Here is the first of my three fantasy football teams.  It is a 12-team PPR league, and I selected 1st overall and choose Minnesota Vikings RB Adrian Peterson.  I had little doubt about that pick.

What I wasn't so sure about was which positions to address at the 2.12/3.01 turn.  I had been seriously entertaining a QB/WR if any of the top QBs were available (Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning). 

When Tom Brady was selected with the 2nd pick, I had a feeling taking a QB was unlikely.  After Brady, Drew Brees was selected 7th overall.  Then Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers were taken in the 2nd round as was Arizona Cardinals QB Kurt Warner.

Those selections solidified my strategy to draft amongst the next group of QBs later in the draft.  In another surprise turn, Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan was selected in the 3rd round as was Dallas Cowboy QB Tony Romo and San Diego Charger Philip Rivers.

My immediate adjustment was to put off selecting a QB until later and take advantage of the fact that top WRs and RBs will be available when I picked who otherwise wouldn't have been thanks to the surprise early drafting of QBs.

I believe my roster bears out that assessment.

More photos » by Chuck Burton - AP

4 months ago: Carolina Panthers' DeAngelo Williams (34) runs during the team's NFL football training camp in Spartanburg, S.C., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

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Pre-season news has Carolina Panthers' 2nd year RB Jonathan Stewart continuing to struggle with an Achilles heel ionjury. If Stewart were to be out as a legitmate RB in 2010, how high would you move DeAngelo Williams?

Right now, I don't rank Williams much higher than the end of the 1st round in a PPR format. He caught just 22 passes last season, and repeating last season's TD explosion seems unlikely to be repeated.

Without Stewart, I'm not sure how many more touches per game Williams would receive. After all, he had 274 carries last season and that figure ranked 9th in the NFL.

Second, Williams would be the sole focus of defenses who had all off-season to scheme against him. That is absolutely key to understanding the difficulty of any NFL player repeating outstanding seasons.

Third, Stewart only caught 8 passes. Williams won't grab any extra touches there.

Finally, Williams will not be as fresh without Stewart providing a breather.

So am I wrong to conclude DeAngelo Williams will not be much better in 2009 without Jonathan Stewart there to share the load?

For those who wonder where I have been, I am blogging at Rotisserie Musings in a much simpler format.

From his free weekly email, Ron Shandler provided his preliminary top five picks for 2010 mixed league drafts.  Raygu will be very pleased to see #3 at least.

1. Pujols

2. Braun

3. Kemp

4. Crawford

5. Ramirez.


Is he crazy?  If not, there seems to be a premium placed on OF as a scarcer position than most long-time fantasy players consider it to be.