We're about halfway to your league's championship game, so you still have time to turn things around. You also have time to collapse in a pile of losses, but let's not focus on that possibility. I just thought it might be a good time to look back on some gems and flaws in our August strategies. There are a lot of things you got right.
And then there are probably things you got very, very wrong. Like on Halloween, there were both tricks and treats on draft day.
For me, one part of my strategy sticks out: I wasn't going to buy into free agent running backs on new teams. The league has discounted backs over the last couple years, so my plan was to do the same thing. Specifically, two players looked like total duds to me: Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry.
That last sentence was tough to write, but I'm going to keep moving forward.
All I can offer is that it made sense at the time. Both players were going to teams with excellent running quarterbacks who can score short-yardage touchdowns. Barkley seemed to play his best when a contract was ahead of him, not behind him. And Henry was a 30-year-old running back with a lot of tread on his tires. I figured they could contribute a little, but not nearly enough to justify when people were taking them. I let other managers deal with those headaches on draft day.
Do I really need to mention how it's turned out? I deserve it, so I will. Those guys are 1-2 in rushing yards after week 8. King Henry sits atop the list averaging 6.5 yards per carry. He's the only guy with at least 100 carries who's averaging six yards or better, and I can only write that statement because Barkley is averaging "just" 5.9 yards per carry. Barkley sits at number two overall and he's already had his bye. Together they have 1700 rushing yards and 14 scores on the ground. And that doesn’t even count Joe Mixon, who has been very productive when healthy. Enough, you guys. I get it. I was wrong.
I was also wrong about Amon-Ra St. Brown. He's been solid, but not amazing. I thought he had a shot at 2000 yards, and he might not get half that. The Lions have too many weapons. I was wrong about Justin Jefferson withering away without a big-name quarterback. I was wrong about Kansas City needing to put up big numbers to stay competitive. I was so wrong about Brandon Aiyuk that it took a season-ending injury to get me to pull him from my lineup. I was wrong about the Bills missing Stefon Diggs, wrong about the Saints being a surprise contender in the NFC South, and wrong about Chuba Hubbard being an ineffective runner on an ineffective team. I was wrong about Jayden Daniels. I was wrong about a lot of other things as well. I don't want to write a novel here.
Then again, I was right about a few things, too. I was right about staying away from Aaron Rodgers where he was being taken, and the Chargers passing game, and the guys the Chargers let go like Austin Ekeler and Keenan Allen. I was right to cross off all Patriots before the draft started. I was right about Zamir White and Zack Moss, too. It wasn’t all wrong. I just wish I had a lot more to write in this section.
Things can change in the back half of the season, of course. New stars can emerge and old ones can fade as the season progresses. But I still think we can look back and be objective about what we got right and wrong. It doesn’t change your team, but it does solidify that we aren’t as good as our best decisions, but we also aren’t as bad as our worst decisions. Admitting that we’re fallible gives us a sober optimism that we’ll make more mistakes along the way, but we might get enough wins anyway. Good luck this week.
Looking back, what were you right about, and wrong about on draft day? Which players still have time to prove you right? Which ones are likely to drop off over the second half? Share your thoughts below.