Muffin's Return to Glory

Following a disastrous year last year, the Muffin Man began planning for his Fantasy Baseball/Football 06 draft in October 05. As such, a strong draft was not only expected, but required. Muffin's disappointing last-place finish in Football came much to the delight of his fellow fantasy players, following last year's baseball regular season and playoff championships. As he sits in fifth place with three weeks remaining in baseball, we look forward to crowning a new champion. On to football...

1st round - "In the first round, he went with MY man, T.O. Quite simply, you need to get this man the ball in every situation. He is a playmaker, a talent unlike any other. The only way this pick could get any better is if T.O. had gone to Da U." Thank you, Michael Irvin! Having kept two RB's, and with back-to-back picks, Muffin did well to land the best WR on the board. He admitted to targetting Torry Holt, with Owens as his consolation prize. Since Owens will probably not be kept, making this pick as his first one was a smart decision. I won't even get into the negatives, as we all know a blow-up is coming, but probably not until after the season, and also that the hammy injury is nothing to worry about three weeks before the games matter.

2nd round - "Fast" Willie Parker - Very strong pick, as this is his third RB (having already kept LaMont Jordan and Ronnie Brown). Far and away the best guy left on the board, primarily because, unlike the remaining selections, there are no immediate threats to taking carries away. Questions remain if he can carry the work load/play in goal line sets. But with the garbage left, that is nit-picking at this point.

3rd round - LaMont Jordan. What an amazing pick in the third round. Whoever made this selection last year is a genius!

4th round - Donovan McNabb. I'm a little skeptical here. He's going to throw a ton, but to who? L.J. Smith and Brian Westbrook can only catch so many 5 yard passes. I have an inkling that he will be the new Steve McNair - centerpiece of the offense, but always banged up; and instead of long bombs, he throws dink-and-dunk passes. Having said that, Muffin Man did well to fill the QB spot, and I don't know that there was much better option out there. So, overall, a good pick, especially because this was actually a 5th-round pick.

5th round - Lee Evans. Throwing caution to the wind, and selecting a player on his favorite team, Muffin seems to reach a bit here. It's difficult for me to completely pan these picks, as I don't have a list of who else was available at the time of the pick (with all the trades). I mean, other than the fact that there really isn't a good QB to throw it to him, there is no OL to give him time to get downfield, and there is no real threat opposite him to prevent double-teams, Evans should have a fantastic year.

(While we're here...McGahee was the first "new" RB off our board. Is this because we live near Buffalo? Like, if the same draft took place in Austin, would they take McGahee? Or would the do the home-town thing and draft Davis? Because that was essentially the choice. If Muffin were a Texans fan, would he take Andrew Johnson or Eric Moulds? If he were a Niners fan, would he take Antonio Bryant? The answer to these last two questions are, "I hope not.")

6th round - Alge Crumpler. Funny tidbit here. Last year, I made a trade with the Muffin Man where I sent him Ronnie Brown & Crumpler for someone (Jake Plummer maybe?) and Clinton Portis. It's great to see the circle of life completed. Crumpler is an underrated TE. I think this may have actually been a 7th rounder, I don't know if we're caught up yet. Especially with the dearth of decent WR's in Atlanta, this is an awesome pick, as Vick usually finds him at least 5 times a game, and he's a truck.

7th round - Joseph Addai. Great pick here. Too bad we had Mort, and not Mel Kiper Jr. at this draft. All Mort did was yell that he should've taken Jay Cutler. Addai should be starting by week 7, at the latest, when Dungy realizes that Rhodes isn't worth the cloth his jersey is made from. Additionally, a great potential keeper if/when he actually does start. Unfortunately, I will be rooting for Peyton Manning's rotator cuff to shred on the opening play of the season (to add jet engine fuel to the forest fire that is Team Bernie Williams), which could stunt Addai's development.

8th round - Ronnie Brown. Wow. What kind of a genius made this selection? Seriously! He must the the smartest, most handsome person on the face of the planet! I bet he's hung like a rhino!

9th round - Michael Vick. I think we should have had an intervention at this point. After suffering through two years of Adam Dunn, who either homers or strikes out every at bat, I don't know how much more Muffin can handle. I am legitimately scared that Dunn has wound Muffin so tight, that we are a lingering McNabb injury and a 140-yard, 1 TD, 2 INT, 50 rush yard Vick game away from hearing the phrases "tall building," "high-powered rifle," and "fantasy sports" in the same sentence for the first time in CNN's history.

10th round - Reggie Brown. Mufifn opted to be the philanthropist here. He didn't want anyone to look at the draft board, and think they were getting Ronnie Brown. What a guy. Good pick, though, as McNabb will eventually have to throw to a wide receiver, even if it's not until Week 4. And Brown should become his go-to guy. If not, he could become the next FredEx, which would be entertaining if nothing else.

11th round - Eddie Kennison. Even Muffin hated this pick. Presumably because he is a #1 receiver who gets 50 catches a year. It's OK, WR's don't typically come into their own until they are 34, or whatever he is.

12th round - Lovie Smith. Big error here by Muffin, as he thought he was also required to draft a Fantasy Coach. Oh wait, L.J. Smith. I gotcha. Cornering the market on the Philly passing game. Especially valuable with Westbrook being injured.

13th round - Seattle. Defense. I'm going to take this time, rather than making my "yawn" comment, to tell you about It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. A terrific show. You should totally watch it. Or else.

14th round - Jay Feely. He's a kicker, whatever.

15th round - Mike Anderson. Extremely good pick, especially if Jamal Lewis continues to let his "friends" use his cell phone.