Big news: I’m finally done drafting. And, I, for one, am a little sad. I know, being in 7 leagues is outrageous and the sheer scheduling of those drafts was somewhat nightmarish. But, now another 11.5 months must pass before I’ll be able to draft a team of crafty, speedy, relentless guys for my fantasy team. You’ve gotta agree, it’s a little sad. Or at the very least it’s bittersweet. And, now my spare time can be spent looking at my line-ups, wondering if I made the right decision to not draft Tom Brady at the 1.08 spot in one league and generally weighing my vast free agent options – oh and of course planning my sister’s bachelorette weekend (any suggestions for a restaurant or bar in Ft. Lauderdale, anyone?).
Right now, I’ve got rookies on my mind –my final draft of the season was a just a handful of rounds in a dynasty draft and the vast majority of picks went to rookies. Being only a few rounds deep, there actually weren’t as many guys drafted as I was expecting, but I had done some deep research on rookies. So, I thought I might take a look at some of those rookies to analyze who might be interesting waiver wire material. I would wager a guess that some of you are already looking for some free agent help. For example, let’s say that you drafted Chris Brown, who is now on IR and you’re looking for a replacement. Or, you drafted Rudi Johnson and don’t trust that he’s fantasy-worthy now that he’s Kevin Smith’s backup in Detroit. For many of us, there’s some post-draft clean-up work that needs to be done. So let’s look at a handful of rookies who probably weren’t drafted in your league, but are deep possibilities off the waiver wire…note that I’m not saying any of these guys will have an immediate impact, but if you’ve got a roster spot to fill or improve upon, why not takea gamble on one of these guys?
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RB Tim Hightower - Arizona Cardinals
Last year the Edge lost his grill. Now he might lose his job to Hightower, who is poised and ready to take goal line attempts. Hightower can both run and catch and is a youthful 23 compared to the Edge’s more mature age of 30. What’s not to like here with a flier pick?
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WR Donnie Avery - St. Louis Rams
While everyone else is busy talking about Robert Meachem and DeSean Jackson, you can quietly grab Avery, a rookie WR with the Rams. He’s fast and the Rams clearly like him since they drafted him over James Hardy and Devin Thomas – makes me think they might just have plans for him. Torry Holt isn’t getting any younger and Marc Bulger might just have a decent season – both are ingredients for potential Donnie Avery Success.
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RB Ryan Torain - Denver Broncos
About 90% of you just shuddered at the thought of taking a Broncos RB, but mark my words, Shanahan loves Torain (From the Denver Post: “He's one of the most gifted running backs I've been around for a long time," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said Wednesday. "He is very similar to Terrell Davis when he came in."), and since he wasn’t put on IR, Torain will be seeing the field plenty during the second half of the season.
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WR Josh Morgan - San Francisco 49ers
This is a receiver in a Mike Martz offense we’re talking about; sure putting your eggs in a rookie WR basket are a gamble (um, if you are looking for sure things, you’re reading the wrong column), but Morgan has a chance, albeit slim, to have an impact on the fantasy scene this year. We’re all probably well aware that Frank Gore IS the Niners’ offense, so spreading the love to Morgan would be in everyone’s best interest. Including yours if you can snag him in time.
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TE John Carlson - Seattle Seahawks
The only reason Carlson gets mentioned here is because the Seattle offense desperately needs someone to actually catch the ball. With receiver after receiver going down to injury, Carlson has a chance to really step up here – so if you have an injury-prone TE or are in one of those rare leagues where TEs are actually valuable, listen up and put Carlson on your short list...plus I had about a billion great-uncles who went to Notre Dame, so here’s a little ND love in their honor.
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Past "A Librarians Touch" Articles (click to view)
Best & Worst of 2008
Week 17 Sneaky Fantasy Football Options
Championship Week Defenses
Finding the Week 15 Gem
Revisiting the Top 10 Running Backs
Taking It One Week At A Time
Predicting Playoff Studs
Second Half Players to Avoid
Second Half Handcuffs
Finding the Week 8 Bye Week Fill-In
Which Top 10 Running Backs will remain strong in 2008?
Shop Em, Don't Drop Em
Bye-ing into a Team D/ST
Forecasting Streaky Players
Fantasy Football Hindsight from Week 1
Hidden Potential Among Rookies
Fantasy Football Draft Day Trends
Creating Fantasy Football Tiers
Pick your Kicker with some Statistical Perspective
Optimizing Your Tight End
Beyond the Obvious with IDP's
Committing to a Running Back Committee
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Sara Holladay, owner of Fantasy Football Librarian, will be writing a weekly feature called "A Librarians Touch" on the Bruno Boys website on every Wednesday throughout the football season. Remember to check back next week to read what Holladay has on her fantasy football mind.
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