Fantasy World: A guide to fantasy football

By BY JEREMY GUSTAFSON
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
August 17, 2005

Chances are you've heard the word "sleeper" often the past couple of weeks. People around the office are talking in codes: Is L.T. No. 1? What do you think about T.O.? Welcome back to the National Pastime of the Internet: Fantasy football.

As draft day gets closer, The Des Moines Register is launching a weekly column aimed at the fantasy football player. This week we'll be ranking the top players at each position: Quarterbacks Thursday, running backs Friday, wide receivers Saturday, all other positions Sunday. After that, the column will appear each Wednesday.

If you haven't started a league or are a first-timer, what are you waiting for? www.ESPN.com, www.NFL.com and Yahoo Sports (www.sports.yahoo.com) offer free fantasy football leagues that are great for beginners.

Yahoo is probably the easiest to navigate. Go to the home page, click on the fantasy football icon and follow the instructions. You can set up a league for four teams or as many as 20. If you create a league, you can control all aspects of scoring, drafting and trading.

NFL.com and ESPN.com are similar, but ESPN gets the edge. The site offers more advice and features. Both can be hard to navigate if you are a first-timer, though. Just make sure you click on free fantasy football. Once you have registered, you'll be asked to create a league or join an existing one. Your choice, but it is more fun to create a league and invite your buddies - it makes it easier to taunt them when you win big.

You'll probably want a few magazines to help you with your picks - and there are plenty to choose from. You could always buy each one and show up for your draft looking real studious. But at roughly $7 per magazine, that might not be the most economical plan. If you have to narrow it down to a couple, ESPN's Fantasy Football 2005 does a great job of breaking down players, trends and strategies. Fantasy Football Pro Forecast is another good one. It offers expert advice and also has solid player breakdowns. Just look for the magazine with LaDainian Tomlinson on the cover. Oh wait, that's all of them.

Here are a few more hints to help you before you draft: Make sure you know who is hurt. Don't take Bears quarterback Rex Grossman, for example. You probably shouldn't take Chicago's new starter, Chad Hutchinson, either, even though he's healthy.

Go after running backs. That position carries your team. In a perfect world you should have two good ones after the first three rounds.

Don't believe the hype. Sure, Michael Vick is fun to watch, but don't pick him too high. It's not fun to watch him struggle if your fantasy team depends on him. Last year, his 2,313 passing yards and mere 14 passing touchdowns combined with 12 interceptions didn't make too many owners happy - even if he did occasionally look good on "SportsCenter."

Follow teams, not players. Receiver Muhsin Muhammad led the NFL with 16 touchdowns last season - as a Panther. He's a Bear this year. Chicago had only nine passing touchdowns last season. Things aren't looking good for Muhammad, so be careful not to overvalue him.

Know your league's rules. Running backs are important, but if you get six points for a passing touchdown, you may want to audible your draft pick and take Peyton Manning or Daunte Culpepper - the two elite quarterbacks - high in the first round.

OK, think you're ready to go? You're on the clock . . . who will you take No. 1? Want a hint? I've cracked the code: Go ahead and pick Tomlinson.