We're getting close to the end of free agency. At some point if it doesn't stop naturally we'll stop accepting bids on new players and play out the string.

The next step will be developing your depth charts and game plans, and seeing what your exact injury situation is. That part is not up and running yet, but will be soon.

Updated. That secondary is ridiculous.

Super Bowl or bust.

Pretty salty cornerbacks you have there

Now that it appears that I am done in FA, here was my strategy in bidding 300 clams for Bowener. I looked at the total money available to all the teams in FA and the current bids on all players at that time. Even assuming that only 70% would be spent, the market was still under financed by a factor of 3. In other words there was a lot of cash out there chasing limited talent. I also projected that prices on players would go way up once people started realizing that the talent pool was shrinking. That situation is now manifest in league 1 where my $72 won't buy a 2nd tier starting guard.

I was also facing a situation where I really wanted one of the top 3 CBs, and there were more than 3 teams chasing those three players. Patty had just out bid me on Chris Harris Jr. and I could see a situation where those corners would slowly be bid up in value until I could no longer afford one of them. Therefore I vowed to get my corner in the next 3 day bidding period thereby avoiding bidding wars. It appeared that Bowener had dropped to the third most desirable CB. I liked him over Harris, since the Broncos might play him at nickle all year. Bidding up Sherman was likely draw counter bids. So Bowener became my guy. I doubled his bid value making him the highest bid CB on the board. Now, people bidding for a CB would be targeting Sherman and Harris instead of my guy. I felt pretty good that the three day clock would expire before the market caught up with him again.

It turns out that the league 2 market didn't get that aggressive during my 3 day window, and as a result I overbid him a bit -- it looks like a bid of 250 or even less would have been enough. But if you look at the late market in league 2, people are bidding at or near 200 for mediocre FS, LT, and RT. So relative to the late market, I think I got value. I got my man and was able to still address most of the other key needs I had going into FA. I would have liked to get a value player at guard, and I think Phillip Wheeler is an interesting luxury player due to his ability to brink heat from the OLB position. A more accurate bid on Bowener would have allowed me to get my guard, but Wheeler was out of my reach regardless. So overall I'm very pleased with my FA acquisitions in league 2. I have a dynasty roster that should allow me to compete for a number of years.

Good strategy.

I tried it in league 1....didn't work.

I jumped Sherman from 190 to 250 hoping to scare off bidders in the early process. Nope - he ended up going for over $400.

I tried over-bidding Desmond Bryant up to the 90's and beyond from the 60s (I finally bailed at around $125). He went for 170 or some other such insanity.

Like CD, I was worried about scarce talent towards the end really inflating the pricetags of guys. I finally got his strategy to work when I was able to get Tarrel Brown for $115 when Chris Harris went for over 200, but for the most part, the market was in full-blitz mode from the very start. There's just very little inflation left to be had when tags started out so high.

We have 3 teams that had a full-on FA frenzy strategy and it just turned the FA process into a bloodbath. Rob Jackson, who I was able to get in a late bid for $13 in league 2 went for something like $140 in league 1.

It's been crazy.

If Harris is playing nickle, then he's moving there while playing on the outside in base. He played almost twice as many snaps as the 3rd CB in Denver in 2012. He played more snaps than Browner did, in fact. Add to that the fact that he's better than Browner and 5 years younger.

I like your idea of a sudden large bid to avoid the narrowing market, I just question the target.

I got Desmond Bryant in both leagues. $165 in league 1 and $8 in league 2.

You you've paid 50+ for him had I jumped over here a little sooner.

Bryant's among the better interior pass-rushers in the league; I can't believe nobody felt he was worth $9 over here.

Black = Holdover from last year
Red = Rookie
Green = Free Agent
Orange = Trade


QB-- Eli Manning, Dennis Dixon
HB-- Alfred Morris, DeAngelo Williams, Jahvid Best, Darius Reynaud
FB--none
WR-- Victor Cruz, Emmanual Sanders, Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown, David Nelon, Arrelious Benn
TE-- Jermaine Gresham, Matt Spaeth
C--Alex Mack, Fernando Velasco
G-- Uche Nwaneri, Ryan Miller
RT-- Orlando Franklin
LT-- Michael Oher, Jason Peters

DT-- Geno Atkins, Jurrell Casey, Sen'Derrick Marks, Akiem Hicks
DE-- Jason Pierre-Paul, Michael D. Johnson, Kroy Biermann, Jarvis Jenkins
ILB-- James Laurinaitis, Kelvin Sheppard, Demorrio Williams
OLB-- Kaluka Maiava, K.J. Wright, Mychal Kendricks, David Hawthorne, James Anderson, Everette Brown
CB -- Brandon Flowers, Brandon Browner, Cortez Allen, Trumaine Johnson, Joselio Hanson, Ron Brooks, Ras-I Dowling, Richard Marshall, Stanford Routt
FS -- Harrison Smith
SS-- Kam Chancellor, Louis Delmas, Donte Whitner

K-- Conner Barth
P-- Mike Scifres
KR/PR-- Darius Reynaud

I was scratching my head over the acquisition of Rodgers-Cromartie by the Broncos. Makes me think they aren't that high on Harris.

Bowener missed 4 games due to suspension. He was back for the playoffs so that seemed like minimal damage. Bowener was a 2nd year player last year, I didn't realize that he was 27 when he entered the league. That probably would have tipped my hand back to Harris.

If the market is under bid by a factor of 2 or 3, you need to make your jump bids at least a double bid over current value to beat the inflationary curve. A 50% up bid won't do it. But League 1 was super aggressive so it may not have worked even then.

In league 1 I ended up just investing in contracts. I was hoping to land 2 or 3 value free agents, but came in late and only got one. I played in the Sandbox Bowl last year, but with my lack of playmakers at RB and WR, I'll feel lucky to make the playoffs.

BROWNER!!!!

Say it with me, CD - Brandon Browner.

LMAO I paid $300 for him, I'll call him whatever I damn well please.

I don't understand the FA market in league 2. It's like people don't care. I just scored this guy for 10 bucks.

http://www.pro-football-reference.co...F/FootLa20.htm