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By - Jeff Mertes
Participating in a fantasy football draft might be likened to a meticulous car washing followed by a helter-skelter drive through mud puddles. A spit shined roster is important heading into the season, but there are a lot of mud puddles along the way to assembling a competitive team.
For the most part, it is relatively easy to identify the pinnacles of position totem poles. Trust me, everybody in your draft knows about Daunte Culpepper and Peyton Manning, LaDainian Tomlinson and Priest Holmes, Randy Moss and Marvin Harrison, Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates, Ray Lewis and Rodney Harrison along with others in the premier class of players with established reputations. The first few rounds of most drafts generally play out according to Hoyle.
Then, it gets interesting as the bye-week swamp starts to limit choices. For quite awhile, the bye-week schedule seemed as if it had been drawn-up by a monkey on crack with from two to six teams sharing the same week off during the course of the NFL slate of games. Happily, the logic defying method of scheduling byes is a thing of the past with a consistent four teams off now the norm.
Still, bye-weeks are major factors. Beginning in the third round of NFL play and extending through the tenth, one-eighth of the teams are sidelined. So, once a first selection has been made, the pool for your second pick at that position is theoretically reduced by 12.5%. Especially at running back and wide receiver, where two or more players usually have to be started per week, the impact of byes can really bog down a team. For later selections, it can mean that the potential pool of players may be as low as 25% if the draft picks of competing teams are taken into account. Consequently, byes are major components in the player selection process. Bumbling-up on weeks off can create lineup voids at any position necessitating often unwanted transactions at inopportune times.
The bye-god seems to have been quite benevolent at running back this year. Thanks to a lucky twist, primo pigskin packers are nicely dealt throughout bye weeks. LaDainian Tomlinson, the number one tater toter on a great many draft lists, is off on week 10. The only other top running backs on sabbatical that week are Deuce McAllister and Chris Brown. So, Tomlinson’s perch at the pinnacle of draft lists is even stronger. Most precarious for skin scooters is week 3 with Domanick Davis, Clinton Portis, Jamal Lewis and Kevin Jones treading water.
In most drafts, receivers typically aren’t selected until the third round. As with running backs, receivers are spread fairly well throughout bye weeks. If you happen to be considering snapping-up the first receiver in a league that requires playing three, then byes should still be scrutinized. Generally Randy Moss (bye-week #5), Torry Holt (9), Marvin Harrison (8) and Terrell Owens (6) are considered to be the premier biscuit catchers. If Moss is passed over, then Nate Burleson, Tony Gonzalez and Plaxico Burress are still available as potential #2 pass grabbers. The choice of Harrison eliminates his productive teammates Reggie Wayne/Brandon Stokley, Seahawk Darrell Jackson and Jet Laveranues Coles. Considering Owens’ baggage, Holt with a ninth week bye appears strongest because only Broncos Rod Smith/Ashley Lelie, Cowboy Keyshawn Johnson and Bills Eric Moulds/Lee Evans would no longer be roster fits.
No matter how well prepared the draft list, paying attention to bye-week strategy can avert a big gob of roster muck at the end of the draft. Keep depth options in mind as categorized bye-weeks off when weighing players projected to have relatively similar production so that conflicts can be averted, especially at positions where two or more must be started for each game.
Ah, there’s nothing quite like taking a buffed, shining draft vehicle for a spin. A look ahead to bypass bye-week bogs will help to keep you rolling toward assembling a team that just might cleanup at season’s end.
Refer to the 2005 Fantasy Gas Bye Week Draft Depth Chart in the NFL Resources/Fantasy
Draft section.
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