Our look at the fantasy football magazines taking over your newsstand like so much ivy continues with another well-known brand.
Sporting News Fantasy Football
Vital stats: $7.99, 148 pages with a 2-page pullout sheet, 397 offensive players (294 ranked) and 170 defensive players (105 ranked) previewed.
Top 10 picks: If you are playing in the typical 10-team league, the Sporting News has put your draft's first round right on its cover. It says you should take Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Steven Jackson, Andre Johnson, DeAngelo Williams, Drew Brees and Frank Gore.
Well, maybe not: The Sporting News "experts" held a 12-team draft, and they forgot to read their own cover. Two of the top 10 draft choices were used on Aaron Rodgers (a slight surprise, but nothing more) and Shonn Greene (a legitimate jaw-dropper).
Intriguing nugget: Like many fantasy football magazines, this one offers a peek at each team's schedule. Unlike most magazines, this one highlights the games that are likely to occur during your league's playoffs. For example, in weeks 14-16, the Dallas Cowboys face three teams (Philadelphia, Washington and Arizona) that "finished in the top nine in sacks last season."
Head scratcher: These folks tell us this about the notion of paying attention to preseason hype: "We can almost throw this one out without thinking about it." But then, what does that make this magazine?
Kicker rule obeyed? To quote Judd Nelson from "The Breakfast Club," not even close, bud. In the 12-team draft of Sporting News experts, four picked a kicker before the last round. The magazine's assessment? "Eight of the final 12 picks in the draft were kickers, which is how it should be." That's right; fantasy football rules should be followed only two-thirds of the time.
Listen up: While everyone else is all worked up about a certain quarterback who, as of this writing, has neither reported for training camp nor filed retirement papers with the NFL, this magazine does a good job of informing fantasy football players about the very real possibility that we will have no football in the 2011 season.
Two options that are raised (and dashed quickly) are fantasy CFL and fantasy college football. "Tyler Sheehan, Donald Buckram, James Cleveland? These aren't congressmen running for re-election; they're the No. 3 passer, No. 6 runner and No. 8 receiver, respectively, in college football last season."
We'll be back with a look at this week's NASCAR site.
Showing posts with label previews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label previews. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Fantasy Preview Review - USA Today
Our look at the fantasy football magazines now dominating the sports section of your favorite newstand continues with one of the best-known titles in America.
USA Today 2010 Fantasy Football
Vital stats: $7.99, 144 pages, 354 offensive and 75 defensive players ranked.
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team league, USA Today's experts (including recruits from at least a half-dozen other Web sites) say the first round of your draft should look like this: Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Andre Johnson, Drew Brees, Steven Jackson, Larry Fitzgerald, Peyton Manning, Michael Turner, Maurice Jones-Drew and Ray Rice.
Intriguing nugget: Sigmund Bloom and Jason Wood of Footballguys.com are targeting Donald Brown as a steal, because he's a second-year running back who didn't live up to expectations last season. "Most people move on to the new flavors of the month at the position, but Ray Rice, Jamaal Charles, and Rashard Mendenhall were members of a lot of championship teams" last year.
Head scratcher: The section on quarterbacks starts with a list of the top 50 players available at that position. However, thanks to some fuzzy math, the section that follows that list has two quarterbacks ranked 42nd: Ryan Fitzpatrick (who appears on the list) and JaMarcus Russell (who does not).
I'm not sure which is a bigger head scratcher -- the fact that there's two quarterbacks ranked 42nd or the fact that someone thinks there are nine quarterbacks worse than Russell. That includes Colt McCoy, who also appears in the section with a rank of "NR."
Kicker rule obeyed? Again, the USA Today experts did not conduct a mock draft. David Dorey of TheHuddle.com advises players not to draft a kicker until the very last round. "Anything earlier is as optimistic as e-mailing Jennifer Aniston and asking her out on a date."
However, two pages after saying that, Dorey offers a system for those who want to carry two kickers on the roster: "You can make weekly decisions that can net you an extra three points. Just pick whichever kicker is more likely to be on a winning team that weekend."
(If anyone here plays in a league where you can get an extra pick in the final round of your draft, feel free to leave a comment explaining how.)
Prediction likely to go wrong: That Vincent Jackson will be a top 10 fantasy wide receiver this season. Here's USA Today's assessment: "Jackson has even pushed ahead of TE Antonio Gates as a scoring threat. Jackson continues to upset the team with his immaturity, which could lead to a short suspension, but that's the only thing going against him. Make him your No. 1 receiver."
For the moment, let's set aside the three-game suspension Jackson is facing for his second DUI guilty plea (probably not anyone's definition of a "short suspension," anyway). Unless he and the Chargers kiss and make up quickly, he could end up missing the majority of the season through a holdout. If that sounds like a No. 1 fantasy option to you, maybe you need to lay off the wine.
We'll be back with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
USA Today 2010 Fantasy Football
Vital stats: $7.99, 144 pages, 354 offensive and 75 defensive players ranked.
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team league, USA Today's experts (including recruits from at least a half-dozen other Web sites) say the first round of your draft should look like this: Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Andre Johnson, Drew Brees, Steven Jackson, Larry Fitzgerald, Peyton Manning, Michael Turner, Maurice Jones-Drew and Ray Rice.
Intriguing nugget: Sigmund Bloom and Jason Wood of Footballguys.com are targeting Donald Brown as a steal, because he's a second-year running back who didn't live up to expectations last season. "Most people move on to the new flavors of the month at the position, but Ray Rice, Jamaal Charles, and Rashard Mendenhall were members of a lot of championship teams" last year.
Head scratcher: The section on quarterbacks starts with a list of the top 50 players available at that position. However, thanks to some fuzzy math, the section that follows that list has two quarterbacks ranked 42nd: Ryan Fitzpatrick (who appears on the list) and JaMarcus Russell (who does not).
I'm not sure which is a bigger head scratcher -- the fact that there's two quarterbacks ranked 42nd or the fact that someone thinks there are nine quarterbacks worse than Russell. That includes Colt McCoy, who also appears in the section with a rank of "NR."
Kicker rule obeyed? Again, the USA Today experts did not conduct a mock draft. David Dorey of TheHuddle.com advises players not to draft a kicker until the very last round. "Anything earlier is as optimistic as e-mailing Jennifer Aniston and asking her out on a date."
However, two pages after saying that, Dorey offers a system for those who want to carry two kickers on the roster: "You can make weekly decisions that can net you an extra three points. Just pick whichever kicker is more likely to be on a winning team that weekend."
(If anyone here plays in a league where you can get an extra pick in the final round of your draft, feel free to leave a comment explaining how.)
Prediction likely to go wrong: That Vincent Jackson will be a top 10 fantasy wide receiver this season. Here's USA Today's assessment: "Jackson has even pushed ahead of TE Antonio Gates as a scoring threat. Jackson continues to upset the team with his immaturity, which could lead to a short suspension, but that's the only thing going against him. Make him your No. 1 receiver."
For the moment, let's set aside the three-game suspension Jackson is facing for his second DUI guilty plea (probably not anyone's definition of a "short suspension," anyway). Unless he and the Chargers kiss and make up quickly, he could end up missing the majority of the season through a holdout. If that sounds like a No. 1 fantasy option to you, maybe you need to lay off the wine.
We'll be back with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Fantasy Preview Review - Fantasy League Football
Our occasional look at the plethora of fantasy football magazines continues now with a lesser-known brand. It just goes to show that you don't have to be a sports juggernaut to put out a preview issue, just like you don't have to know anything about fantasy sports to run a Web si...OK, bad example.
Fantasy League Football 2010 (Harris Publications)
Vital stats: $9.95, 162 pages, 286 offensive and 105 defensive player previews. (Note: The cover claims "490 Players Ranked!," but here's my count, going section by section: 64 quarterbacks, 75 running backs, 75 wide receivers, 40 tight ends, 32 kickers, 35 defensive linemen, 35 linebackers and 35 defensive backs. Even if you count team defenses as "players," that adds up to only 423. I'm hoping the cover wasn't put together by this guy.)
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team draft, the folks at Harris Publications want you to take Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Frank Gore, Rashard Mendenhall and Drew Brees.
Intriguing nugget: This one on Terrell Owens, who was still a free agent when this magazine came out: "If he signs with a good offense, he could produce as a No. 3 fantasy WR."
Head scratcher: If the 490-players-ranked claim wasn't enough for you, the cover also claims that this magazine is the "#1 Rated Fantasy Mag!" What the magazine doesn't say is who rated it #1. I'm sure the editors' moms love them and think very highly of their product, but that doesn't mean we should pay attention to what they say, does it?
But then again: These are also the same folks who publish titles like "Tactical Knives" and "Combat Handguns." So ... um ... if they want to call themselves "#1 Rated," that's OK with me. Really.
(Whew. Now, where was I?)
Kicker rule obeyed? Hard to say, since there is no mock draft, so there was no chance for our experts to pick a kicker before the last round. The closest thing we have to advice in this issue is this nugget from Steve Bennett: "If you really feel the compulsion to have the top kicker or team D or IDP, just trade for them during the season. After all, the spaz who burned a seventh-rounder on David Akers will likely be in the market for a skill position player at some some point."
One more thing: This magazine has one thing not yet found by the People's Pigskin in any other magazine: game logs for last season. Want to know how touchdowns Carson Palmer threw in Week 7 against the Chicago Bears? They've got it (5, a season high).
Anyway, the lineup polls for this week's NASCAR race will close later tonight. Please vote now. We'll be back with the results.
Fantasy League Football 2010 (Harris Publications)
Vital stats: $9.95, 162 pages, 286 offensive and 105 defensive player previews. (Note: The cover claims "490 Players Ranked!," but here's my count, going section by section: 64 quarterbacks, 75 running backs, 75 wide receivers, 40 tight ends, 32 kickers, 35 defensive linemen, 35 linebackers and 35 defensive backs. Even if you count team defenses as "players," that adds up to only 423. I'm hoping the cover wasn't put together by this guy.)
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team draft, the folks at Harris Publications want you to take Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Frank Gore, Rashard Mendenhall and Drew Brees.
Intriguing nugget: This one on Terrell Owens, who was still a free agent when this magazine came out: "If he signs with a good offense, he could produce as a No. 3 fantasy WR."
Head scratcher: If the 490-players-ranked claim wasn't enough for you, the cover also claims that this magazine is the "#1 Rated Fantasy Mag!" What the magazine doesn't say is who rated it #1. I'm sure the editors' moms love them and think very highly of their product, but that doesn't mean we should pay attention to what they say, does it?
But then again: These are also the same folks who publish titles like "Tactical Knives" and "Combat Handguns." So ... um ... if they want to call themselves "#1 Rated," that's OK with me. Really.
(Whew. Now, where was I?)
Kicker rule obeyed? Hard to say, since there is no mock draft, so there was no chance for our experts to pick a kicker before the last round. The closest thing we have to advice in this issue is this nugget from Steve Bennett: "If you really feel the compulsion to have the top kicker or team D or IDP, just trade for them during the season. After all, the spaz who burned a seventh-rounder on David Akers will likely be in the market for a skill position player at some some point."
One more thing: This magazine has one thing not yet found by the People's Pigskin in any other magazine: game logs for last season. Want to know how touchdowns Carson Palmer threw in Week 7 against the Chicago Bears? They've got it (5, a season high).
Anyway, the lineup polls for this week's NASCAR race will close later tonight. Please vote now. We'll be back with the results.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Football Preview Review - Fox Sports
Over the next few weeks, the people who bring you the People's Pigskin will try to get you prepared for fantasy football season (that's football, not futbol) by taking a peek at one of the most critical items in your preparation efforts: the fantasy football preview magazines. Today we continue our series with an offering from the people who brought you this.
Fox Sports Fantasy 2010 Fantasy Football
Vital stats: $4.95 price, 98 pages, 302 offensive player reviews (no individual defensive players) and no tearout sheets.
Top 10 picks: Fox decided to base its predictions on a 12-team league conducting a 16-team draft. However, for those of you playing in a 10-team league, Fox recommends drafting Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Steven Jackson, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald and Reggie Wayne.
Intriguing nugget: The minions of News Corp. should get credit for breaking down the typical weekly schedule of those concerned about a player's injury. Crunch time starts on Thursday, according to this magazine. ("Two practices [missed] in a row? Time to worry.") However, Friday is the time to pull the trigger on any roster changes, since, "if a player doesn't practice Friday, he often doesn't play Sunday. With some teams," practicing the Friday before a game is "almost a requirement."
Head scratcher: Since these things are usually collaborative efforts, it is quite common for a fantasy preview to obey a rule in one section and disregard it in another. However, one would expect a magazine to be consistent enough in its advice it offers that the left hand knows what the right hand is doing on a single page.
The first page of Fox's "Draft Day Cheat Sheet" has a list of do's and don'ts for drafting. One of the do's: "Draft a top RB in the first round." However, the first page also has a list of "recommended position selections (rounds 1-6) based on team order and round." Again, the advice assumes that you have a 12-team league and a 16-round draft. How many of the 12 teams does this list say should draft a running back first? Seven.
Another of the do's: "Pick a quarterback in the second round." How many teams does this list say should draft a quarterback in that round? Three. (To be fair, that list also said one team should take a quarterback in the first round.)
Kicker rule obeyed? Nope. In a mock draft of 12 "experts," four participants picked a kicker in the 15th round. And this preview doesn't believe in the "don't draft a kicker until the final round" rule anyway. Its advice on the position: "Hardly any of them are worth a pick earlier than the 15th round."
Survey says: One bonus feature of this magazine is a survey of Fox Sports and Scout.com contributors on a variety of critical questions. We learn such valuable things as who has the hottest cheerleaders (the Dallas Cowboys) and who is the league's most hated team (the Cowboys again; maybe everyone's jealous of the cheerleaders).
One more thing: Instead of spending the time, energy and ink breaking down every possible offensive contributor for every National Football League team, the folks at Fox Sports assembled team previews from local Web sites such as PatriotsInsider.com and BucsBlitz.com.
All the local experts offered answers to questions like who will be this year's "fantasy stud" and which game has earned the label "must win." Thirty-one of the 32 experts also offered a pick for "Best Sports Bar." The one who didn't: the Cleveland Browns expert. Maybe it's because the Warsaw closed down.
We'll be back with our fearless predictions.
Fox Sports Fantasy 2010 Fantasy Football
Vital stats: $4.95 price, 98 pages, 302 offensive player reviews (no individual defensive players) and no tearout sheets.
Top 10 picks: Fox decided to base its predictions on a 12-team league conducting a 16-team draft. However, for those of you playing in a 10-team league, Fox recommends drafting Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice, Michael Turner, Steven Jackson, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald and Reggie Wayne.
Intriguing nugget: The minions of News Corp. should get credit for breaking down the typical weekly schedule of those concerned about a player's injury. Crunch time starts on Thursday, according to this magazine. ("Two practices [missed] in a row? Time to worry.") However, Friday is the time to pull the trigger on any roster changes, since, "if a player doesn't practice Friday, he often doesn't play Sunday. With some teams," practicing the Friday before a game is "almost a requirement."
Head scratcher: Since these things are usually collaborative efforts, it is quite common for a fantasy preview to obey a rule in one section and disregard it in another. However, one would expect a magazine to be consistent enough in its advice it offers that the left hand knows what the right hand is doing on a single page.
The first page of Fox's "Draft Day Cheat Sheet" has a list of do's and don'ts for drafting. One of the do's: "Draft a top RB in the first round." However, the first page also has a list of "recommended position selections (rounds 1-6) based on team order and round." Again, the advice assumes that you have a 12-team league and a 16-round draft. How many of the 12 teams does this list say should draft a running back first? Seven.
Another of the do's: "Pick a quarterback in the second round." How many teams does this list say should draft a quarterback in that round? Three. (To be fair, that list also said one team should take a quarterback in the first round.)
Kicker rule obeyed? Nope. In a mock draft of 12 "experts," four participants picked a kicker in the 15th round. And this preview doesn't believe in the "don't draft a kicker until the final round" rule anyway. Its advice on the position: "Hardly any of them are worth a pick earlier than the 15th round."
Survey says: One bonus feature of this magazine is a survey of Fox Sports and Scout.com contributors on a variety of critical questions. We learn such valuable things as who has the hottest cheerleaders (the Dallas Cowboys) and who is the league's most hated team (the Cowboys again; maybe everyone's jealous of the cheerleaders).
One more thing: Instead of spending the time, energy and ink breaking down every possible offensive contributor for every National Football League team, the folks at Fox Sports assembled team previews from local Web sites such as PatriotsInsider.com and BucsBlitz.com.
All the local experts offered answers to questions like who will be this year's "fantasy stud" and which game has earned the label "must win." Thirty-one of the 32 experts also offered a pick for "Best Sports Bar." The one who didn't: the Cleveland Browns expert. Maybe it's because the Warsaw closed down.
We'll be back with our fearless predictions.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Football Preview Review - ESPN
Over the next few weeks, the people who bring you the People's Pigskin will try to get you prepared for fantasy football season by taking a peek at one of the most critical items in your preparation efforts: the fantasy football preview magazines. Today we kick things off with an offering from the "Worldwide Leader."
ESPN Fantasy Football 2010
Vital stats: $7.99 price, 148 pages, 424 offensive and 150 defensive player reviews and one tear-out cheat sheet. (No preview for Domenik Hixon, though. They dodged that bullet.)
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team league, ESPN says the first players that should come off your board are Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice, Steven Jackson, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson, Michael Turner, Drew Brees and Randy Moss.
Intriguing nugget: You might have guessed this from the way that top 10 list looks, but the folks in Bristol urge us fantasy players to "bury the Two Stud Running Backs Theory -- the outdated strategy of drafting RBs with your first two picks no matter what." That's because the advent of the two-back system means "fantasy options at that position have grown more plentiful while the scoring output of the middle-tier performers has declined."
Head scratcher: The Connecticut cabal also wants you to exercise caution when drafting a rookie running back. At least, that's what the point seems to be here: "If you're measuring sexy, then rookie running backs rank up there with Jessica Biel and Sofia Vergara. That said, I wouldn't touch Biel or Vergara (or Ryan Mathews) until at least the fifth."
Um...so if you're in a league in which Jessica Biel and Sofia Vergara are legitimate options for your lineup, wouldn't they be gone by, say, the middle of the first round? You're expecting to draft four sexy people before you get around to picking Biel and Vergara? Or are you taking them in the fifth round because you think they could fill in for you at quarterback on your bye week? Um...let's just move on.
Kicker rule obeyed? Every single fantasy football preview issue -- including ESPN's, in two different places -- tells us that kickers should never be drafted until the very last round. And every preview gets its resident "experts" together for a mock draft. Yet in ESPN's 10-team mock draft, the kicker rule is violated by two different "experts." Why? Maybe, like the Situation, the rules don't apply to them.
One more thing: Having over 500 individual players reviewed in your preview magazine seems impressive, until you realize that the stats (like some bras) are padded with items like this in-depth look at Johnnie Lee Higgins of the Oakland Raiders: "Higgins could make waves returning kicks, but with too many wideouts ahead of him, it's a long and winding road to significant offensive touches."
We'll be back with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
ESPN Fantasy Football 2010
Vital stats: $7.99 price, 148 pages, 424 offensive and 150 defensive player reviews and one tear-out cheat sheet. (No preview for Domenik Hixon, though. They dodged that bullet.)
Top 10 picks: If you're in a 10-team league, ESPN says the first players that should come off your board are Chris Johnson, Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice, Steven Jackson, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson, Michael Turner, Drew Brees and Randy Moss.
Intriguing nugget: You might have guessed this from the way that top 10 list looks, but the folks in Bristol urge us fantasy players to "bury the Two Stud Running Backs Theory -- the outdated strategy of drafting RBs with your first two picks no matter what." That's because the advent of the two-back system means "fantasy options at that position have grown more plentiful while the scoring output of the middle-tier performers has declined."
Head scratcher: The Connecticut cabal also wants you to exercise caution when drafting a rookie running back. At least, that's what the point seems to be here: "If you're measuring sexy, then rookie running backs rank up there with Jessica Biel and Sofia Vergara. That said, I wouldn't touch Biel or Vergara (or Ryan Mathews) until at least the fifth."
Um...so if you're in a league in which Jessica Biel and Sofia Vergara are legitimate options for your lineup, wouldn't they be gone by, say, the middle of the first round? You're expecting to draft four sexy people before you get around to picking Biel and Vergara? Or are you taking them in the fifth round because you think they could fill in for you at quarterback on your bye week? Um...let's just move on.
Kicker rule obeyed? Every single fantasy football preview issue -- including ESPN's, in two different places -- tells us that kickers should never be drafted until the very last round. And every preview gets its resident "experts" together for a mock draft. Yet in ESPN's 10-team mock draft, the kicker rule is violated by two different "experts." Why? Maybe, like the Situation, the rules don't apply to them.
One more thing: Having over 500 individual players reviewed in your preview magazine seems impressive, until you realize that the stats (like some bras) are padded with items like this in-depth look at Johnnie Lee Higgins of the Oakland Raiders: "Higgins could make waves returning kicks, but with too many wideouts ahead of him, it's a long and winding road to significant offensive touches."
We'll be back with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
When Does Football Season Start Again?
If you're a fantasy football fan, the answer is "It's started already! Where have you BEEN?"
Last week the People's Pigskin received an invitation to join a league for the upcoming NFL season. And this week, your local stores have received its first shipment of (drumroll, please) fantasy football preview magazines.
The People's Pigskin will offer some in-depth reviews of the major magazines over the summer. But for now, it's time to ask one major question: Why print your fantasy preview less than a week after Memorial Day? Bear in mind that as I type this:
* Brian Westbrook is still looking for a National Football League team to call home for this season.
* So is Terrell Owens.
* Vincent Jackson has yet to sign his contract tender from the San Diego Chargers and is reportedly making veiled threats about skipping this season altogether.
* And if you have any insight as to what Brett Favre plans to do between now and Christmas, do everyone a favor and let the Minnesota Vikings know, because they don't seem to have the first clue.
Has any of this uncertainty convinced the fantasy "experts" that maybe they should wait to put out their magazines? Here's a snippet from ESPN's fantasy preview, one of the first ones out of the gate, about how their experts compiled their player rankings for the 2010 season:
"A mere two days after the NFL draft, our stable of fantasy experts sequestered themselves in a bright-but-windowless room in Bristol HQ, next door to the 'War Room,' where ESPN's pro analysts gather to watch the games on Sunday."
The NFL draft ended on April 24. That means the ESPN experts were compiling their rankings on April 26 -- a mere four months and two weeks before the start of the regular season.
I'm not saying you should take your brand-spanking-new fantasy previews and use them to mulch your garden. But I am saying that if you take them to your fantasy draft, you should take along a salt shaker, because you may need to take their advice with more than a grain of salt.
We'll be back with a peek at this week's NASCAR venue.
Last week the People's Pigskin received an invitation to join a league for the upcoming NFL season. And this week, your local stores have received its first shipment of (drumroll, please) fantasy football preview magazines.
The People's Pigskin will offer some in-depth reviews of the major magazines over the summer. But for now, it's time to ask one major question: Why print your fantasy preview less than a week after Memorial Day? Bear in mind that as I type this:
* Brian Westbrook is still looking for a National Football League team to call home for this season.
* So is Terrell Owens.
* Vincent Jackson has yet to sign his contract tender from the San Diego Chargers and is reportedly making veiled threats about skipping this season altogether.
* And if you have any insight as to what Brett Favre plans to do between now and Christmas, do everyone a favor and let the Minnesota Vikings know, because they don't seem to have the first clue.
Has any of this uncertainty convinced the fantasy "experts" that maybe they should wait to put out their magazines? Here's a snippet from ESPN's fantasy preview, one of the first ones out of the gate, about how their experts compiled their player rankings for the 2010 season:
"A mere two days after the NFL draft, our stable of fantasy experts sequestered themselves in a bright-but-windowless room in Bristol HQ, next door to the 'War Room,' where ESPN's pro analysts gather to watch the games on Sunday."
The NFL draft ended on April 24. That means the ESPN experts were compiling their rankings on April 26 -- a mere four months and two weeks before the start of the regular season.
I'm not saying you should take your brand-spanking-new fantasy previews and use them to mulch your garden. But I am saying that if you take them to your fantasy draft, you should take along a salt shaker, because you may need to take their advice with more than a grain of salt.
We'll be back with a peek at this week's NASCAR venue.
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