1) Trent Richardson – Alabama – 5′11″ 224 lbs.

Richardson is by far the top back in this years class.  He is the rare running back that is worth a top ten selection.  Richardson led the national champs with 1679 yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground while adding 29 catches for 338 yards and another 3 TD’s through the air.  Richardson is a complete back, a tremendously explosive back who is much faster in pads than he will seem while running his 40 at the combine.  A fantastic blocker both in the passing game as well as in the open field, Richardson will make a prototypical three down back at the next level.  Richardson has much less wear and tear on his legs than most backs entering the draft after their junior season due to his backing up former Heisman Trophy winner and current New Orleans Saint, Mark Ingram.  In my opinion, Richardson will make a much better pro than his former Tide running mate.

2) David Wilson – Virginia Tech – 5′10″ 205 lbs.

Call me a homer if you want, but I see Wilson and Lamar Miller from Miami as a coin toss between two and three on this list.  I give Wilson the edge for his game changing speed and freakish balance.  Wilson is a physical specimen who like Richardson has less wear and tear on his body due to a back up/kick returning role his first two seasons at Tech.  The ACC Player of the year led the Hokies with 1709 yards on 290 carries and picked up 9 touchdowns on the ground.  The junior back also picked up 129 yards on 22 catches and another score through the air.  Wilson’s TD numbers were greatly affected by the presence of Quarterback and goal-line back Logan Thomas this season.  Wilson’s one true fault is ball security.  If the former Hokie can clean up his habit of putting the ball on the ground whichever team selects him could be looking at a Tiki Barber type back at the NFL level.  Wilson is a tad undersized at 205 lbs but has room to add size and has a running style which seems to help him avoid the big hits some backs take with regularity.  Wilson is a fringe first rounder who most likely will follow former teammate Ryan Williams with an entrance to the NFL in the early to mid second round area.

3) Lamar Miller – Miami – 5′11″ – 212 lbs.

Miller is listed as a bigger back than the aforementioned Wilson but is basically the same package size wise.  The former Hurricane is no where near as shifty as Wilson of Richardson but his approach to picking up yards is still very effective.  The redshirt sophomoreled the Hurricanes with 1272 yards on the ground and 9 touchdowns.  He also added 19 catches.  Miller achieved all of this while dealing with extremely inconsistant Quarterback play all year.  Miller does have deceptive football speed and has the potetial of scoring everytime he gets his hands on the ball.  He is a potential three down back once he refines his blocking skills.  Miller is, like Wilson, a fringe first-rounder who should be gone no later than the end of round two.

4) Doug Martin – Boise State – 5′9″ – 215 lbs.

This is the point on the list where the disagreements will begin to take place.  Martin is a compact, well built runner in the Maurice Jones-Drew mold.  The senior back picked up 1299 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground for the Broncos.  Martin missed Boise St.’s only loss of the season versus TCU.  Martin is a staight ahead though the tackles type of runner who plays much bigger than his stature.  Potentially a three down back at the next level, Martin is a good blocker who has very reliable hands.  He seems to be a pre-draft riser as teams are loving his potenital as a kick returner also.  Martin averaged 34 yards a return last season.  Martin could excel early as part of a tandem but with a little refining could eventually move into feature back territory with his plus cutting ability and powerful yet deceptive speed.

5) LaMichael James – Oregon – 5′9″ 185 lbs.

James is slight.  He is tiny.  Can he hold up to the beating of an NFL schedule?  As a full time back I would say no, but as a change of pace back his potenital is limitless.  Think a much more aggressive Leon Washington.  James runs with authority, is extremely shifty and has that “extra gear” the NFL scouts love.  The former Duck ran for 1805 yards and 18 touchdowns is what was his swan song season with Oregon.  James was a super productive college back, racking up over 5000 yards and scoring 53 TD’s.  In my opinion James has no chance of being a everydown back, his build is not conducive to taking the pounding a full time NFL running back has to take.  If a team can pair him with a powerhouse/grinder type back they may have quite a wildcard on their hands.  James may end up returning kicks at the next level due to his explosiveness and rare top end speed.  James is at best a late second rounder but could easily slide in to the fifth round range.

Next five (worth a late look-see) – Chris Polk/Washington, Bernard Pierce/Temple, Cyrus Gray/Texas A&M, Ronny Hillman/San Diego State, Chris Rainey/Florida

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The New York Knicks and friends are getting down on Friday. They host the West’s worst New Orleans Hornets in a contest in which Carmelo Anthony WAS supposed to make his return. But, there’s no reason for him to rush back against the Hornets, especially when Lin makes Carmel0 seem replaceable.

5 TCU players failed a February drug test. Christian University, huh? Should the NCAA forgive them if they say 5 “Hail Mary’s?”

Lebron James told reporters that he would not rule out returning to the Cavaliers. Don’t put any stock into that. He’s just trying not to make more enemies. So, when you see ESPN advertising “LeBron says he could see himself returning to the Cavaliers,” shake your head. The Cavs host the Heat tonight.

Tim Tebow is working out at UCLA on his throwing mechanics. SportScience suggests that it takes 10,000 repetitions to change your muscle memory.

Michael Jordan is on pace to be the worst GM in NBA history. I’m not surprised. He wasn’t that good of a player, either.

Kobe and the Lakers host the Suns tonight on ESPN at 10:30. Kobe still leads the league in PPG and the Lakers boast a 12-2 home record.

The Capitals take on the Panthers in Florida tonight at 7:30. The Capitals are 4 points back from the division leading Panthers and need a victory to tie Toronto for the last spot in the playoffs. Washington has been teetering on the playoff bubble for months.

Tim Wakefield will retire after 19 seasons.

The Virginia Tech Hokies blew a 9 point league with 1:20 left on the clock at Florida State last night.

NC State blew a 9 point lead with 5 minutes left at Duke as well.

The New York Yankees unloaded A.J. Burnett after shopping him around all off-season. The Yankees will get 2 prospects. The Yankees will eat 2/3 of Burnett’s salary. But, money ain’t no thang.

I have had two 9-game win streaks on ESPN’s “Streak for the Cash” this month.

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1) Andrew Luck – Stanford - 6′4″ 235 lbs

Remember when the 2011 college football season was about to begin and Luck was the no-brainer Heisman Trophy winner and eventual number one pick in the upcoming draft?  Well one out of two isn’t bad.  RGIII may have swayed the Heisman voters with his ridiculous, video game style season but Luck is still the top Quarterback and top player in this years selection show.  The only thing the Stanford product did to hurt his chances of being taken at the top was giving NFL exec’s extra time to attempt to find flaws in his game.  In his redshirt Junior season Luck never skipped a beat, throwing for 3517 yards to go with 37 TD’s and 10 interceptions (at least 3 of those picks were a result of a tipped or dropped ball).  Luck is one of the most accurate passers I’ve personally seen at the college level, completing over 70% of his passes for the second consecutive season.  Did I mention that his number one receiver and number one tight end missed significant time this season?  Didn’t seem to matter.  Luck has the intangibles, moxy, smarts, athleticism (he rushed for 200+ yards and a couple scores and even caught a pass) and most importantly command and respect in the huddle.  Luck has learned and excelled in a pro-style offense under the tutelage of current San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh.  The only knock on the kid seems to be that he doesn’t have an absolute cannon for an arm.  Trust me, Luck’s arm is excellent, I’m just reaching to find something close to a fault.  He can make every throw.  He’s confident in his ability but humble as a man, the kind of attributes that teammates love.  Luck will walk into Indy, start immediately and most likely continue to do so for the next decade.  He is the closest thing to a can’t miss QB the league has seen since the man he is bound to replace, Peyton Manning, entered the league.

2) Robert Griffin III – Baylor – 6′2″ 220 lbs

Griffin III stormed onto the major player scene this season.  He had always been an exciting athlete but in his redshirt junior season seemed to put all of the pieces together.  Griffin threw for 4293 yards to go with 37 TD’s and 7 INT’s.  The Baylor product completed 72.4% of his passes attempted.  His ability to make plays outside of the pocket is tremendous (699 yards on the ground and 10 rushing touchdowns) but what Griffin showed the NFL this season is that he is a QB first, a guy willing to stand in the pocket and make the correct read.  Griffin, like Luck, has incredible intangibles.  His leadership and moxy are undeniable.  His athleticism is second to none and his knowledge of the game and willingness to continually shape his craft have scouts at the next level drooling.  Griffin III started this season as a mid round prospect most likely better served to spend his senior season at Baylor getting better and stronger.  That is why they play the games sports fans.  Griffin is by far the number two guy in the draft and his upside could actually be better than Luck’s.  Don’t expect Griffin to slide past pick number two with teams like Cleveland, Miami, and Washington jockeying for postion to move up and grab the former Bear.

3) Ryan Tannehill – Texas A&M – 6′4″ 222 lbs.

Tannehill is the Jake Locker or Christian Ponder of this years draft.  He’s the kind of guy that should probably be a second or third rounder but will go much higher than anyone initially anticipated, potentially in the top 15.  Tannehill started his Aggie career at Wide Receiver after losing the QB battle to two upperclassmen during his first college preseason.  No worries.  All he did was set single game freshman records with 12 catches and 210 yards receiving.  He finished the season with 844 yards and 11 TD’s.  He was the team leader in receptions the following season with 46.  In 2010 he began to see some action at QB and the rest, as they say, is history.  Tannehill became the Aggies number one guy to start the 2011 season.  He threw for 3744 yards and posted 29 TD’s against 15 picks.  Tannehill is not the most accurate passer, though he did surpass 60% for the season.  His decision making is questionable at best sometimes.  He’s the type of passer who will in one moment make one of the best throws you’ve ever seen only to throw into triple coverage on the next play.  A lot of this can be attributed to a lack of time behind center.  His arm strength is evident but that sometimes leads him down the wrong path, a la Brett Favre.  He needs to learn patience.  The team that selects Tannehill would be better served to let him hold a clipboard for a year or two and work with a quality QB coach on the little things such as footwork and progressions.  Tannehill has plenty of work to do before coming a competant starter at the NFL level but the talent is obvious.  If drafted into the right situation with the right coaching, Tannehill could end up being quite a steal.

4) Brock Osweiler – Arizona State – 6′8″ 240 lbs.

Osweiler is a mountain of a man at 6′8″.  He has plenty of room on that frame to add to his 240 lbs. without looking ridiculous either.  The junior put up good numbers in the Pac-12 throwing for 4036 yards to go with 26 TD’s and 13 picks.  Osweiler may have been better served to stay at ASU for another season to work on the holes in his game but with Matt Barkley of USC and Landry Jones of Oklahoma returning to school Osweiler saw an opportunity to be a mid round guy (perhaps higher if some desperate team falls in love with his arm) and decided to jump.  Accuracy is an issue for the big man as evidenced by his somewhat paltry 63% completion rate over his career.  Osweiler also has a tendency to force things when the game isn’t following the way he would’ve liked.  Osweiler is a project but you can’t teach size and arm strength.  Some team will jump at the chance to select him with the idea that in a year or two he could be the man.  I’m not totally convinced of that summation but in a year where the QB position is not a strong as it could be you never know.

5) Brandon Weeden – Oklahoma State – 6′4″ 218 lbs.

The biggest knock on Weeden is his age.  At 28, the former Cowboy should have a few years of pro experience under his belt, instead he will be a rookie in a league where most don’t have a career long into their 30’s.  Weeden has a good excuse for his late start as he played minor league baseball for a few years after high school.  He is a professional and he has learned the hard lesson of not succeeding at the highest level of sports.  Weeden threw for 4727 yards and 37 touchdowns as a senior.  He threw 13 picks but completed nearly 70% of his throws.  Weeden is the type of guy who commands the respect of his huddle.  Teammates want to play for him.  His decision making is sometimes suspect as he allows his arm strength to override common sense but if he takes time to set his feet and make his reads Weeden is capable of making most of the NFL type throws.  If Weeden were 23, he’d be a borderline first rounder.  I see Wheedon as a better Chris Weinke, the kind of guy who could start right away due to his maturity but is probably not the franchise type passer a team can rely on for years to come.

Honorable mention (well worth a late look-see) – Nick Foles – Arizona Wildcats, Kirk Cousins – Michigan State, Kellen Moore – Boise State, Case Keenum – Houston, Ryan Lindley – San Diego State

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Gisele Bundchen was ripped by the media for an e-mail she sent to her friends and family asking them to pray for her husband, Tom Brady, prior to the Superbowl. People pray for God to bless their food and nourish their bodies. The food is going to nourish your body whether you pray to God or not. So, what’s so wrong with her asking friends and family to pray for “Tommy?” She didn’t go to the public to ask for prayer. She asked friends and family.

After the game, Bundchen made headlines for telling the media, “My husband can not fucking throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time. I can’t believe they dropped the ball so many times.” Which…. is about what every person was thinking when Welker, Branch, and Hernandez let catchable balls in crucial situations slip through their fingertips. So, why did everyone get all up-in-arms because Gisele threw a whiny wife tantrum? Because she sounded like a whiny, bitter wife. But, that’s all you can really say about it. Or is it?

Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants’ 2nd string and washed up tailback, took to the airwaves in an attempt to burn Bundchen for taking a shot at New England’s receivers. “She just needs to continue to stay cute and shut up,” Jacobs told reporters. Once you’re done shaking your head in disgust by this subtle act of chauvinism, realize that Jacobs has two 1,000 yard seasons in his career and averaged 3.8 yards per carry. Decades from now, people will remember Tom Brady and his super hot Supermodel girlfriend. But, no one will remember Brandon Jacobs, the second string running back on the Superbowl winning New York Giants, and his 4-at-best wife. You don’t see Eli Manning ripping Gisele. Just saying.

Lack of intelligence shines through when these millionaire players make idiotic remarks in the media. Jacobs – you know who’s going to be rich and famous 10 years from now while you’re broke and waving around your two Superbowl rings? Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen. Enjoy your Superbowl and don’t say dumb things. I know it’s hard. Gisele will stay cute. Have fun with your 4.

Manly looking M.I.A flipped the world the bird. Kind of funny when you end the performance with “World Peace.”

Football is over. It’s bittersweet. I’m in the mood for Spring and Baseball. March Madness, Spring Training, Opening Day, and the hope that the Orioles will be above .500 (which lasts for about 30 games) is a lot to look forward to.

The Orioles traded Jeremy Guthrie. It was made official this morning. Maybe they didn’t want to pay 10 million dollars for the losing-est pitcher of 2012. The Orioles received Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom in return – not much. Guthrie was a fan (and Twitter) favorite.

What a great half-time show. Madonna was clearly lip-syncing, but anything is better than Fergie’s awful non-lip-syncing performance of yesteryear. M.I.A. flipped the bird to the camera during her 30 second cameo. One-hit-wonders have no right to “fuck you” the world. But, what did you expect from a hip hopper trying to make a name for herself. M.I.A. appeared to say “I don’t give a fuck” while flicking off the camera. I hope she doesn’t “give a fuck” if I don’t buy her shitty music. Female rappers…. psh….

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is considering eliminating the Pro Bowl. And I STILL won’t watch it.

Duke lost to Miami at home. I don’t know if I’ve said this before, but Duke is overrated this year. (It’s funny, because I’ve said it 1,000 times)

In a year where the Patriots, Packers, and Saints were unstoppable, the Giants won.

The Superbowl Commercials weren’t as good as some years. Can we quit it with the car commercials? People buy Toyota Camry’s because they’re cheap and get good gas mileage, not because they’re fancy.

Elite Eli or Best ever Brady? That question will get answered on Sunday. Will Eli punch his ticket to Canton and go down as one of the best playoff quarterbacks ever? Will Brady win his fourth Super Bowl and move into the Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw conversation?

Vegas has New England favored by three points. If you have listened to anyone on t.v. or radio, you would think New York was the favorite. The Giants bandwagon is starting to get crowded. Since they won the NFC, I have heard that Eli is better than Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers, that Manningham would be the number one receiver if he played for the Patriots, and how dominant their defense has been.

I’m not buying it. Eli is pretty good, but he is not his brother. Peyton turned Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark ,and even Austin Collie, into great receivers. Without him those guys disappeared. Eli has had a better team around him and that is why he has had a better playoff record. You don’t win road playoff games unless your team loses regular season games. If he wins another Super Bowl, I will be more than happy to call him an elite quarterback, but not until then. The Giants  have a great group of receivers with Nicks, Cruz, and Manningham. Without them, I don’t think Eli gets mentioned in the great quarterback debate. However, I would still take the experience of Branch over the speed of Manningham any day. The Giants’ front four are good, but it doesn’t make them a great defense. They have been helped throughout their playoff run with conservative offensive play calling, fumbles, and dropped passes. They haven’t played a quarterback like Brady,during the playoffs. Yes, they played Rodgers, Ryan, and Smith but those guys, combined, don’t have the playoff numbers that Brady has accumulated.

It’s almost scary how little is being said about the Patriots. The biggest story has been the health of Rob Gronkowski. Unlike Eli, Brady makes his receivers stars and not the other way around. Brady turned, a declining, Randy Moss into a record setting receiver; much like he did with Gronkowski this year. Under-sized Wes Welker has become a 4 time pro bowler and 3 time NFL reception leader since joining New England. If you play ppr fantasy football, wait on a receiver and take Welker as your number one. You can thank me later.  Deion Branch wouldn’t be the first receiver to win the Super Bowl MVP award, since Jerry Rice, without Brady. Even if Gronkowski isn’t at full speed, I think Brady will be just fine. The Patriots will use three tight end sets, with plenty of motion and shifts, to both run and throw the ball effectively. Aaron Hernandez will line up at multiple positions. He will cause match-up problems for the Giants, as a receiver, blocker, and even running the ball. I see him catching a shovel pass that slows the Giants pass rush and breaks their spirits.

New England will limit the big plays through the air and play a bend but don’t break defense. I look for them to use a variety of delayed zone blitz schemes. This will allow them to show less before the snap and force Eli to ,consistently, make good decisions. After facing the running games of Denver and Baltimore, the Patriots won’t be intimidated by Bradshaw and Jacobs.

New York will be limited to field goals early, while New England will be scoring touchdowns. A balanced, time consuming, attack will frustrate Manning and the rest of the Giants. Causing them to take more risks, on both side of the ball. Manning will throw the ball up for grabs too many times, resulting in interceptions.

New England 34 – New York 23

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This Peyton Manning vs. Jim Irsay stuff is getting dicey. We all knew it would. What if Andrew Luck is a bust? What if he ends up being another Ryan Leaf? If the guy makes questionable facial hair choices, how are you going to trust him with your franchise? Peyton Manning does things behind center that very few people are capable of. Peyton Manning could very well be the best quarterback OF ALL TIME. Letting him go could send your franchise into a complete tailspin. You’ve got no pass rush, no secondary, and no running game. You’re going to put Andrew Luck behind center with no weapons and ask him to win games with a porous defense. Luck will inherit an offensive line that gave up 35 sacks this year. Luck will be in a position to fail and the Colts will be the next Jacksonville Jaguars while Peyton Manning goes elsewhere and wins playoff games.

Don’t compare the Colts situation to the Brett Favre situation. The Packers had an amazingly talented young team that was taken over by a one-of-a-kind star like Aaron Rodgers, who SAT BEHIND a veteran before taking over a talented team.

The Lakers are now 1-7 on the road after falling to the Bucks last night. Kobe had a decent all-around game with 8 rebounds and 9 assists to go with his 27 points. They travel across the border for a match-up with Minnesota tonight.

Carmelo Anthony got out of Denver like he wanted. The Nuggets sport a 14-5 record while Carmelo’s Knicks are 7-13. Maybe ‘Melo is the problem?

The Washington Wizards have won 2 of 3. Don’t call it a comeback.

The Heat host the Bulls today at 3:30 in a preview of your future Eastern Conference Final. I can’t wait.

Are you more likely to watch the NHL All-Star game today or the NFL’s Pro Bowl? Neither is a completely acceptable answer.

Tiger Woods finished 3rd in the Abu Dhabi Championship. He has now finished in the top 3 of his last 3 stroke play tournaments.

Unranked Iowa State upset #5 Kansas yesterday.

Unranked Pittsburgh defeated #10 Georgetown.

Murray State remains undefeated.

#4 Syracuse narrowly escaped West Virginia 63-61 at home.

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I want you to imagine winning the jackpot on any lottery ticket. It could be a few hundred dollars or several million. Now, I want you to imagine giving it back because they didn’t give you crisp, new bills. Unless you already have a lot of money laying around, that sounds pretty stupid. That is how I feel about any team not willing to take a chance on Peyton Manning’s health. At least any team that hasn’t already hit the jackpot with a Tom Brady, Drew Brees, or Aaron Rodgers.

Peyton is due a $28 million dollar bonus in March if he is still with the Colts. Several people believe that he will be cut because of the timing and his health. If that is the case, where would he want to play? Here is my top five if I were Peyton.

5. Tennessee Titans – Manning would get to return to the state where he is still worshiped. Few players are still loved like he is in Tennessee. Even though he never won a national championship, he is arguably the best player to play on “Rocky Top”. The Titans also have a good running back and capable receivers. They also gave up the second fewest sacks last season.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars – Don’t you think Maurice Jones-Drew deserves someone like Manning? The entire team does, really. Last season they finished 6th in total defense and MJD was the NFL rushing leader. The Jags do have first year quarterback Gabbert, but after finishing 32nd in passing yards last season, he could learn a lot from Manning.

3. New York Jets – New York is probably the only city big enough for two Mannings. Peyton would be in a major market, which I think he would like. He has had a ton of commercials and his Saturday Night Live United Way skit is hilarious. He could be the missing piece for the Jets. Shonn Greene ran for over 1,000 yards. Receivers Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress both finished, tied for 11th in the NFL, with 8 touchdowns. I’m not sure he would want to deal with the current Jets drama but winning would fix everything.

2. Miami Dolphins – The Dolphins struggled early last season, but rallied to win six of their last nine. However, that didn’t save their coach. Joe Philbin was hired as head coach and named Mike Sherman his offensive coordinator. Sherman and Manning would make a great pair. Sherman has plenty of head coaching experience, including his time in Green Bay. In 2003, Brett Favre led the NFL touchdowns passes under Sherman. There, he would have 1,000 yard guys in Brandon Marshall and Reggie Bush.

1. Houston Texans – Current quarterback Matt Shaub only has one year left on his contract and is coming off of a foot injury. It would make plenty of sense to trade him and pick up Manning. The Texans could get something for Shaub before he becomes a free agent and Manning would make the Texans a Super Bowl contender. Peyton would give them the right amount of time to decide on Yates or draft a quarterback later. Manning paired with the running game of the Texans and Andre Johnson really doesn’t seem fair. That combination paired with the NFL’s 2nd ranked defense would be tough to beat.

All of the teams except New York are in states that don’t have an income tax. That could be a factor in his decision but I think winning a Super Bowl will be the biggest. Three of the teams are in the AFC South. If I were Peyton I would want every chance to make the Colts regret cutting me. The Texans give him the best chance at beating them twice a year, winning a Super Bowl, and making a little more money.

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The NFL season is almost over and the 2011 fantasy football season has been over for a few weeks. Before this season is forgotten and we move on to baseball, I thought I would take a look back and see how the first round should have gone. All of my rankings will be based on standard scoring and a ten team draft. My rankings are largely on how well they performed in weeks 14, 15, and 16. I don’t think week 17 should be a playoff week because so many of the star players are being rested. Otherwise, I would have to rank week 17 scoring leader, Matt Flynn, on this list. Also, it will be based on a few strategies I have developed;  many of which are simple things. Don’t draft a kicker until the last round (unless you’re doing an auction) and take a defense in the last few rounds. Others can be more risky. Unless you’re getting a great deal, don’t take a quarterback too early; same with a tight end. I got Gronkowski in round 13 in my 14 team draft. Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t.

1. Ray Rice – Rice led all running backs and receivers in points scored this season. He posted an impressive average of 15 points in weeks 14-16. If you were lucky enough to play your championship game in week 17, he got you 31 points. That was versus a tough Bengals run defense.

2. LeSean McCoy – He finished 2nd among running backs and receivers in points scored and 1st in touchdowns. Even though he only put up 4 points in week 16, he finished with an average of 16 points per game in weeks 14-16.

3. Arian Foster – Foster scored the 5th most points among running backs and receivers, which is pretty impressive considering that in three games he had zero attempts. Darren Sproles led all running backs with 86 catches for 710 yards, but Foster did more with his catches. Foster had an impressive 11.6 yards per catch and 617 yards. He will likely be your number 1 pick next year.

4. Maurice Jones-Drew – MJD finished the season with 249 points. He was the only threat on the Jaguar’s team this season. As a result, he never had less than 8 points in any game and finished by scoring double digits in his last nine games. At a time in the season when many backs start to get run down, MJD got stronger, posting an insane 22 point average in weeks 14-16.

5. Calvin Johnson – The first receiver on the list. I know many of you would put Rodgers, Brees, or Brady here, but that is not my style. Megatron didn’t have the most receptions or targets this season, but did have more yards and touchdowns than any other receiver. Johnson had a terrible week 14, but averaged 17 points in weeks 14-16. If you add his 30 points in week 17, this jumps to 20.5.

6. Aaron Rodgers – Rodgers scored the most fantasy points this season, even though he didn’t play in week 17. In the 15 weeks he did play, he averaged 25.7 points per game. Sounds pretty good, but you can get similar production from the next four quarterbacks on my list. Rodgers’ touchdown to interception ratio(45-6) is what separates him from the others, including an incredible week 16 performance against the Bears. In that game he threw five touchdowns and zero interceptions.

7. Marshawn Lynch – Lynch made it rain skittles for the Seahawks in weeks 9-16. In those weeks, he never touched the ball less than 22 times per game. In that stretch, he averaged almost 19 points per game; not far from his 17 point average in weeks 14-16.

8. Rob Gronkowski – I know I said to wait on a tight end, but Gronkowski is the exception. Only five receivers had more yards but none of them found the end zone as many times. Jimmy Graham was the only tight end close to being on the same level as Gronkowski. They were the only two to have over 1,000 yards and double digit touchdowns. Gronkowski was the only one to have over 200 fantasy points. If you add the point totals of the 3rd and 4th ranked tight ends, they only scored 17 more points. He was 15th in overall scoring; that’s better than Vick, Roethlisberger, Turner, Welker, and Lynch. I would have ranked him higher had it not been for his 6 point average in weeks 15 and 16.

9. Jordy Nelson – Nelson outperformed the Packer’s number one receiver in every category, except targets. Even though he only had 1 more catch than Greg Jennings, Nelson had 314 more yards and 6 more touchdowns. His 15 receiving touchdowns were 3rd best in the NFL. Calvin Johnson was the only receiver to have more touchdowns, but he had 62 more targets than Nelson. Whether you played your championship game in week 16 or 17, Nelson did his part to help you win. In those two weeks he had 15 catches for 277 yards and 5 touchdowns.

10. Drew Brees – Brees broke many records this year and had the second most points this year. He was your NFL leader in completions, yards, and passing touchdowns. He threw for over 300 yards 13 times and had at least 3 touchdowns in 9 games. The only thing that stopped me from ranking Brees higher were his 14 interceptions.

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It doesn’t matter how you played in the AFC Championship, Joe Flacco. It doesn’t matter if you think you’re a good quarterback or whether everyone else thinks you’re good or not. All that matters is your dumb-ass, hillbilly, handlebar mustache. I couldn’t focus on your play because I had to watch your irresponsible facial hair choice in HD. And don’t do interviews after the game until you shave. Thanks.

The 49ers completed ONE third down the ENTIRE game. Also, Kyle Williams fumbled away any chance of San Francisco pulling that game out. TWICE.

The Washington Capitals went down 0-2 to the Penguins, scored 3 straight goals, then lost 4-3 in OT. The rivalry included many exciting moments, fights, comebacks, and overtime.

Kobe and Gasol had bad nights from the field as the Lakers lost their 3rd straight.

Jorge Posada will retire.

Virginia Tech upset Virginia in Charlottesville last night in a snoozer. The game had a great finish but, with a 23-19 score at half-time, unless you like watching missed shots, you could have done without the first 35 minutes of the game. The Cavaliers had 22 free throw attempts to the Hokies’ 7.