Watching Preseason (1 Viewer)

[StuntMonkee]

So I'm sitting here watching the game, and a question came to mind. It's a question I have every year, but never really addressed it.

"how many grains of salt to you add to preseason stats?"

Just watched the first drive. . . .pretty much all C. Wilson and Big Ben. Looks good actually. But Wilson isnt the guy we are all projecting to get the yards.

So at the end of the game, when Ward has 5 yards, Holmes has 7, and Wilson has 71. . . . .what does it really mean.

Now don't get all worked up and say "what is this guy talking about?". . . .just curious on what you guys look for on the screen during the game, and more importantly, in the stat lines. What numbers really mean anything?

For instance, Duece Mac isnt playing tonight. . . .not sure what it means, but probably not much, but does Big Ben coming out and tossing a long bomb in his first series mean a ton?

Obviously we would all like to see FWP in there tonight, and Duece . . . .or any other player that isnt in a preseason game, but for me, I think I take more from what the team is trying to accomplish as a team, and less what they are using each player for.

What are you watching for?

 

[Penguin]

To me it means that C.Wilson hangs on to the #3 WR for another week, nothing more. He has zero chance (barring injury to Ward or Holmes) of moving up, it's more likely he falls to #4

 

[jpapadub]

My main focus is watching Rookies/practice squad players to help me evaluate them from a dynasty perspective. We can see all kinds of stats from the combine, but those really mean nothing if they don't transfer to the field.

Last year I packaged 1.09 and 1.10 for 1.02 before the preseason started with hopes of snagging Maroney (Gopher football is always on here) or DeAngelo at that spot. Well, we started drafting after a few weeks of preseason had started, and I really regretted the trade. The RB class was deep last year, but I thought after Addai there wouldn't be much value. I was watching Jones-Drew dominate as a dual threat and figured that 1.02 would be too much of a stretch to take him even though my gut was telling me to. Not that I'm a DWill hater, but even before preseason was over I was wishing I had kept my picks and taken MJD and Cutler. Lesson learned there.

On a more positive note: A few years back I was LOVING SJax in the preseason. I was able to trade Julius Jones away in a keep-3 league and get SJax AND a 2nd round pick in the following year for him. I didn't win that year, but SJax and that extra second round pick (ended up being Driver) has made for a few extra $$s in my pocket.

You can definately evaluate young talent based on what you see them do in the preseason against (albeit second-string) NFL defenses. I don't think that the games hold as much importance in redraft rankings, but you can always evaluate a few sleepers by keeping your eyes open.

 

[Penguin]

I think the key is to know where the players you are watching fit in with their team. By that I mean that if you understand that a player is the #3 WR and he has a big game accept it for what it is. It's good news that he looks good but don't have dellusions that he's going to the pro bowl, he's not going to jump anybody on the depth chart, unless it was already so close that a decision hadn't been made yet. Of course there are going to be situations where a guy is in a battle for a starting spot, that's a different story.

Davenport could have gone for 200 yds and 3 TD's tonight. He would still remain Parker's backup, but a least you could feel better about your handcuff if you went in that direction. I hope I'm making sense.

 

[Penguin]

Forgot to add that different weeks are going to play differently as well. Week 1 will showcase a lot of the younger players, rookies and those further down the depth chart. Week 2 will have the starters get a little more action than the one series they saw in week one. Week 3 usually has the starters playing the first half and possibly some of the 3rd quarter. Week 4 (or five for some teams) will almost exclusively be for players on the cusp and positional battles that haven't been decided to date.

So, if someone has a big 4th quarter in week 1 or week 4 it shouldn't be weighted as much as a big 1st quarter in week 3.

 

[Bri]

It's usually interesting to see who the coach puts in with the first string even if for a few plays. IMO It lets you know who he's especially curious about. It's not often obvious as a WR may not get open for those few plays but it's interesting when ya catch it.

 

[UncleZen]

I like to watch for guys that ended last season hurt to try and get a feel for their health.