The Week That Was Football: The Good, Bad and Ugly

The Week That Was Football: The Good, Bad and Ugly

Congratulations to all who won a fantasy football title.  I hope you push forward into playoff fantasy football and of course, fantasy baseball!   With my final fantasy football column of the year, here is a look back at the season that was with some good, some bad and some ugly.

The GOOD:

DeMarco Murray:  Many of those hoisting fantasy football trophies over the last week have Demarco Murray to thank.  From the day he entered the league it was obvious Murray was supremely talented.  The only questions were whether he could stay healthy and whether Jason Garrett and the Cowboys brain trust would finally reverse a 7 year trend of inexplicably abandoning the run leaving Murray in the same state of confusion as the rest of us.  Well, those questions were answered with a resounding YES!  Add in the fact that first round pick Zach Martin played like the best guard in the entire NFL in just his rookie year and you have roto magic – magic defined as 2,140 yards from scrimmage, 12 TDs and 54 catches.  Murray went 9th overall in the FSTA expert draft and still produced a huge profit.  That is saying something.  Good just does not do Murray justice.

Le'veon Bell:   For those who build their fantasy football teams around running backs and missed out on DeMarco Murray, you better have grabbed Le'veon Bell.  Like Murray, Bell suffered from the “can he stay healthy?” questions as owners debated how highly he should be drafted.  Well, until the hyperextended knee in week 17, there were not serious health questions.   What did exist is serious production.  Bell finished the 2014 regular season with over 2,200 yards from scrimmage, 11 TD and 83 catches.  Like Murray, he cost a first round pick this summer (going 11^th overall in FSTA) but was still more than worth it.  If forced to compare, I would say Murray outplayed Bell over the fantasy football regular season but Bell returned the favor in the playoffs.  Either way, “good” does not do Bell justice either.

Odell Beckham, Jr.:  Unlike Murray and Bell who cost mid to late first round picks, OBD a/k/a OBJ was a 13^th round pick in the FSTA draft and turned out to be the best wideout in football after making his debut in week 5.  Over the 12 games in which the rookie phenom played, he caught 79 balls for 1120 yards and 11 TD.  Oh, and if you want to fully understand his value, think about this:  In weeks 14-17 when fantasy football titles were on the line, OBJ/OBD produced 43 catches for over 600 yards and 7 TD.  To put that in perspective, over the same period, Dez Bryant was absolutely great and still paled in comparison with 21 catches for 368 yards and 6 TD.  Saying good would be a joke.  My best attempt at describing this rookie is wow.  Just wow.

The BAD

Montee Ball:  Many fantasy football fortunes took a major hit when Montee Ball flamed out.  Many expected Ball to duplicate the huge success Knowshon Moreno enjoyed as Denver’s lead back in 2013.  Indeed many were so excited by the prospect of Ball facing defenses keyed on stopping the pass that Ball often went in the first round.  In FSTA, he went 7^th overall.  The honor of being a first round pick was likely the height of Ball’s season as he finished with a paltry 234 yards from scrimmage and one lousy TD.  Matters were made worse for Ball owners as very few had C.J. Anderson as the primary handcuff.   Bad?  No, worse! 

Giovanni Bernard: While Gio had his moments, there can be little doubt that the Bengals RB failed to return anywhere close to 2d round value – the round in which he was commonly drafted (indeed he went18^th overall in FSTA).  Frankly, the warning signs were there for Bernard.  First, he simply is not built like an every down back.  Second, the Bengals drafted Jeremy Hill who went from threat to Bernard to the guy playing his lead back position.  On the year, Bernard’s stats do not look that bad:  1000+ yards, 7 TD and 43 receptions.  Those are not quite 2d round value but not terrible.  The real issue is that Gio failed to reach 100 total yards in 11 of the 16 non-bye weeks this season.  That means that as an RB1 or RB2, he hurt you more than he helped you.  Bad!

The UGLY:

Zac Stacy:  Ugh, just ugh.  Frankly, I cannot explain Stacy’s fall from grace.  In 2013, the Zac attack played the bell cow role perfectly, especially in the 2d half.  With the Rams poised to have a very strong defense, Stacy should have been given the ball early and often in a conservative offense designed to protect and foster that defense.  However, despite not getting hurt, Zac just disappeared.  In fact, despite being healthy, he carried the ball fewer than 20 times combined over the last 10 games of the season.  Stacy, who went 20^th overall in FSTA, was just a fantasy football disaster.  Those like yours truly who failed to be SMART and roster Tre Mason paid a dear price for Stacy’s Houdini act.  Ugly!

Doug Martin: Those who thought Martin would stay healthy and return to his 2012 form, raise their hands.  Yeah, you know who you are!  Shame on us!  Martin, who went 28^th overall in the FSTA draft, did not come close to returning that kind of value.  Indeed, despite some flashes, the majority of 2014 was just ugly.  Specifically, Martin scored all of 2 TD, gained under 500 yards from scrimmage and posted a paltry 3.4 yards per carry.  If it is any consolation to those fantasy owners who drowned thanks to Martin, his real world team posted the worst record in all of football.  Ugly.    

Final Thought: It has been an amazing year in the NFL and in fantasy football.  While there are so many highlights, the top one for me is the privilege of working with such world class talents as Ray Flowers, Jeff Mans, Rick Wolf and the rest of the Fantasy Alarm team.  Now on to playoff fantasy football, fantasy baseball prep, and of course, rooting on the NFC East Champion Dallas Cowboys!