#NerdsUnite: Play on playa! (Breaking down the world of sports so you don't have to!)
<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Derek - I met him when I was professor for a day at CSF. Really rad dude, and he wants to come on board to help explain to us nerdy folk the wild world of sports. Smart dude, and knows his shizzy shiznat. I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT DEREK!!! </editorsnote>
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @DerekJ_AllDay
Welcome back for part two of my fantasy football breakdown! Search the site using my twitter handle @DerekJ_AllDay to find all my posts including part 1. This post will cover rounds 6-10, and part 3 will be 11-16. Due to how difficult it is to create these rankings I am adding a third post.
It’s always really fun to draft for the first five rounds, but it is also really easy to make good choices early on. Championship teams are created by the production they drafted in the later rounds. That is why researching rounds 6-16 is just as important as 1-5! So let us begin with round 6.
Round 6. #51 (46) Marques Colston WR, #52 (54) Stevan Ridley RB, #53 (55) Percy Harvin WR, #54 (48) Miles Austin WR, #55 (56) Antonio Gates TE, #56 (57) Dwayne Bowe WR, #57 (52) Johnathan Stewart RB, #58 (59) Jeremy Maclin WR, #59 (60) Steve Johnson WR, #60 (64) Philip Rivers QB
There is some serious value here, but some players have more risk than others. The first that comes to mind is Ridley, who has never been a starter before. He clearly has potential and the Patriots feel he can run the ball, but nobody really knows what he will do when game one comes. It is tough for Austin and Gates to stay healthy, but when they are on the field they can be the best at their positions.
Round 7. #61 (73) Matt Ryan QB, #62 (58) Shonn Greene RB, #63 (61) Vernon Davis TE, #64 (63) Denarius Thomas WR, #65 (65) Beanie Wells RB, #66 (68) Eric Decker WR, #67 (69) Jermichael Finley TE, #68 (66) Antonio Brown WR, #69 (64) Roy Helu RB, #70 (71) DeSean Jackson WR
You may notice that I tend to value quarterbacks highly, and for good reason. Everybody needs one strong QB. They get the most points and can carry your team at times, so I rank them highly. Obviously, if you already drafted a QB first round, you can ignore the QB rankings until you want a backup.
I flat out love the WR talent available in this round. Decker has a strong repertoire with Peyton already and DeSean Jackson is a lazy pro bowler that has something to prove this year. Antonio Brown is a great young talent that could take over the number one receiver role. Then, we see Finley at the TE position. Green Bay has a million options which can hurt sometimes, but in the case of Finley I believe it helps. Teams will forget about him sometimes and even as a TE he can make some big plays.
Round 8. #71 (67) Ben Tate RB, #72 (82) Deangelo Williams RB, #73 (70) Doug Martin RB, #74 (74) Robert Meachem WR, #75 (78) Torrey Smith WR, #76 (77) Pierre Garcon WR, #77 (79) Ben Roethlisberger QB, #78 (75) Michael Bush RB, #79 (76) CJ Spiller RB, #80 (80) Steve Smith WR.
At this point you are looking at a lot of backup RBs and some quality WR/TEs. De/St and K still hasn’t come into play
I can’t say I am particularly thrilled about these players, but you will find some valuable WRs here.
Round 9. #81 (81) Peyton Hillis RB, #82 (83) Isaac Redman RB, #83 (82) Lance Moore WR, #84 (86) Matt Schaub QB, #85 (87) Aaron Hernandez TE, #86 (84) Malcolm Floyd WR, #87 (85) Santonio Holmes WR, #88 (89) Lance Moore WR, #89 (88) Mark Ingram RB, #90 (91) Anquan Boldin WR
Aaron Hernandez really should be ranked higher, and now that I look back on it he may even be seventh round material. He plays “behind” Gronkowski, but the Pats often times line up with two TEs or give Gronk a breather. This gives Hernandez plenty of time to make catches and produce for a fantasy team. Once again, plenty of late WR talent.
Round 10. #91 (90) Toby Gerhart RB, #92 (92) Donald Brown RB, #93 (94) Michael Crabtree WR, #94 (93) Tony Gonzalez TE, #95 (95) David Wilson RB, #96 (98) Nate Washington WR, #97 (96) Kenny Britt WR, #98 (99) Jay Cutler QB, #99 (100) Robert Griffin III QB, #100 (97) Shane Vereen RB.
Late QB value here big time. RG3 might be the Cam Newton of last year and break out as a top fantasy performer, but he also might be a bust. Frankly, he won’t be Newton but he will definitely be better than many pure passers. RG3 runs quite a bit and that will give him those extra points he needs to be a great QB play.
Thanks for reading again guys! Tweet me @DerekJ_AllDay. Part 3 next week.