Don't Get Hazed On Draft Day!

In this edition of the Brew Crew Corner we look at the 2008 rookies and how you should go about drafting these players in this year’s Fantasy Draft. Now, I usually don’t focus just on rookies but since the NFL Draft has passed, it’s still fresh on everyone’s mind and I want people to start thinking about how you should tier them. During the season, check out Paul Agruso’s weekly article on rookies.

The real NFL teams focus on every position in football when going about their draft. The Fantasy Football owner needs to focus on four positions, the QB, RB, WR & TE. If you play in an IDP league then you would look at the rookie defensive players. You can count on Doug Gaskell for that. We are going to focus on drafting rookies on offense.

Rookie QBs

If you’re looking for some immediate Fantasy Football impact at the QB position, you’re not likely to find it in the 2008 rookie class. While Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco and maybe even Chad Henne might see the field, none should be on your roster during your draft unless you’re in a dynasty draft or a deep keeper league. Leave these guys for the waiver wire. Last year I saw JaMarcus Russell and Brady Quinn drafted towards the end of some drafts only to provide owners little help. Use that late draft on another RB, WR or back-up TE.

Don’t believe me? Let’s take a closer look at the rookies who have started in the NFL since 2000.

Here are the Top 10 Rookie QBs since 2000. Rookies are in order of Fantasy Points.

Since 2000 73 rookie QBs attempted at least one pass during the regular season. Vince Young has had the best rookie season of those 73. He finished the season as the 12^th best QB in 2006. Chris Weinke threw the most yards of any rookie QB with 2931 in 2001. Ben Roethlisberger threw the most TDs with 17 in 2004, while Bryan Leftwich threw the most INTs with 16 in 2003.

Notice the only QB to rank in the top 15 among QBs in the league the year their rookie year was Vince Young. He finished 17^th in his sophomore season. The bottom line is rookie QBs over the last 8 seasons have been average at best. If you draft a rookie QB, your expectations should be 1500-2500 yds passing with 10-15 TDs and 10-15 INTs to match. In 2008, 13 QBs were drafted.

Rookie RBs

Rookie RBs are going to be your best option in terms of making an impact for your Fantasy team. It is the one position where a rookie can come in right away and produce. Unlike the QB & WR position that require more time to develop, the rookie RB has had success in their 1st year. We saw this last season where Adrian Peterson stepped in and made some noise. This has owners eyeing RB’s like Darren McFadden, Felix Jones and Rashard Mendenhall.

Here are the Top Rookie RBs since 2000. Rookies are in order of Fantasy Points