Ask the Experts

November 27, 2014

Which player or players are you most thankful for?

ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly from training camp through Super Bowl with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them: Which player or players are you most thankful for?

SCOTT PIANOWSKI

I'm thankful for Matt Forte, who was my most common first-round pick or top auction purchase this summer. Your most expensive purchase is a pick about floor as much as upside, and Forte's continued to provide both. And bless the Bears for using him on 90 percent of their snaps, a number no other running back comes close to (Le'Veon Bell sneaks over 80, and everyone else goes down from there.) No matter the game situation, Forte is still on the field, running his guts out, catching a bunch of passes. I know it's in vogue to get cute with early receiver picks, but I have zero regrets linking up to this guy.

Pianowski has been playing fantasy football for 20 years and writing about it for 17. He joined Yahoo! Sports in 2008 and has been blogging 24/7 on RotoArcade.com ever since.

JAMES SELTZER

Wow...There are so many players to be thankful for this fantasy season. However, in the interest of brevity, while still being able to list multiple names, I am going to say: I am most thankful for the rookie WR class. This is, easily, the best class I can remember, and there is a legitimate chance we will look back at this class of receivers, in a decade, and say it was the best we have ever seen. Sammy Watkins, Mike Evans, Odell Beckham Jr., Kelvin Benjamin, and Jordan Matthews are all must-start fantasy players, already, and Brandin Cooks was there til he got hurt. Then, you add in John Brown, Martavis Bryant, Jarvis Landry, Davante Adams, Donte Moncrief, basically the entire Jags' receiving core, save for Cecil Shorts, and many more names we have yet to really hear from. It has just been an amazing season for rookie WR's, and I am thankful for the many years of fantasy goodness, we have ahead of us, for this crop of talented receivers. I mean, who knows what kind of ridiculous, eye-popping catches Odell Beckham will be making 3, 4, and 5 years down the road?!?!?!? That is certainly something worth being thankful for...Happy Thanksgiving.

Seltzer is a writer of NFL content for Rotowire.com. Since 1997, RotoWire.com has been one of the leading fantasy sports resources on the web. Seltzer can be found on Twitter @JamesSeltzer975.

DAVID DOREY

I am definitely most thankful for Matt Forte who I ranked #1 in reception point leagues and who caused others to actually laugh and thank me for taking him and letting them get Adrian Peterson, LeSean McCoy or Jamaal Charles. He’s been a consistent beast with yards and catches.

Dorey is the co-founder and lead NFL analyst for The Huddle and author of Fantasy Football: The Next Level. He has projected and predicted every NFL game and player performance since 1997 and has appeared in numerous magazines, newspapers, radio and television.

IAN ALLAN

I like Stephen Gostkowski. I’ve got him on most of my rosters. I had to pay a little extra to get him, but he’s come as advertised. He’s on pace to set the all-time record for kicking points in a season. He’s come through in the clutch and pulled out some games for me. A kicker. Go figure.

Allan is the senior writer for Fantasy Football Index. He's been in that role since 1987, generating most of the player rankings and analysis for that publication. His work can be seen in Fantasy Football Index magazine, and also at www.fantasyindex.com.

SAM HENDRICKS

Easy question -- Justin Forsett and Latavius Murray. Both RBs were free agent pickups in several of my money leagues and gave me the extra points this week to make it to the League Championship. The RB position is so weak, getting two workhorses is a huge gift. Murray's 23 fantasy points should be a good indicator of fantasy playoff production if he can return after a 10 day recovery from his TNF concussion. Forsett gave his owners 33 FP on MNF. Love these guys!

Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at ExtraPointPress.com, at all major bookstores, and at Amazon and BN.com. He is a 20-plus year fantasy football veteran who regularly participates in the National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall (out of 228 competitors) in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC). Follow him at his web site, www.ffguidebook.com.

MICHAEL NAZAREK

Where do I start? RB Jamaal Charles recovering from an early season injury. RB Eddie Lacy, same thing. WR Mike Evans and WR Odell Beckham's breakout rookie seasons! WR Golden Tate taking over when Megatron went down. WR Roddy White's and TE Greg Olsen's consistent play. The Packers defensive play at home. Anyone playing in the FFPC, look up my championship bracket team, and you'll understand these comments.

Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc. His company offers a preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, a multi-use fantasy drafting program including auction values, weekly in-season fantasy newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its web site. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is a four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. For more info go to www.ffmastermind.com. Nazarek can be reached via email at miken@ffmastermind.com.

ALAN SATTERLEE

I am giving thanks to rookie receivers! I take heat every year for over-investing in rookies (I was the only expert here at Fantasy Index to list a rookie receiver in the Top 20 experts entry in the magazine). I am loving these rookie receivers, and actually I start a full threesome in one of my favorite leagues. I have been saying this for years, and selectively collecting on rookie talent each year, and that is they come out of college more Pro-ready than ever. I spend a lot of time analyzing rookies (and for dynasty) -- see the rookie guide link advertisement here on Fantasy Index if I may shamelessly plug, but the PDF is well worth adding even now and saving that sucker. Of the top 50 wide receivers, nine of them are rookies this year! I would like to particularly give thanks to Mike Evans, Kelvin Benjamin and Jordan Matthews who I drafted consistently this year -- but I wish I had me some Odell Beckham Jr.! Wow, what a catch.

Satterlee is Co-Owner and Chief Editor/COO of FantasyFootballWarehouse.com. FFW features comprehensive profiles for all the major 2013 skill-position rookies, its Trading Spaces series, the team Deep Dives, the Speed Bump competition plus draft strategies, rankings, projections and more. FFW runs in tandem with its dynasty site DynastyFootballWarehouse.com.

ANDY RICHARDSON

The guy that stands out for me this Jordy Nelson. When a guy can give you 15 fantasy points in a game where he catches only one pass, you have to appreciate that. More often than not he's putting up 20-plus. I would have also mentioned Mark Ingram until this week, but even though he let me down in a big playoff game, he was a great starter for me for most of the year, a guy I believed in and drafted everywhere in the middle rounds, and he's really paid off for me. Waiver pickup Branden Oliver, who I liked in the preseason, and then he had a nice few weeks when Mathews went down; plus, I picked him up and recommended him to friends before his breakout week, so he came cheaply. Last but not least, I sure do like the Eagles defense, which isn't a great NFL group but racks up sacks and defensive/special teams touchdowns week after week. Nice to score in the teens on a regular basis with a defense.

Richardson has been a contributor and editor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and www.fantasyindex.com since 2002. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual experts draft and auction leagues since their inception. He previews all the NFL games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays during the NFL season.

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Paul L. Mequon, Wisc.

The magazine is exactly the same as last year, which is perfect. Boys, we have a chance to repeat in the 33rd year of the NWFFL. I am counting on you to help pull it off. FI has been a league staple for decades, one of my guys has every edition. A few years ago, we devised a clever way to use one of your lists to draft a team for an absent owner, the sob won it all. We love you guys. Peace!

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Jason C. Tulsa, Okla.

A little feedback from a long time customer.

Our fantasy pool is entering its 25^th year and I have used multiple books and on-line tools over the years.

I have locked on to Fantasy Index as my go to for the last 5 years and have won the pool 3 of those years and finished no lower than 4^th.

Interesting to see how much more accurate you were at the end of the year compared to other books my competitors used.

Having it in a format that allows me to work the forecasts to match our scoring system and then receive updates as the season approaches is invaluable. Whoever your sources are for the forecasts are the best. Hang on to them. Thanks for the help!!

Peter M. London, Ontario, Canada

I did receive the updated draft ranking from you guys in plenty of time for my draft that night. My draft report gave me an A+ and predicted me to go 14-0 and win my league! I just want to say thank you for the excellent customer service that your company provided me. When I first started playing fantasy football more than 15 years ago, I used to buy as many fantasy football magazines as I could find. It wasnʼt long before I only purchased Fantasy Football Index each year. It is by far the most comprehensive, well written fantasy football magazine on the market. Also, I almost always rank in the top three in my fantasy football leagues, and won my league last year. Thank you to you and all of your great team. You have a customer for life!

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Thank you for all the updates etc. In the last 14 or 15 years, we have placed in the top three 9 times winning it all 4 times. I have been a customer of yours for many years. Our success is partially due to luck, but I think your magazine with all of the good stuff has been a real contributing factor. Keep up the good work. Will be a customer until the time I can't read anymore.

Richard M. Imperial, Neb.

I just wanted to send everyone at Fantasy Football Index an apology. Since 2003 (Ricky Williams cover), I've protected my source of information and have gone out of my way to hide Fantasy Football Index from my leagues prying eyes. I've won championships in leagues and money playing Daily Fantasy and your Training Camp updates are the highlight of my summer and a recurring order for me every single season. I just wanted to Thank You and everyone there (customer service, the writers, janitors, secretaries and assistants) for your hard work and dedication.

You are appreciated and valued part of my Fantasy Football Operations department even if i never speak your name in fear that others in my league will discover the wondrous bounty of knowledge contained in your pages…

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Dave M. Elma, N.Y.

I wanted to send a quick note and thank you for your great magazine! The information you provide, has allowed me to win my league 3 years in a row!

The payoff in the league is not bad, six hundred dollars to be exact, but it is those all important bragging rights that really make it fun!

I epically enjoyed this last issue because you included all the covers for the past 30 years, I did not buy 87, and 88, but all the rest I have purchased.

All I have to do is read and then plug and play, thanks again for doing all the work so I don't have to, except for cash the check of course! Lol.

I will be continue to purchase your magazine, and recommend it to others, although I don't like to give away my secret!

I typically don't write emails to magazines, but after 3 wins in a row, and others which I did not list, I felt like you would like to know.

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Darrell W. Holt, Mich.

I wanted to let you know I finished my season going 16-0 winning my league, breaking every record in our 19 year history along the way. A special thank you to FI for the insightful knowledge as it provided me much help along the way.

Ryan M. Lynnwood, Wash.

You guys do a great job. I got laughed at by a few people at the draft but they're not laughing now. I'm leading the league in record (8-1) and PF thus far.

John W. Aylett, Va.

And a side note… we've got a re-draft 16-team, 20 players drafted league (drafting water boys by the 17^th round) that I've won 2 years in a row. Nobody's ever done that in 21 years… using your cheat sheet. it's an old school league that used to draft out of piles of magazines.

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Todd S. Grand Junction, Colo.

This is my ninth year competing with my two very savey adult children and their 11 regulars to make it a 14 team draft with a $200 bid limit. Your SuperFanatic package has put me into the 6 team play- offs 4 out of the 8 years and there is no way I could compete with these guys without my cheat sheets! They still have no idea how I can be so lucky every year :-) Cheaters do prosper!!!!

Robert A.

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I have used your product for the past 18 years or so… Every now and then I will be tempted and look at what other magazines have to offer, quickly realizing no one comes close.

In addition to the magazine, I started buying the weekly updates years ago when my dad taught me a lesson. The draft came and dad was sitting in the 12 hole for his pick. He told me he felt very comfortable about who he was going to select but would not tell me who his prized gem was to be. I was doubtful. The pick? Priest Holmes (his first dynamite year). I remember telling my dad, "that is a decent pick but they plan to pull him at the goal line." Ever the teacher, dad explained he had purchased the Fantasy Football Index update and read Holmes would get the goal line carries. "Update?", I asked. That was 2002 and Holmes had 21 rushing TDs and Dad won the title! Lesson learned.

By the way, I have made the title game for the last 5 years in a row. Thanks for the detailed, hard work and an great product!

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