So, last night, just before 11 PM, I took my first look at this, with the thought in mind that the entry deadline was prior to kickoff tonight...in and of itself, that wouldn't have been so bad, however, I was 1 hour into an FFPC Draft (10 PM start), with another one scheduled to start at midnight. Ooooof.
I put more time into the Contest last year than ever before, and I really thought I had lightning in a bottle. Forget when I got bounced, but it was a decent run. This year, less than 1 distracted hour. My first iteration started at 30 Players and 483 years! That's how I always do it - I select the 30 Player Team I would like to have, if there were no cap conditions, and then work my way back, paring Players and salaries until I find the right mix. In the end, I got crunched for time, and probably punted some stuff in the interest of submitting at 11:56 PM. I don't expect to last long.
Brady, Cutler, Hoyer, Fitzpatrick - I wanted Angry Tom, no matter what. I wanted Cutler as part of a committee of backups, simply because I think he's the key to any 2015 all-play strategy. Sure he's going to throw up some clunkers, but there will be around 4 games that he threatens the weekly high for passing stats. I wanted a couple of 'steady eddies' to balance that out. Couldn't afford the guys I wanted in the rush to finish on time. Hope Hoyer and Fitz hold onto their jobs.
Forsett, L.Miller, Vereen, DAWilliams J.White - I wanted Angry Adrian at all costs as well, but cut him very close to midnight when I just couldn't make the numbers work. Went with 2 bell cows that will see plenty of action in the passing game, and Vereen, who I think is going to lead the league in RB receptions. I think DeAngelo maintains a role when Bell comes back, and could see an expanded role down the stretch if the Steelers sew things up early in the Division which I think is likely. Hope there's enough for White after Dion gets his. If Dion gets banged up again, White could be huge.
Cooks, Matthews, Chas.Johnson, Landry, Dav.Adams, St.Johnson, Wheaton - Couldn't get all my volume guys if I took a stud. Boy did I want Julio or Dez. Cut the top and the bottom to find what I hope winds up being a 'Lucky 7' in the middle. If Charles Johnson winds up being the Mike Irvin in Norv's scheme, I'm not just lucky, I'm blessed.
D.Allen, H.Miller - crushed that I ran out of time to find a way to bolster this group, but I was building TE around this pairing right from the start, sucks that I couldn't fit in a few value guys for depth. Allen better stay healthy.
Prater, Nugent, Walsh, NYJets, Colts - 2nd tier volume offenses that I expect to be in the Red Zone often, and stall out plenty. Domes mixed in as much as I could. Probably would have found the money for another TE if I'd done the 'fbg's D' thing (Colts/Jags), but I wanted one semi-elite D with some blow-up potential and I trust the Colts to produce more stats, more consistently, than the Jags.
23 Players. I usually try to wind up with 24-26. I don't think I'm long for the lifeboat. Good luck, fellas!
