Sports Page

Play Or Stay Away Week 2

For fantasy football I’m bringing back Play Or Stay Away. Every roster is difference so it takes some common sense on your part to interpret these. Just because I say to play Fred Davis, that doesn’t mean that you bench him for Gronk if you have both. And just because I said to stay away from Antonio Gates, don’t do so if your only other TD is Tony Moeaki. I’m just talking about how these players compare to their rankings for the week.

The first few weeks are tough to judge. We don’t know which Ds are for real and which got lucky, we don’t know how players are going to be used yet. Is Welker’s role really diminished or was that just a game plan for one week? Although it’s hard to judge this early in the season it’s really important to start evaluating your rosters and others so you can buy and sell players before everyone else catches up on the trend.

Simon wishes he didn’t draft Roy Helu in the 8th round.

I’ve set up a full starting roster for plays and a starting rosters of stay aways. I didn’t do kickers because who knows? Use this info to pick up an early win in the season.

Unreal, Real, Really Bad

I’m rolling through new ideas for weekly fantasy post. So here’s one. Each week I’ll pick three players at each position and tell you if their performance last week was Unreal (In the positive sense), real (expect what we saw), or really bad (I don’t buy their value, and I’d try to sell). I’m not saying they are really bad or really good players, I’m just taking about their value vs expectations.

Week 1 had a ton of surprises and some things that were very expected. Here’s my two cents that should help you with your waivers or trade targets this week.

Punters Win Championships League

So you may have seen me talk about the defensive player / kicker / punter league. We had the draft Wen and this was the results. I guess I should inform you that this league is based around punting just because we thought it would be interesting, but we decided to add defensive players. So the punters are theoretically the highest scoring position.

These are the positions we have to fill

DE

DT

LB x3

DL (d-line)

CB

S

DB x2 (d-backs)

DP (defensive player)

Px2

K x2

Bench x7

The league is comprised of half friends and half sportspage readers.

One thing that teams should have been aware of is that we have 12 teams and all need to start 2 Ps and Ks. So if teams start drafting their 3rd K or P you’d better have all of yours. Some teams got really screwed by auto draft, taking players that aren’t on teams and our free agent class is very thin. It was also difficult that the league didn’t project any of these positions, so we all had different ways of figuring out value.

There is no point to this post but I’ll post about this league from time to time because I’m very interested by it and think you should try something like this next year. Since it’s unconventional to me, it interests me more than my other leagues.

Time for the Fins to pickup cut receivers

If you’ve watched Hard Knocks you know that even the Dolphins know that they don’t have wide receivers. After trading for Anthony Armstrong, the top three receivers are Legadu Naanee, Davone Bess, and Anthony Armstrong. They also have Brian Hartline, Rishard Matthews, and Marlon Moore.

Moore is 25, and has 6 career receptions, all in 2010. Matthews had decent numbers in college but didn’t get picked until pick 227 in the draft this year. In 2010 Brian Hartline had a career high 43 rec. Devon Bess had only 51 rec last season but had 79 and 76 in 2010 and 2009. In 2010, Anthony Armstrong had big play potential, he had 44 receptions for 871 yards, a 19.8 average however last season he had only 103 receiving yards. Naanee had a career high 44 rec last year. In 5 seasons, he had 4 total TDs.

I assume that the Dolphins will start with Bess and Armstrong as the starting WRs and when they go 3 wide, Bess would move to the slot with Naanee playing the outside.

During the cuts, the Dolphins did the unthinkable. They cut 7-11. Chris Hogan, the man who is always open. So who is out there to help this receiving staff? With the Dolphins deciding to start rookie Ryan Tannehill, the Dolphins might need some better option to not stifle Tannehill’s development.

Will Chris Hogan be this Hard Knocks’ Danny Woodhead?

More after the cut.

James Starks of Winterfell.

Last year I fielded fantasy questions on game days and if you took my advice, for the most part, it helped. This year I’ll answer questions again and this time I’ll answer multiple questions at a time instead of individually, for the readers sake. I’ll probably post ever 15 minutes for two hours prior to kick off. I’m not sure, maybe every 30 min, we will see how it goes. I’ll also be writing fantasy articles too. You can ask question here. I’ll posted them based on how many I get.

This is a example draft for you. If you haven’t drafted yet, this should help you. I’ve done one mock this year, and two real drafts so far. I still have more to go this weekend. The reason I chose this draft to show is for multiple reasons. 1) it’s the only 10 team league (most popular size) I’m in and no one in this league reads this site (probably. But 1 or 2 might).

This league is a PPR keeper league. Overall I think that strategies are stupid in drafting because it can all get thrown off by 1 pick. However, it is important to know which positions are deep and which are shallow and use that information to your advantage. So here’s the draft. I’m drafting as Starks of Winterfell.

Round: 1

(1) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Aaron Rodgers QB

(2) guck you fumby - Arian Foster RB

(3) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Tom Brady QB

(4) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Ray Rice RB

(5) Vick’s Doghouse - Drew Brees QB

** (6) James Starks of Winterfell - LeSean McCoy RB

(7) On the Strahan Narrow - Calvin Johnson WR

(8) Purple Helmet Warriors - Maurice Jones-Drew RB

(9) Team Lanphear - Rob Gronkowski TE

(10) Factory of Sadness - Matthew Stafford QB

Coming into the draft, I thought that if one of the top 3 QBs dropped here I’d take one. If not, Calvin Johnson was on my radar. I in no way expected Shady McCoy to drop to me at 6. I couldn’t pass up that value.

After the draft I got a text from the person who got MJD asking if I think that pick will pan out. I politely said “Sure” but honestly, I wouldn’t draft him until the end of the 2nd.

Round: 2

(11) Factory of Sadness - Chris Johnson RB

(12) Team Lanphear - Matt Forte RB

(13) Purple Helmet Warriors - Cam Newton QB

(14) On the Strahan Narrow - Hakeem Nicks WR

** (15) James Starks of Winterfell - Adrian Peterson RB

(16) Vick’s Doghouse - Wes Welker WR

(17) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Roddy White WR

(18) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Andre Johnson WR

(19) guck you fumby - Larry Fitzgerald WR

(20) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Greg Jennings WR

The top 5 QB are off the board. The next tier is pretty even for a while and I can wait a few rounds. I don’t want Eli. 6 RBS are already off the board and all the drafts I’ve done so far I’ve noticed that the RBs drop off fast. AP is a stretch here, but I”m thinking big picture. I’m confident that I’ll make the playoffs, so if AP starts slow, that’s fine, I want him to be a beast by playoffs time. I like CJ2K in this round and Matt Forte is a great pick.

I think that’s a very high pick in Cam Newton. The girl picking between the Cam Newton pick and myself let out a loud expletive and I tried to explain that he did her a favor if she planned on picking him this high. However Nicks that high is pretty risky too. He’s no way the #2 WR.

Round: 3

(21) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Jimmy Graham TE

(22) guck you fumby - DeMarco Murray RB

(23) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Mike Wallace WR

(24) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Darren McFadden RB

(25) Vick’s Doghouse - Jamaal Charles RB

** (26) James Starks of Winterfell - A.J. Green WR

(27) On the Strahan Narrow - Aaron Hernandez TE

(28) Purple Helmet Warriors - Victor Cruz WR

(29) Team Lanphear - Brandon Lloyd WR

(30) Factory of Sadness - Jeremy Maclin WR

I went with high upside at my WR here. He was the highest WR left and I like him better than Wallace, Fitz, Nicks, and Jennings who all went higher. I live the Jimmy Graham pick here. In a PPR league I expect him to do better than Gronk. I think this was very high to go on Cruz, Maclin, and maybe Lloyd. The Hernandez pick is interesting. She really wanted him. I like him a lot in a PPR (better than Gronk) this year but he was ranked much lower, she could have gotten him with the 34th pick. If Charles was available I would have gone with him, but my RBs would have lots of questions.

Round: 4

(31) Factory of Sadness - Trent Richardson RB

(32) Team Lanphear - Dez Bryant WR

(33) Purple Helmet Warriors - Darren Sproles RB

(34) On the Strahan Narrow - Ahmad Bradshaw RB

** (35) James Starks of Winterfell - Steven Jackson RB

(36) Vick’s Doghouse - Fred Jackson RB

(37) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Jordy Nelson WR

(38) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Marshawn Lynch RB

(39) guck you fumby - Eli Manning QB

(40) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Frank Gore RB

The guy with the rap around took Richardson here. He’s a brown fan and made it known all along that he’d reach on Trent. But this could be an alright pick. He’s not picking for a long time, Richardson would be around next time he picks.

With my pick, I think I got the best value in this round. I hate drafting time share RBs and Sproles and Bradshaw are both in that. However, they should both make receptions, especially Sproles. However, SJax is a stud. He will get the majority of touches on his team. He’s an every down back who also gets catches. Last season he only had 1 TD, expect him to get much more than that. I’m taking a risk getting a 3rd RB so early, but he will be my flex and I’ll have the best RBs in the league by far.

Round: 5

(41) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Antonio Brown WR

(42) guck you fumby - Ryan Mathews RB

(43) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Michael Turner RB

(44) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Matt Ryan QB

(45) Vick’s Doghouse - Brandon Marshall WR

** (46) James Starks of Winterfell - Michael Vick QB

(47) On the Strahan Narrow - Reggie Bush RB

(48) Purple Helmet Warriors - Marques Colston WR

(49) Team Lanphear - Tony Romo QB

(50) Factory of Sadness - Antonio Gates TE

Good value on Mathews here and I would have considered Marshall if he were still there. I’m going boom or bust with Vick. If he stays healthy I’ll get a great QB who can put up MVP fantasy numbers but how often does he stay healthy? I’d better get a decent backup. He’s the 8th QB taken. I could have waited and tried to get Rivers here but I had him last year, and he pissed me off. That’s just bias. I do think he’ll have a decent bounce back year. QB was the place to go here. I’m set at RB and I didn’t want Colston or Bowe. WR is deep. I could get a TE, but I can wait a while and still get a decent one.

Round: 6

(51) Factory of Sadness - Dwayne Bowe WR

(52) Team Lanphear - Willis McGahee RB

(53) Purple Helmet Warriors - Vernon Davis TE

(54) On the Strahan Narrow - Philip Rivers QB

** (55) James Starks of Winterfell - Julio Jones WR

(56) Vick’s Doghouse - Percy Harvin WR

(57) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Steve Smith WR

(58) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Jermichael Finley TE

(59) guck you fumby - Peyton Manning QB

(60) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Robert Meachem WR

Another high upside WR here. If either of my top 2 WRs reach their potential this season I’ll have a top 5 WR and could get 2 top-10. I don’t like McGahee at all, in fact, there aren’t a lot of picks I like in this round. Finley is alright and Manning could be interesting, but I don’t know if I’d want to rely on him, someone else can. I do like the TEs in this round but their more yards guys than PPR guys. Neither had 70 rec last year when Witten and Pettigrew are still on the board.

I like Harvin a lot this year, I do think that it was a stretch here, but the fact that we get return yards too helps he like this pick. He gets a ton of touches.

Round: 7

(61) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Isaac Redman RB

(62) guck you fumby - DeSean Jackson WR

(63) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Miles Austin WR

(64) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Brandon Pettigrew TE

(65) Vick’s Doghouse - Eric Decker WR

** (66) James Starks of Winterfell - Vincent Jackson WR

(67) On the Strahan Narrow - Roy Helu RB

(68) Purple Helmet Warriors - Stevan Ridley RB

(69) Team Lanphear - Steve Johnson WR

(70) Factory of Sadness - Peyton Hillis RB

No way I’d want Redman here. Or at all. I was looking at Miles Austin in this round, with him off the board I went with another high upside pick in Vincent Jackson. He’s the top red-zone target on his team. He’s never had 70 rec or 10 TDs but he’s been close and I expect this to be a career year. In the past he was battling with Gates, LT, and Mathews for targets, not anymore. I’d much rather him than Stevie Johnson. He’s my #3 WR, so I don’t have to rely on him, if he was my #2 I’d be worried.

Round: 8

(71) Factory of Sadness - Demaryius Thomas WR

(72) Team Lanphear - Jonathan Stewart RB

(73) Purple Helmet Warriors - Shonn Greene RB

(74) On the Strahan Narrow - Pierre Garcon WR

** (75) James Starks of Winterfell - Robert Griffin III QB

(76) Vick’s Doghouse - Doug Martin RB

(77) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - BenJarvus Green-Ellis RB

(78) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Ben Tate RB

(79) guck you fumby - 49ers D/ST D/ST

(80) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - DeAngelo Williams RB

This round is overall weak. Thomas is a good pick, and I like J-Stew and Garcon I’ve never liked, but this year he’s the top guy should get a lot of rec. Doug Matin was probably the best value in this round, he’s in a battle but I’d rather him than Shonn Greene. This is most likely the biggest reach I made in this draft with RGIII. This is Vick insurance. If Vick gets hurt RGIII could emerge as a great fantasy QB. I expect a lot of rushing yards. If I don’t take him now I could get him at 86, but that would be my last chance. Schaub is still on the board, but I’d rather roll with the youth and possibly keep him in the future. 49ers D going pretty damn early. In the ride home from the draft one team was complaining that she didn’t get the 49ers, but it was a blessing in my eyes. Who’s taking D this early?

Round: 9

(81) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Ravens D/ST D/ST

(82) guck you fumby - Michael Crabtree WR

(83) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Matt Schaub QB

(84) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Bears D/ST D/ST

(85) Vick’s Doghouse - Tony Gonzalez TE

** (86) James Starks of Winterfell - Jason Witten TE

(87) On the Strahan Narrow - Jay Cutler QB

(88) Purple Helmet Warriors - Torrey Smith WR

(89) Team Lanphear - Stephen Gostkowski K

(90) Factory of Sadness - Anquan Boldin WR

Oh, everyone, that’s who? Why are all these Ds going? The difference between the top D and the 10th are minimal and it’s unpredictable. The top rated D pre-season never finishes 1st in fantasy at the end of the year.

I had to finally fill my TE need. Witten is an absolute steal here. I feel like he only dropped because of the spleen. In fact someone even made a joke about it as I took him. Jokes on them. Even if he misses week one, I’ll have him for the playoffs. Witten hasn’t had under 79 catches since 2006 and 3 of the past 5 years he’s had at least 94. Last year Graham had 99 catches and Gronk had 90 and I got Witten over 70 picks later. I was worried that the team ahead of me would take him but he took Gonzalez instead.

Also, first kicker off the board. Gostkowski is my favorite kicker this year, but I can wait for a kicker, thanks.

Round: 10

(91) Factory of Sadness - Santonio Holmes WR

(92) Team Lanphear - Russell Wilson QB

(93) Purple Helmet Warriors - Steelers D/ST D/ST

(94) On the Strahan Narrow - C.J. Spiller RB

** (95) James Starks of Winterfell - Beanie Wells RB

(96) Vick’s Doghouse - Lance Moore WR

(97) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Andrew Luck QB

(98) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Reggie Wayne WR

(99) guck you fumby - Fred Davis TE

(100) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Cedric Benson RB

I was looking at Spiller here and he was taken a pick ahead of me. I have 3 RBs but could use another in case one gets hurt of AP has a set back. I expect to start one at the FLEX every week. Spiller and Wells are both questions. There weren’t a lot of RBs around here, Benson, no, Michael Bush, no. So I went with Wells. I’m not relying on him so if he loses his starting job I can dump him but unlike Spiller or Bush, Wells at least is starting for now.

Round: 11

(101) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Nate Washington WR

(102) guck you fumby - Mason Crosby K

(103) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Texans D/ST D/ST

(104) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Malcom Floyd WR

(105) Vick’s Doghouse - Kevin Smith RB

** (106) James Starks of Winterfell - Kenny Britt WR

(107) On the Strahan Narrow - Mario Manningham WR

(108) Purple Helmet Warriors - Ben Roethlisberger QB

(109) Team Lanphear - Lions D/ST D/ST

(110) Factory of Sadness - Michael Bush RB

Britt, at the time, had no suspension and I can deal with 1 game. He’s coming back from injury anyway. This is huge upside. He’s my #4 WR, so what’s the harm? I could have gone Manningham, which is a safe pick, but Britt can be a top-20 WR if things go his way. He’s probably the best value in this round.

Round: 12

(111) Factory of Sadness - Matt Cassel QB

(112) Team Lanphear - Mark Ingram RB

(113) Purple Helmet Warriors - David Akers K

(114) On the Strahan Narrow - David Wilson RB

** (115) James Starks of Winterfell - Justin Blackmon WR

(116) Vick’s Doghouse - Eagles D/ST D/ST

(117) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Jared Cook TE

(118) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Sebastian Janikowski K

(119) guck you fumby - Denarius Moore WR

(120) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Alex Smith QB

David Wilson is a pick I love here. Truth is, I told her to take Wilson here. She’s a Giants fan and didn’t really know who he is. I think that pick will pay off for her. By the time Reggie Bush gets hurt or gets his role diminished, Wilson will be in a decent role.

I love Blackmon here. So far I’ve gotten him late in every draft. I’m always great at targeting rookies, I had CJ2k his rookie year, I had AP his rookie year, Cam Newton, ect… I think Blackmon could be the best rookie this season (If not him, it’s RGIII). I really like how my WRs have played out with A.J. Green, Julio Jones, Vincent Jackson, Kenny Britt, and Justin Blackmon. So I should be fine at WR. I went youth all the way, potential keepers. I don’t think I’ll draft any more WRs.

Round: 13

(121) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Rashad Jennings RB

(122) guck you fumby - LeGarrette Blount RB

(123) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Dustin Keller TE

(124) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Greg Olsen TE

(125) Vick’s Doghouse - Danny Amendola WR

** (126) James Starks of Winterfell - Owen Daniels TE

(127) On the Strahan Narrow - Giants D/ST D/ST

(128) Purple Helmet Warriors - Darrius Heyward-Bey WR

(129) Team Lanphear - Sidney Rice WR

(130) Factory of Sadness - Broncos D/ST D/ST

Jennings is a great pick here. It’s totally MJD dependent but it’s worth the risk. I don’t think MJD will play week 1 and if he does it will be minimal. Greg Olsen is going to have a great season. I would have considered him here but I think it’s a round or two early. With Shockey gone, a lot of thouse touches will go toward Olsen. Amendola is a good gamble here as well. Owen Daniels is my backup TE and Witten insurance. He’s had a couple 60 yard and a couple 5 TD seasons. He’s not spectacular but he’s safe with my starter being a gamble. My TEs this season are Witten and Olsen.

Round: 14

(131) Factory of Sadness - Brent Celek TE

(132) Team Lanphear - Kellen Winslow TE

(133) Purple Helmet Warriors - Donald Brown RB

(134) On the Strahan Narrow - Rob Bironas K

** (135) James Starks of Winterfell - Daniel Thomas RB

(136) Vick’s Doghouse - Carson Palmer QB

(137) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Pierre Thomas RB

(138) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Randy Moss WR

(139) guck you fumby - Jacob Tamme TE

(140) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Jon Baldwin WR

I don’t love this round too much. Donald Brown is a good pick, he should get the majority of carries in that offense and he will be an important piece. Daniel Thomas is my 4th RB. I wrote earlier that Bush will lose touches and I believe that. Thomas is a post-hype sleeper. Last year everyone loved him and this year no one does. I still haven’t seen Bush get too many yards between the tackles. No matter what happens in Miami this year, there will be a touches for Thomas. My RBs this season are McCoy, AP, SJax, Wells, and Thomas. I have the best top 3 and hopefully my 4th will shake out between Wells and Thomas.

Carson Palmer will be a good backup to Drew Brees. I have heard Terrelle Pryor whispers lately, but I choose not to listen.

Can I just say that I hate Jacob Tamme in fantasy? Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.

Round: 15

(141) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Jermaine Gresham TE

(142) guck you fumby - Brandon Jacobs RB

(143) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Falcons D/ST D/ST

(144) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Nate Kaeding K

(145) Vick’s Doghouse - Ryan Williams RB

** (146) James Starks of Winterfell - Josh Freeman QB

(147) On the Strahan Narrow - Ed Dickson TE

(148) Purple Helmet Warriors - Seahawks D/ST D/ST

(149) Team Lanphear - Shane Vereen RB

(150) Factory of Sadness - Phil Dawson K

Gresham is a good pick here. I like Ryan Williams a lot. He could be a starter sooner than later. Kaeding, I like him but he could have gotten him last round. Josh Freeman is my super insurance. He COULD be a top-10 QB. I have both Vick and RGII, if they both stay healthy I have no need for 3, but he’s worth the risk. Since I let my starting QB drop I have plenty of depth in RB and WR, so this extra roster spot is giving me QB depth as well. With QBs Vick, RGIII, and Freeman, Rush Limbaugh hates my team.

Round: 16

(151) Factory of Sadness - Laurent Robinson WR

(152) Team Lanphear - Mike Williams WR

(153) Purple Helmet Warriors - Toby Gerhart RB

(154) On the Strahan Narrow - Titus Young WR

** (155) James Starks of Winterfell - Dan Bailey K

(156) Vick’s Doghouse - Kendall Wright WR

(157) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Mohamed Sanu WR

(158) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - James Starks RB

(159) guck you fumby - Packers D/ST D/ST

(160) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Garrett Hartley K

Kicker! I had Dan Bailey last season and it worked out for me. So sure, why not? Toby Gerhart was a good gamble here but he could have gotten David Wilson instead of David Akers in round 12 and Akers or an equal kicker would be here. I LOVE Titus Young here.

Round: 17

(161) Mr. Rodgers’ Neighborhood - Nate Burleson WR

(162) guck you fumby - Matt Prater K

(163) Brady Quinn Medicine Woman - Robbie Gould K

(164) Rock Out With Your Gronk Out - Golden Tate WR

(165) Vick’s Doghouse - Jason Hanson K

** (166) James Starks of Winterfell - Jets D/ST D/ST

(167) On the Strahan Narrow - Ryan Fitzpatrick QB

(168) Purple Helmet Warriors - Martellus Bennett TE

(169) Team Lanphear - Felix Jones RB

(170) Factory of Sadness - Joe Flacco QB

I’ll take the Jets D to the bank, thanks! I waited until the last round and I still got what I consider one of the better Ds. Mr. Irrelevant, Joe Flacco. I bet he stays on that roster all season, pretty good pick.

My final roster is

Mike Vick, Phi QB

LeSean McCoy, Phi RB

Adrian Peterson, Min RB

A.J. Green, Cin WR

Julio Jones, Atl WR

Jason Witten, Dal TE Q

Steven Jackson, StL RB (FLEX)

Jets D/ST

Dan Bailey, Dal K

BENCH

Vincent Jackson, TB WR

Robert Griffin III, Wsh QB

Beanie Wells, Ari RB P

Kenny Britt, Ten WR SSPD

Justin Blackmon, Jac WR

Owen Daniels, Hou TE

Daniel Thomas, Mia RB

Josh Freeman, TB QB

I like this roster a lot. I do like my 12-team team better. Normally I’ll go for a QB early and have that position taken care of. I always try to get a top-3. That wasn’t going to happen in this draft. I’ve learned through multiple drafts that RB is shallow this year. So I went RB heavy early. Contrary to that, WRs are very very deep, so I waited for the most part. I’m a playoff team, no doubt. I feel that my championship chances depend on two things. 1) Mike Vick’s healthy and 2) RGIII. If he can become a top-10 QB, I’ll be fine wether Vick is healthy or not.

Use this draft as a learning tool. I’d also recommend doing a mock draft. Some people like to learn by making their own mistakes. If I was to give one piece of advice this year it would be wait on WRs. I also think that if you don’t get Gronk, Graham, or Hernandez, wait on TEs. There are decent ones in the middle of the draft.

Passthemike podcast EP 2: Directed by M Night Shyamalan →

passthemike:

Who’s the hottest alien ever? What are the repercussions from the Dwight Howard trade? Perfect game superstitions? Best shark and Olympic movies ever?

Sports experts Thomas Fant and Bryan Kalbrosky join Mike to answer these questions, take some PEDs, and play some games including Manning Face-book.

P.S. This episode is not actually directed by M. Night Shyamalan, that’s just the title.

P.S.S. That post may have been.

Listen to EP 2. This episode should be on iTunes any time now. Go there to subscribe.

An on-going list to why NBC’s Olympic coverage is less than sub-par:

The network edited out the tribute to the victims of the 7/7 terrorist attack in order to show an interview on Michael Phelps from Ryan Seacrest…because clearly the US audience needed that more than seeing a tribute that also included 2 US Servicemen
There were 11 commercial breaks during the parade of nations alone during the Opening Ceremonies. They also failed to show the first 2 Saudi women to participate in the games for their country even though they mentioned them. They also cut the lesbian kiss that was even shown in some Middle Eastern countries. The commentators seemed to enjoy making back handed compliments and reminding us what countries were at war or having unrest during a time where we should be setting aside politics (and this complaint is coming from a Political Science major).
The NBC Olympics APP for smart phones, alerts to results hours before they are even shown on NBC
NBC failed to show Ksenia Afanasyva’s crash and burn during the Women’s gymnastic floor exercise that wrapped up the US team’s gold. Instead they showed Aly Raisman’s warm up where she fell during a tumble pass and asked if the women could deliver the knock out blow…even though they all would have had to fail miserably to lose the gold. They also just happened to leave out the standings.
They aired an interview with Evander Holyfield and didn’t even realize who they had spoke with.
There seems to be more commercials during prime time coverage than there is actual coverage of the games.
The network spoiled swimmer Missy Franklin’s first gold.
NBC got Guy Adam’s, a journalist for The Independent, suspended after critical tweets.
They had to pull Doc Emrick and Pierre McGuire to cover Water Polo because it happens to be set up a bit like hockey. Here I thought I had a whole summer before hearing them again.
The commentary. There is nothing else to add to that.

Photo credit.

I'm probably going to bring back this tag during the Olympics because I'm a hardcore journalist like that. →

I encourage you to submit people. Female readers should especially submit because I’m not going to hunt for Ryan Lochte pictures or whomever.

@neiltyson

Ok, lets talk about the draft. No, no, not the bar in this city that I consistently black out at, I mean the NBA draft. It seems like this draft was deep. It’s wasn’t really top heavy, there may not be a single MVP in this draft but there will be plenty off all-stars.

Here are some teams that did well last night besides Boston and New Orleans, who I posted about last night.

Charlotte Bobcats. I love Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. He will be a good player for Charlotte. He’s a great athlete, high motor, and most importantly has a high work ethic. People believe he can be an all-star defender. And he has everything it takes to put it together overall. In the second round they took Jeffery Taylor. He’s awfully similar to MKG, just not as good. He’s an interesting player to watch though.
Golden State Warriors. Ok, Barnes is a great pick but the steal of the draft is Draymond Green. A guy who can do it all. He’s a little undersized but will find ways to contribute. I’m not sure either of the other big men they drafted will work out.
Oklahoma City Thunder. Perry Jones III. A steal at 28. He’s got injury concerns but the upside at 28 is worth it. What’s the worst that will happen? Your 28th pick won’t work out? At best people think he can be better than Serge Ibaka.
Sacramento Kings. Thomas Robinson. Sacramento fans should be salivating to think about Robinson and DeMarcus Cousins playing next to each other for a long time. Or as long as Sacramento has a team.
Chicago Bulls. Marquis Teague is a great pick at 29. It was surprising that he was available. Teague is a straight up PG, so it wasn’t really a need for the Bulls but the value was outstanding. Teague will backup Rose for years to come. They sure love Calipari.
Los Angeles Lakers. Robert Sacre. Does the last pick in the draft ever make the team? Besides Isaiah Thomas last year only 9 last picks have played a minute in the NBA. but I think Sacre will. Especially if one of the bigs in LA ends up getting dealt.

Here’s some moves I’m not sure about. Not necessarily bad, but it’s intriguing to think about what their future moves will be.

Houston Rockets. Jeremy Lamb. He’s going to be a good player and good scorer but where’s he fit on the roster? Either Lamb or Martin must be on their way out. The other Rocket picks aren’t bad. All along they seemed to go talent over need. Were they actually planning on making all of these picks?
Orlando Magic. Andrew Nicholson. It will be a tough rotation to crack with Dwight, Anderson, and Davis. I’m sure Dwight will eventually get dealt, but wouldn’t a guard here have been nice?
Philadelphia 76ers. Moe Harkless. Sure, he’s good. He can D up, can get to the rim. But how good is his shooting? Right now he’s sitting behind Iggy and Thaddeus. So here’s the question, who’s on the way out? I assume Iggy, but for what?

Picks I didn’t get at all.

Cleveland Cavaliers. Dion Walters. I’m sure he will be a decent player but there was so much talent still on the board.
Toronto Raptors. Terrence Ross. First of all, at 8 it’s a reach. Secondly, they already have DeMar DeRozen. I don’t get it. I would have taken Rivers, Drummond, or Leonard.
Phoenix Suns. Kendall Marshall. Nash’s biggest criticism is that he can’t play D so lucky Suns fans won’t expect it from their new point guard. Taking a PG 13th overall makes it seem like Nash is gone. He’s a passing guard, who’s he going to pass to? I like the bigs that Phoenix has, good complementary players but they needed a guard who can put up points. To be honest I don’t think there was a guard for them at 13. I would have tried to trade down. But hey, maybe they did.

If I didn’t talk about your team, it was either a player I don’t know enough about or it was a middle of the road pick that i didn’t love or hate. If you really want my opinion on your team you can message us.

(Photo: William Perlman-The Star-Ledger)