Our 2009 FREE NFL picks are finally available.  You’ll be able to find week 1 and the remaining weeks at the following URL:

 http://www.thefootballmaniac.com/2009NFLWeeklyPicksWeek1.html

Note: Picks are not guaranteed

Here’s a quick recap of all the fantasy relevant news the past week:

• Three new Offensive Coordinators in Tampa Bay, Buffalo (yes, I called that one), and Kansas City. Stock up for all skilled offensive players on those teams
• Pierre Thomas (NO) and Nate Washington (TEN) are looking like they won’t be playing Week 1
• Cadillac Williams will be the starting RB against the Cowboys
• Rookie QB Matthew Stafford will start for the Lions.  Stock up even higher for Calvin “Megatron” Johnson
• Tomlin announces Willie Parker will be the primary RB (no RBBC in Pittsburgh!)
• Brandon Marshall suspension will be lifted.  He’s not listed as a starter for Week 1 yet, but if he is…MAKE SURE he’s in your lineup

After tremendous amounts of research, we’ve completed our 2009 Fantasy Football Draft Cheatsheet.  From now till the beginning of regular season, as injuries happen, depth charts are announced, etc., the Cheatsheet’s player rankings will be adjusted with comments.

FINAL VERSION POSTED TONIGHT, SEPT 7TH!

Very rare to see an Offensive or Defense Coordinator fired this close to the beginning of regular season beginning!  But based on what I’ve seen in preseason, it’s a smart move.  Their offense was so bland and predictable

So, those who have, or are planning to draft Chiefs, you have something to cheer about.

Maybe the Bills front office will take note and can their awful OC Turk Schonert

Rough outing for Cutler’s first as a Bear, but it looks like Hester will be real busy this year

Here are my notes on the game:

Bears - starting offense had 3 drives

• Cutler needs more time with that offense.  He looked out-of-sync with his receivers.  Though, he did attempt to stretch the field with the long ball many times.
• Hester was targeted the most by a landslide, but unfortunately didn’t have very many catchable balls
• Bears O-Line run protection was average while their pass protection looked great
• Forte didn’t play.  Kevin Jones ran with a ton of power and looked pretty good.

Bills - starting offense had 2 drives

• Bills Offense was full of short passes and runs…not very creative ones either
• Bills O-Line struggled to make holes
• Trent Edwards looked good, but not like a superstar
• Lynch ran strong and looked okay, while Fred Jackson looked like an average RB
• Lee Evans looked awesome, but was not showered with targets

We didn’t announce it, but for the first time, TheFootballManiac.com was invited to join a league with other fantasy football websites.  We completed the draft on Sunday, August 15th, in which we had the 8th pick, and our results (with commentary) are below.  Even though we drafted this early prior to the regular season, we’re loving our squad for the most part.  Also, we haven’t completed our 2009 Draft Cheatsheets yet so our Draft Cheatsheet rankings may not marry up with these draft results.

Round 1
1  -    Michael Turner    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Adrian Peterson    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Maurice Jones-Drew    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Matt Forte    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Brian Westbrook    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Steven Jackson    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Larry Fitzgerald    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    DeAngelo Williams    -  TheFootballManiac.com
We were praying S-Jax would fall.  Then it was b/w Gore or D-Will, and we felt D-Will was more of a guarantee
9  -    LaDainian Tomlinson    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Chris Johnson    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Frank Gore    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Randy Moss    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 2
1  -    Andre Johnson    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Tom Brady    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Steve Slaton    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Marion Barber    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Calvin Johnson    -  TheFootballManiac.com
One of the most physically gifted WRs in the league, Megatron was a no-brainer here.
If he would have been gone, we would have went with a Reggie Wayne or a RB.
6  -    Kurt Warner    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Drew Brees    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Brandon Jacobs    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Ryan Grant    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Clinton Portis    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Greg Jennings    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Marques Colston    -  FFBaller.com

Round 3 
1  -    Philip Rivers    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Aaron Rodgers    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Reggie Wayne    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Steve Smith    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Peyton Manning    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Roddy White    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Ronnie Brown    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Anquan Boldin    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Our jaws dropped when Boldin was still available here.  Didn’t think twice about drafting him here.
9  -    Dwayne Bowe    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Brandon Marshall    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Terrell Owens    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Pierre Thomas    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 4
1  -    Kevin Smith    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    T.J. Houshmandzadeh    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Tony Romo    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Jason Witten    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Darren McFadden    -  TheFootballManiac.com
I guess McFadden is slight reach here, but even though it’s Oakland,
we feel he’s talented enough to be a RB1
6  -    Bernard Berrian    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Antonio Gates    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Wes Welker    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Larry Johnson    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Matt Ryan    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Vincent Jackson    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Dallas Clark    -  FFBaller.com
Round 5
1  -    LenDale White    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Derrick Ward    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Tony Gonzalez    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Carson Palmer    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Eddie Royal    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Jonathan Stewart    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Donovan McNabb    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Matt Schaub    -  TheFootballManiac.com
We reacted to a QB run, but are EXTREMELY happy to get Schaub here
9  -    Roy Williams    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Braylon Edwards    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Thomas Jones    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Marshawn Lynch    -  PostgamePub.com
Round 6
1  -    Lee Evans    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Anthony Gonzalez    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Chad Ochocinco    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Jay Cutler    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Knowshon Moreno    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Our favorite rookie RB this year, and will dominate once given the carries
6  -    Ray Rice    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Felix Jones    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    DeSean Jackson    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Antonio Bryant    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Joseph Addai    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Kevin Walter    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Laveranues Coles    -  FFBaller.com

Round 7
1  -    Lance Moore    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Greg Olsen    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Hines Ward    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Reggie Bush    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    LeSean McCoy    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Santonio Holmes    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Chris Cooley    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Kellen Winslow    -  TheFootballManiac.com
We reacted to a TE run, but he was the last in our low TE1 tier so it worked out great
9  -    Willie Parker    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Santana Moss    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Torry Holt    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Chris Wells    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 8
1  -    Matt Cassel    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Jamal Lewis    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Owen Daniels    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Donald Driver    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Jerricho Cotchery    -  TheFootballManiac.com
We really wanted Driver, but we were still ecstatic to get the #1 WR on a team,
who has mad game, this late
6  -    Devin Thomas    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Chester Taylor    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Julius Jones    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Derrick Mason    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Nate Burleson    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Cedric Benson    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Donald Brown    -  FFBaller.com

Round 9
1  -    Earnest Graham    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Devin Hester    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Matt Hasselbeck    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Eli Manning    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Domenik Hixon    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Donnie Avery    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Darren Sproles    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Pittsburgh    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Since we had all of our starting positions (minus K) filled, time to get the best Defense
9  -    Leon Washington    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Le’Ron McClain    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    John Carlson    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Kyle Orton    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 10
1  -    Chris Chambers    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Ben Roethlisberger    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Michael Crabtree    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Steve Breaston    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Percy Harvin    -  TheFootballManiac.com
The most talented Vikings WR/TE by a LONG shot…we love this pick
6  -    Zach Miller    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Rashard Mendenhall    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Dustin Keller    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Ted Ginn Jr.    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Ahmad Bradshaw    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Shonn Greene    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Justin Gage    -  FFBaller.com

Round 11
1  -    Baltimore    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    David Garrard    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Patrick Crayton    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Jeremy Shockey    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Jake Delhomme    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Sidney Rice    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    New York    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Tennessee    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Time to get a 2nd stud defense, and we considered them the best left on the board
After watching more preseason games, I wish we would have went with the Vikings
9  -    Nate Washington    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    New York    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Willis McGahee    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Fred Jackson    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 12
1  -    Miles Austin    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Jerious Norwood    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Joe Flacco    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Chad Pennington    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Tim Hightower    -  TheFootballManiac.com
A starting RB on an explosive offensive team, who’s backup RB (Wells) is a stud, but he stays injured
6  -    Washington    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Trent Edwards    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Earl Bennett    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Minnesota    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Joey Galloway    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Philadelphia    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Marc Bulger    -  FFBaller.com

Round 13
1  -    Hakeem Nicks    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Brian Robiskie    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Ladell Betts    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Carnell Williams    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Robert Meachem    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Josh Morgan    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Stephen Gostkowski    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Vernon Davis    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Just in case Winslow doesn’t show up in Tampa, Click-Clack will in San Fran
9  -    New England    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Sammy Morris    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    Darrius Heyward-Bey    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Brent Celek    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 14
1  -    Michael Bush    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Jeremy Maclin    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Rob Bironas    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Jamaal Charles    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Ryan Longwell    -  TheFootballManiac.com
An accurate, strong kicker on a team with the best overall offense/defense
indoors with a killer strength of schedule…oh yeah
6  -    Muhsin Muhammad    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Laurence Maroney    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Jerome Harrison    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Deion Branch    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Correll Buckhalter    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Fred Taylor    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    David Akers    -  FFBaller.com

Round 15
1  -    Visanthe Shiancoe    -  FFBaller.com
2  -    Robbie Gould    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
3  -    Dallas    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
4  -    Michael Jenkins    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
5  -    Chicago    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
6  -    Chaz Schilens    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
7  -    Ricky Williams    -  RedskinsGab.com
8  -    Sage Rosenfels    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Since Favre has unretired, yet again, we dropped him and picked up Shaun Hill
Sage would have been the sleeper of sleepers this year too.  It’s really a shame.
9  -    Ronald Curry    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
10  -    Andre Brown    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
11  -    San Diego    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
12  -    Green Bay    -  PostgamePub.com

Round 16
1  -    Garrett Hartley    -  PostgamePub.com
2  -    Michael Vick    -  FantasyFootballHero.blogspot.com
3  -    Mark Bradley    -  HattyWaiverWireGuru.com
4  -    Jason Elam    -  BlackSportsOnline.com
5  -    Chris Henry    -  TheFootballManiac.com
Our sneaky pick was Chris Henry, who’s ADP is middle 10th round.
Henry was really low in the Yahoo ADP list so the rest of the teams missed him…but not us!
6  -    Nate Kaeding    -  RedskinsGab.com
7  -    Limas Sweed    -  FantasyFootballTrader.com
8  -    Kris Brown    -  FantasyFootballCalculator.com
9  -    Mason Crosby    -  FriendsoftheProgram.net
10  -    Nick Folk    -  DetroitHustle.wordpress.com
11  -    Kenny Britt    -  Defactotum.wordpress.com
12  -    Isaac Bruce    -  FFBaller.com

So, our 2009 Miller Sports Fantasy League Team is as follows:

QB: Matt Schaub (HOU), Shaun Hill (SF)
RB: Deangelo Williams (CAR), Darren McFadden (OAK), Knowshon Moreno (DEN), Tim Hightower (ARI)
WR: Calvin Johnson (DET), Anquan Boldin (ARI), Jerricho Cotchery (NYG), Percy Harvin (MIN), Chris Henry (CIN)
TE: Kellen Winslow (TB), Vernon Davis (SF)
K: Ryan Longwell
DEF: Steelers, Titans