BINGO is a league that was basically conceived by combining a couple leagues into one bigger league and adapting a new style of play (at the time) that combined the best features of existing formats into one.

Everyone loved “Draft Day” so we didn’t want to lose that, but we also loved the idea of auctions, we loved the idea of keepers and dynasty format but wanted to sacrafice the fun of player acquisitions every year, we like contracts and salaries, but didn’t like the burden of tracking salaries during the season and hindering trading because dollar values didn’t match talent values once season was in progress.

The end result was a 16 team league with 20 man roster that was part keeper, part dynasty, with auctions and a traditional draft, and a salary cap that was only in effect during offseason auction period.

Our salary cap was our entry fee, what ever players cost is what you paid $150 minimum $200 max. Each team was allowed one “Keeper” that we call the Franchise Player. This player is protected and is no cost against the “Cap”. Each team is also allowed two “Restricted Free Agent” or “RFA” Tags that can be used to semi-protect one or two player either as a single tag on two players, or double tag on one player. RFA’s are available to all teams via an online auction, however if you take another teams RFA you not only pay the bid price, but you are also subject to paying a portion of the other teams cap ($20 per tag) which lowers your cap amount, i.e. you have to spend $200 on $180 worth of player while the other team spends $200 on $220 worth of players. The other team also has the option to take ANY single draft pick in leiu of the money, normally a first round pick whether it be the current year or future pick.

We also have an auction for UFA’s (Unrestricted Free Agents) these players have a minimum starting bid price of $5.00 and does not include any rookies. Once UFA is over we hold our rookie/waivers draft, this is an 8 round draft where teams can draft rookies or any players not acquired during previous auctions. The benefit of drafting a rookie is that they can be signed to a multi year contract (up to 4 years), add in the fact that we allow these players to be Red-Shirted/Taxi Squad for up to 2 years prior to activation and that 6 years total. The 1.01 Pick has a base contract value of $15 while an 8th Round Pick has a base of $2.00 I should also mention that we now treat 2nd year players like rookies so there are more contractable player available.

Following the Draft we have one final auction that we call “The Dollar Auction” where the minimum bid is $1.00 and anyone left is available, and rookies can still be contracted.

If a player is coming off a contract and is retained via one of the auctions the team retaining them has the option to renew the contract at winning bid price, renewable players are popular candidates for RFA tags, and some have been renewed at very high numbers, see Reggie Wayne @ $51 for Derek Pahl. that’s 25% of cap on one WR.

Another neat feature of this league is that we can use current years cap money to pre pay for future years of our contracted players, so if you budget well and build a good team for a low cost you can pay ahead which in turn should give you advantage in that year.

Check out the team I have assembled already for 2009 and note how many players are $0 this season!

QB Tony Romo $0.00 Franchise Player
QB Kurt Warner $10.00 RFA
QB Ben Roethlisberger $13.50 Contract
QB Byron Leftwhich $1.00 Contract

RB Adrian Peterson $0.00 (Prepaid)
RB Maurice Jones Drew $0.00 (Prepaid)
RB Reggie Bush $20.00 COntract
RB Chester Taylor $8.50 RFA and Renewable at that Price.

WR Calvin Johnson $0.00 Prepaid
WR Roddy White $0.00 Prepaid
WR Marques Colston $0.00 Prepaid
WR Devin Hester $0.00 Prepaid
WR Sinorice Moss $13.50 Contract
WR Jacoby Jones $7.50 COntract
WR Drew Carter $6.50 COntract
WR Kelly Washington $1.00 Contract
WR Marques Hagans $1.00 Contract

TE John Carlson $9.50 Contract
TE Anthony Fasano $5.00 Contract
TE Dominique Byrd $5.00 Contract

With my cap adjustments my grand total is $103 which means I am $97 UNDER the salary cap needing only my kicker and defense/special teams. I have some dead weight at WR I will also need to trim to make the room as I am already at 20 players.

In addition to the above players, I also have some diamonds in the rough on the taxi squad that will activate in 2010 including:

QB Chad Henne $11, $12, $13.50 (2013 option $16.50)
RB Rashard Mendenhall $15.50, $17, $18.50 (2013 option $23)
WR James Hardy $14.50, $17, $21 (can get out for $2.50)
WR Dexter Jackson $9.50, $11.50, $14.00 (Can get out for $1.50)
WR David Clowney $1, $1. $1.50
TE Jermicheal Finley $3, $3.50, $4.50

I am smelling a back to back championship this year! That’s right I am defending the title, which happens to be my 3rd in 6 trips. I lost in 1997, and 1999, returned in 2003 to beat the team that defeated me in ‘97, and defended the title in 2004 against the team that beat me in 1999, in 2005 I returned for a third straight Bingo Bowl but lost the game, and decided that the current team needed to be re-tooled. I started cashing out aging players like Shaun Alexander, LT, and Randy Moss for draft picks and future considerations. 2006 was rough, a nine year run as division champion ended and team WILD finished 1-11 (after a 0-11 start and potential first ever 0-12 season!), 2007 looked much brighter, but some bad luck resulted in a 5-7 season and second straight year outside the playoffs! But in 2008 it was back on track, and I am looking to have another great run.

The keys to long term success in these style of leagues are knowing when to unload a superstar while they still have value, doing your research on rookies and drafting well in the late low dollar contract rounds, finding stars for bargain bottom prices can really set you up with a financial advantage over your competitors. While most teams try like mad to trade up from lower round, I love to collect as many 7th & 8th round picks as I can. This year my rookie draft picks are:

1.09
3.01
5.13
7.02
7.07
7.16
8.03
8.04
8.10
8.13
8.16

It may look crazy to have 8 picks in the final two rounds of an 8 round rookie only draft that doesn’t even have IDP’s but trust me when I tell you that this is where some of the most valuable contracts come from.

Keep checking this blog for more update on Team WILD and the BINGO League!

Paul is a Moron!

What does this trade mean for Tom Brady?  The Patriots must feel really confident that Brady will indeed be ready by the start of the season like he says he will be.  I think this is a very good sign for Brady fans!

The Tyler Thigpen experiment is over in Kansas City,  we can stop all the debate of whether or not he will get better this season.  The Brodie Croyle supporters can give it up now too, anyone that had hoped that Croyle would still blossom, but it wont happen in KC.

This also means that the Chiefs wont be drafting a QB in the first round anymore,  heck they probably don’t even have that #3 pick anymore.  Imagine that the Patriots with the #3 Pick! that’s Sick!

Well I guess it’s time for all the mock drafters to go update their mocks,  I can’t wait to see what sort of trickle down effect this has on the entire draft.

It’s difficult right now to say how this effect Winslow’s fantasy value.  Tampa Bay historically hasn’t used their TE much, but this is a new coaching staff, and we don’t know what to expect from Raheem Morris just yet.  Winslow is no doubt an awesome reciever that plays the tight end position, he will absolutley help the Bucs and whomever the starting QB is,  but that doesn’t mean he will remain a top 5 fantasy tight end, especially with the level of talent at the position in the league right now.

As for the Browns,  I really like the kid they drafted last year from Missouri, Martin Rucker, and I think the Browns do to,  Rucker could be a nice fantasy sleeper this year.

The Jets new coaching staff will now begin the process of trying to find a new starting quarterback.  Kellen Clemmens is still going to be around but the Jets are expected to bring in someone to compete with CLemmons for the new starting job.

Favre leaves the game holding many all time passing records, but I am sure you will hear all about those on ESPN and NFL network all week so I wont waste my  time listing them all here.

As the 2008 Fantasy Football season was winding down, I was convinced that Andre Johnson was the best wide receiver in the NFL today, but after watching the performance that Larry Fitzgerald put on in the playoffs, the Super Bowl, and then the Pro Bowl,  I think I may have to rethink that theory.

From a fantasy stand point, I can still make an argument for Andre Johnson purely on the fact that the offensive coordinator Todd Haley is now a Head Coach for KC.  We don’t know if Kurt Warner is returning or if he is ready to hang up his cleats and wait for Canton to call.  We don’t know if Anquan Boldin will be back.  Each of these things could have a negative impact Fitz, where as Andre Johnson is in a situation that should improve next year.

We must also not forget that Calvin Johnson is a Phenom, and finished in the top 5 amongst the wide outs this year despite the horrific quarterback situation in Detroit.   Another name that could be huge in 2009 is Roddy White,  another year with Matt Ryan should only mean improvement for both young players.

Brett Favre is headed to the Big Apple after the Packers strike deal with the NY Jets.

As much as I would like to say that the Brett Favre saga has ended, the fact of the matter is that it has just begun.  Brett Favre in the city that doesn’t sleep is going to thrust him into limelight even more!  How much do you want to bet that he becomes a regular on FOX News like Tiki Barber did!  Maybe he want’s to bang Madonna!  Live from New York it’s Saturday Night!

How does this effect fantasy owners? We’ll those who drafted already and took a flyer on Favre, good for you!  For those who drafted Klemens and or Pennington (I know many who hand cuffed them Chris Hall…) it sure sucks to be you!  You can go ahead and upgrade the whole Jets offense!  Jerricho Cotchery should shoot up your boards, as should Laverneous Coles.   I would also say move rookie Dustin Keller up, but you gotta wonder if Bubba Franks gets more of a look than he would have if his old QB wasn’t the new QB.   Thomas Jones was somewhat of a sleeper in that I think he’s been undervalued in most drafts thus far, but the addition of Favre will only mean good things for the running game too!

Look for Chad Pennington to be traded or released soon.

The general rule of thumb is that a Middle Linebacker from a 4-3 defense is normally your best bet when looking for a fantasy linebacker,  these guys are normally tackle machines and the bread and butter of your fantasy defensive squad.  Last year only 5 of the top 35 scoring LB’s were from a 3-4 scheme.  8 of the top 12 scoring fantasy LB’s were Middle LB’s from a 4-3 defense  , 2 were the weak side backer in a 4-3, and 2 played in a 3-4 scheme.  Last year the best fantasy LB was indeed from a 3-4 and that was rookie Patrick Willis.  If you show me a fantasy expert that called that one least year, I will show you someone that’s been on an alien spaceship.

The fact of the matter is that with a couple rare exceptions your odds are statistically better on hitting with a middle linebacker from a 4-3 defense.  Patrick Willis and David Harris, who was #12 top scoring linebacker last year, could be those exceptions like Donnie Edwards has been in the past.

In 2006 only 4 of the top 35 played in the 3-4,  and again 8 of the top 12 were MLB in a 4-3,  3 were WLB, and only one, Donnie Edwards, played in the 3-4.

In 2005 was again only 4 of the top 35 played the 3-4,  and 9 of the top 12 played in the middle, 2 were weakside, and again only one guy, Donnie Edwards, from a 3-4 finished in the top 12.

Over the past three years,  the 3-4 Linebackers that were amongst the top 35 were as follow:

2007

#1 Patrick Willis - 49ers
#12 David Harris - Jets
#14 James Harrison - Steelers
#27 Stephen Cooper - Chargers
#33 DeMarcus Ware - Cowboys

2006

#6 Donnie Edwards - Chargers
#15 James Farrior - Steelers
#31 Demarcus Ware - Cowboys
#33 David Harris - Jets

2005

#2 Donnie Edwards
#20 Mike Vrabel - Patriots (*Note scoring system gave points for his TD’s playing TE)
#29 James Farrior - Steelers
#33 Larry Foote - Steelers

The above data is a nice snap shot into what an exception like Edwards is to the rule, and Patrick Willis and David Harris, both of whom were rookies cracking the top 12 could be,  but the guys that are finishing around #30,  i.e. DeMarcus Ware, Cooper, Foote… that’s what you normally “expect” from a ILB from a 3-4 at best.

Watch a player like Zach Thomas,  he’s played the middle in a 4-3 his whole career and been a top producer finishing #11 in 2004, #4 in 2005, #3 in 2006 and he averaged 23 points a game in the 5 games he played in 2007,  the best being 29 and the worst 18,  that averages out to #2 behind Willis last year.  He will be lucky to crack the top 30 in his role with Cowboys.  He may very well be their leading tackler, but that will probably equate to 100 tackles as opposed to 160.

At the other extreme, watch a player like Jonathan Vilma who will be returning to his natural position of MLB for the Saints.  Vilma, like Willis, led alllinebackers in fantasy scoring as a rookie, however the Jets switched from a 4-3 to a 3-4 in Vilma’s second year and his fantasy point production dropped like a lead ball.  I predict that if he stays healthy Vilma will return to one of the top fantasy linebackers.

In our last FSG Fantasy Football Show the topic was Running Backs, there really wasn’t much debate as to who was the favorite as LT was the unanimous number one. After that it seems like everyone has their own ideas. I like Adrian Peterson, Cliff Likes Steven Jackson, Greg Kellogg seems to like Frank Gore, our Guest Mike Harmon has Brian Westbrook as his number two, the 2008 RB rankings won’t see a lot of consensus this year! If you missed the Fantasy Football Radio Show you can listen to the podcast here.

Here is a snap shot of my Top 10, It’s important to note that I am ranking these guys based on a PPR (Point Per Reception) Scoring System.

1 - Ladainian Tomlinson SDC
2 - Adrian Peterson MIN
3 - Brian Westbrook PHI
4 - Steven Jackson STL
5 - Joseph Addai IND
6 - Reggie Bush NOS
7 - Marion Barber DAL
8 - Frank Gore SFO
9 - Larry Johnson KCC
10 - Willis McGahee BAL

You can see my complete and most current 2008 RB Rankings Here.

In a recent Fantasy Sports Group Radio Show, we talked about nothing but defensive lineman for 90 minutes.  Whether you are new to IDP or you have been playing in IDP leagues for years, you will find it to be very informative.   You can listen right from the FantasyFanatic.com front page, look for the Talk Shoe media player, or simply Click Here to visit our Talk Shoe Page.

We discussed the difference in value of Defensive Ends vs Defensive Tackles,  and how schemes come into play, the 3-4 vs. the 4-3 and how it translates to fantasy football.   The rule of thumb is that Defensive ends out produce Defensive Tackles in fantasy football, but did you know that the top 20-25 normally always come from a 4-3 Scheme.

To See my most current Defensive Line (DL) Rankings Click Here.