The Martlet

As the calendar turns from August to September, many lament the waning of summer and curse the fall breeze that foreshadows winter. For millions of others across North America, however, fall is a joyous season as NFL Football resumes after a long seven-month hiatus.

There is a particular brand of fan whose ranks have been swelling these past few years: the Fantasy Football Player.

In the know

These obsessive-compulsive stat-checkers can be identified by their vampire-like skin tone caused by spending most of August in front of their computers and TVs, monitoring training camp battles as if their lives depended on knowing who will be the Baltimore Ravens goal line back.

The prevailing wisdom in fantasy land has been to secure your two stud running backs within the first three rounds or suffer the pepto-bismal addiction that comes with scouring the waiver wire for back ups when the inevitable wrath of the injury imp strikes.

Given the growth in popularity of points per reception leagues, the increase in teams utilizing a running back by committee system, and the lack of big time receiving threats, this is the year to forsake tradition and target wide receivers early and often in your draft.

The specs

Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, Reggie Wayne and Randy Moss are considered this year’s elite six wide receivers as all are expected to gain over 1,000 yards, score over 10 touchdowns and approach 100 catches. Behind those Sinister Six are the likes of Anquan Boldin, Terrell Owens and Wes Welker, all of whom have performed superbly in the past and are in position to continue that production. They are, however, also surrounded by question marks regarding injury, age, or contract related issues.

The drop off between the upper tier of wide receivers and the next level is as steep as that of a freshman’s GPA drop from high school. No other position in the NFL this year has such a differential between the top and middle tiers, which makes an early investment in a sure thing a wise move.

The how-to

Once your have scooped the best pass catchers, it’s imperative to spend a few rounds bolstering your ground game. Later round hybrid backs like Marshawn Lynch, Pierre Thomas and the lightning-fast Darren McFadden, are steals at their current mid-round draft positions. Other starters that fantasy owners are afraid to draft as early as previous years are Willie Parker, Joseph Addai and Larry Johnson, though the rumours of their demise are a year early and are still worth the gamble.

That the average career of an NFL running back is a paltry three years is an indicator of the violent beatings sustained by plowshares on a weekly basis, so it’s a good idea to use a late round draft pick on one or two backups for when your starter’s inevitably injured. Ahmad Bradshaw of the Giants, Lesean McCoy of the Eagles and Glen Coffee of the 49ers, all offer tantalizing potential given the injury history of their team’s incumbent.

Patience pays

It’s important for the successful Fantasy Football player to be patient when picking their quarterback and tight end positions. While some will spend a second round pick on Tom Brady or Drew Brees, it is prudent to wait till rounds five through seven to pick up Donovan McNabb or Matt Shaub.

It pays to never forget that Fantasy Football is very different from real football. Last year, the 0-16 Detroit Lions were obviously a terrible club, but for fantasy purposes, John Kitna was a serviceable Fantasy option. Forced to play from behind every game, Kitna averaged over 250 yards and nearly two touchdowns in the three contests he played before he was injured for the season.

The 2-14 Kansas City Chiefs are another example: their back up quarterback, Tyler Thigpen, averaged over 15 fantasy points per game in the final quarter of the season primarily because of an anaemic running game and porous defense.

By plundering the early draft rounds of the choice fantasy wide receivers, and maximizing the Value Village-like savings available amongst running backs, quarterbacks and tight ends in the mid to late rounds, your Fantasy club will reign supreme.