Category Archives: Drafts

Who to Draft: Tony Romo or Dez Bryant?
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My first draft of the season and I didn’t know who to take, Tony Romo or Dez Bryant. You’re probably baffled at how this is possible, but let me explain the history and the scoring system and you’ll understand the predicament. This is the 20th year of this league, I joined 7 years ago. Like fantasy football, joining the league was a little luck and a lot of skill. They already had 12 players so I was left out. One of my friends had a team, but he admitted he knew nothing about fantasy football. He just liked to gamble so that’s why had played for several years. I hated missing out on a league, so I asked if we could be co-managers. He said that didn’t make sense since again, he knew nothing of fantasy football. (I told we would draft LT first overall and he said “Who”s LT?”) That said, he decided to let me manage the team. He even paid the entire entry fee and agreed if I won, we would split the winnings. He only had two mandatory agreements. “You have to draft Sebastian Janikowski and you can’t change the team name.” “What? Why?” “Sebastian helped me make the playoffs once and his name is crazy like our team’s name: the Kookamunga Crackakillas.” Sounds like a fine deal to me. The fantasy gods rewarded my friend”s good nature. I drafted Sebass with my last pick and the Kookamunga Crackakillas went 11-5 to win the championship. We even paid the karma forward by taking some of the winnings and throwing a keg party for the league. After that, my friend rode off into the sunset as a champion and relinquished control to me. So that’s the history. Here’s how the league scoring system works that led to … Click here to continue reading…

Take It or Leave It: QB
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A departure from my normal rambling style, this series will be a few quick hits about guys that I like/dislike this year. I’m really tempted to write more but I think this is pretty self-explanatory; without further ado… Take Cam Newton (ADP 49.49, QB5): Cam Newton stunk to start the year last year, so much so that some people missed his monster second half. Projecting his last 8 games out to a full year and Cam would be at: 3934 passing yards, 26 TD, 8 INT | 788 rushing yards, 8 TD. Even in a QB friendly scoring system like NFBC, that guy right there is your 2012 #1 fantasy QB folks. And before you accuse me of projecting too much, take a look at Cam’s 2011 stats and realize that aside from the reduced turnovers, that projection is right in line with what he did TWO years ago (and he’s only getting better). Even if Newton runs the option less as is being suggested, his passing numbers should get better with the extra volume and help make up the difference. Think the risk inherent with Cam is worth giving up over 2 rounds of value at the top of the draft? I don’t. Matthew Stafford (ADP 66.90, QB7): Another 2012 disappointment, Stafford let owners down in a big way by throwing 21 less TDs in 2012 than he did in 2011. What’s there to like about Stafford, then, in 2013? The Lions throw the ball and they throw it a lot. They led the This by zydot shampoo is present in the urine for up to 80 hours. league in passing attempts in 2011 and in 2012 set the single season attempt record with 740. That isn’t a typo, that’s absurdity. While I wouldn’t expect a repeat, even 650 … Click here to continue reading…

Just ADPin' in the Draft Pool
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Any good high-stakes drafter (like you, of course) knows that preseason draft ADP (average draft position) lists are an invaluable tool while preparing for your own drafts. We at RotoSaurus use the National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) as our primary source of ADP information, mainly because their contests are both for large monetary prizes and uninfluenced by their own pre-ranking system. We have found (and it”s the same with baseball) that when fantasy owners create their own rankings and tiers, the results of those drafts are much more true to where players SHOULD actually be taken. Now, every NFFC draft is different, but their averages are much more useful in the long run than, say, Mock Draft Central, which is a site that has a preranked list of draftable players. Not that MDC isn”t another useful source of ADP info; we still use their results as well. However, you always have to take their lists grano salis. Using lists from these two sites, I would like to take a look at a few players whom I feel should be drafted a little differently than their ADP is indicating right now (whether that is up or down). As always on this site, we will look at things through our PPR lenses. Come with me on this monumental journey, won”t you? Undervalued: TEs Jimmy Graham, Saints (NFFC: 18, MDC: 22), and Jason Witten, Cowboys (NFFC: 53, MDC: 57) I am confused by how low Graham is going in PPR leagues, but Witten is downright baffling. I”ve never been a huge proponent of drafting tight ends early, but these two guys are reliable, heavily-targeted options for their QBs. Graham and Witten were targeted 135 and 150 times in 2012, respectively, and there is no reason at all to believe that these numbers will … Click here to continue reading…

Remember This Motto – “CYA on Draft Day”
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Assumptions are a part of life. Take this whole “I’m glad to be writing articles for RotoSaurus this year.” That statement alone involves two big assumptions. 1. I will enjoy writing for RotoSaurus each week. Our relationship will not end up like the gentleman from Jurassic Park who tries to hide in the bathroom. 2. You, the reader, will find just enough positives in my articles to come back each week to read some more and maybe, just maybe, re-tweet an article or post one on your Facebook wall. Those statements are assumptions because I can’t predict the future. This opportunity between RotoSaurus, you, and myself could be the best ménage a trois in history. It’s also possible this could end up like Tiger Woods, Elin Nordegren, and his SUV. Now, of course I researched RotoSaurus and invested time to make the best decision, but in the end, those are still two big assumptions. In order to not make an ass of RotoSaurus and me, I have a backup plan. I didn”t quit my day job. The same assumptions take place in fantasy football. When you draft a player, you do so based on certain hopes and aspirations. Sure you try to avoid assumptions as much as possible with thorough research (I hope). But staying healthy and repeat or improved performance is always iffy. So if you don’t want to end up in the bottom half of your league, on draft day, remember to cover your ass. Let’s look at an example from (I’ll give Bob the best credit card for faithfully presenting David’s arguments as a unified whole). one of my drafts last year. I drafted LeSean McCoy with the 8th overall pick. Now I wasn”t thinking he would replicate his 2010 numbers, but I assumed if he got … Click here to continue reading…

2013 Top 25 Players Overall
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RotoSaurus has released its first set of rankings for the 2013 season, the 2013 Top 25 Overall list. You can either click on the link or use the permanent link in casino online the main menu bar at the top of any page. Dusty, Brad, and Spectre have all completed their own separate rankings (which you can also view on that page), and then those lists have been averaged to give you the official RotoSaurus Top 25. Check back everyday as we continue to roll out more lists! … Click here to continue reading…

How Not To Get Screwed When Drafting
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I know this happens to you. It’s in the middle rounds, you’re targeting the soon-to-be breakout player of the year. But Lamar Miller’s name is called a pick before you, leaving you to wish death upon that manager’s mother as you scramble for another RB that won’t be nearly as good. Say this with me now: “I won’t let this happen to me again.” Good, now realize that it will. There’s nothing you can do to stop it. But what you’re about to read will reduce your chances this happens by about 75%. Plus, this tool adds value to your draft and we know drafting is all about value. You win leagues because your 3rd round pick performs like a 1st rounder, your 7th round pick performs like a 2nd rounder, etc. That”s two extra ways this tool will help you. It will definitely give you an extra inch, and we know when we add up all those inches, that’s going to make the fucking difference between winning and losing! (I watch that speech from “Any Given Sunday” before my drafts) A quick history on how I developed this drafting technique. It”s from my days of playing Texas Hold ‘Em. Like poker, there are two states of a fantasy draft: when the action’s on you and when it isn”t. When it’s not the turn of good poker players, they’re studying their opponents, getting a read, and figuring out both the next moves before they happen. When it’s not the turn of bad poker players, they double check their cards and hope the flop hits their gut shot straight. Drafting in fantasy football is the same. Chumps sit and watch the best players available list, hoping their targets will fall to them each round. Champs are scouting their opponents, keeping track … Click here to continue reading…

Drafting the Position: How to Avoid Getting Blindsided at QB
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It’s not hard to end up with a handful of good players; if you don’t, you might want to consider a new hobby. Most teams will draft a roster full of several studs and some gaping holes that they try for the rest of the season to fill via waivers. While it’s possible to win like that if you play your cards right, the team that drafts a quality roster from top to bottom has a much easier path and has the luxury of using waivers to improve depth instead of fishing for starters. This comes from competent drafters that understand how they want to address each position, where they want to address it and maximizing the value that they’re getting with each pick. Let’s get the ball rolling with one of the most important positions to get right: QB. Hopefully this article gets you asking some of the questions that need to be considered during draft prep if you want to dominate. *Unless you’re in a 2 QB league because I don’t get along with that format and refuse to discuss it.* With that disclaimer out of the way, let’s roll… Know thine scoring system Comparing QB rankings from site to site is a royal pain, namely because it seems like every site has their own tweaks on how to score the position. WR/RB/TE are generally the same across the board; the only major variable being whether or not the league is PPR. QB is a whole different beast. The NFFC defaults are: 1 point per 20 passing yards, 6 per TD, -2 per INT, and the usually rushing defaults but what happens when you’re in a league that gives 4 points for TD and doesn’t care about INTs? Counts sacks as -1? 1 point per 25 passing yards? … Click here to continue reading…