Empty the Bench

By Brian Spencer

On Tuesday, August 31, the dons of Empty the Bench joined friends and peers for the annual football nerd-out fest that is the ETB Fantasy Football League Draft. This year’s draft was one of the most challenging, stressful test of wills to date with 12 teams, 15 rounds of picks, and no kickers to thin the field out. Over the next few days we’ll reveal the results team by team, and take a quick look at how each one fared; compare and contrast with your league, and let us know your take in the comments section.

Disclaimer: many of our team names are lewd, childish, and downright stupid. We make no apologies for this.

Team:

Ol’ Fay (Picked twelfth overall)

The Picks

1. (12) Drew Brees, QB, Ne Orleans Saints
2. (13) Ryan Mathews, RB, San Diego Chargers
3. (36) LeSean McCoy, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
4. (37) Anquan Boldin, WR, Baltimore Ravens
5. (60) Mike Sims-Walker, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
6. (61) Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, New York Giants
7. (84) T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR, Seattle Seahawks
8. (85) Heath Miller, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers
9. (108) Steve Breaston, WR, Arizona Cardinals
10. (109) John Carlson, TE, Seattle Seahawks
11. (132) Nate Burleson, WR, Detroit Lions
12. (133) Steve Slaton, RB, Houston Texans
13. (156) Mario Manningham, WR, New York Giants
14. (157) Baltimore, Team Defense
15. (180) Kevin Boss, TE, New York Giants

Best Value:

Heath Miller, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers: Now entering his sixth season, Miller remains one of the more underrated tight ends in fantasy football as he comes off a career-best effort in ’09 that saw him catch 76 passes for 789 yards and 6 TDs. That’s 28 more receptions than he had the previous year, an indication that Roethlisberger and the offensive coaching staff have more faith in him–and perhaps need to lean on him–more than ever. You can’t argue with drafting a quality, every-week starting TE at the top of the eighth round; Miller clocked in behind Jason Witten last year by less than 2 fantasy points in our scoring format.

Biggest Reach:

T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR, Seattle Seahawks: Though you just never know with aging possession receivers like Housh–see Derrick Mason–reports of out Seattle training camp have been dismal concerning the former Bengals great. The Seahawks’ offensive line remains porous, we have little faith in Matt Hasselbeck (who coincidentally turns 35 years old the day before Housh turns 33, later this month), and with this team likely going nowhere this season, don’t be surprised if snaps are gradually, steadily, taken away from Houshmandzadeh and given to youngsters like Deon Butler, Golden Tate, even “Big” Mike Williams.

Summary:

A great deal of pressure goes with having two picks in a row–you have to nail both of ‘em because you won’t get a chance to make amends for another 23 selections. Drew Brees and Ryan Matthews were logical picks at 12th and 13th overall–we’ve seen both go earlier in the first round–and Ol’ Fay did well to grab Mike Sims-Walker and Anquan Boldin in the fourth and fifth rounds to solidfy the receiving corps. We love the upside of Ahmad Bradshaw at the top of the sixth.

After Brees, though, there are a number of question marks here. How well, and how quickly, will Boldin mesh with his new team and new quarterback? Can LeSean McCoy carry the fulltime load? Now in his pivotal third season, will Sims-Walker take the next step, or flatline in a shaky Jacksonville offense? Who’s going to put up big fantasy stats, consistently, besides Brees?

An interesting team built on a solid foundation, but depth and a possible lack of a home-run threat are concerns that might need to be addressed. Ol’ Fay needs one or two of those post-eighth round fliers to pan out.

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