The draft is over and we all have our teams that we now need to live with and hope that over the course of the next 4 months can lead us to a fantasy football championship! Can DaUnderdog prove that last season’s championship run was no fluke? Can Bossman make it to their 4th Super Bowl in a row? Will one of the remaining 6 teams who have yet to win a championship get it done this year? I don’t know the answers to any of these questions but I am excited to get the season going and find out!
I plan to incorporate some of my thoughts around each teams draft in the preview section. So let’s get to it. Week 1!
Big Papa (0-0) vs Pack Attack (0-0)
Big Papa once again comes into Week 1 having had according to Yahoo the “Best Draft”. I am really thinking what this means is that Big Papa follows the closest to the Yahoo rankings each year and maybe that is for the best as when they decide to go out on their own they draft TE’s like Jared Cook in the 2nd round! While I am not sure I agree with this being the team that had the best draft I do think that they were able to get some solid pieces with Mahomes and Kupp leading the way and I think Stevenson has the potential to be a solid pick in the 6th round. The biggest stretch in my opinion was there decision to take Z. Ertz in the 4th round. I like Ertz but 4th round seems a bit high for me! Big Papa opened last season with a big win but then went on to loss their next 5 games and finished outside of the playoffs. They will be looking to get off to another good start as they face off against Pack Attack in one of the longest standing rivalries in the league!
Prediction:
Check out the Yahoo predictions for this one!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 20
- Record: Advantage Pack Attack at 12-8
- PPG Avg: Advantage Pack Attack 129.25 to 117.28
16hrs Ahead of You!! (0-0) vs BIGBOY! (0-0)
BIGBOY! is coming off one of their better seasons from a year ago in which they finished at 11-3 and the #1 overall seed only to lose to the eventual champion DaUnderdog in the divisional round. They will be hoping for another strong effort this season and they are starting it off with a strong draft. There are a lot of things to like about this draft but the steal for them is getting C. Godwin in the 5th round especially since it looks like he may be ready to go for week 1! 16hrs or should I say the Yahoo bots also had a solid draft as they loaded up on RB’s with 3 of their first 5 picks coming at the RB position. They somehow however drafted 3 TE’s. There is a programmer somewhere who needs to be fired because there has to be a block which doesn’t allow any auto drafted team to take more then 2 TE’s! Either way, I think a few minor tweaks and 16hrs has a team that can compete.
Prediction:
It is always hard to make predictions in Week 1 but I think the edge here goes to BIGBOY! as they have the overall better team with more proven guys. I like them to start off with a win!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 12
- Record: Advantage BIGBOY! at 9-3
- PPG Avg: Advantage BIGBOY! 122.59 to 100.64
Bossman (0-0) vs teamAlaska (0-0)
Bossman comes into this season with all kinds of accolades. You name the record and it is likely that you are going to see team Bossman at or near the top of that list. However at some point things start going the other way and these now three straight super bowl losses start taking their toll. Prior to the lottery draft I thought maybe this was going to be the year and then they get the #1 overall pick in the draft and I thought.. nope… we are in for another Bossman going deep into the playoffs kind of year and then the draft happened and not only did I question some of the picks but Yahoo gave them the worst draft grade at a D- and has them finishing with a record of 1-13! Now we all know 1-13 isn’t happening but I do find this comical and it will be interesting to see how this team performs this season.
TeamAlaska had a solid draft starting off with what most think will be the best fantasy WR in the game this season in J. Jefferson and I think L. Jackson could have a MVP type season. I also love the value picks in rounds 9-12 as they snagged C. Claypool, J. Meyers, K. Gainwell and S. Watkins. Clyde Edwards Helaire scares me this season so drafting him in the 6th round would not have been what I would have done so if there is a reach that is it.
Prediction:
Historically you can’t get any closer then these two as they have played 16 times and each won 8. I think this will be a close game but I am going to go with teamAlaska to send Bossman on their way to their 1-13 start by getting the win in this one!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 16
- Record: Tied at 8-8
- PPG Avg: Advantage Bossman 118.46 to 113.70
DaUnderdog (0-0) vs PackerFANatic7 (0-0)
DaUnderdog had one of the more improbable championship runs last season and it almost didn’t happen as if PackerFANatic7 would have been able to win their final regular season game it would have been them in the playoffs and not DaUnderdog! How fitting that these two teams take the field in week 1! Let’s talk draft for a bit as both of these teams got the worst two picks. DaUnderdog drafting 13th while PackerFANatic7 drafted last! The stats will tell you that it is hard to make the playoffs when drafting at the bottom of the league but both teams put together solid drafts. DaUnderdog found out late in the year last season how fun it is to have a good QB (see Joe Burrow) and decided to take J. Allen the consensus #1 QB this year in round 2. After that they took guys who in years past have been good but have slid a bit due to change in QB play. Overall a solid draft given their position. For PackerFANatic7 they went all in on Green Bay players… oh wait.. D. Adams plays for the Raiders! I am not sure how this is going to work out but it will be interesting nonetheless as they went with Adams in the first which I am good with but then A. Jones AND AJ Dillon in rounds 2 and 3. I don’t have the rankings in front of me right now but I would say that if you are going to start two backs from the same team on a weekly basis this is probably about as good as you can get in the league and even though I maybe wouldn’t take this approach when you are drafting at the 14 spot you have to take some chances!
Prediction:
There is only one team in the league that PackerFANatic7 has never beaten and that is DaUnderdog. They are currently 0-5 against them. DaUnderdog would love to move that to 6 in a row and start of the season 1-0! I am not 100% sure what PackerFANatic7’s plan is for their D, DEF and K positions so in a game I expect to be close I think that matters. I am going to go with DaUnderdog to start off their title defense with a solid win over PackerFANatic7!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 5
- Record: Advantage DaUnderdog at 5-0
- PPG Avg: Advantage DaUnderdog 135.02 to 103.65
HHH (0-0) vs U Don’t Know (0-0)
U Don’t Know has really come on strong these last 4 seasons. They have had winning records in each season, made the playoffs in 3 of those 4 seasons and picked up a championship two years ago. With that said the perception has started to change and this is a team that you expect to put a good product on the field each and every week. I like what they did in rounds 1 and 2 getting S. Diggs and a player I had high on my board, S. Barkley in round 2. I think A. Thielen in the 5th round is a reach for me as I wouldn’t be surprised if K.J. Osborn actually outscores him this year and he was drafted 7 rounds later! Overall though I think they have a solid team from top to bottom that should compete again this season!
HHH is coming off their first losing season in 4 years as they finished 6-8. They will be looking to get back to their winning ways and they started off with a solid draft as well. However, when you are picking so high in the draft (#2 overall) as HHH was you need to get that first pick right and picking A. Ekeler over C. McCaffrey or WR’s like Jefferson and Kupp is going to be something interesting to look back on at the end of the season. I like their next two picks of T. Higgins and M. Pittman Jr and then pairing that with Burrow in round 5 is solid. I am not crazy about Kittle in round 4 and mainly because of the injury history but Lazard in Rd7 could be a steal. Overall a solid draft for HHH.
Prediction:
Unfortunately for HHH they are already having to deal with injury concerns to A. Lazard and G. Kittle as we go into week 1. I also like the matchups for U Don’t Know as there a couple of potential shootout games for Diggs and Brady in particular. I am going with U Don’t Know to get the win in week 1!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 16
- Record: Advantage U Don’t Know at 9-7
- PPG Avg: Advantage U Don’t Know 119.12 to 112.97
pack slayer (0-0) vs Sportsfreak (0-0)
Sportsfreak comes into this season not having had a winning season in 4 years and not only that they haven’t been able to get over 5 wins in the last 4 years. I hope that they used their month + in Montana to figure out a way to break this losing streak. The draft is usually the starting point and I really like what Sportsfreak did in the draft. Kamara and Swift in rounds 1 and 2 is a great start as both backs have the potential as finishing #1 overall. M. Williams and J. Herbert combination should be solid. Waller in the 5th round is a value and Patterson in the 7th could be a solid value as he did finish in the top 10 of RB’s last season. This was for sure a solid start for Sportsfreak and Yahoo has them projected as the highest scoring team this week!
pack slayer is coming off another solid season as they finished with 9 wins and the #3 overall seed only to lose in the first round to the eventual Super Bowl champ, DaUnderdog. They usually do relatively well in the regular season as they have made the playoffs in 7 of their 11 seasons however they can’t seem to do anything when they get to the playoffs. They are hoping for a different outcome this season and they too had a solid draft. Getting McCaffrey at pick 3 is huge and if he stays healthy he would be my pick to finish as the #1 RB in the league. The next two picks I have questions about as they took AJ Brown in Round 2 and C. Sutton in round 3. They probably were drafted appropriately for their ADP however they chose them over guys like T. Higgins, T. Hill, M. Pittman Jr., K. Allen and K. Pitts. These are all things that will be interesting to go back at the end of the year to see how they end up but right now I would prefer all of the guys I mentioned over Brown and Sutton. That doesn’t mean I don’t like their draft as I do think both Brown and Sutton have potential to live up to those picks and anytime you have a healthy McCaffrey on your team you have a shot at winning each week!
Prediction:
Yahoo really likes these two teams this week and has them projected as the highest scoring matchup. I expect this to be a good game and I am going to go with Sportsfreak to get off to a 1-0 start. It sets up nicely for them as the LV vs LAC game has the potential to be high scoring so the combo of Herbert to Williams and then if it is a shootout having Waller on the other side of the ball seems like a solid play. I also expect big games from both Kamara and Swift. Sportsfreak with the win!
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 11
- Record: Advantage pack slayer at 7-4
- PPG Avg: Advantage pack slayer 119.31 to 118.72
Rapids Plungers (0-0) vs Starrfavrerodg (0-0)
Starrfavrerodg is coming into year 3 in the league and after making the playoffs their rookie season they learned the hard way that winning / making the playoffs in this league is not easy as they finished in dead last with a 3-11 record. They will be looking to put last season behind them and if the draft is any indication I would say they are off to a solid start. I know that they had to autodraft and they were complaining about not getting a RB until round 5 but overall I like this draft. Those top 4 receivers of J. Chase, M. Evans, DJ Moore, and Diontae Johnson should keep them in games all year long and getting D. Pierce and J. Jacobs in rounds 5 & 6…. I would say the auto draft did a nice job here. RB depth is of course a concern but there is always a injury or two or RB’s that come out of nowhere to help in that category.
Rapids Plungers did something really out of the ordinary last season. They missed the playoffs and had a losing record! It was only their 3rd losing record in 14 seasons in the league and only their 5th time missing the playoffs so this is new territory for them coming into the season. They once again were unlucky when it comes to their draft position as they got pick # 12. Interesting stat given how successful they have been over the years but they have the worst average draft position of any team with a avg draft position of 9.93 and the next closest is Bossman at 8.82! Needless to say if there is any team that is going to find a way to win while drafting in the lower rounds it is Rapids Plungers. Overall, I like their draft as they like usual were able to grab some potential real values later in the draft specifically in rounds 10-14 where they grabbed T. Burks, M. Gallup, T. Allgeier and J. Dotson. I love all of those picks at the rounds they were taken. I personally don’t love Kelce in the upper half of round 2, now I know that is probably the right pick based on ADP and scarcity at the TE position but I would have preferred a top tier RB to pair with their stud WR in C. Lamb. Etienne, G. Davis and J. Hurts in rounds 3-5 are all being drafted on potential and assumptions of what they will become this season. I like all of them and if Rapids Plungers hits on those three guys and they perform like they could then we will likely see Rapids Plungers back battling for a championship come the end of the season!
Prediction:
This is a fun one! I like a lot of the guys for both teams. There are some guys from both teams that I am excited to see how they perform. For the sake of picking the games however I feel better about those 4 WR’s I mentioned for Starrfavrerodg then some of the guys I see for Rapids Plungers. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Rapids Plungers win this one but I am going to go with Starrfavrerodg to start off 1-0. Oh and if you notice below, in their previous two meetings Starrfavrerodg has yet to lose to Rapids Plungers. I think that extends to 3 games after this week.
Historical Look at this Match-Up:
- Regular Season Match-ups: 2
- Record: Advantage Starrfavrerodg at 2-0
- PPG Avg: Advantage Starrfavrerodg 135.88 to 113.80