Category: External Sports (Page 349 of 821)

      Ladies and gentlemen, the most accurate fantasy football expert in 2010 is…

      December 30, 2010 /

      …me!

      I’m happy to report that I held onto the #1 spot in the FantasyPros accuracy contest and have been named this season’s most accurate fantasy expert. After finishing #1 in Week 14 and #2 in Week 15, I didn’t have the strongest Week 16 (#22 overall, though I’d like to note that I finished #1 in DT and #2 in K, which don’t count towards the competition), but my 0.9% lead still held strong. Here’s an excerpt from the FantasyPros article summarizing the results:

      Was there any doubt that John Paulsen would finish on top as 2010’s Most Accurate Fantasy Football Expert?! After leading the competition for an astounding 11 consecutive weeks, Paulsen held on in the final week of the season to take home the top prize. The key indicator of Paulsen’s dominance was that he was the only expert in the competition to rank in the top 10 for each of the 4 positions that factor into our overall scoring: WR (#1), RB (#3), QB (#10), TE (#1). Heck, he even finished as our #3 rated DST expert so you know he had the magic touch. Simply put, his player rankings were a one-stop destination for advice seekers looking for any kind help. And as a guy who helped so many people win their league titles, it’s certainly fitting to crown him as this year’s accuracy champ. Congrats, John!

      By position, I finished #1 in both TE and WR, #3 in RB and DT and #10 in QB. (Damn quarterbacks!)

      I’d like to thank the fine folks over at FantasyPros for running this contest — it has obviously given me and TSR a lot of exposure, and it has been fun having a level playing field to compete against the big boys.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Terrelle Pryor, rest of Ohio State suspended players to return next season

      December 30, 2010 /

      There was speculation that the five Ohio State players that were suspended for the first five games of the 2011 season would forego their senior years and declare for the NFL draft.

      But according to their head coach, none of them are ready to leave the Buckeyes.

      ESPN.com reports that Terrelle Pryor, Dan Herron, DeVier Posey, Mike Adams and Solomon Thomas were all “unanimous” in saying they would stay for the 2011 season. All would be eligible for the NFL draft if they decided to leave, but as of now the group is saying they’re staying put.

      “I’m excited to say that all of the guys who were involved, knowing perhaps they had some options like playing in this game and then leaving and maybe another option would be to take themselves out of this game hoping the appeal for the future would be softened, none of them want to do that,” Tressel said.

      “They are going into this opportunity with their eyes open knowing they have significant sanctions for their senior year. They know they have to live with those.”

      This is obviously great news for Tressel and OSU, although the Buckeyes still have to make due without those five players for their first five games next season. But assuming they’ll start the year against a few cupcakes, the Buckeyes could still be undefeated by the time Pryor and Co. return.

      College Football, External Sports

      49ers targeting Stanford’s Jim Harbaugh as their next head coach?

      December 30, 2010 /

      Jim Harbaugh continues to be one of the hottest names in football and if he wants to leave Stanford for a bigger job next season, he’ll likely have opportunities at both the college and pro level.

      According to Matt Maiocco of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, the 49ers are interested in Harbaugh as head-coaching replacement for Mike Singletary (who was fired on Monday). The Niners view Harbaugh’s work with Josh Johnson and NFL prospect Andrew Luck as a sign that he can develop quarterbacks. And seeing as how that was one of Singletary’s downfalls, they would love to secure a head coach who knows how to manage signal callers.

      Maiocco also confirms that Trent Baalke will be promoted from V.P. of Player Personnel to General Manager. The team wanted to have a GM in place before they sought a head coach and now that they have one, you can expect them to start interviewing coaches once their season wraps up this Sunday (if not sooner).

      One name I keep throwing onto the table is Jon Gruden, and for the same reasons the Niners like Harbaugh: he can work with quarterbacks. Gruden had success in the NFL with Rich Gannon, Brad Johnson and Jeff Garcia, so if San Fran is looking for a coach who knows QBs then “Chucky” may be the perfect fit.

      That said, who knows if Gruden wants to come out of the booth right now. He enjoys working with the Monday Night Football crew and he may not be ready to return to the sidelines yet. But if he does, I don’t see why the Niners wouldn’t at least pick up the phone and gauge his interest in returning to the Bay area. Harbaugh would be a fine choice, but if San Fran is looking for more pro experience, then you can’t beat Gruden’s resume, which includes hoisting a Lombardi Trophy.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL

      Strength of Schedule (SOS): Week 17

      December 30, 2010 /

      What am I looking at?

      Below you’ll see a table with a list of team names on the left and a list of positions (including PPR data) along the top. If a square is pink, it means that the matchup is tough. If it’s green, it means it’s a favorable matchup.

      It’s important to note that this is NOT straight fantasy points allowed. I removed the bias of schedule by looking at the opponents of each defense and how they fared in their other games. For example, if a particular defense faced a series of great QBs, then that is taken into account in these tables.

      How do I use SOS?

      Generally speaking, I use strength of schedule as a tiebraker between two similarly ranked players. Let’s say I’m trying to decide between starting BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Cedric Benson. All else being equal, these two players are very close in my mind. But if BGE has a great matchup and Benson has a bad matchup, the choice is clear. In fact, if BGE just has a mediocre matchup while Benson has a bad matchup, I’d probably go with the Law Firm.

      Be careful not to read too much into these tables. You aren’t going to bench Chris Johnson in a bad matchup unless you have a bona fide RB1 with a good matchup waiting in the wings.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      2010 Fantasy Football Awards

      December 30, 2010 /

      Now that Week 16 has come and gone, it’s time to hand out a few awards for the 2010 season. Let’s jump right in…

      Most Valuable QB: Michael Vick, Eagles
      While I believe that Tom Brady deserves the real-world MVP, Vick is without a doubt the top fantasy QB of the year. He finished QB1 despite missing three-plus games due to injury, and the best fantasy playoff numbers of any QB, scoring 27.1, 42.1 and 28.5, respectively.

      Most Valuable RB: Arian Foster, Texans
      It’s amazing to think that Foster was going in the 5th or 6th round (or even later) in fantasy drafts in late August. Through W16, Foster racked up 2,030 total yards and 16 TDs, becoming (out of necessity) one of the few every-down RBs in the league. He didn’t have the greatest fantasy playoff by his standards (321 total yards, one TD), but he dominated the competition throughout the season and none of the other top RBs had good enough playoff numbers to trump Foster’s regular season exploits.

      Most Valuable WR: Roddy White, Falcons
      Just like Foster, White didn’t have eye-popping numbers in the playoffs (18 catches, 187 yards, two TDs) but he didn’t lay any eggs, either. In PPR leagues, he finished 30 points ahead of the next best WR and no other top WR had a great W14-16 run to offset White’s performance in the regular season. He’ll likely be the top fantasy WR heading into next season given his age and consistency.

      Most Valuable TE: Jason Witten, Cowboys
      Antonio Gates was well on his way to winning this award, but a midseason foot injury knocked him out of the stretch run. Meanwhile, Witten raised his game down the stretch, posting 40-395-5 over the last five games and 25-254-4 during the three-week fantasy playoffs. In fact, I’d argue that Witten outperformed his competition during W14-16 more than any other player at any other position this season, at least in PPR formats.

      Most Valuable DT: New England Patriots
      The Steelers were a little better for the entire season, but the Patriots really came on down the stretch, scoring 60 fantasy points over the final four games (and 48 in W14-16). What’s funny is that a midseason swoon made the Pats available on the waiver wires in a lot of leagues, so owners who were fortunate enough to pick the NE DT up (and hold onto them), gave themselves a big boost during the fantasy playoffs.

      Most Valuable K: Sebastian Janikowski, Raiders
      Janikowski started the season strong, scoring 10+ in seven of his first nine games (and 6.9+ in the other two) before his bye. Over the next three games, he failed to score more than 5.0, but turned it on during the fantasy playoffs, scoring 7.0, 17.1 and 21.3 over the final three weeks of the season, finishing as the top fantasy kicker in the process. Despite all the uncertainty at QB, Janikowski was a dependable weapon this season for fantasy owners. And it just goes to show how much depth there is at kicker — he was the #14 kicker off the draft board back in August.

      Biggest Surprise: Brandon Lloyd, Broncos
      All due respect to Michael Vick, Peyton Hillis and Marcedes Lewis, Brandon Lloyd became fantasy’s #2 WR just one season removed from an eight-catch 2009. As the 93rd WR off the draft board, he was the definition of a waiver wire gem, finishing with 72 catches for 1375 yards and 10 TDs. I was admittedly slow to get on the Lloyd bandwagon, as I had been burned by him before (in San Francisco, and then in Washington), but those owners with short memories who managed to snag him off the waiver wire enjoyed his fine play for much of the season. He did crap the bed in W13 and W14 (totaling just five catches for 63 yards), which gave this writer a certain sense of satisfaction, but he turned it on again in W15-16, racking up nine catches for 190 yards and a TD with Tim Tebow under center.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

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