Open Thread: The Final Countdown
Final Pre-season Ranks Updated!
This summer has seen an influx of new readers to the Draft Guide and a very large number of people join as free sign-ups, as well! Welcome to you all. If you’re a free sign-up, you always have access to the Open Threads which publish weekly throughout the season, and periodic emails discussing injuries, breakout players and the like. If you’re a subscriber, you get access to everything I write which is typically 1-2 posts per week in the first half of the season, mid-season Ranks and Cheatsheets (for those in redraft leagues) full January transfer coverage and more.
As a thank you to you all - and to encourage more of you to subscribe - there is a 20% forever option there. That’s $4/month and if you subscribe now the annual subscription will include all of the 2022-23 Draft Guide! If just 10% of the free sign-ups elected an annual subscription (or if all of the current monthly subscribers converted to an annual plan) I could actually turn down all my other writing offers and *just* write the substacks. That would be awesome and would mean I could increase the frequency of articles to at least two per week, plus the weekly Open Thread. Everyone wins.
So if you’ve been thinking about it, or just want to get the guides at a discount, here’s your link for 20% off either monthly or annual subscriptions FOR. EVER. Your support is amazing and I thank you all.
Anyway, enough with that - onward with the Thread.
This week I published the updated Top 200 and Position Ranks. Both the v.1 and v.2 sheets remain available. I wrote scouting reports for every fantasy-relevant player to join EPL in the last 2+ weeks, and I really like Norwich inking Pierre Lees-Melou:
A regular in Ligue 1 for Dijon and then Nice, where he’s featured for the last four seasons, Lees-Melou has managed 10+ g+a in three of those five seasons, highlighted by 5g, 6a in 2019-20.
We covered how to handle new signings (in light of Lukaku and others coming over after your draft is complete), discussing waiver wire v FAAB, modifications to outgoing transfers, supplemental drafts and more. I strongly recommend every league discuss and impelement FAAB bidding as part of waivers, at the very least:
I very much recommend using FAAB in your waiver process even if you play in a Snake league and especially is you do not plan to use any modification of waivers to handle the transfer windows. There is a significant advantage handed to the WW1 priority in fantasy EPL that does not exist in most other sports where the waiver wire pool is a fixed group of players who either weren’t drafted or have been dropped by other teams in your league.
…and broke down some strategy and highlights from the 10-team Expert Mock. Suffice to say GK were not drafted early, there is significant depth in the middle tiers of DEF and then this old chestnut for stretching your draft to absolute limits:
Mike left the draft with a roster boasting a ton of talent, and no GK. You may have roster requirements that force you to have a valid roster on draft day, but if you don’t you can consider taking another field player instead. The other consideration is how close to the first game week you are draft and/or if your league will not run waivers before GW1. If it’s permissive within the rules, and you will have the time to add a GK before scoring starts, taking another field player provides more depth and a chance to maximize your roster.
The FIRST Open Thread of the season OR The LAST Open Thread of Summer - either way, get your questions in now!
Been asked a couple times for an update Top 200 OFPL. There isn't much changed overall, TBH but here are some significant changes:
1. Lukaku - if he is available when you draft he is a Top 10 overall player. I slot him FW2 behind ONLY Harry Kane and would take him 10/11 overall ahead of Riyad Mahrez.
2. Werner - has to fall because of playing time, not concerns of production. Because the position is so thin, I only have him dropping behind Watkins and is still a top 5 forward just ahead of Firmino in the overall draft.
3. Bailey - rated a Midfielder, Leon Bailey is my M24, bumping Youri Tielemans down a spot. The thing here is, any of those 3-4 names can easily be selected over the others and you can feel good about it. Barnes has the injury concern, Tielemans doesn't get as many g/a as the others, Bailey hasn't shown he can play 2,500+ minutes at the top flight. But all have great upside, as well.
4. Cristian Romero - he is a top 25 defender and can actually replace Keane directly in the ranks. Keane drops over playing time concerns with Mina and Godfrey there to take minutes.
5. Andy Robertson - I don't ever recommend making snap decisions on dropping a player based on an indeterminate absense but it's hard to keep Robbo ahead of Cancelo, Dias, VVD and Shaw. I would not have him drop out of the Top 10 defenders and there will be some leagues where I get him at a discount. Time will tell if that works.
6. Ryan Bertrand - if you don't mind taking him late knowing you're going to drop him once Castagne is healthy, you can add Bertrand to your plans BUT I would not do that at the expense of a season-long starter. Ricardo + Castagne are the starter fullbacks there. Justin is out with his knee injury until November (or later).
Ok - that should catch everyone up.
Hi John, I have a question question and a comment. In my 8-team OFPL I took Chilwell in the 5th and now Alonso started this week. Not entirely unpredictable, but the goal has me nervous. Should I try and grab Alonso on waivers and just hold him as the handcuff. I’d be okay losing the 5th D since I have TAA, Shaw and Coufal as my other D.
Also I took your boy Benramha in the 8th round and got made fun of. Nobody had really heard of him. Clearly I could have taken him later, but let me tell you the G and A felt sweet today and I let them know!
Thanks for your work,
Dave