl - TE)
(6) Wadsworth - Johnny Knox (Chi - WR)
(7) Snake - Brandon Pettigrew (Det - TE)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Zach Miller (Oak - TE)
(9) DonnyV - Rob Gronkowski (NE - TE)
(10) Team 10 - Mario Manningham (NYG - WR)
(11) Team 11 - Jerome Simpson (Cin - WR)
(12) andybuckr - Felix Jones (Dal - RB)


Round 8
(1) andybuckr - Josh Freeman (TB - QB)
(2) Team 11 - New York (NYJ - DEF)
(3) Team 10 - Green Bay (GB - DEF)
(4) DonnyV - Chicago (Chi - DEF)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - New England (NE - DEF)
(6) Snake - Robert Meachem (NO - WR)
(7) Wadsworth - New York (NYG - DEF)
(8) James M - San Diego (SD - DEF)
(9) Dennis - Philadelphia (Phi - DEF)
(10) RollTide88 - Julio Jones (Atl - WR)
(11) Team 2 - Baltimore (Bal - DEF)
(12) Team 1 - Matt Bryant (Atl - K)


Round 9
(1) Team 1 - Dallas (Dal - DEF)
(2) Team 2 - Stephen Gostkowski (NE - K)
(3) RollTide88 - Marshawn Lynch (Sea - RB)
(4) Dennis - Marcedes Lewis (Jac - TE)
(5) James M - Sebastian Janikowski (Oak - K)
(6) Wadsworth - Mason Crosby (GB - K)
(7) Snake - Detroit (Det - DEF)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Neil Rackers (Hou - K)
(9) DonnyV - Nate Kaeding (SD - K)
(10) Team 10 - Garrett Hartley (NO - K)
(11) Team 11 - Josh Brown (StL - K)
(12) andybuckr - David Akers (Phi - K)


Round 10
(1) andybuckr - New Orleans (NO - DEF)
(2) Team 11 - Mark Ingram (NO - RB)
(3) Team 10 - Mikel LeShoure (Det - RB)
(4) DonnyV - Fred Jackson (Buf - RB)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - Matthew Stafford (Det - QB)
(6) Snake - Brandon Jacobs (NYG - RB)
(7) Wadsworth - Joseph Addai (Ind - RB)
(8) James M - Jahvid Best (Det - RB)
(9) Dennis - Mike Sims-Walker (Jac - WR)
(10) RollTide88 - Braylon Edwards (NYJ - WR)
(11) Team 2 - Knowshon Moreno (Den - RB)
(12) Team 1 - Ryan Williams (Ari - RB)


Round 11
(1) Team 1 - Jay Cutler (Chi - QB)
(2) Team 2 - Joe Flacco (Bal - QB)
(3) RollTide88 - Ryan Torain (Was - RB)
(4) Dennis - Malcom Floyd (SD - WR)
(5) James M - Sam Bradford (StL - QB)
(6) Wadsworth - Kyle Orton (Den - QB)
(7) Snake - Steve Smith (NYG - WR)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Roy Helu (Was - RB)
(9) DonnyV - Matt Cassel (KC - QB)
(10) Team 10 - Kevin Kolb (Phi - QB)
(11) Team 11 - Kellen Winslow (TB - TE)
(12) andybuckr - Deion Branch (NE - WR)


Round 12
(1) andybuckr - Jacoby Ford (Oak - WR)
(2) Team 11 - Mike Thomas (Jac - WR)
(3) Team 10 - Hines Ward (Pit - WR)
(4) DonnyV - Chad Ochocinco (Cin - WR)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - Aaron Hernandez (NE - TE)
(6) Snake - Terrell Owens (Cin - WR)
(7) Wadsworth - Davone Bess (Mia - WR)
(8) James M - Jordy Nelson (GB - WR)
(9) Dennis - David Buehler (Dal - K)
(10) RollTide88 - Michael Bush (Oak - RB)
(11) Team 2 - James Jones (GB - WR)
(12) Team 1 - Lance Moore (NO - WR)


Round 13
(1) Team 1 - Derrick Mason (Bal - WR)
(2) Team 2 - Chris Cooley (Was - TE)
(3) RollTide88 - Rob Bironas (Ten - K)
(4) Dennis - Brent Celek (Phi - TE)
(5) James M - Danario Alexander (StL - WR)
(6) Wadsworth - Donald Driver (GB - WR)
(7) Snake - Dan Carpenter (Mia - K)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Nate Burleson (Det - WR)
(9) DonnyV - Lee Evans (Buf - WR)
(10) Team 10 - Randy Moss (Ten - WR)
(11) Team 11 - Tim Tebow (Den - QB)
(12) andybuckr - Ryan Fitzpatrick (Buf - QB)


Round 14
(1) andybuckr - Jermaine Gresham (Cin - TE)
(2) Team 11 - Mark Clayton (StL - WR)
(3) Team 10 - Dustin Keller (NYJ - TE)
(4) DonnyV - Benjamin Watson (Cle - TE)
(5) dougbroderick2002 - Jon Baldwin (KC - WR)
(6) Snake - Pierre Thomas (NO - RB)
(7) Wadsworth - Tony Moeaki (KC - TE)
(8) James M - Greg Olsen (Chi - TE)
(9) Dennis - Carson Palmer (Cin - QB)
(10) RollTide88 - Danny Amendola (StL - WR)
(11) Team 2 - Arrelious Benn (TB - WR)
(12) Team 1 - Visanthe Shiancoe (Min - TE)


Round 15
(1) Team 1 - Kansas City (KC - DEF)
(2) Team 2 - Tampa Bay (TB - DEF)
(3) RollTide88 - Donovan McNabb (Was - QB)
(4) Dennis - Arizona (Ari - DEF)
(5) James M - San Francisco (SF - DEF)
(6) Wadsworth - Robbie Gould (Chi - K)
(7) Snake - Mark Sanchez (NYJ - QB)
(8) dougbroderick2002 - Atlanta (Atl - DEF)
(9) DonnyV - Oakland (Oak - DEF)
(10) Team 10 - Minnesota (Min - DEF)
(11) Team 11 - Cincinnati (Cin - DEF)
(12) andybuckr - Nick Folk (NYJ - K)