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        the Gridiron >> the Red Zone >>  The Dreaded Automated Draft
        
(Message started by: Philly on Aug 29^th, 2006, 10:05am)

Title: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Aug 29^th, 2006, 10:05am

Alright guys (and Callie and Steg [smiley=hellyeafunny.gif])... I've got a big question for all of you. My money league moved to a new league commissioner site (CBS Sportsline) and we're going to have to do an automated draft. The way it works is that we rank players at each position and then decide which position we want to take in each round. There's a catch, though, and a nasty one. The catch is that Sportsline randomly determines the draft order immediately prior to the draft (after the ranking lists are locked) and the draft is a staggered one (for example, I might pick 4th in round one, 7th in round two, and 12th in round three). So it's nearly impossible to really use any strategy to determine what position to take when.

We have to draft EXACTLY 2 QBs, 3 RBs, 4 WRs, 2 TEs, 2 Ks, and 2 DSTs (total=15). We start 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, 1 DST (total=9). (After the draft I'll be able to dump my reserve kicker, but I still have to draft him.)

The scoring is fairly standard RB/WR (1 per 10 yards, 6 per TD), QB (1 per 25 yards, 6 per TD). To give you an idea of scoring in 2005:
Top QBs: Palmer 341 pts, P.Manning 311, Brady 308
RB: Alexander 341 pts, Tomlinson 291, L.Johnson 280
WR: S.Smith 212 pts, S.Moss 189, C.Johnson 188
TE: Gates 162 pts, Shockey 125, Heap 116
K: Rackers 157 pts, Feely 149, Graham 134
DST: Bears 325 pts, Colts 269, Panthers 257 (big dropoff after #1 here!)

So, my question (finally)...

What positions should I draft each round?

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by captainpurple on Aug 29^th, 2006, 11:29am

Wow! :o I can't see any scenario that makes that draft ruleset a good one. Wonder what the reasoning is for forcing you to draft x players of each type, and worse, what round you HAVE to draft them!!!

Well, to answer your question, I think you have to play the odds and take a RB in the first. If you pick last, maybe Peyton is worth the pick, but....

Also, my experience with FF is that a lot of players like to fill a good player at each position in the top 5 picks. Sticking to this strategy usually forces them to pass better players. As such, and because of the deep 2nd tier of RBs, I'd take 2 right away.

I'd go QB in the 4th. How may went QB in the 3rd (or 1st/2nd) hoping to get Manning or Palmer.

After that, it's just too tough to speculate, but the only other "advice" I'd offer would be to go 2D, 2K in the last 4.

Can't wait to see how this train wreck turns out! ;D

1 - RB
2 - RB -
3 - WR
4 - QB
5 - RB
6 - WR
7 - WR
8 - QB
9 - TE
10 - WR
11 - TE
12 - DEF
13 - DEF
14 - K
15 - K

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by DirkDiggler on Aug 29^th, 2006, 12:49pm

Interesting dilema....and one that is not fun, especially if it is a money league.

I would go with:

1- RB You figure everyone is going RB
2- RB My guess is 8 of 10 will go RB
3- RB I bet 8 of 10 go WR or QB here. Take your chance and go RB. I bet you get a Chester Taylor/Reuben Droughns/Frank Gore type back here.
4- WR Get them why they are available.
5-WR Get em why they are available
6- WR "" " " " " " " " " " " " " " " ""
7 -QB After top 5 QBs, they are not much different are they?
8- QB Secure your second decent QB. I bet most people wait until later.
9- Def Get your D now and expect a top one.
10-TE You will get one of the top 10 TEs here. No one will choose two TEs by the 10th round.
11-WR It is a crap shoot with the WRs after the top 30 anyway. Might as well wait to get an Eddie Kennison type of guy.
12 - Kicker Most people will wait til 14th round.
13- Def - You are gonna only keep your top Def, so this is a DEF that will get dropped!!!
14-TE You get what you get. Probably gonna drop this slot anyway for a RB.
15- K Gonna drop this for a back up RB anyway.

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Aug 29^th, 2006, 2:50pm

Thanks for the ideas guys... Some more info that might help. This is a 12-team league and I'd say about nine of the owners are pretty savvy.

We've done autodrafts as long as the league has been in existence (proximity, scheduling), but never anything quite like this draft format. We've always known our draft position and used a serpentine format.

We play a head-to-head schedule. Playoff qualifiers are based on W-L record from h2h matchups.

Based on the 2005 draft (only one new owner)...
-Round 1 (10 RBs, 2 QBs)
-Round 2 (10 RBs, 2 QBs)
-Round 3 (3 QBs, 1 RB, 8 WRs)
-First TE taken end of round 4
-First D taken mid round 6
-First K taken early round 9 (2 taken in round)
(*There were no specified positions to be taken, so only 2 teams took more than one K.)

I'd consider grabbing a QB in round 2 with this scoring, except that I might be getting the 4th or 5th best QB at that point. WRs and TEs aren't big scorers (although I need to start 3 WRs) so maybe it's better to grab a top defense a bit early? (Chicago scored almost as much as Palmer and Alexander last year.) Also, there were 5 TEs that scored more than 100 points, while 20 Ks achieved that same milestone. Maybe it's better to let the TEs slide and grab a better kicker?

--As bad as all this is, it has really pushed our league towards working hard to arrange a live, in-person draft in 2007.

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by DirkDiggler on Aug 29^th, 2006, 6:16pm

on 08/29/06 at 14:50:14, Philly wrote:

With 12 teams, I really think that is all the more reason to go RB RB RB the first 3 rounds.

I would grab a TE BEFORE a kicker still....

Since receivers are not that great, maybe take a QB in round 5 instead of a WR?

And defenses are an anomily. You never know what you are going to get. The Bears a re appealing, however, I have not looked at their schedule this year. Is it favorable?

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by captainpurple on Aug 29^th, 2006, 6:20pm

on 08/29/06 at 18:16:59, DirkDiggler wrote:

Yeah, esp. with savvy owners. I'm sure there'll be a couple that go WR or QB in the top 3 rounds, so maybe take a look at your 25-30 RBs and see if you're happy having any of them in the 3rd. If not, or if you cannot see taking any of your 20-30 level RBs, then that would probably force you to go WR or QB yourself.

Maybe go K in the 6th. That seems to be a running formula this year! ;D

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by DirkDiggler on Aug 31^st, 2006, 11:13am

Philly--

When is this draft? I am waiting to hear the results and see the rosters.

Also, part of the key to this draft is to ensure your players are ranked VERY accurately. If not you get burned sometimes. This ranking is all the more complicated as by the fact that CBS sportsline rankings are horrible.....

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Aug 31^st, 2006, 12:26pm

The draft is next Tuesday (9/5). It's nice having a really late draft - after all the pre-season cuts have been made and rosters are set. The only problem is that it doesn't leave me much time to drop my "reserve kicker" before the season actually starts.

Don't worry... I never rely on the "experts" rankings. I do all my own. I'm hoping a couple people don't adjust the pre-set rankings... CBS has Dom Davis, Corey Dillon, and Jamal Lewis #14-16 on the RB list.

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Sep 5^th, 2006, 8:50am

Well... the autodraft is complete. I played a hunch and guessed that the posted first-round draft order was correct and planned to pick #9 (of 12) in round 1. (We were told that the draft order was determined randomly immediately before the draft occurred.) I think, given the draft method, I got a pretty good team.

I went with the following draft order:
RB, QB, RB2, RB3, WR, QB2, DST, WR2, WR3, TE, WR4, DST2, K, K2, TE2

My roster:
QB: Carson Palmer, Drew Bledsoe
RB: Rudi Johnson, Reuben Droughns, Frank Gore
WR: Lee Evans, Laveranues Coles, Matt Jones, Troy Williamson
TE: Dallas Clark, Courtney Anderson
DST: Panthers, Seahawks
K: John Kasay, Sebastian Janikowski

I've already put in waiver claims: (Drop Sebastian Janikowski, Add Dominic Rhodes) and (Drop Courtney Anderson, Add Laurence Maroney).

Here's the entire draft for anyone who is interested. My picks are bolded:

Round 1
1	The Usual Suspects	Shaun Alexander (RB SEA)
2	Team 12	Steven Jackson (RB STL)
3	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Larry Johnson (RB KC)
4	Money in the Bank	LaDainian Tomlinson (RB SD)
5	Extra Large Panties	Tiki Barber (RB NYG)
6	Joey C's Wiseguys	Peyton Manning (QB IND)
7	ZODSQUAD	Edgerrin James (RB ARI)
8	Judgement Day	Clinton Portis (RB WAS)
9	Amish Thug Posse	Rudi Johnson (RB CIN)
10	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	LaMont Jordan (RB OAK)
11	SteelArmy!	Cadillac Williams (RB TB)
12	Black & Tans	Willis McGahee (RB BUF)
Round 2
13	Joey C's Wiseguys	Ronnie Brown (RB MIA)
14	ZODSQUAD	Julius Jones (RB DAL)
15	Judgement Day	Reggie Bush (RB NO)
16	Amish Thug Posse	Carson Palmer (QB CIN)
17	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Willie Parker (RB PIT)
18	SteelArmy!	Terrell Owens (WR DAL)
19	Black & Tans	Chad Johnson (WR CIN)
20	The Usual Suspects	Steve Smith (WR CAR)
21	Team 12	Chester Taylor (RB MIN)
22	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Brian Westbrook (RB PHI)
23	Money in the Bank	Corey Dillon (RB NE)
24	Extra Large Panties	Deuce McAllister (RB NO)
Round 3
25	SteelArmy!	Kurt Warner (QB ARI)
26	Black & Tans	Tom Brady (QB NE)
27	The Usual Suspects	Thomas Jones (RB CHI)
28	Team 12	Matt Hasselbeck (QB SEA)
29	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Torry Holt (WR STL)
30	Money in the Bank	Randy Moss (WR OAK)
31	Extra Large Panties	Warrick Dunn (RB ATL)
32	Joey C's Wiseguys	Larry Fitzgerald (WR ARI)
33	ZODSQUAD	Marvin Harrison (WR IND)
34	Judgement Day	Eli Manning (QB NYG)
35	Amish Thug Posse	Reuben Droughns (RB CLE)
36	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Chris Chambers (WR MIA)
Round 4
37	Money in the Bank	Anquan Boldin (WR ARI)
38	Extra Large Panties	Reggie Wayne (WR IND)
39	Joey C's Wiseguys	Jamal Lewis (RB BAL)
40	ZODSQUAD	Daunte Culpepper (QB MIA)
41	Judgement Day	Roy Williams (WR DET)
42	Amish Thug Posse	Frank Gore (RB SF)
43	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Donald Driver (WR GB)
44	SteelArmy!	DST Ravens (DST BAL)
45	Black & Tans	Antonio Gates (TE SD)
46	The Usual Suspects	Hines Ward (WR PIT)
47	Team 12	Darrell Jackson (WR SEA)
48	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Santana Moss (WR WAS)
Round 5
49	Amish Thug Posse	Lee Evans (WR BUF)
50	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Donovan McNabb (QB PHI)
51	SteelArmy!	Neil Rackers (K ARI)
52	Black & Tans	Kevin Jones (RB DET)
53	The Usual Suspects	Jeremy Shockey (TE NYG)
54	Team 12	Deion Branch (WR NE)
55	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Jake Delhomme (QB CAR)
56	Money in the Bank	Marc Bulger (QB STL)
57	Extra Large Panties	Joey Galloway (WR TB)
58	Joey C's Wiseguys	Plaxico Burress (WR NYG)
59	ZODSQUAD	Tony Gonzalez (TE KC)
60	Judgement Day	Alge Crumpler (TE ATL)
Round 6
61	Team 12	Domanick Davis (RB HOU)
62	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Chris Cooley (TE WAS)
63	Money in the Bank	Fred Taylor (RB JAC)
64	Extra Large Panties	Trent Green (QB KC)
65	Joey C's Wiseguys	Todd Heap (TE BAL)
66	ZODSQUAD	DST Patriots (DST NE)
67	Judgement Day	Andre Johnson (WR HOU)
68	Amish Thug Posse	Drew Bledsoe (QB DAL)
69	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Tatum Bell (RB DEN)
70	SteelArmy!	Heath Miller (TE PIT)
71	Black & Tans	Javon Walker (WR DEN)
72	The Usual Suspects	Jake Plummer (QB DEN)
Round 7
73	ZODSQUAD	Adam Vinatieri (K IND)
74	Judgement Day	DST Bills (DST BUF)
75	Amish Thug Posse	DST Panthers (DST CAR)
76	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Jason Witten (TE DAL)
77	SteelArmy!	Derrick Mason (WR BAL)
78	Black & Tans	Ahman Green (RB GB)
79	The Usual Suspects	DST Bears (DST CHI)
80	Team 12	DST Buccaneers (DST TB)
81	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Mike Bell (RB DEN)
82	Money in the Bank	Joe Horn (WR NO)
83	Extra Large Panties	T.J. Houshmandzadeh (WR CIN)
84	Joey C's Wiseguys	Eddie Kennison (WR KC)
Round 8
85	Black & Tans	Terry Glenn (WR DAL)
86	The Usual Suspects	Reggie Brown (WR PHI)
87	Team 12	Philip Rivers (QB SD)
88	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Donte' Stallworth (WR PHI)
89	Money in the Bank	Ben Watson (TE NE)
90	Extra Large Panties	Roddy White (WR ATL)
91	Joey C's Wiseguys	Nate Burleson (WR SEA)
92	ZODSQUAD	Rod Smith (WR DEN)
93	Judgement Day	David Givens (WR TEN)
94	Amish Thug Posse	Laveranues Coles (WR NYJ)
95	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Muhsin Muhammad (WR CHI)
96	SteelArmy!	DeShaun Foster (RB CAR)
Round 9
97	Extra Large Panties	Drew Brees (QB NO)
98	Joey C's Wiseguys	Cedric Benson (RB CHI)
99	ZODSQUAD	Keenan McCardell (WR SD)
100	Judgement Day	Shayne Graham (K CIN)
101	Amish Thug Posse	Matt Jones (WR JAC)
102	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	DST Steelers (DST PIT)
103	SteelArmy!	Mark Clayton (WR BAL)
104	Black & Tans	Michael Vick (QB ATL)
105	The Usual Suspects	Michael Clayton (WR TB)
106	Team 12	Samie Parker (WR KC)
107	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Brett Favre (QB GB)
108	Money in the Bank	DST Giants (DST NYG)
Round 10
109	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Isaac Bruce (WR STL)
110	SteelArmy!	Ron Dayne (RB DEN)
111	Black & Tans	DST Colts (DST IND)
112	The Usual Suspects	Wali Lundy (RB HOU)
113	Team 12	Eric Moulds (WR HOU)
114	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Jerry Porter (WR OAK)
115	Money in the Bank	Byron Leftwich (QB JAC)
116	Extra Large Panties	Randy McMichael (TE MIA)
117	Joey C's Wiseguys	Ben Roethlisberger (QB PIT)
118	ZODSQUAD	Drew Bennett (WR TEN)
119	Judgement Day	Keyshawn Johnson (WR CAR)
120	Amish Thug Posse	Dallas Clark (TE IND)
Round 11
121	This Small Thing in my Trousers	DST Dolphins (DST MIA)
122	Money in the Bank	Braylon Edwards (WR CLE)
123	Extra Large Panties	DST Vikings (DST MIN)
124	Joey C's Wiseguys	DST Cowboys (DST DAL)
125	ZODSQUAD	T.J. Duckett (RB WAS)
126	Judgement Day	Curtis Martin (RB NYJ)
127	Amish Thug Posse	Troy Williamson (WR MIN)
128	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	L.J. Smith (TE PHI)
129	SteelArmy!	Mark Brunell (QB WAS)
130	Black & Tans	Jason Elam (K DEN)
131	The Usual Suspects	Aaron Brooks (QB OAK)
132	Team 12	Eric Johnson (TE SF)
Round 12
133	Judgement Day	Steve McNair (QB BAL)
134	Amish Thug Posse	DST Seahawks (DST SEA)
135	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Mike Vanderjagt (K DAL)
136	SteelArmy!	Ashley Lelie (WR ATL)
137	Black & Tans	Brandon Lloyd (WR WAS)
138	The Usual Suspects	Jermaine Wiggins (TE MIN)
139	Team 12	DST Bengals (DST CIN)
140	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Vernon Davis (TE SF)
141	Money in the Bank	Kellen Winslow (TE CLE)
142	Extra Large Panties	DST Eagles (DST PHI)
143	Joey C's Wiseguys	Jay Feely (K NYG)
144	ZODSQUAD	David Carr (QB HOU)
Round 13
145	The Usual Suspects	DST Redskins (DST WAS)
146	Team 12	David Akers (K PHI)
147	This Small Thing in my Trousers	DST Falcons (DST ATL)
148	Money in the Bank	DST Jaguars (DST JAC)
149	Extra Large Panties	Ben Troupe (TE TEN)
150	Joey C's Wiseguys	Jerramy Stevens (TE SEA)
151	ZODSQUAD	Bubba Franks (TE GB)
152	Judgement Day	Jeb Putzier (TE HOU)
153	Amish Thug Posse	John Kasay (K CAR)
154	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Jon Kitna (QB DET)
155	SteelArmy!	DST Broncos (DST DEN)
156	Black & Tans	Zach Hilton (TE NO)
Round 14
157	Joey C's Wiseguys	DST Chargers (DST SD)
158	ZODSQUAD	DST Jets (DST NYJ)
159	Judgement Day	DST Lions (DST DET)
160	Amish Thug Posse	Sebastian Janikowski (K OAK)
161	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	DST Chiefs (DST KC)
162	SteelArmy!	Marcus Pollard (TE DET)
163	Black & Tans	Jeff Wilkins (K STL)
164	The Usual Suspects	Josh Brown (K SEA)
165	Team 12	Jeff Reed (K PIT)
166	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Lawrence Tynes (K KC)
167	Money in the Bank	Matt Stover (K BAL)
168	Extra Large Panties	Ryan Longwell (K MIN)
Round 15
169	SteelArmy!	Nate Kaeding (K SD)
170	Black & Tans	DST Browns (DST CLE)
171	The Usual Suspects	Josh Scobee (K JAC)
172	Team 12	Joe Klopfenstein (TE STL)
173	This Small Thing in my Trousers	Rian Lindell (K BUF)
174	Money in the Bank	John Carney (K NO)
175	Extra Large Panties	Olindo Mare (K MIA)
176	Joey C's Wiseguys	Stephen Gostkowski (K NE)
177	ZODSQUAD	Michael Koenen (K ATL)
178	Judgement Day	Phil Dawson (K CLE)
179	Amish Thug Posse	Courtney Anderson (TE OAK)
180	Belligerent Bubonic Butterflies	Joe Nedney (K SF)

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by captainpurple on Sep 5^th, 2006, 9:50am

on 09/05/06 at 08:50:19, Philly wrote:

Not a bad team at all considering the draft. I think your QB in the second was a nice move. It forced you to wait until Round 5 to get a WR, and that shows somewhat, but there's always a hot WR to pick up at some point. Nice job!

Oh, and I noticed the madness continues :o....

on 09/05/06 at 08:50:19, Philly wrote:

Round 5
51	SteelArmy!	Neil Rackers (K ARI)

;D :D [smiley=laugh.gif] [smiley=rollinwithlaughter.gif]

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Sep 5^th, 2006, 10:01am

on 09/05/06 at 09:50:47, captainpurple wrote:

These people taking Neil Rackers so early just boggles my mind.

Anyway, I know my WR corps is a bit shaky (and I have a week 6 bye issue), so I've proposed a trade to another team that has the Bills and Lions as their defenses. I offered Seahawks+TroyWilliamson for AndreJohnson+ShayneGraham. (I really like Graham as a kicker and that would allow me to drop my other two kickers and grab some QB and WR depth).

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by DirkDiggler on Sep 5^th, 2006, 10:11am

Wow, nice team considering the automation!! I am surprised of the RBs you got considering the way the draft worked. I strongly recommend dropping those two guys and geting SOME kind of RB depth. Since you you are 4th in waiver order, you should be able to get something. With those two RBs in Droughns and Gore, you better hope the two guys you get at RB have the opportunity to start some day.

Otherwise, I am impressed. Lee Evans is going to have a heck of a year!!! And Coles is the only weapon the Jets even have on their team......

(I can not believe Tomlinson went 4th!)(and Ronnie Brown went 13th overall!)

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by StegRock on Sep 7^th, 2006, 6:11am

on 08/29/06 at 10:05:06, Philly wrote:

My money league moved to a new league commissioner site (CBS Sportsline) and we're going to have to do an automated draft. The way it works is that we rank players at each position and then decide which position we want to take in each round. There's a catch, though, and a nasty one. The catch is that Sportsline randomly determines the draft order immediately prior to the draft (after the ranking lists are locked) and the draft is a staggered one (for example, I might pick 4th in round one, 7th in round two, and 12th in round three). So it's nearly impossible to really use any strategy to determine what position to take when.

We have to draft EXACTLY 2 QBs, 3 RBs, 4 WRs, 2 TEs, 2 Ks, and 2 DSTs (total=15).

[offtopic]The "impersonal touch"... from the "big boys"... Nice... Way to go, CBS Sportsline!!! Herd that cattle... however's most convenient for you...[/offtopic]

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Sep 7^th, 2006, 10:46am

on 09/07/06 at 06:11:55, StegRock wrote:

[offtopic]The "impersonal touch"... from the "big boys"... Nice... Way to go, CBS Sportsline!!! Herd that cattle... however's most convenient for you...[/offtopic]

We've always used one of the "big boys"... CBS Sportsline is, according to most, the best league management website out there. The problem had more to do with our group being unable to get together for a live draft and having to resort to the automated draft instead. It's my first year with Sportsline, but other guys in the league have used it for years and been very pleased (however they've only done live drafts offline and then entered the rosters).

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by StegRock on Sep 7^th, 2006, 11:13am

on 09/07/06 at 10:46:21, Philly wrote:

(however they've only done live drafts offline and then entered the rosters).

Poisoned... :-/

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by Philly on Sep 7^th, 2006, 11:37am

on 09/07/06 at 11:13:25, StegRock wrote:

Poisoned... :-/

Not sure exactly what you're getting at here... [smiley=idontknow.gif]

Title: Re: The Dreaded Automated Draft
Post by BarnabyWilde on Sep 7^th, 2006, 1:46pm

AOL has a very nice league setup. You can keep it from year to year and it does not erase anything. You can set up your own scoring system, etc...it's pretty sweet.

on 09/07/06 at 10:46:21, Philly wrote: