Wed Apr 17 9:26am ET
By JEFF PAUR
Sr Fantasy Writer
Get in the Scout Championship
RealTime Fantasy Sports is once again very excited to bring you the Best Ball Scout Championship this season. This contest is a little different from our normal Best Ball Championship. All these drafts take place before the NFL Draft, so you don’t know where any of the rookies are going this year. You are taking them blindly. This makes for even more strategy come draft day. Should you load up on rookies? Should you just avoid rookies? What is the winning strategy? We are here to help.
First of all, the winner of the Best Ball Scout Championship takes home $10,000. You also win money for finishing first or second in your 10-team league. The cost to enter the contest is just $20. There are a maximum of 10,000 teams in this contest. Rosters are 20 deep with starters consisting of a QB, two RBs, two WRs, one TE and two FLEX spots. There are no kickers and defenses. Remember, this is a best ball contest, so there is no roster management. Your roster is set once the draft is complete.
With that said, we thought it would be a good idea to look at the championship roster from last year to see what won it all. Here it is:
Round 1: Ja’Marr Chase, WR
Round 2: Davante Adams, WR
Round 3: Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR
Round 4: DeVonta Smith, WR
Round 5: Deebo Samuel, WR
Round 6: George Kittle, TE
Round 7: Keenan Allen, WR
Round 8: Joe Mixon, RB
Round 9: Jahmyr Gibbs, RB
Round 10: Dak Prescott, QB
Round 11: Khalil Herbert, RB
Round 12: Jared Goff, QB
Round 13: Raheem Mostert, RB
Round 14: Ezekiel Elliott, RB
Round 15: Jimmy Garoppolo, QB
Round 16: Leonard Fournette, RB
Round 17: Tyler Boyd, WR
Round 18: Taysom Hill, TE
Round 19: Zach Ertz, TE
Round 20: Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB
The big thing to notice on this roster is just one rookie was taken. Obviously, this owner hit big with that one rookie, taking Jahmyr Gibbs in Round 9. Gibbs was the 10th rated fantasy back last season. But the championship team from last year took just one rookie. This owner did not load up on rookies and waited until the middle rounds to take his one rookie target. This could be a good lesson learned for owners this season. Maybe going early on rookies or taking several is a losing strategy. Just something to keep in mind this year.
And like with many best ball owners, this roster had three quarterbacks and three tight ends. This owner did not take a quarterback early, waiting to take a quarterback until Round 10. But the owner did got a little early on a tight end, getting George Kittle in Round 6.
The other winning strategy for this owner was loading up on receivers early while waiting to get his running backs until later. This was a very interesting strategy that worked. The owner took five straight receivers to start the draft and didn’t get a running back until Joe Mixon was picked in Round 8. This is a little riskier but another strategy that can obviously worked. Take those sure thing receivers first and get a bunch of question mark running backs in the mid- to later rounds and hope some hit. The big hits for this owner was his pick of Gibbs and getting Raheem Mostert in Round 13. The Mostert pick likely was the big one that put him over the top, getting the fifth rated fantasy back in the back half of the draft. The owners also had some misses at running back with Leonard Fournette and Clyde Edwards-Helaire but that didn’t impact his team too much, hitting on some of those other backs.
So overall, the winning strategy of last year’s Best Ball Scout championship team was going early on receivers, loading up on running backs with question marks in the middle to later rounds, take few rookies and wait on the quarterback spot.
There are numerous strategies to use but this was the winning one from last year. Just something to think about when drafting your team in this year’s Best Ball Scout Championship. Start drafting here.
Jeff Paur is a two-time finalist for FSWA Fantasy Football Writer of the Year and won the FSWA award for Best Fantasy Football Article on the Web in 2011. He also was the most accurate expert in 2012, winning the FSTA Fantasy Football Accuracy Award. If you have any questions for Jeff, email him at jeff@rtsports.com. Follow Jeff on Twitter @jeffpaur.
The New York Jets fired general manager Joe Douglas on Tuesday, according to sources. The move comes six weeks after the team fired head coach Robert Saleh and just a few days after a one-point loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 11 to drop the team to 3-8 on the year. Douglas had been the team's GM since June of 2019 and he finishes his tenure in New York with a 30-64 record. He'll mostly be remembered for missing badly on quarterback Zach Wilson (second overall pick in 2021) and offensive tackle Mekhi Becton (first-rounder in 2020). His big move to acquire QB Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers in April of 2023 also has not worked out. The Jets had Super Bowl aspirations at the start of this season but will now go into the offseason with a major overhaul likely coming. New York will need to hire a new GM and head coach in the same offseason for the first time since 2015.
From RotoBaller
The Dallas Cowboys fell to 3-7 after their 34-10 loss to the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, but owner Jerry Jones thinks the players still believe in head coach Mike McCarthy. "That losing the team stuff, that's so overblown," Jones said. The Cowboys are currently projected to have a top-10 pick in next year's draft, although McCarthy is in the final year of his contract. The Cowboys have lost their first five home games of a season for the first time since 1989 and they've been outscored by 118 points, the third-highest total though five home games in the Super Bowl era. It remains to be seen if the Cowboys extend McCarthy's contract beyond this year, but at this time, it doesn't seem likely that Jones will make an in-season move to fire the head coach. Dallas faces the division-rival Washington Commanders in Week 12, followed by a Thanksgiving game against the New York Giants.
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From RotoBaller
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From RotoBaller
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From RotoBaller
Newly acquired Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Jonathan Mingo failed to catch a pass from four targets in a 34-10 loss to Houston on Monday. Dallas gave up a fourth-round pick in a trade with Carolina at the trade deadline, but couldn't get the second-year receiver involved at all against Houston. With quarterback Dak Prescott (hamstring) out for the season and the Dallas running game unable to muster much of anything, it's difficult to see the situation improving at all. At this stage, Mingo doesn't need to occupy a fantasy roster spot, even in deep leagues.
From RotoBaller
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From RotoBaller
Houston Texans wide receiver John Metchie III hauled in all three of his targets for 33 yards in the Texans' 34-10 victory at Dallas on Monday night. The third-year receiver was coming off a career game last week against Detroit, and remained involved despite the Texans seeing the return of top receiver Nico Collins. The Alabama product has now played more than 60% of Houston's snaps three weeks in a row and appears to have hold of their third receiver spot now that Stefon Diggs (knee) is out for the season. Metchie won't get much volume, though, so he'll mostly be a desperation streaming option as Houston takes on Tennessee in Week 12.
From RotoBaller
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Tolbert caught just two of his five targets for 21 yards during Monday's loss to the Houston Texans. The 25-year-old posted double-digit fantasy points (PPR) in four of his first eight games this year, initially giving him some low-end WR3/FLEX appeal. However, ever since Cooper Rush has taken over for Dak Prescott (hamstring), Tolbert has fallen off the fantasy radar. He continues to play north of 90 percent of the Cowboys' offensive snaps but has just five catches for 35 yards over his last two games combined. Tolbert can be benched in fantasy leagues with 14 teams or fewer.
From RotoBaller
Dallas Cowboys tight end Luke Schoonmaker caught six of his 10 targets for 56 yards during Monday's loss to the Houston Texans. While Schoonmaker typically operates as the Cowboys' No. 2 tight end, he was bumped up to the first-team offense early in Monday's game after Jake Ferguson (concussion) was ruled out. The 26-year-old has shown off his ability to step up on offense before, catching six passes for 43 yards when Ferguson was sidelined back in Week 2. If Ferguson's concussion forces him to miss Week 12 against the Washington Commanders, Schoonmaker would temporarily become a fringe top-12 fantasy tight end.
From RotoBaller
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver KaVontae Turpin caught each of his three targets for a total of 86 yards during Monday's loss to the Houston Texans. The bulk of his production came on a 64-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. This was Turpin's best game of the year, bringing his season totals to 20 catches, 267 yards, and two touchdowns. The 28-year-old is a talented big-play threat but doesn't have the volume needed to justify rostering him in leagues with 14 teams or fewer.
From RotoBaller
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb turned 12 targets into eight catches for 93 yards during Monday's loss to the Houston Texans. He also tallied a 13-yard rush. Even with the Cowboys' offense faltering under Cooper Rush, Lamb was able to be productive, turning in 18-plus fantasy points (PPR) for the fourth time this season. This was his highest fantasy point total this season in a game where he failed to find the end zone. The Cowboys' No. 1 receiver should continue to see heavy volume moving forward, which will allow him to remain in the low-end WR1 tier for fantasy purposes.
From RotoBaller
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From RotoBaller
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush completed 32 of his 55 pass attempts for 354 yards, one touchdown, and one interception during Monday's loss to the Houston Texans. He also fumbled twice, but both were recovered by the Cowboys. All in all, Rush put together a solid fantasy showing by racking up yardage during garbage time. This was enough to reward fantasy managers who may have opted to stream him in Week 11. Moving forward, Rush will drop back down to the QB3 tier. He faces the Washington Commanders next Sunday.
From RotoBaller
Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell finished his team's 34-10 victory at Dallas with four catches for 54 yards on seven targets. Interestingly, it was exactly the same stat line as No. 1 receiver Nico Collins, who returned to the lineup following a prolonged absence. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud completed passes to eight different receivers, but running back Joe Mixon accounted for all three of Houston's offensive touchdowns. Dell and the Texans will look for a breakout day against the Tennessee Titans in Week 12.
From RotoBaller
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud completed 23 of 34 passing attempts for 257 yards with no touchdowns and an interception in a 34-10 victory at Dallas on Monday. The second-year quarterback saw the return of top wide receiver Nico Collins, but running back Joe Mixon did most of the offensive damage by scoring three touchdowns. Stroud completed passes to eight receivers in the game, but has now thrown just two touchdown passes in his past five games. The Houston signal-caller will look for a better performance in a solid matchup in Week 12 when the Texans take on the floundering Tennessee Titans.
From RotoBaller
The Houston Texans saw top wide receiver Nico Collins haul in four passes for 54 yards on seven targets during a 34-10 victory at Dallas. The star wideout's return to the field after a hamstring ailment landed him on injured reserve was a bit underwhelming, as he finished with exactly the same stat line as fellow wide receiver Tank Dell. However, it was running back Joe Mixon who stole the show, scoring all three of the Texans' offensive touchdowns in the convincing win. Collins and the Texans' passing game will have a great chance to break out against a reeling Tennessee team in Week 12.
From RotoBaller
Houston Texans tight end Dalton Schultz set a season-high with five catches for 33 yards in the Texans' 34-10 victory against the Dallas Cowboys. The big tight end drew seven targets, which tied for the team lead, but did most of his work within short yardage. The former Cowboy still has not scored this season, but Houston has only two passing touchdowns in its past five games as a team, so receiving touchdowns have been few and far between. Schultz and the Texans will look for better against the struggling Tennessee Titans in Week 12.
From RotoBaller
For the fifth consecutive week, Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon surpassed 100 rushing yards and found the end zone on Monday at Dallas, finishing with 153 total yards and three scores in the 34-10 win. The veteran running back kept up his hot streak with 109 yards on 20 carries, to which he added two catches for 44 yards. Mixon broke a 45-yard touchdown run on Houston's first drive, scored from a yard away later in the first quarter, and capped off the win with another one-yard touchdown. Five straight games of 100-plus rushing yards and a touchdown ties a Super-Bowl-era record. Houston's RB1 will look to keep the momentum going in Week 12 against Tennessee.
From RotoBaller
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From RotoBaller