Shaw on Fantasy NFL: Words of wisdom
Posted August 26, 2011 9:01 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Over the last two weeks we have brought you up to date on last year’s developments, the recent flurry of transactions, the NFL draft, a review of who’s on the rise and who’s on the decline, and a spotlight on a few sleepers. We have offered a mock draft, and position rankings of 125 players.
We are confident that we have done our due diligence to prepare you for your fantasy football draft. However, before we let you go, here are a few last words of wisdom to help you strategize for your fantasy football draft.
Play it safe early
The early rounds are about establishing the foundation of your fantasy football team not take risks. On that note, my preference is to select Adrian Peterson over Chris Johnson, Tom Brady and Philip Rivers over Michael Vick and Roddy White over Calvin Johnson. Coming back from an injury to your first round pick is harder than you’d think.
In the early rounds load up on talent
The fact that there are usually 20-plus rounds in a fantasy football draft allows you amble time to fill your positional needs later on. In the early rounds I’m loading up on talent. That means if it comes down to selecting Larry Fitzgerald or Shonn Greene, I’m going with Fitzgerald. I would even consider drafting Antonio Gates above most of the other top-20 running backs because of his dominance at his position.
From rounds five to 10 load up on running backs
Let’s face it; there is no position in the NFL in greater flux than running back. Heck, who would have thought Arian Foster would be the most valuable fantasy player last season? On that note, I’m loading up on running backs in the early middle rounds.
If there’s a split backfield where we’re wondering who will enjoy the larger role it’s not a problem… I’ll snag both options. You have to figure between Tim Hightower and Ryan Torain one of those options will breakthrough this season.
Players like Ahmad Bradshaw, Felix Jones, Beanie Wells, and Ryan Grant all have loads of talent and have the potential of being major producers. You should draft as many running backs as you can between rounds five to 10.
Draft a decent backup quarterback by round 14
As I’ve said earlier in the preseason, the quarterback of your fantasy team is your rock. The last thing you can afford is for your quarterback to get injured without a decent backup option.
As someone who won a fantasy league in 2009, despite having Tom Brady as a top pick, I have seen the value of a solid backup quarterback first hand. In that season it was Matt Schaub who led me to the trophy. This season, it could be Eli Manning, Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford, or even Matt Cassel.
Load up on sleepers at wide receiver
In a sense, wide receivers in fantasy football are like starting pitchers in fantasy baseball. Make sure to draft at least one legitimate ace and then surround him with players who could end up as sleepers.
This season, I am working hard to secure an Andre Johnson, Roddy White, or Larry Fitzgerald early. Then I’ll wait until the later rounds to surround them with players such as Steve Breaston, Braylon Edwards, Jerome Simpson, and other options.
Wait on your defense and kicker
The last two picks of your draft are for two specific positions: Defense and kicker. The rounds shortly before it, when some fantasy managers make the mistake of drafting an elite kicker or defense, are ripe for you to find sleepers.
For instance, last season in the 17th round or later you could have drafted Jacoby Jones, James Jones, Josh Freeman, Benjamin Watson, or Mario Manningham. Any of those options would have rewarded you more than selecting an elite defense or kicker.
As far as my philosophy on defenses, I believe that the opposing offense is just as important as the team’s defense you’re using. Feel free to rotate between defenses on the waiver wire based on whoever plays against the weak offenses this season.
So that’s it, you did your job. You took in all of the fantasy insight one could provide and you should now be ready for your draft. We’ll be here throughout the fantasy football season with breaking news and expert advice.
Good luck!
