Midweek Special

One of the cooler features now available to yahoo sports is the fantasy “profile” which allows you to look back at thumbnails of previous leagues. A quick glance back at the 2004 inaugural VUFSA draft will show you that damn, there were some legitimate steals and misfires that went on. Sure, I could save the content for later, but I’ll be in Pennsylvania next week and won’t have time to do a top ten, most likely, so here’s a midweek fix. The Top Five Things That Could Have Been Different Back in the Day.

5. What if JR Radcliffe had taken a running back before the seventh round? I swear this was an auto-draft, as I don’t think I would have gone about it this way, but I was the only owner to not take a running back in the first round (they were a hot commodity then, too.) and didn’t get a back until the SEVENTH, when Tiki Barber stepped into my life and my bedroom. But the rest of my running back corps – William Green, Julius Jones (of two years ago) and Chris Perry were spew-worthy. If you're gonna spew, spew on this: Jerome Bettis and Nick Goings carried my runner-up team for most of the season.

4. What if Peyton Manning had gone earlier than pick 12? I know running backs are more highly prioritized than quarterbacks these days, but Andy Viano still got the original STEAL OF THE DRAFT when 11 players – including Priest Holmes (1), Deuce McAllister (5), Ahman Green (7), Jamal Lewis (10) and Marshall Faulk (11) went ahead of him. Oh yes, and Deuce went to Viano.

3. What if someone had jumped on these other steals early? Steven Jackson was a 15th round draft choice by Eli Gieryna. Willis McGahee was Gieryna’s 17th round selection and Champ took Antonio Gates in the 18th. Of course, my own choice of Drew Bennett in the 16th round proved to ultimately have playoff consequences, smiting all of Eli's good selections.

2. What if Eli hadn’t taken Priest Holmes first overall? If I recall correctly, it was a contest between LDT and Priest for the top overall pick, with most experts pointing to Priest. Gieryna later traded that commodity to Lincoln Souzek, a keeper consideration that never developed, but if Gieryna had taken LDT instead of Priest, Ed Schillinger (with the second pick) may not be the powerhouse he is now. Yes, I know I just jinxed you. I will cut off your Johnson. Andrew Stem followed with Shaun Alexander.

1. How the fuck does Kevan Barlow keep getting drafted prominently? He was a first round choice this year, strangely, by Ed Schillinger, but he was a FOURTH round choice in the original draft by Champ, and a third round choice by me one year later. We are smart people. Someone needs to put a stop to this.