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August 31, 2008
Update (Finally!) - Preseason Results Posted
First, I'd like to apologize for the lack of updates lately. I've been moving to my new place. I'm all moved in now with functioning Internet, so we're back in business. I'm calculating the preseason data right now, so that I can export it to you. While it's doing that. Let's look that the top performers (at QB, RB and WR) for the preseason! First, Quarterbacks:
+---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | name | pos | pts | zscore | team | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | M. Schaub | qb | 30 | 2.150000 | HOU | | D. Brees | qb | 30 | 2.145000 | NO | | J. Cutler | qb | 28 | 1.945000 | DEN | | T. Bouman | qb | 20 | 1.140000 | JAC | | B. Basanez | qb | 10 | 1.140000 | CAR | | C. Frye | qb | 20 | 1.135000 | SEA | | J. O'Sullivan | qb | 19 | 1.035000 | SF | | M. Gutierrez | qb | 19 | 1.035000 | NE | | E. Manning | qb | 18 | 0.935000 | NYG | | T. Jackson | qb | 9 | 0.930000 | MIN | | D. Orlovsky | qb | 25 | 0.800000 | DET | | M. Bulger | qb | 16 | 0.735000 | STL | | J. Delhomme | qb | 15 | 0.630000 | CAR | | T. Edwards | qb | 15 | 0.630000 | BUF | | D. McNabb | qb | 15 | 0.630000 | PHI | | D. Garrard | qb | 22 | 0.600000 | JAC | | A. Rodgers | qb | 22 | 0.596667 | GB | | D. Carr | qb | 21 | 0.530000 | NYG | | A. Feeley | qb | 7 | 0.530000 | PHI | | B. Johnson | qb | 14 | 0.530000 | DAL | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+
Now, Let's look at wide receivers:
+---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | name | pos | pts | zscore | team | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | D. Mason | wr | 9 | 3.150000 | BAL | | V. Jackson | wr | 8 | 2.680000 | SD | | N. Burleson | wr | 7 | 2.200000 | SEA | | B. Marshall | wr | 13 | 1.965000 | DEN | | T. Wilson | wr | 6 | 1.730000 | CLE | | R. Davis | wr | 6 | 1.730000 | CHI | | S. Smith | wr | 6 | 1.730000 | CAR | | J. Walker | wr | 6 | 1.730000 | OAK | | D. Hixon | wr | 11 | 1.490000 | NYG | | G. Jennings | wr | 11 | 1.490000 | GB | | L. Evans | wr | 10 | 1.255000 | BUF | | D. Jarrett | wr | 10 | 1.255000 | CAR | | J. McCareins | wr | 10 | 1.255000 | TEN | | M. Bradley | wr | 10 | 1.255000 | CHI | | C. Johnson | wr | 10 | 1.255000 | DET | | L. Moore | wr | 15 | 1.253333 | NO | | B. McMullen | wr | 14 | 1.096667 | WAS | | K. Walter | wr | 9 | 1.020000 | HOU | | T. Williamson | wr | 9 | 1.020000 | JAC | | T. Ginn | wr | 9 | 1.020000 | MIA | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+
Finally, running backs:
+---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | name | pos | pts | zscore | team | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+ | T. Duckett | rb | 33 | 2.323333 | SEA | | D. Williams | rb | 19 | 1.890000 | CAR | | M. Barber | rb | 16 | 1.455000 | DAL | | D. Sproles | rb | 16 | 1.455000 | SD | | J. Chatman | rb | 23 | 1.356667 | NYJ | | J. Arrington | rb | 23 | 1.356667 | ARI | | K. Smith | rb | 21 | 1.163333 | KC | | A. Bradshaw | rb | 21 | 1.160000 | NYG | | C. Taylor | rb | 14 | 1.160000 | HOU | | A. Hall | rb | 13 | 1.015000 | DEN | | R. Brown | rb | 11 | 0.725000 | MIA | | A. Peterson | rb | 11 | 0.725000 | MIN | | T. Hunt | rb | 16 | 0.680000 | PHI | | L. Johnson | rb | 10 | 0.580000 | KC | | J. Harrison | rb | 15 | 0.580000 | CLE | | R. Cartwright | rb | 10 | 0.580000 | WAS | | R. Williams | rb | 15 | 0.580000 | MIA | | T. Minor | rb | 15 | 0.580000 | STL | | D. Foster | rb | 10 | 0.580000 | SF | | M. Pittman | rb | 15 | 0.580000 | DEN | +---------------+------+------+----------+------+
I'm unsure of how much to use this data. At first, I'm tempted to almost use this data exclusively - it's more recent but pretty unreliable. First, it's no indicator of team success or of the team game - hell, the Lions went 4-0 in the pre-season but only Calvin Johnson appears on the list above. Second, some players don't get much playing time, particularly great players that want to avoid injury. I suspect this is why you don't see Manning or Brady on the above list.
Despite the lack of consistency, we can some insight from the above figures:
- Upcoming Stars - Players that perform exceptionally well in the preseason but don't have much of a history may be great draft picks or free-agents in your league. They're probably undervalued in the default draft rankings.
- Strategic Signaling - Teams that spend a lot of pre-season time working on the passing game may be preparing for a big season of passing intensive offense (teams like NO, HOU and NYJ)
Posted by haydenth at August 31, 2008 10:46 AM