Getting ready for your fantasy draft can be confusing and overwhelming. There are a few things to remember before making your picks. First you must qualify the player for each round. The old rule of thumb was to take two running backs in the first two rounds. However things have changed. Things have changed but fantasy owner draft strategies really haven’t. Until this year.

In the past most tight ends get drafted in rounds 4 and 5. Hopefully for you this will hold true. This year there are enough tight ends available in the same points range that you may be able to hold off until rounds 7 and 8, maybe later.

Also In the past few years tight ends Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzales were drafted early and often. This year there are at least 10 players available that are worthy of being a top pick at tight end. Also keep in mind that Gates had foot surgery in February.

Here is this years top ten picks for your tight end position. Keep in mind that tight ends are capable of having big weeks any week but could also be a no-show for a week or two. A defense that is a good fit for tight ends to play against is the cover two or Tampa 2 scheme a few teams are running this year.

The Top Ten:

1. Kellen Winslow- Browns- Kellen had a wide receiver type of season last year having caught 82 balls. He is coming into his own as a player and is part of a up and coming Browns offense that could finally do some real damage in 2008. He is certified fantasy stud.

2. Jason Witten- Cowboys- Witten has a top tier fantasy quarterback throwing to him. Romo found him often last year and both are looking to take the Cowboys all the way this season.  Witten can score big points in a given week.

3. Dallas Clark – Colts- Clark is a vital cog in the Colts offense. With Marvin Harrison a question mark for 2008 Clark will be looking for another big year in Indianapolis.  However Manning needs to get healthy before he is really worthy of #3.  Clark could actually fall out of the top ten and is a very shaky #3.

4. Antonio Gates- Chargers- Although he did have off-season surgery he may be a slow starter. However he still has the same quarterback and runningback lined up with him so he will be a big time threat no matter what.

5. Tony Gonzalez- Chiefs- Tony may not be the tight end he once was, he is probably the best receiving option the Chiefs have. Gonzalez needs runningback Larry Johnson to have a big year to open up the passing game.

6. Jeremy Shockey- Saints- Shockey will be looking to silence all the critics who said the Giants were a better team without him. They may have been, but Shockey has upside to his fantasy potential being in New Orleans. Drew Brees passes as much as any quarterback in the league and he will be looking to make Shockey a Pro-Bowl caliber tight end.

7. Chris Cooley- Redskins- Cooley is now part of the west coast offense with Jason Campbell leading the charge. Campbell had his biggest year in college under the WCO and is looking to have another huge year. Cooley was already a top tight end but in the WCO many tight ends have turned in their best years.

8. Heath Miller- Steelers- Miller has been a solid tight end most of his career. Ben Rothlisberger had arguably his best season last year as well. Look for Miller to put up solid numbers once again.

9. Owen Daniels- Texans- Daniels is a vital cog in the Texans attack. He had the highest rating of first downs per catch last season and quarterback Matt Shaub is poised to have a solid second season in Houston.

10. Alge Crumpler – Titans- No longer a fantasy stud Falcon he finds himself the target of another mobile quarterback that likes to hit the tight end on the run. Crumpler has a knack for getting open in spots to help out a scrambling QB. Crumpler may have a huge year in Tennessee.

The NFL has an abundance of good tight ends. Some of the better tight ends you may be able to snag would be Bears end Greg Olsen, Denver’s Tony Schefler, Patriot Ben Watson, and Rams tight end Randy McMichael. All of these players would be good late round picks.

One tight end that will be drafted high in many leagues to stay away from is the 49er’s Vernon Davis. He is a very good tight end. He may be one of the best in the league. However he is now under new offensive guru/knucklehead Mike Martz. In Detroit Martz’ offense made the tight end/H-back position nonexistent. Not to mention the QB battle has come down to former NFL Europe and back up Lions QB J.T. O’Sullivan ahead of a struggling Alex Smith.  Also don't forget, there is areason why Mike Martz has been fired from his last two jobs, and it wasn't because he was an offensive guru. 

Another set of TE that may fall into waiver wires after the draft is Jets TE Chris Baker and Dustin Keller. Either may be a very good player with Brett Favre now running the show. It is a camp battle worth looking at. In 2007 Baker almost averaged (71%) a first down per catch.

One last item is that on average per week the difference between the top TE and the bottom is not always that great. The main thing to look for is consistency. But hey, maybe I am wrong about everyone of these guys. Opinions are like behinds, everyone has one and most of the really stink!

 

It has become very apparent that ESPN has officially "jumped-the-shark". The term comes from the TV show Happy Days when the Fonz jumped a shark and many fans said that was the point of no return and that the show had run its course.

Now look at ESPN and Sportscenter. If you are a fan of the show and channell you know what I am talking about. Each night it is all Favre all the time. If they aren’t talking about Favre they are talking about Manny Ramirez. The empire known as ESPN has dumbed it coverage down severely.

Look at the amount of coverage teams get. The coverage has gone down to just a few teams IE: the Yankees, the Mets, the Red Sox, the Packers, and the Giants.

As a fantasy football owner I need a certain amount of equal coverage throughout the NFL and well as the MLB. In the golden years of ESPN they actually gave you stats of each game and covered almost every team.

Now as I try to watch all I get is where Favre is, what the Packers said today, what they will do tomorrow, what Brett ate last night, what kind of plane he flew in, video of it taking off and landing, three reporters breaking it down, and then a Manny Ramirez highlight.

Now is the time Fox Sports should be making their move. Fox needs to assemble the old crew to have a full hour long nightly highlight show with details of all the games and stats. Fox should also incorporate a nightly football show. They have the rights to almost every local baseball game because of them being on Fox Sports Net and are the home of the NFC in football.

ESPN has dropped the ball of sports and should completely revamp now before they lose all of us forever. I have not seen any news out of 25 or more NFL teams, news about the Minnesota Twins rolling into first place without any big names, Olympics coming up (other than USA basketball), and the lack of balanced coverage through each league.

I don’t expect ESPN to cover my Lions for 10 minutes every night, but at least tell me about training camp battles around the NFL!

 ESPN isn’t the only all-Favre-all-the-time station. Try listening to national sports radio. If you flip fast enough through each chanell you would think it was the same conversation. Enough is enough. I am embarrassed for you that all you have is another take on the same topics regurgitated over and over.

Part one of seven

The most common draft strategy used by many fantasy team owners is to draft running backs in round one and two. Some even take backs in the first three rounds. But if everyone does this how would anyone separate their team from other teams besides injuries? This year there are four QBs you should consider in the first round as well. This doesn’t mean to skip RBs all together, but consider other options.

This year is the year you can finally get an edge. This doesn’t mean you need to draft a kicker in round three, you still should be drafting your kicker dead last. What you may need is a new strategy. If everyone is using the same strategies usually the only thing that separates your team from theirs is dumb luck.

The era of the three down back is over. In 2007 the NFL saw it lowest total of 300 carry backs (6) since 1999. There are a lot of quality backs you can get after the RB draft frenzy is over. In fact there are only a few backs worthy of round one status. Lets break it down.

Round 1 RBs

1. LaDanian Tomlinson – he is healthy and a fantasy stud, he is worthy of a number one overall pick.

2. Adrian Peterson – Peterson is unstoppable at times and can rack up monstrous fantasy numbers against any team any week. Worthy of a top 5 pick.

3. Steven Jackson – Jackson was injured in 2007 and the Ram offense was a non-factor. In 2008 big things are expected from Jackson and unless he holds out for a long period of time he is worthy of your round one pick in the 4-8 range.

4. Joseph Addai- The Colts offense is predicated on the ability of Peyton Manning to be able to run play action passes. This makes Addai’s role very important again in 2008 and he should deliver as well. Addai is a "inside the 5 guy" as well (see below)He is worthy of your round one pick in the 4-8 range.

5. Brian Westbrook – Westbrook does it all in Philly. He runs well, catches the ball, and blocks. Westbrook and McNabb should both have good years, but Westbrook is the key to it all and they will use him as such. He is also worthy of your round one pick between 5-10.

Round 2 RBs

Frank Gore had a bit of a down year after his breakout season in 2006. But with a new offense coordinated by Mike Martz Gore should flourish once again. Gore could be yours at pick 10-13.
Larry Johnson is back and ready to go. He is rated low this year based off of last years stats. Last season he held out almost all of camp and then was injured. The Chief’s offense has a bright spot and it shines on Johnson. He may fall all the way to the end of round 2 or even into round 3.

Clinton Portis is now under the West Coast offense in Washington. Portis will get more catches and should be better in 2008 with a healthy shoulder. He should go early in the 2nd round.

Marshawn #### is the number one back in Buffalo and could have another good season. He was a surprise as a rookie and should be able to build on that to haveyet a n even bigger 2008. #### should go in the 2nd round for sure.

Marion Barber is now the featured back in Dallas. With an offense like the Cowboys have he could have yet his biggest season yet. He hasn’t been at his best as the featured back in the past when Julius Jones was out, but Jones is gone now and Barber doesn’t have a choice but to be the man. Barber may go early in round 2 but he would be better late in round 2 or early round three.

Best of the Rest

Jamal Lewis is part of a very potent Cleveland attack. He was one of the better RBs last season but is still ranked too low in pre-draft rankings. You could snag him as late as round 5!

Matt forte is a rookie in Chicago this year and is going to be the featured back. First Cedric Benson was arrested twice and then swiftly cut. Then the Bears brought in former Lion Kevin Jones but he is still hurt yet again from last season. Forte may slip under the radar onto your roster in round 4 or later.

One-Two Punch

These are the players that if you draft one you need to get the other.

Willie Parker is still the one in the one-two punch in Pittsburgh. Parker will get the bulk of the load ahead of rookie Rashard Mendenhall.

Kevin Smith is a rookie in Detroit where they team has changed from a pass happy offense to a run oriented zone blocking scheme used in Denver. Tatum Bell is the veteran of the duo. Bell started the first 5 games last year until Kevin Jones returned. However once Jones did return, Bell was deactivated in all 11 weeks after.

Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor may actually have better numbers as a duo in 2008 with the additions to the already stout defense. The offense should be on the field even more so they will be solid picks once again.
Don’t Forget Backs

Brandon Jacobs, Darren McFadden, Edgerin James, Rudi Johnson, Ronnie Brown, Thomas Jones, Julius Jones, TJ Duckett, Reggie Bush, and Michael Turner should all be available after you have filled your other starters at every other position.

RBs to Stay Away from Early


Laurence Maroney- The Patriots use so many backs and Maroney has been injured so many times that you should pick him with caution. He should be a late round find instead of an early round buster without the rhymes.

Willis McGahee is highly ranked and lowly productive. The Ravens offense is terrible and the QB situation may change every week making Willis a weak pick. Hope that another fantasy owner goes bananas and drafts him in the 2nd round.



Handy Dandy Chart

Here is another way to look for a RB late in your draft that can have an impact on your season. With so many teams running by committee it is very important to have the back that teams go to in the red zone. Although some of the players didn’t rack up a ton of points last year that doesn’t mean they won’t in 2008. You should seriously consider these numbers when determining one player ahead of another.


Here are the top ten go to backs when it matters. They may not be your franchise back but they each had at least 200 carries.

Player                              carries                inside the 5

Jamal Lewis                    298                      
    22

Joseph Addai                  261                           18

Clinton Portis                  324                           17

LaDanian Tomlinson    315                           17

Thomas Jones               310                           15

Willis McGahee              294                           14

Earnest Graham            222                           14

LenDale White                304                          13

Marion Barber                 201                          13

Edgerin James              323                           11

 

  Well it is that time of year again.  The NFL kicks off this Thursday at 8:30 in Pittsburgh home of the defending Super Bowl Champs.  This season is sure to be exciting with the amount teams that have a shot to make the playoffs.  Last season seamed to be a little different in the fact that the teams somewhat separated themselves around mid-season.

  Like many seasons there have been a number of changes, and no I am not talking about the refs new uniforms either.  Although the new design is rather slimming, so Ed hochuli will really look buff at back judge/head ref.

  Anyway, lets be serious for a minute.  Parity in the NFL is what gives all fans hope and a reason to watch.  Just like the movie title "Any Given Sunday" it does hold true.  Think about how many games you expect someone to just get blown out and they win the game.  This is the time of year that all the NFL fans, even San Francisco fans, have optimism.  And why not?  No games have been played yet.

  Here is some advice to follow when watching your favorite team this season.  Try not to live and die on every first down in the game.  For one it is just to hard on you and it may ruin your day.  And secondly almost every game comes down to the fourth quarter, even if a team is down two tds it isn't over.  One last reason is that 79% of all NFL games are decided by four points or less.


  Lastly, here are ten teams from each conference that have a shot at either making the playoffs or at least surprising the NFL and making a run at the playoffs.  You know at least 2-4 teams will just absolutely flop and 2-3 will surprise everyone.  Having said that here is the list in no particular order, and don't rush out to Las Vegas and throw money on this either.  But you could throw some money on a Carolina - New England rematch though!

AFC:

Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins
Pittsburgh Steelers
Kansas City Chiefs
San Diego Chargers
Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals
Denver Broncos
New England Patriots


NFC:

New York Giants
Dallas Cowboys
Seattle Seahawks
Chicago Bears
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Detroit Lions
Arizona Cardinals
Philadelphia Eagles
Carolina Panthers
Atlanta Falcons


There you have it, if you team isn't on the list don't even watch the games.  Seriously though, right now it is all wide open and will be for a month or so.  You can try to make all kinds of predictions (on record) at FanIQ.com. That is a website where you can make your predictions against fans from everywhere of all kinds.  Try it, I think you will like it and it will become part of your daily sports rotation.  Click here and see!  Hope to see you there and your favorite team in the playoffs!