Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
Footballguy
Oh ####, that's right. We DID pay to get in this league, didn't we.....:shredscheeatsheets:
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***GameBreakers*** IDP Vet Draft (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
- Start date
Gringoloco
Footballguy
At least you can't blame me for this one.I LOVE the 12+ hour breaks each day. Lets me redo my cheatsheet and add pretty colors to it.
Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
Footballguy
Trans-continental drafting suxors.... Storm, come home soon!I LOVE the 12+ hour breaks each day. Lets me redo my cheatsheet and add pretty colors to it.
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
we have a cutting edge, state of the art, gringo-matic souped up, tricked out neural net array coupled with proprietary BOOT-tron genetic algorithms, running on a hacked emulator tunnelled into the los alamos & national weather center parallel processing super computer clusters... it spits out millions of permutations of possible lineups... the lineups that survive get to "pass on their genes", mutate, evolve & recombine in ever more well fitted ways to survive, adapt & evolve further. :^)BLASPHEMY!!!!Are you telling me you don't have all your draft materials loaded into the Draft Dominator? Shame on you, FBG!
Sideline Merc
Footballguy
In other words, you have your computer hot wired to a circuit city sales person?
Gringoloco
Footballguy
England. Eagle is talking to him periodically.Where he be?Trans-continental drafting suxors.... Storm, come home soon!I LOVE the 12+ hour breaks each day. Lets me redo my cheatsheet and add pretty colors to it.
-OZ-
Footballguy
Not my fault!As for the teams, I think we have a nice balance right now. I won't say mine is the best (Aaron's very well could be) but it will do.At least you can't blame me for this one.I LOVE the 12+ hour breaks each day. Lets me redo my cheatsheet and add pretty colors to it.
QB1: Trent Green, top 5, good value pick. Older, but KC could finally sign a WR worth something.
QB2: Kyle Boller, let's see... young QB with talent, the most potential at this point (12.01) although Losman, taken just after, may be close. He did ok last year, despite Heap being out, and the total lack of a quality target for most of the season. If the front office has their way and bring in a top WR, he will do much better.
RB1: Portis, despite an off year, he has to be considered a top 5 RB for the next few, IMO great value at the 2.01
RB2: Duckett, probably a bye week filler for now, until he gets to carry the load.
WR1: Randy Moss, he falls a bit with the trade, but Oakland will utilize him and he won't fall out of the top 3.
WR2: Charles Rogers, IF he stays healthy, all the potential in the world.
WR3: Santana Moss, a little off last year, but had a nice 2003. Martin might not be the sole offense this year, and Moss is fairly young.
WR4: R. Woods - purely a potential pick of course, but he has the talent to excel. At the 11.14, he's worth the gamble.
TE1: Shockey, top 5 TE easily, especially as Eli will need to rely on him.
TE2: Ben Troupe, one of my "pet players", with Mason leaving, and not much $$$ to spend on a WR, he'll get a good share of the work next year.
DEF:
Ray Lewis - do I need to say anything?
Troy Polomalu - could be next year's Ed Reed, easily a top Safety for years to come.
I may have overemphasized youth, but each of these guys (except Rogers) has shown their talent in the NFL at least for a few games.
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Gringoloco
Footballguy
Same here. I get in eventually though.
Renegades of Funk
Footballguy
I was looking at the LB's that are coming off the board and I can't believe ***** hasn't went yet. Am I overrating him or is this surprising to others as well?EDIT TO REMOVE PLAYER NAME - AR
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Gringoloco
Footballguy
I agree that it's a bit surprising. Because the viewers here tend to often be from our draft, I do ask that you try to refrain from name dropping. Thanks.
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Bob Magaw
Footballguy
we very nearly took k-rob ((just telling gringo last nite/this morning if light came on for k-rob it could become rare possibility in draft where our WR6 could emerge as our WR1... & he is only like 24-25 despite ready to begin 5th season... he came out as redshirt soph & broke many of torry holts collegiate records in about half as many games... people are teased to this day by the massive 1,200+ yard breakout season year two in '02) with 6.10 we used on stallworth (also looked HARD at keary colbert, who we like even more with moose almost certainly pricing himself out of market for panthers purposes... for some reason he reminds me a lot of a young isaac bruce in that he is undersized but big enuf, deceptive speed, mature polished route runner, ability to cut within a double route move almost at full speed without gathering or chopping his steps... great hands, needless to say, nice to know he won't be undone by k-robs flaws... but i digress ;^).payback is a b**ch! the fantasy gods dashed us against the rocks for our earlier hubris... they always get the last laugh. :^)every draft is a space with many possible states... it is interesting how getting lefty was sort of a momentous or fateful selection for us at that juncture... from that point, things branch off in a different direction than they might have otherwise. specifically, speaking from just our perspective, it led to cascade or triggered sequence of events in which we just missed players like colbert & vilma/sean taylor/charles grant in subsequent rounds (not that i'm complaining about barnett & roy williams :^)... in this scenario, we maybe lose out onseveral players in subsequent rounds, to get that QB2 early.but in this league, we thought QB is so critically important (both bulger AND lefty missed a few games last season... & they both have shaky lines <http://ffwarroom.com/ubb/frown.gif> ... it made sense to to put the extra picks we scooped up to pass on c-pepp & moss, by getting NASA fault tolerant redundant at QB. and we like leftwich a LOT, & since he is younger than bulger, could eventually supplant him as QB1.completely concur with your post aaron... i weighted the negatives more heavily earier in the draft, when i saw so much compelling skill position value (& IDP for that matter, too), it seemed reckless & irresponsible to take k-rob over guy like stallworth that from recent reports i have heard doesn't have lack of work ethic, passion or desire for game (played 16 games for first time in three seasons, so maybe his new stretching regimen will salvage his career as it did with isaac bruce) or colbert, who is squeeky clean (CAR coaches were almost gushing about his ability to have the system & terminolgy down COLD in early stages of training camp... if a player has physical ability, this is often a precursor to & translates to early success).agree with you, too, oz...this is a challenging & sometimes frustrating part of the draft, in that you can't be sentimental about pet players on offense & defense, & have to ruthlessly prioritize at this point in draft, because large swaths of your sleeper list can be cut away from you... forcing hard decisions.but that can be an interesting space, if you can navigate the treacherous rapids of this part of the draft, taking care not to get overturned by a nasty current of a positional run, or smashed against rock of making a false step in your shuttling back & forth between offense/IDP, & bungling the pick sequence... ;^Dpick 9.10 - nick barnett (flaws are that he might get moved to WLB as he is undersized MLB ((though still as big as mike peterson)), takes appalingly bad angles, gets swept out of the play & has hard time getting off blocks, runs around blocks & bites HARD on play action at times... hopefully his instincts improve as he matures... nice pedigree as #1 overall LB in his draft class over highly regarded **** ****** & ** *********... if he is shifted to WLB, might be derrick brooks-like prolific scorer from that position due to his range & striking power... one of fastest LBs in his class, & i think strongest with something like 23 225 reps at combine, causing him to rocket up boards pre-draft, along with nice collegiate body of work... former safety has terrific feet & movement skills)...from '03 PFW ROY meter week 17 season ending rap/summing up edition ..."Nick Barnett, OLB, GB--Finished the season with 86 tackles, 26 assists, 2 sacks, 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovery and 6 passes defensed. Led the Green Bay Packers and all defensive rookies with 126 tackles. 2004 OUTLOOK--No rookie did the most for their team than Barnett. Questioned for his size, Barnett proved that big things come in small packages as he turned in the best fantasy season of any defensive rookie...including NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Terrell Suggs. With the experience gained in 2003 Barnett should take the league by storm in 2004. Look for him to exceed 140 tackles and log 3-5 sacks. A no-brainer in keeper leagues."barnett was #2 after anquan boldin on the PFW 2003 ROY meter...pick 11.5 - roy williams (after monster rookie season in which he looked like second coming of ronnie lott, forced to cover in past two seasons, severely muting his explosive GAME BREAKING IDP possibilities... word is he will be shifted back to his more natural SS position with retirement of cowboy institution darren woodson... though he might have been best coverage safety on team, he wasn't that good at it... if you are going to suck at coverage anyway, better not suck in run support, too. :^) playing away from LOS effectively crippled their defense by having him babysit inexperienced SS & CBs... hopefully they have a decent FS on roster already, & with such a CB rich draft & them having two first rounders, i could easily see them selecting a stud CB to pair with their other high first round CB... maybe even get a few CBs in the draft... can't wait to see the tuna unleash the full fury that is roy williams on unsuspecting nfl OCs & QBs :^)excerpts from PFW & late joel buschbaum..."Positives: Top athlete with top instincts and a knack for the big play. Natural football player who has a sixth sense for the game and anticipation that can?t be taught. Big, physical safety who is a terrific run-support player and hitter. Can be very explosive. Has some cover skills and can break on the ball. Dominates the game when he lines up in the box. Excellent special-teams player. Flows to the ball easily and moves fluidly. Plays big in big games.""Summary: A natural football player and big-play maker who makes things happen. Would be a great fit in a Jeff Fisher- or Gregg Williams-type defense in a Blaine Bishop-type role. May have been the best football player in the country last year. Will be a very early first-round pick if he works out well and shows he can run and cover well enough."* i like part about dominating from the box & the may have been best player in the nation (edit/add - period, regardless of position) from his draft class part. ;^OIP: LoggedAll times are ET (US)
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-OZ-
Footballguy
Good post Bob.Funny that you mention "pet players" though, as I think we all have certain players targetted, the question is when to grab them.I've gotten a couple of my targets (Rogers, Troupe, Polomalu) while some went higher than I personally forecasted, but were decent picks (Carson Palmer, Sean Taylor), some I chose to go another route (Chad Johnson) and I just waited way too long on a couple (Perry, among others). Funny thing, 3 of the targets I missed on were Bengals.
considering he was just taken a pick before me, I really hope this post didn't have any influence over it.
Renegades of Funk
Footballguy
I apologize if my post had any unintended effect on the selection. With this being an expert league I didn't think my post would have any effect. In the future I will make sure not to post names during a draft.
Gringoloco
Footballguy
Thanks RoF. You're correct in assuming that since these are relatively knowledgeable owners, there are no surprises. However, sometimes all it takes is a player's name to be referenced for someone to put them "over the edge" and decide to take them.That's why even if it's the first pick and everyone knows that LT is the most popular choice (plus everyone knows who he is), we still ask that no undrafted player be named.
Being that our league is not hosted at this board, and this is simply a discussion thread open to all, makes it understandable when someone such as yourself mentions a player's name in discussion. Thanks for taking our request into consideration.
Renegades of Funk
Footballguy
In hindsight I should have waited until after he was selected and then commented. I was thinking more along the lines that you guys knew something I didn't. Farrior going LB 25 in a league that stresses big plays by defenders seems way off to me.
Sideline Merc
Footballguy
He ranks as the 11 best LB in this scoring? What more do you want? Not exactly the youngest (30) player on the board. Consistant non the less.
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
oops,sorry about that, bloom... edited.ouch.bob, do you think you should edit that blurb about nick barnett since it mentioned two players yet undrafted?considering he was just taken a pick before me, I really hope this post didn't have any influence over it.
* luckily, probably nobody got that far unless they went to a sylvan speed reading course.
Gringoloco
Footballguy
Yes Reg, he does. Although I prefer to think of it more as a stream of consciousness.damn, do you always write a book when you post?
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
haven't done this in a while...13.05 - mewelde moore... from the beginning, i thought moore has at least a one in three if not better chance of emerging as the starter... being able to be taken at a later point in the draft, offering the more compelling value. with moss now a thrall of count chocula, MIN could shift gears into a more predominantly run-oriented attack. bennett is a talent (one of 2-3 fastest ballers at distance in the NFL probably, but not just a track guy playing football), but has been injured a lot, has a questionable work ethic & could be most likely to be traded. SOD is one bag of the icky sticky away from an extended vacation under the auspices of tagliabue. when i saw his highlights coming out of oregon, i thought he was one of the most dynamic & explosive open field runners i had ever seen... what a gifted, instinctive, natural runner. but he seems a little chunkier than i remember him being than (i think he was less than 210 in college, & bulked up to 220 b4 personal workout because he thought thats what the scouts wanted), doesn't seem to have the same burst, acceleration & suddeness (cheech & chong were rarely charaterized as "sudden", come to think of it ;^)... he definitely landed in tice's doghouse at times last season, as did bennett... maybe they need a doggie duplex. moore reminds me a little of brian westbrook. he was one of the most accomplished dual run/reception threats in ncaa history (along with darrin nelson... hopefully our guy turns out better :^). very durable 4 year starter, except for broken hand senior year. the exciting thing about him is that, sort of like peppers was underdeveloped & had enormous unrealized potential due to being a power forward on tar heel hoops team, mewelde was an outfielder for several years in the padres organization, where perhaps flexibility is emphasized more than strength. now he is dedicated to year round nfl-style strength training & conditioning... some scouts think his natural weight will be closer to 220 from 210 (without losing any speed). he was downgraded by scouts for not running a 4.4, but i don't think westbrook did either (the road to the super bowl is strewn with the corpses of coaches & scouts who overestimated speed)... their games are more about shiftiness & making defenders miss in space. like westy (& faulk), moore has borderline-WR quality hands. his football IQ is off the charts, he is eminently coachable & is relentlessly self-motivated to improve his overall game. i thought when moore was the starter the vikings running game looked the best i saw all season. the hope here is bennet or o gets traded, & moore emerges this season or by '06.14.10 - eric barton... only about 27, has already had some monster seasons in OAK, & nearly paced superstar MLB vilma last season. pretty close to top 20 LB past few seasons. nice to get MLBs (all things being equal), but WLBs brooks & bullock outpointed many a MLB/ILB in '05. farrior had a breakout season in PIT in year two... i expect barton to have an uptick in stats, possibly breaking into top 15 (not bad for a LB2), as he gets more comfortable in the system, & doesn't have to translate the new scheme, responsibilities, line calls, terminology, etc... once the mental part becomes second nature, he can just let his athleticism come to the fore. jets have makings of a young, talented DL, which will hopefully tie up & occupy blockers & keep them from getting to the second level, allowing vilma & barton to fly to the ball & make plays sideline-to-sideline (is that the most overused phrase to describe fast, athletic LBs? :^)...15.05 - "wally" O-Gun... just two seasons removed from afc leading 15 sacks... b4 '04 season, which was injury plagued, he had 27 sacks in previous two seasons. no, he doesn't have taylor opposite him, but evidently the bears scouts, after breaking down film, answered questions along these lines to their satisfaction to the point they were comfortable dealing a two time pro bowl WR, a third rounder, & upped the ante from an initial 4 million per year to close to 15 million, making him one of the highest paid DL in nfl history (along with freak II) in the '04 pre-season. when will smith went, we wanted to pounce on what we considered one of last DE1 caliber players. lovie smith is known as a defensive guru, & da bears could have one of the most formidable D-Lines in the NFL in a season or two... O-Gun could be the key piece to the puzzle for them... they certainly paid for him like they think he is a difference maker, & hopefully will put him in position to succeed.16.10 - edgerton "ed" hartwell... nice to see ed get props from DC, as well as aaron's impratur... there seemed to be a consensus in scouting community that edge II & trotter were the cream of the '05 FA LB crop. we are keeping our fingers crossed he is signed to a serious contract with guaranteed money in which he becomes center-piece MLB & focal point of 4-3, as opposed to 3-4 ILB (but ray ray & sharper done good from those systems, as DC noted)... nuf sed in this context by yous guys already... :^)17.5 - kenechi udeze... basically played with one arm last year in a rookie season in which he failed to distinguish himself. he was an underclassmen, & DL seem to have different rate of development anyway, from, say... RBs for instance... :^). the player i saw in USC highlight is an explosive, GAME BREAKING 
^) DE talent. doesn't just get to the QB, but generates FFs & blows up ballcarriers in backfield. extremely active, has movement skills of smaller man... tracks the ball & finds the ball carrier like a LB (so many DL fail this basic, fundamental responsibility), possesses the agility, coordination, feet & quickness to really fly around & be a true disruptor & difference maker. gotta like fact that opposing OCs & QBs will be largely preoccupied with kevin williams & will direct the business end of their game plans & blocking schemes towards him. he is "our kind of player" in that he is a high character guy, has great football smarts & is driven to succeed (leftwich falls into this category)... spent time with bruce smith in offseason, film junkie that enjoys breaking down film of what made reggie white & smith unstoppable... not the kind of guy to get fat & lazy on his first contract. like all young DEs, needs work on expanding his repertoire of counter moves (ie - hand to hand combat), & learn to string moves together. not as big as grant, or as chiseled or athletic as peppers (who is? :^), but still plenty big & athletic... at 280 he holds potential to have complete weel rounded game in run support as well as perennial DD sack potential. huge upside.18.10 - taylor jacobs... bloom summed up our thought process & rationale nicely... by process of elimination, with gardner looking like he is done, & coles maybe not far behind, it had to make us wonder who emerged as starters in WAS. in beginning of season with ******* it was one of the most putrid offenses i have ever seen... but when ramsay was inserted, they seemed to make some progress & build momentum by end of the season, leading into '05... portis could a top 5 or better RB if gibbs learns to adjust his calls to the strengths of the personnel, rather than force a square peg into a round hole (or a "stretch" runner into a smashmouth mold... with the operative word being smash... hopefully portis won't get splattered more often than wiley coyote in upcoming seasons)... more first downs & sustained drives through gibbs adjusting & responding with better play calling in '05, could mean more receptions, yards & TDs for jacobs... IF he he is given opportunity. dave & i try & give a proportionate weight to pedigree... i think he was first WR taken after rogers & johnson in '03 draft, third WR overall (near top of round 2)... has had a non-descript pro career thus far, but many WRs enjoy breakout seasons in years 3-4... very fast (collegiate sprinter with some blistering 100-200 m times), a smooth, effortless, gliding run style, he should be able to make plays because he appears to have knack of "running under control" possessed by more mature WRs. carson palmer said he was best WR he ever threw to during senior bowl practices... high praise coming from somebody who threw to mike williams & keary colbert with SC. there is stigma of being a fun 'n gun product & corollary pumped up, inflated stats (d-jax turned out OK :^)... was he primary WR when grossman broke ncaa record for most yards in fresh/soph seasons?19.05 - pisa "5-0" tinoisamoa... i am a sucker for LB/SS conversions... turned out pretty good for carnell lake, darren woodson, adam archuleta & michael boulware. looked like an asendant talent when he outplayed all rookie LBs except for nick barnett from '03 draft class... one of just a handfull of IDPs at any position that season to get 3 or more sacks, INTs & FFs. a concern is that he seperated his shoulder in first game, & supposedly re-injured it multiple times in-season (made mel gibson in lethal weapon look like a piker), & of course the small aforementioned matter alluded to discretely by bloom... can he make the transition? the downside here is that he flails in coverage, but is too small to effectively play LB (listed at 235 last year but played at closer to 220... though that is close to weight derrick brooks began career at... 225?). some possible factors to mitigate the risk... if he wasn't a 4.4 guy like boulware, he was definitely one of the fastest LBs at his combine. some scouts couldn't believe that his 10 yard dash split & cone drill times were on par with some of the best CORNER BACKS! i have read from more than one source that 5-0 might have been the best player on the field during his senior bowl practices. a tremendous athlete & physical specimen with distinction of being only two way player in san diego county history to be awarded All CIF on both sides of the ball. the guy i actually worry about more in coverage is FS archuleta. while the primary impetus & catalyst to this move may have been concerns that he wouldn't hold up at LB over the long haul, this move could be a blessing in disguise. while tino may have been their best LB (kind of like saying jethro was the smartest beverly hillbilly)... bottom line... their DL & LB just aren't that good... countless times, one or two defenders in front seven would whiff on a tackle, & opposition would be off to the races... many times the last line of defense, the safeties, failed to limit the damage. later we found out they were both injured (aeneas likely retires, & arch was playing with the devestating herniated disc injury). if the rams defensive "brain trust" (hehehe) position tino to succeed, & scheme around his deficiencies in coverage, he could be a huge assett in the last line of defense department. when healthy & on his game, i think he has a chance to be one of the most dynamic & explosive open field tacklers in the game. sure, westbrook will give him trouble initially, but you could say that about just about everybody. the rams (like team decisive force :^) might lose a game or two as they go through growing pains of the sometimes challenging & difficult LB/SS conversion... but it worked pretty good for SEA... he helped win something like 3-4 games with late game heroics... hopefully 5-0 can bring a similar impact to the teams collective & overall fortunes. in the right situation, he could be bob sanders-like in that he can raise the level & up the tempo & intensity of an entire defense, team & stadium with his passion, talent & intensity.
^) DE talent. doesn't just get to the QB, but generates FFs & blows up ballcarriers in backfield. extremely active, has movement skills of smaller man... tracks the ball & finds the ball carrier like a LB (so many DL fail this basic, fundamental responsibility), possesses the agility, coordination, feet & quickness to really fly around & be a true disruptor & difference maker. gotta like fact that opposing OCs & QBs will be largely preoccupied with kevin williams & will direct the business end of their game plans & blocking schemes towards him. he is "our kind of player" in that he is a high character guy, has great football smarts & is driven to succeed (leftwich falls into this category)... spent time with bruce smith in offseason, film junkie that enjoys breaking down film of what made reggie white & smith unstoppable... not the kind of guy to get fat & lazy on his first contract. like all young DEs, needs work on expanding his repertoire of counter moves (ie - hand to hand combat), & learn to string moves together. not as big as grant, or as chiseled or athletic as peppers (who is? :^), but still plenty big & athletic... at 280 he holds potential to have complete weel rounded game in run support as well as perennial DD sack potential. huge upside.18.10 - taylor jacobs... bloom summed up our thought process & rationale nicely... by process of elimination, with gardner looking like he is done, & coles maybe not far behind, it had to make us wonder who emerged as starters in WAS. in beginning of season with ******* it was one of the most putrid offenses i have ever seen... but when ramsay was inserted, they seemed to make some progress & build momentum by end of the season, leading into '05... portis could a top 5 or better RB if gibbs learns to adjust his calls to the strengths of the personnel, rather than force a square peg into a round hole (or a "stretch" runner into a smashmouth mold... with the operative word being smash... hopefully portis won't get splattered more often than wiley coyote in upcoming seasons)... more first downs & sustained drives through gibbs adjusting & responding with better play calling in '05, could mean more receptions, yards & TDs for jacobs... IF he he is given opportunity. dave & i try & give a proportionate weight to pedigree... i think he was first WR taken after rogers & johnson in '03 draft, third WR overall (near top of round 2)... has had a non-descript pro career thus far, but many WRs enjoy breakout seasons in years 3-4... very fast (collegiate sprinter with some blistering 100-200 m times), a smooth, effortless, gliding run style, he should be able to make plays because he appears to have knack of "running under control" possessed by more mature WRs. carson palmer said he was best WR he ever threw to during senior bowl practices... high praise coming from somebody who threw to mike williams & keary colbert with SC. there is stigma of being a fun 'n gun product & corollary pumped up, inflated stats (d-jax turned out OK :^)... was he primary WR when grossman broke ncaa record for most yards in fresh/soph seasons?19.05 - pisa "5-0" tinoisamoa... i am a sucker for LB/SS conversions... turned out pretty good for carnell lake, darren woodson, adam archuleta & michael boulware. looked like an asendant talent when he outplayed all rookie LBs except for nick barnett from '03 draft class... one of just a handfull of IDPs at any position that season to get 3 or more sacks, INTs & FFs. a concern is that he seperated his shoulder in first game, & supposedly re-injured it multiple times in-season (made mel gibson in lethal weapon look like a piker), & of course the small aforementioned matter alluded to discretely by bloom... can he make the transition? the downside here is that he flails in coverage, but is too small to effectively play LB (listed at 235 last year but played at closer to 220... though that is close to weight derrick brooks began career at... 225?). some possible factors to mitigate the risk... if he wasn't a 4.4 guy like boulware, he was definitely one of the fastest LBs at his combine. some scouts couldn't believe that his 10 yard dash split & cone drill times were on par with some of the best CORNER BACKS! i have read from more than one source that 5-0 might have been the best player on the field during his senior bowl practices. a tremendous athlete & physical specimen with distinction of being only two way player in san diego county history to be awarded All CIF on both sides of the ball. the guy i actually worry about more in coverage is FS archuleta. while the primary impetus & catalyst to this move may have been concerns that he wouldn't hold up at LB over the long haul, this move could be a blessing in disguise. while tino may have been their best LB (kind of like saying jethro was the smartest beverly hillbilly)... bottom line... their DL & LB just aren't that good... countless times, one or two defenders in front seven would whiff on a tackle, & opposition would be off to the races... many times the last line of defense, the safeties, failed to limit the damage. later we found out they were both injured (aeneas likely retires, & arch was playing with the devestating herniated disc injury). if the rams defensive "brain trust" (hehehe) position tino to succeed, & scheme around his deficiencies in coverage, he could be a huge assett in the last line of defense department. when healthy & on his game, i think he has a chance to be one of the most dynamic & explosive open field tacklers in the game. sure, westbrook will give him trouble initially, but you could say that about just about everybody. the rams (like team decisive force :^) might lose a game or two as they go through growing pains of the sometimes challenging & difficult LB/SS conversion... but it worked pretty good for SEA... he helped win something like 3-4 games with late game heroics... hopefully 5-0 can bring a similar impact to the teams collective & overall fortunes. in the right situation, he could be bob sanders-like in that he can raise the level & up the tempo & intensity of an entire defense, team & stadium with his passion, talent & intensity.Renegades of Funk
Footballguy
Nice post Bob. I agree with your reasoning in each case. These are good examples of finding value where the situation on a team will likely generate more production in the coming year based on injuries, position changes, or trades.
Renegades of Funk
Footballguy
When will this league hold the rookie draft? My league has the rookie draft about two weeks after the NFL. Hoping you guys will draft prior to that so I can use it as a reference. Thanks.
Gringoloco
Footballguy
I think we're leaning towards using MFL, so the rookie draft won't be until about 2-3 weeks after the NFL draft.
-OZ-
Footballguy
We've officially hit the "fun part of the draft"PKs and #3 QBs are being taken. I was among the first to grab a #3 QB that isn't my starter's backup, with Volek.In a 14 team league, the 3rd QB probably isn't worth a whole lot, but with the old (Trent Green) and unproven (Boller), Volek made sense. I'm not 
here, but how many people have gone into the 8th round, and lost their computer along with cheat sheets? Let's just say it brings unique challenges. This was a contrubuting factor to a couple mistakes, but I hope to overcome those.
I was among the first to grab a #3 QB that isn't my starter's backup, with Volek.In a 14 team league, the 3rd QB probably isn't worth a whole lot, but with the old (Trent Green) and unproven (Boller), Volek made sense. I'm not here, but how many people have gone into the 8th round, and lost their computer along with cheat sheets? Let's just say it brings unique challenges. This was a contrubuting factor to a couple mistakes, but I hope to overcome those.
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
next ten picks...20.10 - tank williams... with tino being a speculative S2 after roy, we wanted to get a potential stud S3 in case he needs to start. i liked sean jones slightly more on athleticism grounds, but i concurred with dave that it looked like he he might be standin on the verge of gettin it on... ie - on the cusp of a breakout season b4 going down with knee injury. might be injury prone as he could barely lift his right arm during the '03 season, but this was surgically corrected in last offseason. like roy, he is as big as most LBs... unlike roy he clocked as fast as 4.4 i think while at stanford. has the measurables & intangibles to be a future all-pro... because he is gearing up for his 4th nfl season it is easy to forget that he is only 24. :^)21.5 - e.j. henderson... this pick was made shortly after the moss/nappy blockbuster... we struggled with it at the time as it wasn't clear what his role would be... keeping our fingers crossed harris is the SLB & henderson plays less tentatively... he did tweak his knee & might have been favoring it. might have been the first LB picked in his class, but their were concerns about his back... HC & chief ticket scalper tice knows henderson's HC at maryland personally, & may have had insider info about the state of his back... may never be the sharpest tool in the shed, but looked like an explosive, GAME BREAKER in his college highlights. if he plays to his potential, could be a top 10-20 talent, & he is our LB4.22.10 - dontarrious thomas... was considered a comparable talent by some scouts to auburn teammate dansby & fellow LBs from class of '04, lehman & daryl smith... similar measurables, anyway... 4.5, 38" vertical & 400 LB BP are dj williams-like computer numbers. may not have the worlds greatest instincts, as he was in & out of the lineup in his rookie season, but he started to get some grudging praise from the vikings defensive coaches by the end of the season. the norris division features some talented RBs in green, KJ & TJ (cedric benson?), so hopefully their will be no shortage of tackle opps. our first depth player at the all important defensive position of LB. roll of the dice that he dispatches ******* in camp... compelling upside if he gets through this season OK... looks like the kind of player that could be a lot better in a season or two with reps.23.5 - quincy morgan... the conundrum of... did he not become a star in CLE because he doesn't have star potential... or was he held back by conservative run first offense & less than competent coaching & QB play? we are hoping for the latter. keyshawn is like 57 & glenn is about 48... morgan is 27, so depending on if the cowboys draft a WR with one of their two first round picks, he should be in the passing game mix & possibly figure prominently in the near future. bledsoe is a statue, but if kept upright still has a live arm & throws a pretty deep ball... & morgan has explosive big play & downfield potential. when he gets behind the secondary on slants he is rarely caught from behind... sprinter speed in a compact, solid 215 lb frame... not the most natural at plucking the ball out of the air with his hands, & had a rep for sloppy route running in the past... parcell's is a stickler for fundamentals, so with any luck he gets a chance to play under him for a few seasons & gets coached up... could be dangerous if that were the case... he has enough talent to have commanded the even more talented but troubled antonio bryant in a straight up trade. dave & like pedigree & blue chip talent... though a juco transfer, he showed enough to the pro scouts to be a HIGH second rounder & nearly a first rounder in his class.24.10 - william green... i have a theory that "water pipes" (is i think the euphamism) make you smarter... in a neuronal & synaptic darwinian jungle in which there is a survival of the fittest, the weak brain cells die first... leaving a brain teeming, chock full & power packed with only the strongest cells... he should be well on his way to being a genius pretty soon (extension & generalization based on an original premise by cliff - cheers).25.5 - terry pierce... this & tino pick are about only picks i have questioned so far... i urged dave to get tino as SS, but rumors surfaced shortly thereafter that the coaching staff & even 5-0 himself may not be so keen on the move... at least SN pompei said that he was starting to play at near-pro bowl level at LB position, so he could still be a good one from that position... somewhere... i think :^)... pierce was based on info that broncos were switching over to 3-4... which seemed to gibe with fact that they acquired warren who will make better NT than anyone on their roster, & with gold in the fold they now have four strong LBs this almost certainly comprises the strength of the team... also read recently that even so called 3-4 teams as PIT & NE may only be in an actual 3-4 formation 30-40% of the time.26.5 - kurt warner... i have been wanting the move to zona to happen since last year... dave & high had a violent struggle over this... he has some powerful downfield blocking, but just as the delta force commandos were rappeling down the ceiling, i launched myself towards the Enter key & secured the services of the two-time MVP winner. the best place for him to go with not much standing in the way of a starting gig, denny green has worked his magic with experienced QBs many times b4 & boldin/fitz are the kind of young, up 'n coming WR tandem QBs dream about throwing TD passes to... kind of like holt & bruce 2.0 iteration... just need a dynamic, frontline RB talent... & they might have the pick to get one. OL has a chance to be a lot better than what he had to work with in NY last season & in STL two seasons prior... last time he had a decent OL he took his team to the super bowl... if he starts spraying yeefus balls all over the place, all bets are off... might consider trading him, & will include brenda warner's hair tips book.26.10 - jeff reed... was something like 7th in GB scoring format in '04... very accuate... just signed 5 yr conract... offense was held back a little bit last season as it was roe's rookie year, but they might open things up a little in upcoming seasons... with their defense they will see a lot of short fields... if bettis retires they may not punch it in the endzone with quite the same frequency & regularity, potentially leading to more field goals.27.5 - derrick hamilton... if he had come back for his senior year might have been a first round pick this year... probably would have been a second rounder in most years but he just happened to fall in with one of the greatest, most talent-rich WR classes in NFL history... lloyd isn't an enormous talent, & the jury is still out on woods... wilson has moved on to PIT, battle is a dark horse, & we are getting conflicting reports on whether boston has gone to SF or not... based on measurables, hamilton might be the most talented WR on the roster... when he matures & fills out, could be as tall & bigger than moss & still able to run a 4.4, with 40"+ hops... great athlete who was all state in basketball & has punt returner moves in the open field... still raw & not the most disciplined route runner, so could be a season or two away from the chance to push for a starting role... he may have been handpicked in bill walsh's last gig as a 49rs draft consultant.29.5 - drew henson... glad he couldn't hit the curveball... :^) might not play until '07 if ever, or could see some action in '05-'06 if bledsoe flails... but he would have to really bad as parcells has made his preference for vets & experience clear. is a blue chip prospect if he gets a chance... might have been (probably WOULD have been) one of the first players drafted in his class if he had not taken the yankees detour on his football career path.
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
as promised...our players that happen to be on your teams (for the moment, anyway)... :^)schniz...19.08 - tony hargrove... identical or superior measurables to will smith... missed his junior season for academic reasons & skipped his senior year of eligibility or he might be a lot more well known. despite the obvious handicaps to his being noticed, his workouts blew the scouts away. has the work ethic & temperment to be a great one, imo. against SEA, he manhandled walter jones on one sweep, throwing him back & diving through him to stop alexander cold on a key series... NOBODY manhandles jones, & the kid is still raw. he should get nothing but better.cobalt...13.6 - bert berry... led nfc in sacks in his first chance at a full time starting gig (split time with broncos reggie heyward previous season)... a season in which he missed some time. not young for a dynasty prospect, but not old (about 30), and has the look of an ascendant player. with man-child darnell dockett collapsing the pocket from inside & with newly signed chike okeafor engaged in a pincer-like two-pronged attack from the edge, the NFL lead in sacks could be within his reach for the next couple seasons... & GAME BREAKERS is a big play league in which the top DEs & Ss can be as valuable as all but the very top LBs... & as valuable as some second-tier RBs & WRs, for that matter. a high character & hard worker type that has already earned the respect & complete confidence of the coaching staff.reg...14.13 - antoine winfield... the best pound-for-pound tackler in the NFL... was pacing for a 200 point season in game breakers scoring b4 a nasty late season high ankle sprain, for those that thought his '03 production was merely the product of peculiarities & idiosyncracies of his prior role with the Bills. it worries me that he is kind of tiny (listed 185), but than again... he is usually the one bringing the pain.17.2 - teyo johnson... could be one of the SOD if he starts & plays anywhere remotely near his potential... expecially in this 1.5 PPR & .15 PPY scoring system in which kyle brady can give LT a run for his money. he could be running crazy wide open on the seam routes with defenses preoccupied with moss, porter & curry. frank coyle predicted superstardom for him, likened him to harold carmichael for old skoolers, & had at him at something ridiculous like 4th best WIDE RECEIVER in his class.20.13 - sean jones... looks like a star in his highlights... almost sean taylor like in his size & athleticism, though maybe not as big a hitter... crennell has already identified him as a potential cornerstone talent he can build his defense around... might play rodney harrison's role in this defense... only he is about ten years younger.merc...10.11 - adrian wilson... if he isn't already... the next great young safety (along with boulware).20.11 - demorrio williams... could have 100 solo potential from WLB... probably starts at SLB in '05... maybe brooking will slide back to the inside if draft continues to underwhelm. could be a 6+ sack a year OLB, and has the physical ability, natural talent & ill skillz to be one of the most explosive open field tacklers in the game.21.04 - dewayne white... was looking like one of the top defensive talents in the nation at any position his soph year at louisville, his momentum stumbled a bit his junior year due to injuries. should be the clear cut starter this season (FINALLY!), and definitely has DD sack potential for about the next decade. a tough guy who is willing to do the dirty work & the work ethic to become a complete, well rounded player who can stuff the run as well as get after the QB. tremendously gifted athlete who was all state in basketball. coyles said he was one of the best sack artist prospects in past half decade. anybody who has overcome the life challenges he has when younger, you KNOW has the determination & fortitude to keep pushing to get better. he will.haze...9.1 - dunta robinson... kiper called him one of the best tackling CBs he has scouted in a while... former safety plays the ball well in the air & is hardnosed in run support... could contend for the DB sack record based on the few times they turned him loose... a legit 4.4 & possibly even sub-4.4 guy. future perennial pro bowler.10.14 - michael boulware... after just a few starts, this guy already looked like one of the best safeties in the league. he is going to be a MON-STAR... potential for 80 solos & 6+ INTs... could be top 5 S this year. could be in the roy williams, ed reed class in a couple seasons. great football temperment, a serious student of the game... mature & consumate professionalism... sure it doesn't hurt that he has a brother that is an NFL star already to show him the ropes & help him keep his wits about him.12.8 - antonio pierce... last season was for real... not just a system guy... scouts said he was cheated out of a pro bowl berth... a three down LB equally adept at stuffing the run or turning in coverage... nice huddle presence, gets everybody lined up & where their supposed to be. could be a perennial top 10-20 talent & producer. eli has a bright future, but there could still be growing pains in '05... a lot of three & outs could pump up pierce's stats... that said, he was obviously ALREADY beneficiary of putrid offensive play in '04.seattle...18.14 - greg wesley... top 2 or 3 as recently as '03... young enough to have a rebound season... if they add somebody like surtain, he could cheat up & fill hard with impunity.lebowski...3.3 - michael clayton... when he got snatched up ahead of fitz (nice consolation prize), i felt like somebody had simultaneously spiked my white russian, peeed on my rug that really "tied the room together, man", pulled a handgun out at a league bowling match over a rule infraction, & dropped a weasel in my tub while taking a bath... i have extolled the virtues of clayton enough that i don't feel like recapitulating here... suffice it to say i think he is one of the next dominant young WRs... a special, special talent that won't break your stopwatch, but is a FOOTBALL PLAYER. coyle called him the toughest & maybe best football player in the historic "year of the receiver" draft class... at any position.11.3 - jermaine wiggins... love this pick... didn't have the nadz to ppull the trigger at this junction in the draft, as his status with MIN wasn't looking good... at least that was the information emanating from some quarters. could be the SOD.17.3 - ken hamlin... big time talent who may have been overshadowed by boulware... imo almost as much of a talent, & aaron could be right, he might out-tackle him.21.3 - tillman... based on rookie season, could be a top 5 DB talent... potential for 80 solos & 6+ INTs... lovie smith employs cover two, which has made stars of CBs in the past.wombat...7.11 - keary colbert... if we don't get stallworth we get this guy... we may regret this decision... reminds me of isaac bruce in his deceptive speed, disciplined & polished route running, mature skills at changing speeds & setting the DB up & outstanding hands... one of the most misunderstood, & by implication, underappreciated talents in the entire '04 class, partly due to fact that he doesn't brandish the showstopping measurabless... all he does is win. impeccable intangibles, work ethic & coach on the field football smarts... a gamer.12.4 - jp losman... reminds me in his athleticism & measurables of john elway... not saying he will be as good as elway... gotta like that he can hand the ball off to mcgahee & toss it to moulds & evans... could be the pivot man for one of the next great, young, up 'n coming offenses in the nfl.13.11 - osi "& harriet" umenyiora... simply project his second half & this yields 200 points in game breaker scoring format... that is up there in peppers & rodney harrison turf... amazing given that he is just scratching the surface of his formidable potential.17.11 - erik coleman... didn't have the notoriety & fanfare of sean taylor or boulware, but played at an extremely high level comparable to gibril wilson & madieu williams... looks like a keeper.26.4 - jerry azumah... missed a lot of time, but on per game basis, projected over 16 game season he is close to top 5 CB... some of those points were amassed on INTs & possibly TD (game log not in front of me), so we'll see how replicatable his stats from '04 are into this season... for the same reson i like peanut tillman (ie - lovie smith, cover two), i of course like azumah as well... dave & i tend to prefer young IDP talent for dynasty league (all things being equal, which they aren't always)... forget how old he is.bloom...7.9 - lamont jordan... gutsy pick, as his status was in in limbo at time of pick... maybe the last frontline RB pick, for those that think he is capable of being a frontline RB... like i do.11.12 - ben watson... very few TEs (or human beings, for that matter) who can carry 250+ lbs at 4.4, have 40" vertical & can bench 500+ pounds... OUCH! even with graham in the mix, he has the tools to be a top 3-5 TE... & he might be in the near future... VERY NEAR. nice prospect to have in league like this hugely weighted towards TE scoring.12.3 - k-rob... one of the most boom/bust picks in the entire draft... if he turns his career around, it looks like he may not get the chance in SEA... has really worn out his welcome with holmgren... converted prep (or is that inverted spelling of perp) RB star has serious, big time open field running skills... can take it to the house from 60-80 yards away, even on a 5-10 yard slant. problem is, he catches the ball like a RB... actually, that might be an insult to RBs everywhere :^)... career has been derailed by off the field, immaturity, concentration & aforementioned problem with his hands, after the brilliant soph campaign in which he got 1,200-1,300 yards... most of that in the second half of the season, when he was one of the top 2-3 WRs in the league in receiving yards over that span. in the case of chad johnson, the huge second half of year two was precursor to & signaled breakout third season... but it was a flase alarm in dropinsons case. obviously tremendous value here for this kind of talent... worth the minimal investment here on the slight to moderately hopeful prospect he gets his act together, & fulfills his massive potential.16.14 - dominic rhodes... we were targeting him in next round... SOD if he is handed starting job in wake of potentially immanent trade of edge. has looked very good when called upon in the past... arguably has looked more explosive then edge... if he stayed healthy, looks like he could get 1,300+ rushing yards & 1,600-1,800 combo yards... can't split him out like faulk, westbrook, mewelde moore, but has decent, seviceable hands. i think a little shorter than edge, but compact, squat build capable of generating deceptive power... will break arm tackles... has the burst & explosion to get to the corner & press the edge.21.12 - gerald hayes... i just like this pick because the number selected is the exact same as the classic rush album. hayes definitely has the potential to be one of the IDP SODs if he becomes entrenched at MLB... though i have heard hartwell's (top FA LB left now that trotter is off the table... he might have been #1 anyway, regardless) name linked with cardinals. we had a hard time deciding between hayes & ej henderson, but in the end opted for the latter.storm...4.1 - kellen "chosen one/f'n soldier" winslow ... could be one of the SODs if his leg is right... mmmhhh, or as right as it will be given that it was bent into a pretzel.9.13 - lance briggs... reminds me of a smaller keith bullock... gets off blocks & makes plays for a young LB... nice combo of size, power, speed & athleticism... looks like a perennial top 10-15 LB to me... especially given that some of the most productive LBs are older such as lewis, edwards, thomas, sharper are near 30 or north of, there aren't many LBs that i would rather have in a dynasty league than youngsters such as bullock & briggs.13.13 - jeremiah "was a bullffrog" trotter... made a believer of me last season... i've heard of downhill RBs... i head his name mentioned a lot this season in context of being a downhill LB... singletary was best i ever saw at anticipation & being in the right spot at the right time... not to put trotter in that class... but that is a great attribute for a LB to have, & he's got it. looks all the way back from knee injury suffered a few years ago... seems like he has been in the league a while, but he really isn't that old. very powerful & rag dolls hapless blockers, with deceptive quickness & movement skills to shoot gaps & get to ball carrier behind LOS. project his starts over 16 games & he is borderline top 10-15 LB.15.13 - duce staley... absurd value here... ok, he is old, injured a lot & is seemingly entangled in a RBBC for perpetuity... but why didn't we get him again???18.2 - chris gamble... i like athletes, & he is one of best in nfl... after not focusing on CB for most of his life (recruited to ohio state as WR) & engaging in two way exploits as collegiate ala charles woodson & champ bailey, he surprisingly claimed the starting gig for the panthers early & didn't look back, being among NFL INT leaders. was a liability against run at first, but got stronger as the season progressed & he got more reps... about what one would expect given that he was so raw. not a finnesse offense guy playing defense... he had no problem sticking his nose in for run support purposes. coyle thought he had the raw, prodigious talent to emerge as the top CB in his class (personally i like robinson best, but gamble next ahead of hall)... though "real world" football chops don't always translate to IDP production, he looks like he will get a lot of tackles in that system, & could be the rare player who gets a lot of INTs from season to season... just because he is so much more gifted athletically than 99% of skill position players he lines up against... he plays the ball phenomenally well in the air, & will no doubt score a few TDs over his career as he is a threat whenever he has the ball in his hands.TO BE CONT. :^)
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I debated drafting him with each of my last 10 picks...but I hate him too much, and RBs are so devalued here that it just didn't seem worth it to give up a roster spot for him.I'm surprised he lasted so long though.
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Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
Footballguy
I'll say I never really gave him a thought. After he misses this year, he's going to be a shell of his former NFL self, physically. And it basically came down to what Aaron mentioned with the RBs so de-valued and hardly enough roster spaces to go 3-4 deep with all the required starting positions.... Tough to find a spot for him.Can't wait to see who you have lined up for Mr. Irrelevant!I think he's been a thought for all of us, but I personally have waitied just because there are others with a slightly better chance of putting up some stats.If he comes back though...
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-OZ-
Footballguy
With the draft winding up (we could be done today), I figured we'd look back and discuss our strategy / picks, perhaps to help each other in other leagues, or just for the fun of it.I like my draft overall, there are some "mistakes" that I made for various reasons, the biggest was moving away from my cheat sheet (partly due to a computer error and lack of planning ahead)...QB7.14 98 Oz Green, Trent KCC QB - I had been considering QB for a few rounds at this point, having missed my target (Palmer) earlier, I figure a likely top 5 QB taken as the 16th QB is a good value, even if he is 35.12.01 155 Oz Boller, Kyle BAL QB - Again, I had been looking at picking up my #2 for a few rounds, but as there were 4 QBs I ranked fairly close, I figured I'd wait and see who fell. When Carr, Penny and Harrington went, Boller was the obvious pick IMO. With Mason and a healthy Heap, I think Boller becomes a good canidate for a breakout year, perhaps as high as #10.23.14 322 Oz Volek, Billy TEN QB - rumors had circulated that he would be dealt to Cleveland, and that McNair might retire, Volek looked like a pro-bowler late last year, when McNair does hang it up, Volek has good potential. 39.14 546 Oz Rattay, Tim SFO QB - the last "starter" available, I don't see San Fran taking a QB at #1 this year, or if they do, Rattay still has a good chance to beat him out in camp. Low risk here, with a chance of a good reward if the offense gets clicking.Overall, I like my QBs but realize there are 4 better units in the league, grade: B+RB2.01 15 Oz Portis, Clinton WAS RB - I had him going in the top 10, but I underestimated the value of QBs, as I had either C-Pep or McNabb falling to me here. I'm very pleased to have Portis, and expect the Redskins to improve on offense with a healthy line and another year under Gibbs.9.14 126 Oz Duckett, T.J. ATL RB - I like TJ, if he gets the chance to carry the load, he has top 15 potential, maybe higher with the line, but the WCO is a questionable fit. If he splits carries again, he's at least a bye week / injury replacement starter who will put up some points. 21.14 294 Oz Thomas, Anthony CHI RB - taking a chance here on a hometown hero. IF the Alexander rumors come true, Train might find himself starting, if not, he'll be a role player somewhere.33.14 462 Oz Davis, Stephen CAR RB - health issues, but rehab looks on track. Foster and Goings may beat him out even if he is healthy, but at this point, he's a chance worth taking.36.01 491 Oz Shipp, Marcel ARI RB - well, Arizona hasn't signed or traded for anyone yet, have they? 38.01 519 Oz Betts, Ladell WAS RB - looked decent when replacing Portis last year, your stud's backup may not be needed in this format, but still a decent value IMO.42.01 575 Oz Williams, Ricky (ex-mia) FA RB - well, he might return... if not, he will probably get cut. Overall - only one sure starter, one RBBC back, and a couple possible performers, B-WR1.13 13 Oz Moss, Randy OAK WR - I assume he fell just because of the trade rumors, he's still the top or 2nd WR in the NFL. Another guy I expected taken ahead of this pick, my target was either Gonzo or Gates, but when after 1.12, he was available, along with Portis, JJones and Deuce, I figured a move up at a reasonable cost made sense. 4.10 52 Oz Rogers, Charles DET WR - risk / reward. If he's healthy, I'm really not sure which is the #1 in Detroit, 1a and 1b most likely. I might have reached here, but I don't mind reaching for a player I really like, but have not owned in any league yet. (I'm still laughing at my offer of Andre Johnson and a 2004 1st being rejected in one league)6.01 71 Oz Moss, Santana WAS WR - he was a Jet at the time. My other consideration was Fred Taylor, but I figured I'd go young, and Moss has "gamebreaking" ability. 11.14 154 Oz Woods, Rashaun SFO WR - another possible reach here, but I like his potential if the offense gets on track.13.12 180 Oz McCareins, Justin NYJ WR - with the Moss/Coles rumor at the time, and Coles still isn't 100%, McCareins may be a big time benficiary of the deal. I traded my 2.14 and 3.01 for this and a 19th rounder, I like the deal right now. 14.01 183 Oz Jenkins, Michael ATL WR - see Woods, but IMO better potential, if his QB could pass. 20.01 267 Oz Toomer, Amani NYG WR - 31 year old WR, coming off a bad year, which can probably be partly arttributed to the rookie. He should bounce back for a couple solid years, good enough until Woods/Jenkins step it up. Plus, he's a WOLVERINE! 30.01 407 Oz Glenn, Terry DAL WR - If Parcells is living in the past Glenn looked very strong last year, until he got injured. With his old QB and Coach in town, he should produce. 37.14 518 Oz Carter, Drew CAR WR - call me nuts, but I like his potential, had he not been injured last year, he may have benefitted from Steve Smith's injury. With Moose gone, there will be a place for Carter.Overall - not the strongest group, but I like the combination of potential and experience. I may have been better off going with experience first, but we shall see. BTE3.14 42 Oz Shockey, Jeremy NYG TE - the 5th, and IMO the last of the tier 2 TEs. KW was a possibility, but I knew I'd pick a 2nd year TE soon enough, although the KW/Troupe combo was enticing. 5.14 70 Oz Troupe, Ben TEN TE - As most of you know, I like this kid a lot. With Mason gone, I'm less than enthralled with the Titan WRs, though they have potential. 27.14 378 Oz Hartsock, Ben IND TE - Hopefully the Colts continue to use 2 TEs, with Pollard gone, Hartsock is a decent receiver. Overall - Shockey and Troupe should give me two top 10 TEs for many years and Hartsock has some promise. A-PK34.01 463 Oz Lindell, Rian BUF PK - 
good enough 40.01 547 Oz Cundiff, Billy DAL PK - see aboveOverall - It's a Kicker! Not great, not terrible. B-(Scary thought: I accidently took 4 BUCKEYES - Glenn, Jenkins, Carter and Hartsock )TBC...
good enough 40.01 547 Oz Cundiff, Billy DAL PK - see aboveOverall - It's a Kicker! Not great, not terrible. B-(Scary thought: I accidently took 4 BUCKEYES - Glenn, Jenkins, Carter and Hartsock )TBC...QB: Brees(6.03) Rivers (7.12), McNair(17.12), Fiedler (39.12). Man, my draft plan was to take leftwich at 68, and DF traded up to 68 to make him his SECOND QB, with only 6 or 7 off the board. i even had a chance to trade up to grab leftwich at 66, but passed, thinking he would fall to me. this really torpedoed my immediate draft plan when it happened - leaving me very unsure of what my next move was. Brees was the best QB left in my book, but he carried the baggage of needing his sidekick rivers. I decided to trade down from 68 to 76 to get my 108 bumped up to 93 - thinking i would need another top 100 to snag rivers. i clearly overvalued rivers, i might have been able to get him in the 110s or 120s (or maybe even later). but i am still high on him, and dont feel too burned about pulling the trigger too early. Brees is the starter, and still has weapons galore. I still like Rivers as a long term prospect, he's done nothing but succeed in his entire career. best case scenario puts brees or rivers somewhere like GB ready to take over immediately, with the other still driving the offense in SD. worst case, rivers becomes the most expensive backup in the NFL for a few years (wait how much is brunell getting paid?). McNair I see a huge value pick and exactly the kind of guy i need in case Brees regresses and Rivers is rusty. I am 97% sure he will return, and should be a startable QB in this league, with top 10 upside. i also think i am going to get 2 or 3 more years out of him - he's 32, not ancient by QB standards. I hope to have the luxury of playing brees against the oak/kc's of the world and mcnair when he plays the likes of indy. Fiedler was "make the team" late round pick - as was pointed out on this board, we have to cut some of our rookie or vet picks. fielder will be cut unless pennington's shoulder isnt ready. if it is, then i should have a viable 3rd QB to backup mcnair in case of injury.grade: B/inc - i should be able to hang with everyone except the big 3. getting mcnair really saved me. part of the grade is incomplete until we see what kind of QB rivers turns out to be.RB: Dillon (4.03), Jordan (7.09), Rhodes(16.14), turner(32.03), c-buck(37.12). I had a plan from the get-go to not take an RB until the 3rd. I wanted one of the big 2 TE, and a big 3 WR with my first two picks. I did this for many reasons, chiefly that i was getting a long term RB with rookie 1.03 and i was willing to take chances on RBs later in the draft who could inherit great situations with some luck. When my 3rd rolled around there were 2 very solid RB options, dillon and rudi. i was agonizing because a WR i really really liked, lee evans, was also out there. However, i love high rookie picks, and when cobalt dangled his first to let him move up from the late 4th to the late 3rd, i had to bite. it worked out as well as i could have hoped, getting dillon with my 4th - i expect at least 2 more stud years from him. Jordan was next, and trading down to get that extra 7th was key. if i had to wait until the 8th to take jordan or rivers, i probably would have taken rivers and hoped jordan would fall, and who knows how that would have turned out. I took Jordan thinking the best case scenario was him going to oakland... all thats left for him to do now is perform. i feel that i will have pulled off a major coup if i get two starting RBs int he 4th and 7th, with a rookie waiting in the wings to take over for dillon when he breaks down. Rhodes i have talked about enough - hoping for a james trade, at worst i still have a nice young RB with some past success as a feature back. Turner is a short thick RB with surprising speed who i see as another travis henry type RB. c-buck was just too good to pass up that late. he's a westbrook injury away from 20 carries a game - unless the iggles go RB early in the draft...Grade: A- because of the rounds i got my RBs. If jordan pans out, i would even give myself an A.WR: TO(2.03) Horn(4.09) ARE(9.07) K-rob(12.03) keyshawn (15.12) galloway (27.12) ferguson (33.12) - pretty simple stuff here. i was going for one of moss/TO/harrison/cjohnson with my 2nd pick and got TO. Horn was a pure value pick, i like him because he gives me a WR1 in my WR2 for as long as he plays. my WR3 is wide open with the favorite being K-rob if he gets his head on straight this offseason, ARE if he steps up to replace plax at WR2 for the stillers, or Keyshawn if they both crap out. Galloway is always startable for 6-8 games a year, and i might need him this year with my WR3 uncertainty. ferguson is a guy i always liked and think that if he can actually stay healthy could emerge as a 60-800-6 kind of guy with upside when driver steps aside. ferguson has always impressed me with his play, he just cant stay on the field because he's getting banged up on special teams or taking cheap shots from donovan darius.Grade: B. goes up or down depending on krob and ARE's development. bonus points for every year horn plays beyond 2006.TE: Gonzo (1.12), Watson (11.12), Baker (41.12). First of all, my team is named for late great Hunter S. Thompson's "dr. gonzo" (RIP HST and oscar acosta) character from fear and loathing AND for tony G. a nice synergy i thought. Gonzo is gold standard among TEs and while i would have preferred Gates's youth and upside, i was psyched to get a stud TE in the late first. i honestly didnt see the RB run coming. Watson has Gates-like abilities, lets see if he can cash them in. Baker is actually a very good, if inconsistent pass catching TE, and the jets failure to get putzier makes me think he will be the primary receiving TE this season.grade: A- no real backup for gonzo, but that could change if baker or watson have their roles expanded. becomes an A+ if watson pans out.K: Kasay, Mare - meh. kickers. i like kasay because i think the panthers are in for good things, and play a lot of their games in good weather. Mare was a pure homer pick for my orangemen. he's another guy who could get kicked to curb when cutdown time comes...grade: please dont make me grade my kickers.
QB - Plummer (5.02), Pennington (11.02)I don't know why, but I have always liked Plummer. This past year it looks like he was getting more comfortable in the Broncos system so I am hoping that that continues. With the emergence of Lelie and Watts he has plenty of targets to hit. Hopefully he doesn't have his meltdown weeks in the playoffs though. Pennington is a nice backup to have. In hindsight I should have grabbed another QB, but oh wells.Grade: BRB - Barlow (7.02), McGahee (1.02), Haynes (39.02), Faulk (42.13)McGahee could be one of the most explosive RB's next year and beyond. I could not decide between him or Daunte. In the end I flipped a coin and came up with McGahee, hopefully it doesn't bite me in the ###. Barlow just kept staring at me until I couldn't handle his bug eyes anymore.Grade: B/A - if McGahee continues his great play and Barlow shows up.WR - Holt (2.13), Harrison (3.02), Smith (4.13), plethora of others @ 21 and beyond.2 of the top 5 WR's (IMO) with Smith hopefully able to return to action and not be affected too much by the loss of Moose. In the plethora of others category I have Patten, who can fill in for byes. Terrell, who can hopefully pull his head out of his ###. Taylor, who is currently #3 on depth charts, but might move into the #2 spot. Dante Hall is good for a return TD or two each year, so lets hope it is the weeks I might need to play him. PK Sam has a cool name and didn't think he would slide any farther (with a name like that).Grade: A Very confident in my WR groupTE - LJ Smith (6.13), Teyo Johnson (17.02), Kleinsausage (37.02)With no more Chad Lewis to hog LJ's looks I really like his potential. Might be a reach, but with the way TE's were flying off the board I couldn't wait any longer. Who knows if Teyo will ever grow into the TE role, but I like his 'potential'. Kleinsasser is great for getting 4 yards before tripping over those darn white lines on the field.Grade: C/could move to B range if Teyo plays this yearPK - Graham (25.02), Rackers (34.13)Graham is a great PK candidate. The guy is young, has a good leg, enjoys long walks on the beach, and plays for a up and coming offense. Rackers is a fantastic backup, could be a starter for some teams.Grade: A++++++++
Bob Magaw
Footballguy
QB - bulger (4.2), leftwich (5.10), warner (26.5), henson (29.5)... we think bulger is a top 5 QB... gotta like pass wacky attack... he may not be as tied to martz's fate as people think... threw deep ball lot better in '04, & this scoring format rewards long plays... wanted palmer, but good consolation prize... would have gone soon after this pick, & we thought there was dropoff after bulger... since we passed on c-pepp in first round, made a pact that we would get good QB :^)... we wanted lefty & gringo engineered the surgical trade up to insure getting him (i give him all the credit)... don't normally get two QB by round 5, but QB is hugely important in this scoring system, bulger has gotten hurt for multiple games each of the past two seasons & we just flat think leftwich has potential to be top 5-10 QB in few seasons & is one of best tier 2 dynasty QB along with palmer (we felt this was a good way to put to use one of the two extra picks amassed in c-pepp trade down)... a classic cannon-armed, drop back passer with touch on the intermediate routes... awesome intangibles, born leader, film junky, monster work ethic... should get nothing but better... warner could have some gas in the tank... he is a gamble, but not a big one at this juncture in draft... if he is just 75-80% passer he was as recently as '01 with rams, he could put up 4,000 yards & 30 TDs passing to boldin & fitz, which is one of the better young WR tandems in the league... cards could have edge, alexander or one of big 3 RBs by opening day, making them even more dangerous & explosive... the key will be how good his protection is, & i think denny will attend closely to this, increasing the chance of success... FB james hodgins who protected warner once b4 as a ram & was on IR last season could be a hidden key to the season... he is a devestating blocker & will stone blitzing LBs & DBs... henson has nice upside... might have been the top player in his draft if he hadn't taken the baseball detour... still pretty young, & appears to be heir apparent to take over for bledsoe in '06 or '07 at the latest... bledsoe may be a player in decline with eroding skills.grade : if manning, c-pepp & mcnabb are an A+, than maybe we are A- or B+... i like our depth & wouldn't trade our set of QBs for too many others in league. RB - j. jones (1.14), foster (5.13), moore (13.5), w. green (24.10)... we traded down twice in first round out of slots that turned into c-pepp & randy moss... we had the opportunity to add two picks in first 6 rounds in exchange for two later picks, & we still got jones who we might have taken earlier in the round anyway... parcells will feed him the ball until he pukes... than feed him some more :^)... he stands out in film highlights as being a nice blend of power, speed & moves... breaks a lot of tackles & long runs... i expect to see some 10+ & 40+ yard TD runs this season & throughout his career... answered questions about his speed by running a blazin 4.4 at combine along with tatum bell... looks better than his brother already, & it took thomas jones about five years to get where he is... looks like he is a good enough athlete that he can be a weapon on screens & swing passes, & this is a PPR league... foster is a classic boom bust pick... the controversial micro-fracture knee surgery has had a better prognosis lately since guys like patrick jeffers were guinea pigs, than he broke his collarbone early last year... is he injury prone, or would priest holmes have gotten the same injury if he had been hit in same spot in same way (?)... robert smith was a player who carried the stigma or being an "injury prone" player, but he shed the label later in his career... he seems to have the inside track to starting job, & could be a steal if he can play 13-14 games... nice combo of size, speed, strength & moves (reportedly ran a 10.5 100 m once as prep)... with mewelde our hope is bennett or onterrio is moved & he supplants the remaining starter by '06, if not sooner... reminds me of westbrook a little bit in his well rounded game & fact that he is underappreciated... william green is very troubled, but not a lot of risk with a late pick, & he could have the talent to emerge as a starter somewhere if given the opportunity (sounds like it won't be CLE).grade: if foster starts a B... we have hopes for moore eventually, too... after passing on c-pepp & moss, we need jones to be a special RB... we think he is.WR - a. johnson (2.10), fitzgerald (3.5), evans (3.13), stallworth (6.10), reg. williams (8.5), jacobs (18.10), morgan (23.5), hamilton (27.5), gage (33.5)... we had hoped for chad johnson, but "settled" for andre... he was third rated dynasty WR on our board (we admittedly HEAVILY weight youth, maybe even more than most)... if texans fix OL problem (in talks with pace at time of writing), could see a big jump in production... physical specimen who is a sculpted 220+ & was the big east 100 m outdoor & 60 m indoor champ... has the work ethic, drive & passion for the game to keep getting better & eventually become one of the best... treats CBs like rick james treated charlie murphy... one of the best equipped WRs in the NFL to turn a 5-10 yard slant into a 60-80 yard TD... has 40"+ hops which could make him an elite red zone weapon with his size... we preferred michael clayton at WR2, but again "settled" for fitz... could be a faster, more athletic cris carter... similar skill set... has been & will be misunderstood & underappreciated because of perceived lack of elite speed & movement skills... scout's scout frank coyle (draftinsiders.com) saw in him one of the greatest WR prospects in the past decade along with randy moss, & thought he has the physical tools, naturat talent & elite skills to quickly emerge as a dominant force in the NFL... i like warner throwing to him & boldin better than mccown... if lee evans doesn't blow out his knee in college, he might have been the #1 overall pick in his entire draft class... ahead of guys like charles rogers, dre johnson & roy williams... has a lot of attributes & traits possessed by elite WRs... great speed, hands, separation ability & open field running skills... adjusts to the errant throw in mid-flight as well as anyone i have seen in the past few years... our trio has the potential to all be top 10 WRs in a few seasons... possibly sooner... our WR1 might not be better than everybody's, but by the time we get to WR2 & WR3 we should be able to wear most teams down (evans was, like leftwich, the product of the extra pick we accumulated in the initial first round trade down) ... stallworth still has tremendous upside, & he might be featured WR soon as horn is approaching mid-thirties... if he ever does get 80 receptions, should have NO problem breaking 1,200 yards & 10+ TDs... needs to work on his hands but has RB-like running skills in open field... seemed to get over hammy problems in '04, after changing stretching regimen ala ike bruce (plagued earlier in HIS career)... too early to label reggie williams a bust, he was considered a good enough prospect to be drafted ahead of evans & clayton... if he gets 50-60 receptions & 6+ TDs in sophomore year (he came out as junior) than this could signal a progression where he is off to the races in '06... with all the talk of redskins jettisoning coles & gardner, jacobs might get opportunity to start... first WR selected in '03 draft after rogers & johnson... many WRs break out in year 3-4... morgan never lived up to his potential in CLE, but how much was due to incompetent coaching & QB play (?)... has some impressive tools to work with, maybe he can be coached up by parcells, who is a stickler for details & fundamentals... hopefully starts when keyshawn & glenn get put out to pasture... hamilton is a raw talent who would have gone higher than third round if he had returned for his senior year at clemson... might be most physically gifted WR on 49rs roster that doesn't have a true #1 WR... realistically, he is probably a year or two away from his opportunity... could be a freak when he matures... justin gage could be WR2 now that booker & terrell are out of picture... IF bears draft a RB with first rounder instead of williams/edwards.grade: A, if johnson, fitz & evans are as good as advertised... also if just a few of our speculative WR reserves fulfill their potential. TE - stevens (12.10), wrighster (34.10), anderson (36.10)... our weakest offensive position... that said, stevens has potential if he can continue where he left of in '04... if k-rob is out of mix & alexander threatening to hold out if he isn't traded, he may be one of more important offensive weapons in seahawks arsenal... moves well for monstrous 6'7" 270 target... not sure how much resigning of mili hurts his value (?)... wrighster had a herniated disc (cervical?) that prompted some to say he could need career ending surgery... most recent info we dug up suggested he should be OK & back in time for training camp... was one of top pass receiving TEs from '03 class, & he has leftwich throwing him the rock... substantial health risk, but where we got him, we'll take his top 10 potential... anderson is maybe the least known OAK TE among teyo & jolley... called by his own coach the best dual threat as blocker/WR... had seized the starting job b4 knee injury in season... should see a lot of time in two TE sets even if he is on the field with teyo... could be wide open a lot with defenses occupied with moss, porter & curry... stevens-like size, has unusual skill set for a big man... was a prep hoopster & sprinter (!)... some scouts have compared him to gates in his raw athleticism... the raiders (ie - al davis) are reportedly quite high on him, & think he could be a future star.grade: C if stevens pans out & doesn't get kicked off team or out of league due to off field problems & legal entanglements... though could easily go up to B- if wrighster &/or anderson are the real deal.K - reed (26.10), peterson (38.10)... reed was #7 in GB scoring, & PIT may not skip a beat without burress, with QBs anticipated improvement in upcoming years... just signed 5 year contract... peterson was brought in by mora who knew of him from SF DC days... nice to have decent second K to play matchups... he is dome kicker, & in up 'n coming offense.grade : B+TO BE CONT.DE - ogunleye (15.5), udeze (17.5), kelsay (31.5), t. warren (40.10)gradeT - jenkins (32.10), reagor (43.5)grade:LB - barnett (9.10), barton (14.10), hartwell (16.10), henderson (21.5), d. thomas (22.10), t. pierce (25.5), l. marshall (35.5)grade:CB - florence (39.5), fisher (41.5), w. poole (42.10)grade:S - r. williams (11.5), tinoisamoa (19.5), t. williams (20.10), bowen (30.10), clark (37.5)grade:
T - jenkins (32.10), reagor (43.5)grade:LB - barnett (9.10), barton (14.10), hartwell (16.10), henderson (21.5), d. thomas (22.10), t. pierce (25.5), l. marshall (35.5)grade:CB - florence (39.5), fisher (41.5), w. poole (42.10)grade:S - r. williams (11.5), tinoisamoa (19.5), t. williams (20.10), bowen (30.10), clark (37.5)grade:
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Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
Footballguy
Barry Jive's Uptown Five OFFENSE
QB - Brady (7.04), Griese (14.05), Simms (23.10), JT O'Sullivan (32.05), Davey (37.10)
I'm actually quite happy with my QBs. I was waiting as long as possible as long as Plummer, Brees and Hasselbeck were on the board with Brady. Then, I had to trade up to 7.04 in order to ensure a choice. There's a little risk associated with Tom as he nolonger has Charlie Weiss to fall back on, but I find it hard to doubt Bellichek. Branch, Givens, Graham, Watson make for a very nice nucleus. Griese was a real stroke of luck. I was way behind on getting a QB2 but couldn't pull the trigger on Bledsoe thinnking he was a FA. Then came the deal and I was just around the bottom turn. I'll be very happy to plug and play these two based on matchups. Getting the backups is pretty self-explanatory, plus the fact that they both have value if they leave via free agency, especially Simms. And you just got to love a QB named after Tolkein's "horsemen." J.T. O'Sullivan was a guy I reached on after reading a blurb from one of the mouthpieces (Pastarelli, Clayton, someone) talking about the QB FA market and mentioning O'Sullivan as a very young QB who has an excellent mastery of the WCO. GB traded for him in the McKenzie deal last year, so they obviously see something in him. Who knows, maybe the Favre heir?
GRADE: B+ Very solid QBBC with both backups and a deep sleeper.
RB - T.Bell (2.05), T.Jones (4.10) Fred Taylor (6.02), Lamar Gordon (30.05), Justin Fargas (38.05)
Well, at least I'm not hoping on 1 guy to carry the load. This was part of the trade down from the 1.10. I felt having 4 picks in Top 40 picks (as opposed to 3 in the Top 50) would help me from the depth point of view. I put a lot of eggs in Shanny's basket by making Tatum my RB1. The toughness he showed by playing the end of the season injured makes me believe he's earned the job. That and Droughns being on the trading block. I felt much better about getting Thomas Jones in the 4th before all the elite-rookie RB talk began. I still think they go with one of the elite WRs. They'll be a much better club by doing pairing a young stud WR with Muhsin (age 30). Let's hope that one is still available or they trade down for depth. Nabbing Fred at the 6.02 was a Cobalt play. I just couldn't let him fall down the board any farther. He's great insurance against and leaves me quite confident that I'll be fielding 2 strong RB plays each week. Gordon is a flier that if some of the rumors are true that Saban is targeting Marcus Spears in a trade down, Gordon has a great shot at being a 4th starter. Fargas, if LaMont can't handle the load or gets nicked, I think he'll be the play. Pretty easy pick in the 38th RD.
GRADE: B with potential to improve.
WR - Wayne (3.07), Ward (3.10), Kennison (10.05), K.Washington (13.10), K.Curtis (16.05), Northcutt (22.05)
TO be perfectly frank, I can't believe the number of WRs that went off the board. I feel like our roster size is restrictive to begin with, so to add any more than 7/8 WRs is simply mind boggling. Wayne & Ward will be a very solid nucleus. Never contending for Top 5, but never lower then Top 15. The departure of Burress will re-establish Ward as a clear #1, and with 1 pt per reception, he'll do extremely well. I let WR3 slide thinking (and correctly so) the Kennison would fall. Even if KC lands a Williamson/Clayton in the draft (doubt it as they should go CB/DE at #1), it's to find a compliment to Eddie. He produces 50-60 rec for 800-1000 yds & 5ish TDs every year. Steady Eddie, That's what I'll call him.
I reached for Washington for 3 reasons: 1- Houshmandy was gone (oops), 2- Warrick is done IMHO, knees have gone chronic & he's now a cap cut risk, and 3- if 1 & 2 turn out to both be wrong, he's going to be a RFA next year and will lead the FA market after a "semi-breakout" this season. Curtis is a guy the sets my FF loins a fire. The potential he flashed in the playoffs is out of this world. Bruce is getting up there and has a salary that's getting him mentioned as a cap casualty. I have complete confidence that Curtis is the guy in line and McDonald is destined to remain in the slot.
Northcutt? we'll see. Simply too valuable to leave on the board when I needed a WR6. Hopefully he'll keep returning kicks and get a boost to his value.
GRADE: B with B+ potential pending developments in CIN & STL
TE: Witten (2.08), Schobel (28.05), Jolley (34.05), Ryan Krause (42.05)
When I made the trade out of the 1.10, it was with a plan to get 2 of Gates/Gonzo/Witten with the 2 2nd RD picks. Then I watch Gonzo go in the 1.10 spot I originally held. I was sweating until the 2.08 to see if Witten would fall. IMO, he and Gates have joined Gonzo as a Top3. Heap doesn't get 80+ rec's to keep him up there. Even in healthy years, Todd maxes out in the 60's in their offense. Having one of these 3 TEs is going to be a HUGE advantage, week in & week out.
Schobel was the last young TE who really doesn't have to split time that was available, so I took him as a backup in case of a season-ending injury to Jason. Jolley was added for depth. He's the best receiving TE on the OAK roster. We'll see how much he can stay on the field with some healthy competition from Teyo and big Courtney Anderson.
And for my deeeeeeeep sleeper, Ryan Krause. 6-3, 256 and sub-4.7 from Div.II Univ. of Nebraska-Omaha (my home town). Krause was a monster WR who's switched positions. He got to see a little time at the end of the last year and flashed the potential that shows he can fill in in case of an injury to Gates. 5-81-1TD... 16.2 ypc average. He's going to be a Putzier-type (another college WR)that can stretch the field from the TE .
GRADE: A- And the only A & A+ belongs to the Gates/Gonzo owners.
PK - Wilkins (31.10), Tynes (33.10)
I waited a long time for the PK after the run started 20 picks away and missing out on Graham as the 4th PK on the board. I think people are forgetting his monster seasons after an average year last year. At 4/5 from 50+ last year, those are nice bonus points that I'll gladly add. Tynes also has a big leg and is on an equally as potent offense. Very few chances for sub-6pt weeks from this pair.
GRADE: C As long as that's still an average grade, that's what these guys should get.
QB - Brady (7.04), Griese (14.05), Simms (23.10), JT O'Sullivan (32.05), Davey (37.10)
I'm actually quite happy with my QBs. I was waiting as long as possible as long as Plummer, Brees and Hasselbeck were on the board with Brady. Then, I had to trade up to 7.04 in order to ensure a choice. There's a little risk associated with Tom as he nolonger has Charlie Weiss to fall back on, but I find it hard to doubt Bellichek. Branch, Givens, Graham, Watson make for a very nice nucleus. Griese was a real stroke of luck. I was way behind on getting a QB2 but couldn't pull the trigger on Bledsoe thinnking he was a FA. Then came the deal and I was just around the bottom turn. I'll be very happy to plug and play these two based on matchups. Getting the backups is pretty self-explanatory, plus the fact that they both have value if they leave via free agency, especially Simms. And you just got to love a QB named after Tolkein's "horsemen." J.T. O'Sullivan was a guy I reached on after reading a blurb from one of the mouthpieces (Pastarelli, Clayton, someone) talking about the QB FA market and mentioning O'Sullivan as a very young QB who has an excellent mastery of the WCO. GB traded for him in the McKenzie deal last year, so they obviously see something in him. Who knows, maybe the Favre heir?
GRADE: B+ Very solid QBBC with both backups and a deep sleeper.
RB - T.Bell (2.05), T.Jones (4.10) Fred Taylor (6.02), Lamar Gordon (30.05), Justin Fargas (38.05)
Well, at least I'm not hoping on 1 guy to carry the load. This was part of the trade down from the 1.10. I felt having 4 picks in Top 40 picks (as opposed to 3 in the Top 50) would help me from the depth point of view. I put a lot of eggs in Shanny's basket by making Tatum my RB1. The toughness he showed by playing the end of the season injured makes me believe he's earned the job. That and Droughns being on the trading block. I felt much better about getting Thomas Jones in the 4th before all the elite-rookie RB talk began. I still think they go with one of the elite WRs. They'll be a much better club by doing pairing a young stud WR with Muhsin (age 30). Let's hope that one is still available or they trade down for depth. Nabbing Fred at the 6.02 was a Cobalt play. I just couldn't let him fall down the board any farther. He's great insurance against and leaves me quite confident that I'll be fielding 2 strong RB plays each week. Gordon is a flier that if some of the rumors are true that Saban is targeting Marcus Spears in a trade down, Gordon has a great shot at being a 4th starter. Fargas, if LaMont can't handle the load or gets nicked, I think he'll be the play. Pretty easy pick in the 38th RD.
GRADE: B with potential to improve.
WR - Wayne (3.07), Ward (3.10), Kennison (10.05), K.Washington (13.10), K.Curtis (16.05), Northcutt (22.05)
TO be perfectly frank, I can't believe the number of WRs that went off the board. I feel like our roster size is restrictive to begin with, so to add any more than 7/8 WRs is simply mind boggling. Wayne & Ward will be a very solid nucleus. Never contending for Top 5, but never lower then Top 15. The departure of Burress will re-establish Ward as a clear #1, and with 1 pt per reception, he'll do extremely well. I let WR3 slide thinking (and correctly so) the Kennison would fall. Even if KC lands a Williamson/Clayton in the draft (doubt it as they should go CB/DE at #1), it's to find a compliment to Eddie. He produces 50-60 rec for 800-1000 yds & 5ish TDs every year. Steady Eddie, That's what I'll call him.
I reached for Washington for 3 reasons: 1- Houshmandy was gone (oops), 2- Warrick is done IMHO, knees have gone chronic & he's now a cap cut risk, and 3- if 1 & 2 turn out to both be wrong, he's going to be a RFA next year and will lead the FA market after a "semi-breakout" this season. Curtis is a guy the sets my FF loins a fire. The potential he flashed in the playoffs is out of this world. Bruce is getting up there and has a salary that's getting him mentioned as a cap casualty. I have complete confidence that Curtis is the guy in line and McDonald is destined to remain in the slot.
Northcutt? we'll see. Simply too valuable to leave on the board when I needed a WR6. Hopefully he'll keep returning kicks and get a boost to his value.
GRADE: B with B+ potential pending developments in CIN & STL
TE: Witten (2.08), Schobel (28.05), Jolley (34.05), Ryan Krause (42.05)
When I made the trade out of the 1.10, it was with a plan to get 2 of Gates/Gonzo/Witten with the 2 2nd RD picks. Then I watch Gonzo go in the 1.10 spot I originally held. I was sweating until the 2.08 to see if Witten would fall. IMO, he and Gates have joined Gonzo as a Top3. Heap doesn't get 80+ rec's to keep him up there. Even in healthy years, Todd maxes out in the 60's in their offense. Having one of these 3 TEs is going to be a HUGE advantage, week in & week out.
Schobel was the last young TE who really doesn't have to split time that was available, so I took him as a backup in case of a season-ending injury to Jason. Jolley was added for depth. He's the best receiving TE on the OAK roster. We'll see how much he can stay on the field with some healthy competition from Teyo and big Courtney Anderson.
And for my deeeeeeeep sleeper, Ryan Krause. 6-3, 256 and sub-4.7 from Div.II Univ. of Nebraska-Omaha (my home town). Krause was a monster WR who's switched positions. He got to see a little time at the end of the last year and flashed the potential that shows he can fill in in case of an injury to Gates. 5-81-1TD... 16.2 ypc average. He's going to be a Putzier-type (another college WR)that can stretch the field from the TE .
GRADE: A- And the only A & A+ belongs to the Gates/Gonzo owners.
PK - Wilkins (31.10), Tynes (33.10)
I waited a long time for the PK after the run started 20 picks away and missing out on Graham as the 4th PK on the board. I think people are forgetting his monster seasons after an average year last year. At 4/5 from 50+ last year, those are nice bonus points that I'll gladly add. Tynes also has a big leg and is on an equally as potent offense. Very few chances for sub-6pt weeks from this pair.
GRADE: C As long as that's still an average grade, that's what these guys should get.
Barry Jive and The Uptown Five
Footballguy
Barry Jive's Uptown Five DEFENSE
Let's get to the good stuff, shall we?
First off, so as not to repeat myself over and over... a main part of my philosophy for the IDP draft was to get a Top10 player at each position, then to add as many Top 30 guys as I could. Towards the later 5 rounds, I started looking for young guys that would were 2nd year guys to give me the flexibility to include them on the practice squad if I deemed necessary. (I still wish we wouldn't have to cut players before week 1. )
DT: Cornelius Griffin (18.05), Anthony Weaver (36.05)
Grade: A- for having a Top5 DT at 28 yo...
Cornelius Griffin's (29.10) move to the Redskins really put a bounce back in his step. 50+ solos from the DT position with some of his best help (Levar) out most of the year. The sacks are nice as well. He's not KW, but if you count 5pts as a solid start for a DT, he scored "solid" in 14/15 games played in '04. "Consistent Cornelius," yeah, I like that.
Anthony Weaver (36.05) has been playing DE in the 3-4 in Baltimore, but was reportedly moving inside for the 4-3 switch this coming year with Terrell Suggs going back down to end. At 290 lbs, AW can hold up against the run and brings DE pass-rushing skills to the DT position. Post draft news has hinted that AW might stay as a DE opposite Suggs. If that's true, I think he might blossom and I'll have to take a DT off the giant scrap pile. This is the position no-one overstocked, so there will be viable candidates on the wire all season long.
DE: Charles Grant (9.04), Reggie Hayward (20.05), Jared Allen (28.10), Shaun Phillips (40.05)
Grade: A- Young Top 5 DE with 2 young sack artists to rotate in with him.
Charles Grant (9.04) is a Manimal. 27 yo and getting better every year. Solos have increased each of his 3 seasons (30-48-67), double digit sacks the past 2 seasons, 1 career INT, 18 PD, 11 FF, 2 FR... The guy is the definition of Game Breaker at DE. Having Grant is like having TO,Moss, etc. at WR. In a position that fluctuates game by game, you can count on him to score well each and every week. Scored 8+ pts in 12/16 games.
With a solid core player like Grant, I went for upside to compliment him at the DE2.
Reggie Hayward (20.05) is this year's Bert Berry, only 3 years younger when he left Denver as the Top UFA of his class. Landing in JAX couldn't have been any better. With the twin towers at DT (Henderson & Stroud) and 3 excellent LBs (Peterson, Saryl Smith & Ayodele); Reggie should see plenty of mano a mano blocking. Last season Denver played the AFC South and RH feasted on the tackles in that division, racking up 7.0 sacks in 5 games. Now he gets to play them each twice a year. I fully expect him to reach double digit sacks for the next couple seasons and be a Top20 DE for the next several years.
Jared Allen (28.10) really showed a fantastic motor last year as a 4th RD rookie. As a situational pass-rush DE, he posted 9 sacks. His effect was similar to RObert Mathis (IND) but there's a big difference between the two. Allen actually has the size to be an every down DE, whereas Dungy is already speaking of moving Mathis to LB. With Holliday off to the Beach, Hicks lost in the trainers room, Allen projects to a full-time role this season. More solos and a couple more sacks will push him into the Top30 and an excellent bye-week filler.
Shaun Phillups (40.05) is a guy who's mis-listed here and is really an OLB for the Chargers. A late round pick who qualifies for the Practice squad if need be, he flashed a lot of big-play potential as a pass rusher in his rookie season. Ben Leber's on the outside opposite Foley, but Phillips will be pushing him hard for PT this year. An injury to either Leber or Foley and Phillips has the ability to post numbers similar to Foley's as an outside backer.
LB: Will Witherspoon (9.05), Andra Davis (11.10), Scott Fujita (17.10), Kailee Wong (21.10), David Thornton (24.05), James Davis (35.10), Travian Smith (39.10)
Grade: B/B+ - 3 MLB, 3 WLB and an excellent SLB. Only 1 LB over 28. Playmakers, one and all. Only some uncertainty with a couple position moves keeps this from an A- rating.
Will Witherspoon (9.05), 25 years old and coming off a breakout season, I really like what he offers. Like Grant, a 3rd year guy out of Georgia who has shown improvement each year in solos (49, 73, 84) and is an every down backer with 3 sacks, 4 INTS and 14 PD. The sky's the limit for Will and he's already a Top15 backer. I envision a Bulluck-esque career for him.
Andra Davis (11.10) fell slightly, presumably due to the MCL injury last fall. If it were an ACL, I wouldn't have taken the risk at LB2, but he'll be fine. Romeo has already identified him as a core player in his new 3-4 scheme. He has all the makings of a James Farrior type ILB with big play ability as both a pass rusher and in coverage (3 INTs in 1 games last year). Averaging 12.1 and 13.2 ppg in this system the last 2 years put Andra in the Top12. Pairing him with Witherspoon gives me 2 Top 15 LBs at the ripe old ages of 25 & 26. Young & Proven. Outstanding.
Scott Fujita (17.10) is another 26 yo LB who just makes plays. The signing of Bell should allow Scott to focus on his WLB position and continue to grow in the spot. Averaging 9.26 in '04 after 12.6 in '03 while filling in the middle, he's a solid producer that should hover around the Top25 the entire season. He's averaged 71 solos over his first 3 season and has added 4+ sacks each of the last 2 seasons. At 6-5, 250, he's another manimal on the weakside.
Kailee Wong (21.10) is a player who's going to see a HUGE jump in value based on the release of Jay Foreman and possible trade/release of Sharper. Penciling in Wong to Foreman's spot and Greenwood into Sharper's, Wong should approach the 100 solo level that Foreman posted alongside Sharper in '02/'03 before his rapid decline last season. This was an excellent valud pick in the sense that Wong is a solid depth LB (Top30) as an OLB and with a move inside becomes a Top15-20 candidate. Another guy who could blossom into a Farrior type with his proven abilities as a rusher and pass defender (14 sacks, 3 INT & 33 PD in 3 years @ HOU).
David Thornton (24.05) Everyone bemoaned the demise of Thornton as he aws moved to the SLB last year to make room for Cato June. His numbers dipped as expected, but he was still good enough to stay in the Top50. The thing that made him attractive is that he's a RFA this year, and with Indy's tight cap space, Thornton could very well end up being someone's star FA signing in another year. Solid depth for now with a possibility to return to elite status with a new home in the near future.
James Davis (35.10) had a wonderful second year last season, filing the weakside for the Lions admirably. The risk here is the Lehman slides over to the weak side, but that's a longshot IMHO. Teddy should replace Holmes in the middle, with Davis manning the WLB and ever-hopeful Lions fans yearning for the day that Boss Bailey can stay on the field as the SLB. 54 solos and 3.5 sacks as a 2nd-yr player/1st yr starter leads me to believe there is more in store for Mr. Davis.
Travian Smith (39.10) was all the talk last year as OAK's WLB/OLB depending on formation. He lived up to the billing with 10 ppg over the first 5 weeks before going down to injury. He came back part-time in weeks 13 & 14, so I'm confident he'll be ready for camp. At 29, he's my oldest LB and with a 39th RD investment, I can't complain.
CB: Terrence McGee (15.10), Samari Rolle (27.10), Richard Colclough (29.10), Keiwan Ratliff (43.10)
Grade: B- - Least invested in this position as it's porbably the most unpredictable. McGee and Rolle will be a nice pair.
Terrence McGee (15.10) burst on the scene last year. I targeted him so high for 2 reasons. First, Buffalo's schemes, starting with Winfield, produce excellent solo numbers from the CB position as evidenced by McGee's 71 solos last season. Secondly, he's a fantastic KO return man who has the ability to add 10 bonus points each and every time he touches the ball as a return man. If we received return yardage points, his value would shoot through the roof. He's got the ability and opportunity to remain a Top10 CB for years to come.
Samari Rolle (27.10) is already one of the top cover CBs in the league. Now he goes to a Raven defense which has made millionaires of 2nd level talents like Gary Baxter. The system produces good solo numbers from the 2nd CB position as evidenced by Baxter's 3 straight seasons of 70 solos. No one throws to Mcalister's side, so look for Rolle to see more action than he has in years.
Richard Colclough (29.10) is the new starter in PIT replacing Chad Scott. He should be tested early and often, lending to the "rookie CB" rule. Not a rookie, but a first year starter nonetheless.
Keiwan Ratliff (43.10) impressed Marvin Lewis & Co. last year and will see more time in the coming years. With O'Neal and James anything but young chickens and Ratliff's return game, he could be the "next" McGee. Well, in the last round, you look for something... right?
S: Gibril Wilson (12.05), Donovan Darius (19.10), Eugene Wilson (25.10), Keith Lewis (41.10)
Grade: C+ - Took a gamble early on Gibril and may end up a little weak at the spot for it.
Gibril Wilson (12.05) came out a blazin' last year but got de-railed by injury over the 2nd half. Call him a pet-player, hence the reach, but assuming he returns full strength and plays 16 games, he'll be Top10-15 without a doubt. 49 solos, 3 sacks, 3 INTs and 5 PD in 8 games is pretty easy to extrapolate.
Donovan Darius (19.10) doesn't seem to get much respect after having being the #8 safety in this system last season. He's a perennial Top25 safety who adds some stability to MY team (if not his . Looks like he's stuck in JAX for now and that's fine by me. he may not be a Pro-Bowler, but he's a core player.
Eugene Wilson (25.10) is Madieu Williams before Madieu knew he was Madieu... if ya catch my drift. Came out of college as a big physical CB and has settled in nicely as a play-making FS for the Champions. It makes me wonder if Harrison ever went away, would he be capable of playing the strong? Don't know & don't care. He's as solid a FS as they come and will fill in nicely.
Keith Lewis, SS, SFO(41.10) is a sleeper pick, looking for the next Erik Coleman/Gibril Wilson. You can do that in RD41 of 43. Selected ~50 picks after Wilson and Coleman last year in the NFL Draft, Lewis came to San Fran as a hard-hitting safety from Oregon. He's being groomed behind Parrish as the SS and really opened a lot of eyes on the old staff with helmet-cracking hits in practice. It's a long shot pick that I can stash on my practice squad to see if he can unseat Tony for the starting gig or fill in admirably upon injury.
Overall, while not filled with the "brand name LBs," I'm very happy with my IDPs and feel that they will be a very, very solid group in this league.
My strategy was to get a Top10 player at each position. Safety and LB are areas where I did not get that based on last year's results. However, based on ppg averages and a clean bill of health for guys like Andra Davis & Gibril Wilson, I think I will end up that way this year.
Let's get to the good stuff, shall we?
First off, so as not to repeat myself over and over... a main part of my philosophy for the IDP draft was to get a Top10 player at each position, then to add as many Top 30 guys as I could. Towards the later 5 rounds, I started looking for young guys that would were 2nd year guys to give me the flexibility to include them on the practice squad if I deemed necessary. (I still wish we wouldn't have to cut players before week 1.
)DT: Cornelius Griffin (18.05), Anthony Weaver (36.05)
Grade: A- for having a Top5 DT at 28 yo...
Cornelius Griffin's (29.10) move to the Redskins really put a bounce back in his step. 50+ solos from the DT position with some of his best help (Levar) out most of the year. The sacks are nice as well. He's not KW, but if you count 5pts as a solid start for a DT, he scored "solid" in 14/15 games played in '04. "Consistent Cornelius," yeah, I like that.
Anthony Weaver (36.05) has been playing DE in the 3-4 in Baltimore, but was reportedly moving inside for the 4-3 switch this coming year with Terrell Suggs going back down to end. At 290 lbs, AW can hold up against the run and brings DE pass-rushing skills to the DT position. Post draft news has hinted that AW might stay as a DE opposite Suggs. If that's true, I think he might blossom and I'll have to take a DT off the giant scrap pile. This is the position no-one overstocked, so there will be viable candidates on the wire all season long.
DE: Charles Grant (9.04), Reggie Hayward (20.05), Jared Allen (28.10), Shaun Phillips (40.05)
Grade: A- Young Top 5 DE with 2 young sack artists to rotate in with him.
Charles Grant (9.04) is a Manimal. 27 yo and getting better every year. Solos have increased each of his 3 seasons (30-48-67), double digit sacks the past 2 seasons, 1 career INT, 18 PD, 11 FF, 2 FR... The guy is the definition of Game Breaker at DE. Having Grant is like having TO,Moss, etc. at WR. In a position that fluctuates game by game, you can count on him to score well each and every week. Scored 8+ pts in 12/16 games.
With a solid core player like Grant, I went for upside to compliment him at the DE2.
Reggie Hayward (20.05) is this year's Bert Berry, only 3 years younger when he left Denver as the Top UFA of his class. Landing in JAX couldn't have been any better. With the twin towers at DT (Henderson & Stroud) and 3 excellent LBs (Peterson, Saryl Smith & Ayodele); Reggie should see plenty of mano a mano blocking. Last season Denver played the AFC South and RH feasted on the tackles in that division, racking up 7.0 sacks in 5 games. Now he gets to play them each twice a year. I fully expect him to reach double digit sacks for the next couple seasons and be a Top20 DE for the next several years.
Jared Allen (28.10) really showed a fantastic motor last year as a 4th RD rookie. As a situational pass-rush DE, he posted 9 sacks. His effect was similar to RObert Mathis (IND) but there's a big difference between the two. Allen actually has the size to be an every down DE, whereas Dungy is already speaking of moving Mathis to LB. With Holliday off to the Beach, Hicks lost in the trainers room, Allen projects to a full-time role this season. More solos and a couple more sacks will push him into the Top30 and an excellent bye-week filler.
Shaun Phillups (40.05) is a guy who's mis-listed here and is really an OLB for the Chargers. A late round pick who qualifies for the Practice squad if need be, he flashed a lot of big-play potential as a pass rusher in his rookie season. Ben Leber's on the outside opposite Foley, but Phillips will be pushing him hard for PT this year. An injury to either Leber or Foley and Phillips has the ability to post numbers similar to Foley's as an outside backer.
LB: Will Witherspoon (9.05), Andra Davis (11.10), Scott Fujita (17.10), Kailee Wong (21.10), David Thornton (24.05), James Davis (35.10), Travian Smith (39.10)
Grade: B/B+ - 3 MLB, 3 WLB and an excellent SLB. Only 1 LB over 28. Playmakers, one and all. Only some uncertainty with a couple position moves keeps this from an A- rating.
Will Witherspoon (9.05), 25 years old and coming off a breakout season, I really like what he offers. Like Grant, a 3rd year guy out of Georgia who has shown improvement each year in solos (49, 73, 84) and is an every down backer with 3 sacks, 4 INTS and 14 PD. The sky's the limit for Will and he's already a Top15 backer. I envision a Bulluck-esque career for him.
Andra Davis (11.10) fell slightly, presumably due to the MCL injury last fall. If it were an ACL, I wouldn't have taken the risk at LB2, but he'll be fine. Romeo has already identified him as a core player in his new 3-4 scheme. He has all the makings of a James Farrior type ILB with big play ability as both a pass rusher and in coverage (3 INTs in 1 games last year). Averaging 12.1 and 13.2 ppg in this system the last 2 years put Andra in the Top12. Pairing him with Witherspoon gives me 2 Top 15 LBs at the ripe old ages of 25 & 26. Young & Proven. Outstanding.
Scott Fujita (17.10) is another 26 yo LB who just makes plays. The signing of Bell should allow Scott to focus on his WLB position and continue to grow in the spot. Averaging 9.26 in '04 after 12.6 in '03 while filling in the middle, he's a solid producer that should hover around the Top25 the entire season. He's averaged 71 solos over his first 3 season and has added 4+ sacks each of the last 2 seasons. At 6-5, 250, he's another manimal on the weakside.
Kailee Wong (21.10) is a player who's going to see a HUGE jump in value based on the release of Jay Foreman and possible trade/release of Sharper. Penciling in Wong to Foreman's spot and Greenwood into Sharper's, Wong should approach the 100 solo level that Foreman posted alongside Sharper in '02/'03 before his rapid decline last season. This was an excellent valud pick in the sense that Wong is a solid depth LB (Top30) as an OLB and with a move inside becomes a Top15-20 candidate. Another guy who could blossom into a Farrior type with his proven abilities as a rusher and pass defender (14 sacks, 3 INT & 33 PD in 3 years @ HOU).
David Thornton (24.05) Everyone bemoaned the demise of Thornton as he aws moved to the SLB last year to make room for Cato June. His numbers dipped as expected, but he was still good enough to stay in the Top50. The thing that made him attractive is that he's a RFA this year, and with Indy's tight cap space, Thornton could very well end up being someone's star FA signing in another year. Solid depth for now with a possibility to return to elite status with a new home in the near future.
James Davis (35.10) had a wonderful second year last season, filing the weakside for the Lions admirably. The risk here is the Lehman slides over to the weak side, but that's a longshot IMHO. Teddy should replace Holmes in the middle, with Davis manning the WLB and ever-hopeful Lions fans yearning for the day that Boss Bailey can stay on the field as the SLB. 54 solos and 3.5 sacks as a 2nd-yr player/1st yr starter leads me to believe there is more in store for Mr. Davis.
Travian Smith (39.10) was all the talk last year as OAK's WLB/OLB depending on formation. He lived up to the billing with 10 ppg over the first 5 weeks before going down to injury. He came back part-time in weeks 13 & 14, so I'm confident he'll be ready for camp. At 29, he's my oldest LB and with a 39th RD investment, I can't complain.
CB: Terrence McGee (15.10), Samari Rolle (27.10), Richard Colclough (29.10), Keiwan Ratliff (43.10)
Grade: B- - Least invested in this position as it's porbably the most unpredictable. McGee and Rolle will be a nice pair.
Terrence McGee (15.10) burst on the scene last year. I targeted him so high for 2 reasons. First, Buffalo's schemes, starting with Winfield, produce excellent solo numbers from the CB position as evidenced by McGee's 71 solos last season. Secondly, he's a fantastic KO return man who has the ability to add 10 bonus points each and every time he touches the ball as a return man. If we received return yardage points, his value would shoot through the roof. He's got the ability and opportunity to remain a Top10 CB for years to come.
Samari Rolle (27.10) is already one of the top cover CBs in the league. Now he goes to a Raven defense which has made millionaires of 2nd level talents like Gary Baxter. The system produces good solo numbers from the 2nd CB position as evidenced by Baxter's 3 straight seasons of 70 solos. No one throws to Mcalister's side, so look for Rolle to see more action than he has in years.
Richard Colclough (29.10) is the new starter in PIT replacing Chad Scott. He should be tested early and often, lending to the "rookie CB" rule. Not a rookie, but a first year starter nonetheless.
Keiwan Ratliff (43.10) impressed Marvin Lewis & Co. last year and will see more time in the coming years. With O'Neal and James anything but young chickens and Ratliff's return game, he could be the "next" McGee. Well, in the last round, you look for something... right?
S: Gibril Wilson (12.05), Donovan Darius (19.10), Eugene Wilson (25.10), Keith Lewis (41.10)
Grade: C+ - Took a gamble early on Gibril and may end up a little weak at the spot for it.
Gibril Wilson (12.05) came out a blazin' last year but got de-railed by injury over the 2nd half. Call him a pet-player, hence the reach, but assuming he returns full strength and plays 16 games, he'll be Top10-15 without a doubt. 49 solos, 3 sacks, 3 INTs and 5 PD in 8 games is pretty easy to extrapolate.
Donovan Darius (19.10) doesn't seem to get much respect after having being the #8 safety in this system last season. He's a perennial Top25 safety who adds some stability to MY team (if not his
. Looks like he's stuck in JAX for now and that's fine by me. he may not be a Pro-Bowler, but he's a core player.Eugene Wilson (25.10) is Madieu Williams before Madieu knew he was Madieu... if ya catch my drift. Came out of college as a big physical CB and has settled in nicely as a play-making FS for the Champions. It makes me wonder if Harrison ever went away, would he be capable of playing the strong? Don't know & don't care. He's as solid a FS as they come and will fill in nicely.
Keith Lewis, SS, SFO(41.10) is a sleeper pick, looking for the next Erik Coleman/Gibril Wilson. You can do that in RD41 of 43.
Selected ~50 picks after Wilson and Coleman last year in the NFL Draft, Lewis came to San Fran as a hard-hitting safety from Oregon. He's being groomed behind Parrish as the SS and really opened a lot of eyes on the old staff with helmet-cracking hits in practice. It's a long shot pick that I can stash on my practice squad to see if he can unseat Tony for the starting gig or fill in admirably upon injury.Overall, while not filled with the "brand name LBs," I'm very happy with my IDPs and feel that they will be a very, very solid group in this league.
My strategy was to get a Top10 player at each position. Safety and LB are areas where I did not get that based on last year's results. However, based on ppg averages and a clean bill of health for guys like Andra Davis & Gibril Wilson, I think I will end up that way this year.
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