Part 3 of 3 of NFL Fantasy League Draft Do's and Don'ts

Here is the third and final part of the three part series on do’s and don’ts for NFL fantasy league drafts, this part will focus on Defenses, defensive players, and yes even kickers!

Defenses:

When picking a defense make sure you do a little research, look at the roster, and also take some time to see how the defense held up the year before, as in points allowed, sacks, and takeaways.  In fantasy drafts those are extremely important.   Different teams have different strengths, for instance the Vikings had a great year last year in sacks, with 50, but Jared Allen, a defensive end had almost half of those sacks (this is important because if he gets hurt this defense could suffer).  The Eagles, Ravens, and Bengals also had great sack years.   Here is a list of defenses worth your while in the draft:

Draft:

1.)   Vikings- Allen was a beast last year, and if he can continue taking the opposing QBs to town this defense will only get better.  This is a great choice to start against teams like the Bears, when they play the (who play two times a year) because the Bears offensive line was bad last year, and has shown no signs to improve.  They also had 15 recovered fumbles last year.

2.)    Packers- They picked off the QBs a total of 31 times last year, and also recovered 7 fumbles, so that is a total of 38 takeaways, this is a team to look at for sure. 

3.)    49ers- Also a total of 38 takeaways, 23 interceptions and 15 fumbles recovered.

4.)    Giants- Their defensive line came on strong towards the end of the season, if they can do that all year this season, they will be a force to be reckoned with.

Do Not Draft:

1.)    Colts- 29 sacks, 8 interceptions, and 9 recovered fumbles; this is not a defense even worth looking at. 

2.)    Dolphins- 16 interceptions, and only 3 recovered fumbles, and they did have 41 sacks, but again not a team that is great at taking the ball away.

3.)    Steelers- Just because a team is known for having a great defense does not always mean they will actually have one.  They only had 15 take aways last year, which is not what they are used to having.  The defense is getting older, and I do not see this team being anything to be scared of this year.

Defensive Players

My advice, do not draft a player because of their name (i.e. Darrelle Revis).  Here are players you should and should not draft:

Draft:

1.)    Jared Allen- 22 sacks, 4 forced and recovered fumbles, and even had an interception.  The teams in the NFC North tend to throw a lot, so that gives him more opportunity to get after the quarterback.

2.)    DeMarcus Ware- 19.5 sacks last year, and he is always playing at a high level.

3.)    Charles Woodson- He will always get his interceptions, and has a way of knowing where the ball will be going.

       Do Not Draft:

1.)    Terrell Suggs- I Know, this may be a surprise, but he got hurt this off-season, he may not be able to come back, and even if your league has a deep bench don’t wait around for him to come back.

2.)    Darrelle Revis- Don’t let the name think he is worth taking him, nobody wants to throw his way so taking someone whose job is to take the ball away is not worth it. 

3.)    Kyle Arrington- This Patriots CB had a great season last year, tied for first in interceptions with 7, but this was his third season, the previous two seasons prior to last year he had only 1 interception.

Kickers

Kickers are usually the very last pick you will make in your draft, a kicker that plays for a team that struggles in the Red Zone is a kicker worth your while to take.  They will be called on a lot to score points, and in turn will help your team out.

Draft:

1.)    Josh Scobee- The Jaguars were pitiful on offense last year, he will probably be called on a lot this season.  He has incredible range, so look for him to give you plenty of points, especially with his kicking skills from 50+ yards.

2.)    Matt Bryant- He had a percentage of kicks that was the highest, which was 93.1%.

3.)    David Akers- He was on a 49ers team that struggled last year in the Red Zone, this could be different this year, but he is worth a pick.  He made 44 kicks last year, definitely worthwhile.

4.)    Sebastian Janikowski- Best long distance kicker in the NFL, always reliable.

Do Not Draft:

1.)    Shaun Suisham- His 74.2% FG percentage was last in the NFL last year, he plays in a stadium with some odd wind gusts, do not take him. 

2.)    Josh Brown- Rams kicker, another bad kick percentage, and on a team that cannot move the ball. 

I hope this three part series was of help, make sure you are care of who you draft.  Make sure that you draft for points, not names of big time players or good team defenses.  Kickers should always be the last pick!