'Tis the season of fantasy football drafts, and an intriguing question will be answered in the opening minutes of every draft going on in every corner of the country. Not "Who's going to be the first pick?" Barring a preseason injury (GASP, knock on wood repeatedly) Adrian Peterson will be taken first In about 95 percent of drafts — not just in leagues full of unabashed Vikings homers. The really interesting question is "Who should be the No. 2 pick?"
It looks like an agonizing decision, which makes it all the more likely I will be picking second.
Yahoo Sports has Michael Turner ranked No. 2 overall, which is a trendy choice. But I'm not sold. Turner has had just one year as a starter and, though it was a great year, there were some red flags. He was wildly inconsistent, going for 42 yards against the Buccaneers in Week 2 but 152 yards against them in Week 15 and 56 yards against the Panthers in Week 4 but 117 yards and 4 TDs against them in Week 12. Peterson was "Plug-and-play" from Day 1. Turner was "Feast-or-famine."
The conventional wisdom is that you should generally take a RB with the No. 2 pick. But if Tom Brady is healthy and can put up numbers like he did two years ago, he's a very enticing option. Those are big "ifs" though, especially when you're essentially betting your season on them. Yahoo has Brady ranked below guys like Frank Gore, Steven Jackson and Chris Johnson, which I think is a bit of a stretch, but it would also be a stretch to take Brady at No. 2. Peyton Manning or Drew Brees would be safer QB picks but they're both likely be off the board by the end of the second round.
Larry Fitzgerald is coming off the best postseason known to man. It would be easy to pull the trigger on him at No. 2, especially if you like players from Minnesota. But he's no longer working in the offensive schemes of Todd Haley and his quarterback, Kurt Warner, is getting old and has to hit the wall someday.
So No. 2 should probably be a running back. But who? Maurice Jones-Drew (only topped 100 yards twice last year), Matt Forte (still relatively unproven), Brian Westbrook (a walking disabled list) or DeAngelo Williams (can't possibly hog as many Carolina TDs as he did last year)? As far as I can tell there's no sure thing. My advice to whoever gets the No. 2 pick? Trade down.
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P.S. Just started my drafting in one of my two leagues. Guess where I pick? That's right, No. 2. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteahh haha. Take Turner and trade him off for payday. Like Rivers and a decent RB for Turner and ... uh, something. Most people won't care.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to point out... AP had 5 single digit weeks, while Turner only had 4 (depending on your scoring)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I took Turner, but I'm still concerned about his schedule. Like my team overall, though. Got Peyton, Ryan Grant, Tony G., Houshmanzadeh. Nice nucleus. Also got Fred Taylor, hoping he'll secure that RB spot in New England.
ReplyDeleteNice. I kinda got robbed of a solid QB in Rivers by one stinkin' pick.
ReplyDeleteSchaub (Roethlisberger), AP, Turner (Ray Rice, Chester T), Jennings, T.O. (Royal, Mason, Coles), Gates, Giants, Rackers
Not too shabby...
I'm hoping TO can put up similar numbers w/ Edwards. Royal and Mason should be pretty hot though for backups.
ReplyDeleteIf you can, you should get Ray Rice! Also, look into Leinart if you have an open spot. I think I might do a reverse Warner (last year I picked him up under everyones nose), cause he's a-gettin' old. (Sproles?)