As the relaxing summer comes to an end and the school year at McGill begins, a wave of responsibility hits students solidly in the face. I almost feel bad that while my friends are devoting their time to making sure they picked the right classes, I devote it to picking Fantasy Football players. Yet I’ve started to wonder, are they really so different? They both require you to determine what you need (choosing electives is a lot like picking bench players), seek advice from friends, go to the first few classes or do mock drafts, read every piece of information out there on ratemyprofessors.com or ESPN, scream at the computer when Minerva or the online draft fails, and, most importantly, both are crucial to making your season or semester enjoyable. For those of you who also enjoy the game of Fantasy Football during a jam-packed start to the school year, here’s some advice.
The Safe Picks
These are the guys that have time and again proven that they’re solid. They’re mentioned so many times among the league’s elite that it may even seem boring to choose them. “Maybe I should take the rookie or the exciting new star,” you think to yourself. Resist this urge. Take the safe player with confidence, as he will be the (figurative) leader of your team.
Adrian Peterson, RB Vikings: Some might push to draft Arian Foster first overall, but he just doesn’t have the same body of work to look back on as Peterson, who has rushed for over 1250 yards and over 10 TDs every year he’s been in the league. While Foster put up amazing numbers last year, he only rushed for 0.3 yards more per carry (4.9 to 4.6) than Peterson, and Foster is likely to get fewer carries this year with a healthy Ben Tate in the fold. Be safe and take Peterson at number one.
Tom Brady, QB Patriots: He may not be the flashiest of the top QBs, but he finished as the league’s MVP last year even without a downfield presence in Randy Moss. With a receiving corps highlighted by Deion Branch, Wes Welker, and new Belichick disciple Chad Ochocinco and supported by breakout tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, Brady is about as safe as you’re going to get.
Steven Jackson, RB Rams: While he is definitely no longer in his prime, he’s a workhorse, averaging 21 carries per game over the past five years, and there’s no reason to think that this won’t continue. In a league in which it’s hard to find a reasonably priced back with no time-share, Jackson is a safe pick, although there are other running backs with higher value.
The Busts
There are some players that you’ve heard are just way too good to be true. Maybe they’ll even have an impressive few games or a highlight of the night. Eventually, however, they’ll fizzle out and you’ll wonder why you took them.
Peyton Hillis, RB Browns: While he had an unbelievable start and was the surprise of the 2010-11 season, Hillis averaged only 54.4 yards in his last five games. He’s still unproven and ranked far too highly. This year Montario Hardesty, the Browns’ second round pick last year, will finally be healthy and will likely steal touches as the Browns try to keep Hillis from burning out like he did last year. Finally, Hillis is on the cover of Madden. Do not take the curse lightly. Avoid drafting him.
Darren McFadden, RB Raiders: DMC finally showed what he’s capable of last year, but it seems like he’s never at full health, battling turf-toe and knee problems. Although he has the potential to be great, it’s not worth the high draft pick that would be needed to get him, or the anxiety that comes from seeing him on the Questionable list almost every week.
Joe Flacco, QB Ravens: People often get confused about the difference between a good quarterback and a good fantasy quarterback. In real terms he led the ravens to a 12-4 record, but in fantasy terms he only had one game in which he threw over 300 yards and shouldn’t be ranked too highly.
The Sleepers
Finally, there are the players who no one talks too much about. They may not seem like the coolest choices but they’re undervalued and should be easy to draft. These are the guys you’ll be thanking when you’re the last of your friends standing at the end of the season.
Josh Freeman, QB Buccaneers: He was an extremely consistent player last year, with a 61.4 percent completion rate and four times as many passes for TDs as INTs. He also finished second only to Michael Vick in rushing yards by a QB with 364. He did all this in only his second full season, and seems poised to do even better this year.
Malcom Floyd, WR Chargers: Yes, Vincent Jackson is back, but Floyd is still a good deep threat and could produce good numbers again.
Davone Bess, WR Dolphins: He had 79 receptions last year and is only 25 years old. At his draft spot he could start as a flex, and he has great upside.
Instead of stressing about classes and profs, spend your time looking for that player who will make the difference between a championship and missing the playoffs. Even if your classes don’t turn out just right, if you have a good fantasy football team you’ll always have something enjoyable to do during them anyways. After all, priorities are important, and between school and fantasy we all know which comes out on top.
