NICKBAKAY.COM FF RANKINGS – 2009 VERSION 2.0

My schedule has been truly hectic as I shoot the new Kevin James movie “Zookeeper” on location, so alas, I don’t have time to write the logic behind all this, but trust me, I have been studying up -- as I did last season when I placed FIRST in the Pro Forecast Magazine expert rankings poll against a bevy of the FF world’s elite pickers and prognosticators.

A quick check of my earlier ranks will show that I was indeed a pioneer of the now popular pick of Matt Forte at #1 – a pick I see emulated in tons of mock drafts leading up to the real deal in the coming weeks. Will he still prove trendy when the games are real? We shall see, but this update should give you a contrarian edge when you are building your championship-caliber squads.

RUNNING BACK

1. Matt Forte
2. Adrian Peterson
3. Michael Turner
4. Maurice Jones-Drew
5. Deangelo Williams
6. Chris Johnson
7. Steve Slaton
8. Ladanian Tomlinson
9. Brandon Jacobs
10. Brian Westbrook
11. Steven Jackson
12. Frank Gore
13. Clinton Portis
14. Ryan Grant
15. Pierre Thomas
16. Marion Barber
17. Kevin Smith
18. Jonathan Stewart
19. Darren McFadden
20. Cedric Benson
21. Lendale White
22. Knowshon Moreno
23. Derrick Ward
24. Thomas Jones
25. Ronnie Brown

WIDE RECEIVER

1. Larry Fitzgerald
2. Andre Johnson
3. Randy Moss
4. Greg Jennings
5. Calvin Johnson
6. Steve Smith
7. Roddy White
8. Reggie Wayne
9. Anquan Boldin
10. Marques Colston
11. Wes Welker
12. T.J. Houshmandzadeh
13. Brandon Marshall
14. Chad Ochocinco
15. Vincent Jackson
16. Dwayne Bowe
17. Antonio Bryant
18. Roy E. Williams
19. Bernard Berrian
20. Terrell Owens
21. Santana Moss
22. Hines Ward
23. Braylon Edwards
24. Anthony Gonzalez
25. Deshaun Jackson
26. Santonio Holmes
27. Eddie Royal
28. Derrick Mason
29. Laverneus Coles
30. Devin Hester

QUARTERBACK

1. Drew Brees
2. Kurt Warner
3. Tom Brady
4. Aaron Rodgers
5. Peyton Manning
6. Phillip Rivers
7. Donovan McNabb
8. Matt Schaub
9. Jay Cutler
10. Carson Palmer
11. Bret Favre
12. Tony Romo
13. Matt Hasselbeck
14. Matt Ryan
15. Ben Roethlisberger
16. David Garrard
17. Kyle Orton
18. Jason Campbell
19. Trent Edwards
20. Byron Leftwitch
21. Shaun Hill

TIGHT END

1. Jason Witten
2. Dallas Clark
3. Antonio Gates
4. Greg Olsen
5. Tony Gonzalez
6. Owen Daniels
7. Kellen Winslow
8. Visanthe Shiancoe
9. Anthony Fasano
10. Chris Cooley
11. John Carlson
12. Kevin Boss
13. Dustin Keller

DEFENSE

1. Steelers
2. Giants
3. Jets
4. Eagles
5. Vikes
6. Ravens
7. Titans
8. Chargers
9. Packers
10. Buccs
11. Bears
12. Cardinals
13. Panthers
14. Cowboys
15. Dolphins

KICKER

1. David Akers
2. Stephen Gostkowski
3. Ryan Longwell
4. Jason Elam
5. Rob Bironas
6. Kris Brown
7. Robbie Gould
8. John Kasay
9. Mason Crosby
10. Jeff Reed
11. Ryan Lindell
12. Nate Kaeding
13. Matt Bryant
14. Joe Nedney
15. Neil Rackers

FANTASY FOOTBALL SUPREMACY !!!

NOT TO BRAG, BUT...

Every year, I take great pride in participating in the annual "Masters Forecast" poll which will appears in Fantasy Football Pro Forecast magazine, one of the elite publications in the industry. In the past three years, competing with elite, full-time fantasy football pros, I have placed 4th, 3rd, and in 2009... FIRST.

Here are the details of this year's edition. There are 12 participants in the 12th running of the poll.

The results of the 2008 Masters Forecast are as follows

Company Overall QB RB WR TE PK DEF Total

1 NickBakay.com 940 2349 3170 3328 1029 782 1348 12946

2 Sirius.com 988 2055 3192 3380 1026 892 1298 12830

3 CBSsports.com 886 2009 3078 3444 966 954 1458 12795

4 FantasyGuru.com 961 2149 3202 3366 1047 760 1304 12789

5 Yahoo.com 889 2051 3056 3446 1082 762 1420 12706

6 TFC.com 867 2009 3174 3252 928 950 1386 12566

7 FootballDiehards 835 1967 3228 3352 952 940 1270 12544

8 DraftSharks.com 862 2142 3058 3436 1064 772 1180 12514

9 KFFL.com 831 2184 2962 3064 917 852 1218 12028

10 FoxSports.com 763 1834 3004 3082 1075 742 1442 11942

11 WCOFF.com 846 1915 2918 3450 1054 764 964 11910

12 ESPN.com 829 1929 3084 2818 987 728 1136 11511

What else is there to say, except... your welcome!

We just held the Pro Forecast draft for the upcoming season, and in the spirit of "it's never to early to hold an online draft," my rankings, as well as some standard Bust/Sleeper queries, are here for all to admire/study/mock:

NICKBAKAY.COM FF RANKINGS, version 1.0 -- 5/15/09

1ST ROUND BUST PREDICTION

Larry Fitzgerald – Look, I will still pick this dominant superstar if he’s there late in round one, but consider the mitigating factors: Kurt Warner’s durability now that he’s in his late 60’s, the imported Steeler mentality which inevitably means running the ball more, the prospect of a full season from Boldin vulturing points, not to mention the emergence of Steve Breaston, and it must be said: The Madden jinx. I want to be wrong here, but of all the typical #1 picks, this one could dominate… or leave you wondering why you didn’t draft a solid #1 running back.

SLEEPER PREDICTIONS:

Assigned divisions: NFC South, AFC South

1) Matt Ryan, QB Falcons: Sophomore slump be damned, I think the addition of Tony Gonzalez to an existing arsenal of Roddy White, Michael Turner, Jerious Norwood and Michael Jenkins gives this kid a full compliment of weapons. He’ll be sitting there fairly late in the rounds, and he might just give you enough at QB to take home a trophy.

2) Anthony Gonzalez, WR Colts - While no Marvin Harrison probably locks in the biggest year ever for Dallas Clark, Gonzalez fits the profile of a bust-out year waiting to happen: He has clearly won Manning’s trust, he is entering the vaunted third year when WR’s make their move, and hell, the Colts gotta throw the ball to someone…

3) Nate Washington, WR Titans -- While clearly a run-first team, Kerry Collins may have found a playmaker. For my money, Washington consistently outplayed Santonio Holmes whenever he had the chance in Pittsburgh, and now the team that never seems to have a valid WR might just have one sitting there very late in your draft. Round 14? What do you have to lose?

RUNNING BACK

1. Matt Forte
2. Michael Turner
3. Adrian Peterson
4. Maurice Jones-Drew
5. Chris Johnson
6. Steve Slaton
7. Deangelo Williams
8. Ladanian Thomlinson
9. Brian Westbrook
10. Clinton Portis
11. Brandon Jacobs
12. Frank Gore
13. Steven Jackson
14. Marion Barber
15. Ronnie Brown
16. Lendale White
17. Kevin Smith
18. Ryan Grant
19. Derrick Ward
20. Cedric Benson

WIDE RECEIVER

1. Larry Fitzgerald
2. Andre Johnson
3. Randy Moss
4. Greg Jennings
5. Steve Smith
6. Calvin Johnson
7. Roddy White
8. Reggie Wayne
9. Anquan Boldin
10. Brandon Marshall
11. Dwayne Bowe
12. Vincent Jackson
13. Marques Colston
14. Roy E. Williams
15. Bernard Berrian
16. Antonio Bryant
17. T.O.
18. Santana Moss
19. Hines Ward
20. Braylon Edwards

QUARTERBACK

1. Drew Brees
2. Kurt Warner
3. Tom Brady
4. Aaron Rodgers
5. Peyton Manning
6. Donovan McNabb
7. Phillip Rivers
8. Matt Ryan
9. Tony Romo
10. Carson Palmer
11. Jay Cutler
12. Matt Schaub
13. Kyle Orton
14. Jason Campbell
15. Trent Edwards

TIGHT END

1. Jason Witten
2. Dallas Clark
3. Tony Gonzalez
4. Antonio Gates
5. Greg Olsen
6. Kellen Winslow
7. Owen Daniels
8. Visanthe Shiancoe
9. Anthony Fasano
10. Chris Cooley

DEFENSE

1. Steelers
2. Eagles
3. Jets
4. Ravens
5. Vikes
6. Titans
7. Bears
8. Giants
9. Chargers
10. Buccs
11. Cardinals
12. Packers
13. Panthers
14. Cowboys
15. Dolphins

KICKER

1. David Akers
2. Stephen Gostkowski
3. Ryan Longwell
4. Jason Elam
5. Rob Bironas
6. Kris Brown
7. Robbie Gould
8. John Kasay
9. Mason Crosby
10. Garrett Hartley
11. Ryan Lindell
12. Nate Kaeding
13. Matt Bryant
14. Joe Nedney
15. Neil Rackers

TOP 25 ALL POSITIONS

1. Matt Forte
2. Michael Turner
3. Adrian Peterson
4. Drew Brees
5. Larry Fitzgerald
6. Maurice Jones-Drew
7. Kurt Warner
8. Chris Johnson
9. Steve Slaton
10. Andre Johnson
11. Randy Moss
12. Greg Jennings
13. Steve Smith
14. Calvin Johnson
15. Deangelo Williams
16. Ladanian Thomlinson
17. Brian Westbrook
18. Tom Brady
19. Clinton Portis
20. Brandon Jacobs
21. Frank Gore
22. Aaron Rodgers
23. Roddy White
24. Brandon Marshall
25. Dwayne Bowe

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