Live Q&As

The answer is a definite yes!  I actually covered Cutler several years ago at Vanderbilt University.  I never saw someone get hit harder by SEC stars due to a lack of an offensive line.  The only common theme with those hits was that Cutler always came right back up.  A lot has changed since those days, but one thing that has not in my opinion is Cutler's toughness.  You may notice that all of his teammates stuck with him after the loss.  So any concern of a decline due to the game should be put to rest.  On the other hand, Cutler cut down on his interceptions last season, rushed for a career-high in yards, and now adds Roy Williams to the receiving corps.  I love Cutler as a low end first quarterback or a stellar backup option behind an injury-prone quarterback such as Michael Vick.

Wow, that's a lot of teams and there is no question that you better nab a running back because by pick 33 all of the elite running backs will be off the board.  I would go with Adrian Peterson, since in my book he is the safest bet.  Arian Foster put up better numbers last season, but he is ailing early in camp. Chris Johnson's yet to play on the field as well.  That leaves Peterson as the top pick in my book.  

Producer's note: Football Outsiders has run a "Loser's League" for several years, and this is exactly the point -- drafting players who play every week, but get really bad fantasy stats. Not sure they  are running it in 2011. I'll let Rob predict who might be a good top pick in this sort of league.

An interesting take on fantasy football, and yes I have seen this done in a few leagues that reward the worst teams.  My personal feeling is that you should only join a league where you know that every manager is putting forth the best effort.  Otherwise, you'll be dealing with controversial trades and a lot of headaches.  On the other hand, if everyone is trying to lose... the playing field will be balanced!

Definitely not Vick, though I am sure that there will be some fantasy managers who go with the Eagles quarterback.  The Bloomberg Sports Decision Maker explains that Vick may have the most upside of any quarterback in the NFL because of the stacked receiving corps and his rushing prowess, but he is also the riskiest option because of his health woes.  He takes a lot of hits and that could shorten his season, as it did last year.  If I have the number one pick I am looking for a sure thing.  The closest thing in my book is Adrian Peterson.

If I had to deal a running back it would be Peyton Hillis.  Check out his numbers in the later part of the season... he simply fell apart.  This year he'll have Montario Hardesty sharing the workload, which should take away some of his fantasy value.  

Some good news is that there are a lot of solid quarterbacks available.  Matt Stafford, Sam Bradford, Matt Cassel, maybe even Josh Freeman and Jay Cutler could be available for you in the draft.  If you have enough confidence that you can grab Cassel, Freeman, or Cutler I would wait for one of those guys to become available and keep your backfield in tact.

That's a great question and lucky for you I work for a company that has set it's mission to find the answer.  Among the factors that the Bloomberg Sports Decision Maker includes are the health of the player, the health of the teammates, the health of the opposition, the offensive and defensive lines, the risk/reward of an individual player's performance, and even the weather!  

Hope that helps... Sometimes science can go a long way's in fantasy football.

Here's how I would rank who to keep:

1) Ray Rice- He's young and does everything on the field, and McGahee will no longer eat in his touches

2) Michael Vick- He has more potential than any other player in the NFL

3) LeSean McCoy- He's a great receiving threat, but can he be an every down back? A question we have yet to answer.

4) Blount was sensational last season, but teams also did not know how to prepare for the late-flourishing running back.  Let's see him for a full season before we hand out any awards.

The pro of having a waiver system in place is to offer democracy.  Some fantasy managers may be too busy to get up bright and early to make their waiver picks each week, so this protects them and levels the playing field.

The con of having a waiver system is that this is America!  The early bird gets the worm, so why should you take away a strategic advantage from someone who is willing to put forth the effort to win in fantasy sports.

- Not sure if it is obvious enough, but I prefer no waiver systems :)

It's tough to budget money to specific positions... the best way to handle an auction is to make a list of safe and inexpensive picks.  For instance, everyone is going to overpay to get their hands on Vick this season... you can save money for other positions by going after Jay Cutler or Kevin Kolb and then spending more at running running back. 

My other piece of advice is not to spend all of your money on one player.  The reason is simple... this is football, players are bound to get hurt.  So instead of having the best running back and the 20th best running back, I would invest in the 10th and 11th best running backs.

Finally, save your money for the late picks.  Get the sleepers that are capable of big numbers this season such as Steve Breaston, Jerome Simpson, and Jared Cook, while everyone else has run out of money.

Good luck!

Absolutely, these are the players I have on my sleeper list:

Michael Bush (he will share carries with McFadden, particularly the ones that result in 6 points!)

Jered Cook (Check out his last 3 games of last season)

James Starks (how do we know that Ryan Grant will recover 100%)

Jerome Simpson (check out his last two games)

And this is a very deep pick... but what happens if a franchise quarterback gets hurt... it's possible a team may make an offer the Bengals can't refuse for Carson Palmer.

Graham should be a safe pick now that Jeremy Shockey is out of the way.  I also love Jered Cook this season as a sleeper with the Titans.  Just outside of the elite ranks Brandon Pettigrew... I think he becomes an elite this season.  Jermaine Gresham and Brent Celek are also sleepers.

It definitely hurts!  I can understand why Bills fans are disappointed.  The passing game has been hurting in recent years because it had only one above average wide out until finally Johnson broke through last season.  Now the team trades Evans putting them in a familar predicament.  This is also a tough blow for Ryan Fitzpatrick.

I would keep Fred Jackson in mind for the first five rounds... He proved himself again last season and I see Spiller as a backup for another season.

Ha, good point, you hit the jackpot last season and it will be tough to do again this year.  

I don't think you need to pick Rodgers number one overall to get him.  I would take the fourth pick of the draft leaving you with either Peterson, Johnson, Foster, or Rodgers... plus you won't have to wait until very very late in the second round to make your next pick.  Speaking of that second round pick I'd go with Steven Jackson or LeGarrette Blount if either are available... good luck!

Sounds smart to me, I think the league has turned back to passing-dominated, which means there is great parity at quarterback and the greater advantages exist by drafting solid running backs and wide outs.

The problem for Little is that he still has some other fine young players ahead of him such as Mohamed Massaqoi, but more importantly, quarterback Colt McCoy is no Josh Freeman.

So while I like Little's talent, he doesn't have as good a surrounding as Williams.

This is very tough... clearly you know what to do with Rodgers, but I am not sold enough on Hillis.  In the first half of the season he averaged 4.8 yards per carry.  In the second half it was down to 3.9.  While everyone is scared about MoJo, he claims to be in great shape and has had back-to-back 1300-plus rushing yards seasons.  I would stick with MoJo.  

There is definite value in Matt Ryan, and now that you add Julio Jones to the mix, we're talking about having equal talent in the receiving corps to the Packers.  Plus, Ryan is now in his fourth season, so look for the Falcons passing game to be more aggressive.  

The love is there because he is the little engine that could, but you make a fine point and we all know that Pierre Garcon has more talent.  The question is whether Reggie Wayne's role will become smaller, which opens the door for Collie.  

With the head injuries, I am staying away from Collie this season.

The common problem for both wide outs is their quarterback play.  Between the two, I like Edwards better because he has managed to stay healthy, while Crabtree has a long history of injuries since leaving Texas Tech.  But, the quarterback play has me looking at them both as WR3 options.

I am a believer in a greater parity of players this season, which has me spreading the money out more.  I believe you can save money at quarterback and invest a bit more in second tier running backs because usually one of these guys breaks out to be an elite: Steven Jackson, Blount, Moreno, and even Marshawn Lynch.  

Mike Shanahan loves Ryan Torain and that would probably be the choice as the lead back.  However, the usual story for Torain are injury woes, which can open the door for Hightower.  Put it this way... you shouldn't draft one without drafting the other.

I would say that there is an obvious three with MoJo the big question mark.  However, the problem is that if you don't keep MoJo you won't have any running backs.  The answer depends entirely on whether you will be able to upgrade at running back while getting rid of Jones-Drew... if yes, then do so, otherwise, he's a keeper.

Smith is not mentioned as much because of concerns that he has slowed down since suffering serious injuries in the NFL.  His yards per carry the last two seasons has been a disappointing 3.4 and 3.9.  On that note, they look at him as more of a third-down back than an everydown back. 

Sure, rookies always have potential, but as we learned last year, they are also high risk propositions (think Ryan Mathews and CJ Spiller).  I never invest in a rookie quarterback, but would consider going after Julion Jones and AJ Green at wide out. 

The rookies who have the best shot at running back this season would be Daniel Thomas followed by Ingram, but rookies are dangerous. 

Depends on where the pick is in the first round.  I would counter with Brees and a third round pick and try to negotiate from there.  I love Peterson, and again because of the parity at quarterback, you can get rid of Brees... but losing a first round pick could be costly.

I would read your local papers to keep up with the news (ahem... Washpost), and I would look at tools like the Bloomberg Sports Decision Maker that take a more scientific approach to the newcomers by considering offensive lines, schedules, etc. 

Other than that ESPN, Yahoo, CBS, and all the other big fantasy sites will provide you with the usual lists and cheat sheets

For what it's worth, Blount had four carries for 1 yard (one!) last night vs. the Patriots.

I think he has the ability to rack up 1200-plus yards and is a great pick in the late first or second round.  The Bucs are legit and seem to have all the pieces in places for a dynamic offense this season.  That means more goal line carries for Blount. 

I think he's top-5.  He proved what he can do last season, only fear is an injury, which is common for a player the year after they endure a huge increase in workload... there is some cause for concern.

Grossman seems to have done everything right... including his play at the end of last season... so this is a bit surprising.  This tells me that the 'Skins may be looking long-term with Beck.  I avoid both quarterbacks for now, but Grossman would bring more value to the pasisng game if he starts. 

Your thinking is a bit unconventional... but I like it.  No problem with grabbing WRs early, then maybe a QB, then spend the next four rounds on running backs who can be great such as Best, Jones, Michael Bush, Jonathan Stwart, and others. 

Running backs are like closers in fantasy baseball... there will always be injuries and running backs you never heard of will have fantasy value (John Kuhn anyone?)

Williams is now getting starter money, so he should be your main man.  Stewart is a solid handcuff if you're afraid of an injury to Williams. 

Wow, some tough decsions coming your way.  I'd stick with the QBs.. Rodgers and Rivers are certainly elite and they are still improving!

At running back, I would go with Charles in the first league then flip a coin between Charles and Johnson in the other league. 

I like Johnson more than Charles, but the hold-out is making matters murky.

I see Rodgers only getting better still.  Brees, on the other hand, hit a bit of a plateau.  He lacks the potential of Rodgers, but it still very good.