Haven't done this in a couple of years. So here are my thoughts (it may take several postings):
Pimpin' Ain't Easy
Player YTD Pts Bye Drafted
Cowboys, Dallas DAL TMQB - 10 1.07
Rams, St. Louis STL TMQB - 5 4.10
Grade: A-
Strong at this position. He pretty much secures solid points from this from both TMQBs. With this being cumulative, he is pretty much guaranteed points for at least one game in the playoffs, maybe more from Dallas (if they can ever get over the hump).
Bush, Reggie NOS RB - 9 2.10
Forte, Matt CHI RB - 8 7.07
Jordan, Lamont NEP RB - 4 9.07
McGahee, Willis BAL RB - 10 3.07
Grade: B
Bush is worth a good bit, but no PPR for RBs (thank you for reminding me, David). Though you couldn't forsee it at the time, McGahee's injury is a little disconcerting, though. Forte could be a nice surprise, but it is likely that he'll split time early on with Adrian Peterson and others, and needs to separate himself from the rest of the pack in Chicago to warrant full-time status. But hey, getting him at 7.07 isn't too bad. And Jordan is a little bit of a sleeper for me. I think he'll put up some points each week, albeit not much, unless Maroney is sub-par or gets injured. Faulk will never be given the full reigns and remain a 3rd down back.
Avery, Donnie STL WR - 5 16.10
Bruce, Isaac SFO WR - 9 8.10
Carter, Drew OAK WR - 5 12.10
Galloway, Joey TBB WR - 10 6.10
Henry, Chris FA WR - - 15.07
Jackson, Darrell DEN WR - 8 11.07
Grade: D+
Eh, not exciting at all. Galloway will produce, and was nice value at 6.10. But the others will see very limited time, barring injuries. Jackson will see more than usual the first few weeks with Marshall out, but it will short-lived once he's back. Henry will have been a nice pickup, IF he's signed by Cinncy or someone. That's a big IF, and even if he is signed, he'll miss the first four games.
Miller, Heath PIT TE - 6 5.07
Pollard, Marcus NEP TE - 4 18.10
Grade: B-
I like Miller, and think he'll be a nice producer. In a league where PPR for TEs is more, he's worth a good bit. Pollard though? Eh, Watson is the starter, but Pollard may surprise us all as Brady tries to find new targets as defenses try and clamp down on Moss and others.
Brown, Josh STL PK - 5 14.10
Gramatica, Martin NOS PK - 9 17.07
Grade: B-
Brown is a nice addition. Question here is whether their offense can move the ball, and is especially questionable as long as Jackson remains out. Gramatica hasn't even won the starting spot from what I can tell, so this was risky, even if it's the 17th round.
Giants, New York NYG Def - 4 10.10
Saints, New Orleans NOS Def - 9 13.07
Grade: B-
The Giants made some changes, but lost a big part of their line when Strahan retired. The Saints have improved, but they had a lot of improving to do since last year. Still, these two should put up a fair amount of points.
Overall Grade: B- (He has a lot of potential playoff-bound players, so this could be bumped up to a B if things work out)
CalBearPlayer
YTD Pts Bye Drafted
Dolphins, Miami MIA TMQB - 4 16.06
Titans, Tennessee TEN TMQB - 6 8.06
Grade: D
Ouch, this one hurts. The Titans TMQB on the surface is not a great pick, but I do have to hand it to CalBear in that he got them in the 8th round, which isn't horrible. The saving grace here is that the Titans, albeit not very pretty, have a shot at the playoffs again this year with that defense, so CalBear may get a game or two extra out of the TMQB come playoff time. The Dolphins? Ugh, it doesn't matter who winds up being the starter, they have a lot of improving to do there. There will be a few decent weeks out of them though.... right?
Brown, Ronnie MIA RB - 4 5.11
Jones, Julius SEA RB - 4 7.11
Lewis, Jamal CLE RB - 5 3.11
Norwood, Jerious ATL RB - 7 10.06
Grade: C+
If Brown can stay healthy (big IF), this could maybe be upgraded to B-. Jones will be splitting time, but getting him in the mid-late 7th round isn't too shabby. Lewis, despite getting up there, was a huge reason for the Brown's success last year. I don't see any reason why this will change much. Norwood was denied the starting role when Turner was signed. But he's a powerful runner who I can definitely see getting more carries than in the past, as Turner gets used to the offense and so the Falcons can keep their new franchise RB healthy.
Bennett, Drew STL WR - 5 12.06
Branch, Deion SEA WR - 4 13.11
Driver, Donald GBP WR - 8 6.06
Ginn Jr., Ted MIA WR - 4 9.11
Johnson, Chad CIN WR - 8 2.06
Williams, Roy DET WR - 4 4.06
Grade: B
I almost gave this group a B+, but after a little thought, I took it down to a B. Driver, #85, and ROY is a very nice tandem in a league like this. All three should put up nice stats, assuming they stay healthy. Ginn and Bennett should at least put some points up here and there, although I don't have huge expectations for them. Branch could be a nice surprise, but coming off an ACL injury, I'm not too hopeful. Latest word is that Holmgren 'hopes' Branch will be ready for the season opener. But the word 'hopes' not very reassuring. The loss of Engram for awhile may accelerate his recovery though, so that could be a bright spot.
Gonzalez, Tony KCC TE - 6 1.11
Shiancoe, Vishante MIN TE - 8 14.06
Grade: A-
Gonzalez continues to defy time. He put up solid numbers overall in this type of scoring last year. I see no reason why he won't again this year. The Vikings traditionally don't use TEs too often, but I think Tarvaris Jackson will be looking to everyone to help him out. Shiancoe may be a little bit of a surprise, and a 14th round flyer could prove very valuable.
Folk, Nick DAL PK - 10 11.11
Nugent, Mike NYJ PK - 5 15.11
Grade: A
Great duo of kickers here. Folk will put up a lot of points for PATs and FGs. He and the Cowboys are almost a shoo-in for the playoffs, too. Nugent's value, along with everyone else on the Jet offense, went up when Favre was signed. He'll have more opportunities for FGs and PATs now. I don't expect playoffs out of the Jets, but he should still be a nice addition, especially for a mid-late 15th rounder.
Bengals, Cincinnati CIN Def - 8 17.11
Falcons, Atlanta ATL Def - 7 18.06
Grade: D-
Obviously this was not a concern, being the last two picks for CalBear. Neither will put up many points. But hey, the sun's gotta shine on a dog's... nevermind.
Overall Grade: C+ (which could be a B- if certain players step it up and prove me wrong).
Biabreakable
Player YTD Pts Bye Drafted
Chargers, San Diego SDC TMQB - 9 6.02
Lions, Detroit DET TMQB - 4 8.02
Grade: B-
This could be ranked a little higher, if Rivers hadn't been hurt late in the season (and the extent and type of injury). But do keep in mind that this is TMQB, and not just Rivers, so points will still be accrued if Rivers goes down again/is ineffective. Detroit is a mess (trust me, I'm a Lions fan, and it doesn't pain anyone more than me). But Kitna is still good for 3500+ yards and probably around 20-ish TDs. They of course won't make the playoffs, but hey, that's not bad for a #2 TMQB and getting them in the 8th round!
Bradshaw, Ahmad NYG RB - 4 10.02
Jackson, Brandon GBP RB - 8 12.02
Jacobs, Brandon NYG RB - 4 4.02
Perry, Chris CIN RB - 8 11.15
Young, Selvin DEN RB - 8 5.15
Grade: B
Not the most amazing collection of backs, but hey, I like it! Bradshaw served his first 30-day sentence and dodged a suspension from the league. He still has another looming, but I wouldn't expect it to affect his 2008 season. Jackson could be the steal of this group. I think he's looked sharp so far in preseason, and if Grant gets injured/looks like a fluke, I could see Jackson being plugged in quickly and never looking back. Jacobs and Young look like a nice duo, and getting them in the 4th and 5th rounds was nice value. Perry has looked well, so far, and if he can stay healthy, he'll get some nice playing time here and there. Especially if Rudi Johnson goes down again/is ineffective.
Bryant, Antonio TBB WR - 10 18.02
Clayton, Mark BAL WR - 10 9.15
Fitzgerald, Larry ARI WR - 7 2.02
Johnson, Calvin DET WR - 4 3.15
McCareins, Justin TEN WR - 6 17.15
Grade: B-
Eh, I really wanted to grade this higher, as I love Fitz and Calvin. Those two should put up very nice numbers. But after them you have Clayton, whom I like, but is stuck on a craptastic offense, McCareins, who is also on a sub-par offense, and Bryant, who is buried on the depth chart in TB (not a promising thing, either). I guess the promising thing here is that the last two WRs were taken in the last two rounds, so anything out of them is huge.
Gates, Antonio SDC TE - 9 1.15
McMichael, Randy STL TE - 5 7.15
Grade: A-
If Gates comes back strong and healthy, and if McMichael can bounce back, this could be a nice duo. McMichael was a little bit of a stretch in the 7th round, and Gates could prove to be risky at 1.15. But hey, it's worth a shot, eh?
Longwell, Ryan MIN PK - 8 14.02
Suisham, Shaun WAS PK - 10 15.15
Grade: B
Both should be decent enough to put up consistent points. Both have the chance of making it into the playoffs, too, which is a plus.
Cardinals, Arizona ARI Def - 7 13.15
Texans, Houston HOU Def - 8 16.02
Grade: C+
Both defenses are on the rise. I wouldn't expect either to make the playoffs, though.
Overall Grade: B
Bri - Brian Moore
Player YTD Pts Bye Drafted
Bengals, Cincinnati CIN TMQB - 8 2.14
Packers, Green Bay GBP TMQB - 8 7.03
Grade: A-
Solid. Palmer should continue to put up solid numbers. Though there's a big quesiton mark looming over Green Bay with Rodgers, I think he'll produce well. I don't think he'll put up Favre-like numbers, but he's been around long enough and has enough tutelage and experience now to handle a lot of the pressure. He also has nice weapons around him, so that helps tremendously. Both teams have a chance at the playoffs, though the Bengals have a lot slimmer chance.
Johnson, Chris TEN RB - 6 6.14
Jones, Kevin CHI RB - 8 12.14
Leonard, Brian STL RB - 5 14.14
McFadden, Darren OAK RB - 5 4.14
Peterson, Adrian MIN RB - 8 1.03
Grade: B+
Yeah, that's right. I just gave a team with Peterson AND McFadden a B+. Now before you ask "WhatchutalkinboutWillis?" hear me out. Peterson will again be a monster, as long as he stays healthy. There's no question there. McFadden though, I think will produce, and do fairly well, but he has Fargas and Michael Bush there this year to take carries away from him. That, coupled with the likelihood that they will ease him into the NFL early on, means he won't put up the monster numbers many think he'll do immediately. Too many look back at what Peterson did last year and think we'll have a repeat. I simply disagree. At least this year! Johnson, Jones, and Leonard could be a decent trio, though none are starters. The nice thing here for Bri is where he got them. There could be some nice value here. If Steven Jackson holds out, Leonard will shoot up the charts, and that would be an absolute steal.
Booker, Marty CHI WR - 8 13.03
Davis, Andre' HOU WR - 8 18.14
Harrison, Marvin IND WR - 4 5.03
McDonald, Shaun DET WR - 4 15.03
Smith, Steve CAR WR - 9 3.03
Grade: C+ (with the potential of a B-)
At first glance, I like this group of receivers. However, there are a lot of question marks looming over them. Will Chicago ever break out of the passing attack funk? If so, Booker's value shoots way up. Davis I think was a nice value pick in the 18th round. Harrison is a huge question mark. I think he CAN and will bounce back, but not quite to what he once did. There's also questions about Manning's status, too, which directly affects Harrison's value, too. McDonald, I like a lot. He is in a pass-happy offense, and easily showed to be #3 material. Being picked in the 15th round was nice value. Steve Smith slipped a little, and for good reason. Missing the first two games hurts a good deal. But when he comes back, look for him to come back with a vengeance.
Fasano, Anthony MIA TE - 4 10.14
Gaines, Michael DET TE - 4 17.03
Grade: D+
Both starters. But both are on crappy teams with no shot at the playoffs. Neither team has shown much desire to pass to the TE throughout the years, either. Neither has really done a whole lot during their careers, either, though Gaines seems to have a little more potential.
Elam, Jason ATL PK - 7 16.14
Gostkowski, Stephen NEP PK - 4 11.03
Grade: A
Great choices. Both will produce a lot of points for this postion.
Cowboys, Dallas DAL Def - 10 8.14
Patriots, New England NEP Def - 4 9.03
Grade: A+
Incredible duo of defenses, I must admit. Should produce a solid amount of points nearly every week. What I would question is how early they were taken. Taking two top defenses that early in a draft? Risky!
Overall Grade: B (with the potential of a B+)
)Anyway, I actually made a pick today about an hour before my timeout, but it was from a public computer and perhaps I screwed something up... David, please substitute Michael Jenkins for Torain. Thanks.
he must really be swamped with other things
he must really be swamped with other things
