Who's your first round pick?

In the quest for the best. fantasy team. EVAHHHHHH. There is a question that every fantasy team manager must ask themselves: do I draft a QB or a RB first?

Both positions are pretty solid choices. Both quarterbacks and running backs are solid points-horses. Unless you happen to draft Tim Tebow or Johnny Manziel, your QB is going to be playing every game and is going to get you points either in yardage or scoring plays all game. On the other hand, if you pick a superstar running back such as Eddie Lacy, Adrian Peterson, or Arian Foster you've got a good shot of a player working hard to help you win. So who do you go with?

On the quarterback side, there are a limited number of great QBs in the league. There are those that are suffering from the sophomore slump (you may remember my post about Cam and RGIII last year) Plus, not every QB is going to throw a bomb down the field every single game like Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning. Some may have a receiver who couldn't catch a fish in a barrel, let alone a football hurtling down the field. If that's the case, they're handing it off to the running back. Which means a lot fewer yards and for you, fewer points. So it may behoove you to grab the QB you want early. But, depending on how many teams are in your league, and the number of QBs you truly like, perhaps you've got enough QBs to spare so you can wait until another round to get the guy you want.

On the side of the running back, just like with QBs, there's a limited number. I'd even suggest that the number of running backs who are likely to score big for you are even less than QBs. The beauty about running backs is they have the potential to grab a ton of yardage, as well as make a way into the end zone. Furthermore, the RB doesn't have to rely on another person to grab that yardage*....unlike a QB who generally needs a receiver to catch the ball.**

So, if it's my team, I'm probably choosing the RB in my first round, and the QB in the second. But your absolute best bet is to keep track of who has been picked and who is left, and make a game time decision as your turn comes. You've got to read what everyone else is doing and pay attention, so you can make the best pick for your team.

Good luck and happy drafting!




*blockers notwithstanding

**Yes, I know. Michael Vick, RGIII, Colin Kaepernick, blah blah blah.

When Football is Your Fantasy

Football fantasies often involve cheerleaders, bare midriffs, jerseys, and balls . But fantasy football has nothing to do with any of that. Fantasy football is Monday Morning Quarterback meets Madden (the video game, not the coach). Fantasy football gives all of us who are glued to the TV on Sundays (and Thursdays and Mondays) the chance to build the team of our dreams and battle against the team our friends dream about. So how does it work? It's actually a lot easier than you think*.

I only have experience with Yahoo!'s Fantasy Football, but I'm told they are all basically the same. Each person is a manager (aka, a General Manager or GM) and has the opportunity to pick their team. Typically, you pick: a quarterback, a defense, a tight-end, 2 wide receivers, 2 running backs, 1 tight end, 1 flex position (which can be either a wide receiver or a running back or maybe a tight end), and a kicker. These are the positions that must be filled at all times. Then, there are 5 people on the bench. You need those folks for bye weeks, injuries, or if your first choice ends up sucking. You develop your team on draft day. Some leagues do this as a huge event -- live and lots of yelling about stealing players. Others do it by auto-draft. However you do it, the strategy and gamesmanship can start as early as the first round. So be careful who you pick!

Of course, you can't always get the team of your dreams on the first try. (What would be the fun in that?) Inevitably, one of your favorite players will go to another team. Or you'll be in a huge league and end up with all kinds of players you've never heard of. That's fine. There's always the opportunity to draft players later, and many leagues allow for trades among teams.

So, you've set your team. Scoring is then based on what happens in the actual game each week. So let's take the QB position. Say you have Drew Brees (my fantasy pick 3 years running). I score every time Brees does his job on the field. For every touchdown he throws (running or throwing), I get 6 points. For every 20 yards he runs or throws, I get 1 point. And, for interceptions, -2. If my guy Brees gets sacked, -1. Running backs, tight ends, and wide receivers all score similarly in that they receive 1 point for every reception, 6 for each touch down (receiving or rushing), and 1 point for every 10 yards rushed (or received in the case of wide receivers and tight ends). Each position has the opportunity to score based on what really happened in each player's real game. Check your league settings for the rest of the scoring scheme.

The only downside to fantasy football, as beautifully stated by a friend of mine, is that you lose your ability to remain objective about games you just shouldn't care about. Suddenly, you're sitting in front of the TV intently watching the Monday night Cardinals vs. Raiders game, because your fantasy team's final score is totally dependent on how many receptions Larry Fitzgerald has. Which is pretty unreasonable if your Packers beat the snot out of the Bears in the early game on Sunday. Silver lining? It makes going out to watch the games on Sundays WAY more interesting. Suddenly, you understand why everyone loves the game so much.

One of my greatest triumphs is when I can talk about stats and points about little known players. I was out with a great friend a few years ago. She'd asked me to come with her to the local Browns bar to watch the 2nd half of the Browns' home game against the Patriots. As a true Packer fan, I'm an NFC kinda girl, and I couldn't care less about a random interconference AFC game, but whatever, I love football and my friends. And besides, the Browns were winning! Who wouldn't want to witness this live and among their fans? At the time, Peyton Hillis was one of my running backs on my fantasy team.. He was the Browns' running back that year, and their star player. He was a fantasy sleeper -- meaning, for those of us who had him, he was likely an auto-pick -- but out of no where, he started scoring mad points. (The same thing would happen with Joique Bell of the Detroit Lions the very next year). So, I'm standing at the bar, and Peyton Hillis runs it in for a touchdown. I'm not in a Browns jersey but I'm totally screaming my head off. A guy standing next to my friend makes some snarky comment like "riiiiight...like you really the Browns." And I respond, "they're alright, but more importantly, Peyton Hillis is KILLING it for me!! He's got like 28 points today!!" At which point the guy totally high-fived me for a) knowing who Peyton Hillis was in the first place, b) choosing him for my fantasy RB, and c) playing (doing?) fantasy football. Added bonus? It always feels good when Tom Brady is losing.



*And, as an aside, it's a great way to learn more about teams and players outside of the ones you already follow.