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Viva Murillo!

You look at match-ups and try to find the best plays for the week. It’s important to start the best guys, so you look for any news you can that will help you make the most informed decision. At the very end of the week you’ll consider all the intangibles and settle on the right starters.

That procedure is a great way to set your fantasy roster—in week 7. But in week 1, you shouldn’t bother with any of it. If you do, you either had a terrible draft or you’re over-thinking your decisions just days before the real games start.

Think about it: If you spent several weeks developing a draft or auction strategy and ended with a solid team, why would you sabotage yourself before any games have been played? Didn’t you draft a solid starter in the first round? How about the second, and the third? I’m sure you have a team of designated starters and backups. As the season progresses, those backups might (and probably will) make their way into your lineup. That’s why depth is so important. But in week 1, your starters are your starters; your backups are just backups.

If you drafted Rudi Johnson, you start him—even though they’re facing Baltimore on Monday night. Same thing with your Bills against the Broncos. If you drafted them with the idea that they’re your best guys, give them a chance to perform.

Now, I understand the importance of a strong start to the season. Nobody wants to wait several months to have their fantasy team fall flat in week 1, so whatever advantages you can create are important. But unless there’s a lingering injury issue, you have no reason to start anyone other than the guys you drafted first. Nobody has played a down that means anything in 2007. Nobody has underperformed, because nobody has really “performed” yet. As bad as a match up looks on paper, they still have to be played on the field. If Rudi Johnson is one of the first two backs you drafted, he should be better than any of your backups. He is a pretty good runner, after all. He might light up the Ravens in the opener.

Or he might not. Come Tuesday, you might look back and realize you’d have gotten more points with a backup. But as bad as that might be, it would be much worse to bench a guy for no reason and start a backup who flops this weekend. In that case, you pulled the rug out from under your own team. You developed a strategy, executed it…and then quit before you started. Why even bother with a game plan if you won’t use it when the games count?

At some point you’re going to have to make some tough decisions about your team. Some starters won’t deserve their spots, and some backups will need to be in your lineup. Part of the fun of fantasy football is making those decisions and (hopefully) choosing the best players to give your team a chance to win.

But don’t do that in week 1. You already made those decisions—in July, in August, on draft day. Give your players a chance to make you look smart. Let your opponent bench his best guys to take advantage of a better match up on paper. I suggest you simply enjoy the games, put your best players on the field and see what happens. If you need to make changes, you’ll have all season to make them. Assume you got it right the first time and start your starters in week 1.

Michael Murillo has plenty of bad match ups looming, but his lineups are already set. Feel free to describe some of your unfortunate week 1 match ups below, as well as what you’re doing about it. You can also reach him at vivamurillo@gmail.com.

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