Winter is always a deceptively productive time for me writing-wise. For whatever reason, spring and summer tend to bring out my creative juices in at least marginally productive ways, while winter sees me as fairly prolific, but on the most idiotic of topics. This is when I find myself writing haiku movie reviews or a brilliant treatise on why Galaga is the best video game in history.
This year, it*s been my Fantasy Football team. I have played in several leagues in the past few years, usually with Levi as one of my opponents, but for whatever reason, this season it*s gone to a ridiculous level. My team, the Rabid Squirrels, is playing Levi*s Wailing Wallabys this week in a pivotal matchup that*s key to both our teams* playoff possibilities. It*s strange enough to be wrapped up in the game, but now it*s going entirely too far. From time to time, I find myself writing news articles about the fictional team, things that would be published in the local newspaper if it all wasn*t, you know, a figment of my overactive imagination.
Still, we take what productivity we can find in the winter months. Here*s the latest entry from my sports-addled mind.
Draft the key to Squirrels* success? Think again
Fantasy football titles are won and lost on draft day, or so the conventional wisdom would have us believe. It is a rule passed down from on high, one of the unbreakable truths of the game. But is it true?
If the Rabid Squirrels* improbable turnaround bears out for another three weeks, there will be at least one major example to counter the conventional wisdom. Looking at the team*s roster after draft day, it looked like a solid, well-rounded group with several proven veterans mixed with emerging stars to build a competitive team.
Going into week 13, that conclusion has been thrown out the window. Of the team*s 17 draft picks, only three (Corey Dillon, Issac Bruce and Josh Brown) are regular starters. Only two more (Deion Branch and Matt Hasselbeck) are even on the roster. The rest are gone, either cut for lousy production or traded away.
They say that fantasy football coaches need to be patient, but there is a flip side to this notion. It is equally important to cut ties when it is clear that a player will not live up to his potential. This year, a rash of injuries, poor production and bad karma have reared their ugly heads. In retrospect, two of the Squirrels* picks look like major reaches – Koren Robinson in the 5th round and Boo Williams in the 9th. Hasselbeck, too, has utterly failed to live up to the expectations of a 4th round pick. Still, all signs pointed to a breakout year for the Seattle signal-caller and it is difficult to second-guess that draft choice.
Despite these few shortcomings, there were some outstanding picks by the Squirrels* front office that simply didn*t bear fruit. Deion Branch in the 13th round looked like a steal in week 1, but a seemingly-innocuous injury sidelined him for the bulk of the campaign. Michael Bennett in round 7 was solid when you consider that he was injured shortly after the draft took place. He would never have been a stud, but any starting running back available that late is a good value. And Brandon Lloyd with the team*s final pick? Again, injuries to the team*s QB and the general malaise surrounding the 49ers made this one look like a stinker, but at the time it was widely hailed as a nice pickup. Even at the draft, several owners were seen to utter a quiet “damn” under their breaths as they saw the potential go-to receiver for the Niners snuck out from under them by GM Jason Frey.
Still and all, the team that the Squirrels drafted would likely be languishing in 10th place instead of making a late charge. This became abundantly clear after week 6, and management began talks for a major deal. It took several days, but after the 7th game of the season, things started to come together. In a bold move, Frey traded away two of his top three picks – Ahman Green and Chad Johnson – along with waiver wire pickup Jake Plummer – for a package that included Andre Johnson, Peyton Manning and Duce Staley. In typical fashion for this season, Staley was promptly injured and has yet to play a down for the team, but Manning alone has made this a whole new season for the Squirrels. The deal worked out well for the Wallabys as well, notwithstanding Green*s injury, giving them a legitimate #1 RB and WR to go along with a solid (if unspectacular) QB. This truly has been a trade to benefit both teams.
So it*s trades, not the draft, that makes a team successful, right? Not so fast. This season, at least, it*s been the waiver wire. Of the team*s major contributors, five have been picked up off the scrap heap. Some, such as Michael Pittman, have been spot starters (notably with a 3 TD game to propel the Squirrels to victory 4 weeks ago), while others like Reuben Droughns (946 yards already after not even playing a down for several weeks and the frontrunner for this year*s Terry Allen award) and Marcus Pollard (the recipient of 6 of Peyton Manning*s 41 TD passes) have developed into plug-and-play solutions at their respective positions. Indeed, without Plummer to throw into the mix, it is difficult to believe that the deal for Manning could have been made, and without Droughns and Pittman on the roster, it is unlikely that Frey would have traded away a first round RB in Ahman Green.
The conventional wisdom, as is so often the case, has taken a back seat to necessity this season, and the Squirrels are the better for it. If they can string together three more solid games, Frey will look to pull a few more rabbits out of his hat in the playoffs. They may be a long shot, but at this point in the season it would be foolish to bet against them.
Watch the scoreboard and root for the niners to take down the Bucs. Consult the team*s official Playoff Implication Spreadsheets. But most of all, bring on the Wallabys.
