Fantasy Football Ruins Franchises and Players

Ok, so sometime back I wrote a blog about why I hate fantasy football. In brief it was because it changed the way I watch the NFL so I no longer have a team, now I just want my guys to do good each week. It seems that now that mentality has taken over for owners and general managers as well. Ok, so maybe not they don't want the team to do well part. Let me explain.

Today the Jets released Tim Tebow. You can also read my blog about Tim and my thoughts on him as a NFL quarterback. During the ESPN spot on his release the talking head waxed on and on about his dismal stats. How he's in the bottom of QBR rating, passing efficiency and so on. What she didn't say is his won-loss record as a starting quarterback in the NFL.Then they went on to say he probably wouldn't find another team willing to open a spot on their roster for him. Their NFL gurus talk about his lack of arm strength, his inconsistent throws,etc. What they are really saying is he doesn't produce enough statistical numbers to justify keeping him on a roster. So instead the Jets are going to hitch their wagon to Geno Smith. Smith who did lead his team twice to be co-champions of that powerful Big East Conference also had a couple of guys on his team that were all-americans, a title he never got. But because he has excellent arm strength and a quick release he is projected to un-seat Mark Sanchez as the starting QB for this coming season according to one ESPN personality. So you take guy like that over a guy who won a Heisman, numerous awards, works hard, is good in the locker room, and has an 8-5 record as a starter and is 1-1 starting in playoff games.

So if you are looking for a winner, Tim definitely deserves a look. If you are looking for a guy who is going to be a great fantasy QB for your fans, then maybe he doesn't deserve a spot on the roster. He's going to make mistakes, but I don't think he will ever top the butt fumble play of Mark Sanchez. He's not going to throw for 5k yards in a season. But what he will do is win when given the chance. It's just a shame that the age of fantasy football numbers has made it all the way to the front office of NFL teams now. It's just a statistical game now.

Except it really isn't. At the end of the day coaches are evaluated on wins and losses. So are the GM's. So why didn't they see that in NY with the Jets. Because of the ego of Rex Ryan. If you have read his autobiography you will know that Sanchez is HIS guy and Ryan can never be wrong about that one call. So you stick with a guy who was last in QBR ranking last year and it got you on the not top ten plays each week on Sportscenter for his infamous fumble. And you miss the playoffs. And then you trade your top defensive player.  And you get rid of the offensive coordinator who had gotten you to the playoffs the year before.

Maybe the best thing is Tim is out of New York. But the fact that they waited till after the draft seems to point that they were hoping to use him as trade bait for the draft and that didn't work out. It doesn't help Tim make another roster now, but that is just the business of the NFL. My guess is that if you want the next Tebow jersey you had better see if you can get it shipped from Canada! Just don't be surprised if the team on the front of that jersey is playing for the Grey Cup in the very near future. And some GM up there will look like a genius for giving a guy with low stats the chance to prove again the old line that is attributed to Mark Twain: 'There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.'"^[1]