Down and Dynasty
A tale of two teams: Part II
From the Ground Up!!
League: Final Destination Empire League
Team: Hot Wet Trash
I like to watch home improvement shows. That happens, I think, when you get to a certain age. You watch those shows and dream about the things you’d like to do to the house you live in. You can put up some crown molding, thrown on a new coat of paint, new curtains — you know, easy things that make it look like a lot of work was done. In a newer house this might be just the thing needed to give you that feeling of new again. We did that in the guest bathroom a couple of years ago, a paint job and an out of the box vanity and viola, new.
The other option is more drastic, maybe some new laminate or tile flooring, putting in new counter tops or cabinets or going really big and knocking down a wall and totally reconfiguring the layout. After we finished the guest bathroom my wife and I decided to do the master bathroom. We tore out the double sink counter top and redid the floor. My father-in-law custom built a gorgeous new counter top out of reclaimed barnwood, we demolished the shower surround and re-tiled with a some really beautiful 12” x 18” tiles and replaced the shower fixtures as well as repainted. It came out really beautiful. My Empire team is both of these scenarios. I tried the quick fix, coat of paint the first year, but the paint is already starting to peel and it is time to rip out the counter tops and redo the whole damn thing.
An Empire League might not be the best place to undertake a complete re-build, but I took over an orphan team after the first year of the league and based on my evaluation of the team, a full re-build seemed the way to go. The team had finished 5–8 in the first year and had traded away most of its draft picks leaving a team without a lot of resources to get better. The starting lineup consists of — QB/3RB/ 4WR/TE/Superflex/Flex. The roster I took over was:
QB: Carson Palmer, Brock Osweiler, Josh McCown, Trevor Siemian
RB: Theo Riddick, Doug Martin, Jeremy Hill, Wendell Smallwood, John Kuhn, Darren McFadden
WR: AJ Green, Larry Fitzgerald, Tedd Ginn, Cole Beasley, Anquan Boldin, Willie Snead, Kelvin Benjamin, Pierre Garcon, Terrell Pryor, Brandon Marshall, Vincent Jackson
TE: Jimmy Graham, Jack Doyle, Will Tye
The best asset I had was Green. I moved Green and Pryor for 2017 first and second, 2018 first and second and Emmanuel Sanders. After making some trades to acquire much needed draft picks I selected OJ Howard (1.07), Marlon Mack (2.05), Jamaal Williams (2.06) and Ismael Zamora (4.11). Other players I acquired through trades — Devin Funchess, Sterling Shepard, Chris Ivory, John Brown, Duke Johnson, Lamar Miller. My starting line up week one of the 2017 season was:
QB/Superflex: Carson Palmer, Sam Bradford
RB: Lamar Miller, Frank Gore, Chris Carson
WR/Flex: Larry Fitzgerald, Tedd Ginn, Sterling Shepard, Kelvin Benjamin, Emmanuel Sanders
TE: Jimmy Graham
As you might well imagine this line up did not propel me to the top of the standings. I stumbled through the season and finished 6–7, one game better than the team I had taken over the year before and out of the playoffs. It really wasn’t my intention to be that good. There were decisions that needed to be made going into the 2018 season. My team needed to undergo a drastic renovation — we are talking moving walls not just a paint job. The first order of business was the rookie draft. This is a superflex league so I selected Josh Rosen (1.05), Christian Kirk (2.07), John Kelly (3.02), Dallas Goedert (3.06) and Daurice Fountain (5.10). I also picked up Jordan Lasley from waivers and I have stashed them all on the taxi squad. After nine weeks I am 2–7 and in last place. This is a painful spot for me, but I have the 1.01 for the 2019 and have made moves to acquire some young talent through trades. Those players. James Washington, Marquez Valdes Scantling, Kyle Rudolph, Marquis Goodwin and Chris Carson will be the foundation for next season. I am lacking a bona fide stud so that will be something I will be on the look out for. We are closing in on the playoffs and I will be in the market to move my veterans for young potential upside players and/or early picks in the upcoming rookie draft. A couple of the trades I have made to accomplish this.
I gave Marlon Mack, received 1.03/Marquis Lee, I like Lee’s potential. Mack has looked good since he got healthy, so I do have a little seller’s remorse right now.
I gave Lamar Miller, received Valdez Scantling/2–2020 second round picks. MVS has started to come on with Geronimo Allison injured. This move is dependent on the current champion not winning and resetting the league as it is an Empire league and will reset and redraft after the same person wins consecutive titles.
I gave Emmanuel Sanders, received James Washington/2019 second round pick.
So, as I head into this off-season I have a wide receiver group that is young and has potential to break out — Shepard, Kirk, MVS, Washington, Lee — a good young quarterback in Rosen and a tight end with Goedert. I need to improve the running back position and get a second great quarterback for my superflex position. So here’s to a fruitful post-season and off-season.
I am all over the place, give me a follow or tune in and listen. I am on the Fantasy Life App @panhandles, twitter @culture_coach You can catch me live at 1230pm est every Thursday and Sunday on the www.12ozsportsradio.com shows What’s Up, What’s Up Sports and on the NFL Pregame Show. The writers for the Fantasy Life All blog have podcast, The Fantasy Roundtable hosted by Matt Bruening, @roundtableff on twitter, that comes out daily Monday — Friday give it a listen.
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