2009 rankings...and 2010 prospects?!

Tomorrow I head to Michigan to party it up for my grandma's 90th so I'll be quiet for the next few days while I hang with the family. Here's hoping today's links can carry you through the weekend!

• Matthew Berry has his latest Top 200 up - I love seeing Clinton Portis and Chris Johnson in the top 10; I think there are some doubters out there on both of those players but I believe they're going to have great years...even Portis behind that old-man o-line.
• FFToolbox brings us Overused Running Backs - a look at 20+ running backs who have rushed more than 400 times in the last two seasons and may be ripe for an injury. And I do realize the humor in seeing Portis at the top spot on this list here right after my statement on how great he'll be in 2009.
• So who do you all think will be the top prospects for the 2010 NFL Draft? Yeah I'm serious. Rotoworld's Evan Silva wins an award for best draft go-getter with his Ten Draft Prospects for 2010 article.
  
• Just curious, does Tiger Woods play second fiddle to Peyton Manning? I guess this isn't the right group of people to ask since you're all likely more football fans than golf fans, but if you were at Quail Hollow following the Tiger/Peyton duo around, which one would you angle to meet/photograph/get an autograph from, etc? My husband need not reply since I think he'd plow down Tiger to meet Peyton.
• Can the Vikes dominate in '09 without a franchise quarterback? In Lack of franchise QB could vanquish Vikings in 2009, SportingNews looks at how the team might do with basically everything you might need - except that ol' QB guy.
  
• Speaking of QBs, Fantasy Sharks has a QB Strength of Schedule article that should be of interest as you start to pull together your fantasy QB rankings - I do not care to see the Broncos at the bottom of that list with the toughest pass SOS. Not cool at all!
  

Enjoy the weekend!

Ranking the rooks

I'm looking out of my office window today and finally seeing evidence of spring outside - the newbie green leaves are popping out and I'm once again reminded of how much I love this season (and of how I've somehow developed allergies). East coasters, I realize you've been enjoying not just spring but even summerlike weather as of late but here in Colorado spring is slow-moving beast. Onto our links for today...

• Time for a flurry of Brett Favre headlines? Let's hope not. As the Fifth Down notes, the Jets released Favre at his request and he is "at this time" retiring from football.
  
• Also in category of old guys who have been released, the Edge is no longer with the Cardinals. What a failed experiment that one was.
  
• The Hazean hits us up with some Early Rookie Rankings - top 10 QBs, RBs, WRs, and top5 TEs. Side note: if you're having trouble viewing the Hazean's site correctly in Firefox like I am (an ad hovers over the content), try it out in IE and your problems will be solved.
  
• Or try FFToolbox's Keeper and Dynasty League rankings for each position (only QBs, RBs and TEs are available at this time) - note the very help "who not to keep" link included. It's still linking to last year's article but keep an eye on this since I think it's just as helpful if not more so than the other ranking links.
  
• Get your rookie rankings via Rotoworld's Fantasy Fix video - perhaps I need to listen to these guys before I anoint Moreno as the one back in Denver...clearly I'm ready to move on from the RBBC mayhem here.
  
• More 2009 draft analysis this time from the FFManiaxs - look for the five most impressive and least impressive team drafts here.
  
• Finally, the Fantasy Hulks have a top 50 ranking up already for your enjoyment.
  

2009 RB analysis and beyond

Gotta be quick today, my fantasy football fans. I'm flying to good ol' Grand Rapids, Michigan later this week for my grandma's 90th birthday so I've got a busier week at work than usual. So read up on today's brief list of links...

• NFL.com takes a look at the top rookies and what kind of fantasy impact they might have in Moreno, Wells headline top fantasy rookies after NFL Draft - I'm seriously starting to think that the impossible might happen = the Broncos might have one lead runner; the RBBC might be dying off in Denver. Could it be?? Am I getting swept up in a Knowshon lovefest? Possible.
  
• The Jets and Gregg Rosenthal agree - there's a big drop-off in rookie running backs after Shonn Greene. I of course am waiting for Northwestern's Tyrell Sutton to make an unexpected splash this season (might be waiting a long time since he hasn't exactly signed with a team yet...) but it is interesting to see that there are really just a few rookie RBs that might have a fantasy impact.
  
• With all this talk of rookie RBs, don't forget there are other RBs lurking in the shadows like BenJarvus Green-Ellis (yes, I kind of just wanted the chance to type his name) - take a look at Fantasy Football Fools for some analysis on backs that you might be seeing more of this season in Forget them not: Ten dynasty running backs for keepers and sleepers.
• Every year there are undrafted players that have an impact during their first season, sometimes even warranting fantasy attention. CBS Sports takes a look at some of those top undrafted players in Best remaining: Leftovers have talent and market.

Draft recaps galore!

Hello football fans! So how did you enjoy the draft?! Is everyone happy with the direction your teams went in? I'll be honest, when I saw the Broncos grab Knowshon Moreno in the first round my first thought was, "you have got to be kidding me, an RB of all things??? How many of those can we collect in one offseason?" But hey, no better way to get a new QB comfortable than with a strong running game, right? And could drafting Moreno be a turning of the tides here in Denver? Could the Shanahanigans with the revolving runners be coming to an end?

Oh I love all of the evaluation and dissection of the draft. It just makes me giddy. So you can imagine that I'm a bit like a kid on Christmas morning here with just SO much analysis to pore through. If you've found some gems that I've overlooked, please post a link in the comments section or send me an e-mail.

• Fifth Down's 2009 Draft Recap: Most Questionable Moves - it should be no surprise to anyone to see the Raiders listed here. It wouldn't be a real draft without some sort of questionable hijinx from the Raiders, right? Also take a look at their 2009 Draft Recap: Most Aggressive Teams.
  
• I admit it, I was one of those nerds that actually looked forward to receiving my report card so I'm digging Pete Prisco's grading of each team's draft. Sure, sure, it takes some time before the real grades can be given but if you're looking for some immediate draft reactions, definitely give this quick-reading article a look.
  
• One of the reasons that Prisco gave the Eagles an A+ draft grade in the above-mentioned article is thanks to TE Cornelius Ingram - but I'm seeing rumors that the Eagles are interested in acquiring my favorite Broncos player, Tony Scheffler, if Ingram's knee doesn't hold up in minicamps. Um, that would give the Eagles an A+++ for offseason moves in my book and I would be very sad to see Scheff go...
• More draft grades from Rotoworld - scope out the AFC and NFC grades. As noted, the grades aren't as geared towards the fantasy impact but there is indeed plenty of time for that. If you can't wait at all though, see Second Day Fantasy Impact from Pancake Blocks.
  
• CBS Sports' Clark Judge has a handful of interesting rankings and such in Draft Judgments: Sanchez makes splash on Broadway, but will he be a hit?
• Let the rookie rankings begin - those of you in dynasty leagues are probably trying to figure out which newbie is going to bring in the big fantasy points. See No Offseason's Who is Number One Now? for thoughts on which rookie might be the best dynasty pick. Or Rotoworld's NFL Draft: Dynasty Fallout.

Okay I could keep going possibly for the next 4 hours straight but I have a fair amount of real library work waiting in the wings, so sadly I must put a stop to the article gathering/linking. But here's to fantasy football 09!

So long bowling, hello draft

So my bowling league is over for the season - several of you have been following my surprise participation in a bowling league over the past several months (the original token female in the league cut her hand, requiring stitches and a replacement). I have to admit that I didn't really improve like I hoped I would but I did get some excellent tips on my last night of the league - my bowling game might never be the same. Too bad that info came so late in the season!

But don't worry that's not the way I roll with fantasy football - instead I bring you info, tips, rankings, etc all year round. And clearly if you're here on this site in April you're not a last minute fantasy footballer either and are probably psyched for some early fantasy details. So onto today's links:

• Football Jabber takes a look at 25 NFL Draft links that make you smarter than everyone in case you need some more prep before tomorrow's draft.
  
• As a Broncos fan I think I link to just about every Broncos team needs article out there - Dr U Fantasy Football Guru doesn't disappoint in 2009 NFL Team Needs - Denver Broncos. Surf around for other team needs in the series.
• The words "draft" and "spreadsheet" together in the same sentence are just so tantalizing - the Fifth Down's Draft Spreadsheet Hits Sweet Spot links to ESPN's mock draft spreadsheet that really is a pretty impressive beast.
• Scope out Talented Mr. Roto's last Top 200 ranking before this weekend's draft - keep in mind that there aren't any rookies in this ranking; they'll be added post-draft. I'm intrigued by where the QBs are landing - I guess most of all I'm interested in Peyton's placement at 30th overall followed immediately by Aaron Rodgers. Don't get me wrong, I believe in Rodgers as a top 5 QB, I guess I just believe in Peyton significantly more.
• Finally, for the fantasy bent on Tony Gonzalez's trade to the Falcons, see Pancake Blocks' Gonzo dealt to the Falcons.
  

Enjoy the draft this weekend and get ready for a slew of post-draft fantasy updates!

Draft Day Vacation!

We have good friends coming into town for the weekend and I think I convinced one friend to come solely because I promised we could watch the NFL Draft together. I'm not sure the rest of our visitors are going to be down with hour upon hour of a draft watch but at least I'll have one buddy! It's a good thing the draft occurs over the weekend or else I'd be taking some vacation time...

The speculations for draft day are about at their peak so let's take a look at a few links:

• Take a look at CBS Sports' Diner News: Questions that bother me before the draft for some last minute musings - plus find out who this year's rookies more or less agree is the best incoming rookie...
• FFToolbox looks at some of this year's draft class that may give you cause for concern in their Risky Draft Picks article. It's pretty clear that off-field troubles are the common thread here among most of the risky players.
  
• KFFL has their 2009 NFL Draft Predictions up and I like it - some bold, some not so bold predictions but all in all, pretty astute I think.
  
• Advanced NFL Stats does it again - this time they take a look at the historical performance of linebackers according to where they're drafted. Advanced NFL Stats has already looked at QBs, RBs, WRs, DEs and DBs; now it's time for some LB evaluation.
  
• Heads up IDP players and Panthers fans - will Julius Peppers be traded on draft day allowing Carolina to move up and get a first-round pick?
• I usually focus a lot on player updates from sites like Rotoworld and KFFL but FFXtreme also does a great job with their player analysis from the news and fantasy perspective.
  

Finally, Happy Earth Day! Go compost or carpool and give a little toast to our fine planet.

Draft Day is T minus 5

Reasons to love Colorado are plenty but one of the reasons I truly love this state is the weather here - I know, not another weather intro to this football blog, right? I can't help it! So on Friday and Saturday, a steady cold rain came down for about 48 hours straight here in Boulder with the occasional snow burst to break things up (meanwhile a town about 30 minutes away got 56 inches of snow this weekend - no joke)...but as is the case here in Colorado, the weather did a 180 in less than 24 hours and yesterday was a gorgeous, sunny 70 degree day. And I'm rocking a surprisingly strong sunburn on my face to prove it. The nice weather is lingering for the rest of the week, which makes me think the attendance at today's 4/20 celebration on the quad outside the library could get rather crowded - last year's attendance reached 10,000. Could make for an interesting afternoon around these parts.

Onto today's football links...

• Gotta love an article that looks at fantasy football draft strategy, particularly one like the FantasySharks.com's Top 50 RBs vs WRs that weighs grabbing an RB, a WR or a QB in the first few rounds of your draft.
  
• Did the Jay Cutler disaster teach young QBs everywhere, such as Vince Young, to just stay quiet and roll with the punches?
• Philly added LT Jason Peters to their squad this weekend and I for one am really excited about the impressive o-line the Eagles are building. They already had a powerful offensive line last season but with some key offseason moves, they're really creating a monstrous o-line that will benefit McNabb and Westbrook.
  
• Football Jabber promises big things in May once the NFL Draft is over and fantasy football prep begins in full swing. I, for one, can't wait.
• If you enjoy a good mock draft, see how the Pancake Blocks mock draft is progressing - as of this morning they are at the 19th overall pick. If you're not into the mock draft bit and like getting your football news via video, take a look at Rotoworld's 3 & Out thoughts on what Detroit should do with that top pick and which players are overrated.
  
• Finally, a quick overview of what each team needs to angle for in this year's draft in the Fifth Down's Draft Needs, Team by Team. And by the way, it's not easy to sum up an entire team's needs in just 2-3 sentences. Call me impressed.
  

Show me the snow & football links

Supposedly there will be 10 to 22 inches of snow on the ground by the end of the day on Saturday here in Boulder. I don't buy it - there's been a slushy snow-rain coming down all morning so some sort of unbelievable precipitation dump will need to happen tonight when it gets colder. Plus, 10 to 22 inches; could that be a wider range?! Sorry for the weather tangent - let's get back to football.

• Rotoworld concludes their Team Needs series with a look at the NFC East and North. Taking a look at what various teams need to be a contender in 2009 (or just to avoid an 0-16 season) has really reminded me that football season is not that far off. Excellent.
  
• Football Jabber takes a look at some of the changes on the NFL Draft scene with thoughts on how the draft might evolve next weekend.
• Advanced NFL Stats looks at defensive backs drafted between 1980 and 2001 and considers whether or not top draft picks outperform those DBs taken in later rounds in Drafting Defensive Backs. Love this kind of historical analysis.
  
• Being totally into fantasy football and also a wife, you can see why I couldn't help but click on the Bruno Boys' My Wife and Fantasy Football, Good Idea? article (and was then amused to see myself mentioned in the article as the token female FFer; always happy to play that role) - I think the number of women playing fantasy football has grown significantly over the past 2-3 years thanks in large part to the explosion of significant other/mom leagues as noted here.
  
• The Texans are a team that provide fairly consistent fantasy stats across multiple positions for us fantasy footballers - the trifecta of Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson and Steve Slaton is just such a tantalizing prospect as we look ahead to the 2009 season. See what The Sports Outlaw has to say in Houston Texans Off Season Thoughts and the types of team needs they might fill come draft day.

All for now - enjoy the weekend!

Already talking playoffs

Wanna know which players will really shine during the 2009 fantasy football playoffs? Oh yeah, you heard me right. It's only April and we're talking playoffs. I love it. To read the details from the man who is insane enough to be writing about fantasy playoffs this early, take a look at Lester's Legends' First Glance Fantasy Football Playoff Studs. Rumor has it the playoff duds will be posted tomorrow...

The rest of today's links are as follows:

• If you missed it, the 2009 season schedule is here! My Broncos have an easy schedule to start off their Brandon Marshall-less season. Perhaps that will get Kyle Orton's confidence up (read this for more on what Orton brings to the Broncos)...interesting stuff.
  
• Now that the schedule is here, Ask The Commish created a 2009 Strength of Schedule based on 2008 records.
  
• And while we're on the topic, scope out FantasyGuru's First SOS Impressions - and be sure to check out the top 5 teams helped and hurt by their schedules this year down at the bottom of the page.
  
• Or if you're looking for a succinct way of seeing each team's home and away competition, take a look at FFToday's Home/Away Opponents 2009.
• Junkyard Jake has updated their 2-round mock NFL draft.
  

Looking for a Football Monster

One of my coworkers (yes, there are other librarians that pay attention to fantasy sports, though we are a rather rare breed) showed me a site called Basketball Monster that he uses for his fantasy basketball league. If you take a look at the Player Rankings page, you'll see just a mass of different player statistics that you can use to adjust your customized player rankings. Or you can see which players are hot right now - or mosey on over to Baseball Monster for the same sort of number-crunching fun with baseball. This begs the question: where's the Football Monster?

Read on for more links on this Tuesday afternoon:

• Check out my Team Needs: NFC South & West article for Rotoworld - agree or disagree with me? I'd love to hear about it.
• My husband was an athlete at a small, liberal arts school and always has some love in his heart for the diamond in the rough from small schools - if you find yourself in the same camp, take a look at Fantasyfootball.com's Small School Studs part 1 and part 2 for some insight on those hidden draft gems.
  
• If you've been looking for a mock draft that includes draft-day trades, then look no further than the FFManiaxs' mock which includes moves like sending Braylon Edwards to the Chargers...not sure I see that as the most likely place for Edwards, but hey, it's a wide open playing field out there.
• The Bruno Boys are making some conjectures for the 2009 season in 2009 NFL Bold Predictions, some of which might surprise you...
  
• Finally, I just really don't know what to say about this snuggie competitor of sorts. I mean really? Really??
  

Cleaning house

For the first time in my life I rented a storage unit this weekend - somehow I've made it to almost 30 without the need for a 5x5 to house my possessions temporarily. But the time has come - we are putting our condo up on the market in the next few weeks (who needs a 1 bedroom in Boulder?) and our realtor has recommended that we move a dresser and some random clutter out of the apartment to convince the buying public that we are swimming in space. I applaud the effort and will do what it takes to sell this puppy, but it does mean sorting through everything we own and deeming it trash/recycle-worthy; sellable on Craigslist (who needs an old school PlayStation?); storage unit-worthy; or necessary enough for our day-to-day operations that it gets a place of honor in the condo (coffeemaker!).

I find this process probably far more fun than most people - I gleefully clean spaces for the before-and-after effect and for the gigantic sense of relief I feel to have less crap in my home. When a friend stopped by this weekend and I was able to talk him into taking an old board game with him out the door, I felt hugely successful.

My Broncos have oddly gone in the opposite direction of my clean house mentality this offseason. Instead they've stockpiled a bunch of random players that may very well have no significant impact on the team - and of course they got rid of their prized possession, Jay Cutler. To me that makes about as much sense as storing my bed to sleep on a futon; I mean no offense Kyle Orton, but yes, you're the futon of this story.

Anyway, lots of preparations are being done throughout the league in advance of the NFL Draft, which is now 12 days away. So let's get to today's links:

• If you're not a frequent reader of the Fifth Down, well, you should be and here's yet another reason to read the NY Times' NFL blog: the 2009 Draft Countdown by picks. The latest review of team needs and draft possibilities is for the Redskins and their 13th pick. Scan through the rest of the Fifth Down for other pick summaries.
  
• For more team needs, take a look at Rotoworld's latest Team Needs installment with AFC South and West coverage.
  
• I haven't really scoped out QB rankings for the 2009 season in detail in awhile so in looking at the CBS Sports 2009 rankings by position, I'm realizing how much ambiguity there is between their QBs ranked between about 16th and 6th; just seems like that bunch of QBs is going to be really hard to predict this year. Maybe Hasselbeck will be back and better than ever; maybe Matt Ryan will perform at a top 5 level; maybe Matt Cassel will be a one-season wonder after all...and does anyone else notice how far Eli Manning has fallen? I'm not a big Eli fan from a fantasy standpoint but I think he's a pretty good steal that far down the list.
  
• SportingNews.com has two articles that I really am excited to link to today:
• Bust or not a bust? A look back at 2006's first round - too often we forget to go back and see just how important those first round picks actually were. SportingNews looks at the Mario over Reggie pick and other key players from the 2006 draft to see which guys were busts and which weren't.
• 2009 NFL Draft Rankings - this link will take you to the DE (defensive end) rankings but you can can get to any offensive or defensive position that you're interested in viewing from this page. Lots of good info here including Combine stats and if you're feeling really historically nerdy, you can go back as far as 2005.
• If you happen to already have a subscription to The Huddle (one of the best paid sites in my opinion), take a look at John Tuvey's 2009 NFL Draft - Day Two series with info up on RBs and QBs so far. Good stuff and particularly helpful for those in keeper leagues.
• Finally if you own Braylon Edwards in a keeper league or you're a Browns fan (are there many of you left?!), take a look at where Pancake Blocks sees Edwards going in a trade this year.
  

Early rankings are coming!

When the Masters has arrived, I know that it's nearly time for the bulk of fantasy football prognostications to begin. Soon fantasy draft magazines will be available and every joe shmoe will have a ranking. I'll be here sorting out which new sites and writers know that they're talking about and am already excited to see what my favorite oldtimers have to say about the 2009 season...so stay tuned because the fantasy season is almost here.

In the meantime, a few links to start off your weekend:

• I love KC Joyner's Scientific Football work and I love stats on the less-pondered positions like cornerbacks...so the Fifth Down's Scientific Football: Cornerback and Receiver Statistics is right up my alley.
• Matthew Berry updated his Top 200 ranking - all changes are in italics. I wish the player's previous ranking was also noted since I'd like to know just how far Jay Cutler has fallen since leaving my Broncos.
• Want to take part in Rotoworld's Pancake Mock 2009? I'll be honest, I didn't sort through all the comments to see which teams/picks are left but there could still be something available, so take a look if you're interested. Or participate in The Hazean's 3rd annual reader/blogger mock draft.
  
• Wondering which RBs and FBs are ranked most highly in this year's draft? Check out CBS Sports' RB/FB prospects: Tools, flaws make for mixed bag. There hasn't been much talk about top backs this year, which frankly I'm kind of pleased to see since it might limit the unsubstantiated love for this year's rookie RBs after so many rookie RBs had success in 2008.
  

Enjoy the Masters and Happy Easter weekend!

Butter fingers...but better than dropping a game-winning TD

This is one of those days that just hasn't started well for me at all. A good chunk of my frustrations are thanks to my butter fingers that dropped my beloved iPhone on the sidewalk as I hurried for the bus this morning...while the phone still works just fine there's a large spiderweb over about 1/4 of the screen. Not cool at all. Let this be a lesson to those of you running around without a case on your iPhone - don't be caseless like me. I'm not sure the case would've made a big difference for me but it sure couldn't have hurt. Anyway, I'm in a bit of a funk but will try and crank out some quality football links here:

• Gotta love a mock draft coming from someone so clearly passionate about fantasy football - I may have found someone who is more excited about the 2009 season than I am...check out RotoExperts' Fantasy Football, Crazy Talk, Mocking in Fantasy Land for a mock first round of the NFL draft.
• What's the deal with the Matt Hasselbeck's back and will the Seahawks attempt to get another QB on board during the draft? Take a look at CBS Sports' As Seahawks mull QB in draft, Hasselbeck vows he's healthy. I particularly like that Hasselbeck talks about being a Sunday NFL Draft man, watching on the 2nd day for the deeper picks.
• I can't help but link to a Broncos article - see the Fifth Down's thoughts on what Denver will do with their first-round draft picks in Broncos, 2009 Draft Countdown, 18th and 12th picks.
• Rotoworld led me to the NFL Draft Machine, which let's be honest here, has got to be fantasy football's latest and greatest way of sucking all the time out of your perhaps otherwise productive work day. I love it. I have only played with it for a few minutes but if you've got some spare time, play around with the Draft Machine and see what kind of mocking you can come up with.
  
• Last year at this time I was a Laurent Robinson believer thanks to my brother-in-law's reports of the growing hype about him in Atlanta, so I enjoyed Rotoworld's Laurent Robinson gets a second chance post with some reasons to maybe give the guy a little late-round love now that he's moved to St. Louis.
  
• FantasySharks' First QB Rankings - 11-20 are up for your perusal. Enjoy the 2008 recap and 2009 outlook for these more low-end fantasy starters and backup QBs.
  

I keep looking at my iPhone in hopes that this morning's clumsy-fest didn't actually happen - but instead the spiderweb crack is just winking back at me, mocking me for my mistake...Apple genius bar, here I come!

The start of baseball brings football a bit closer...

Well baseball season has begun, which in my football-oriented mind means that football season is that much closer to being here, and I for one an psyched. Another thing I'm psyched about this week is that my husband is defending his dissertation tomorrow - soon I can call him Doc Holladay. Six years of hard work are about to be rewarded. Can't wait.

Onto to today's football linkage:

• Want a little light reading before Draft Day arrives? Then don't turn to FootballGuys' 624-page beastly Rookie Scouting Portfolio (for a free 75-page sample, check out this link); but if you want something informative and detailed from one of my favorite fantasy football writers, check out Matt Waldman's aforementioned tome.
  
• Ahh, to have a mature quarterback. Jason Campbell and Dan Snyder met at the end of last week for a pow-wow on the same day that the Skins brought Byron Leftwich in for a workout. Though the Washington Post points out it's unlikely that Leftwich will leave Pittsburgh to be Campbell's backup, which is what he would be should he sign.
  
• Looking for a new drafting strategy for the 2009 season? Or maybe just a refresher? Take a look at the Bruno Boys' four-part series designed to give you a leg up come August.
  
• If you're really not the sort to keep an eye on the wire for any football news (my fave is still Rotoworld's NFL Headlines), then consider scoping out FFToolbox's 2009 NFL Player Movement guide to keep you updated on all the latest.
• Now that Plax has been released by the Giants, The Hazean investigates the impact on the Giants' passing game and Eli Manning's value.
• And finally, since I can't seem to get a post up without mentioning Jay Cutler's name - see MMQB's How Jay Cutler-Kyle Orton trade went down.
  

The neckbeard comes to Denver

Goodbye Jay, hello Neckbeard - I mean, Kyle. The deed is done: Cutler is going to the Bears (along with a Broncos fifth-round draft pick) in exchange for Orton, the number 18 overall pick this year, the Bears' 2009 third-round pick, and the Bears' 2010 first-round pick.

This is not good for Cutler's fantasy value (tell me please who is going to pass to?!), but perhaps stellar for Greg Olsen's value. I think Cutler values the QB-TE connection quite a bit...and of course I'm sure Kyle Orton isn't thrilled to be coming into a team whose top receiver underwent hip surgery this week and faces possible suspension at the start of the season. Oh Broncos, what have you done??

As the Cutler Turns

Broncos....you're killing me!! I keep hoping this is an April Fools' Day joke but the Jay Cutler drama continues in case you could have somehow missed the latest installment of the middle school-esque drama going on here. I swear this is reminiscent of my 7th grade "boyfriend" though I think that merely lasted a few weeks instead of this disaster which apparently has no end. This definitely makes me unhappy from both a real life and a Cutler Dynasty owner perspective; but it's harder as a Broncos fan. I just have a gut feeling that he'll land on his feet somewhere from a fantasy perspective - so much talent, I can't see it going to waste anywhere - but the Broncos just seem utterly, royally screwed. Gregg Rosenthal points out that basically everyone in Denver is now a bit of a fantasy question mark and the Denver Post reviews some of the latest Cutler interest from my other fav NFL team, the Redskins.

So where do you guys think Cutler will land?

For non-Cutler football links, read on:

• FFManiaxs have updated their TE rankings for 2009 - so let's say Cutler goes to Washington (okay, see it's impossible to avoid Cutler, sorry)...does Chris Cooley's value skyrocket or what?
  
• Wondering which WRs are still looking for a new home? Take a look at Lester's Legends' Catching up with NFL Free Agent WRs.
  
• Okay, you might want to sit down for this one. I love Football Outsiders and think they put together some amazing metrics that make me drool, quite frankly. And they'd done it again. With horizontal yards. Now if you're saying to yourself, "what on earth?" as you're reading through the article, take a look at today's date. I think my favorite line was the job offer from the Raiders but there's a lot to love here.
• The Cutler news makes this trade between experts at FFXtreme and Rotoworld a little more interesting - take a look at the trade that has some forums all riled up.
  
• A monkey mocks the NFL Draft. Or something like that - see Cold, Hard Football Facts for more. For another mock that is done with a little less randomness, check out Sports Grumblings' The Inside Slant: Casale's Mock Draft: Version II.