Regular TSR readers may have noticed that I haven’t written much (any) fantasy football content here this season. That’s because I’ve launched my own site (FantasyShrink.com) and have also joined 4for4.com as Contributing Editor.

I thought I’d put together a quick list of do’s and don’ts that fantasy owners should keep in mind on draft day. These are meant for fantasy owners in 12-team drafts. If you’re in a 10-team league, you can typically wait longer than the rounds I’ll mention.

DO utilize the ol’ RB/RB draft strategy in the first two rounds if your league requires two starting RBs (or has a RB and a flex position). The depth at RB is pretty thin this season and I’m not too confident in the guys that are available in the 3rd/4th rounds. Ahmad Bradshaw is an exception, as is Jahvid Best in PPR leagues. Meanwhile, the depth at WR is solid, so it makes sense to go RB/RB/WR/WR in the first four rounds.

If you’re in a PPR league, DO consider LeSean McCoy amongst the top six RBs (the others are Arian Foster, Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, Jamaal Charles and Chris Johnson). In standard leagues, Rashard Mendenhall is a solid pick at 1.06. If you’re outside the top 6 in PPR formats, DO draft Darren McFadden, who has the most upside of any RB in the second tier.

In the second round, DO consider Peyton Hillis and Matt Forte, especially in PPR formats.

In the late 2nd or early 3rd, DO consider Mike Wallace and Vincent Jackson. Both players are good bets to finish in the top 10 at WR.

In the 4th/5th rounds of PPR drafts, DO look to grab Felix Jones, who should make a fine RB2 for those owners who drafted a WR or QB early.

DON’T draft a QB early, not when you can get Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Ryan or Josh Freeman in the 6th/7th rounds. Even if you miss out on those guys, Matthew Stafford, Eli Manning and Jay Cutler are good lead QBs in a Quarterback By Committee.

DO try to get Joe Flacco, Sam Bradford or Ryan Fitzpatrick as your QB2. Also, Colt McCoy is shooting up my rankings due to his fine preseason play. Kevin Kolb is another decent option due to his strong job security.

If you’re in a PPR league, DO draft a stud TE in the 4th (Antonio Gates) or 5th (Jason Witten, Dallas Clark or Jermichael Finley). There is a lot of depth at TE this year, so if you miss out on these guys wait until the 8th or 9th and pick Rob Gronkowski, Marcedes Lewis or Kellen Winslow.

DO target Mario Manningham in the 5th/6th round. He should be a very solid WR2 in all formats with Steve Smith gone, and is one of my favorite middle-round value picks.

DON’T draft Marques Colston or Anquan Boldin before the 6th and 8th rounds, respectively. Colston is dealing with a knee injury while Boldin has lost a step.

DO target Mike Thomas, Santana Moss and Lance Moore in the middle rounds. In PPR leagues, DO look for Danny Amendola and Davone Bess as your WR4.

DO target Mike Tolbert or Tim Hightower if you need a RB3 in the 7th/8th rounds. Both players are likely to outperform their current ADP (Average Draft Position).

DO spend a 12th/13th rounder on Terrell Owens — he’ll land somewhere early in the season and get WR1/WR2 targets the rest of the way.

DON’T waste a pick on Randy Moss. He may very well come out of retirement, but he proved last season that he can’t acclimate to new teams very well.

DO look to snag Greg Olsen, Jared Cook or Brent Celek as your TE2. DON’T draft Chris Cooley, who is dealing with a troublesome knee injury. DO think about his backup, Fred Davis, in the later rounds.

If you’re in a league with many/unlimited transactions, DON’T draft a defense before the 13th round. Target the Patriots if the Packers, Eagles, Jets and Steelers are all gone. If you miss out on NE, DO utilize Defensive Team By Committee or Defensive Team By Waiver Wire (which will be a weekly feature at 4for4).

DON’T pick a kicker before the 15th round. Target guys who kick for teams with good offenses like Stephen Gostkowski, Alex Henery, Garrett Hartley and Adam Vinatieri. Josh Brown, Matt Bryant and Neil Rackers are good sleepers.

Finally, DO sign up at 4for4.com, where I’ll be posting my waiver picks, DTBWW and more on a weekly basis. Readers who use this link to subscribe will have a better chance of getting their questions answered during the season. Click here for details.

Tuesday, July 26
Wednesday, July 27

I’ve also launched FantasyShrink.com, which will host my rankings this season, while my Waiver Wire Watch and Defensive Team By Waiver Wire (and more) will be going up on 4for4. Read more about my new position with 4for4.

The NFL and the players are heading towards a settlement now that the rookie wage scale has been agreed to.

You can start studying to get a leg up on your fantasy football draft, and you can book that trip to Vegas for a weekend in the sports book!

Are we going to have an NFL season? Things are looking up, so hopefully we’ll be able to gear up and get ready for some football.

As part of Bullz-Eye.com’s Get real Guide, TSR’s John Paulsen has a help guide to how to draft a fantasy football team. Check it out and start get a head start!

Football is one of the great American pastimes, with the Super Bowl each year drawing record numbers of spectators from all over the world. Of course, for most people, watching their favorite football players on NFL Sunday ticket is as close as they ever come to actually managing a team or being involved in the sport.

However, if you are really desperate to test out your football knowledge, you can always set up a fantasy team and see how many points you get at the end of the season. Following team members and individual players is a key aspect of this activity, and, luckily, there are a number of ways you can track your fantasy football players to see how many points they are getting each week.

1. Draft Analyzer

This is an award-winning piece of PC software that allows you to track the performance of football players and make sure your fantasy team is racking up as many points as possible. The product is sold by ESPN and CBS.Sportsline.com to ensure accuracy and even comes with recommendations for upcoming key players and teams.

The software also comes complete with rankings for each player which get updated as the season goes on – all you need to do is click a simple button and you get the most recent results and predictions for all the key football players. This is certainly a useful tool when you are picking a fantasy football team!

2. PCDrafter

This is another piece of computer software that can be downloaded onto your desktop or laptop. The tool works by using a complex mathematical algorithm to work out which players are performing well and which are struggling.

What’s more, the tool comes with a discussion forum where you can talk to other like-minded individuals about the season and who your key picks are. Who knows, you might even meet some new competition online who thinks they can predict the season better than you can!

3. Fantasy Draft Assistant

Another online tool that is becoming more and more popular with fantasy football players is Fantasy Draft Assistant. This Windows application allows you to rank draft players depending on how their season is going.

You can also use the in-built draft tracking technology without having to constantly switch back and forth between two different screens. Users can also print various cheat sheets and study a player’s rankings in depth with the use of this service.

4. TundraBall

Of course, you don’t have to rely simply on applications and programs to pick your fantasy team—there are plenty of good websites out there as well. This site provides users with a range of features, such as team accounts and in-league betting, while those who want to get to know other people on the site can use the dedicated chat rooms to set up their own football discussions.

The live statistics function is useful for those who want to make sure they are on the cutting edge of football news. It makes sure you never miss an announcement or decision in the big leagues.

5. Fandora’s Box

Sometimes, you may want to get updates sent directly to you wherever you are. With Fandora’s dedicated SMS text service, you can do just that! The service will regularly send you text message updates of all the big news and events in the football arena, including milestone alerts from individual games.

Wherever you are, you can be sure you will receive the most recent information that will help you pick and modify your perfect fantasy team.

6. Pro Football

One important aspect of fantasy football is keeping up with the latest news even when games are not being played. Pro Football offers an iPhone app to let users do just that.

The latest stats, predictions, injury assessments and lots more will be delivered directly to your mobile phone at regular intervals, and although you will most likely have to pay for the app, it is a small price to pay to know that you are getting the key pieces of information before anyone else in your league does!

7. MyFantasyTeams

Luckily, mobile phone apps are not limited to Apple devices like the iPhone. MyFantasyTeams is a useful application that can be downloaded onto a Blackberry to help you make changes to your team on the move. The app allows users to alter line-ups and read the latest news wherever they have a mobile connection.

8. American Football Trivia

After a long hard day of altering teams and analyzing stats to make sure your fantasy team is performing at its best, why not take a break and simply enjoy the great sport of football? This app (available on the Blackberry) offers fans the chance to relax and unwind by testing their knowledge of the sport and helping them keep on their toes regarding every aspect of football.

Although it is not primarily designed to help you manage your fantasy teams, the knowledge you gain from answering the football trivia questions should stand you in good stead when it comes to making that all important line-up change!

Conclusion

One of the most important aspects of managing a fantasy football team is making sure you have the most up to date information at hand and that you are able to alter your team as and when you see fit. Luckily, any of the above apps and devices will help you keep a close eye on your team and beat the competitors in your fantasy league.

Cam Newton

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