My (First) Fantasy Football Draft in 2009

Tonight marked my first of two, or possibly three fantasy football teams I will be playing with. The other will be in a league with some of the best and brightest Broncos' writers that will draft next Sunday.

This league however is with some college buddies of mine, and other friends of theirs who mostly all live in Fort Collins, Colo., with me. I've been looking forward to this draft for over a month, as that's when my friend sent me the invite, and the buildup to the draft was almost too much to take.

I've played fantasy football for years, since around 2000, and most of the time I am forced into doing my draft autopick style. But I always have the most fun when I get to do a live draft. Tonight I had the opportunity to participate in a live draft, and it was exhilarating.

I found myself going along with my draft plan well, sticking to it, and coming out with many quality players, at least ESPN and I believe so. I went with a somewhat different strategy than most drafters, and that is the reason I'm writing this piece.

While editing here on B/R, I ran across a fantasy article that talked about an alternate fantasy drafting strategy, going with the awesome passing attack, rather than running first.

I came into the draft wanting a dominant QB in the first round, and that's just what I got. Drafting fifth, I wanted either Tom Brady or Drew Brees as my QB, and both were available at my spot as everyone took RBs up to that point.

I decided on Brees, as he had a crazy good year last year, and is projected to dominate once again.

Second, I took a WR, Reggie Wayne, one of the most dominant receivers in the game today, and the third one taken in our draft. In the third round I grabbed up Clinton Portis to be my No. 1A runningback. Fourth I took Dwayne Bowe, a legitimate No. 1 receiver to complement my other one.

I knew I needed another runner, so I picked up Pierre Thomas out of New Orleans, as he is projected to have just a good a year as Portis, around 10 TDs with almost 1,000 yards running and 400 receiving.

Next came Wes Welker, who has caught over 100 balls both of the last two years, and will be a huge player for me this season.

My personal biggest steal is Ray Rice, who will likely be the starting RB in Baltimore this year. He is projected to have 926 yards running and six TDs this year, and I got him as my eighth pick.

Other notables on the team are Matt Cassell in a backup QB/OP position, the Titans D/ST which was ranked No. 4 by ESPN, and Antonio Bryant in the 12th round, another No. 1 WR.

Overall, I feel very confident in this team, and although there are already some trade proposals that I have made, I believe this team will go far this year for me.

Here is a look at the entire squad from a team perspective.

 Player                      Analysis                                       ESPN Projected Pts.

Drew Brees	Most consistently valuable QB in fantasy	380
Clinton Portis	Great goal-line runner, all around stud	196
Pierre Thomas	Seven weeks had 99 carries for 501 yards and 6 TDs	194
Jamal Lewis	Slowing but still decent	134
Reggie Wayne	Can go deep or across the middle, definite No. 1 WR	201
Dwayne Bowe	Not a burner but can leap over any corner	181
Wes Welker	Will be helped with Brady’s return for sure	173
Chris Cooley	Only had one score in 2008, but that should improve in ‘09	128
Matt Cassel	Chiefs will pass a lot, good backup QB/ starter at OP	308
Titans D/ST	Definite strong starting D/ST	142
John Kasay	Old, but consistent, most consistent in the league last year	116
Ray Rice	Should be starter in Baltimore and will get goal-line touches	195
Antonio Bryant	Hurt now but should be ready at start of season	169
Jeremy Shockey	His numbers have to go up in this pass-happy system	89
Josh Morgan	Another No. 1 receiver? I think so, as does ESPN	137
Chester Taylor	He can catch well and will run occasionally	121
Chad Pennington	Great third QB	194
Nate Burleson	Likely the worst receiver I have	99

Please tell me what you think. Smart picks, dumb ones, great ones, busts and soon-to-be breakouts. I would love all the feedback!