I'll Chat Today At 2 ET

TURBOUGH · Post by **TURBOUGH** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:12 am

Tom,

What are your thoughts on Forte for 2010? Very disappointing last year but I think he will bounce back.

What are the biggest positive/negative free agent moves for fantasy scoring?

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:17 am

Originally posted by TURBOUGH:
Tom,

What are your thoughts on Forte for 2010? Very disappointing last year but I think he will bounce back.

What are the biggest positive/negative free agent moves for fantasy scoring? As far as Forte, I liked him as a bounceback candidate until a couple of weeks ago when there were rumblings coming out of Chicago about how much they like Taylor and how they could split the workload evenly between the two. That's what I feared might happen because Taylor is a good RB and a good fit for Martz's offense. The curious thing about that situation is Forte and Taylor have similar strengths (both are terrific receivers, for example) so how Martz divides the touches between them will be interesting to watch. I'd still take a shot with Forte but more as a RB3 to minimize the potential for failure.

With regard to free-agent moves, I wrote an Offseason Movement story for the second Fantasy Sports issue. So looking at all of the player movement as follows, I'd say the five with the strongest fantasy impact are:

1. McNabb to Washington. Huge upgrade for the Redskins and it also opens the door Kolb (who I like a lot) in Philly.

2. Marshall to Miami. Significant upgrade for the Dolphins' offense and passing game. Meanwhile, Denver's offense is a train wreck.

3. Boldin to Baltimore. If Flacco can't become a consistent Top 10 QB now there may be no hope for him.

4. Holmes to the Jets. Absolute fleecing by the Jets and a move that bolsters their Super Bowl chances.

5. Burleson/Scheffler to Detroit. Don't sleep on this one. Adding these players gives Megatron a chance to become a Top 5 fantasy WR and Stafford a solid QB2.

BillyWaz · Post by **BillyWaz** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:18 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:
quote:Originally posted by BillyWaz:
Am I the only one who feels that the whole dialogue between Tom and Greg about the other companies "back ends" resembled "good cop/bad cop" (with you both being the good cop!

For the record, I think Fanball's back end is and will be the best in the business starting with this fall in football.

We are best positioned going forward in this area as we tweak our setup the way we see fit and eliminate those costs that go with all of that. And we also won't get a surprise like this one when we wake up one morning. WOW. [/QUOTE]I agree, as you guys hold all your cards and can get things done. As you have said before, baseball players were the "guinea pigs", and it now looks like the NFFC's backend will be in a VERY good position.

I know it hasn't been easy on you guys (I know I said my share), but it all looks like it is "good to go" from here on!

Now do another promotion to get some new blood, like a free Lou Malnati pizza for those who do a live draft in Chicago!

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:21 am

Originally posted by BillyWaz:
quote:Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:
quote:Originally posted by BillyWaz:
Am I the only one who feels that the whole dialogue between Tom and Greg about the other companies "back ends" resembled "good cop/bad cop" (with you both being the good cop!

For the record, I think Fanball's back end is and will be the best in the business starting with this fall in football.

We are best positioned going forward in this area as we tweak our setup the way we see fit and eliminate those costs that go with all of that. And we also won't get a surprise like this one when we wake up one morning. WOW. [/QUOTE]I agree, as you guys hold all your cards and can get things done. As you have said before, baseball players were the "guinea pigs", and it now looks like the NFFC's backend will be in a VERY good position.[/QUOTE]I disagree with that to some degree. While our first week was terrible it's not like we've spent the season to date testing the site out for everyone. The site has run well since that first week. We didn't have all the features we wanted but the site was still very good and an improvement over STATS in a lot of ways. So I don't think we made our participants "guinea pigs." At least that's not how I would define it when the site has run as well as it has for nearly the entire season.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:24 am

Originally posted by TURBOUGH:
House of Blues is HUGE!!!!! It's close to the "Up Town" area which has many positives.

Are you drawing much interest for Dallas? I'll be drafting in Vegas for sure. Do you need me to take any photos or check out any of these places? I'd be more than happy to help you. Yeah, that's what I heard. Brady said it's in a fun, hip area of town. Great nightlife. We have struggled to find the right location in Dallas, but we have potential here or nearby here. I'll give you a call later to discuss and maybe you can check it out for us. But I'm digging the Dallas option if it all comes through today and then we'll really push Dallas hard locally and make this work. Fanball has an area email list that we can hit hard and push the NFFC to those members quickly.

Stay tuned. Dallas has been very, very hard but we're getting closer. Thanks man.

BillyWaz · Post by **BillyWaz** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:24 am

Originally posted by Tom Kessenich:
quote:Originally posted by BillyWaz:
quote:Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:
quote:Originally posted by BillyWaz:
Am I the only one who feels that the whole dialogue between Tom and Greg about the other companies "back ends" resembled "good cop/bad cop" (with you both being the good cop!

For the record, I think Fanball's back end is and will be the best in the business starting with this fall in football.

We are best positioned going forward in this area as we tweak our setup the way we see fit and eliminate those costs that go with all of that. And we also won't get a surprise like this one when we wake up one morning. WOW. [/QUOTE]I agree, as you guys hold all your cards and can get things done. As you have said before, baseball players were the "guinea pigs", and it now looks like the NFFC's backend will be in a VERY good position.[/QUOTE]I disagree with that to some degree. While our first week was terrible it's not like we've spent the season to date testing the site out for everyone. The site has run well since that first week. We didn't have all the features we wanted but the site was still very good and an improvement over STATS in a lot of ways. So I don't think we made our participants "guinea pigs." At least that's not how I would define it when the site has run as well as it has for nearly the entire season. [/QUOTE]I'm pretty sure that I recall Greg saying those words exactly (guinea pigs) in referring to the back end being much better for football, as you worked the kinks out in baseball.

It's all good, as baseball is as boring as it gets and needed some "excitement" anyhow!

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:26 am

Greg and I don't agree on everything.

TURBOUGH · Post by **TURBOUGH** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:47 am

Any moves you see as being bad (fantasy value)? I wonder how Marshall will do in Miami. You obviously like the move. I thought Orton was pretty solid last year.

Where do you have Crabtree ranked or what round do you see him going?

TURBOUGH · Post by **TURBOUGH** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:48 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:
quote:Originally posted by TURBOUGH:
House of Blues is HUGE!!!!! It's close to the "Up Town" area which has many positives.

Are you drawing much interest for Dallas? I'll be drafting in Vegas for sure. Do you need me to take any photos or check out any of these places? I'd be more than happy to help you. Yeah, that's what I heard. Brady said it's in a fun, hip area of town. Great nightlife. We have struggled to find the right location in Dallas, but we have potential here or nearby here. I'll give you a call later to discuss and maybe you can check it out for us. But I'm digging the Dallas option if it all comes through today and then we'll really push Dallas hard locally and make this work. Fanball has an area email list that we can hit hard and push the NFFC to those members quickly.

Stay tuned. Dallas has been very, very hard but we're getting closer. Thanks man. [/QUOTE]Just let me know if you need anything. I'll try to find some choices for you. I mentioned to Tom that the Anatole was very nice. House of Blues would have some college football access which is a very nice positive.

Tom Kessenich · Post by **Tom Kessenich** » Tue Jun 29, 2010 7:49 am

Originally posted by TURBOUGH:
Any moves you see as being bad (fantasy value)? I wonder how Marshall will do in Miami. You obviously like the move. I thought Orton was pretty solid last year.

Where do you have Crabtree ranked or what round do you see him going? Crabtree is one of my top WR2 upside picks. I think he's a major talent and will be a top 15 WR this season. If you can somehow grab him as a WR3 your receiving corps will be stacked.

As far as free agents, I don't see LT doing much with the Jets. I think he'll vulture some TDs but he's done as a productive RB. I'm not jumping all over Antonio Bryant with the Bengals either primarily because I think Palmer is in serious decline. Torry Holt to the Patriots isn't anything to get excited about either. He's no longer a starting-caliber WR.

[ June 29, 2010, 01:50 PM: Message edited by: Tom Kessenich ]