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Monday, September 06, 2004
Why Yes, I Am Ready For Some Football
For the first time, I am participating in an NFL Fantasy league this season. Eleven co-workers and I held our fantasy draft last Wednesday, and based on that night alone, I now understand why fantasy sports has become so hugely popular. Pretending to be a GM, evaluating players, developing and executing a draft strategy… I felt like Mel Kiper Jr. should have been there giving a running commentary. For me, the most fun part were the days leading up to the draft, when I made a spreadsheet and created a prioritized draft board for each position, along with an overall ranking for the top 50 players. It’s like filling out a March Madness bracket, but less pressure-packed because if you screw up, you won’t be eliminated from the game after one weekend of games. Anyway, I had the ninth pick in my draft and I feel that I did pretty well putting together my roster:
QB Joey Harrington
QB Jake Plummer
QB Josh McCown
RB Edgerrin James
RB Charlie Garner
RB Stephen Davis
RB DeShaun Foster
WR Torry Holt
WR Justin McCareins
WR Drew Bennet
Def. Miami
K John Carney
My one hope is that my fantasy team doesn’t take over my regular NFL fandom. I’ve seen guys watch the games on Sunday and care much more about their fantasy team than about their actual favorite teams. This is shameful, as nothing should override the purity of rooting for your team. Speaking of favorite teams, I’m bracing myself for a brutal season of following the 49ers. You can try to be as optimistic as possible (“Hey, maybe this is the year Kevan Barlow can overcome that pesky fumbling problem and becomes a 1,500-yard back!”) but who’s kidding who? The Niners will be lucky to put up 13 points per game this year.
Mr. Predicto
League MVP: Peyton Manning
Rookie of the Year: Larry Fitzgerald
Surprise team: Houston
Disappointing team: St. Louis
Overrated player: Aaron Brooks
Underrated player: Mark Brunell
Comeback player: Kurt Warner
First coach fired: Herm Edwards, Jets
Biggest trend: Rookie receivers produce huge numbers
Biggest shocker: Brett Favre announces his retirement before season ends.
NFC
West: Seattle
North: Minnesota
South: Carolina
East: Washington (sleeper pick!)
Wild Card: Philly
Wild Card: Tampa
Championship: Philly over Minnesota
AFC
West: Kansas City
North: Cincinnati
South: Indianapolis
East: New England
Wild Card: Houston (sleeper pick!)
Wild Card: Tennessee
Championship: Indianapolis over Kansas City
Super Bowl: Indianapolis 31, Philadelphia 20
Philadelphia will take advantage of a rather weak NFC and again gain home-field advantage in the playoffs. The difference is that this year, McNabb has two decent weapons in Terrell Owens and a peaking Brian Westbrook. The Eagles will finally get over the hump and win the NFC title game after losing the previous three. The Colts have developed into an offensive juggernaut and this is the year that Manning and Co. finally turn the corner. Dungy will put together an adequate defense and Mike Vanderjagt is still the best kicker in the league (why is placekicking still the most underrated component of NFL success?) and the Colts will put it all together and win the title.
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