If you read the title to this post and said to yourself, “Who the heck is Mitchell Friedman”, then I have done my job in selecting a title.
Inspired by perhaps the best sports movie ever, the “Who Are These Guys” series looks back at the previous week and compiles a starting lineup of players that would have your league mates mocking you and your opponent licking his chops as he foolishly commits the bitter offense of counting his chickens before they’ve hatched. While the players selected each week are based entirely on hindsight, the purpose is to show you that every week it is possible to create a lineup that does not contain a single stud, yet said lineup would trample one containing only studs. Duds over studs. Bros before hoes. That’s how it goes…
The precise scene from the movie that gave birth to this series can be enjoyed here: Who Are These F’n Guys
Now the real trick would be coming up with this list a week ahead of time, but if I did that I’m not sure I’d have the time to be here writing about it. Instead I would be collecting giant weekly checks from DraftKings, Fan Duel and any other site that allowed me to pad my bank account. I’d certainly throw you all a bone from time to time, but until I figure out how to do so, we are going to have to stick with the current format.
QB: Ryan Tannehill (279 points, 145 ADP)
RB: Justin Forsett (245 points, undrafted)
RB: Jeremy Hill (211 points, 128 ADP)
WR: Steve Smith (220 points, 149 ADP)
WR: Golden Tate (259 points, 91 ADP)
TE: Martellus Bennett (218 points, 119 ADP)
FL: Emmanuel Sanders (300 points, 72 ADP)
The above lineup doesn’t have one player that was drafted earlier than the 6th round (Sanders), yet it is strong to likely beat just about any lineup one of your opponents would have sent your way. I realize that looking at this lineup, a year later, it doesn’t seem like such a shocking list of players, but try and go back in time to week two and imagine it then.
Now imagine this. Let’s say you actually drafted the players above. Not only did you draft a team that would have taken you to the playoffs, but you would have done so without selecting a player in the first five rounds. You know what that means? You’re an idiot for skipping the first five rounds. That’s not what I was getting at, but would be true if you actually snoozed and missed the first five rounds. What I was getting at is that in addition to the players listed above, you would also have your first five rounds to free to draft any players you wanted. Looking at last season’s first five rounds, how do these five “backup” players sound.
Round 1: Matt Forte (343 points, 8 ADP)
Round 2: Jordy Nelson (328 points, 24 ADP)
Round 3: Andrew Luck (352 points, 35 ADP)
Round 4: Julian Edelman (223 points, 64 ADP)
Round 5: Joique Bell (198 points, 72 ADP)
Combine these five players with the other five and you have an unbeatable team.
So sit back, relax, have a few beers and get ready for some unexpected names. And remember, never judge a book by its cover…
On a tangential note, I am looking to start another fantasy football league and thought I’d invite some of you readers. If you are reading this, you are invited. It will be a 10-team, 1-point PPR league with an auction draft on ESPN. The buy-in is $50. Top four teams make the playoffs. Playoffs are two week matchups. Payouts will be: $50 to the team that ends the regular season in first place. $50 to the team that ends the regular season with the most points. $100 to the team that loses in the finals. $400 to the team that wins the finals. Auction draft will be Thursday (9/10) night at 9pm EST. If you are interested leave a comment below or shoot me an email here!
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