You just spent countless hours devoting yourself to the fantasy draft, poring over countless notes, articles, statistics and everything else you could read in order to have the best possible draft. You arrived at the draft confident and prepared, knowing that you were going to have the preeminent draft possible this season. The past 4+ hours were spent drafting the players you believe will carry you to the league championship. You know that the draft went smoothly and you weren't left scrambling at any point. More than likely, as a Footballguys.com subscriber, you were ready thanks to our articles, features and tools such as our very own Draft Dominator and the fantasy draft unfolded beautifully in front of you, leaving you great value to pick up throughout the process.
After the draft, you have a couple cold ones, talk some trash with your league mates and then have a choice to make:
- Congratulate yourself for having the perfect draft and wait for the season to begin
or - Take stock of your roster, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of each position
Many fantasy owners do not take the time to reflect on their own rosters and that is a poor decision. No matter how marvelous your draft was, there will always be some positions stronger than others and it is important to highlight both the strengths and weaknesses of your roster to properly etch out your plan of attack going forward.
After your draft, really take the time to give serious reflection in regards to your roster. Try to look at the players impartially as there are many different aspects of your roster to look at after the draft.
- Bye-week strength and conflict
- Starting lineup strength
- Back up strength
- Best position(s)
- Worst position(s)
- Possible trade bait
Here is a look at a potential draft for an owner in a league where you must start 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, and 1 TD.
|
Pick
|
Overall
|
Pos
|
Player
|
Tm/Bye
|
|
1.09
|
9
|
RB
|
Matt Forte
|
Chi/7
|
|
2.04
|
16
|
WR
|
A.J. Green
|
Cin/7
|
|
3.09
|
33
|
WR
|
Emmanuel Sanders
|
Den/7
|
|
4.04
|
40
|
WR
|
Sammy Watkins
|
Buf/8
|
|
5.09
|
57
|
RB
|
Jonathan Stewart
|
Car/5
|
|
6.04
|
64
|
RB
|
T.J. Yeldon
|
Jac/8
|
|
7.09
|
81
|
RB
|
Rashad Jennings
|
NYG/11
|
|
8.04
|
88
|
QB
|
Tony Romo
|
Dal/6
|
|
9.09
|
105
|
TE
|
Antonio Gates
|
SD/9
|
|
10.04
|
112
|
WR
|
Percy Harvin
|
Buf/8
|
|
11.09
|
129
|
QB
|
Colin Kaepernick
|
SF/10
|
|
12.04
|
136
|
WR
|
Terrance Williams
|
Dal/6
|
|
13.09
|
153
|
RB
|
Terrance West
|
Cle/11
|
|
14.04
|
160
|
DT
|
Arizona Cardinals
|
Ari/9
|
|
15.09
|
177
|
PK
|
Stephen Gostkowski
|
NE/4
|
|
16.04
|
184
|
WR
|
Devin Funchess
|
Car/5
|
Take this information and break it down by position.
|
Pos
|
Player
|
Team
|
Bye
|
|
QB
|
Tony Romo
|
Dal
|
6
|
|
QB
|
Colin Kaepernick
|
SF
|
10
|
|
RB
|
Matt Forte
|
Chi
|
7
|
|
RB
|
Jonathan Stewart
|
Car
|
5
|
|
RB
|
T.J Yeldon
|
Jac
|
8
|
|
RB
|
Rashad Jennings
|
NYG
|
11
|
|
RB
|
Terrance West
|
Cle
|
11
|
|
WR
|
A.J. Green
|
Cin
|
7
|
|
WR
|
Emmanuel Sanders
|
Den
|
7
|
|
WR
|
Sammy Watkins
|
Buf
|
8
|
|
WR
|
Percy Harvin
|
Buf
|
8
|
|
WR
|
Terrance Williams
|
Dal
|
6
|
|
WR
|
Devin Funchess
|
Car
|
5
|
|
TE
|
Antonio Gates
|
SD
|
9
|
|
PK
|
Stephen Gostkowski
|
NE
|
4
|
|
DT
|
Arizona Cardinals
|
Ari
|
9
|
Do a detailed breakdown of each position.
- Quarterbacks - Grade: 8/10
- Two capable starting fantasy quarterbacks with some upside heading into the season
- Running Backs - Grade: 7.5/10
- Good starting RB1 in Forte
- Stewart is a good RB2 considering his draft position
- Yeldon is a great reserve back with good upside
- Jennings and West each could be solid options if things fall their way
- Wide Receivers - Grade: 9/10
- Three players are capable of WR1 spot
- Nice reserves in Harvin and Williams
- Bye weeks 7 and 8 could be an issue
- Tight Ends - Grade: 7/10
- Gates is a good fantasy starter, but he will eventually fall off
- Place Kicker - Grade: 8.5/10
- Great kicker in a great situation, but he might start the season slow
- Defenses - Grade 8/10
- A very good defense
Thoughts on this roster going forward
- Quarterback position is strong and shouldn't need much attention going forward.
- Some question at the running back position in behind the starting two.
Wide receiver is a big strength. Possibility to package one of the receivers to increase running back strength. - Tight end, kicker, and defense starting strength is good. There is no depth, but these positions usually have solid players available on most leagues' waiver wires.
Once you have identified the various weaknesses and strengths of your fantasy roster, it will be time to take steps to strengthen the roster. You will be able to use trades and waiver wire pickups to turn around the weaker aspects of your roster, and you should take the time to target teams that have weakness in positions that you have significant strength (receiver in the example above). One of the better aspects of the Draft Dominator is the ability to see the projected total scoring for each of the franchises in your league. You can compare your draft to the others in your league using this feature and can target teams with strong running games, great quarterback play and questionable receiver ability just by clicking a button. It is a fabulous tool that helps you truly break down your fantasy draft.
Now you are ready to begin tweaking your roster and to start the season in your quest for the championship. Track all of the fantasy football news leading up to and through the entire season using our free Daily Updates, Footballguys News Blogger and The Shark Pool and you will be well on your way to a dominant fantasy season.