Before the People's Pigskin drafts its lineup for the 2010-11 NFL season, it's time to post the results of one last set of draft board polls.
First of all, you, the Internet, decided that Drew Brees should be sixth overall on our draft board (after Adrian Peterson, Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice and Frank Gore). You also said that Tom Brady should be the No. 4 quarterback (after Brees, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers) and that Randy Moss should be our No. 4 wide receiver (after Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Brandon Marshall).
You said that we should have Antonio Gates as our No. 2 tight end (after Dallas Clark). When asked who should be our No. 2 defense/special teams (after the New York Jets), you split between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings. We just had Roger Goodell flip a coin for us, and we'll have the Vikings No. 2 and the Steelers No. 3.
Meanwhile, even though the NASCAR Sprint Cup race is taking place right now, we have a new set of driver polls up. They will stay up until Thursday evening. Feel free to vote now. We'll be back with the draft results.
[polldaddy poll=3715058] [polldaddy poll=3715069] [polldaddy poll=3715074] [polldaddy poll=3715081] [polldaddy poll=3715085]
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Fearless Predictions - Atlanta
As the People's League prepares for Sunday night's draft and hundreds of entertainers prepare for Jerry Lewis' shindig, it's time to offer the weekly predictions for which NASCAR drivers will finish in the top 10 race in the Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Our most recent predictions went a respectable 5-5, leaving us with an almost respectable season record of 109-121.
1. Kevin Harvick. All he has to do over the next two weeks is make sure he doesn't get hurt on the way to the Chase.
2. Jeff Gordon. Ditto.
3. Kyle Busch. You want a hot hand? Mr. Pink Car and a Pink Suit thoroughly dominated Bristol Motor Speedway two weeks ago.
4. Denny Hamlin. He has the pole, and the way things stand now, he'd start the Chase with the lead.
5. Clint Bowyer. Given the right set of circumstances, he could actually sew up the 12th and final Chase spot...
6. Jamie McMurray. ...or he could open the door for McMurray, who won his first Nationwide race in six years on Saturday.
7. Kasey Kahne. He won here last year, and stranger things have happened.
8. Tony Stewart. He found trouble in Bristol, but he still have five top 10 finishes in his last six races, and he starts fifth tonight.
9. Ryan Newman. There's no denying that Newman knows how to go fast in Atlanta. He's starting second tonight, and he has seven poles on this track.
10. David Ragan. This week's medium-to-long shot (with emphasis on long) is a driver who's starting 9th on his sponsor's home track. If only he were racing the truck...
We'll be back with results from the fantasy football polls, which will close in a few hours. Please vote now.
1. Kevin Harvick. All he has to do over the next two weeks is make sure he doesn't get hurt on the way to the Chase.
2. Jeff Gordon. Ditto.
3. Kyle Busch. You want a hot hand? Mr. Pink Car and a Pink Suit thoroughly dominated Bristol Motor Speedway two weeks ago.
4. Denny Hamlin. He has the pole, and the way things stand now, he'd start the Chase with the lead.
5. Clint Bowyer. Given the right set of circumstances, he could actually sew up the 12th and final Chase spot...
6. Jamie McMurray. ...or he could open the door for McMurray, who won his first Nationwide race in six years on Saturday.
7. Kasey Kahne. He won here last year, and stranger things have happened.
8. Tony Stewart. He found trouble in Bristol, but he still have five top 10 finishes in his last six races, and he starts fifth tonight.
9. Ryan Newman. There's no denying that Newman knows how to go fast in Atlanta. He's starting second tonight, and he has seven poles on this track.
10. David Ragan. This week's medium-to-long shot (with emphasis on long) is a driver who's starting 9th on his sponsor's home track. If only he were racing the truck...
We'll be back with results from the fantasy football polls, which will close in a few hours. Please vote now.
Thank You
This is just a quick note to thank everybody who signed up for the People's League or encouraged others to do so. Thanks to your clever marketing tactics, we have a FULL TEN-TEAM LEAGUE. (Insert wild cheering here.)
For those of you who have signed up for the league, our live draft is scheduled to begin tonight at 9 p.m. EDT. Be there or suffer the consequences of an autodraft.
We'll be back shortly with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
For those of you who have signed up for the league, our live draft is scheduled to begin tonight at 9 p.m. EDT. Be there or suffer the consequences of an autodraft.
We'll be back shortly with the weekly NASCAR predictions.
Friday, September 3, 2010
The People's Choice - Atlanta
Another week has come and gone, and you, the Internet, have spoken. You have determined which drivers will suit up for the People's Pitstop for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Here are the results.
A List. Another week, another tie at the top of this polls. This week's combatants are Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon. We will use the qualifying session as the tiebreaker.
B List. For this poll, we have a clear-cut first place winner (Kasey Kahne) and a clear-cut second place winner (Ryan Newman). They will start this week, while Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer will watch from the bench.
C List. Here, we have yet another tie, this time between A.J. Allmendinger and Scott Speed. Whoever qualifies better will start; the other one will sit.
We'll update this post after the qualifying session. The poll results appear below. By the way, we still need two fantasy football players to take the last spots in the People's League. Any takers?
EDITED 7 P.M. The results are in. Tony Stewart, who qualified fifth, gets a starting nod over Jeff Gordon, who qualified 18th. A.J. Allmendinger, who qualified 16th, edged out Scott Speed, who qualified 20th. Kahne, who was already guaranteed a starting spot, qualified 10th. But the star of the session was Ryan Newman, who qualified 2nd behind Denny Hamlin and earned the People's Pitstop a 5-point bonus.
In the meantime, the People's League now needs just ONE ... MORE ... PLAYER. Want to take the last spot and make our league official? Sign up right now by clicking here.
[polldaddy poll=3690895] [polldaddy poll=3690897] [polldaddy poll=3690909]
A List. Another week, another tie at the top of this polls. This week's combatants are Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon. We will use the qualifying session as the tiebreaker.
B List. For this poll, we have a clear-cut first place winner (Kasey Kahne) and a clear-cut second place winner (Ryan Newman). They will start this week, while Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer will watch from the bench.
C List. Here, we have yet another tie, this time between A.J. Allmendinger and Scott Speed. Whoever qualifies better will start; the other one will sit.
We'll update this post after the qualifying session. The poll results appear below. By the way, we still need two fantasy football players to take the last spots in the People's League. Any takers?
EDITED 7 P.M. The results are in. Tony Stewart, who qualified fifth, gets a starting nod over Jeff Gordon, who qualified 18th. A.J. Allmendinger, who qualified 16th, edged out Scott Speed, who qualified 20th. Kahne, who was already guaranteed a starting spot, qualified 10th. But the star of the session was Ryan Newman, who qualified 2nd behind Denny Hamlin and earned the People's Pitstop a 5-point bonus.
In the meantime, the People's League now needs just ONE ... MORE ... PLAYER. Want to take the last spot and make our league official? Sign up right now by clicking here.
[polldaddy poll=3690895] [polldaddy poll=3690897] [polldaddy poll=3690909]
NFL Polls and Notes
Those of you interested in helping the People's Pitstop set its lineup for Sunday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway still have a few hours to vote on those polls. And those fantasy football fans who are interested in helping the People's Pigskin set the top of its draft board have some new polls available under the NASCAR ones.
So far, you, the Internet, have decided that and Adrian Peterson, Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice and Frank Gore should be the top five players on our draft board. You also decided that Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers should be our top quarterbacks, that Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Brandon Marshall should be our top wide receivers, that Dallas Clark should be our top tight end and that the New York Jets should be our top defense/special teams.
You'll have until Sunday evening to vote on the newest football polls. They will close shortly before the People's League draft, which is scheduled for 9 p.m. EDT. By the way, we still need three players to sign up for this league. Any takers? Click here.
In the meantime, here are a few stories fantasy football players should be following as the regular season (mercifully) approaches.
Pittsburgh pitfalls: The good news is that Ben Roethlisberger didn't do anything egregious over the last few months, so he will miss only the first four games of the season. The bad news is that Byron Leftwich may not be so lucky.
Leftwich, the quarterback still best known for getting a lift from his linemen, was expected to fill in for Roethlisberger during his suspension. But that was before Leftwich sprained his knee Thursday night against the Carolina Panthers. That means either Dennis Dixon or Charlie Batch will get the starting spot. For fantasy football fans, it means you might want to downgrade Pittsburgh's receivers (and running backs, since defenses will be less nervous about stuffing the box) until Batch/Dixon proves that they can get the job done.
Denouement in the desert: We knew the Arizona Cardinals would have a hard time filling the dancing shoes of Kurt Warner. What we did not know was that Matt Leinart, the former Heisman Trophy winner who has watched Warner for the last few years and presumably has absorbed Ken Whisenhunt's system, would fail to hold off Cleveland Browns castoff Derek Anderson. By the time you read this post, Leinart could be traded to another team or on the street.
If you have Larry Fitzgerald on your team, it's OK to be nervous. If you have Beanie Wells or Tim Hightower, it's OK to salivate over the handoffs they might be getting next week.
Game 4's not for them: The National Football League is considering switching from a four-game preseason to a two-game one. Those who are probably in favor of that right about now include LenDale White (out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon),Montario Hardesty (out with a torn ACL) and Albert Haynesworth (who played the whole game and probably wishes he were injured Thursday night).
In happier news: Patrick Crayton has a new home, while Vincent Jackson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh may soon get theirs. Stay tuned.
We'll be back later with results from the NASCAR polls.
So far, you, the Internet, have decided that and Adrian Peterson, Chris Johnson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Ray Rice and Frank Gore should be the top five players on our draft board. You also decided that Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers should be our top quarterbacks, that Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Brandon Marshall should be our top wide receivers, that Dallas Clark should be our top tight end and that the New York Jets should be our top defense/special teams.
You'll have until Sunday evening to vote on the newest football polls. They will close shortly before the People's League draft, which is scheduled for 9 p.m. EDT. By the way, we still need three players to sign up for this league. Any takers? Click here.
In the meantime, here are a few stories fantasy football players should be following as the regular season (mercifully) approaches.
Pittsburgh pitfalls: The good news is that Ben Roethlisberger didn't do anything egregious over the last few months, so he will miss only the first four games of the season. The bad news is that Byron Leftwich may not be so lucky.
Leftwich, the quarterback still best known for getting a lift from his linemen, was expected to fill in for Roethlisberger during his suspension. But that was before Leftwich sprained his knee Thursday night against the Carolina Panthers. That means either Dennis Dixon or Charlie Batch will get the starting spot. For fantasy football fans, it means you might want to downgrade Pittsburgh's receivers (and running backs, since defenses will be less nervous about stuffing the box) until Batch/Dixon proves that they can get the job done.
Denouement in the desert: We knew the Arizona Cardinals would have a hard time filling the dancing shoes of Kurt Warner. What we did not know was that Matt Leinart, the former Heisman Trophy winner who has watched Warner for the last few years and presumably has absorbed Ken Whisenhunt's system, would fail to hold off Cleveland Browns castoff Derek Anderson. By the time you read this post, Leinart could be traded to another team or on the street.
If you have Larry Fitzgerald on your team, it's OK to be nervous. If you have Beanie Wells or Tim Hightower, it's OK to salivate over the handoffs they might be getting next week.
Game 4's not for them: The National Football League is considering switching from a four-game preseason to a two-game one. Those who are probably in favor of that right about now include LenDale White (out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon),Montario Hardesty (out with a torn ACL) and Albert Haynesworth (who played the whole game and probably wishes he were injured Thursday night).
In happier news: Patrick Crayton has a new home, while Vincent Jackson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh may soon get theirs. Stay tuned.
We'll be back later with results from the NASCAR polls.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
The People's Facts - Emory Healthcare 500
This week, fantasy NASCAR fans have until Friday evening to vote on the People's Pitstop lineup. To help you get ready for the pre-Labor-Day Sprint Cup race, we are proud to offer some information about this week's race site.
Track basics: Atlanta Motor Speedway is a mile-and-a-half oval in suburban Hampton, Georgia. Actually, according to NASCAR, the track is 1.54 miles long. That means a 325-lap race will cover a distance of 500.5 miles, but "Emory Healthcare 500.5" isn't quite as catchy.
Last time we were here: Way back in March, the People's Pigskin racked up 302 fantasy points with the help of Matt Kenseth, who finished second to Kurt Busch by about half a second.
Recent winners: Kasey Kahne (2009 fall), Carl Edwards (2008 fall), Jimmie Johnson (2007 fall).
Who wins here a lot: NASCAR has been coming to Atlanta for a long time. That might be why Bobby Labonte leads active drivers with six victories here. He's followed by fellow greybeard Bill Elliott (five) and starting-to-enter-greybeard-territory Jeff Gordon (four).
Saying good-bye (sort of): It seems as if everyone wants to host a NASCAR Sprint Cup these days. Unfortunately, in order to invite someone new to the party, NASCAR must either stretch a schedule that already includes 36 points races (and won't end until just before Thanksgiving) or take a race away from someone.
Next year, Atlanta will host only one Sprint Cup race; its second race is being given to Kentucky Speedway. Both tracks are owned by Bruton Smith's Speedway Motorsports Inc. Smith fended off personal pleas from Georgia's governor to let Atlanta keep both its races. This goes to show that being the governor of a state doesn't carry quite the cachet it once did.
As usual, the good folks at Yahoo Sports have prepared a primer for fantasy racing fans wondering who to start for this week's race. You can download their guide by clicking here.
We'll be back with some more fantasy football polls. In the meantime, feel free to join the People's League and/or get your friends to join.
Track basics: Atlanta Motor Speedway is a mile-and-a-half oval in suburban Hampton, Georgia. Actually, according to NASCAR, the track is 1.54 miles long. That means a 325-lap race will cover a distance of 500.5 miles, but "Emory Healthcare 500.5" isn't quite as catchy.
Last time we were here: Way back in March, the People's Pigskin racked up 302 fantasy points with the help of Matt Kenseth, who finished second to Kurt Busch by about half a second.
Recent winners: Kasey Kahne (2009 fall), Carl Edwards (2008 fall), Jimmie Johnson (2007 fall).
Who wins here a lot: NASCAR has been coming to Atlanta for a long time. That might be why Bobby Labonte leads active drivers with six victories here. He's followed by fellow greybeard Bill Elliott (five) and starting-to-enter-greybeard-territory Jeff Gordon (four).
Saying good-bye (sort of): It seems as if everyone wants to host a NASCAR Sprint Cup these days. Unfortunately, in order to invite someone new to the party, NASCAR must either stretch a schedule that already includes 36 points races (and won't end until just before Thanksgiving) or take a race away from someone.
Next year, Atlanta will host only one Sprint Cup race; its second race is being given to Kentucky Speedway. Both tracks are owned by Bruton Smith's Speedway Motorsports Inc. Smith fended off personal pleas from Georgia's governor to let Atlanta keep both its races. This goes to show that being the governor of a state doesn't carry quite the cachet it once did.
As usual, the good folks at Yahoo Sports have prepared a primer for fantasy racing fans wondering who to start for this week's race. You can download their guide by clicking here.
We'll be back with some more fantasy football polls. In the meantime, feel free to join the People's League and/or get your friends to join.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
How to Treat Cuts
For most fantasy football players, one of the hardest parts of the last week in August, other than watching the last preseason games, is making sure their draft picks actually can take the field when the season gets started.
National Football League teams had until Tuesday to get their rosters down to 75 players. This round of cuts was not the deepest (next week, that 75-player roster has to get down to 53), but it was extensive, and it can affect your roster if you're not careful.
With that in mind, here's a survival strategy for the season of The Turk.
1. Draft as late as possible. If your draft was in early August, you might know someone who took a late-round flyer on Antonio Bryant or Derrick Ward. That's why the People's League plans to hold its draft the night before Labor Day. (By the way, we still need six teams to join, so feel free to join now.)
2. Know who was cut. This is not as easy as it seems. A lot of the "usual suspect" Web sites don't seem to have a list of all the people released by 32 NFL teams. This seems to be the closest thing ESPN has to such a list. At least it does let you know that the Broncos running attack won't include Huggy Bear's kid.
3. Know your terms. The NFL seems to have more lists than the folks who put together the Top Ten of Everything books. The injured reserve list (home of Jim Sorgi and Sinorice Moss) is for players whose seasons are over. The physically unable to perform list (where Sidney Rice resides) is for players who are injured but could still contribute to their teams during the season. Then there's the "waived failed physical" list, which means the player is off a roster but free to sign elsewhere. And if the player was put on the list by the Bengals, the player's agent is free to crucify the team for it.
By the way, the Bengals may not actually have these folks on its medical staff, but they may want to consider getting some second opinions.
We'll be back with a look at this week's NASCAR track.
National Football League teams had until Tuesday to get their rosters down to 75 players. This round of cuts was not the deepest (next week, that 75-player roster has to get down to 53), but it was extensive, and it can affect your roster if you're not careful.
With that in mind, here's a survival strategy for the season of The Turk.
1. Draft as late as possible. If your draft was in early August, you might know someone who took a late-round flyer on Antonio Bryant or Derrick Ward. That's why the People's League plans to hold its draft the night before Labor Day. (By the way, we still need six teams to join, so feel free to join now.)
2. Know who was cut. This is not as easy as it seems. A lot of the "usual suspect" Web sites don't seem to have a list of all the people released by 32 NFL teams. This seems to be the closest thing ESPN has to such a list. At least it does let you know that the Broncos running attack won't include Huggy Bear's kid.
3. Know your terms. The NFL seems to have more lists than the folks who put together the Top Ten of Everything books. The injured reserve list (home of Jim Sorgi and Sinorice Moss) is for players whose seasons are over. The physically unable to perform list (where Sidney Rice resides) is for players who are injured but could still contribute to their teams during the season. Then there's the "waived failed physical" list, which means the player is off a roster but free to sign elsewhere. And if the player was put on the list by the Bengals, the player's agent is free to crucify the team for it.
By the way, the Bengals may not actually have these folks on its medical staff, but they may want to consider getting some second opinions.
We'll be back with a look at this week's NASCAR track.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Meanwhile, back in NASCAR ...
While the Cincinnati Bengals were getting fricasseed for paying Antonio Bryant $8 million to take his gimpy knee and go home, the folks who run NASCAR were giving their Sprint Cup drivers the week off. (True, some of them went north of the border to lose to Boris Said at a road course, but that doesn't count, right?)
Also, you, the Internet, were helping the People's Pigskin determine its draft board for a draft that's scheduled for a week from now. We now know who will be fifth overall (Frank Gore), who will be the third QB (Aaron Rodgers), who will be the third WR (Brandon Marshall) and who will be our top tight end (Dallas Clark) and our top defense/special teams (the New York Jets). Thank for voting.
The newest polls ask who should start for the People's Pitstop for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta. Please vote now. And please sign up to run a team in the People's League. You wouldn't want the Internet's favorite fantasy football team to have nowhere to play, would you?
The results of our most recent football polls can be seen below.
[polldaddy poll=3674874] [polldaddy poll=3674884] [polldaddy poll=3674892] [polldaddy poll=3674903] [polldaddy poll=3674905]
Also, you, the Internet, were helping the People's Pigskin determine its draft board for a draft that's scheduled for a week from now. We now know who will be fifth overall (Frank Gore), who will be the third QB (Aaron Rodgers), who will be the third WR (Brandon Marshall) and who will be our top tight end (Dallas Clark) and our top defense/special teams (the New York Jets). Thank for voting.
The newest polls ask who should start for the People's Pitstop for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta. Please vote now. And please sign up to run a team in the People's League. You wouldn't want the Internet's favorite fantasy football team to have nowhere to play, would you?
The results of our most recent football polls can be seen below.
[polldaddy poll=3674874] [polldaddy poll=3674884] [polldaddy poll=3674892] [polldaddy poll=3674903] [polldaddy poll=3674905]
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
New Football Polls
Another set of fantasy football surveys are in the books, and here are the results.
On the question of who should be No. 4 overall on our draft board, you, the Internet, selected Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens.
When you were asked which quarterback should be second to Drew Brees, you said Peyton Manning. (One reminder: This league doesn't offer fantasy points for commercials.)
On the question of which receiver should be second on our board to Andre Johnson, you stayed in Indianapolis and selected Reggie Wayne.
Thanks for voting. We have another set of polls up now. Three of them continue our ongoing conversations (No. 5 overall, No. 3 QB and No. 3 WR). The other two ask about two new positions: tight ends and defense/special teams. The polls will close Sunday night. The results of our most recent polls appear below. Feel free to vote now, and please sign up for a team in the People's League.
[polldaddy poll=3648677] [polldaddy poll=3648686] [polldaddy poll=3648696]
On the question of who should be No. 4 overall on our draft board, you, the Internet, selected Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens.
When you were asked which quarterback should be second to Drew Brees, you said Peyton Manning. (One reminder: This league doesn't offer fantasy points for commercials.)
On the question of which receiver should be second on our board to Andre Johnson, you stayed in Indianapolis and selected Reggie Wayne.
Thanks for voting. We have another set of polls up now. Three of them continue our ongoing conversations (No. 5 overall, No. 3 QB and No. 3 WR). The other two ask about two new positions: tight ends and defense/special teams. The polls will close Sunday night. The results of our most recent polls appear below. Feel free to vote now, and please sign up for a team in the People's League.
[polldaddy poll=3648677] [polldaddy poll=3648686] [polldaddy poll=3648696]
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Caveat (Auto)Drafter
There's no denying the popularity of fantasy football drafts. Many of you will be participating in more than one between now and Labor Day, including those of you who sign up for the People's League (hint, hint). If you go to a million Web sites, you will probably get a million different strategies and pointers for handling your draft. We at the People's Pigskin would like to offer one tip at this time:
Treat the autodraft option the way you would your seat cushion on an airplane: something to be used only in an emergency.
Earlier tonight, I was involved in a live draft for another league. I arrived in the draft room about a half-hour in advance. A few of the players arrived just a few minutes before the scheduled start.
Some never arrived at all. They relied on their pre-selected player lists and the autodraft option.
The results speak for themselves. In the fifth round, one of the auto-drafters picked Sidney Rice. This would have been a fine pick last week, before we learned that he might miss the first half of the season. In the seventh round, that auto-drafter picked Vincent Jackson, who is facing a three-game suspension and may miss even more time than that.
Now, if you have to use the automated draft option because of a family emergency or something, go over your list verrrrrry carefully. You don't want to be the one starting this guy because your list was out of date.
Treat the autodraft option the way you would your seat cushion on an airplane: something to be used only in an emergency.
Earlier tonight, I was involved in a live draft for another league. I arrived in the draft room about a half-hour in advance. A few of the players arrived just a few minutes before the scheduled start.
Some never arrived at all. They relied on their pre-selected player lists and the autodraft option.
The results speak for themselves. In the fifth round, one of the auto-drafters picked Sidney Rice. This would have been a fine pick last week, before we learned that he might miss the first half of the season. In the seventh round, that auto-drafter picked Vincent Jackson, who is facing a three-game suspension and may miss even more time than that.
Now, if you have to use the automated draft option because of a family emergency or something, go over your list verrrrrry carefully. You don't want to be the one starting this guy because your list was out of date.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)