Name value is a key component in fantasy sports. Take, for instance, Braylon Edwards. You know he sucks. I know he sucks. Heck, LeBron James knows he sucks. (Bob Costas and Buzz Bissinger might be the only people on the planet that like him, actually.) But yet ... everyone keeps drafting him! I'm guilty of pulling trigger on him late, as well, because he's so talented and it seemed like "value."
So, the question that we have to ask today is, "When can you cut a big name?" Actually, we're going to answer the question. I guess that would help out a lot more, huh?
Sunday Evening Wrap checks out players who increased or decreased their value during the Sunday afternoon games. Faller of the Week: Everyone on the Oakland Raiders. The Houston Texans entered the game as one of the league's worst defenses. They were the worst in the NFL against the run. Sunday, the Raiders gained just 165 yards and only a single first down on the ground against those same Texans. I'm done with Darren McFadden. Michael Bush and Justin Fargas shouldn't be considered viable fantasy contributors in any format, and I'd even give up on Zach Miller (which isn't his fault, but he's not going to put up stats for this embarrassingly inept offense). This team is dead to me, and they should be to you, too.
As the season nears, FanHouse's fantasy football team decided to put our heads together for another set of updated positional rankings. In this installment, we'll hit up the thoroughbreds.
The thing that sticks out to me, when viewing the running backs for this season, is what a muddled mess the group is. I stared at a group of about 15 players -- those ranked from six to 20 -- for probably 45 minutes while tinkering with how to rank them. Some will pan out, and some will end up being viewed as busts. May the force be with you. (Last Updated: 8/27/09)
The proliferation of mock drafts as well as their offspring, the ADP (average draft position), have given fantasy football players three new approaches to uncovering values come draft day. Whether or not you take fantasy football seriously, the ADP is officially protocol in draft prep. Evaluating this list of fantasy football ADPs provides three distinct strategies that can lead to finding some gems at bargain prices.
The first involves the simple idea of hubris: that you yourself know more than everyone else. In other words, owners can assess the current ADP levels and determine if the broader fantasy football playing market has under- or over-valued particular players. In doing so, owners can determine where they think they can pick up steals on the cheap, catching the fantasy landscape by surprise.
For those who may use a different term or are new to fantasy football, "handcuff" is the term used when you own insurance for one of your players in the form of owning his real-life backup. It's usually a running back, but you could conceivably handcuff a quarterback. The theory is that some or all of the production is automatically replaced should you lose a high draft pick to injury, meaning you need to insure a high draft pick by grabbing his backup.
Cut-N-Go is Fantasy Football FanHouse's daily gathering of links from around the web, covering the goings-on in NFL Training Camp which have an impact on fantasy value.
Obviously, with training camp comes a certain level of optimism surrounding every team. At Bears camp, the entire offense has been a veritable hype machine, due mostly to the acquisition of pro bowl quarterback Jay Cutler.
Let's be honest, there are few things more entertaining in sports than when an athlete is absolutely despised by a city. And I don't mean despised in the Michael Jordan-tears-out-Cleveland's-heart-with-a-wooden-spoon level hate. That's rooted in Jordan's superhuman play on the field.
I mean on a level like LenDale White stomping on the Terrible Towel and refusing to apologize -- where the entire city is outraged at one particular player.
When Keith Bulluck and LenDale Whitewent to town on a Terrible Towel in the waning moments of the Titans' beatdown of the Steelers in Week 16 last season, they had just clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. So, sure, they had every right to celebrate.
Plus, no way a team full of grown men would take offense at the defacing of a yellow hand towel, right. Uh, not quite. The reaction was swift, and last month, Titans cornerback Cortland Finnegan even called it unacceptable.
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.
Earlier this week, JJ pointed out that Titans cornerback Cortland Finnegan admitted that defacing the Terrible Towel wasn't "... what this coach is about, that's not what our team is about. You do it in between the lines ... the rest of it is unacceptable."
He was referring to this, when teammates LenDale White and Keith Bulluckwent to town on a Terrible Towel in the closing minutes of their Week 16 beatdown of the Steelers. Myron Cope's spirit was not amused. Tennessee would lose to Baltimore in the divisional round of the playoffs, and Pittsburgh would win their sixth Super Bowl in team history.
Stash or Trash tells you whether a prospective fantasy football pickup (or drop) is worthy of your roster spot.
Sunday Evening Wrap checks out players who increased or decreased their value during the Sunday afternoon games. 
As the season nears, FanHouse's fantasy football team decided to put our heads together for another set of updated positional rankings. In this installment, we'll hit up the thoroughbreds. 
The proliferation of mock drafts as well as their offspring, the ADP (
For those who may use a different term or are new to 
When 
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. 
Earlier this week, 
