We Need To Talk About Your Season-Long Fantasy League
Have a seat.
I think you knew this was coming. Let’s be honest with ourselves; it just isn’t what it used to be, is it? Guys naming their teams “Show Me Your TDs” and “My Ball Zach Ertz” just doesn’t cut it anymore, does it? Listen, it’s no one’s fault. Well, Wes and Matt just set their lineup and don’t say anything anymore, basically the missionary position of fantasy, but at least they still set their lineup. Tyler had that open spot on his roster nearly all year. What kind of a league do you have if someone is practicing roster spot abstinence for most of the season?
I’m not suggesting the “Big D.” I’m simply suggesting a fantasy separation. As everyone in Big D knows, league divorce isn’t official until you complete the entire process. You’ve heard about other guys “having a little fun” with daily fantasy sports? Of course you have, as I can see you are alive and can either see or hear. Outside of the weird sock puppet thing, it sounds fun, doesn’t it?
You think you are too old for daily fantasy? It’s passed you by? Don’t. Be. Ridiculous. FanDuel’s revenue in the 4th quarter last year? $7.4 million. This year in the same 4th quarter? $37 million. Yep, 5x the revenue, year over year. Their number of active users over the same span is up just slightly as well, from 192,000 to 1,000,000. That number is driven by schlubs like you (no offense, by the way), who aren’t willing to settle for just their season-long league anymore. Your fantasy skills are too young and too vibrant yet! If you feel like you need to catch up first, listen here. It’s the entire daily fantasy sports year in 36 minutes.
Okay, ready to go? You’ve made it to RotoGrinders, which is a good first step. You’re going to want to sign up for FanDuel through RotoGrinders, and it’s easy, just by clicking here. The reason is that by enrolling through RotoGrinders, you’ll get access to their Incentives, or fancy stats and advice to help you out. For instance, it can’t hurt to know the Seahawks ran 141 plays in the red zone this year and that Marshawn Lynch touched the ball on 43% of them, can it?
Feeling a little guilty? Look at it like this. You don’t have to put money on FanDuel this week if you don’t want. Just set a lineup and put it into some free contests. Think of it as going to a fantasy strip club rather than a fantasy brothel. Now, if you decide to plunk down $25 in their Sunday Million for a chance at the $200,000 top prize, I won’t judge you. This is a safe space. Plus, the transaction is 100% safe and 100% easy. In other words, much better than your season-long league, where Kevin is still emailing about that $50 he’s owed from the time he took 2nd in 2012.
Ultimately, this might make your season-long league better. Maybe you could incorporate a little DFS into your league?
Everyone drafts their season-long team, but on the chatboards, everyone posts a FanDuel lineup each week, and the top half get a point? You know, a little fantasy ménage à trois if you will, with daily fantasy, your season-long league, and you. And, if everyone’s not into it, that’s okay too. You know you can just go to your other season-long league, your fantasy sidepiece, to get a few guys. Pull the best from both leagues and make a super-league, and administer it through email. To be honest, any league without that guy, who is always drunk and yelling, is better anyway. Speaking of which, why is he even in your league? Nevermind, a topic for another day.
Nothing left to it, but to do it. You’re enrolled. Now, if you’d like some help getting started, just keep reading. I’ll go easy, and if you need to stop, the fantasy safe word is “Lime-A-Rita.”
A Note About Two-Game Slates
If this is your first time creating a FanDuel lineup, I want to warn you that with only a two-game, four-team slate, it’s going to be a bit unfulfilling. You might even catch yourself muttering “That was it?” That’s natural. As the slates get bigger, it will be much better. Forming lineups will go longer, and that feeling from doing it well will be much more intense as well. Trust me.
Quarterbacks
1)Tom Brady – $9,100
With all four options at about the same price point, the budget element of lineup construction for quarterbacks goes out the window. Just pick your poison. With Brady, you get the quarterback of the favored team in the game Vegas says will be higher scoring (over/under of 54 versus 47 for the GB at SEA game). If you’re looking for a reason to pick Brady, the over/under is just the tip … of the iceberg.
From a weapons standpoint, if Edelman/LaFell/Gronkowski aren’t the best receiving corp left in the playoffs, they are 1A to the Packers’ fleet. Their ancillary options, Amendola and Vereen, can only help Brady as well. Also, you love rostering a quarterback on a team that is willing to go an entire half without calling a single handoff, as the Patriots did last week. If they do get in close, Brady is as likely as any New England back to put his head down and dive in for a score.
2)Russell Wilson – $8,900 – To think of a rushing quarterback gouging the Packers on the ground in the playoffs doesn’t require much imagination.
3)Andrew Luck – $9,200 – With the balding process in full effect, there’s a strong likelihood that Luck’s hair will form the Colts’ logo in the years to come: the ultimate show of team spirit!
4)Aaron Rodgers – $9,100 – One Good Leg = Not Enough Good Legs
Running Backs
1)Marshawn Lynch – $8,600
He’s ‘bout that action, boss. Whereas, with Gronk you don’t have to explain the play, but rather try to justify the price, with Lynch, no justification is needed AND the price isn’t that prohibitive, compared to the other sure-fire ball carriers (sure-fire RBs ≠ Patriots RBs). With the difficult decisions you have to make, this isn’t one of them. And I’m thankful for that.
2)Shane Vereen – $5,400
Candidly, I’m not thrilled about this play, but it might be necessary. You’ll remember the Patriots romped the Colts in Week 11, behind the run game, and specifically Jonas Gray’s 4 touchdowns. Vereen, though, had 77 total yards and four receptions in that game. Also, Vereen’s role on the Pats is the most predictable of all the backs: pass catcher and occasional ineligible receiver/lineman. Ultimately, you’ve got to make a budget concession somewhere. He’s mine.
3)Boom Herron – $7,000 – Much like when Ron Burgandy called for his news team to assemble, when the Colts finally tired
of Trent Richardson and called for Herron, he must have replied “I have literally been standing right here the entire time.”
4)Eddy Lacy – $8,300 – As if the Seattle defense wasn’t enough to worry about, asthma attacks?!
Wide Receivers
1)Julian Edelman – $7,500
Dem Targets Doe. In their Week 11 tilt, Edelman led the Pats with eight targets, while the next highest total, Gronk’s, was five. Last week, while Gronkowski was targeted 13 times, Edelman again led the team with 14. The Colts do have one of the league’s premier corners in Vontae Davis, but the way New England moves Edelman around the formation, he should get plenty of looks against the lesser pieces of the Indianapolis secondary. Like a house directly under a cell phone tower, expect reception(s).
2)Jordy Nelson – $8,900
Week 1, when the NFC’s two top teams squared off, the Packers basically sacrificed their 3rd wide receiver (then Jarrett Boykin) to Richard Sherman while leaving Jordy Nelson on the opposite side in a better matchup. That corner opposite Sherman, Byron Maxwell, is questionable this week, which could create some plus situations for the Packers’ top wideout. Save for maybe T.Y. Hilton, no receiver remaining has the upside that Nelson does. In cash, and especially in tournaments this week, my lineups will be like Hercules Hernandez’s finishing move: Full Nelson.
3)Donte Moncrief – $5,300
With all the hubbub about Peyton Manning getting old before our very eyes, you’d think there would be more coverage about his former battery-mate, Reggie Wayne, and his amazing shrinking target total. Despite a strangle hold on the Colts’ WR snap count, his percent of the Colts targets has declined every week since Week 12. The main beneficiary has been Moncrief, who tied for the team lead with eight targets last week. Even if Hilton dominates the targets like he did in the wildcard round, Moncrief is talented enough that just one could be enough.
More importantly, how well does he have to play before he earns a nickname? “DonMon” is just sitting there waiting for us.
4)Doug Baldwin – $6,200 – Despite Kearse catching a deep one last week, Baldwin is still Seattle’s top target. Spend the extra $400.
5)Randall Cobb – $8,800 – Putting hard-boiled eggs on a salad is right up there with one of the most unusual and delicious food combinations that exist.
6)T.Y. Hilton – $8,200 – Drops have been a problem, but he has the sort of speed that would make Dennis Hopper cackle.
Tight Ends
1)Dwayne Allen – $5,300
To Gronk or not to Gronk, that is the question. With only four teams to choose from, finding those cheap-cheap options to ease your budget if you roster Gronkowski can be challenging. If you take the road less Gronked, Dwayne Allen could make all the difference in your lineup. He caught a touchdown in the divisional round after being second on the team in routes run in the wildcard round. Then again, it was Coby Fleener who torched the Patriots in their Week 11 matchup for 144 yards, albeit with Allen leaving very early with an injury. Ultimately, it is a bit of a coin flip between the two Colts’ tight ends, and I’m choosing to roster the one less likely to drop a touchdown pass.
2)Rob Gronkowski – $8,200 – A “Fifty Shades of Gray,” erotica-type novel about Gronk was inevitable, wasn’t it?
3)Coby Fleener – $5,500 – I’ve been wrong before.
4)Luke Willson – $5,400 – Unlike the Packers, at least you know he is the Seattle tight end you want.
Defenses
1)Patriots – $4,900
I know the ‘Hawks are the best defense left, playing their best ball of the year, at home. I get all that. It’s just that Rodgers doesn’t turn it over. Meanwhile, Andrew Luck is such a do-it-all player that he throws sloppy, deep “punts” on third-and-long, just to help the punter out. Here are the regular season interception totals for the four remaining quarterbacks:
A. Rodgers – 5
R. Wilson – 7
T. Brady – 9
A. Luck – 16
Plus, there is little-to-no threat that the Colts will get ahead and lean on the run game. They pass when behind. They pass when ahead. Pass on the Seattle and play New England instead.
2)Seahawks – $5,300
3)Colts – $4,600
4)Packers – $4,700
Kickers
1)Mason Crosby – $4,500
If there’s any position where I’m willing to make a bit of a contrarian pick, it is kicker. Both games should be played in roughly the same conditions, so the elements are no more a threat to Crosby than anyone else. Kickers are still kickers, so if you feel more lukewarm about another PK than Crosby, by all means, have at it. And, if you feel more than lukewarm about any kicker, calm down. They’re just kickers!
2)Steven Hauschka – $4,800
3)Stephen Gostkowski – $4,900
4)Adam Vinatieri – $4,600