Okay, so today I decided to get a jump start on my fantasy football prep. It’s never too early, right? I’m diving into pre-draft player rankings, and let me tell you, it’s a wild ride.
The Initial Overwhelm
First, I grabbed a notebook and pen – yeah, I’m old school like that. I started by listing out all the usual suspect websites: ESPN, Yahoo, NFL… the big ones. Opened them all up in separate tabs and… bam! Information overload. So many names, so many numbers, so many different opinions.
Finding a Baseline
I decided to start with the “expert consensus” rankings. You know, the ones that average out the rankings from a bunch of different analysts. Figured that would be a good baseline. I started jotting down the top 20 or so players at each position: QB, RB, WR, TE, even a few kickers and defenses.
The Deep Dive
This is where things got interesting. I wasn’t just going to blindly follow the experts. I started digging into individual player stats from last year. Stuff like yards per carry, targets, touchdowns, and even things like snap counts. I wanted to see who was actually performing well, not just who was hyped up.
- I spent a good hour just comparing running backs. Looking at their consistency, their injury history, and the strength of their offensive line.
- Then I moved on to wide receivers. Checked out their quarterback situation, their target share, and their ability to make big plays.
- Quarterbacks were next. I focused on their passing yards, touchdowns, and interceptions, but also considered their rushing ability.
- Tight ends… well, tight ends are always a bit of a crapshoot, but I looked for guys with consistent targets and red zone opportunities.
Making My Own Adjustments
After all that research, I started making my own adjustments to the consensus rankings. I moved some guys up who I thought were undervalued, and moved some guys down who I thought were overhyped. It felt good to have my own personalized list, based on my own analysis.
The End Result (For Now)
Finally, I had a rough draft of my pre-draft player rankings. It’s definitely not perfect, and it’ll probably change a bunch before my actual draft. But it’s a starting point. I feel way more prepared now than I did this morning. Bring on the fantasy season!