WINONA ROUGH RYDERS 2007 DRAFT
The AcidPlanet Fantasy League (APFL) held it's 2007 draft this past Sunday night, and wouldn't ya know it, my internet connection was down, so I ended up racing over to my office so I wouldn't have to rely on Yahoo's Autodraft to fuck up my entire season before it even began...
So, biggest news first - our beloved Winona Rough Ryders won the lottery, meaning I had the #1 pick in the draft for the first time in my fantasy footballin' life, which spans about four years and six teams...If you follow professional football, I think you know who I had to pick with that coveted #1 selection...
Hold on tight, this is a rather long post...About football...and fantasy football...
Without further ado...
Round One: #1 = LaDainian Tomlinson: RB: San Diego Chargers
Big surprise. LT has been the biggest fantasy football scorer for the past two, maybe three, years. He's also been relatively unscatched and injury-free. All indications are that he will be thee #1 fantasy stud again this season. HOTCHA!
Round Two: #20 = Chad Johnson: WR: Cincinnati Bengals
Draft strategy question - Do I draft another RB (conventionally seen as the most important position in FF) with my second pick, or do I go for a WR or QB? I went with Chad Johnson, who I had pre-ranked as the #1 WR...Playing in Cincinnati's powerful offense, Johnson should put up impressive fantasy numbers all year.
Round Three: #21 = Vince Young: QB: Tennessee Titans
Oh man, this might be my first big draft mistake of the year...Ideally, Carson Palmer would have been a stellar pick here as the #2 QB in the league, and Chad Johnson's teammate in Cincinnati, but he was already gone, so I pulled the motherf*cking trigger on Vince Young, the young hotshot that some call "Vick Lite", which is 100% about his rushing prowess, and nothing to do with dogfighting...Young is, well, young, and still a bit unproven, and he's got a unremarkable supporting cast around him, so he's either gonna go big and carry his offense, or sit on my bench...Time will tell if this was a genius move on my part...
Round Four: #40 = Tony Gonzalez: TE: Kansas City Chiefs
Draft mistake #2??? Anthony Gates was long gone by this point, so Gonzalez was definitely the best TE left in the draft. Rather than snag another RB or WR, I decided it was in my best interest to grab the #2 TE, cuz after Gates and Gonzalez, the drop-off in fantasy value at the TE position is fairly substantial...
Round Five: #41 = Chicago Bears Defense
This pick garnered a couple of mocking laughs in the live chat accompanying the APFL draft, but here's the way I see it - Last season, the Bears' defense scored more fantasy points than alot of the elite running backs and wide receivers in the NFL...And if you look at this Rough Ryder team I've just drafted, the Bears' defense score more fantasy points last year than all my other players with the exception of Tomlinson...Again, my thinking was, rather than go for my #2 RB or WR, why not grab the team defense that is nearly twice as potent as any other team defense in the NFL?
Round Six: #60 = Marshawn Lynch: RB: Buffalo Bills
This pick, on the other hand, garnered a couple of kudos in the chatroom...With Willis McGahee gone to Baltimore, the rookie Lynch stands to inherit the starting RB position in Buffalo, and quite probaby have a very good inaugaral season...Again, if Lynch lives up to expectations, I'm gonna look like a genius...Fools rush in...
Round Seven: #61 = Hines Ward: WR: Pittsburgh Steelers
Another questionable pick, seeing as Ward is getting a bit old, and is becoming more of a short-yardage possession receiver, and less of a deep threat...Plus - which Roethlisburger is gonna show up at QB in Pittsburgh this season?
Round Eight: #80 = Calvin Johnson: WR: Detroit Lions
This pick might be my redemption for the Hines Ward pick...Calvin Johnson was considered the #1 rookie prospect by many so-called "experts", and when I grabbed him this late in the APFL drafts, there were gasps of surprise..."How did we miss this guy?" Hotcha!
Round Nine: #81 = DeAngelo Williams: RB: Carolina Panthers
Another pick that surprised a few people, since Williams is considered the starting back in Carolina, and he's showed plenty of talent and fantasy scoring potential last year...A very solid pick this late in the draft...
Round Ten: #100 = Julius Jones: RB: Dallas Cowboys
An emotional pick for me, rather than a logical, intellectual one...I love Julius Jones...I love Julius Jones because he reminds me of Julius Erving, my all-time favorite basketball player...I love Julius Jones because he and Donovan McNabb carried the Winona Rough Ryders to the APFL crown in 2004...I had Julius on our beloved team again in 2005, but he battled nagging injuries through half the season, and just didn't live up to his stellar rookie season...This season, he's definitely going to be platooning with Marion Barber, and my only hope is my favorite running back in the NFL returns to his fantastic and entertaining rookie form...
Round Eleven: #101 = Bernard Berrian: WR: Chicago Bears
Hmmm...Berrian is considered the #1 WR in Chicago, but QB Rex Grossman is a huge question mark, making Berrian himself a bit of a question mark...In the end, Berrian was the only remaining #1 WR on any team, so I grabbed him...Better to be the main target in Chicago than the #2 target on most other teams...
Round Twelve: #120 = Tony Romo: QB: Dallas Cowboys
Tony Romo has alot of good weapons surrounding him in Dallas, and last year he showed he could put up big fantasy numbers more often than not...Right now it looks like I'll be starting the season with Romo as my #1 QB, and not Vince Young, my third pick that will either be boom or bust...Better to trust Romo at the beginning of the season, I think...
Round Thirteen: #121 = Neil Rackers: K: Arizona
Traditionally, I select a kicker with my 13th pick every year. In this case, I bypassed Denver's Jason Elam, who I've had on the Rough Ryders in three past seasons...I don't know why I did that...Alot of folks consider the kicker irrelevant in fantasy football...I'm apathetic about it, really...
Round Fourteen: #140 = A.J. Hawk: DL: Green Bay Packers
Teams in the APFL have 14 starters, including two defensive lineman (DL) and two defensive backs (DB)...Plenty of folks consider these four positions irrelevant in fantasy football, and so they leave these four players in their lineups on their BYE weeks or when they're injured...I would estimate that my four starting defensive players account for 20 to 40 points per week...That's the difference between second and eighth place in the APFL...Anyways, I picked AJ Hawk because he might already be an All-Pro linebacker in his second NFL season, and more importantly, I always have a Green Bay Packer on every Rough Ryder roster...
Round Fifteen: #141 = Troy Polamalu: DB: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers have been my second favorite NFL team (after the Packers) since I was a boy in their heyday of the mid-1970's, so I always try to have at least one Steeler on my fantasy teams...Plus, Polamalu is one of the most exciting players in the NFL at any position, and this is the third year in a row he's played for our beloved Rough Ryders...
Round Sixteen: #160 = Lance Briggs: DL: Chicago Bears
Lance Briggs put up huge fantasy numbers for me last year, and I expect he'll do the same this year...One of the best two or three linebackers in the NFL...
Round Seventeen: #161 = Asante Samuel: DB: New England Patriots
Conventional wisdom says that DBs have alternating good and bad seasons...Last year, Asante Samuel had 10 interceptions...We'll see how this wisdom plays out, but I'm expecting good things from this young playmaker...He's a cornerstone of New England's exceptional defense.
Round Eighteen: #180 = Drew Bennett: WR: St. Louis Rams
At this point, I now have all my starting positions filled, so these last three picks are bench material...Drew Bennett is currently the #3 WR in St. Louis, but Isaac Bruce is practically ancient at this point, and Torry Holt isn't far behind, so this tall, sure-handed receiver might put up better numbers than anyone expects...Potential trade-bait, but right now, it's maybe better that he sits on my bench than start for somebody else...
Round Nineteen: #181 = Anthony Thomas: RB: Buffalo Bills
Remember my #6 pick, Marshawn Lynch, the rookie RB in Buffalo? Well, Anthony "A-Train" Thomas is ostensibly Lynch's backup, and a powerful short-yardage back who threatens to steal TDs from Lynch...Picking the real-life backup RB to one of yr starting fantasy RBs is called a "Handcuff", because if Lynch goes down to injury or bad play, Thomas is a lock for me to step in and put up comparable numbers...Not a bad pick at #19...
Round Twenty: #200 = Desmond Clark: TE: Chicago Bears
I'm a die-hard Green Bay Packer fan...Desmond Clark is the fourth Chicago Bear I picked this year...At this time I would like to apologize to the ghosts of Curly Lambeau, Vince Lombardi, and Chester Marcol. Despite the four Bears on this year's team, may you help guide our beloved Rough Ryders to another APFL crown...
Stay tuned - the season starts a mere month from now...Weekly updates to follow...Even with the #1 pick in this year's draft, I can't say with 100% confidence that LT will be quite enough to carry the Rough Ryders back to the crown...Will the mostly unproven youth of my team shock and awe my opponents?
Sure. Why not?
Hotcha!
Hank
So, biggest news first - our beloved Winona Rough Ryders won the lottery, meaning I had the #1 pick in the draft for the first time in my fantasy footballin' life, which spans about four years and six teams...If you follow professional football, I think you know who I had to pick with that coveted #1 selection...
Hold on tight, this is a rather long post...About football...and fantasy football...
Without further ado...
Round One: #1 = LaDainian Tomlinson: RB: San Diego Chargers
Big surprise. LT has been the biggest fantasy football scorer for the past two, maybe three, years. He's also been relatively unscatched and injury-free. All indications are that he will be thee #1 fantasy stud again this season. HOTCHA!
Round Two: #20 = Chad Johnson: WR: Cincinnati Bengals
Draft strategy question - Do I draft another RB (conventionally seen as the most important position in FF) with my second pick, or do I go for a WR or QB? I went with Chad Johnson, who I had pre-ranked as the #1 WR...Playing in Cincinnati's powerful offense, Johnson should put up impressive fantasy numbers all year.
Round Three: #21 = Vince Young: QB: Tennessee Titans
Oh man, this might be my first big draft mistake of the year...Ideally, Carson Palmer would have been a stellar pick here as the #2 QB in the league, and Chad Johnson's teammate in Cincinnati, but he was already gone, so I pulled the motherf*cking trigger on Vince Young, the young hotshot that some call "Vick Lite", which is 100% about his rushing prowess, and nothing to do with dogfighting...Young is, well, young, and still a bit unproven, and he's got a unremarkable supporting cast around him, so he's either gonna go big and carry his offense, or sit on my bench...Time will tell if this was a genius move on my part...
Round Four: #40 = Tony Gonzalez: TE: Kansas City Chiefs
Draft mistake #2??? Anthony Gates was long gone by this point, so Gonzalez was definitely the best TE left in the draft. Rather than snag another RB or WR, I decided it was in my best interest to grab the #2 TE, cuz after Gates and Gonzalez, the drop-off in fantasy value at the TE position is fairly substantial...
Round Five: #41 = Chicago Bears Defense
This pick garnered a couple of mocking laughs in the live chat accompanying the APFL draft, but here's the way I see it - Last season, the Bears' defense scored more fantasy points than alot of the elite running backs and wide receivers in the NFL...And if you look at this Rough Ryder team I've just drafted, the Bears' defense score more fantasy points last year than all my other players with the exception of Tomlinson...Again, my thinking was, rather than go for my #2 RB or WR, why not grab the team defense that is nearly twice as potent as any other team defense in the NFL?
Round Six: #60 = Marshawn Lynch: RB: Buffalo Bills
This pick, on the other hand, garnered a couple of kudos in the chatroom...With Willis McGahee gone to Baltimore, the rookie Lynch stands to inherit the starting RB position in Buffalo, and quite probaby have a very good inaugaral season...Again, if Lynch lives up to expectations, I'm gonna look like a genius...Fools rush in...
Round Seven: #61 = Hines Ward: WR: Pittsburgh Steelers
Another questionable pick, seeing as Ward is getting a bit old, and is becoming more of a short-yardage possession receiver, and less of a deep threat...Plus - which Roethlisburger is gonna show up at QB in Pittsburgh this season?
Round Eight: #80 = Calvin Johnson: WR: Detroit Lions
This pick might be my redemption for the Hines Ward pick...Calvin Johnson was considered the #1 rookie prospect by many so-called "experts", and when I grabbed him this late in the APFL drafts, there were gasps of surprise..."How did we miss this guy?" Hotcha!
Round Nine: #81 = DeAngelo Williams: RB: Carolina Panthers
Another pick that surprised a few people, since Williams is considered the starting back in Carolina, and he's showed plenty of talent and fantasy scoring potential last year...A very solid pick this late in the draft...
Round Ten: #100 = Julius Jones: RB: Dallas Cowboys
An emotional pick for me, rather than a logical, intellectual one...I love Julius Jones...I love Julius Jones because he reminds me of Julius Erving, my all-time favorite basketball player...I love Julius Jones because he and Donovan McNabb carried the Winona Rough Ryders to the APFL crown in 2004...I had Julius on our beloved team again in 2005, but he battled nagging injuries through half the season, and just didn't live up to his stellar rookie season...This season, he's definitely going to be platooning with Marion Barber, and my only hope is my favorite running back in the NFL returns to his fantastic and entertaining rookie form...
Round Eleven: #101 = Bernard Berrian: WR: Chicago Bears
Hmmm...Berrian is considered the #1 WR in Chicago, but QB Rex Grossman is a huge question mark, making Berrian himself a bit of a question mark...In the end, Berrian was the only remaining #1 WR on any team, so I grabbed him...Better to be the main target in Chicago than the #2 target on most other teams...
Round Twelve: #120 = Tony Romo: QB: Dallas Cowboys
Tony Romo has alot of good weapons surrounding him in Dallas, and last year he showed he could put up big fantasy numbers more often than not...Right now it looks like I'll be starting the season with Romo as my #1 QB, and not Vince Young, my third pick that will either be boom or bust...Better to trust Romo at the beginning of the season, I think...
Round Thirteen: #121 = Neil Rackers: K: Arizona
Traditionally, I select a kicker with my 13th pick every year. In this case, I bypassed Denver's Jason Elam, who I've had on the Rough Ryders in three past seasons...I don't know why I did that...Alot of folks consider the kicker irrelevant in fantasy football...I'm apathetic about it, really...
Round Fourteen: #140 = A.J. Hawk: DL: Green Bay Packers
Teams in the APFL have 14 starters, including two defensive lineman (DL) and two defensive backs (DB)...Plenty of folks consider these four positions irrelevant in fantasy football, and so they leave these four players in their lineups on their BYE weeks or when they're injured...I would estimate that my four starting defensive players account for 20 to 40 points per week...That's the difference between second and eighth place in the APFL...Anyways, I picked AJ Hawk because he might already be an All-Pro linebacker in his second NFL season, and more importantly, I always have a Green Bay Packer on every Rough Ryder roster...
Round Fifteen: #141 = Troy Polamalu: DB: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers have been my second favorite NFL team (after the Packers) since I was a boy in their heyday of the mid-1970's, so I always try to have at least one Steeler on my fantasy teams...Plus, Polamalu is one of the most exciting players in the NFL at any position, and this is the third year in a row he's played for our beloved Rough Ryders...
Round Sixteen: #160 = Lance Briggs: DL: Chicago Bears
Lance Briggs put up huge fantasy numbers for me last year, and I expect he'll do the same this year...One of the best two or three linebackers in the NFL...
Round Seventeen: #161 = Asante Samuel: DB: New England Patriots
Conventional wisdom says that DBs have alternating good and bad seasons...Last year, Asante Samuel had 10 interceptions...We'll see how this wisdom plays out, but I'm expecting good things from this young playmaker...He's a cornerstone of New England's exceptional defense.
Round Eighteen: #180 = Drew Bennett: WR: St. Louis Rams
At this point, I now have all my starting positions filled, so these last three picks are bench material...Drew Bennett is currently the #3 WR in St. Louis, but Isaac Bruce is practically ancient at this point, and Torry Holt isn't far behind, so this tall, sure-handed receiver might put up better numbers than anyone expects...Potential trade-bait, but right now, it's maybe better that he sits on my bench than start for somebody else...
Round Nineteen: #181 = Anthony Thomas: RB: Buffalo Bills
Remember my #6 pick, Marshawn Lynch, the rookie RB in Buffalo? Well, Anthony "A-Train" Thomas is ostensibly Lynch's backup, and a powerful short-yardage back who threatens to steal TDs from Lynch...Picking the real-life backup RB to one of yr starting fantasy RBs is called a "Handcuff", because if Lynch goes down to injury or bad play, Thomas is a lock for me to step in and put up comparable numbers...Not a bad pick at #19...
Round Twenty: #200 = Desmond Clark: TE: Chicago Bears
I'm a die-hard Green Bay Packer fan...Desmond Clark is the fourth Chicago Bear I picked this year...At this time I would like to apologize to the ghosts of Curly Lambeau, Vince Lombardi, and Chester Marcol. Despite the four Bears on this year's team, may you help guide our beloved Rough Ryders to another APFL crown...
Stay tuned - the season starts a mere month from now...Weekly updates to follow...Even with the #1 pick in this year's draft, I can't say with 100% confidence that LT will be quite enough to carry the Rough Ryders back to the crown...Will the mostly unproven youth of my team shock and awe my opponents?
Sure. Why not?
Hotcha!
Hank
Labels: Blather, fantasy football, Hot Poop Filler, Jock Lumpen, Rough Ryders
posted by Hank Mohaski at 11:14 PM
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