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Is it too early for a fantasy football draft? I think not.

March 1, 2011 / John Paulsen

In an effort to keep my fantasy mind sharp during the doldrums of February and March, I decided to join one of FantasyFootballWhiz.com’s Draftmaster drafts. I am not part of the Invitational, but the same rules apply:

The drafts are being done so that the changes in fantasy value over the next 7 months can be tracked and debated by a strong group of very knowledgeable Fantasy Football players. These drafts will lead to a whole series of articles, debates, roundtables and podcasts that will allow the readers and listeners to get inside the heads of these select drafters.
Note that these are “drafts” and not “mocks”, as the leagues will be scored. Each team will select 16 players in the draft and no roster moves will be allowed once it is complete. They will be scored using a best-ball system, which basically means that each teams top scorers will be automatically used each week to provide their score. No setting lineups, no waivers and no trades, they are simply put, all about the draft.
The leagues will be using a standard PPR scoring system with 16 roster spots. Each week’s scores will be generated by the best lineup, which will consist of 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, 1 DEF, FLEX (RB, WR, TE). To maximize the usefulness of the draft results, teams will be allowed no more than one kicker and one defense.

The competition seems good. There are a number of other fantasy experts and enthusiasts in my league (#Draftmaster 19) that I recognize from my time spent on Twitter.

I thought it might be valuable for me to go over each pick after I make it, revealing the other players that I considered along with my reasoning behind picking the player that I did. You can check the updated draft report here. My username (and Twitter name) is @FantasyShrink.

I had the #6 pick overall, which this year turns out to be a pretty good spot to be. Let’s jump right in and discuss the first six rounds.

1.06: LeSean McCoy, RB
With Chris Johnson, Arian Foster, Adrian Peterson, Jamaal Charles and Ray Rice taken with the first five picks, I was left with a decision between Maurice Jones-Drew and LeSean McCoy. While I do like MJD, his knee injury has me a little worried and I’m not all that confident in the Jacksonville O-line. On the other hand, McCoy was actually RB3 (behind Foster and Darren McFadden) on a per game basis in PPR leagues because he catches so many passes (78 in 2010). His adjusted numbers (for bias due to strength of schedule) are a little better.

One mistake that I see fantasy owners often make is to overlook pass-catching RBs like McCoy (or Brian Westbrook before him) in PPR leagues. They’re looking at magazine or website rankings that aren’t intended for the PPR audience, and those always underestimate the value of a guy who catches a lot of passes out of the backfield.

Here’s a look at highlights from McCoy’s 2010 season. The kid is explosive.

External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

Could the Bengals take a flier on Christian Ponder in the second round?

March 1, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

A week ago Christian Ponder was viewed as a third round prospect at best. But after impressing scouts at the combine, you would think that the guy is ready to go in the top 10 based on some media reports.

Rob Rang of CBS Sports is reporting that Ponder is generating first round buzz after his workout in Indianapolis over the weekend. He even says that Ponder is now “viewed by some as the top true West Coast Offense quarterback in the draft.”

I know Ponder looked good in his workout but I highly doubt he’ll go in the first round. He’s still a mid-round prospect, but one team that has emerged as an interesting candidate for the former FSU quarterback is the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Carson Palmer situation is getting a little hairy in the ‘Natti. He wants out and with each passing day, it appears as though the team is willing to abide by his wishes. If they trade or release Palmer, then quarterback becomes the biggest need for the Bengals, although I’m not convinced they’ll take a signal caller at No. 4.

Cam Newton isn’t a fit for Jay Gruden’s West Coast offense and neither is Ryan Mallett. The same goes for Jake Locker, who doesn’t have the accuracy to play in the system and while you can make a case for Blaine Gabbert, there’s a good chance that if the Bengals wait they could nab Ponder at the top of the second round (or later if they trade back or attempt to wait until the third round to nab him) and pay him significantly less than if they take Gabbert at No. 4.

Ponder fits in the West Coast because his best attribute is his accuracy. He also has a strong enough arm to make all the throws at the next level and as long as his confidence stays up, he could wind up developing into a nice quarterback down the road. Depending on how the situation plays out with Palmer, Ponder seems like a logical fit for the Bengals.

College Football, External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

2011 NFL Draft Christian Ponder Cincinnati Bengals

Is there a tape that implicates Cam Newton?

March 1, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

Dave Miller of the National Football Post is reporting that a host of a Huntsville, Alabama sports talk radio show says he has heard audio tapes that implicate Cam Newton and his father in a pay-for-play scheme.

Scott Moore, an Alabama fan and a college football speaker, said Friday during a radio interview with WNSP in Mobile, Ala., that he heard tapes of Cecil Newton selling his son’s services to Mississippi State while Cam was in the room. Moore also claimed that Cecil Newton said he had received an offer from Tennessee for $200,000, but that he’d give Mississippi State a $20,000 discount.
If it’s proven that Cam Newton knew about being shopped around, he would be retroactively ruled ineligible for the 2010 season and all hell would break loose. And you’d have millions of college football fans saying, “I told you so.” But why would either Bond or Bell sit on the tape(s) without turning the evidence over to the NCAA? The evidence can’t really exist, right? Or, perhaps the audio does exist but it was deemed inconclusive, whether by the NCAA, Bond or Bell.

Whether there’s an audio tape or not, this story hasn’t given its last breath. The smoking gun has yet to come out and while Newton jets off to the NFL to make millions, Auburn has to hold onto its seat and hope that incriminating evidence isn’t released to the NCAA.

Of course, if the program is clean then nothing will come out and the situation will eventually die out. That’s the nice thing about being innocent.

College Football, External Sports

Cam Newton cam newton audio tape Cam Newton scandal

Fitch feels he won UFC 127 over Penn

March 1, 2011 / Staff

According to HeavyMMA.com, Jon Fitch believes he defeated B.J. Penn at UFC 127 but after further thought, Penn changed his mind about the outcome.

Jon Fitch has finally seen the fight with B.J. Penn and feels he definitely won.
The judges rendered a majority draw decision following UFC 127’s main event between Jon Fitch and B.J. Penn, a score neither agree with.
“Finally watched the fight back myself. first rnd draw and I won rnd 2 and 3. I will prove myself if I must. But I know I won that fight,” Fitch posted on his official Twitter account on Monday. “Much respect to BJ. He is the legend I thought he was. I think that was the best BJ ANY of us have ever seen.”
Following the fight, Penn told the crowd in Sydney, Australia and millions watching at home that he thought Fitch won the fight.
Moments later, backstage at the Acer Arena, Penn wasn’t so sure.
“The more I’m sitting here thinking about it, I definitely got the better positions and the more dominant positions,” said Penn to UFC.com. “I guess the first thing I was thinking was just the last round, but now, the more I’m sitting here thinking about the first two rounds – I did. I had much better positions than he had.

Read the full article.

External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

Anderson Silva B.J. Penn Georges St. Pierre Jake Shields Jon Fitch MMA MMA News UFC

Dim-witted Nets fan pulls a Bartman

February 28, 2011 / John Paulsen

During Monday night’s Suns/Nets game, there was an incident when Steve Nash went to save a ball that was going out of bounds. As he attempted to make the save, a fan sitting courtside (wearing sunglasses, no less) reached out and hit the ball away. Here’s a snapshot of the play.

After the refs discussed the play, the ball was awarded to Suns, even though Corey Hart was seen celebrating his shady move. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)