Tag Archives: Calvin Johnson

Fantasy Football 2011 in Review

  December 29, 2011 - 11:00 am | ,
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In August, when we found out there was going to be a football season in 2011, I started posting FFPrep’s Draft Kit.  It is a composite of analyst ranks from ESPN, SI, CBS, Yahoo etc. as well as our rankings.  Among other statistics, the rankings also take in to account the team the player is on, the depth chart of the position, and the average draft position (ADP).

Among the successes of the Draft Kit were the rankings of Jimmy Graham, Peyton Manning,  and Ray Rice.  Some of our misses were Chris Johnson, Cam Newton, and A.J. Green.  I think I had just been burned too many times on rookies that I decided to drop them in my rankings relative to other analyst ranks.  Obviously injuries cannot be accounted for, so our rankings of Jamaal Charles and Andre Johnson were certainly off.  The Draft Kit is meant to put you in the best position, in our opinion, for Week 1 of Fantasy Football.

After the draft, your team most likely had the key starters in place for most of the rest of the season (barring injury).  That is when you turned to the Weekly Projections and Fantasy Football Tools to see who to start, and who is trending and may be worthy of a pick up.  Momentum is one of the biggest factors week to week so riding a player like Denarius Moore or Demaryius Thomas is what would have separated you from the other managers in your league.

The Bye-Weeks always present a problem to managers.  I always advocate drafting the best team possible and worry about the bye weeks later.  Other people will tell you to take the bye in to account, so go with whatever you like.  My reasoning is that, worst case scenario, your team all has a bye on the same week and you take a loss.  If that 1 loss keeps you from the playoffs then your team wasn’t that strong to begin with.

I was in two leagues this season, a 10 team league and a 12 team league.  The 10 team league, let’s call it party, had probably 3 serious managers and a bunch of rookies.  I ended up with an absolutely stacked team and didn’t have to work much to go 12-1 and win the championship.  The 12 team league was a different story.  Nearly everyone in that league is a contender each season so it is much more competitive.  I limped in to the playoffs, ending the season with two straight losses and an 8-5 record.  I ended up winning that league as well, thanks to a big performance by Calvin Johnson and an unlikely starter in Kalil Bell.

I am not posting this to brag, but rather to give this website some credibility.  I used FFPrep’s Draft Kit, Weekly Rankings, and Fantasy Football Tools and came away with 2 championships.  Luck is a major part of fantasy, so all you can do is put out the best team with the best information you have at the time.  That is what FFPrep is all about.

In January we will start posting some predictions on the NFL Draft in April.  I will also be working on the beginnings of the 2012 Draft Kit.  In June and July we will start regularly updating the draft kit in preparation for your August and early September drafts.  So check back!  We are also working on the Draft Pick Trade Analyzer so that you can account for Keepers in to your trades.  Exciting stuff if you are a nerd like me…

Thank you for regularly reading FFPrep.  Have a happy New Years and I wish you all the best in 2012.

Gridiron Challenge: Week 14

  December 11, 2011 - 12:20 pm | , , , , ,
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I now own a 29 point lead in my league over MattDotRich 1511 to 1482 (3rd place is 1463).  Now normally I’d take the credit for this lead, but I started Denarius Moore two weeks in a row on Thursday and went away for the weekends.  While Moore was sitting for the Raiders, he was starting for FFPrep… This weekend I am available to change my lineup so I am tentatively starting Moore again, but will be a game-time decision.

Make sure you check out all of our Fantasy Football Tools before setting your lineups this week starting Thursday with the Browns @ Steelers. Check out who we started for Week 14:

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Gridiron Challenge: Week 13

  December 1, 2011 - 10:00 am | , , , , ,
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I heard last week that Thanksgiving week is the week in fantasy football with the most errors by team owners.  The logic is that people travel over the holiday weekend so they set their lineup on Wednesday or Thursday morning for the weekend.  It happened to me last week; I started Denarius Moore even though he was out on Sunday.  Luckily, I only lost to MattDotRich 103-102.  Overall I am barely holding on to the lead, 1411 to 1408.

Make sure you check out all of our Fantasy Football Tools before setting your lineups this week starting Thursday with the Eagles @ Seahawks. Check out who we started for Week 13:

FFPrep Mark:

QB: Tom Brady ($7.10 locked, $7.60 market) vs. Ind

Brady is playing the miserable Colts this week and is projected to score 20 points according to our Top 200.  Twenty points could be high, considering I expect Brady will rest in the 2nd half when the game is well out of reach.  Then again, he could go off for a couple touchdowns early before Bilichick has a chance to take him out.

QB: Tim Tebow ($5.90) @ Min

I have the latest documented case of Tebow-mania.  He is playing against the worst ranked defense against opposing fantasy QBs, giving up just under 19 points per game.  Our projections have Tebow putting up 17 points this week which is good enough for the #6 spot in ourPositional Rankings.

RB: Frank Gore ($7.10) vs. StL

Last week Beanie set franchise records against a horrible run defense in St. Louis.  This week it is Frank Gore’s turn to trash the Rams defense that is giving up over 20 points per game to RBs.

RB: DeMarco Murray ($4.70 locked, $5.30 market) @ Ari

Last week Murray got 22 carries to Jones’ 0,  proving that Murray has taken over the starting job in Dallas.  This week he has a middle of the road defense to contend with, but he was all I could afford so I am starting him.

WR: Calvin Johnson ($7.80 locked, $7.90 market) @ NO

Has anybody seen Calvin Johnson?  Matthew Stafford is looking for him..

WR: Denarius Moore ($4.10) @ Mia

Bonehead play of week 12 – me starting Moore.  Brilliant play of week 13 – me starting Moore.

TE: Rob Gronkowski ($6.90 locked, $7.20 market) vs. Ind

My Prediction, 2 Gronk TD spikes this week in New England.

K: Ryan Longwell ($2.90) vs. Den

D/ST: Chargers ($3.40) @ Jac (check out the D/ST rankings for this week)

Total: $49.90 / $50.00 ($51.40 Market)

—-

MattDotRich:

Haaaaaaaaaaaad to

QB: Tony Romo (6.8) @ Ari

Romo is Romo the Cardinals are the Cardinals.

QB: Tom Brady (7.6) vs. Ind

Didn’t really think Tommy was going to go off this week, but then the Indianapolis media had to take a few shots about how the Patriots will run up the score. Now they have to. Don’t forget that not only are Bellicheck and Brady the winningest QB/Coaching pair, they’re also by far the most vindicative. Two super mean bullies.

RB: Demarco Murray (5.0 locked, 5.3 marked) @ Ari

Pst – I don’t think the Cardinals defense is very good… Don’t tell anyone though.

RB: Arian Foster (6.3 locked, 8.2 marked) vs Atl

Well… I was right about Matt Leinart, AMIRIGHT?! For the record, because I know not a whole lot of people got to watch a bunch of that Texans game but don’t let the completion percentage fool you, Leinart was god awful when he was in. I don’t know if Delhomme is playing this week, it doesn’t really matter. He’s probably worse than TJ Yates to be honest. Foster’s going to get his touches, and he’s going to score. That’s what he does.

WR: DeSean Jackson (5.3 locked, 5.4 market) @ Sea

I know he dropped the touchdown in the endzone, but can I ask why the media is so obssessed with turning Desean Jackson into a bad guy? He’s a top 10 reciever in this league, honoring his 640 k contract despite being undersized and injury prone. The Eagles struggles are widely known, but for some reason DeSean Jackson’s statistical struggles are solely on him, and his mind being in the right spot. Not Vick’s struggles with injuries, not Vince Young. And that kind of bothers me. The guys is doing the right thing, and he’s being painted a villain.

WR: Calvin Johnson (5.4 locked, 7.9 market) @ NO

Paging Calvin Johnson….

TE: Vernon Davis (5.1 locked, 5.7 market) vs STL

Question: How many naps did everyone take during that San Fran – Baltimore game. A hundred naps? Two hundred naps? I’d imagine the variable is how many people realized that ‘Back to the Future II’ on HBO.

K: Dave Rayner (3.7) vs Ten

RAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYNNEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

D: Phillidalphia (4.3) @ Sea

Asante Samuel TD. Mark it down.

Gridiron Challenge: Week 12

  November 24, 2011 - 9:00 am | , , , , ,
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I took the lead last week, beating MattDotRich 86 to 67 and leading 1309 to 1305. In Week 12, I hope to gain some more ground and never look back. Make sure you check out all of our Fantasy Football Tools before setting your lineups this week starting Thursday at noon with the Packers @ Lions. Check out who we started in Week 12:

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Gridiron Challenge: Week 11

  November 17, 2011 - 4:00 pm | , , , , ,
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Last week I lost to MattDotRich 109 to 106.  Overall I am losing by 15 points, which I hope to gain ground on in Week 11.  Make sure you check out all of our Fantasy Football Tools before setting your lineups this week.  Check out who we started in Week 11:

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Week 10 Waiver Wire Targets

  November 8, 2011 - 11:00 am | , , , ,
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Last week, I recommended Laurent Robinson, Antonio Brown, Brent Celek, Jon Baldwin, and to add T.J. Houshmandzadeh to your watchlist.  The only guy on that list that I may not still consider is Jon Baldwin after his one catch performance last week.  Otherwise, if you added Robinson, Brown, or Celek you should have been pretty happy with the result.  Here are the guys I am recommending this week:

  • Andy Dalton (Cin, QB): Last week Dalton threw for 200 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Titans and has scored double digit fantasy points in all but his first and third starts in the NFL.  He is available in almost 77% of leagues on ESPN so if you need a second QB or want some depth, he could be a nice pickup.
  • Roy Helu (Was, RB): Helu was named the starter right before his game on Sunday and he certainly made the most of his promotion.  He rushed for 41 yards, but also caught 14 passes for 105 yards (17 targets!).  Even if you aren’t in a PPR league, he should be on your radar this week.

Gridiron Challenge: Week 9

  November 6, 2011 - 9:00 am | , , , , ,
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After beating MattDotRich 135 to 119 last week, I am a victim of the Bye week this week, losing Stafford, Calvin, and AP.  I put together a revamped line up that will hopefully inch me closer to the top spot in our league.  MattDotRich currently leads 1044 to 1000.  Check out who we started.

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Gridiron Challenge: Week 8

  October 29, 2011 - 7:45 pm | , , , , ,
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I played MattDotRich in our fantasy league last week as well as here on The GridIron Challenge.  In both lineups, he started Arian Foster and boy did it pay off.   Needless to say, he beat me in both leagues and is still in first place in our GridIron Challenge with 925 points.  I have revamped my lineup this week in hopes of making up some of the lost ground.  Keep reading to see who we started.

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Gridiron Challenge: Week 7

  October 22, 2011 - 12:18 pm | , , ,
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I didn’t get to post last weeks lineup because MattDotRich and I were at our old college roommates wedding.  Last week I started the same lineup as Week 5 and I lost big time to Matt, putting me solidly in 3rd place with 736 points  (MattDotRich in 1st with 757).  I plan on changing that this week with the SOLID lineup that I put together.    Check out who we started.

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Gridiron Challenge: Week 5

  October 7, 2011 - 5:34 pm | , , , , ,
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Last week I lost to MattDotRich 142 to 117 and lost overall points to him 511 to 506.  Man do I wish I picked up Tom Brady at the beginning of the season…

Check out who we started for Week 5

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