Sunday, August 9, 2009

Rapid Draft team examined

Ok I did it.
I tried out the new Rapid Draft site (http://www.rapiddraft.com/nfl/lm/LM2009/RDLanding.aspx)
That hopefully you have all heard about. There is a current promotion where you can try it out free. That is a $10 value. The promo code is “go4it”. Try it and see if you like it.

Here is the gist.
You draft against 11 virtual Experts. The experts all update their rankings so that every draft, whether it is in June or Sept, has 11 experts with up to date cheat sheets. Each expert has his or her own style and different rankings.

The best part is you pick when you want to draft and what spot!

The scoring system is a performance league with a bonus for TD plays of over 40 yards. Therefore, the basic 3 pts for TD passes/ 6 for rushing or rec TDs and 1 pt for every 20 yards passing or 10 rushing/receiving and 1 point for every reception (so PPR). One quirky rule is that kickers get 6 points for FG’s over 40 yards and 9 points for FG’s over 50 yards. Hmmm I don’t really like making kickers (of all positions) that powerful, but heck it’s their game.

Here is my draft from the first spot

QB McNabb/4
Pennnington/6

RB A. Peterson/9
C Taylor/9
Pierre Thomas/5
Larry Johnson/8
Tashard Choice/6
Glen Coffee/6
Rashard Jennings/7

WR T. Owens/9
L. Coles/8
W Welker/8
K Curtis/4
M Crabtree/6
P Harvin/9
Kenny Brit/7
Bryant Johnson/7

TE Dallas Clark/6

K J Hanson/7

Def Pittsburgh/8

You start 1/2/3/1/1/1 + 1 Flex.

Overall: I think it is a strong team but no real depth. The WR position has way too many rookie sleepers. B. Johnson is already hurt and Crabtree is holding out. How we doing so far.

I targeted Hanson at K for his kicking in the Dome and Detroit probably not getting in the end zone too much. Do you know how many 50 yarders he had last year?
8

Sam Hendricks, author
Fantasy Football Tips ($9.95) http://www.amazon.com/0982428669

Fantasy Football Guidebook: Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95 on sale for $17.95) http://www.amazon.com/1602640203

2 comments:

JT said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
JT said...

Sam - nice team and nice draft. Don't let kicker scoring change your strategy. Hanson isn't going to win anything for you unless he's consistent this year. If you look at historical numbers with the RD scoring system, kickers and defense still score significantly lower than all other players.

The real question is whether kickers or defenses should even be part of any fantasy game. If a kicker has a career week, should he help you win your weekly match-up? In my book - yes. If someone kicks 5 to 7 field goals, that's huge in a kicker's career. They shouldn't score less than an average receiver that week. They should score more. Lots of room for debate on either side, but just note that I'd rather have Bironas or Gostkowski or someone that will score consistently, kick some 40 to 50 yarders, and throw in a few 50+ every once in awhile.

Good luck this season, JT (RapidDraft)