Running 2009 Fantasy Football Thread

Between the AP's rankings and my team-by-team analysis I'm doing for our paper, I thought I'd go ahead and start this eventual thread. I guess I'll start things off by asking who you think the top pick should be this year. I narrowed it down between Adrian Peterson and Michael Turner. I have to go with Turner just because Atlanta can keep defenses honest with their passing game, something Minnesota doesn't have. That and Peterson is injury-prone.

 

Michael Turner, or AP, if you are into guys who collapse down the stretch.

I think Forte and Kevin Smith will also be great running backs this year and we might see a huge dropoff for some first round staples; Steven Jackson, Brian Westbrook and LaDanian Tomlinson.

 

I've got Westbrook as a first-round keeper in my league, and if Tomlinson is there at the top of the second round I'll be shocked. I'll also be happy to roll the dice and pair them up in my backfield. I don't see those two falling that far. Not yet.

 

This should be a busy year for me. Along with the analysis and possibly a weekly column, I've already been invited to three leagues and may be in another. Thank God I'm not in any private baseball leagues.

 

Was bored on my day off, so I decided to do a mock draft for the first time.

Here's what I got in a 12-team league (5th overall pick; snake draft)
QB: Rodgers, Hasselbeck
RB: C. Johnson, Stewart, F. Jones, Betts
WR: Jennings, Houshmandzadeh, Holmes, Hester, (The other) S. Smith, Clayton
TE: Boss, Carlson
D/ST: Redskins
K: Gostkowski

Played a couple of hunches, including taking Rodgers over Manning.

 

No Cutler?

 

He went too high (in the 60s). I would have taken him a round or two later.

 

I almost choked on my Mt. Dew when I saw you drafted a Steeler. C'mon, man, you're better than that!

 

Imagine my surprise in the second mock draft I did when I lost track of time and autodraft picked Hines Ward for me.

 

OK, here's the second mock draft (10 teams, 9th pick):
QB Brees, Hasselbeck
RB Grant, White, Bush, Brown, Norwood
WR Fitzgerald, Colston, Houshmandzadeh, Hester, Ward (stupid autodraft)
TE Olsen, Bennett
D/ST Bears
K Gould

 

In a PPR league, Maurice Jones-Drew is the clear No. 1 overall pick.

And in traditional leagues, he's a pretty solid No. 2, based on the national average of drafts/mock drafts.