Quarterback is a tricky position -- you can draft a stud early and end up with a fantasy monster like Drew Brees. Or you can draft a stud early and end up with your season done in Week 1, like folks who pulled the trigger on Tom Brady last season.
Most people, however, prefer to wait a little while into a draft before drafting a signal-caller though. And this year, two guys who will be getting a TON of mid-round love are Philip Rivers and Donovan McNabb. With that in mind, myself and R.J. White went toe-to-toe over the course of several e-mails (although with the way I like to write -- read: loquacious -- I'm sure R.J. felt like it was a week's worth) to determine who's the better pick this year.
So, in the words of Wilco, let's get this party started. (With some mid-tempo rock!)
In the first 10 games of 2008, Michael Turner averaged 14.7 fantasy points per game. In that same stretch, Frank Gore averaged 14.8 points per game. From those numbers, you'd assume that these two RBs, two of the highest-scoring RBs in the league over the first 11 weeks, were equally effective.
Well, you'd be wrong.
For most fantasy football leagues, the goal each week of the season is to outscore your opponent; doing so garners you a win for that week and puts you one step closer to the playoffs. To give yourself the best chance each week, you want guys that not only score a lot of points, but consistently score a lot of points. You can win by 50 one week and lose by five the next, and you'll be 1-1 over that two-game stretch, even though you put up a +45 point differential for the two weeks.
This offseason, FanHouse and the Fantasy Football Cafe are getting together to do some mocking. We're bringing you a series of mock drafts to help you prepare for your fantasy football season. Because when it comes to your fantasy football draft, there's no such thing as being too prepared.
A few weeks ago, we came at you with a 10-team mock draft. Today, we'll check out the results of a recent 12-team mock draft completed by FanHouse writers and Cafe veterans on August 10. For our mock league, you must start one QB, two RBs, three WRs, one TE, one K, and one DEF, with six bench slots available for your discretion. The scoring rules: 20 passing yards per point, 4 points per passing TD, -2 points per interception, 10 rushing/receiving yards per point, 6 points per rushing/receiving TD, standard kicking and defensive points.
This offseason, FanHouse and the Fantasy Football Cafe are getting together to do some mocking. We're bringing you a series of mock drafts to help you prepare for your fantasy football season. Because when it comes to your fantasy football draft, there's no such thing as being too prepared.
Last week, we completed a 10-team mock. This week, you'll hear from each of the mock drafters as they've graciously answered the question that's on every fantasy football player's mind when they read a mock draft: "What were they thinking?"
This offseason, FanHouse and the Fantasy Football Cafe are getting together to do some mocking. We're bringing you a series of mock drafts to help you prepare for your fantasy football season. Because when it comes to your fantasy football draft, there's no such thing as being too prepared.
Football season draws closer each day -- with training camps opening this week, most fantasy drafts are just around the corner. If you're a fantasy addict like me, you've been constantly tinkering with your draft board with each nugget of news that drops. Since practice makes perfect, the best way to be 100% ready for your draft is to use your draft board in several mock drafts. So that's what we did.
A month ago, Matt Snyder took a look at the first edition of the FanHouse fantasy rankings and identified several players whom he felt deserved a second look, either ranking too high or too low. This week in On Second Thought, I'll do the same for the second version of our rankings.
There's two things you have to do when drafting running backs. With your top dog at the position, you absolutely have to take a guy that doesn't bust. A lot of people chase breakouts with titles in their eyes, but the first contenders to fall by the wayside are ones who don't get solid, consistent production out of their top RB. Before you call out a name on Draft Day, be absolutely sure that your RB selection is a near-lock for top-ten numbers.
It's been over a month since we last posted positional fantasy football rankings, so it's time to run our second version. Plus, we added some staff. This is now an average ranking from eight Fantasy FanHouse writers. To view the early version of our running back rankings, click here.
We went around the table to figure out who the No. 2 overall choice should be, and after the discussion, we have a new No. 2 RB in our rankings. We saw plenty of player movement up and down the ranks as the new staff members sprinkled their opinions into the mix. As a result, I'm confident the second version is much stronger than the first.
With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all.
Meet The ... Highest scoring team in football! After a dismal 4-8 start, the playoffs looked out of reach for the 2008 San Diego Chargers. Then they did what they do best: win in December. Rattling off four straight victories (marking the third consecutive year the team finished on a big winning streak) meant the 8-8 Chargers were crowned champions of the AFC West yet again. Don't let the pedestrian .500 record fool you -- this was the No. 1 offense in football last year. With all the major players back in 2009, the Chargers should make another run at leading the league in points scored.
As opposed to quarterbacks, I'm definitely in favor of keeping running backs. In fact, I highly recommend keeping two runners instead of a quarterback, if you have two of my top 20. Running backs are the life-blood of your fantasy team, much like the oil in your car. Two consistent runners on your fantasy team make life so much easier, which is why it's your starting point.
As I said, I'm recommending you keep two from the list, which is why I'm ranking more than I did for quarterbacks or wide receivers.
Ladies and Gents, your top 20 keeper running backs ...
Ryan mentioned the possibility this morning that the San Diego Chargers could trade LaDainian Tomlinson this offseason; I suppose it kind of makes sense considering he really hasn't factored into their final game during each of the last two seasons. Oh, and for the most part he looked more Dungy than Tony himself this season.
Well, those rumors have circulated just enough to hit the blogs, the mainstream and then filter their way back to sunny San Diego and LDT himself. For his part, he's choosing to pretend like they're just that: rumors.
Tomlinson says he's heard the rumors that the Chargers may trade him, allowing them to keep the cheaper Darren Sproles and get some younger players and draft picks to build a stronger future. Tomlinson still has 4 years left on his contract, and says management has not told him anything.
Quarterback is a tricky position -- you can draft a stud early and end up with a fantasy monster like Drew Brees. Or you can draft a stud early and end up with your season done in Week 1, like folks who pulled the trigger on Tom Brady last season. 
In the first 10 games of 2008, 
This offseason, FanHouse and the 
This offseason, FanHouse and the 
This offseason, FanHouse and the 
A month ago, Matt Snyder took a look at the first edition of the FanHouse fantasy rankings and identified several players whom he felt deserved a second look, either ranking too high or too low. This week in 
It's been over a month since we last posted positional fantasy football rankings, so it's time to run our second version. Plus, we added some staff. This is now an average ranking 
With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all. 
As opposed to quarterbacks, I'm definitely in favor of keeping running backs. In fact, I highly recommend keeping two runners instead of a quarterback, if you have two of my top 20. Running backs are the life-blood of your fantasy team, much like the oil in your car. Two consistent runners on your fantasy team make life so much easier, which is why it's your starting point. 
Ryan 
