The Open Duerr Podcast: Episode Four

The Open Duerr Podcast: Episode 3

The Open Duerr Podcast: Episode 2

The Open Duerr Podcast: Episode 1

Fantasy Football: Top 100

1.       Jammal Charles

2.       Eddie Lacy

3.       Marshawn Lynch

4.       Arian Foster

5.       Matt Forte

6.       Le’Veon Bell

7.       Antonio Brown

8.       Adrian Peterson

9.       DeMarco Murray

10.   Demaryius Thomas

11.   Rob Gronkowski

12.   Jordy Nelson

13.   Dez Bryant

14.   Calvin Johnson

15.   C.J. Anderson

16.   LeSean McCoy

17.   Aaron Rodgers

18.   T.Y. Hilton

19.   Julio Jones  

20.   Odell Beckham Jr.

21.   A.J. Green

22.   Randall Cobb

23.   Andrew Luck

24.   Jeremy Hill

25.   Alshon Jeffery

26.   Alfred Morris

27.   Emmanuel Sanders

28.   Jimmy Graham

29.   Brandon Cooks

30.   Mike Evans

31.   Mark Ingram

32.   Justin Forsett

33.   Kelvin Benjamin

34.   Lamar Miller

35.   Julian Edelman

36.   Peyton Manning

37.   DeAndre Hopkins

38.   Melvin Gordon

39.   Carlos Hyde

40.   Drew Brees

41.   Russell Wilson

42.   Frank Gore

43.   Jordan Matthews

44.   Joique Bell

45.   Sammy Watkins

46.   Keenan Allen

47.   Andre Ellington  

48.   Jonathan Stewart

49.   Giovani Bernard

50.   DeSean Jackson

51.   Rashad Jennings

52.   Golden Tate

53.   Amari Cooper

54.   Tevin Coleman

55.   Letavius Murray

56.   LeGarrette Blount

57.   Greg Olsen

58.   T.J. Yeldon

59.   Todd Gurley

60.   Brandon Marshall

61.   C.J. Spiller

62.   Mike Wallace

63.   Andre Johnson

64.   Vincent Jackson

65.   Kevin White

66.   Joseph Randle

67.   Travis Kelce

68.   Brandon LaFell

69.   Isaiah Crowell

70.   Darren McFadden

71.   Cam Newton

72.   Martavius Bryant

73.   Allen Robinson

74.   Eric Decker

75.   Jeremy Macklin

76.   Tre Mason

77.   Martellus Bennett

78.   Jarvis Landry

79.   Ben Roethlisberger

80.   Chris Ivory

81.   Nelson Agholor

82.   Shane Vereen

83.   Ryan Mathews

84.   Roddy White

85.   Julius Thomas

86.   Michael Floyd

87.   Torrey Smith

88.   Matt Ryan

89.   Breshad Perriman

90.   Dwayne Allen  

91.   Larry Fitzgerald

92.   Tony Romo

93.   Devonta Freeman

94.   Charles Sims

95.   Marques Colston

96.   Alfred Blue

97.   Bishop Sankey

98.   Marques Colston

99.   DeAngelo Williams
100.   Tom Brady   

Fantasy Football 61-100: Ski/Not Ski

Ski

Brandon LaFell
WR – New England Patriots
Current Position: 75
My Position: 68

He’s a receiver on the Patriots.  Brady or no Brady, they always put up respectable numbers.

Cam Newton
QB – Carolina Panthers
Current Position: 97
My Position: 71

After the top tier of QB’s go, it’s just a mess.  I’ll take Newton, finished in the Top 5 in QB scoring the first two seasons he was in the league before having a down season last year.  I’ll especially take him over the like of Matt Ryan, who for some reason is still being drafted ahead of him.

Martavius Bryant
WR – Pittsburgh Steelers
Current Position: 85
My Position: 72

The Steelers offense is quite good.  Bryant is a serious deep threat and the last time the Steelers had one of those was Mike Wallace, and if my memory serve me correct that turned out pretty well for both the Steelers and fantasy owners.

Tre Mason
RB – St. Louis Rams
Current Position: 82
My Position: 76

I’m not sure why people are so down on Mason going into the draft.  He seems to have the starting job right now, especially with Todd Gurley hurt, and was pretty solid down the stretch last year.  Might be a good later round flex pick if he stays in the starting role once Gurley comes back from injury. He certainly has the talent to do so.

Dwayne Allen
TE – Indianapolis Colts
Current Position: 115
My Position: 90

I hate tight ends.  But I do like Andrew Luck.  So ya.  Draft Allen for his QB because he’s a lot better play than most of the other TE’s after him (and maybe a few before him). 

Tony Romo
QB – Dallas Cowboys
Current Position: 112
My Position: 92

Romo was really solid last season.  No one really seemed to notice that because everyone is always so down on the guy.  Yes, he might throw a few interceptions from time to time but so does Matt Ryan and he’s being drafted in the Top 100 for some reason.  Also, he has Dez Bryant to throw to which always helps.

Marques Colston
WR – New Orleans Saints
Current Position: 104
My Position: 95

Who else is Drew Brees going to throw to?

Not Ski

Vincent Jackson
WR – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Current Position: 56
My Position: 64

Gifted wide receiver has not really had a good QB during his tenure in Tampa Bay.  With Winston now with the Bucs, it will be interesting to see whether or not Jackson takes advantage of having a QB that can actually throw him the ball with regularity.  He's worth a pick, just not in the mid 50s. 

Joseph Randle
RB – Dallas Cowboys
Current Position: 51
My Positon: 66

It’s not that I don’t like Randle, I just have no clue what to expect from or the Cowboy’s run game.  He might end up being a great pick in the early 50s if the offensive line is as good as it was last season but I’d rather take someone who I know is a starter going into the season than someone who is going into a time split situation like Randle is going into in Dallas.

Chris Ivory
RB – New York Jets
Current Position: 67
My Position: 80

The Jets signed every veteran running back on the planet this offseason. Don’t know that that means for Ivory, but it’s defiantly not a good thing. There’s nothing I hate more in fantasy football than a team not having a dedicated runner – and that’s where the Jets are heading going into the season.   

Fantasy Football 41-60: Ski/NotSki

Ski

Andre Ellington
RB – Arizona Cardinals
Current Position: 53
My Position: 47

Ellington, an actually talented running back on an actually talented team, is for some reason ranked behind Tevin Coleman, T.J. Yeldon and Todd Gurley.  And this is because….. I have no idea.  I’m not really sure about how those three running backs will perform in the NFL (and nor does anyone else), as they’re all rookies, but I’m always going to pick a player who I know can actually produce – or at least has done so in the past.  In addition, I’ve always liked Ellington as a player.  He plays on a team with no clear cut number one wide receiver and a rapidly aging quarterback, so the passing game is always going to be mediocre at best, so he’s going to get plenty of work. This is both a positive and a negative.  His injury problems have been well documented in the past and are defiantly a concern, which is why he is not higher on this list to begin with.  If he can stay healthy though, and that’s a big if, he can be not only a great flex play but also pretty solid RB2, which is a steal at a pick around 50.

Giovani Bernard
RB – Cincinnati Bengals
Current Position: 54
My Position: 49

Last season, Bernard was one of the Top 10 running backs in the fantasy draft – before getting hurt and losing his job to rookie Jeremy Hill. There’s a reason he was in the top 10 in his position at the start of last year – the guy has talent.  Too much talent to just sit on the Bengals bench all season while Hill gets all the caries.  Many have speculated that Bernard is, in fact, the more talented runner.  Hill’s tape is not exactly great and, if the past few years has taught me anything when it comes to rookie running backs, is that one hit wonders can and do happen (I’m looking at you Zac Stacy and Doug Martin).  It is possible that Hill just had one of those seasons and is the next Doug Martin waiting to happen.  I don’t know, and neither do you – but what I do know that IF that does happen, Bernard will be right there waiting in the wings to retake his starting job.  Bernard, unlike Hill, is a proven running back and I trust him completely with a roster spot on my team, whether he’s the Bengals starting running back or not.  Look for him as one of the top flex picks during this year’s draft, with the possibility of being a borderline RB2 if he gets more playing time throughout the season. 

Golden Tate

WR – Detroit Lions
Current Position: 59
My Position: 52

When Calvin Johnson went down last year, for the brief time that it was, it was former Seattle Seahawk Golden Tate that stepped up as Matt Stafford’s top target for the Detroit Lions.  Tate, who never really shined in Seattle’s weak offensive system, proved to be up to the task, posting 1,300+ yards – 13.3 per game – in 2014.  Even though he only had 4 TD’s to show for those yards, any wide receiver that can post up that kind of yardage is worth another close like in next year’s draft – and that’s exactly what I intend on doing with Tate.  Even with Johnson back in full capacity for next year, the Lion’s depth at WR is not exactly fantastic in that after the two of them there’s basically a gaping black hole.  With that in mind, I still feel that he’s going to get plenty of targets next season, with the possibility of putting up another 1000+ yard season.  Also, those kickoff returns are always a bonus.

Amari Cooper
WR – Oakland Raiders
Current Position: 58
My Position: 53

Oakland is not a good team.  In fact, they’re really, really bad.  That being said, if you’ve paid any attention to college football the past few years you know that Amari Cooper is an absolute freak – in the good way.  The man has ridiculous athletic talent and, even though Oakland is not what one would consider a good offensive team, he has the skill set to produce where ever and with whoever is throwing him the ball.  I put him in the same position as Sammy Watkins was last year, except with a slightly better QB and a much higher skill set.  As a flex, even as a WR2, he’s worth the risk. 

LaGarrette Blount
RB – New England Patriots
Current Position: 63
My Position: 56

Owning a New England running back is always interesting.  Bill Belichick has a habit of waking up on any given game day and playing whatever running back’s name pops first into his head.  That being said, Blount seems to be Bill’s go to guy the past couple of seasons and should get the starting job at the start of the season…well, at least after his suspension is up (#LaGarretteBlounts).  It’s never a bad thing to be the running back on a Tom Brady run offensive.  If you can deal with the fact that Blount may not play some weeks then he actually ends up being a higher end flex play than many are giving him credit for. 

Greg Olsen

TE – Carolina Panthers
Current Position: 64
My Position: 57

The tight end position is a barren wasteland of fantasy nothingness.  After Gronk and Jimmy Graham, what else do you have exactly?  Olsen is a higher end play at the position as the Panthers still don’t have a ton of great receiving options.  He’s one of the few TEs beyond the top two that I actually wouldn’t mind throwing out there week after week.  It’s not a sexy pick, but hey, it’s better than what the alternatives would be (Jason Witten, Julius Thomas, etc.).

Not Ski

Jonathan Stewart
RB – Carolina Panthers
Current Position: 40
My Position: 48

On any other team, Stewart would be nothing more a back-up.  But, on the Panthers, a team with very little offensive depth, Stewart is the starting running back and is being drafted in the Top 40. Why?  Yes, having a guaranteed starter is always better than having a backup, so picking him over say Bernard or Spiller would make sense – but even then what exactly is this guy going to give you?  Seriously just think about picking him and seeing him in your RB2 spot. Picture that right now.  Ya, doesn’t exactly instill a lot of confidence in you, does it?  And that’s exactly why you shouldn’t pick him.  Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut – and my gut says Stewart is not a RB2 and nor is he a strong flex play.  Draft with extreme caution – or better yet – not at all.

Letavius Murray
RB – Oakland Raiders
Current Position: 47
My Position: 55

The only player worth drafting on the Raiders is Amari Cooper. End of story.

T.J. Yeldon and Todd Gurley
RBs – Jacksonville Jaguars / St. Louis Rams
Current Positions: 49 / 51
My Positions: 58 / 59

Because drafting Jaguars and Ram’s running backs the past few years have worked out so well, right? You could ignore the past and take a gamble on one of them but me? – I’m done with Jagaur/Ram running backs.  You can have them, and watch as they consistently disappoint you throughout the season.