Kicker Points Vote

As a gesture of goodwill, since we have had a little argument about even including kickers already and the vote was 50:50, I suggest we lessen the possible contribution of kickers each week.
 
I think something where kickers make 1 point for point-afters, 1 point for kicks 30 and under, 2 points for 30 to fifty, and 3 points for kicks over fifty would be a more reasonable scoring system.

Currently, the scoring is:
1 Point for PAT
3 Points for 0-40 yards
4 Points for 40-50
and 5 Points for >50

Please vote on the change.

Rosters Posted

Sorry for the delay Gentlemen, but your rosters are now posted and you may begin submitting lineups. As far as I understand, pickups will be a free for all until week one of the season. Scott, please resubmit your kicker vote on points so I can get that settled.

Draft Recap

Today I’ve spent well over an hour reviewing the draft results and telling my paralegal the things she needs to consider when planning our celebration for this Thursday, which obviously is September 2, 2010, aka “90210.” At first I was embarrassed, but then I decided that may be the best hour that anyone gets out of me until Saturday. Unfortunately I’m doing a lot of bluffing because I haven’t seen an episode in well over ten years, but the bluffing is a necessary evil considering my office has pretty much agreed that we will celebrate 90210 in some form. If you all have suggestions, let them rip. Car bombings have been nixed and amazingly, Nat from the Peach Pit is already booked. To the draft….

I don’t feel that today is the day for harsh criticism. Each of our squads has its weaknesses, but here is what I like about the teams:

Scott – best core of running backs complemented by what I rated as the fourth best receiving corps (with room to go up due to high ceilings for Megatron and Floyd) and an elite tight end. Having Bush/Moreno as his flex play is pretty damn scary.

Jason – My receivers are an obvious weakness, but I like having elite guys at QB and TE, and a solid group of RBs that becomes extremely dangerous if Stewart starts getting more touches.

Steve – The Moss-Brady combo pretty much means that in the weeks where Moss gets 2+ TDs, Steve wins. That’s a nice thing to have going on. He also surrounded MJD with dependable, although not flashy RBs. He just needs 8 to 12 out of his non-MJD backs anyway.

Everett – Brings Schaub back for another go, and picks up McCoy as a strong flex back. I like Boldin and Bowe as receivers. Bowe seems primed for a bounce back year. Celek stands to gain a ton of yards, and Winslow falls into that category of “someone has to do something for that offense.”

Brandon – Ronnie Brown is Frank Gore light. He’s going to get hurt, but he’ll be dynamite for the weeks he plays. Steven Jackson, DeAngelo, and Brown all have their warts, but those are three really solid backs, and Mike Bell could be a high upside guy depending on how things shake out in Philly. Seriously, Brandon, this luscious pompadour? Yeah, Bironas’s sister-in-law cuts it. She has had exclusive rights to my haircutting duties privileges since 2000. That’s two years in a row that you’ve decided to take Bironas. Is this a personal thing? You’re making things between us awkward. I was so stunned I didn’t even draft a kicker. How about next year I draft Westbrook and Scott Rolen?

Taylor – No weaknesses on Taylor’s squad, which means he can pick up the best players available off the waiver wire without regard to strengthening a specific position. Jennings and Steve Smith could easily combine for 2,500 yards. Even if they don’t get a ton of touchdowns, A-Rod will. Manchild secures the TE spot.

Ben – Depending on the Vincent Jackson situation, potentially the strongest group of receivers. Talent and depth at QB, so in case Manning drops off a bit, he has Kolb to slide into place. Kolb was also a good defensive move because it makes either Scott, Tyler, or Jim’s team weaker going into Week 1. The Jahvid Best pick had Bill Raftery yelling “onions!” Yeah, Bill Raftery watched our draft, he was at my house. He passed out from too much High Life (or boredom) in the sixth round, though, and agreed that we really need to draft in person in the future.

John – Romo may put up insane numbers this year. Grant and Forte are a nice top two at RB, and McGahee and McFadden figure to be the top two time-share RBs of Irish descent. Reggie Wayne and DeSean Jackson look awfully nice at receiver, and Meachem and Sidney Rice could pay dividends down the road. Witten gets you points every week, and normally that’s all you want from a tight end.

Tyler – really like the core of Charles, Greene, and Pierre Thomas. LT and Felix Jones provide polar opposites off the bench, which I think is a good thing. The Steve Smith curse…heavy lies the crown. However, Miles Austin, Sims-Walker, and Johnny Knox provide stability and potential upside with the WRs.

Jim – Cutler potentially has a great season, and Young’s legs ensure that he gets decent numbers on most weeks. I actually think people have been too down on Portis, and being able to flex him into the lineup with Beanie and Benson makes Jimmy’s backfield more than serviceable. I think he has the best receivers, with Andre Johnson and Brandon Marshall being likely studs, and Ochocinco being a guy that should always get at least 50 yards.

It really looks like everyone did a nice job. Way to go, friends!

Brandon's Computer

Seriously, guys. We need to get Brandon another computer. I'm afraid this one won't make it through the season.

Last Night's Draft

I just wanted to tell you guys how truly unmemorable last night's draft was. Aside from all the Gmail malfunctions, I'd say we can all agree that we should try to avoid drafting online at all costs in the future. We set the bar high last year in Jason't man cave with beer, comraderie, and food. Now we need to maintain that level for years to come so that our league's reputation will not be tarnished.

While attempting to log on and off and on and off again to get my group chat working, I began to daydream about how much more fun it would have been live...


Ben - your heartwarming "I like that pick a lot" phrase would have been enjoyed a lot more in person.

Taylor - your impatience and pure evil would have made you even more of an enemy had we seen it live.

Scott - your draft board software would have been much more appreciated if we had seen it and been able to choose our theme songs (this would have brought so much joy to my face since I would probably choose a Chromeo song or Boyz II Men's "Motownphilly").

Jason - I would have loved seeing you covered in baby piss while drinking High Life from a champagne glass...its sort of a fetish of mine.

Everett - don't you think those hearts would have meant more had you been able to give them out in person?

Jimmy - I can see you now: drafting your team wearing your Kirk Herbstreit jersey, yelling Who Dey after every pick, playing "We Don't Give a Damn for the Whole State of Michigan" as your theme song, wearing a pair of Cincinnati Bengals zubaz pants, all while eating a Skyline 4-way.

John - Jesus, you take forever on picks and take people that have already been selected...but I think I would find this humorous and likable in person rather than how pissed off it makes everyone (esp. Taylor) while voting online.

Tyler - I think next year when we have our live draft I will offer to give you any player on my roster if you can still do 100 push-ups to "In Da Club" by 50 Cent.

Steve - I wish I could see your face when you thought of all the points that could be put up through the Brady-Moss connection...I'm sure you were as giddy as a schoolgirl.


In closing, I want to reiterate that I thoroughly enjoy this great league because it is something I like doing, but also because I get to see all my good buddies that I don't see very often (yes Scott and Everett, we haven't known each other very long, but if you're good enough for Taylor and Jason, you're damn good enough for me).

I hope I never have to go through last night alone again...(tear).

Killing Horizon

I am creating the draft board and thought it time to officially change my name. I have a soft spot for scientific names, and this one sounds cool in addition to being a mathematical concept. The other names I was considering (antimatter annihilation and spinodal decomposition) are longer than 20 characters.

Killing horizon sounds like it involves killing, and it does, Wilhelm Killing to be precise. A Killing horizon is a null hypersurface on which there is a null Killing vector field. I am using it to refer specifically to a black hole's Killing horizon.

What is interesting about a Killing horizon is that it coincides with a black hole's Event Horizon which isn't just a terrible movie. An event horizon (which is a type of Killing Horizon) is the effective edge of a black hole. If you find yourself staring at a Killing horizon, you will see only darkness (much like when you see yourself staring at a matchup with Killing horizon this season). When you reach the killing horizon, you're doomed. You will basically turn into pure energy as you accelerate to the center of the black hole.

Nothing can escape from inside a Killing horizon.

Hemingway, Eichmann, Stranger in a Strange Land,
Dylan, Berlin, Bay of Pigs invasion

Lawrence of Arabia, British Beatlemania
Ole Miss, John Glenn, Liston beats Patterson

Pope Paul, Malcolm X, British Politician sex
J.F.K. blown away...WHAT ELSE DO I HAVE TO SAY!!

I Don't Know Why But I Feel Like Today Is Gonna Be A Great Day!!

If I was George Costanza, I would stop after the title and picture and go out on a high note, but today I don’t know any better. The aforementioned title and picture provide a microwindow into my state of being for the next ten or so days. After last year’s live draft, beautiful weather, football, food, and drinks, this year’s party has a lot to live up to. The festivities actually went so well last year that until recently I pretty much forgot that shortly after the draft, my house’s water supply mysteriously cut out for about two hours. That would have ruined most good social events, but it barely affected our jovial get together. I really appreciate Neptune’s efforts to get everyone in a great mindset for the post-draft party, and I’m definitely on-board with preparing multiple batches of margaritas. A few notes:

· UK and UofL play early Saturday afternoon. Most of us will want to watch at least part of that game, so plan accordingly to ensure that you will be able to get to Louisville in time for kickoff. For the western Kentucky folks, you may even want to check your route and make sure you won’t have to deal with stadium traffic depending on when you’ll be arriving to town. I haven’t checked the remaining slate for football games, but there should be a ton of great action to check out after the Cats and Cards.

· Because the draft will already be complete, I am planning on starting the day out at my family’s farm. We’ll set up out there for swimming, football, snacks, corn hole, etc. The tentative weather forecast looks good, and hopefully we’re treated to another glorious Labor Day weekend full of outdoor activities. Mandy began preparing her grocery list last night, and we’re accepting any and all suggestions, even from Ben.

· We’re going to play things by ear for the early part of the evening. My guess is that after a few hours of adrenaline-loaded excitement we may need to dial it down a notch or two and get ready for the evening. Or, if Brandon remotely inspires us, we may concur that the “night is young” and keep that pedal to the metal. I’m thinking at some point, we’ll head to my place and either cook out or order a butt load of pizzas. Papa John’s has been running a special on their butt load of pizza deal, so that may be the choice.

· We’ll leave the evening options open-ended. As great as last year was, we kind of faded into the night, so let’s try to pace ourselves better, and not settle for falling asleep while playing Trivial Pursuit or Scene It. There are a couple of watering holes nearby, or we can just pop in a movie/play Rock Band/start a fight club.

· We are an elite, but not exclusive, fantasy football league. Significant others and good friends are welcome to attend. Just disclose in advance that there will be an embarrassing amount of fantasy football talk…they deserve to know that. I think a couple of Mandy’s friends from high school are going to come over, and I may invite some ringers for sod field football (I actually already tried, but he’s going to be out of town).

· We should be able to accommodate just about anyone who wants to spend the night.
· I think we’ll tentatively plan on tipping off around noon or so, but I’m just throwing that out there to give a guidepost. If anyone wants to come earlier, that’s great, just keep me updated on your plans. For everyone coming later, we’ll be excited to see you when you arrive.

· I’ll e-mail directions to the farm in the coming days

· The party will be a week after the draft, so we’ll all be a little settled down from the draft high. Come ready with trade proposals. I love the idea of all of us sitting at a table in a dimly lit room, orchestrating gentlemen’s trades with handshake agreements.

· Taking it a step further than trades, let’s try to put something at stake. A couple of years ago I bet Ben a gallon of Horchata that Vernon Davis would outpoint Alge Crumpler. Even though I won, this was a horrible bet. Vernon finished with like 50 points on the season. Pathetic. But the wager was still fun. We keep money out of this, because we’re not material like that, so think of some wagers you could bring to the table. Somebody needs to finish the season with a mustache or shaved head.

As a parting note, I spoke to Everett recently, and he informed me that his other league changed the format to add a QB/WR/RB/TE flex. There was no vote. A bloodthirsty commissioner simply made the call and subjected the rest of the league to his preferences. That served as a touching reminder that we’re doing something great—nay, transcendental—by participating in this league. When we spill our blood defending our fantasy football ideals and refuse to make changes without giving each man an opportunity to be heard, well, that’s a privilege that I imagine we all take for granted. I respect each of you more than you’ll ever know, and I’m proud to share this foxhole fantasy football league with you. (In my mind, there was an air force fly by at the end of this paragraph)

Bring the input, if this party doesn’t rock, Tyler will go ham on all of you.

Rice out

In case you missed it, Sidney Rice is out for at least half of the season after undergoing hip surgery on Monday. I have to think the timing of the surgery has a lot to do with his displeasure with his contract. Does anyone think Javon Walker has anything left? I would say Harvin gets a real boost, but I am still worried about his headaches. Let's just say that I doubt the Vikes will be as good this year. Let's hope they lean more on the run.

Gentlemen's Game Season Four

As the pirate gentlemen enter our fourth season, I'm tickled with excitement over the upcoming draft and party at Montana's house. I'm not sure what Montana and Mrs. Montana have planned, but I thought I would start a post in which we could discuss these two events.

The Draft: August 29th, at 7pm eastern.

Not a lot to discuss, here. However, I am willing to host anyone willing to be in the Lexington for the draft. I can provide internet and snacks and drinks. No pressure, but if anyone is around and would like to draft in person with another person, swing by.

Labor Day Weekend: Montana's place of residence, his call.

Besides the usual drinking, discussing fantasy football, and Tyler falling asleep, this is Montana's show to run. He throws a cold ass party. But I wanted to provide some suggestions for activities and supplies to bring.

Supplies -
Beer
Dips (guacomole, bean, cheese, salsa)
Chips (blue corn, yellow corn, doritos)
Tequila (thinking margaritas could be fun, see below)
Football (I got this)
Dates (most of you should have this covered, I need to get on it)
Swimming Trunks (just in case)

Activities -
Football
Swimming
Something to Get Jameson Sax and Mrs. Rone drunk (margaritas, or another drink that is sweet)


That's all I can think of at the moment. Use the comments to further this topic.

Let the mocking begin...

In draft order, I will give you the player:keepers:picks lost.

Scott: Peterson and Turner: 1st and 2nd
Jason: Brees and Mendenhall: 2nd and 3rd
Steve: Jones-Drew and Moss: 1st and 2nd
Everett: Chris Johnson and Gore: 1st and 2nd
Brandon: S. Jackson and Rivers: 2nd and 5th
Taylor: Rice and Rodgers: 1st and 2nd
Ben: Fitzgerald and Manning: 3rd and 4th
John: D. Jackson and Romo: 3rd and 4th
Tyler: Greene and Austin: 1st and 3rd
Jimmy: A. Johnson and Wells: 1st and 3rd

I must say that I am impressed overall with the value of these keepers relative to the picks lost.

Keeper Cost (Final)

The end is here. Sorry, Tyler. After reading this, please read Jason's post and comments.

Round 1:
1. Chris Johnson
2. Adrian Peterson
3. Maurice Jones-Drew
4. Ray Rice
5. Michael Turner
6. Frank Gore
7. Andre Johnson
8. Ryan Mathews
9. Shonn Greene
10. Randy Moss

Round 2:
11. Rashard Mendenhall
12. DeAngelo Williams
13. Reggie Wayne
14. Calvin Johnson
15. Steven Jackson
16. Drew Brees
17. Aaron Rodgers
18. Brandon Marshall
19. Ryan Grant
20. Roddy White

Round 3:
21. Peyton Manning
22. Pierre Thomas
23. Cedric Benson
24. Miles Austin
25. Larry Fitzgerald
26. Jahvid Best
27. Tony Romo
28. Beanie Wells
29. Jamaal Charles
30. DeSean Jackson

Round 4:
31. Greg Jennings
32. LeSean McCoy
33. Jonathan Stewart
34. Matt Schaub
35. Steve Smith (Car)
36. Marques Colston
37. Ronnie Brown
38. Tom Brady
39. Anquan Boldin
40. Steve Smith (NYG)

For Brandon, Rivers is 49, 5th round pick.

Where We Stand

We had a little drama on the blog yesterday, but the most important development was that we came to an agreement that the Yahoo rankings as of noon ET today will be the standard for determining which rounds you sacrifice to maintain rights to your keeper picks. Please submit your keeper selections to Scott by Sunday evening.

New Business: A couple of issues to continue stoking our flames of creativity and contention. Any proposed scoring changes? With the exception of kickers getting too many points, I felt like we got things pretty well squared away last year. John suggested points for return yardage, so that’s something to consider. Personally, I am opposed to that policy. Apparently, when you add return yards into the equation, guys like Percy Harvin and Johnny Knox become top-ten receivers. Sort of a game changer, but as always, I will defer to the preferences of the masses.

Second, if Tyler takes the Christian County basketball team out for a team bonding experience tonight do you think they’ll go to see Lottery Ticket or go to see Lottery Ticket?

Harvin's migraines

Gents,
I am sure you have heard about Harvin's migraines before. It just so happened that the most recent one occurred during practice and required hospitalization. Migraines actually worsen with age, and it appears this trend is holding true in Harvin's case. Triggers can be exercise and stress, two things that seem to be a normal part of his life right now. What impact do you think this has on his draft stock? Frankly, I am pretty concerned about him. The guy is one hell of an athlete, but seeing as how these things can strike without warning and are debilitating, it's a risk. That said, if he's still there in the 10th, I'm taking him.

About the Trophy

Gentlemen,

I don't know about you blokes, but our league's history is very important to me. I plan on passing this down to my children and then on to my children's children. I suspect that many of you feel the same way.

Unfortunately, our league's history is contested to some extent. You see, we are entering our fourth year as a league of gentlemen. And yet, there appears to be some disagreement as to past champions. Let me break it down for you.

We all know Scott won last year's championship in convincing fashion. Jason picked up the win the year before that. But what about the year before that - our first year? The team that was assigned to Taylor won the championship. But Taylor and Scott were co-managers that year. The league did not approve this arrangement. Then again, no one protested. Scott was listed as the co-manager officially on the yahoo team page.

Scott built a trophy and wrote his own name along with Taylor's on the championship football. So, when the trophy was created, the champions were Year 1: Taylor/Scott and Year 2: Jason.

I was not present for what happened next, but, regardless of why it happened, Taylor removed Scott's name from the football. I will leave it to someone who was actually there to explain the circumstances. Regardless, our league's history was changed on that day.

The question I present to the esteemed gentlmen of this league is the following-

What is the appropriate championship count:

Option 1-

Year 1: Taylor/Scott
Year 2: Jason
Year 3: Scott

This count would mean Scott has 1.5 championships, Jason has 1 championship, and Taylor has 0.5 or half of a championship.

(I guess it could also be viewed as 2 for Scott, 1 for Jason, and 1 for Taylor, but I'm not sure how that makes sense. There have only been three championships. Still, I thought I'd throw that out there.)

Option 2-

Year 1: Taylor
Year 2: Jason
Year 3: Scott

This would leave the three past champions at one apiece.

This is probably not the most important issue, but I think we need to resolve it sooner rather than later. And I'm not even sure how a vote would work. Do we need 6votes to decide something. There's really no precedent for this.

I guess we should open this up for comments and debate.

Also, please don't forget to vote on Scott's post concerning yahoo rankings and keeper deadlines.

Deadline

Let's leave the bickering to the other deadline post. Is it acceptable to everyone to have the rankings considered final by noon ET tomorrow? Also, can we announce keepers on Sunday (say 7PM ET) on the blog? If you all want to email me the keepers again, I'm fine with that. You all know who I'm keeping so I won't be at any advantage from knowing who you're keeping.

Trophy name

I am going to start calling the trophy Cecilia.

Cecilia, you're breaking my heart
You're shaking my confidence daily
Oh, Cecilia, I'm down on my knees
I'm begging you please to come home
Come on home

Rodgers' Pass

Make sure you check out Jason's post below because I did not mean to push him down this soon after a post. However, I wanted all of you to see this:

http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=5473874&categoryid=2378529

If there is a lockout next year, can I keep the trophy just based on this video?

Deadline

I don't think we've officially discussed this matter. This is more the Commissioner's place, but I wanted to see what everyone thinks about declaring our keepers. I move that we submit keepers this Sunday. We can do it by whatever means. Last year we all just e-mailed them to Scott because he was happy to disclose his obvious selections in advance. If anyone else feels similarly (and I think we all know that Ben will keep Peyton and Pierre even if he has to give up his first and second round picks to do so) please step forward. Or we can use a different system.

As a secondary issue, I would like it if we can set the deadline for Yahoo to update the rankings and give everyone a couple of days to look into last minute trades. If we go by Yahoo's rankings as of noon on Friday, for example, everyone would know what players would cost when they announce keepers. That would make it easier to determine how much the tweeners: Manning, Fitzgerald, Greene, DeAngelo, etc., will be worth if someone wants to make a move for such a player over the weekend. In a nutshell, I propose that we announce keepers on Sunday, August 22, and the value of those keepers will be based upon Yahoo's rankings as of noon eastern time Friday, August 20. I didn't consult a calendar, so I hope those days are correct. What say you?

Bored Notes

49ers sign Brian Westbrook: With the retirement of 23-year old Glen Coffee, the 49ers have signed Brian Westbrook to backup the heavily used Frank Gore. This isn't a surprising move, but certainly makes Westbrook a necessary handcuff for any Gore owner. If Westbrook proves to be in playing shape this preseason, look for him to be involved in the screen game a little bit. Westbrook will see the field as he provides a quality veteran who can pick up a blitz on third down.

Bills lose Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch to injury: This almost certainly means CJ Spiller will get the bulk of the carries in Week 1. This is a great opportunity for Spiller and increases his fantasy value because any upside he has is closer to being realized. The Bills still suck, but remember that Jackson ran for over 1,000 yards last season. Spiller is a much more explosive and creative of a runner and should be able to duplicate or exceed Jackson's numbers from last year if given the carries.

Favre likely to play: I would still stay away from Favre as a starter in any fantasy draft, but the news does solidify Sidney Rice as a WR 1 and Schiancoe as a starter at tight end. If Harvin is healthy (migraines) his stock improves as well.

Jamaal Charles has nice preseason debut: Anyone worried about Charles apparent demotion to the second team, continue to slightly worry, but don't let it make you back off Charles too much. Thomas Jones ran behind the best offensive line in football last year and had a remarkable year. The Chiefs have an average offensive line. Charles produced as the second best RB for the second half of the year last year behind that offensive line. He averaged 9 yds a carry in his preseason debut behind that line. Charles will produce this year, although Jones will get most of the goalline work.

Another year of emerging WR's: From early preseason indications, it looks as if a new group of WR's will emerge as star fantasy players this year. Mike Williams of Seattle, Mike Williams of Tampa Bay, Victor Cruz of the Giants, Jordan Shipley of Cincinatti, Devin Aromashodu of Chicago, and Legedu Naanee of San Diego have all looked every solid in the preseason thus far, and all have reliable quarterbacks who will can get them the ball. I see Naanee becoming the deep threat for the Chargers in the abscence of Vincent Jackson. Shipley, Cruz, and Aromashodu are emerging as reliable slot receivers in what should be pass heavy offenses (maybe not Cincy). Both Mike Williams have the talent and lack of competition to become the most targeted top receivers on both teams.

Favre Coming Back

Allegedly, Favre is on a plane to MN right now. Good news for Vikes.

Preseason

Has anyone else been watching the preseason games? If so, I'd like to start a discussion about standouts/impressions. I've watched relevant parts of every game so far (thank you DVR and NFL Network). A few players I have been impressed with so far are Mike Turner, Ronnie Brown, Jordan Shipley, CJ Spiller, Marshawn Lynch, Jermaine Gresham, Justin Forsett, DeSean Jackson, Ben Tate, and Ryan Mathews. I was also impressed by the Bronco's offense, but since I expected it to be absolutely terrible, this might not be saying much. Some defenses have impressed me/looked better than I thought they would, but this might be more a function of the offenses getting the rust off.

It is very difficult to gauge a player's value from stat lines and play-by-plays. For one, you don't know if they performed well with 1st team offense against 2nd team D, as was the case when Detroit scored against Pittsburgh. Also, it especially helps to see them at game speed.

DeSean Jackson just plays on another level. I would have to say he looks like the quickest player in the NFL. He looks faster than last year. He may not be the absolute fastest straight-line runner, but he is incredibly quick. He is the perfect player for the Andy Reid system.

Mathews is a stud. Whoever drafts him, Jason, will have a keeper for a few years. He's fast and powerful and even looked like he knew what he was doing on his first plays. San Diego might not miss V-Jax too much after all. When Rivers was in, they picked Chicago's first team defense to pieces.

Spiller and Lynch both looked more explosive than Fred Jackson in limited action. Too bad Jackson and Lynch will both be sidelined for awhile. This has to improve Spiller's stock though.

Turner is back. He basically had four carries right up the middle for 29 yards. In addition, he caught what I think is his first reception ever. If Atlanta's as good as I think they will be this year, I think Mike could top his '08 production, and you're all going down.

Ronnie Brown definitely looked like the best back in Miami. If it weren't for his horrendously difficult schedule, Ricky Williams handcuff, and propensity for landing on IR, he'd be a top-10 back.

Shipley and Gresham make one hell of a difference for the Bengals. For one, Carson clearly trusted both of them. Also, they demand attention. Gresham was consistently drawing double coverage, opening things up for everyone else, especially Shipley coming across underneath.

Forsett is the best back in Seattle without question. It still appears that Julius "Stuffed at the line of Scrimmage" Jones is going to receive a significant amount of carries though. It's a shame. It's also a shame that Whitehurst isn't going to start. He's the best QB they have right now.

And finally, Ben Tate. Unfortunately, the lad's season already appears to be over. He looked good for about 5 snaps. He was clearly the most gifted back they had. Foster looked okay, but this is still definitely going to be an aerial assault.

New Rankings

Taylor informed me this morning that the rankings have been updated on Yahoo. This is surprising considering they did not do this last year. However, that's exactly what has happened and our bylaws state that we go by the rankings which are current as of the day we announce our keepers. That being said, the most relevant rankings with the pick it's going to cost you are outlined below:

Round 1:
1. Chris Johnson
2. Adrian Peterson
3. Maurice Jones-Drew
4. Ray Rice
5. Michael Turner
6. Frank Gore
7. Andre Johnson
8. Ryan Mathews
9. Randy Moss
10. Reggie Wayne

Round 2:
11. Shonn Greene
12. Steven Jackson
13. Rashard Mendenhall
14. Calvin Johnson
15. DeAngelo Williams
16. Aaron Rodgers
17. Drew Brees
18. Brandon Marshall
19. Roddy White
20. Larry Fitzgerald

Round 3:
21. Peyton Manning
22. Ryan Grant
23. Miles Austin
24. Cedric Benson
25. Pierre Thomas
26. Beanie Wells
27. DeSean Jackson
28. Jahvid Best
29. Tony Romo
30. Greg Jennings

Round 4:
31. Steve Smith (Car)
32. Marques Colston
33. LeSean McCoy
34. Jamaal Charles
35. Jonathan Stewart
36. Matt Schaub
37. Anquan Boldin
38. Tom Brady
39. Steve Smith (NYG)
40. Ronnie Brown

I, for one hope, the rankings keep getting updated weekly. This will add to the suspense.

No matter how long it takes, no matter how far, I will find you.

Don't Know Whatcha Got 'Til It's Gone

“Every rose has its thorn,
just like every night has its dawn.
just like every cowboy sings a sad, sad song,
every rose has its thorn.
Yeah it does.”

-Bret Michaels

I hope you like the picture. My mom made me do seven takes until she felt like we captured the raw emotion that has tormented me.

If I’m quoting lines from Poison, then you KNOW it’s fantasy football season. Look, fellas, I’m going to just lay it on the line: it’s been hard as hell knowing that I don’t get to keep that trophy in my basement. I show it to everyone who descends into my man cave, and to be honest, I don’t have anything cool to put in its place once it’s gone, which means it will be replaced by a Longeberger basket. Don’t know what a Longeberger basket is? That’s okay, once you get married and move into a house bursting with throw pillows, candles, and baskets, you’ll get the joke.

The worst part is that I can’t even really enjoy it anymore. I know that it should be with Scott, so every time I look at its beautiful silver (pewter?) finish, I feel that it’s making a cuckold of me. After drafting like a dickhead, I did everything I could to win back its favor, and The Seaward surged magnificently down the stretch. Unfortunately, Taylor bested me in what is obviously destined to be an annual postseason showdown. He is Magic to my Bird (he’s Magic because he owns a flat-billed cap, I’m just Bird by default, I think). All I can do is hope that when I let the trophy go, if it really loves me, it will come back to me. I've probably offended some of you with my uncharacteristically cold comments in the last couple of days. Go ahead, try to stay mad at me, I've also got a boatload of pictures with puppies and a cute baby. Just a warning shot:

Clarity Post

At this point this is how the league's shaping up:

1. Managers lose the pick in the round each of their keepers are projected to be drafted according to the most recent to the draft Yahoo Player Rankings.

2. 16 players on a team, same scoring system as last year.

3. Online Draft August 29th at 7 p.m.

4. 6-team playoff (what weeks?)

5. Is there a consolation bracket this year?

I'm gonna ask you once more, and I'm gonna ask you nice. Where the fuck is Ringo, you bitch?

Kickers Stay

I appreciate Jason's motion to get rid of kickers and glad that we have now settled an issue that has been discussed in our fantasy circle for sometime. Based on our vote, we will have kickers this season. We will only be carrying 16 players on our rosters.

Ben, John, Steve, Tyler and Brandon (changed vote) all voted to keep kickers

Jason, Taylor, Scott, Everett and Jim all voted get rid of kickers

No majority means we keep kickers.

Rule Change Vote

Brothers,

It appears we've touched on an issue, but not yet voted on it. I'll attempt to articulate the potential amendments as objectively as possible. Last year, each team was entitled to a 17-person roster, which provided ample room to store depth, and, in my opinion, made the waiver selections notably less than desirable. I propose that we reduce the rosters by one spot. I also move that we eliminate kickers from our scoring system. Kickers have become a disease-riddled scourge of our league. They are hated by all, without exception. Most belong in prison, and none should ever date any of our sisters. Now, if we rid ourselves of kickers, that would effectively reduce the rosters to fifteen spots. So, under the first proposal, we'll have 16 guys if kickers are in, and 15 guys if kickers are out. Please vote accordingly. Thank you.

1. Reduce rosters by one spot
2. Remove kickers from scoring system

Sports Guy's Take on Fantasy...

I understand that the season hasn't started yet, but I am going to go ahead and provide one of many links I am accustomed to providing on the blog each season. This one links to a good article I recently read on ESPN.

I'm sure all of us either read or have read at some point a piece by Bill Simmons. He wrote a pretty good article talking about what changes/suggestions he would make for fantasy football. Enjoy...

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/100806

On a side note, have we decided when we need to claim who our keepers are going to be?

Who I Most Want to Play in the Championship

With all due respect to each of you, and remember I'm saying with all due respect to each of you, I will be in the championship game next year and there's not a damn thing any of you can do about it. In the first two years of our league's existence, I had one of the top two teams and made the championship game both years. Last year I had maybe the fourth best team, but I still made the championship. By any employment of mathematical statistical thing, I will be in the championship again this year. The only question will be - who will be there with me?

Here is who I would like to see from the most to the least:

1) Cpt. Winston Montana: Nothing I remember better than Packers/Bears, Week 16, Championship game, Mason Crosby's field goal blocked. As humbly as I can state this, the Gods stop what they are doing in order to watch Montana's and my games.

2) Commissioner Haystacks Calhoun: He talks a lot. I'd love the opportunity to shut him up on the big stage.

3) Luigi Piccolo: Chances are he doesn't realize he's in the Championship and forgets to put the correct lineup in. Easy win.

4) Woodrow: Ultra-competitive, lots of trash-talking, would be a fun week leading up to Sunday.

5) Digital Doppelgaenger: Revenge from last year, lots of trash-talking, but ultimately it's like beating your own child in something really bad. He is my protege, he has modeled his game after my own, so in some ways its like beating myself. Now, I think I'm smart enough to figure out how to beat myself, but it's not as enjoyable, because I still lose.

6) Dr. Martin van Nostrin: Our rivalry is well documented, which would provide for some good pregame interviews with the media, but ultimately, he never brings it in the playoffs. The games with the Doctor are much more entertaining during the regular season.

7) El Granuja: He was robbed of a championship last year, so I'd love to see him get another shot. However, there's not a lot of fantasy history between the two of us, and although it would be pitting two great teams on paper against one another, I think ultimately it would the interest of the league would be low.

8) Steven: Teams become increasingly dangerous later in the year, although dissapointed in the playoffs last year. Will have a new baby at this time of the year, and I do not want to lose to someone who will be that busy, while I spend three or four hours a day thinking about fantasy. It would be a smudge upon my legacy, can't have that.

9) Admiral Jameson Sax: He would consider it a victory to just make the championship. It's a lose-lose situation for me.

My Favorite Team

In order, from who I most want to win the gentlemen's title this year to who I least want to win it all:

1) Admiral Jameson Sax: I highly doubt it, unfortunately.

2) Luigi Piccolo: He stood up for those of us on the outside looking in last year when the 2nd place tournament got cancelled.

3) Dr. Martin van Nostrin: What's not to like about the Good Doctor, who manages to sneak into the playoffs every year?

4) Commissioner Haystacks Calhoun: Would be higher, but, since he's good at real sports, he shouldn't be good at fantasy sports.

5) Steven: I'm still perplexed by his choice to play BenJarvis Green-Ellis five weeks in a row down the stretch a couple of years back, but he is the sole representative of western Kentucky.

6) Woodrow: I hate his team names, he never participates on the blog, and he lives in Zoomtown.

7) Digital Doppelgaenger: May come as a surprise that he's not lower, but I think every league needs a villain.

8) El Granuja: Never participates on the blog, I've heard he cares more about another fantasy league, and he spends more time in Las Vegas than Wayne Newton.

9) Captain Winston Montana: Everybody loves this guy, and another championship for old faithful would just be too boring.

10) HAL 9000: Has asked me 3 times in the past month: "Who do you think I will play in the championship this year?"

No Favre

Just read that the Minneapolis Star-Tribune is reporting that Favre has begun telling teammates and team officials he will not return next year. Jay Glazer also reporting the same.

This hurts Sidney Rice, and I think Peterson a little. Any thoughts?

Also, read my previous post.

The Waiting Game: Quarterback or Tight End?

At this point in our league's history, I would consider us all to be intelligent, strategical fantasy drafters. We've all made mistakes, but in most cases those mistakes were caused by following a logical progression that just didn't pan out. With that in mind, on draft day it becomes crucial, this year more than ever, to follow each manager's previous picks and predict what positions they plan to draft between your picks.

For instance, if you have two picks separated by two managers each picking twice, it is really important to know what these guys have on their roster and what they plan to do with those four picks between your two picks. If you notice both guys have a WR1 and WR2, there is a good chance they are going running back with one of their picks. If you have two running backs left on your board at the bottom of a tier, you may want to draft RB at that spot, even though a higher ranked WR is out there and you still need a WR1, because the chances are that the WR will be there for your next pick, but not either RB.

Where I think this really comes into play is during the run on QB's and TE's. I think both positions have higher value than the guys at yahoo, espn, and most other sites. But if you are on the bottomside of the run, you are possibly in a position to wait on either QB or TE and get really great value on the position in a much later round because other manager's won't have the need at those positions. For instance, in two drafts I've been able to snag Owen Daniels in one, and Chris Cooley in the other, in much later round than anticipated.

Now, I personally think the TE class is much deeper for a ten-team league than the QB class. At TE, I have Gates and Clark ranked as my two elite guys at the position. I have Vernon Davis just outside of that elite status, followed by Witten, Celek, Gonzalez, Finley, Daniels, Shiancoe, and Zack Miller. I don't see much of a difference between the bottom seven. All seven will get targets, red-zone looks, and will play on decent teams (yes, I think the Raiders will be decent this year, 7-9). Gates and Clarke are highly featured in their offense, and are proven veterans in the league. A team with either has a clear advantage at TE. Vernon Davis burst onto the scene last year, and was a great get for Jason, but most of his production came from TD's, which are harder to duplicate than yards. I still think he's in a class above the bottom seven. Regardless, Gates averaged 10.2 fantasy points per game last year. Celek averaged 9.1, Gonzo averaged 7.7, Shiancoe averaged 7.7, and Miller (without a decent quarterback) averaged 6.6. It's not a huge dropoff in terms of production. The point is, if the TE's are drafted in the order I have them ranked, and you are on the downside and have a choice between Daniels, Shiancoe or Finley, I think you can wait until the 12rd or so to snag one.

It's a similar situation for QBs, except having a good QB is much more important for fantasy success. I have Rodgers and Brees in a class of their own. Followed by a group of Manning, Brady, Rivers, Schaub, and Romo. Then, I think there is a somewhat significant dropoff to Favre, Cutler, Kolb, E. Manning. The biggest difference I see between the top seven, and the bottom four is consistency. I think you can play the top seven against any opponent and they will have a good game of at least 15 fantasy points. I think the bottom four are capable of putting up some pretty bad games. With Favre and Cutler you get the potential for huge games, and with Kolb and E.Manning you get the potential for two guys to develop into top-notch QBs in pass-heavy offenses. The difference between QB and TE is that there is a larger group of top talent at QB, than there is at TE. What that means is that if you have the opportunity to get in that top seven, I think you have to do it. If you miss, you can play the waiting game and snag one of the bottom four in a later round. Another difference is that most people have stronger feelings about the potential production of a QB rather than a TE. So, if you are in the bottom tier of QBs, but especially feel that Kolb will make that leap this year, or that Cutler will explode with Martz calling the shots, then you can't afford to wait as long as you may be able to for a TE.

This may have descended into a ramble, but there you go - my thoughts on the waiting game with QBs and TEs.