Team Fantasy Preview Peters Out

He can be long-winded, but Michael Lombardi always brings it. He includes a fan perspective on Steve McNair the player that's pretty dead on.

I liked the idea of having team fantasy previews. I really did. As I continued to struggle with the daily task, I realized a few things:

I couldn't be as thorough as I wanted to be.

I wasn't learning much "new" information.

I knew others could do this better.

A vast majority of NFL players, albeit exceptional athletes, are marginal fantasy prospects at best.

There's a tipping point in a draft when you start to fade out and wonder if any of the players you're going to take really are going to matter. While I haven't quite reached that point in my "Whizmaster" draft-only league, I'm getting close.

The addition of IDP makes it a little more interesting. When you start getting into the fourth RB and fifth WRs, then it's time to look at your linebackers, defensive ends, and defensive backs. Do I take Greg Camarillo, the second (at best) wideout for the Dolphins, coming off a mid-season ACL tear but with 80-catch potential, or Osi Umenyiora, who missed all of 2008 but was a stud before that? I ended up with both.

I'm starting to think that 80% of stress related to the fantasy season would be eliminated by having draft-only leagues. Draft, forget, and enjoy your "real" games while the computer figures out who's starting.

I wonder if this recent hot streak means that the Sox are contenders or that they're just going to be slightly better than mediocre. The only shot they have at playoff contention is to trade for Roy Halladay. That would gut the farm system, which is actually not terrible anymore. The Sox signed their first-round pick, College World Series MVP Jared Mitchell, and promptly put him on the DL at low-A Kannapolis.

I'm reading Jeff Pearlman's book on the Cowboys' dynasty of the early 90s. It's a good read so far.