Unbiased...Unconventional...Winning
It is that time of year. No more moch drafts. No more cheat sheet analysis on your smart phone while you are supposed to be being a "productive" employee at your business. No more debates in the lunch room as to whether or not going RB RB is a must this year or you can wait and get a guy like Le'veon Bell as a RB2 later on. No more shaking your head in disbelief that guys like Matthew Berry make a good living off of our NFL Larping and is often offering up only mediocre fantasy advice. It is put up or shut up and let the drafts begin. We all want to put together the right type of talent that is going to win us our leagues. Whether it is for a trophy with a Nerf Football duck taped to it or for a $500 pay out, let us give you some basic strategy this year for your fantasy football draft.
1. Don't, don't, don't overreach. There is a large psychological factor that plays into fantasy football drafts and some guys will get drafted early because of their name, recent performance, or team, when in reality you could get the same type of player for a later round pick. Find value and see where the draft is falling. Sure this may be a generic overarching philosophy but it is one that is easy forget in the heat of the moment. Check the emotions at the door and if you pass on a hometown guy do not fret because it's not personal, just business.
(Calvin Johnson, man among boys? Yes. Best WR of our generation? Yes. Worth taking in the top 5? Probably not)
2. Past Injuries or "coming off of down years" are overrated. Don't overlook a guy just because he is "injury prone" or coming off of a "down year" or there is no exciting "buzz" about them this year. Injuries can happen to an NFL player at any given time and if for some reason a DeMarco Murray falls to an absurdly 6th round, you best be jumping on him like (insert generic jumping metaphor reference). Look at what players do when they ARE on the field and use that as a factor to help place value. A lot of teams make a lot of off season moves to help those guys coming off of down years as well (Chris Johnson).
(CJ 1.2k from last year has a much improved Off Line this year and his ADP is mid round 2 with top 10 potential)
(preseason is not reality, but it does suggest some that the last half of last year could be the norm for the former Rutgers star)
4. Points Win Games. Just like Billy Bean with scoring runs being all that matters, scoring fantasy points is all that matters. You want guys that are going to be sure things for points. If that is WR then you want targets, targets, targets and if it is a running back you want touches touches touches. For QB's you want a guy who is more likely to throw or scramble from the 4 or 5 yd line then he is to hand it off. See how the room is drafting and don't let biases creep in! I guarantee you other teams will avoid guys because they are letting their own biases take over and Darren McFadden is sitting there in round 6 or 7 with top 10 upside potential. Did I want to take Cam Newton in a recent draft? Absolutely not. I could just imagine seeing that dumb superman touchdown celebration in my nightmares as I am left out of the playoffs this year. Nonetheless, when he falls to mid-round 4 and I have two RB studs and a WR stud, I took him. Value, Value, Value.
(Elite NFL QB? No. 700+ Rush Yds and 6-ish TDs? Probably.)
5. Get talented starters first. Last but certainly not least, we all want to find that break out fantasy stud this year. Please however secure all of your starting positions with elite or close to elite talent (except Def. and K) before you go filling up your bench with back-ups. Don't be gobbling up RB's or QB's for your bench when your first 5 picks were 3 RB's, a QB and a WR. Make sure you have a solid starting line-up before you go on the hunt for a lottery ticket.
It pains me to know you picked Cam Newton, but I think you might just be right about him fantasy-wise. Thanks for the tips- just might help me beat YOU this year Mr. NatiSportsNation :)
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