The busiest fantasy draft weekend is upon us. The 2013-14 fantasy playoffs may be awhile away, but the team schedule of your top players, especially in the latter weeks, should be considered on draft night. By playoff schedule we refer to the teams that your players are up against between weeks 14-16. Our friends at FFToolbox have provided a breakdown of the strength of schedule based on the amount of fantasy points each team has allowed at each position in 2012.
The playoff schedule may span just 3-4 weeks, but these are the ‘win or go home’ games, so for the purpose of this article, we will just focus on the fantasy playoffs schedule. Keep in mind, you should not base your rankings on this schedule, but it can help you move up or drop a player in your rankings or act as a tiebreaker when deciding between 2 players.
QUARTERBACK
At the Quarterback position, the first two players to go off the board in most drafts are Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees. Although, there are other factors that have changed since last season such as Sean Payton returning as Head Coach of the New Orleans Saints and the offensive line issues in Green Bay, the fantasy playoff schedule for each player helps further distance Brees from Rodgers. In weeks 14-17, Green Bay faces the Atlanta Falcons, Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2012, these 3 teams gave up the least amount of fantasy points to Quarterbacks. In other words, If you own Rodgers and he carries your team to the playoffs, he will have the toughest fantasy playoff schedule among all QBs.
Sticking with Quarterback, but on the other side of the spectrum, the Carolina Panthers are expected to have the easiest fantasy playoff schedule. Overall it was a down year for Cam Newton due to the extremely poor start. But he made some adjustments and finished the second half of the year strong. If your leagues does not over-penalize interceptions, you should consider moving Cam Newton up a few spots in your rankings.
RUNNING BACK
Speaking of the Panthers, their Running Backs also have the easiest fantasy playoff schedule with two games against the New Orleans Saints and a game versus the New York Jets. With Jonathan Stewart out for at least the first half of the season, DeAngelo Williams and Mike Tolbert should move up a few notches in your rankings. The Washington Redskins have the third easiest fantasy playoff schedule, which makes Alfred Morris (whom I am proud to say I drafted 211th overall in my fantasy draft last year), an even better pick.
On the flipside, LeSean McCoy and teammate Bryce Brown will face the toughest defenses in the fantasy playoffs. From weeks 14-17, the Eagles play Detroit, Minnesota and Chicago, a trio that combined to give up the least amount of fantasy points to running backs in 2012. With a new coaching scheme in Philly, McCoy should get more rushes, but he will be up against a formidable run defense during the most crucial fantasy weeks of the season.
WIDE RECEIVER
With Arizona’s upgrade at Quarterback in Carson Palmer, a rebound year should be expected for one of the best Wide Receivers in the NFL – Larry Fitzgerald. Unfortunately, Fitzgerald has the second toughest fantasy playoff schedule ahead of him, including the stingy secondaries of the Seattle Seahawks and St. Louis Rams. So, although L-Fitz may carry your team to the playoffs, he will have to line up against the likes of Cortland Finnegan and Richard Sherman in weeks 14 and 16, respectively.
With the addition of Alex Smith at Quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs, Dwayne Bowe should rebound from his disappointing 2012-13 season. KC has the second easiest fantasy playoff schedule playing Washington, Indianapolis and Oakland from weeks 14-16. So although the Chiefs may not be in the reality playoff hunt, Bowe should help your team in your fantasy playoffs this year.
Written by Justin Hasan exclusively for WinMyFantasyLeague.com
Comment below or e-mail him at JHas@WinMyFantasyLeague.com
