The Hazelweird Auction

It's narcissistic and dull to write too much about one's own fantasy team or league, even on a blog. But since I've written quite a bit about fantasy football (look to your right), and since I've written quite a bit about disinformation and secrecy, you might be interested to see what I actually think about some players. And there's been at least one request for me to write about it, and I occasionally try cater to requests on this blog.

In the Hazelweird Auction, we have 265 fantasy dollars to spend on 16 roster spots. Here is a list of players that went for 30 or more fantasy dollars:

1. Ladanian Tomlinson 123
2. Steven Jackson 96
3. Joseph Addai 75
4. Peyton Manning 75
5. Frank Gore 71
6. Terrell Owens 69
7. Larry Johnson 63
8. Steve Smith 59
9. Carson Palmer 57
10. Torry Holt 55
11. Marvin Harrison 55
12. Chad Johnson 53
13. Larry Fitzgerald 50
14. Tom Brady 48
15. Antonio Gates 48
16. Reggie Bush 47
17. Shaun Alexander 47
18. Laurence Maroney 44
19. Javon Walker 41
20. Brian Westbrook 40
21. Reggie Wayne 40
22. Rudi Johnson 40
23. Willie Parker 40
24. Randy Moss 35
25. Donovan McNabb 35
26. Willis McGahee 35
27. Ronnie Brown 34
28. Travis Henry 34
29. Edgerrin James 31
30. Roy Williams 31
31. T.J. Houshmandzedhah 31
32. Marc Bulger 30
33. Drew Brees 30
34. Lee Evans 30

Here are the players I drafted that excite me the most; consider these recommendations.

Donovan McNabb, QB, Eagles: A highlight on my team and a draft priority. McNabb averaged more fantasy points per game than Peyton Manning last year, and in this auction he cost less than half the money. Some people look at McNabb and see an injury history; I see McNabb as a fantasy juggernaut capable of carrying a team week to week.

Laurence Maroney, RB, Patriots: My running back priority was Joseph Addai, and I was the last person to flip my cup on him (meaning only one person was willing to pay more than me), but he was too expensive. The Pro Football Prospectus has good things to say about Maroney, and he's one of the many second-year running backs that could just go nutso this year.

Adrian Peterson, RB, Vikings: !!!!!!!! I didn't think he'd be on my team, but he cost 20 dollars, and now he's my week one starter.

Roy Williams, WR, Lions: He was the first player I selected, and yet even as I drafted him I knew he was not going to be one of my top two WRs. I was too excited about the next two players. But he's got no ceiling, and I'm happy to have him on the roster, even if he's starting the season on my bench.

Reggie Wayne, WR, Colts: In the Colts' games I watched last season, I saw Manning looking to Wayne as much as or more than Marvin Harrison (maybe it just felt this way because Harrison was on my team last season, and I died a little every time Manning dropped back and looked left instead of right). He was 15 dollars cheaper than Harrison, but I really think he'll at least match Harrison's numbers this year. And you always want at least one Colt in your starting lineup.

Steve Smith, WR, Panthers: If you've never had Steve Smith on your fantasy team, you have missed out on one of the great sports experiences in your life. He's an absolute delight to watch. Just draft him, and you'll learn what I've learned: no current NFL WR is more fun to watch.

And just a bit of advice: if you have the opportunity to hold an auction league instead of a snake draft (essentially, can all the members of your league meet in one location?), give it a try. You have much more control over your own team and the draft is much more lively. It's much more fun to outbid your competitors for the players you want than to sit around waiting for players to fall to your slot.