FanHouse's crack squad of savvy fantasy football personnel put our five heads together and amassed consensus rankings for non-keeper, standard scoring leagues. We'll update as the season gets closer, but this is our "incredibly early yet still fun" version.
In an otherwise jumbled mess, there is one thing we know about the running backs when it comes to fantasy football drafts: Adrian Peterson is easily the class of the position. After that, there appears to be a large clump of running backs who have a good chance to excel this season. If you think the old school fantasy football "running back-running back" draft strategy (drafting a running back in each of the first two rounds) is truly antiquated, ask yourself the difference between a Frank Gore and Marion Barber tandem in your backfield as opposed to Ronnie Brown and Jamal Lewis. Is it worth taking a wide receiver, then, before a Barber type?
One of the secrets to successfully navigating a fantasy football draft is sorting through the noise that comes out of the various media sources and uncovering the hidden values. Every season, fantasy football pundits will sway the general consensus in a particular direction, making forgone conclusions that cause a good percentage of players to rethink what they already know, thus causing some stalwart players to become significantly underrated. Over the next couple of weeks, Fantasy FanHouse will provide a rundown of our perceived five most underrated players at the key fantasy skill positions, starting today with the five most underrated running backs.
The Tennessee Titans finally broke down and drafted wide receiver in the first round, and he's a dynamic talent. Kenny Britt, a Rutgers product, has the physical tools to be a star receiver in the NFL. There are some questions about his attitude, but it's hard to imagine the Titans not doing their due diligence on a kid after the fiasco they just went through with PacMan Jones (to be fair, it's apples vs. oranges: Britt doesn't have any legal issues, just is seen as arrogant by some). I have faith in Jeff Fisher and Kerry Collins to bring this kid along properly.
So, what does Britt's addition mean to the rest of the Tennessee offense from a fantasy perspective?
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.
The Oakland Raiders are coming off their sixth straight losing season and will be entering 2009 with their fifth different head coach in seven years.
For the second consecutive offseason, the Raiders have spent a gargantuan amount of money on cornerbacks Nnamdi Asomugha and Chris Johnson, and punter Shane Lechler. The Raiders also find themselves in their customary spot in the top 10 of the NFL draft, and their biggest need is pretty obvious.
Over the last few years the idea of Miguel Tejada moving from shortstop to third base has come up on a number of different occasions. As Tejada gets older teams fear that the 34-year-old -- who turns 35 in May -- Tejada will start to lose some of his range at short, and would be better off at third where it's more about reaction time than range.
The problem is that every time somebody's brought the idea up to Tejada, he's said no. Well, Miguel recently returned to Astros camp after the Dominican Republic was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic. He had been playing third base. It seems that Tejada may have discovered he liked playing third because now he's telling everybody he's totally cool with moving there if the team wants him to.
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.
The 2008 season might go down as one of the most bizarre campaigns in the history of the Oakland Raiders. Lane Kiffin and Al Davis clearly didn't get along, while Kiffin pulled off the impossible task of making Davis look like a sane, rational person.
A team spokesperson nearly decked a beat writer; the punter was, reportedly, punched out by a defensive lineman; and the team on the field finished with a losing season, failing to win more than five games for the sixth consecutive year. Just a disastrous season in every way imaginable.
After a drama-filled Day 1 of the NFL combine -- thanks entirely to Andre Smithmagically disappearing -- Sunday has been more about the important on-field stuff: a bunch of guys in tights running 40 yards at a pop. Because, as even casual fans know, the correlation between straight-line speed and NFL success is off the charts.
Of course, that doesn't keep teams from falling in love with players who bust out sub-4.4 40s. Last year, Chris Johnson ran an impossibly fast 4.24 at the combine and parlayed that into a first-round pick courtesy of the Titans. This morning, wide receivers Darrius Heyward-Bey (Maryland) and Percy Harvin (Florida) turned in times of 4.32 and 4.37, respectively.
It was a logical penalty according to the NFL rules, but that doesn't make it any less annoying that amusing NFL celebrations get fined. James apparently agrees too, because when he was informed of the NFL's fine on the Super Bowl MVP, he wasn't very impressed.
It was a logical penalty according to the NFL rules, but that doesn't make it any less annoying that amusing NFL celebrations get fined. James apparently agrees too, because when he was informed of the NFL's fine on the Super Bowl MVP, he wasn't very impressed.
In news that would be nothing short of a shock, it appears as if the Oakland Raiders are closing in on a long-term contract extension with Pro Bowl cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. It's long been assumed that the Raiders would have to use the franchise tag on him for a second straight year, but the two sides are apparently close to a contract extension.
FanHouse's crack squad of savvy fantasy football personnel put our five heads together and amassed consensus rankings for non-keeper, standard scoring leagues. We'll update as the season gets closer, but this is our "incredibly early yet still fun" version. 
One of the secrets to successfully navigating a fantasy football draft is sorting through the noise that comes out of the various media sources and uncovering the hidden values. Every season, fantasy football pundits will sway the general consensus in a particular direction, making forgone conclusions that cause a good percentage of players to rethink what they already know, thus causing some stalwart players to become significantly underrated. Over the next couple of weeks, Fantasy FanHouse will provide a rundown of our perceived five most underrated players at the key fantasy skill positions, starting today with the five most underrated running backs. 
The Tennessee Titans finally broke down and drafted wide receiver in the first round, and he's a dynamic talent. 
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call 
Over the last few years the idea of 
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 
After a drama-filled Day 1 of the NFL combine -- thanks entirely to 
Santonio Holmes
In news that would be nothing short of a shock, it appears as if the Oakland Raiders are closing in on a long-term contract extension with Pro Bowl cornerback 
