As we log our latest draft in the books, now is the perfect
time to unpack our shiny new toys and take inventory on the state of the
league. Some things we’ve learned for
sure: Mitch’s driving is bad enough that even he gets nauseous as a
passenger. Southy can plan the hell out
of a weekend of activities. Never take
Seth’s advice when you are on the clock.
And did you hear…my draft went really, really, really, really, really
well.
Without further ado, here are your way too early preseason
rankings…
Tier 3 –
#8 If We’re Using Logic –
Let’s be honest, a less reasonable ranker would have this
roster much higher in the rankings. A
mere 6 months into my “half a decade of irrelevance” the roster has been rejuvenated
with high draft capital rookies and some high upside lottery tickets. While IWUL is sure to play spoiler come Nov
and Dec as his young roster hits its stride, the start of the year could dig a
W-L hole that can’t be overcome. Start
printing your #RebuildChamp shirts for 2021.
Strengths
Young RBs should blend nicely with blossoming young WRs as
the season progresses. Once they
overcome early time share limitations, this core of backs could be absolutely
electric. You know, as long as they
don’t go all Ronald Jones/Derrius Guice/Royce Freeman on me.
Weaknesses
Like Seth’s neckbeard, I’m anticipating a lot of
inconsistency. While there will be big
weeks, predicting which guy will go off may prove challenging. Bye week fill-ins will require some serious
crystal ball work.
Wild Cards
Fuller, Hardman, Parris Campbell, Lamb, and Mike Williams
all have incredible upside moving forward.
If 1-2 of these lottery tickets become consistent contributors, IWUL
could be a sneaky dark horse playoff contender in November. Cook continuing to sit out to Mattison’s
benefit wouldn’t hurt either.
#7 Smells Low –
Last year’s runner up really captured lightning in a
bottle. While simultaneously fighting
for low points and the last playoff spot, the fantasy gods smiled on young
Riley. Seizing the last playoff spot
propelled him to an improbable victory over CMC… uh, I mean Off Suit 10’s. Moving some big pieces to bolster his RB
depth was a wise move but he has found himself invested in some muddied
backfield battles himself. He will need
Ekeler and Jones to replicate last year’s success to stand a chance at a repeat
title game appearance.
Strengths
QB, RB and TE starters can go nose to nose with anyone in
the league. Godwin and McLaurin took
incredible steps forward last season, but will have to gain some more ground to
give Smells Low a shot in shootouts with the top half of the league.
Weaknesses
Flex spots are a huge question mark here. My projections put Hollywood Brown,
Montgomery, and Mostert as starters in his lineup on a weekly basis. Riley is counting on each of those guys to be
consistent producers… which is probably not great. Bye week fill-ins or injuries are also an
issue as I see ZMoss, Ronald Jones, and Breida as the next in line to plug in.
Wild Cards
Slayton was the hero of the season for Riley last year. A 50 pt half at the most crucial time can be
credited for his Cinderella story. Riley
is counting on AJ Green injuries to make Boyd or Higgins relevant. Short of that, it would take a young receiver
to seriously outperform expectations to prop up this runner up.
Tier 2 –
#6 Ah, It’s Early
The offseason has not been kind to Seth. Amari, Sutton, Hilton, Mack, and Hynes have
significant challengers to work in their respective offenses. For 5 of our 7 seasons, AIE has watched the
playoffs from the 5/6 matchup.
Perpetually stuck in the middle, perhaps he should study Kyle’s
gunslinger mentality to trade offers.
Strengths
Mahomes and Dak make up the best QB duo in the league. He, theoretically, starts each week with a
15-20 point advantage at that position.
Hopkins and Cooper are valuable, if not slightly inconsistent, WR that
can win a week for you (or lose one) at any time. The addition of Lockett should help balance
the Sutton and Hilton concerns.
Weaknesses
Depth in several areas…as my sister’s constantly whining
about. While AIE can roll out an amazing
starting lineup, I see Preston Williams, Akers, and Sony as the first 3 guys
off the bench. With COVID concerns in
addition to the minefield of injuries managers will have to navigate this year,
it feels like the middle of the season could make for some tough lineup
decisions.
Wild Cards
GRONK! TE is an area
of concern on this roster. Gronk needs
to dig deep and pull one more magical season out if his hat to make Seth a true
contender. Mims and AJ Dillon feel like
long shots to be difference makers this year but if they hit, watch out.
#5 Off Suit 10’s
Kyle’s approach of setting picks on fire to acquire high
upside talent has yielded mixed results.
While Chark and Engram could contribute in a big way this year, Fant,
Corey Davis and Harry will have to step up to keep OS10s in contention through
the byes. Freeman actually making a
roster would help as well. My read is that
he won’t have to worry about how many points the top 2 spots would have been
Strengths
CMC… That’s it.
Apparently having a guy that scores like a RB1 and WR1 combined is a
good thing.
Ok, ok. I guess
Stafford and Watson are pretty decent too.
Weaknesses
Time - Kyle is clearly in win now mode. The sand is definitely slipping through the
hour glass on Marvin Jones, Edelman, Thielen, and Ertz. While OS10s roster is littered with former
league winners (Gurley, Freeman, Cam), not many of these guys can win a week
single handedly anymore.
Wild Cards
What does Edelman look like without TB12? How much will
CeeDee Lamb cut into Gallup right away?
Will they run Fournette into the ground or cut him in the
preseason. Is NKeal Harry the real deal
or not? Can Cam be a top 10 QB
again? Unfortunately, all of these
questions might need to be a hard (not firm) yes for Kyle to take one more
swing at the title before blowing this thing up. That is if he can get the moon AND the stars
for CMC next offseason.
#4 I’m Out
You heard it here first, folks. Abel gets his first taste of the sweet nectar
that is the CNK Championship bracket. If
he can pull off the greatest (and longest) turnaround in league history, my bet
is he finds a way to get the wall chart framed next to his State Title run. Not having to pay for the draft meal every
other year would be quite the bonus too.
Strengths
With no glaring holes in his starting lineup, he should be
able to put up consistent point totals (except this time they might be
consistently above average). I really
like the quartet of Beckham, Metcalf, K Allen, and Landry he will roll out at
WR. Having 2 Browns makes me a little nervous
but those dudes may ball out now that they have a real coach.
Weaknesses
Darnold still plays for Adam Gase and Singletary will have
to keep the edge in that backfield to be truly excited about this roster. Bye week and injury depth remain a
problem. The season will need to play
out perfectly for him to reach the top of the podium. *** NOTE: this would be a great year to check
the waiver wire each week and embrace FAAB usage, just FYI.
Wild Cards
KeShawn Vaughn and Damien Harris have the opportunity to
seize the work in valuable backfields.
Shepard, Kirk, and Washington could contribute in big ways if they can
find a niche in their respective offenses.
Tier 1 –
#3 Play it Backwards
Mitch has done a nice job balancing youth and experience as
well as his RB/WR contributors in the past year. This balance will give him great flexibility
to respond to injuries/COVID. This
roster has the potential to be competitive for years to come. A mere 4 years after the legendary Zeke
meltdown of 2016, PIB is in a good place to cap off his half decade return to
relevance. If he can keep this roster
on the road, PIB is one of the frontrunners.
Strengths
High end starting talent.
With the only real decision to make week 1 will be rolling out Parker,
Watkins, or ESanders, the rest of his starters are locked and loaded. If they can stay healthy, he’s a sure bet for
a playoff spot (Jinx). Kamara, Sanders
and Drake makes for a juggernaut backfield and provides flexibility at the
position. Thomas and Adams are a 1-2 punch that can seal the deal each week.
Weaknesses
TE is the only spot in the lineup where he may start each
week at a slight deficit. We know how
much he likes Irv Smith but he is really counting on Hunter Henry to reach his
potential without old man Rivers short-arming him passes down the seam.
Wild Card
Tom Brady could be great in TB or we could learn quickly it
was all Belichick. JK Dobbins was a huge
score in the draft and if he grapples the job away from Mark Ingram by playoff
time, watch out. DJ Moore has the talent
but will have to adapt to a new QB, offense, and coaching staff in an already
impacted offseason. If he can pick up
where he left off last season, this could be your championship roster. Mitch also holds the ultimate Wild Card (or
Joker?) in Antonio Brown, whose return would trigger a reshuffle of these
rankings.
#2 – F It 3
This was a tough decision between #2 and #3. I feel like their rosters were comparable but
Travis Kelce tipped the scale for me.
Top end RB talent paired with an explosive WR corp makes this a tough
roster to match up with on a week to week basis. If Southy can finally catch a lucky break, he
could find himself not having to part with his gorgeous wall décor as back-to-back
league champ.
Strengths
League (and fantasy) MVP Lamar Jackson seems to be the cheat
code. If he can continue to develop as a
passer, he will combine for RB1 and QB 1 stats this season. Cook and Chubb are all high volume backs with
good receiving pedigrees and we all know Mixon can knock an opponent out. Throw in Kelce and the other team is chasing
points early and often.
Weaknesses
While we are getting to the point where it’s tough to nitpick
rosters, QB2 is a steaming pile of who knows.
He’s got almost too many options including a bounce back from Big Ben or
Goff, a takeoff of Minshew or Foles of Fitzmagic just hanging onto the job all
year. While I like the WR talent, they
are a little more boom or bust on a weekly basis than PIB’s elite WR corp.
Wild Cards
LeVeon Bell, Kerryon, Lindsay, Henderson, and JuJu are a bit
of an unknown this season. The good news
for FI3 is that he doesn’t need many (or any) of them to hit if he can stay
healthy. With one or two of these
recapturing the glory of days past, FI3 is a top 2 lock. That is, if Cook decides not to pull a LeVeon
Bell…and also if Mixon doesn’t do the same.
Without those two for a good chunk of the season, the story becomes the
same as if he were facing me in the playoffs.
#1 – Rolling Four Deep
Consider the kiss of death applied (and has nothing to do
with me holding his 1st next year).
While I appreciate Finken’s effort to get me the 3rd pick in
the rookie draft, I don’t expect as great a return on his 2021 pick. Taking a solid roster and going all in at the
trade deadline didn’t work out the way R4D had hoped. Narrowly missing the playoffs meant he got to
see his astronomical playoff point totals go to waste on Seth. R4D purchased
himself a #2-3 year window to cash in on a few ships and the clock is
ticking.
Strengths
Like Mitch, Finken holds 3 of the top 8 players in
redraft. I love some of the WR that
belong in the top of tier 2 this year in Evans, AJ Brown, Golladay, and
Robinson. Deebo, Cooks, and Miller add
depth to make this the best all-around WR corp in the league
Weaknesses
If there is a potential weakness here it has to be RB
depth. It’s hard to say RB is an issue
when Barkley and Zeke are your starters (stupid league rules). However, if R4D is forced to dig deeper he
will need Conner or Mark Ingram to continue to hold up, which may be asking a
lot. Trading away Brees was a risk that
was immediately regrettable when Cam took Stidham’s job. Ryan, Rodgers, and Mayfield should give him
two good options each week, but the latter two have some lingering question
marks of their own.
Wild Cards
Reagor, Ruggs, and AJ Green could all but lock this up for
Finken if they ball out. Gesicki living
up to the hype or OJ murdering with Brady would really help as well. R4D would need a Seth like run of bad luck to
derail this season of destiny/dynasty.
